WORLD OF
SHIPS
FROM THE PUBLISHERS OF SHIPS MONTHLY
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS Cunard Line’s Famous Transatlantic Liners WORLD OF SHIPS ● TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
£8.99 No.19
Transatlantic Queens cover.indd 1
08/07/2021 11:13
ENJOYED THIS MAGAZINE?
TRY SHIPS MONTHLY GET 6 ISSUES FOR JUST £21
SUBSCRIBE
& SAVE
27%
*
Read by seafarers and enthusiasts all over the world, with a unique mix of shipping and maritime news Sections focusing on ferries, cruise ships, warships, preserved vessels, tugs, tankers and cargo ships Expert-written features on ships old and new; historic companies, modern cruise liners and passenger ferries Profiles of docks and harbors in the UK and worldwide
Visit www.shop.kelsey.co.uk/SMXS521 Or call 01959 543 747 and quote SMX521 *When you pay by direct debit. For full price options, visit the website. Savings are calculated on a full UK subscription rate.
SHIPS_SP_JUN21.indd 1
07/06/2021 14:33
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS Cunard Line’s Famous Transatlantic Liners
STEPHEN PAYNE Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 3
09/07/2021 09:54
THE AUTHOR
S
tephen Payne is a naval architect and is best known for designing the Cunard liner Queen Mary 2. He became interested in passenger ships as a young boy through watching a feature about the Cunard liner Queen Elizabeth (1940) on the BBC Children’s television programme Blue Peter. Stephen studied Naval Architecture at the University of Southampton 1981 to 1984, and was President of the Royal Institution of Naval Architects from 2007 to 2010. He is a Royal Designer for Industry, a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Naval Architects and the Royal Academy of Engineering, and was awarded the OBE from HM the Queen for Services to Shipping. He has Honorary Doctorates from the Universities of Southampton Winchester and has been awarded the Merchant Navy Medal.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I
would like to thank editor Nicholas Leach for all the hard work in translating the texts and illustrations into this Bookazine. I would like to thank Michael Gallagher, formerly Cunard Line’s Historian and Public Relations Executive for graciously agreeing to write the Foreword and for sharing his personal archives of the unfulfilled Cunard projects Q3 and Q5. I would also like to thank Michael along with Todd Neitring for assisting with sourcing illustrations. Finally, I would like to acknowledge the support of family and friends during the preparation of this work.
4 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Liners
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 4
09/07/2021 09:54
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
THE TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS OF CUNARD
CONTENTS
CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION .................................. 8 Cunard Line’s origins and the background to the transatlantic Queens.
CHAPTER TWO CUNARD: THE EARLY YEARS............9 The role of the mail contract in Cunard’s early years.
CHAPTER THREE EDWARDIAN SPLENDOUR ........... 16 The careers of Lusitania, Aquitania, Mauretania and Berengaria.
CHAPTER FOUR THE FIRST QUEEN ........................... 28 Queen Mary of 1936, her design, career and survival at Long Beach.
CHAPTER FIVE THE SECOND QUEEN ....................... 44 Queen Elizabeth of 1940 and her role in wartime.
CHAPTER SIX THE FOURTH QUEEN .......................... 62 Queen Elizabeth 2 and her long career cruising and crossing.
CHAPTER SEVEN THE FIFTH QUEEN......................... 82 Queen Mary 2, a transatlantic liner for the 21st century.
CHAPTER EIGHT THE DREAMLINERS ........................ 94 Cunard’s Q3 and Q5 projects for ships that were never built.
Transatlantic Liners I World of Ships I 5
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 5
09/07/2021 09:54
Dedication To all frontline workers who secured services and the NHS during the Coronavirus pandemic, including Lance Corporal Gareth Bryer who was seconded to perform Covid testing for an extended period far from home.
6 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 6
09/07/2021 09:54
FOREWORD
T
ransatlantic liners have captured the public’s imagination and made headlines across the centuries, but very few have captured people’s passion and attention, or made as many headlines, as Cunard’s transatlantic Queens. Having dominated the Atlantic shipping lanes since the mid-1930s, these Cunarders have created almost a century of history while safely carrying millions of passengers and crew, as well as troops, on thousands of crossings between two great continents. Each Cunard Queen is different, and each has her own remarkable story to tell. Queen Mary carried the hopes of a nation for a brighter future as it emerged from the Great Depression. Queen Elizabeth became a war hero after dashing across the Atlantic untried and untested. Queen Elizabeth 2 rescued Cunard and survived the 1970s carrying the transatlantic mantle towards the new millennium. And Queen Mary 2 is one of this century’s greatest maritime engineering triumphs. All four can claim fame, adoration, controversy, and legendary status in equal measure. Who knows what impression or what history Cunard’s proposed
Queens of the 1950s and 1990s would have generated, but surely these ships would have been trailblazers in their own right and must be acknowledged? Here, they rightfully take their place alongside fleetmates that actually made it to New York. Stephen Payne has written a wonderful account of these magnificent ships. And who better to write such a tribute? He was so instrumental in, not only designing Queen Mary 2, but also patiently ensuring that the project actually left the drawing board to continue the reign of the famous Cunard Queens. When the French Line introduced the fabulous Normandie in 1935, she was heralded as the ‘super Île de France’ linking her to the 1920s ship which caused such a sensation, and I remember telling Stephen when we were returning from the float-out of Queen Mary 2 in 2003 that he had indeed created the ‘super Normandie’ with the new Cunard Queen. Once again, I find myself congratulating Stephen for producing this tribute to the greatest ships, indeed the greatest transatlantic liners, ever built! Michael Gallagher Formerly Cunard Line Historian and Public Relations Executive April 2021
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 7
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 7
12/07/2021 09:23
CHAPTER 1
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS: INTRODUCTION
W
hen the diminutive paddle steamer Britannia left Liverpool on 4 July 1840, bound for Halifax and Boston with a mail contract securing her employment on the route, the future for Cunard looked bright. Indeed, for many years Cunard thrived and dominated the transatlantic route basically unchallenged. However, challenges did evolve and several times the future of the enterprise looked far less than secure as the Line fell behind the competition. Nonetheless, Cunard strived to advance through investing in new tonnage, such as the famous Lusitania and Mauretania in 1907.
The Depression years of the 1930s brought further pressure and Cunard was once again vulnerable, with a massive ship half-built but the funds unavailable to complete her. The solution was to merge with its equally ailing onetime arch-rival White Star Line under a government-brokered deal that included substantive loans to complete the ship and secure funds for a second ship, along with some working capital. The naming of these new ships was also problematic: should Cunard adopt its ‘-ia’ ending, or use White Star’s ‘ic’? The solution was neither, with a new naming nomenclature seeing the introduction of the now classic ‘Queen’ naming. This was originally confined to
ABOVE Brunel’s Great Western heralded the era of transatlantic steamship travel but as a lone ship she couldn’t compete with Cunard.
transatlantic liners, notably Queen Mary, Queen Elizabeth, Queen Elizabeth 2 and Queen Mary 2, but following Carnival Corporation’s acquisition of Cunard in 1998, all Cunard newbuilds are designated Queens. This volume covers the Transatlantic Queens, and describes Cunard Line’s transatlantic liners from Queen Mary (1936) to Queen Mary 2 (2004), and includes a brief look at two proposed newbuilds, designated Q3 and Q5, which did not progress past the drawing board.
8 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 8
09/07/2021 09:54
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
CHAPTER 2
C
CUNARD LINE: THE EARLY YEARS
unard Line owes its origin to the lucrative mail contract offered to tender by the British Government through the Admiralty in 1838. Samuel Cunard was born in Nova Scotia, Canada, on 21 November 1787. He and two brothers were ship owners with a sizeable fleet of sailing ships, but these were not suitable for the mail contract as they relied on the vagaries of the wind and were unable to keep to a reasonable schedule on the North Atlantic. Steamships offered a solution, but these were a relatively new concept. Under the direction of Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the Great Western Railway, which ran from London Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads, formed the Great Western Steamship Company to extend their service from Bristol to New York. Their first ship was the wooden paddle steamer Great Western, which, at 1,320gt, was the largest steamship in the world when she was commissioned
ABOVE Side elevation and deck plan of Britannia of 1840.
BELOW The wooden-hulled paddle steamer Britannia inaugurated Cunard’s services in 1840.
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 9
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 9
09/07/2021 09:54
ABOVE Etruria with her auxiliary sails rigged. Along with Umbria, these ships were the last Cunard express liners with sails.
ABOVE Scythia of 1875 had a smoking room and an electric call bell system for her 300 First class passengers. She also carried over 1,000 passengers in steerage.
RIGHT The 1884-built Etruria. She and sistership Umbria were the last Cunard liners which carried sails. Etruria had many distinguishing features including two enormous funnels.
in 1838. Sailing at nine knots, she consumed 33 tons of coal per day and took about 15 days to make the Atlantic crossing. She was a well-appointed sturdy ship, designed specifically to ride the treacherous seas of the North Atlantic. Lavish accommodation was provided for 128 passengers and 20 servants, with a crew numbering 60. Great Western was eminently
successful, but the service she offered suffered from being based on a single ship. A much larger, even more luxurious iron-hulled screw-propelled steamship followed in 1845, Great Britain, but her transatlantic career was cut short after she ran aground in 1846. She was subsequently employed elsewhere by other owners. Although Great Western Steamship submitted a tender for the Admiralty mail contract, it was awarded to the Samuel Cunard who proposed building three 800gt steamships to maintain a weekly service. The size of the ships
BELOW Persia of 1856 achieved a recordbreaking 13.11-knot speed, but this came at a cost: coal consumption of 145 tons per day made her uneconomic to operate.
was then increased 960 tons, and again to 1,200 tons, while a fourth ship was added to provide the requisite service demanded by the mail contract, and also enable calls at Halifax as well as Boston to be made. These ships were all wooden-hulled paddle steamers with a service speed of 8.5 knots. Passenger accommodation consisted of a dining saloon and cabins for 115, all to a standard considerably inferior to Brunel’s Great Western, as the four ships, Britannia, Acadia,
10 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 10
09/07/2021 09:54
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
ABOVE Umbria and her sistership Etruria were the last single screw ships built for Cunard’s express transatlantic service.
Caledonia and Columbia, were primarily mail and cargo carriers, with passengers as a secondary concern. The enterprise thrived as it provided a dependable, regular, scheduled service which was initially unmatched by any competition. Further larger and faster ships were added by Cunard from 1843, and regularly thereafter, with more emphasis being given to the passenger accommodation. However, Cunard was very conservative in his approach and it was
not until 1855 and the introduction of the paddle steamer Persia (3,300gt) that wood was finally superseded by iron construction, although the use of paddle wheels for propulsion persisted until 1862 and the introduction of China (2,540gt), which employed a single screw propeller. Iron gave way to steel construction with Servia (1881/7,392gt) and with her speed increased to 16.7 knots. Umbria and Etruria (8,127gt) of 1884 were the last Cunard express
liners with a single propeller, and they each achieved a trials speed of about 19.5 knots. They were also the last express liners with an auxiliary sail rig, which was deemed essential if the single shaft broke, a constant danger with the quality of steels available at the time. In service, their averaged best performances across the Atlantic with 14,7000 indicated horsepower from a double expansion three-cylinder reciprocating engine were 18.86 knots westbound (Umbria, May 1885) and 20
ABOVE Partial Deck Plan of Persia 1856, Cunard’s penultimate express paddle steamer.
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 11
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 11
09/07/2021 09:54
knots westbound (Etruria, May 1888). Eleven engineers, one electrician and 109 firemen were employed on board. These two sisters had hulls divided into ten watertight compartments, with most of the bulkheads extending to Upper Deck which necessitated watertight and fire doors to be provided for access. The ships catered for 550 First class and 800 Second class passengers, and their accommodations
were especially considered and ornately executed, with stained glass cupolas, heavy carved furniture, velvet drapes and expensive fixtures leading to their being described as ‘floating hotels’. Umbria and Etruria were impressivelooking ships dominated by two huge funnels and three masts. Cunard and his steamers ruled the Atlantic unchallenged until 1850, when a newcomer emerged on the scene.
Cunard steamers sailed from Liverpool and crossed the North Atlantic, calling first at Halifax, Nova Scotia in Canada, before proceeding to Boston in the United States. This meant that the transatlantic post took a day longer to reach Americans, and, while a major seaport, Boston was not considered to be the economic hub of the country. This was New York, and post was additionally delayed in reaching there from Boston.
ABOVE The First Class Smoking Room onboard the Umbria and Etruria. RIGHT Second Class Smoking Room on board Umbria and Etruria. BELOW When Cunard’s Campania joined the fleet in 1893 she heralded a new era of speed, comfort and amenities.
12 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 12
09/07/2021 09:54
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
ABOVE Campania and Lucania had elegant wood-panelled First class Smoking Rooms.
Anticipating that this situation offered a possible business opportunity for a direct steamship service between Britain and New York, the American shipowner Edward Knight Collins successfully bid for a tender offered by the US Postmaster General. Since 1836 Collins had operated sailing ships between New York and Liverpool and it
ABOVE The First class Assembly Hall on Campania and Lucania were arranged around a large skylight that led to the First Class Dining Room.
was a logical step to upgrade the service with a fleet of steamships. Thus, the Collins Line was founded and began fortnightly sailings in 1850 with four steamers that were bigger and faster than Cunard’s. The ships were also more luxurious than the Cunarders, but their high operating costs meant that they were not particularly profitable.
However, while the American government increased its operating subsidy, a series of accidents dented public confidence and in 1958 Collins Line folded. Other transient challenges came from Inman Line and Guion Line, but a new more persistent challenge emerged when the British Oceanic Steam Navigation Company, known Lucania presents a powerful impression, not least from her two huge fuunels.
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 13
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 13
09/07/2021 09:54
as the White Star Line, began services with three well-found steamers in 1872. Speed was always a selling point on the Atlantic, and the three ships each held the record for the fastest crossing, the record being popularly known as the Blue Riband of the Atlantic. Further record breakers were built for White Star before the cost of operating the ships at high speed led to a policy of building moderately fast ships which were bigger and comfortable, leaving speed records to Cunard. Nonetheless, White Star provided a major challenge to Cunard’s dominance and led to the Line having to improve their own ships. In 1893, nine years after Umbria and Etruria, Cunard introduced a pair of steamers designed to eclipse the
competition and re-establish Cunard as the premier steamship line on the Atlantic. Campania and Lucania were of 12,950gt and driven by two five-cylinder triple-expansion engines developing 30,000 shaft horsepower, which gave the ships a service speed of 21 knots. At full speed 132 stokers were required to haul 560 tons of coal a day into 96 boiler furnaces. Both liners were built by Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering Co of Glasgow in Scotland and both held the Blue Riband at different times. They carried carried 600 First class, 400 Second class and 1,000 Third class passengers. The crew totalled 416: 61 in the deck/navigation department, 160 in the hotel department and 195 in the
engineering department. Acclaimed as ‘the most magnificently appointed passenger liners in the world’, Campania and Lucania adopted period styles for the decoration of their public spaces and incorporated a magnificent grand staircase linking the First class decks. For the first time, single occupancy cabins were available and First class children had their own dining room. Perishable provisions were stored in refrigerated hold spaces and, worryingly, open fires were employed in the Lounge and Smoking Room, something which would have constituted a considerable fire risk given the amount of flammables on board. However, for five years the sisters ruled the Atlantic, until new challengers came from continental Europe. Partial Deck Plan of Umbria and Etruria.
Lucania Campania Upper Decks.
14 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 14
09/07/2021 09:54
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
Lucania entered Cunard service in 1894, and she and Campania each held the Blue Riband eastbound and westbound records in turn.
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 15
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 15
09/07/2021 09:54
CHAPTER 3
EDWARDIAN SPLENDOUR:
LUSITANIA, MAURETANIA, AQUITANIA AND BERENGARIA Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse was the first of four North German Lloyd liners that challenged Cunard’s standing on the North Atlantic.
I
n early August 1889 Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany undertook a state visit to Britain, which included attendance at a Royal Navy Review of the Fleet at Spithead, as well as a two-hour tour hosted by HRH The Prince of Wales of the White Star liner Teutonic, which was at anchor in the Spithead roads. The Kaiser marvelled at the lines of impressive warships and Teutonic. With his own maritime nationalistic ambitions duly fired up, he was reputed to have said: ‘We must have some of these.’ In 1896, three years after the introduction of Lucania and Campania, North German Lloyd initiated the construction of their own liner, Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse, at the Vulcan Shipyard in Stettin. When
delivered on 9 September 1897, the new ship, at 14,349grt, was the largest in the world. She sailed on her maiden voyage ten days later on 19 September, travelling between Bremerhaven and New York, and during that November she took the Blue Riband from Laconia with an eastbound crossing averaging an impressive 22.35 knots. This was a foretaste of what was to become. Spurred on by Royal imperialism and favour, North German Lloyd introduced a succession of new liners: Kaiser Fredrich (1898/12,481grt), Kronprinz Wilhelm (1901/14,908grt), Kaiser Wilhelm II (1903/19,361grt) and Kronprinzessin Cecilie (1907/19,360grt). In the meantime, another German company, Hamburg America Line, brought out their own express transatlantic liner, Deutschland
(1900/16,502grt). She was also a flier, and for a while held the Blue Riband in both directions before it was captured by Kronprinz Wilhelm eastbound. Fine ships that Cunard’s Campania and Lucania were, they had become soundly eclipsed by the successive German express liners in terms of size, speed and lavishness. Having purchased Leyland Line the previous year, in April 1902 the American financier J.P. Morgan bought Cunard Line’s principal British rival, White Star Line. These two British companies and other Lines owned by Morgan became part of a huge American combine, the International Mercantile Marine, much like Carnival Corporation today. White Star had a growing fleet of fine ships that were latterly more geared to size and
16 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 16
09/07/2021 09:54
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
comfort than speed, which was seen as unnecessarily expensive. At this time White Star Line’s flagship was Oceanic (1899/17,272grt); she was the largest ship in the world, and, while she was not the fastest liner in the world, she set new standards for comfort. With the German merchant and naval fleets growing, and with White Star under American control, alarm bells began to ring within the British Government. It was rightly surmised that the express liners would make good armed merchant cruisers or troopships in time of war and, while Germany’s merchant and navy was ascending, the British might not be able to count upon the ships and services of White Star if there was a conflict with Germany. There was also the worrying situation that Cunard might also be drawn into
ABOVE NGL’s Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse captured the Blue Riband from Lucania in September 1897 averaging 21.39 knots. RIGHT Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse drydocked. Regular maintenance kept the Atlantic fliers in top condition for the arduous Atlantic crossing.
the International Mercantile Marine if their finances came under pressure. It was clear that Cunard needed new ships to see off the competition and remain independently viable. Discussions began in mid-1902 between the British authorities and Cunard’s Chairman, Sir George
Arbuthnot Burns, Second Baron Inverclyde. Cunard wanted to build two new prestige ships for the Atlantic trade, while the Government wanted to ensure that the Company would remain under British ownership and that its ships would be available to the British government in case of war. The last of NGL’s quartet, Kronprinzessin Cecilie entered service in December 1906 but was quickly eclipsed by Lusitania and Mauretania.
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 17
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 17
09/07/2021 09:55
By the following year an agreement had been reached. Cunard undertook to remain a British concern, while the government advanced a £2.6 million loan at 2.75 per cent interest for the construction of two ships that were stipulated to be capable of a sustained service speed of between 24 and 25 knots on the North Atlantic. In addition, Cunard would also be granted an annual operating subsidy of £150,000 on condition that the ships met the speed requirement and that they would be made available for naval service. Hitherto, all modern express transatlantic liners had been powered by twin screws and triple or quadruple expansion steam reciprocating engines. Kronprinz Wilhelm’s engines both developed 18,000 indicated horsepower and it was generally thought that the reciprocating engine had reached its zenith with this installation. So the power required to achieve a speed increase from 22.5 to 25 knots required something new and radical. Without any increase in size, Kronprinz Wilhelm would require approximately a 40 per cent increase in power to achieve the greater speed, and any increase in ship size to enable sufficient coal to be carried to provide the necessary steam for an increase in power would increase the figure even further. Preliminary calculations, along with model powering and propulsion experiments at the Admiralty BELOW Lusitania in the Mersey at Liverpool. She could be distinguished from Mauretania through the lack of large ventilator cowls.
ABOVE Sited between the second and third funnels, the First Class Dining Room on Kronprinz Wilhelm had a balcony and large skylight.
ABOVE The magnificent First Class DrawingMusic Room on Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse.
ABOVE First Class Library and Writing Room. Lusitania’s public spaces were decorated in a much lighter manner compared to Mauretania.
Experimental Tank at Haslar, indicated a 30,000grt ship would be required with an installed power of approximately 70,000hp to achieve the desired speed. This was well beyond the capability of two propellers, so it was decided for the first time that the propulsive effort would be split between four shaftlines and propellers. Following the success of the small turbine driven demonstrator launch Turbinia in 1894, and the two Royal Navy fast destroyers HMS Viper and HMS Cobra built with turbines in 1899, the steam turbine had seen limited use in merchant ships, notably only in relatively small cross-Channel ferries. But in 1903 Cunard decided to trial steam turbines in one of a pair of 19,500grt intermediate steamers, Carmania, fitting her sister, Caronia, with conventional reciprocating machinery. These ships entered service in 1905, and it was concluded that the turbines were quieter running, took up less space and were lighter than
18 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 18
09/07/2021 09:55
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS Lusitania at the Sloyne anchorage in the River Mersey off Liverpool. (By courtesy of Todd Neitring Collection)
reciprocating engines of the same power. Allan Line also adopted steam turbines in their 10,600grt Victorian and Virginian intermediate liners, which entered service in 1905. The Allan liners’ turbines developed 15,000shp delivered through triple screws, and Carmania’s turbines developed 21,000shp, again through triple screws. This was well short of the 70,000shp that the new Cunard express ships would need. Cunard was in a dilemma. They needed to press on with the design and construction of their new express liners, but it would be several years before their first turbine ship would be in service to provide relevant turbine experience. A committee of experts was appointed to examine the problem, and make recommendations to the Cunard Board as to whether to install reciprocating machinery or take a chance on steam turbines. All the relevant facts were considered and in March 1904 turbines were
recommended. This was a huge but measured gamble: if the turbines failed or were unreliable, the ships would have been severely compromised, and it could have ultimately led to the financial collapse of Cunard. A steam turbine is a simple machine with one moving part – the turbine rotor itself, which exhibits perfect rotary motion. A reciprocating triple or quadruple expansion steam engine
has three or four cylinders with pistons moving up and down, and a crank converting this up and down motion into circulatory rotation. Each part of the engine is experiencing cyclic high and low forces at each revolution. A myriad moving parts have to be oiled, with bearings and bushes maintained in top condition. The turbine is a far more elegant proposition. However, in terms of speed, the
Entering service in August 1902, Kaiser Wilhelm II was the third four-funnel NGL Blue Riband liner.
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 19
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 19
09/07/2021 09:55
reciprocating engine is superior to the turbine in marine propulsion applications. To work efficiently, propellers need to be relatively slow turning. When forced to rotate too quickly, propeller blades form voids which cause a severe hammer blow on the propeller blade. This is called cavitation and it leads to a loss of efficiency and the prospect of severe vibration. The slow, methodical turn of a reciprocating engine is ideally suited to the speed of a propeller, of around 75 revolutions per minute, but a direct drive turbine wants to run at much higher speeds. The partial solution to this was to build early steam turbines with exaggerated diameters. This in turn led to high circumferences that allowed
the fast moving steam (56 metres per second) to travel a longer distance without rotating the turbines too fast, say around 180-200 revolutions per minute, and not cause too much cavitation, or that was the theory. With the machinery decided upon, Cunard’s Chief Naval Architect, Leonard Peskett, worked with the Line’s various department heads, such as General Manager A.D. Mearns, General Superintendent James Bain and Engineering Superintendent G. Thompson, to finalise the general design and specification of the two ships. Two shipyards were selected to build the ships, which were formally ordered in May 1905; John Brown & Co at Clydebank near Glasgow would build Lusitania, and Swan Hunter & Wigham
Richardson at Wallsend on the Tyne, would build Mauretania. The keels of the two ships were laid down immediately the contracts were signed, indicating that both shipyards had been involved with considerable preparatory work. Progress with construction was rapid, and the two largest ships in the world were ready for launching in little over a year. Lusitania was the first to go down the ways, on 7 June 1906, being launched by Lady Inverclyde, while Mauretania followed on 20 September 1906, being launched by the Duchess of Roxburghe. Fitting out for both ships took another year; the huge powerplants, consisting of boilers, turbines, condensers, were installed along with all the accommodation and outfitting required of a top-flight liner.
20 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 20
09/07/2021 09:55
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS LEFT Aquitania doing sterling service while she was serving as a troopship in World War I. (By courtesy Todd Neitring Collection) LEFT INSET A dazzle painted Mauretania, full with returning American troops, enters New York on 1 December 1918. (By courtesy Todd Neitring Collection) RIGHT Mauretania serving as a troopship at Mudros, with men from the battleship Lord Nelson bathing in the foreground. (By courtesy Todd Neitring Collection) RIGHT Mauretania was the fastest ocean liner in the world for 22 years from 1907 to 1929 and her performance even improved with age.
On 27 June 1907 Lusitania sailed down the Clyde escorted by six tugs for first sea trials. After a short period at anchor off Greenock, she proceeded to Liverpool, where she entered the Gladstone Graving Dock for hull cleaning and adjustments. A month later she was running at speed on the Clyde measured mile off Skelmorlie where she achieved a creditable 25.6 knots. Following a cruise around Ireland with invited guests, she undertook further extensive trials, averaging 26.45 knots, well above the contractual 24.5 knots. The ship performed admirably, but there was one problem: vibrations in the aft part of the ship, where the Second class passengers were situated, were horrendous, with the structure
oscillating badly underfoot, making it very uncomfortable. In consequence, considerable strengthening was added to the aft part of the ship, which somewhat marred the public rooms with heavy boxed-in structures. Lusitania departed Liverpool at 9pm on 7 September 1907 for her maiden voyage to New York via Queenstown. A huge crowd watched as she moved down the Mersey to the open sea. With 2,200 passengers already on board, the ship anchored off the entrance to Queenstown Harbour at 9.20am the following morning. Lucania, which had sailed from Liverpool four and a half hours before Lusitania, arrived fifteen minutes later, and both vessels
ABOVE Mauretania serving as a World War I hospital ship for troop casulties in the Dardanelles campaign. (By courtesy Todd Neitring Collection)
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 21
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 21
09/07/2021 09:55
ABOVE Berengaria had a large First Class Ballroom that was very popular during transatlantic crossings and cruises.
BELOW Berengaria’s elegant First Class Dining Room spanned two decks and was an impressive space.
presented an unforgettable sight. An additional 120 passengers boarded Lusitania by tender, with a large consignment of mail. She then raised her anchor and sailed towards the western approaches and the start of her first transatlantic crossing, passing Lucania, which had sailed around half
RIGHT Berengaria makes an impressive sight in the Solent off Southampton during her service to New York via Cherbourg.
an hour before her. Lusitania arrived at Sandy Hook off from New York at 9.05am on 13 September. At the time, Hamburg America Line’s Deutschland held the Blue Riband for the fastest Atlantic crossing and on this occasion, Lusitania had not wrestled it from her, but it was only a matter of
time before she did. Between 6 and 10 October the ship crossed westwards at an average speed of 23.99 knots and on her 19-24 October eastward crossing at an average speed of 23.61 knots, thus securing the record in each direction. Meanwhile on 17 September 1907, Mauretania began the first of a series
ABOVE Berengaria patiently waits at New York quarantine before docking in the port. (By courtesy of Todd Neitrimg Collection)
22 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 22
09/07/2021 09:55
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
ABOVE Berengaria’s First Class Smoking Room was the preserve of male passengers where they would enjoy brandy and cigars.
ABOVE Berengaria’s Pompeian First Class Swimming Pool was a slightly smaller version to that found at the RAC in Pall Mall. The Palm Court on board Berengaria.
of trials in the North Sea during which she logged 27.75 knots at one point. As with Lusitania, her performance was well above what had been anticipated, but she too suffered from severe vibrations aft. Modifications were quickly made and the ship transferred from the Tyne to Liverpool, where she arrived early on 24 October 1907. Just over a week later she sailed out of the Mersey for her official sea trials which lasted four days. During these trials, which included measured mile runs in opposite directions and longer runs down to Land’s End, she averaged a wholly satisfactory 26.04 knots and 27.36 knots maximum. Mauretania departed Liverpool bound for New York via Queenstown on 16 November 1907. After picking up passengers and mail in Queenstown, she set off on her transatlantic voyage, being seen off by a large crowd despite the wintery weather. The Atlantic was a hostile boiling cauldron for the maiden
crossing, and it lashed and tossed Mauretania to such an extent that her spare anchor, stowed on the forecastle, broke loose; it was only secured after the ship was slowed down to reduce the pitching motion. The ship fared much better on her first eastbound crossing between 30 November and 5 December and took the Blue Riband for the fastest Atlantic crossing from her sistership, averaging 23.69 knots. Between 26 and 30 September 1909, sailing westwards, Mauretania finally secured the Blue Riband for that direction from Lusitania, averaging 26.06 knots. Mauretania subsequently held both records until July 1929 (a 22-year record), when the then new North German Lloyd Bremen took it. At around 31,000grt, Lusitania and Mauretania were significantly more than twice the size of the 12,950grt Campania and Lucania. They catered for three classes of passenger: First,
Second and Third. First class cabins were arranged in the middle of the ship on Boat, Promenade, Upper and Main Decks, while the public spaces were found on Boat Deck, with the dining room spanning Upper and Shelter Decks. Second class was located aft of First class, cabins being disposed on Shelter, Upper and Main Decks. The dining room was on Upper Deck and the public rooms were arranged in a separate superstructure block on Boat and Promenade Decks. Third class cabins were forward on Upper, Main and Lower Decks, with public spaces on Shelter Deck and the dining room on Upper Deck. All three classes had generous covered promenade areas. The accommodation, both cabins and public areas for all classes, set new standards in scale and outfitting. However, whereas First class was sited comfortably midships, Second class aft felt the full force of the propeller vibrations, and Third class
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 23
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 23
09/07/2021 09:55
passengers suffered particularly from the pitching motion of the ship, which could be quite severe in a lively seaway. Her fuel consumption was considerable – about 1,000 tons of coal per 24 hours. A large engine room crew of 366 was required to service the machinery, of which 192 were firemen (stokers) and 120 boiler fire trimmers. On average two voyages in both directions could be undertaken by each ship each month, with a weekly stop-over for coaling and cleaning prior to the commencement of each voyage. The ships were complimented in Cunard’s express service by Lucania and Campania, but on 14 August 1909 the Lucania caught fire and burnt out while she was at Liverpool. Meanwhile, without a government subsidy, White Star Line chose to concentrate on size and comfort in reply to the Cunard pair, with the instigation of the 45,000grt Olympic class trio. Olympic entered service in June 1911 and was followed by her ill-fated sistership Titanic in April 1912; a third ship, Britannic, was due to enter service in 1914. Cunard in turn
ABOVE The former Imperator, now renamed Berengaria and the Cunard flagship, with HRH The Prince of Wales on board, 29 August 1924. (By courtesy of Todd Neitring Collection)
responded with their own ‘Olympic’ type vessel, Aquitania, which was in effect a replacement for Lucania and Campania, and was designed to return profits without any subsidy. At 45,600grt, Aquitania accommodated 618 First class, 614 Second class and 1,998 Third class, and her quadruple screws driven by 62,000shp direct drive turbines gave her
Aquitania in the twilight of her career oin the pst-World War II era. (By courtesy of Todd Neitring Collection)
a service speed of 23 knots, with a knot in hand. However, the ship was only able to complete three round voyages between Liverpool and New York before World War I broke out, during which she was briefly used as an auxiliary cruiser before becoming a troop transport after a period of lay-up. Later serving as a hospital ship and again as a troopship, she survived the war and was converted from coal to oil-firing in November 1919 at the Newcastle yard of Armstrong Whitworth. Meanwhile, Lusitania and Mauretania garnered considerable success on the transatlantic route, improving their performance over time. Cunard were allowed to keep Lusitania in service when war broke out, but
24 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 24
09/07/2021 09:55
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS The Cunard flagship Berengaria held at quarantine awaiting clearance to dock in New York. (By courtesy of Todd Neitring Collection)
Mauretania was requisitioned as an auxiliary cruiser. She subsequently served as a troopship and hospital ship and survived the War, but her sister was not so lucky. Sailing at reduced speed as an economy measure, Lusitania was torpedoed and sunk off the Old Head of Kinsale, Ireland on 7 May 1915 with the loss of 1,198 lives. Controversy has raged ever since as to whether she was carrying munitions and was a legitimate target. Campania was sold for breaking The German liner Imperator was ceded to Great Britain as war reparations and renamed Berengaria by Cunard.
in 1914, but was soon resold to the British Admiralty and converted into an aircraft carrier. Unfortunately, her career was cut short when she broke adrift while at anchor in the River Forth on 5 November 1918 and was holed and sank after contact with the battleship HMS Revenge. Mauretania returned to commercial service early in 1920, but her performance was somewhat lacking as she had not had a proper refit to make good the years of arduous war service.
Following an extensive fire in part of her First class accommodation, she was repaired and was converted to oil-firing at a cost of approximately £250,000 on the Tyne over the winter 1921-22. However, apart from the work to convert the boilers, her turbines were not reconditioned, this work being held back until November 1923. Since 1919 Cunard’s express transatlantic service had run out of Southampton rather than Liverpool. In 1922 Mauretania and Aquitania Aquitania high and dry in Southampton’s floating drydock for overhaul during the inter-war period.
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 25
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 25
09/07/2021 09:55
Following her final cruise, Mauretania arrives at New York on 6 July 1934 .A final transatlantic crossing and the scrappers beckoned. (By courtesy Todd Neitring Collection)
were joined by the reconditioned 52,200grt Berengaria, which had previously sailed as Imperator for Hamburg America Line. The latter ship had entered service in 1913 and was the first of three sisterships, the others being Vaterland and Bismarck. All three were handed over to the Allies as war reparations at the end of the War; Vaterland became United States Line’s Leviathan and Bismarck went to White Star Line as Majestic. These three ships were designed in the style of grand hotels, with wide open public spaces and exquisitely furnished upper grade cabins.
When entering service with Cunard, Berengaria catered for no fewer than four separate classes: 972 First class, 630 Second, 606 Third and 515 Tourist. Designated as the Cunard flagship, she had a service speed of 23 knots in line with Aquitania and she too had been converted for oil firing. The Cunarders maintained the Atlantic service as a somewhat mis-matched but nonetheless successful trio. Each had a loyal following: Mauretania for her speed, Aquitania for her steadiness and comfort, and Berengaria for the opulence of her interiors. In July 1929 Mauretania lost the Blue Riband to the
ABOVE Southampton’s White Star Dock was renamed the Ocean Dock when Cunard moved its express ship there in 1919. Pictured n dock are Aquitania, Berengaria, Olympic and Homeric.
new North German Lloyd liner Bremen, which was nearly half as large again as she was and boasted nearly twice the shaft horsepower. She came close to regaining it after a valiant effort, but was thwarted by bad weather. Designed for 25 knots, she had reached 27.65 on one day’s run, despite being 22 years old. The Wall Street Crash and the Great Depression hit Cunard and other steamship lines very hard. Far fewer passengers were sailing and, to prevent laying up the ships, cruises were offered, including fast round-trips from New York to the Bahamas on Mauretania and short prohibition busting socalled ‘booze cruises’ on Berengaria. Aquitania also went cruising, sometimes into the Mediterranean. But nothing could disguise the fact that things were very serious. Nonetheless, Cunard had a new 80,000grt transatlantic liner on order at the John Brown yard but on 11 December 1931 work was suspended as Cunard could no longer afford the stage payments. White Star Line, which had reverted to British ownership in 1927, was in an even more perilous situation. The solution was for the two firms to merge as Cunard-White Star, with the Government providing loans for Cunard to complete its new ship, build a running mate and have the working capital to continue in business in the
26 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 26
09/07/2021 09:55
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
ABOVE A delightful Cunard postcard depicting the Line’s big three transatlantic liners, left to right, Mauretania, Aquitania and Berengaria.
interim. Inevitably, the merger meant rationalisation and one of the casualties was the venerable Mauretania, which had been sailing almost full-time as a cruise ship since 1932. After a final transatlantic crossing in late September 1934, she was laid up and subsequently sold for demolition the following year. Cunard’s new transatlantic liner, Queen Mary, entered service on 27 May 1936 and sailed in partnership with Aquitania and Berengaria. However, Berengaria was beginning to show her age, being plagued by fires caused by ageing electrical wiring. On 3 March 1938, while at New York, she suffered a bad fire and subsequently returned to Southampton without passengers. In early November 1938 she was sold for scrap and was taken to Jarrow where her demolition relieved chronic unemployment by providing jobs. Aquitania sailed on and her accommodation was frequently upgraded and modified. For example, in 1926 she was reconfigured for 610 First class, 950 Second class and 640 Tourist class. The expectation was that she would be withdrawn in 1940 as the running mate for Queen Mary, Queen Elizabeth, entered service. However, in November 1939 she once again became a troop transport and sailed throughout World War Ii in this capacity before re-entering commercial service as a one-class ship in May 1948, sailing between Southampton and Halifax. The last of the four stackers in service, she was withdrawn in December 1949 and scrapped at Faslane by Metal Industries.
ABOVE A colourised postcard view forward along Mauretania’s starboard Second Class Promenade Deck, from the Aft Docking Bridge.
ABOVE Aquitania battles through an Atlantic sorm in November 1931. (By courtesy of Todd Neitring Collection) Mauretania was painted white in June 1933 after she became a dedicated cruise ship. Some said she looked like a wedding cake. (By courtesy of Todd Neitring Collection)
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 27
Transatlantic Queens part 1.indd 27
09/07/2021 09:57
CHAPTER 4
T
THE FIRST QUEEN: QUEEN MARY OF 1936
owards the end of the 1920s, Cunard considered the future of their express transatlantic service, which was operated at the time by Mauretania, Aquitania and Berengaria. While Mauretania was still the fastest liner in the world and still held the Blue Riband, after 20 years it was obvious that it would only be a matter of time before a new liner would enter service and wrest the honours from her. Indeed, on the continent, North
German Lloyd had ordered two new steamers and it was anticipated that they would mount a challenge. Cunard also had the problem that the three express ships were not a homogeneous group. Although fast, Mauretania was relatively small; Aquitania was very much a Cunard ship but somewhat slower than Mauretania; and Berengaria, although relatively fast, was laid out quite differently due to her original German heritage. A major consideration was that these
three ships were all designed and built prior to World War I and, in the intervening period, naval architecture and marine engineering had considerably advanced. In particular, the direct drive turbines with which the ships were fitted were far less efficient than geared turbines which allowed the steam turbines to run at an efficient high speed, while the gearing allowed propellers to run much more slowly and efficiently. It was now considered that
Advance publicity picture of Queen Mary issued by Cunard after the ship’s launch.
28 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 28
09/07/2021 11:00
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS Queen Mary in the final stages of construction in John Brown’s outfitting dock at Clydebank, April 1936.
two rather than three ships running at a higher speed would be able to maintain an intensified weekly transatlantic service. Meanwhile, Cunard’s great British rival, White Star Line, had reverted to British ownership in 1927 and had ordered a new diesel-electric superliner from Harland & Wolff that would mount another challenge. Work began at Cunard’s headquarters in Liverpool to assess just how fast and how big two such ships would have to be. For a weekly service with a turnaround layover at Southampton and New York for provisioning and fuelling, a service speed of 28.5 knots would be required. The smallest hull that could accommodate the requisite machinery, fuel, provisions and passengers required to provide the revenue to cover the costs and generate a profit was 80,000 gross tons. An extensive series of model tests honed propulsion, seakeeping and manoeuvring, with experiments to determine the best form for the bilge keels and propellers. Later wind tunnel tests optimised the placement and funnel arrangements. While work was progressing on the
early design, Cunard had two major issues to solve before they could order their new ship. The first was finding a drydock of sufficient size able to accommodate the ship for six-monthly drydockings and maintenance. Cunard lobbied the Southern Railway, which owned the Port of Southampton, who built a new dock to the west of the new Western Docks at Southampton. Inaugurated by the Royal Yacht Victoria and Albert on 26 July 1933, the King George V Dock took two years to build and cost £2 million. The second major issue concerned insurance. The ship represented the highest single asset to be insured during and after construction. Ultimately an arrangement was made with the insurance industry and the government jointly sharing the risk. The concept design of the ship was discussed with Britain’s leading shipbuilders, Vickers, Armstrong Whitworth, Harland & Wolff and John Brown and Co, and on 28 May 1930 John Brown at Clydebank on the River Clyde was formally notified that they had been chosen to build the liner, which was designated Newbuilding
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 29
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 29
09/07/2021 11:00
Queen Mary begins her transit down the Clyde towards the open sea.
534. John Brown had already completed much preliminary work and the first keel plates were laid down just six months later on 1 December 1930 on the slipway where Aquitania had been built 20 years previously. Construction of the ship advanced with the keel, frames, shell and decks rapidly erected to the point that it was expected that the ship would be ready for launching early in 1932. However, the Great Depression intervened. Cunard’s passenger and freight receipts fell dramatically and as 1931 progressed it was clear that the company was in severe financial difficulty. Many ships were laid up or sold and those that remained in commission were used more intensively, such as the express liners that operated short prohibitionbusting ‘booze cruises’ out of New York between Atlantic crossings. Cunard instructed John Brown to suspend construction of 534 on 11 December 1931 as they were not in a position to continue with the contractual stage payments for the
ABOVE Cabin Class main lobby on Promenade Deck featured several shops.
ABOVE The Cabin Class Main Lounge featured a raised stage at the aft end.
BELOW Cabin (First) class Main Lounge.
BELOW The large Cabin class Restaurant.
30 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 30
09/07/2021 11:00
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
ship. John Brown had no alternative but to lay off the workforce of 3,000, while another 10,000 were impacted by the suspension of contracts to supply materials to the ship. It was a bleak Christmas all round. Frantic efforts ensued to secure the future of Cunard and the uncompleted ship. White Star was also experiencing severe difficulties and had suspended and then cancelled their new liner contracted at Harland & Wolff. With severe over capacity on the Atlantic, some form of rationalisation was required. After considerable effort, the Clydebank MP, David Kirkwood, brokered a deal whereby Cunard and White Star merged in return for a government loan to complete 534 and build a running mate, as well as provide working capital for the interim period. The government loan amounted to £9.5 million: £3 million to complete 534, £1.5 million having already been paid by Cunard to John Brown;
ABOVE Post-war, the starboard Long Gallery was removed and the space used for the Cabin class Cinema.
RIGHT Embarkation Notice depicting Queen Mary’s relief ship Mauretania on the express route when she was in maintenance.
£5 million for the construction of a running mate; and £1.5 million working capital. On 11 May 1934 Cunard White Star Limited was registered to manage the combined assets; within the next few years Olympic, Homeric, Majestic, Berengaria and Mauretania were sold for scrap, and all hopes rested on 534.
Work restarted on 534 on 3 April 1934, initially with 1,500 employees, which rose to 3,500 as most areas of the ship were opened up. The first task was to completely survey the ship to assess her condition and remove over 130 tons of accumulated rust. Progress was rapid and the ship was ready to A company postcard of Queen Mary in 1936. The following year a new block of Engineers’ accommodation was built above the Verandah Grill.
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 31
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 31
09/07/2021 11:01
Queen Mary at speed, possibly during her sea trials. Note the large bow wave. Unlike Normandie, Queen Mary did not have a bulbous bow.
be launched in September 1936. It was time to replace the 534 contract designation with a real name, but what nomenclature should be used? Cunard’s ‘-ia’ or White Star’s ‘-ic’? Or, something altogether different? There is a well-known story that a Cunard Director and personal friend of King George V, Lord Royden, approached the monarch to ask Royal permission to name the ship ‘after the most illustrious and remarkable woman who has ever been Queen of England’, with the name Queen Victoria in mind. The story goes that, mistaken, the King responded that his wife, Queen Mary, would be delighted to have the new ship be named after her! It has been suggested that this story is untrue, and that Sir Percy Bates always intended that newbuilding 534 be named Queen Mary, which was a neutral name that neither favoured White Star’s ‘ic’ nor Cunard’s ‘ia’ nomenclature, but one
that symbolised majesty and hope. Preparations were made for the launch at Clydebank on 26 September 1934. At 36,700 tons, she was the heaviest ship to be launched to date. By comparison French Line’s Normandie was 27,660 tons. Complex launch calculations were undertaken to establish how she would slide down the ways and begin to become waterborne, before floating freely. The most important part of the calculation was to establish how much weight in drag chains would be required to bring the ship to a halt before she careened into the opposite riverbank; in the event this was 2,350 tons in total, arranged in 36 groups. It is no exaggeration to say that the traditional launch of a ship down inclined ways is the most perilous voyage a ship is likely to take. It was a miserable day at Clydebank on the day of the launch, with rain
falling in sheets. King George V and Queen Mary travelled by train from Balmoral and were provided with a special suite erected for the occasion. The naming ceremony and launch took place at 3pm with an estimated 200,000 people in attendance despite the rain. Coming to rest as calculated, Queen Mary internal side profile plan.
32 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 32
09/07/2021 11:01
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
the hull was then shepherded into John Brown’s outfitting dock by tugs and the work of installing the machinery and decorating the interiors could begin. The interior design of the ship required much consideration. When Queen Mary was first being designed in the late 1920s, the Art Deco period
ABOVE The Cabin class Main Lounge was one of the grandest rooms on board Queen Mary.
ABOVE The Cabin class Observation Lounge at the forward end of Promenade Deck.
was in full swing and French Line’s Ile de France (1927) exemplified the movement with stunning brilliance. The superlative epic Normandie followed in 1935 and, had her build process not been interrupted, Queen Mary would have entered service before her great French rival. Although Cunard was British and Queen Mary was unquestionably a British ship, a large proportion of her clientele would be American. It was imperative that the interiors of the liner would meet with American tastes. Accordingly, Sir Percy Bates asked the American architect and interior designer B.V. Morris to be his interior design advisor, while forming an interior design committee. One of the early changes instigated by Morris was to ensure that the Cabin class enclosed promenade was ‘wrap-around’, not a ‘U’ shape, to aid circulation. The design of the public spaces was entrusted to a number of well-known architects, and it was Morris and the committee that had the job of ensuring that adjacent spaces
formed a unified ensemble without undue clashes in style. While this worked reasonably well, there were a few instances where it did not. But overall, a majority praised the design of the ship’s interiors, but some elements of the press were critical. The whole premise of Queen Mary’s design was that two ships could now undertake the work previously undertaken by three. Naval architecture and marine engineering had advanced considerably since Mauretania, Aquitania and Berengaria were built more than a decade earlier. Reliable gearing was particularly important as it could be a weakness in a machinery installation. The French were so concerned that they elected to install outmoded direct drive turbines on Ile de France and an innovative turbo-electric drive on Normandie. Britain had manufacturing prowess at the time and Cunard had faith in domestic turbine gearing manufacturers. The ship was fitted with 24 Yarrow type five-drum water tube boilers arranged in four boiler rooms
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 33
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 33
09/07/2021 11:01
Quuen Mary departing Sydney while she was in her role as a troop transport.
operating at 400 pounds per square inch and 700 degrees Fahrenheit, and three double-ended Scotch boilers. The uptakes required three working funnels which took up much internal space through the decks. To get air to the boilers and for ventilation, Queen Mary employed a veritable forest of cowl ventilators, which were unusual in being square ended rather than round. This gave the ship a brutish look, while the myriad of ducts and trunks consumed a huge volume of space, compromised internal arrangements, and presented a maintenance nightmare. The three funnels were raked and of slightly differing heights, held in place with the aid of guy wires. Four shaftlines were employed, each with a quadruple expansion
impulse-reaction steam turbine set that developed 40,000shp, providing 160,000shp in total. This power, in conjunction with single reduction gearing driving the propeller shafts, allowed Queen Mary to easily maintain her 28.5 knots service speed requirement. After drydocking at Southampton for final hull cleaning and painting, Queen Mary ran sea trials in the Irish Sea, achieving 32.84 knots. Queen Mary followed Cunard’s tried and trusted layout arrangement, with the Cabin class disposed in the midships area, Tourist class towards the stern and Third class towards the bow, and each class’s public rooms were generally above the cabin areas. The names of the classes changed over the years according to conventions, but when she entered
Queen Mary outward bound for New York.
service Queen Mary accommodated 776 Cabin class, 784 Tourist class and 579 Third class with 1,101 crew. The classes were redesignated First, Cabin and Tourist in the post-war era. The ship had 38 public rooms spread across the classes and 12 decks, with gross tonnage measuring 81,237 tons. Cabin class public rooms were mainly arranged along Promenade Deck within the superstructure, with a wrap-around enclosed promenade. There was a large Observation Lounge forward, followed by a large lobby, which incorporated the Shopping Arcade, Library and Drawing Room. The Main Lounge was situated between the second and third funnel hatches and was two decks in height. Further aft were two galleries, a Ballroom, and a two-deck-high Smoking Room. Cabin class also had the use of the extra tariff and celebrated Verandah Grill on Sun Deck, an indoor swimming pool on D Deck and the Restaurant was on C Deck. The Tourist class Smoking Room was aft of the Cabin class equivalent on Promenade Deck. Two Tourist Lounges were located on the succeeding lower decks, Main and A. A small, combined Library and Writing Room was located on the portside ahead of the Lounge,
34 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 34
09/07/2021 11:01
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
the Restaurant was aft on C Deck and an indoor pool/gymnasium was on F Deck. Third class was provided with a Garden Lounge, Smoking Room, Lounge and Dining Room forward between Main and C Decks. When the ship was originally built, air-conditioning was provided in the Cabin class Lounge and Restaurant, as well as the Tourist Restaurant and the hairdressing saloons. The airconditioning was later extended to other public spaces, such as the original Tourist class Smoking Room, Lounge and Restaurant when Tourist class was renamed Cabin class. Queen Mary’s maiden voyage began from Southampton in the late afternoon on Wednesday 27 May 1936, when 1,849 passengers boarded the ship. Thousands of well-wishers had turned out to see her off as she proceeded down Southampton Water and into the Solent, before she crossed the English Channel to Cherbourg, where she arrived in the late evening to drop off and embark passengers. She then turned westwards to begin the Atlantic transit and there was high expectation that she would capture the Blue Riband for the fastest crossing from the 79,280gt Normandie.
The French ship was more or less of equal size and standing to Queen Mary and had captured the speed record from the Italian Line’s Rex on her maiden voyage at the end of May 1935 at an average speed of 29.98 knots. Reported to have cost twice as much as Queen Mary, Normandie was sumptuously decorated and outfitted with exquisite embellishments of gold decorated etched glass panels, bas reliefs and heroic light fixtures. Although Normandie catered for three classes like Queen Mary, the emphasis was very much on First class, with the other two classes were somewhat restricted. Normandie was also an expensive ship and required a generous French Government subsidy to cover her costs, and she had one unfortunate flaw, vibrating particularly badly when at speed. This was largely due to the propeller design, which was later improved with propellers
of a different design being installed. Nonetheless, Queen Mary was noted for vibrating less than her French rival as was more comfortable. In the event, Queen Mary did not capture the Blue Riband on her maiden voyage due to fog off the Grand Banks, which necessitated slowing the ship down. However, she crossed at an average speed of 29.133 knots, only 42 minutes adrift from Normandie’s record with a crossing of four days, five hours and 46 minutes. Three months later Queen Mary succeeded in capturing the record, crossing in three days, 23 hours and 57 minutes at an average speed of 30.63 knots. The French ship regained the record and Normandie and Queen Mary vied with each other for the record, although, unlike the French, Cunard never officially recognised the Blue Riband. Ultimately, Queen Mary secured the title and it must have Queen Mary outward bound for New York.
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 35
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 35
09/07/2021 11:01
36 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 36
09/07/2021 11:01
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
contributed to her being the most successful pre-war ‘ship of state’, and indeed the only one to be profitable. Despite her success, Queen suffered from several problems. It was originally and rather naively considered that due to her huge size she would not suffer from excessive rolling. Accordingly, handrails were not installed along the sides of passenger corridors. But in fact she was found to be a prodigious roller, the first experience of this being in October 1936. Running into a gale, the ship rolled more than 40 degrees each side and was late arriving at Southampton with many injured passengers requiring treatment. One passenger on that voyage was the author Paul Gallico, who was sufficiently traumatised by the event to write the novel ‘The Poseidon Adventure’, about a large liner capsized by a tidal wave. In 1972 a motion picture was released with Queen Mary starring as the SS Poseidon. On the following voyage, workmen were tasked with installing handrails throughout the accommodation. The tendency to roll in rough weather continued until stabilisers were installed in the late 1950s.
Another complaint was the location of the Engineering Officers’ accommodation in the bowels of the ship. During the ship’s first overhaul, new accommodation for the engineers was erected on top of the aft deck house on Sports Deck, above the Verandah Grill. Soot deposits on the deck was also an issue, despite the care that had been taken with model tests to optimise the design and height of the funnels. The issue was solved by adding soot collectors to the funnels, which basically washed the smoke as it rose. At the onset of World War II, Queen
Mary was heading towards New York with 2,332 passengers, having left Southampton on 30 August 1939. Upon her arrival at her western terminus, Britain was at war with Germany and the ship was laid up at Pier 90 after discharging her passengers. After six months of idleness, on 1 March 1940, she was requisitioned by the British Government and painted grey for troopship service. On 7 March 1940 Queen Elizabeth arrived in New York and berthed opposite Queen Mary at Pier 90 after a clandestine voyage direct from Clydebank. Two weeks later, on 21
ABOVE With a fire boat escort and accompanied by a number of other craft, Queen Mary departs New York for the last time, 22 September 1967. RIGHT A true Cunarder, Queen Mary at sea. LEFT Elegance, power and glory personified – Queen Mary was Britain’s superliner personified.
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 37
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 37
09/07/2021 11:01
ABOVE After 1945, the ship’s former First class starboard gallery was converted into a cinema, and part of the promenade was rebuilt as a Garden Lounge and Cocktail Bar for Second class. BELOW The Cabin class (originally Tourist class) Deck Plan incorporated a feature about the two pairs of stabilisers installed in 1958.
March, she sailed to Cape Town in South Africa, maintaining her normal service speed of 28 knots to evade surface raiders, U boats and torpedoes. After refuelling and victualling, she continued her high-speed voyage onwards to Sydney in Australia, where she arrived on 17 April. At Sydney she was converted into a high-capacity troopship with standee bunks being erected within public spaces and cabins. Initially 5,500 troops could be accommodated, but this was increased to 8,500, and by the war’s end she could transport 15,000 troops. Australian troops were her first consignment, bound for England. Thereafter she sailed on various routings to the Far East and Australia, as well as undertaking transatlantic crossings after the United States entered the war in 1941. On one voyage in 1943 she carried 16,683 troops, reportedly the largest number of persons ever transported on
38 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 38
09/07/2021 11:01
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS As she approached Long Beach on 9 December 1967, Queen Mary was greeted by an armada of small craft that the liner to her new home.
a ship. Sir Winston Churchill, Britain’s wartime Prime Minister, and his staff occasionally sailed on the ship in connection with meetings with American President Franklin D. Roosevelt to discuss the progress of the war. On a transatlantic voyage from New York on 2 October 1942, she collided with her escorting Royal Navy cruiser HMS Curacao off Ireland, towards the end of the voyage to the Clyde. The ships were zig-zagging at speed and a miscalculation found Curacao directly in the path of Queen Mary. The mighty liner rode up and over the hapless cruiser, cutting her in half, before speeding on. With 10,000 troops on board, turning back to search for survivors was not an option and she continued on her voyage, albeit at reduced speed due to a crumpled bow. The two halves of the 4,200-ton cruiser sank with the lives of 338 Royal Navy sailors. It was a bitter
experience and there were acrimonious testimonies at the subsequent Inquiry, which found the liner free from blame and Curacao guilty for the collision through negligence. The Admiralty subsequently appealed, and a new verdict was recorded, with Queen Mary one-third to blame and Curacao twothirds. A further appeal post-war by Cunard did not change the verdict. The end of World War II did not see Queen Mary return to commercial service immediately. There was much repatriation of troops and personnel, as well as transporting GI war brides from Britain to the United States and Canada, before the ship could be released for reconditioning as a luxury liner. Queen Mary finally arrived at Southampton on 29 September 1946 at the end of her Government service. It was decided that she would be reconditioned at Southampton by 1,200 workmen brought south
from John Brown’s at Clydebank, who would be accommodated at a specially constructed transit camp near Chandlers Ford, outside Southampton. The work to be undertaken was necessarily extensive, with the troop facilities and associated paraphernalia removed first. Damages and wear and tear had to be made good, before the luxurious interiors and furnishings could be reinstalled. The teak handrails had to be removed, sanded smooth to eradicate graffiti and signature carvings, before being revarnished and reinstalled. Furniture, removed when the ship arrived in Australia for conversion into a troopship, was brought out of storage and reconditioned for installation on board. Cunard took the opportunity to refresh and update some areas of the ship in line with Queen Elizabeth, which had entered commercial service on 16 October 1946. The
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 39
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 39
09/07/2021 11:01
ABOVE Queen Mary’s distinctive superstructure front.
LEFT Queen Mary’s cowl ventilators were as distinctive as her funnels.
changes included the installation of a cinema and two Garden Lounges. Over the years further changes took place, including redesignating one of the Tourist Lounges as a Teens Beachcomber Club and reassigning spaces between the classes. Carrying 1,857 passengers, Queen Mary’s first post-war commercial sailing began on 31 July 1947 after a short shakedown cruise. Paired with her running mate Queen Elizabeth, she was still the fastest liner in the world and holder of the Blue Riband, although Queen Elizabeth was the largest liner in the world, measuring 83,000 gross tons against Mary’s 81,000. The two ships operated a weekly service with one ship sailing westwards while the other sailed eastwards, often passing in sight of each other mid Atlantic. Both ships were taken out of service twice a year for maintenance and hull cleaning at Southampton to
maintain hydrodynamic efficiency, at which times the company’s slower Mauretania and Caronia deputised. With the Germans, French, and Italians out of the running for the interim, the Cunarders had free reign and were spectacularly successful, dominating transatlantic traffic. Much of Cunard’s success lay in having two comparable and well matched ships. Having lost Normandie in the war, when the French did return to service they employed the reconditioned Ile de France and the old North German Lloyd Europa rebuilt as Liberté. First rate and well patronised ships, they were not a matching pair which always compromised marketing and scheduling. The Americans had a similar problem. Pre-war they ran two small liners, Washington and Manhattan (1933/24,000gt), which were to be joined by the 26,500gt America in 1940. Post-war, only America returned to commercial service but in 1952 she
was joined by the 53,330gt United States. This ship was inspired by the success of the Queens during the war, and was in effect a super-fast troopship configured as an ocean liner, which could be readily converted into a military role when required. With an installed power of 240,000shp, she achieved 38.32 knots on sea trials and crossed the Atlantic at 35 knots in commercial service. As she was so fast, she easily took the Blue Riband in both directions from Queen Mary, although she needed a sizeable government subsidy to do so, due to a high fuel bill and limited capacity. Whereas passengers enjoyed a good degree of comfort on board, the same could not be said for most of the crew. Apart from the Officers’ accommodation, the general crew had very spartan facilities, which were a constant cause for complaint. Female staff were accommodated in small two-berth bunk cabins with only a washbasin, while their male counterparts of Leading Steward rank had cabins for two, while the other stewards occupied cabins with up to 12 and even 16 in bunked areas. Many of the stewards were accommodated aft in their berthing spaces above the four propellers in an area of the ship that was both noisy and suffered from vibration from the propellers. There was no airconditioning and communal facilities were used by a large number of people. Although a crew pub, the ‘Pig and Whistle’, Cinema and Library, would be installed to supplement the mess (eating) spaces, facilities for the crew were meagre to the end. Following the retrofit installation of stabilisers on Cunard’s Media and Parthia, and the huge success in taming the lively diminutive sisters of excessive rolling, Cunard decided to fit stabilisers to Queen Elizabeth. It was originally deemed not worthwhile installing stabilisers on Queen Mary as it was assumed she would not have the benefit too long before being replaced. However, conditions on Queen Elizabeth were so improved that Queen Mary was also given the stabilising fins
40 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 40
12/07/2021 09:23
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS Surrounded by a protective breakwater, Queen Mary in retirement at Long Beach.
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 41
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 41
09/07/2021 11:01
ABOVE Although this lift dias is extremely elegant, the restricted access that it offers would not be acceptable on a new ship today.
ABOVE The Cabin Class Observation Lounge is still well patronised on Hotel Queen Mary.
ABOVE The wheelshouse today, with the brass instruments stripped.
ABOVE The enclosed portside Tourist Promenade.
in 1958 at a cost of £500,000. Considering that competition on the Atlantic was much more intense and that air travel posed an even greater challenge, Queen Mary needed every advantage possible. Nonetheless, the assault on the ship’s carryings by aircraft was unrelenting and, by the mid 1960s, she was sometimes sailing with more crew on board than passengers. The
demand for winter Atlantic crossings collapsed and both Queens were sent on off-season cruises, which was never envisaged in their original design. Their deep draughts, lack of airconditioning, lack of laundry and rigid class structure severely limited their deployment on cruises, but the appeal of the grand ships helped. Nonetheless, by 1967 Cunard could no longer afford
ABOVE The Cabin class Restaurant is a popular Californian stop off.
to retain the aging Queen Mary, and she was slated for withdrawal in October that year, with Queen Elizabeth to follow in 1968. Both were replaced by a new single dual-role ship, named Queen Elizabeth 2. Queen Mary completed her final transatlantic voyage on 27 September 1967 with 1,200 passengers. It was her 1,001st crossing and she passed
ABOVE The Tourist Class Main Lounge on Main Deck aft.
42 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 42
09/07/2021 11:01
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS Still majestic, Queen Mary is the only surviving Ship of State from the 1930s.
Queen Elizabeth mid-Atlantic shortly after midnight on 25 September 1967. After a final cruise to Las Palmas early in October, she was prepared for her final voyage. She had been sold to the City of Long Beach, California for US$3.45 million and the City wanted the delivery voyage to be marketed and sold as ‘The last great cruise’. Although Cunard operated the ship, they declined to sell tickets themselves, envisaging problems in sailing through the tropics and around Cape Horn without air-conditioning. Passenger numbers were limited to 1,000 and the ship left Southampton for the last time on 31 October 1967 to an enthusiastic send off. She called at Lisbon, Las Palmas, Rio de Janeiro, Valparaiso, Callao, Balboa, and Acapulco before arriving at Long Beach on 9 December 1967, being afforded an amazing reception with hundreds of boats, large and small, ready to greet the liner on her approach. After an official handover on 11 December, the ship was prepared
for conversion into a floating hotel. The conversion turned out to be far more extensive than first envisaged. The ship required rewiring and airconditioning had to be installed to counteract the hot Californian sun and provide habitable conditions on board. The plumbing also required renewal as salt-water baths would no longer be offered and, classed as a building, the ship required fire detection and fire proofing upgrades. Much of the main machinery was scrapped in situ and lifted out of the ship through the funnel hatches once the funnels were removed. Sadly, the original funnels collapsed as they were lifted off the ship and it was found that they were largely comprised of layers of red and black paint, the steel shells having been corroded. The stripped-out machinery areas, representing 40 per cent of the ship’s internal volume, were to be rebuilt as a US$3 million ‘Oceanarium’, a maritime museum and aquarium. The cost was initially estimated at
US$14 million, until it was abandoned. Bedevilled with cost over-runs, management problems and companies withdrawing from the project, the opening of the ship as an attraction and hotel fell way behind schedule. Parts of the ship opened in spring 1971 and the hotel opened its doors in January 1973, using some of the ship’s reconditioned Frist class cabins. Various operators, including Disney, have attempted to operate the ship profitably, but an aging ship requires enormous expenditure, especially one that is still afloat. But despite all the issues, Queen Mary remains at Long Beach, and it is often said that Queen Mary is Long Beach and Long Beach is Queen Mary, inferring that the ship largely put the City on the map. But she survives to this day, making Queen Mary the only superliner and Ship of State remaining from the 1930s. Indeed, it is remarkable that she continues to survive after so long, and is certainly well worth a visit.
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 43
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 43
09/07/2021 11:01
CHAPTER 5
THE SECOND QUEEN QUEEN ELIZABETH OF 1940
N
o sooner had Queen Mary entered service in May 1936 than Cunard looked towards her running mate, which was to be named Queen Elizabeth. There was no question of building a repeat vessel to the same design; within Queen Mary’s build period, extended due to the Great Depression, naval architecture and marine engineering had moved on. The power output of Queen Mary’s 27 boilers could be achieved by 12 larger and more efficient boilers. Measurements and calculations indicated that Queen Mary consumed 0.586lb fuel per shaft horsepower per hour for propulsion at 158,000 shaft horsepower, which dropped on Queen Elizabeth to 0.553lb. This small improvement equated to a reduction of 12 tons of fuel per day. The grouping of the larger boilers in four, rather than five, boiler rooms enabled the new ship to dispense with one funnel and thus gain deck space. It was noted that the forward well deck on Queen Mary was frequently awash in bad weather and, when the ship pitched heavily, water could build up for a few moments prior to draining overboard, temporarily destabilising the ship. Thus, the new ship was designed without the well deck by having a continuous foredeck. Queen Mary’s crew accommodation had come in for particular criticism and a new deckhouse had been erected on Sun Deck above the Verandah Grill within a year of entering service for the Engineering Officers. As well as appeasing the Engineers about the location of their accommodation, the freed up space could be utilised to reduce overcrowding and lack of
Queen Elizabeth’s bow, resting on the fore poppet at the end of the slipway, with final preparations for launching under way.
crew facilities. The new ship could incorporate these changes from the outset. However, by far the greatest changes with the new liner were to be brought by the influence of Normandie, which had entered service a year prior to Queen Mary. The French ship exhibited much flair, while Queen Mary was solidly conservative. Normandie was much
cleaner in form: the forest of ventilators was missing, to be replaced with fan rooms and ducts grouped around the funnel trunks. Not only did this clean up the profile, it released a lot of deck space, minimised the loss of space internally and simplified the design of the interiors, as well as vastly reducing maintenance costs. Normandie’s funnels were internally
44 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 44
09/07/2021 11:01
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
braced and free standing, and there were no guy wires, which freed up more deck space. Cunard sent one of their naval architects undercover on board Normandie for a crossing and many of his observations were considered for the new Queen. It was inevitable that the Cunarder would be quite different from her predecessor. Another change was an increase in rake of the bow compared to Queen Mary. This was to allow the incorporation of a third anchor, which was positioned centrally on the stem; the increased rake of the bow minimised the risk of the anchor being fouled by the bow and any resulting damage when it was hauled in. Given the success in building Queen Mary, and with many aspects of the new ship destined to be identical or similar, it was predictable that John Brown Shipyard would be awarded the contract to build the new liner, designated New Building 552. With the contract awarded in October 1936, the keel was laid on 4 December on the slipway vacated by Queen Mary. The ship was launched on 27 September 1938 and named Queen Elizabeth by HM Queen Elizabeth, who travelled to Clydebank without King George VI because of the Munich crisis. Cunard’s express transatlantic service was being maintained by Queen Mary and Aquitania, as Berengaria had been withdrawn and scrapped as she
was deemed too great a fire risk after several fires had started as a result of faulty electrics. It was envisaged that Queen Elizabeth would enter service in 1940, replacing Aquitania, which would be scrapped. Outfitting progressed with the ship moored within John Brown’s
outfitting dock throughout 1939, even after World War II had been declared on 1 September 1939. However, on the declaration of war the emphasis immediately shifted to merely getting the ship ready for sea rather than completing her as a luxury liner, and there was the worry that air raids from
ABOVE Ready for launching! Queen Elizabeth would soon be safely afloat and manoeuvred into the outfitting basin seen in the foreground.
RIGHT Queen Elizabeth’s bow is festooned with scaffalding as painting progresses before her launch.
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 45
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 45
09/07/2021 11:01
the German Luftwaffe would target and seriously damage the ship. By early March 1940 the engines had been tested and the ship had been given her certificate of seaworthiness. Mindful of Axis spies in the area reporting back to Germany, it was leaked that the ship would be moved to Southampton for final outfitting. On 3 March she moved down the Clyde and her Master, Captain Townley, opened his sealed orders to find that he was not to take the ship to Southampton, but across the Atlantic to New York. This was an unparalleled situation and expediency as the ship had not undertaken sea trials. It was just hoped that everything was installed correctly and would work first time. Thankfully it did, and Queen Elizabeth sped across the U boat infested Atlantic to New York, where she arrived on 7 March to the amazement of the local inhabitants, joining Queen Mary and Normandie
ABOVE Safely afloat, Queen Elizabeth is manoeuvred alongside the outfitting quay at John Brown’s.
BELOW Queen Elizabeth off Sydney Heads in wartime grey.
46 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 46
09/07/2021 11:01
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS Queen Elizabeth sets off down the Clyde as she leaves the John Brown Shipyard with her next stop being New York.
which were already laid up there. For a short while, the three largest liners in the world lay together at Piers 88 and 90, but Queen Mary left for Sydney on 21 March 1940, and eight months later, on 13 November, Queen Elizabeth left for Singapore, leaving Normandie laid up in New York. The French liner was seized by the US Authorities after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor for conversion into a troopship, only to be lost by fire and subsequently capsizing after a workman set fire to inflammable life preservers stacked in the main lounge. Righted and raised after a very complicated salvage operation, Normandie was later deemed surplus to requirements and subsequently scrapped in New Jersey. Queen Elizabeth was converted into a troopship and operated much like Queen Mary in several theatres around
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 47
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 47
09/07/2021 11:01
As with Queen Mary, Queen Elizabeth was engaged in trooping activities around the world during World War II.
the world, ferrying troops to where they were needed. Sir Winston Churchill, Britain’s wartime Prime Minister, remarked that the combined efforts of the two Cunard Queens in trooping around the world probably shortened the war by a year. At War’s end, she too repatriated troops and GI Brides, but she was released earlier than her running mate for refitting as a luxury liner. On her arrival at Southampton on 6 March 1946 it was announced that Queen Elizabeth would be the first liner to be released from Government voyages. Whereas Queen Mary would eventually be refitted at Southampton, it was decided that Queen Elizabeth would be outfitted on the Clyde, but not at John Brown’s as it was impractical to return the ship to the Clydebank yard. The ship was refitted at Gourock and Greenock Drydock and, after the removal of the wartime additions, the passenger accommodation and trappings of luxury that had never installed were incorporated in the ship. Although the classes were to have been in line with those of Queen Mary’s nomenclature of Cabin, Tourist and Third, Cunard decided to adopt First, Cabin and Tourist for the class namings, which the older ship replicated when she re-entered service. The elimination of one funnel trunk and rationalisation of air intake trunks
48 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 48
09/07/2021 11:01
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
ABOVE Liners on parade: Mauretania, Normandie, Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth together in New York in 1940. BELOW Queen Elizabeth was the first great British liner to be released after World War II.
gave an improved layout compared to Queen Mary. Several innovations were also incorporated into the arrangement compared to her older sibling, including two Garden Lounges and a permanent dedicated Theatre that was to be used by First and Cabin classes. The air-conditioning plant was extended to include the Theatre and the First and Cabin class restaurants. Whereas Queen Mary’s airconditioning plant circulated seven million cubic feet of air per hour, Queen Elizabeth’s plant circulated ten million. The decoration of her public spaces was somewhat less flamboyant than that on Queen Mary in line with materiel availability, but in many ways it was more refined and extremely elegant. The ship was painted in her Cunard colours for the first time before she journeyed south to Southampton to enter the King George V Drydock for cleaning and painting, particularly the underwater
part of the hull. Once this was completed, Queen Elizabeth returned to the Clyde to undertake the sea trials which had been postponed from 1940. For part of the trials HM Queen Elizabeth and her daughters, Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret, boarded the ship by tender and, at one point, the Queen was at the helm of the liner as the ship transited the measured mile at 30 knots. After the trials were successfully completed, the Royal Party disembarked by tender and the ship returned to Southampton, arriving late at night on 10 October 1946. Preparations immediately began for the ship’s maiden commercial voyage which began at 2pm on 16 October 1946, with 2,288 passengers on board. The ship sailed down Southampton Water and into the Solent and past the Isle of Wight into the English Channel, before turning westwards towards the Atlantic, without calling at Cherbourg
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 49
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 49
09/07/2021 11:01
A fine view of Queen Elizabeth at anchor late in her career after her 1966 refit, when the aft lido had been installed.
50 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 50
09/07/2021 11:01
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 51
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 51
09/07/2021 11:01
as had been customary because the facilities in that port were still derelict. Queen Elizabeth arrived in New York on the morning of 21 October to a rapturous welcome and, after a stopover of three days, left the port with 2,246 passengers bound for Southampton. Thereafter she operated alone until joined by Queen Mary in July 1947, the two ships dominating the Atlantic route by taking over 50 per cent of the trade in the early years of the partnership. Cunard’s dream of rationalising the express ferry from three disparate ships to two matched liners was finally a reality. The layout of Queen Elizabeth’s passenger accommodation was similar to Queen Mary’s, but with one less funnel casing and lack of multiple ventilation intake trunks it was much improved. The midships area was the preserve of First class, Cabin class was located towards the stern, and Tourist class towards the bow. The pre-war designations of Cabin, Tourist and Third were not implemented on Queen Elizabeth
and she entered service with the new descriptions from the start. When first entering commercial service, she accommodated 850 First, 720 Cabin and 745 Tourist class with 1,296 crew, while her gross tonnage measured 83,673. Like on Queen Mary, her First class public rooms were mainly arranged along Promenade Deck within the superstructure, although the enclosed promenade was not wraparound, as two Garden Lounges occupied the aft sections: First to starboard and Cabin to port. There was a large Observation Lounge forward, followed by a cabin area and a large lobby, which incorporated the Shopping Arcade and the Library. The Main Lounge was disposed between the lobby and the second funnel hatch and was two decks in height. There were no port and starboard long galleries as found on Queen Mary, but a Writing Room and Nursery were positioned outboard of the second funnel hatch. Further aft were the Ballroom, and a Smoking Room, which
Queen Mary arrives at Southampton on 27 September 1946 at the end of her war service, passing Queen Elizabeth about to commence her commercial service.
With Queen Mary arriving at the conclusion of her wartime service in Southampton, the reconditioned Queen Elizabeth prepares for her maiden commercial voyage.
52 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 52
09/07/2021 11:01
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
Queen Elizabeth at her most regal, brightly illuminated at dusk in the Ocean Dock.
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 53
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 53
09/07/2021 11:02
ABOVE “Queen Elizabeth’s First Class Lobby (left) was an elegant meeting space with access to the main staircase and lifts, the shopping arcade and the indoor and outdoor promenades. It also led to spectacular First Class Lounge (centre and right), which was the social hub for that class.
was a single-deck height (Queen Mary’s was two deck high). A cinema/theatre was positioned aft of the Smoking Room, while further aft the Cabin class Smoking Room and Cocktail Lounge were arranged, and the Cabin class Lounge was aft on Main Deck. The restaurants for all three classes were located on Restaurant Deck. Tourist class was provided with a Garden Lounge, Lounge, Cinema, Smoking Room and Nursery. Between mid-December 1962 and January 1963 Queen Elizabeth underwent a significant refit to adapt her for periodic cruising and to refresh the accommodation. Some cabins were redecorated with the fine wood panelling disappearing under
white and green panels. The First class Observation Lounge was also reallocated to Tourist class in order to make this class more attractive to passengers who might otherwise consider one of the newer Tourist orientated ships then operating on the Atlantic. A downside was that the delightful and exquisite First class Ballroom was redecorated to substitute for the loss to First class of the cocktail lounge/observation lounge. The redecoration was in no way sympathetic and was totally out of keeping with the rest of the ship. A curved bar was added, while the room’s vaulted ceiling was lowered by adding a white false ceiling, bulkheads were covered with white and green panels, the carpet
The First Class Restaurant was a magnificent elegantly decorated apartment rising up through two decks.
54 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 54
09/07/2021 11:02
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
ABOVE The First Class Dining Room was a lofty space with much fine wood panelling.
ABOVE The elegant First class Ballroom was later refitted as a bar.
ABOVE The First class Garden Lounge at the aft end of the starbord internal promenade. Queen Elizabeth undertaking nightime manoeuvres at Southampton with the pilot on board.
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 55
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 55
09/07/2021 11:02
The First Class Library on Queen Elizabeth employed raised platforms.
The First Class Observation and Cocktail Lounge was decorated with fine marquetry panels but lacked the lighting upstands found on Queen Mary.
The class Lobby on Promenade Deck was of majestic proportions.
The First Class Restaurant was noted for extensive menus and fine silver service.
The First Class Smoking Room was aft of the Lounge and had a club-like feel.
First Class Main Lounge on board Queen Elizabeth had a refined ambiance.
The elegance of a First Class is evident from this cabin.
56 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 56
09/07/2021 11:02
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS Unlike modern cruise ships which have side thrusters and azimuthing propulsors to provide unaided harbour manoeuvring, Queen Elizabeth only had a single rudder and four relatively slow-reacting propellers. To compensate, as shown here, she would require several tugs at the bow and the stern to safely navigate in and out of port.
was salmon coloured and the furniture was green and salmon. Queen Elizabeth operated three four-night winter cruises to Nassau in February-March 1963 and another in November 1963. These were sufficiently successful for Cunard to repeat the following year, in addition to an extended cruise to the Mediterranean. In March 1965 the ship returned to the Mediterranean for a cruise, before returning to transatlantic crossings; she finished the year going to Bermuda and Nassau, before returning to Southampton on 18 November. To enhance the ship further, an even more significant refit than that of 1963 was undertaken from early December 1965. The air-conditioning plant was extended to cover all the passenger and crew accommodation, many larger Tourist cabins were provided with private facilities, greater water distillation capacity was installed to enable cruises of longer than seven days to be offered, and a comprehensive open air lido and pool was installed aft. The refit was undertaken by John Brown’s at Greenock but had to be
completed at Southampton when it ran seriously behind schedule. By this time, Cunard’s new transatlantic liner Q4, which would ultimately become Queen Elizabeth 2 (QE2), was under construction with an anticipated in service date of May 1968. The plan was for the new ship to replace Queen Mary and operate in tandem with Queen
BELOW In 1966 an open air lido was added to enhance Queen Elizabeth for her cruising role by extending Promenade Deck aft to the docking bridge. With new ships, such as Sagafjord and Kungsholm, entering service, the new pool and lido were considered essential to enable Queen Elizabeth to match the competition, and they also complemented the two existing indoor pools.
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 57
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 57
09/07/2021 11:02
ABOVE Queen Elizabeth sails down the Hudson after another transatlantic crossing.
BELOW Queen Elizabeth alongside Ocean Terminal at Southampton’s Ocean Dock.
BELOW The last meeting of the Queens on 25 September 1967
58 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 58
09/07/2021 11:02
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
Elizabeth until 1975, when the older ship would be retired. Queen Elizabeth returned to service on 29 March 1966 with a transatlantic crossing to New York followed by a Bermuda cruise. The 1966 transatlantic season was shortened by a National Seamen’s strike which enforced the ship to remain idle at Southampton from 16 May to 2 July. In common with other British shipping lines, the financial effect on Cunard was
devastating. Huge losses resulted, which worsened Cunard’s revenues as passengers started to forgo transatlantic sea travel for travel by jet airliners. On the cruising front, from the mid-1960s other companies built a new breed of modern cruise ships such as Oceanic, Sagafjord and Kungsholm, and these posed a major threat to Cunard’s older ships providing cruises. Cunard was in a fight for its very existence and rationalisation and brutal surgery was the only way for the company to survive. Unprofitable ships, including the magnificent cruise liner Caronia, were withdrawn and sold. It was inevitable that the axe would extend to Queen Mary and, on 8 May 1967, the Masters of both Queens were ordered to open sealed envelopes that had been delivered to them before they had set sail. The messages contained in the envelopes stated that Queen Mary would be withdrawn in October that year after the peak of the summer season was over and, despite her costly modernisation, Queen Elizabeth would follow in 1968, and not 1975 as planned. Thus, Cunard’s new Queen Elizabeth 2 would replace both older Queens and sail alone on the Atlantic. It was a bitter blow, but one Cunard had to face as both the venerable Queens
ABOVE Queen Elizabeth being manoeuvred to point towards the Solent having just left Southampton’s Ocean Terminal.
had been losing £750,000 per annum. After final Christmas and New Year cruises to Nassau, a further excursion to the Caribbean and other dashes to Nassau with a transatlantic in between, Queen Elizabeth began her final lonely transatlantic season in earnest on 22 April 1968. The last round trip to New York departed Southampton on 23 October 1968 and she arrived at her American terminus on 28 October 1968. The return leg departed on 30 October 1968 and she arrived back home on 5 November 1968. The following day she was visited by HM Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, who had launched the ship back in 1938, for a final farewell. Three days later she sailed on a seven-day cruise to Las Palmas and Gibraltar, returning to Southampton on 15 November 1968. During her Cunard career Queen Elizabeth had crossed the Atlantic 896 times, compared to Queen Mary’s 1,001 crossings, and had operated 30 cruises travelling a combined 3,472,672 miles. On 5 April 1968 Cunard made a firm agreement to sell Queen Elizabeth to brothers Charles and Philip Miller for
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 59
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 59
09/07/2021 11:02
$3.23 million to become an attraction at Philadelphia. Unfortunately, the scheme failed, and Port Everglades in Florida was substituted as it became apparent that the brothers would not be able to raise the funds for the ship. To ensure that the sale proceeded, Cunard agreed to become a partner in the venture, called The Elizabeth (Cunard) Corporation, which led them to become the majority 85 per cent shareholder, with the Millers owning the remainder. Unlike Queen Mary, which had carried passengers on her retirement delivery voyage, Queen Elizabeth did not, and she left Southampton on 29 November 1968, docking in Port Everglades on 8 December 1968. Ten weeks later she opened as ‘The Elizabeth’, with the intention that she would become progressively openedup as a hotel, convention centre and attraction. But almost immediately the ship became mired in controversial issues which eventually forced the venture to close. The ship deteriorated rapidly after her arrival in Florida and she was advertised for sale several times. In September 1970 she was purchased by Hong Kong shipping magnate C.Y. Tung, who envisaged refitting her as a floating university, carrying students and nonstudents on voyages around the world. Reactivating the ship to return to sea for a delivery voyage to Hong Kong was a major proposition. But after Queen Elizabeth was renamed Seawise University (a play on Tung’s C.Y. names), she limped out of Port Everglades on 10 February 1971 and arrived at Hong Kong on 14 July 1971, after a tortuous voyage calling at Rio de Janeiro, Cape Town and Singapore. Over the next six months she was refitted while lying at anchor, with her then decrepit boilers reconditioned and accommodation sympathetically remodelled for her new career. A large part of the refit included upgrading her fire protection with the inclusion of new fire bulkheads and zones. In part, it was the necessity and cost to install these new arrangements, mandated after the cruise ship
ABOVE With her flying-off pennant streaming from her mainmast, Queen Elizabeth leaves New York for the last time. RIGHT The Tourist Class Smoking Room. BELOW Queen Elizabeth’s comprehensive Fire Station with the fire detection panel to the right.
60 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 60
09/07/2021 11:02
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS Queen Elizabeth’s two huge funnels are prominent when viewed from the aft end of Sports Deck. The wood deck appears rather grubby.
Yarmouth Castle had been lost by fire, that prompted Cunard to withdraw the ship in 1968. Ironically, as the refit neared completion, Seawise University was swept by fire on 9 January 1972. Fireboats were despatched but they were unable to contain the blaze, and, in a scene analogous to the loss of Normandie in New York in 1942, Seawise University capsized and rolled over onto her portside. The bridge and whole sections of the ship collapsed in the intense heat of the fire and it was clear that the ship was a total loss and would never sail again. The subsequent inquiry determined that multiple fires had started on board simultaneously and it was probable that it was politicallymotivated arson, bringing a sad end to the former flagship of the British Merchant Marine. After a few years, the wreck was largely removed, although part of it remains buried under a new container port which was built when the anchorage area was in-filled. At 83,000grt, Queen Elizabeth was the largest passenger ship in the world until the buildnig of the 100,000grt cruise ship Carnival Destiny in 1996.
The tragic fire, deemed an act of arson, that destroyed Queen Elizabeth on 9 January 1972.
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 61
Transatlantic Queens part 2.indd 61
09/07/2021 11:02
CHAPTER 6
THE FOURTH QUEEN: QUEEN ELIZABETH 2 Queen Elizabeth 2 almost structurally complete is readied for launching at the John Brown Shipyard, Clydebank. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
I
n the late 1950s Cunard Line considered the future of their transatlantic business and the venerable but ageing Queen Mary, and concluded a direct, but modern, 75,000grt replacement would be required by the mid1960s. The ensuing project for the third Cunard Queen, designated Q3, envisaged a single express transatlantic liner which could operate year-round. It would be slightly smaller than Queen Mary, with the reduction in tonnage a consequence of the advances in naval architecture and marine engineering, but would nonetheless have more space
per passenger than was provided on the existing Queens. This development came against the background of a last round of building national ‘ships of state’, with the German Bremen, Dutch Rotterdam and French France poised to enter service. Progress with Cunard’s own design work resulted in approaches to several prominent UK shipyards to begin the process of tendering for the new Q3 (third Queen) ship and, in parallel, submissions to the national government were made for a partial construction loan, as Cunard would not be able to finance the project directly.
A government committee, the Chandos Committee, was formed to assess whether the government should advance public money for this purpose and determine any conditions to which Cunard would be bound. However, the rapid fall-off in demand for maritime passenger services across the Atlantic, following the introduction of the Boeing 707 airliner in 1958, led to a Cunard shareholder revolt. This aggressively questioned the company’s management strategy and pushed for a thorough reappraisal of the project, which resulted in its cancellation. It was ultimately concluded that
62 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 62
09/07/2021 10:27
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
a smaller, 58,000grt dual-purpose ship would be the best option. Such a ship could operate on the express transatlantic run for eight months of the year and revert to a cruising role during the winter months, when there was almost no appetite for transatlantic travel by ship. In the intervening period, Cunard assessed that Queen Mary’s material condition was such that she could remain in service for several more years, so a replacement was not an urgent matter and time could be taken to design the right ship. Thus, the Q4 project was born and, once again, shipyards were invited to submit ideas for the design of the ship. The government was informed of the intended change of direction in relation to the construction loan. During the post-1945 era shipbuilding costs had escalated and, as such a ship was likely to cost more than £25 million, it was realised that, from a financial perspective, the new ship would have to be more commercial in
ABOVE Queen Elizabeth 2 sliding down the ways. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
RIGHT Queen Elizabeth 2 alongside and fitting out at John Brown’s shipyard. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 63
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 63
09/07/2021 10:27
operation than the existing Queens, and indeed the still-born Q3. Cunard’s financial difficulties were mounting, as the transatlantic trade began its rapid decline. In early 1961 the passengercargo liners Media and Parthia were sold by the company, as they were no longer profitable; sadly, these early withdrawals were just a prelude to a far more drastic pruning of the passenger fleet as passenger carryings collapsed. After considerable deliberation against this depressing background,
the order for Q4 was placed with John Brown Shipyard at Clydebank on 30 December 1964. Apart from the fact that scores of skilled workers would be employed by the shipyard, providing thousands of man-hours of work for hundreds of subcontractors and suppliers, the vessel was also seen as a showcase for British art and design. Contract number 736 called for a three class, dual-purpose transatlantic cruise liner costing £25,427,000. This was subject to escalation for wage
ABOVE The rudder, weighing 80 tons, is hoisted into position.
ABOVE A Staircase during the construction. (Build photos Michael Gallagher Collection)
increases and the costs of materials, with delivery set for May 1968 in time for that year’s peak summer transatlantic season. To assist with the financing of the project, the British government pledged a loan of £17.6 million at 4.5 per cent interest. Meanwhile, Cunard’s old stalwart, Mauretania (II), had been expensively refitted with full air-conditioning in the hope that she could transition from liner to dual-purpose services, but with three disparate classes she was not
ABOVE The stern festooned with scaffolding during construction.
ABOVE The bulb being hoisted into place, ready to be joined to the rest of the hull.
ABOVE The Queen Mary suite is hoisted on board during the 1977 refit.
64 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 64
09/07/2021 10:27
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
ABOVE Tom Kameen, Cunard’s Technical Director. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
ABOVE Sir Basil Smallpeice (1906-1992). (Michael Gallagher Collection)
ABOVE Designer of QE2’s original interiors, Dennis Lennon.
ideally suited to cruising. In the event, she was not particularly successful and was soon running at a loss, forcing Cunard to sell her for scrap in 1965. As planning and construction on the new liner progressed, Cunard found itself in a hectic battle for survival; the cargo fleet, which had previously cushioned most passenger fleet losses, also began to show a deficit. Just as advances in marine engineering enabled Queen Elizabeth’s main machinery to be more compact and efficient than that in Queen Mary, further technological advances were even more marked for the new ship. To operate the ship profitably, it was deemed essential to minimise the fuel costs and streamline the machinery
space, so that the costs of manpower could be reduced. For a 28.5-knot service speed and a notional five-day crossing between Southampton and New York, the old Queens required power of 160,000shp, which was delivered by four propellers via two engine rooms, with a fuel consumption of about 1,000 tonnes per day. The new ship would have only one engine room and one boiler room, leading to a significant manning reduction, augmented further by the introduction of automation and remote control. Only 110,000shp would be required to provide the same service speed, and fuel consumption would be halved to about 500 tonnes a day, offering a saving of about £1 million per year.
ABOVE The first section of keel is prepared to be lifted into position onto the keel blocks to the right. (Michael Galagher Collection)
ABOVE QE2 nears completion with dock trials in progress, but the mast is yet to be placed on board. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
ABOVE The inverted wheelhouse block for Queen Elizabeth 2 takes shape. (Michael Galagher Collection)
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 65
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 65
09/07/2021 10:27
This was achieved through having a somewhat smaller ship and utilising increased efficiencies through using larger and higher pressure boilers, and having double-reduction geared turbines, instead of single reduction, which enabled propeller shaft revolutions to be optimised for the twin, rather than quadruple, propellers. A more efficient hull form included a bulbous bow. The weight of the ship would be significantly reduced by building the superstructure from welded aluminium alloy, and attaching this to the welded (rather than riveted) steel hull. In 1963 Cunard withdrew Saxonia and Ivernia and had the pair rebuilt at John Brown’s shipyard into dualpurpose liner-cruise ships, renamed Carmania and Franconia. New outdoor lido areas were added aft, incorporating a large kidney-shaped pool, and major works were undertaken internally. Experiments with new, lighter methods of construction were
ABOVE QE2 ready for her formal launch day. (Michael Gallagher Collection) RIGHT QE2 sliding down the ways on her launch day. (Michael Gallagher Collection) BELOW At an early stage of construction, with work progressing towards the stern of the ship. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
66 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 66
09/07/2021 10:27
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
ABOVE ‘I name this ship Queen Elizabeth the Second. May God bless her and all who sail on her.’ (Michael Gallagher Collection) RIGHT The stern of QE2 hits the River Clyde. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
trialled and, where appropriate, the methodology was incorporated into Newbuilding 736. Thus, for approximately the same number of passengers, yet more than 300 fewer crew, the space available to passengers was actually greater on the physically smaller new ship than on the old Queens, and the ship was much more
economical to run. The liner’s draught was reduced from over 39ft to just 32ft, enabling her, unlike her predecessors, to access her two main terminal ports regardless of the state of the tide, and also offer a wider range of ports for her off-season cruising role. It was soon realised that the cost of the new ship was going to be
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 67
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 67
09/07/2021 10:27
ABOVE A fine study of the bulbous forefoot and stem, complete with its central anchor pocket. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
ABOVE The stone manganese six-bladed propellers fitted to Queen Elizabeth 2. (Stephen Payne Collection)
ABOVE QE2 makes her maiden arrival in New York. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
LEFT Handover day of Queen Elizabeth, 20 April 1969. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
significantly higher than envisaged. To retain the viability of the project, economies had to be found and implemented, and the most significant was undoubtedly the deletion of one of the intended four boilers. Queen Mary had been designed with 24 boilers, Queen Elizabeth with 12 and the new ship with four, but this was reduced to three. This decision would have far-reaching consequences that nobody could have envisioned at the time. Sylvania, Carinthia, Caronia, Queen Mary and finally Queen Elizabeth all followed Mauretania in leaving the fleet between 1965 and 1968, as unprofitable ships were disposed of. By the mid-1960s the existing Queens and the Line’s other passenger ships were losing money at an alarming rate.
68 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 68
09/07/2021 10:27
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS A fine study of Queen Elizabeth 2 as she was delivered after dieselisation. (LouisPhilippe Capelle Collection)
During 1965 each Queen lost £750,000, with operating costs of £25,000 per day. The seven-week National Seaman’s Strike in 1966 was another crippling blow, and that year John Brown advised Cunard that the delivery of the new ship would be delayed by six months to November 1968, which would mean the loss of the lucrative summer season. This delay did, however, allow Cunard to reconfigure the ship from the original three-class disposition (First, Cabin and Tourist) to a more flexible two-class arrangement (First and Tourist) following the results of a market research study involving 84,000 people. Nowhere was the rationalisation of the classes more evident than with the former Cabin and Tourist class
QE2 at New York following her Project Lifestyle refit in 1994, with the iconic Twin Towers forming the backdrop. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 69
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 69
09/07/2021 10:27
lounges that were originally planned to be positioned one above the other. The two were simply combined into an enlarged Tourist lounge by removing the centre floor area of the upper lounge so that the spaces became one. This space became the celebrated red-themed Double Room, designed by Jon Bannenberg, the levels being designated Double Up and Double Down, with a spiral staircase and bar extension at the after end of the room. Four months before the launch of the ship on 20 September 1967, Cunard advised the government that they would require a further loan of £3 million to complete the ship. The company had lost £7.5 million during the year, and envisaged that it would take at least five years to get the passenger side of the business into profit.
ABOVE Queen Elizabeth 2 in the Panama Canal’s Gaillard Cut during a post re-engining world cruise. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
70 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 70
09/07/2021 10:27
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS On 8 November 1965 Sir Basil Smallpeice became Chairman of Cunard and immediately ordered every aspect of the business be scrutinised and streamlined in an attempt to reduce costs; significant savings of over £2 million per annum were found, but these were largely swallowed by increasing costs, particularly crew wages. So everything rested with the new Cunarder, which had been named Queen Elizabeth 2.
The majestic Queen Elizabeth 2 cuts a dash, pictured sometime between 1987 and 1994. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 71
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 71
12/07/2021 09:24
Queen Elizabeth 2 in the Clyde. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
ABOVE The Grand Lounge after the 1987 refit. (Michael Gallagher Collection) LEFT Looking up at the funnel from the portside Boat Deck. (Stephen Payne Collection) BELOW The Queens Room. (Stephen Payne Collection)
Queen Elizabeth was withdrawn in November 1968 in preparation for the arrival of the new ship, but Cunard initially refused to accept Queen Elizabeth 2 because of serious design flaws in the blading of her steam turbines, which suffered from resonant vibration at speed. Stiffening of the blade roots took several months, and, after full testing under service conditions, the ship was finally accepted and subsequently sailed on her maiden transatlantic voyage on 2 May 1969. The 58,000grt dual-purpose express transatlantic liner and cruise ship had in fact grown to be 65,000grt through
72 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 72
09/07/2021 10:27
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS Queen Elizabeth 2 returning home after the Falklands. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
ABOVE QE2 in her post Falklands grey, but with a Cunard red funnel. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
ABOVE Queen Elizabeth 2 in what was a short-lived new look after her service in the Falklands. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 73
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 73
09/07/2021 10:27
the various metamorphic stages of her development, and the final cost was over £29 million. For her first year of operation Queen Elizabeth 2 turned a profit, but the odds were stacked against her. Although Smallpeice had wrought huge changes within Cunard, there were still many outmoded and inefficient practices that compromised operations. In 1971 Cunard was acquired through a hostile £28 million takeover bid by Trafalgar House, at which time Queen Elizabeth 2, or QE2 as she popularly
become known, was losing £500,000 a year, even before the fivefold increase in the price of fuel which lay on the horizon. So Sir Basil Smallpeice and 16 other senior Cunard executives were paid off with golden handshakes as Trafalgar’s Victor Matthews and his team took over. Trafalgar had a massive task to bring the ship into profit and immediately set about redefining the Line, the ship and the voyages she offered. Although many within Cunard, as well as loyal passengers, were less than
ABOVE Double-Down on Upper Deck.
ABOVE Double-Up Lounge aft on Boat Deck.
ABOVE First Class cabin.
ABOVE Midships Bar on Quarter Deck.
BELOW QE2 Britannia Restaurant.
BELOW Double-Up on Boat Deck.
enthusiastic, a large refit in 1972 added more cabins, redefining the First class offering into standard First class, and an elevated Queens Grill class was utilised, with the top grade cabins in combination with an exclusive paired restaurant, the Queens Grill; this would later be expanded to provide another First Class sublevel, the Princess Grill. As part of the refit, the shops were relocated to the Double Up Lounge, occupying former seating areas. The new shops were branded in association with exclusive High Street names, such as Harrod’s. Trafalgar’s changes worked, and by 1978 the ship was generating an annual turnover of more than £30 million. Fuel costs were £5 million per year, and the monthly payroll for the 950 crew was £225,000.
74 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 74
09/07/2021 10:27
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
ABOVE Queen Elizabeth 2 at anchor early in her career. (Stephen Payne Collection)
LEFT With inches to spare, Queen Elizabeth 2 sqeezes into a Panama Canal lock. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
RIGHT A brochure for Queen Elizabeth 2 from 1970.
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 75
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 75
09/07/2021 10:27
Queen Elizabeth 2 motors past the Needles on the Isle of Wight. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
She cost £80,000 per day to keep idle in port, and broke even at 65 per cent occupancy. By comparison, the French Line’s France, QE2’s main competitor, was losing £10 million per year at the time of her withdrawal in 1974. Apart from transatlantic crossings, QE2 was employed in seasonal cruising and on 14 January 1975 departed on
the first of her 26 round-the-world cruises. Like the previous Queens, she was originally scheduled to cross the Atlantic, with one- and two-day stopovers at each terminal port, when essential boiler maintenance could be undertaken. The new management immediately appreciated that QE2 only made money when she was at sea full
ABOVE QE2 at Curaçao during a cruise early in her career. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
of passengers, and that the extended stopovers would have to be curtailed. The decision to delete the fourth boiler now became critical, as she was often forced to steam without any days off, with all three boilers in steam to maintain the transatlantic schedule. Had there been a fourth boiler, rotating maintenance could have been possible, and this would have kept the boilers in good condition. It was inevitable that within a few years the ship would begin to suffer serious reliability issues through boiler troubles and even full breakdowns. When the ship was requisitioned by the British government to ferry troops to the Falklands in 1982, she steamed out of Southampton with only one of her three boilers operational. Although the others were repaired in time for the voyage to the South Atlantic, by 1986 the situation had become critical, and Trafalgar had to decide whether to scrap the ship or undertake the costly surgery of re-engining her. Accordingly, work was undertaken by Lloyd Werft, at Bremerhaven, Germany, during the winter of 1986-
76 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 76
09/07/2021 10:27
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS QE2 Final Upper Deck Plan. (Stephen Payne Collection)
QE2 Final Lower Deck Plan. (Stephen Payne Collection)
Queen Elizabeth 2 looked good from every angle. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 77
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 77
09/07/2021 10:27
ABOVE Queens Grill Bar.
ABOVE Queens Grill. (S. Payne Collection)
ABOVE Queens Room after the 1987 refit.
ABOVE The aft starboard annex of the Caronia Restaurant. (Stephen Payne Collection)
ABOVE Some original curved windscreens remained to the end. (S. Payne Collection)
ABOVE The A Stairway foyer on Boat Deck looking to the entrance to the Queens Grill.
ABOVE The corridor entrance to the Yacht Club aft on Upper Deck. (S. Payne Collection)
ABOVE The Midships Lobby on Two Deck, in its final form. (Stephen Payne Collection)
ABOVE The Tourist Class Britannia Restaurant.
87, when the steam plant was removed and replaced by a state-of-the-art diesel electric power plant based on nine diesels. Although the refit cost over £100 million, it solved the reliability issues and halved fuel consumption. It was an engineering triumph and prolonged the life of the ship for a further 20 years. On 7 August 1992 QE2 was seriously damaged when the ship ran across an uncharted shoal of rocks off Martha’s Vineyard, south of Cape Cod off Massachusetts, North America. A large part of the ship’s double bottom was compromised, and she was unable to resume service until 4 October 1992. Trafalgar constantly refitted QE2’s
accommodation to keep her abreast of modern tastes and requirements, incorporating new features such as a full health spa and other amenities. Unfortunately, the planning and execution of some of these refits was less than perfect, and on several occasions the press had a field day reporting horror stories of overflowing toilets, flooded cabins and lack of air-conditioning as the ship re-entered service. Nonetheless, the bad publicity did not seem to do long-term harm to Cunard. As originally conceived by Cunard, QE2 eschewed much of the tradition and heritage of the Line in a bold statement of modernity. Cunard even proclaimed that ‘ships have been boring
QE2 resplendent in her new look. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
78 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 78
09/07/2021 10:28
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS Steam’s last hurrah: Queen Elizabeth 2 before being re-engined. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
long enough’. However, by the 1990s it was realised that the Cunard heritage sold berths; accordingly, during the 1994 ‘Project Lifestyle’ refit, a heritage trail, incorporating much-displayed company memorabilia, was installed on board and this soon became popular. With faltering fortunes, Trafalgar
House was acquired by the AngloNorwegian Kvaerner group in 1996, who subsequently sold Cunard to Carnival Corporation for US$613 million, although a dispute led to $50 million being refunded to Carnival. In 2002 QE2 became the first merchant vessel to sail more than
five million nautical miles at sea and in 2004 she became the longestserving Cunard liner in history, overtaking the record previously held by Aquitania. Money was invested in further upgrades and, following the introduction of Queen Mary 2 in 2004, QE2 reverted to full time cruising.
QE2 undertaking her final transatlantic sailing in tandem with Queen Mary 2. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 79
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 79
09/07/2021 10:28
Two mighty Queens: Queen Elizabeth 2 leading Queen Mary 2. (Michael Gallagher Collection) ABOVE Passengers on QE2 take the salute from Queen Mary 2 on the final transatlantic crossing, 21 October 2008. (Stephen Payne Collection)
RIGHT QE2 pitching heavily in the Atlantic swells. (Stephen Payne Collection)
ABOVE Six photographs of the Master’s cabin on board Queen Elizabeth 2 located at the forward end of Sun Deck. The space was originally to be allocated to the Chief Engineer’s and Master’s cabins, but on the insistence of the ship’s first Master, Captain Bil Warwick, the rooms were combined and the Chief Engineer berthed elsewhere. The cabin had an office area, a sitting area and a separate bedroom and was perfect for entertaining.
80 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 80
09/07/2021 10:28
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
Queen Elizabeth 2 prepares to sail for Dubai on 11 November 2008. (Stephen Payne Collection)
In 2007 an incredible offer of US$100 million was made by Nakheel Dubai for QE2 to convert her into a floating hotel and attraction. By then, after nearly 40 years of operational service, Queen Elizabeth 2 had simply become too expensive to maintain in top condition. From a business perspective, while the ship had long since paid back her building costs, acquiring spare parts was prohibitive; in addition, she had very few balcony cabins, which were then deemed the industry standard. On 16 October Queen Elizabeth 2
arrived at New York for the 710th and final time and subsequently made a final transatlantic crossing back to the UK in tandem with Queen Mary 2. After an emotional send-off from Southampton on 11 November 2008, QE2 sailed on a final one-way cruise to Dubai, arriving there on 26 November. She was withdrawn by Cunard the next day and handed over to Nakheel for conversion to a floating hotel. However, plans for the conversion were soon shelved due to the economic crash of 2008 and for ten years the
ABOVE Queen Elizabeth 2 embarking passengers for the last voyage to Dubai, 11 November 2008. (Stephen Payne Collection)
ship sat in limbo around the port. After much delay and partial reconditioning, part of the ship opened to visitors on 18 April 2018, and work is progressing to open up more areas of the ship. While a shoreside museum area houses original artefacts from the ship, very few spaces retain the final QE2 seagoing décor as the ship is upgraded to compete with other Dubai attractions. Thus, Queen Elizabeth 2 joins Queen Mary (1936) and Rotterdam (1959) as bastions of the heritage of the great transatlantic liners as a hotel ship.
ABOVE Queen Elizabeth 2 lies moribund in Dubai, her final resting place. (Michael Gallagher Collection)
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 81
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 81
09/07/2021 10:28
CHAPTER 7
W
THE SIXTH QUEEN: QUEEN MARY 2
hen Queen Elizabeth 2 was introduced in May 1969, it was believed that she would be the last North Atlantic liner to see service. Within a few years, Cunard had been taken over by the Trafalgar House group and the new owners had instigated considerable changes to increase revenue streams, not least keeping the ship at sea as much as possible to earn money. Huge increases
in fuel and crewing costs during the 1970s were certainly a challenge, but the ship continued shuttling across the Atlantic – expensively – on a five-day schedule at 28.5 knots. Re-engining in the late 1980s ensured continued operation and Queen Elizabeth 2 was always seen as a prestige ambassador for the company. However, when Kvaerner purchased Trafalgar House in 1996 and Cunard became part of the transfer by default,
the ship lost her key benefactor, and she began to lose her shine. Bookings slid and, to cut costs, the ship was scheduled on a six-day 25.5-knot schedule which offered considerable fuel savings. Kvaerner unsuccessfully tried to offload Cunard as a non-core business, but the fleet comprised an ageing, mismatched group of ships, which were considered an unattractive acquisition. But by a strange twist of fate, James Cameron’s blockbuster
Queen Mary 2 at Southampton in 2008. (Nicholas Leach)
82 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 82
09/07/2021 10:28
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS Titanic in 1997 heralded an upsurge in bookings for QE2, as passengers romanced their own Titanic story. Then, to the surprise to the industry, Carnival Corporation stepped in and agreed to buy Cunard, along with Seabourn Cruises, in 1998. The purchase was accompanied by the announcement that a study for a new transatlantic liner was to be undertaken to determine whether it would be viable to build and operate such a ship into the 21st century: this was dubbed Project Queen Mary. Throughout 1998 and 1999 the design study for the new ship progressed. Although Carnival had begun operations from 1972 with three second-hand ocean liners, from 1982 with the newbuild Tropicale, the line had grown, and operated a succession of uncompromising cruise ships which were maxed out for revenue generation rather than seakeeping. The author, who was appointed in charge of Project Queen Mary, was confronted with the initial problem of convincing Carnival’s management that a true liner was required, and
ABOVE The author, Stephen Payne, with a shipyard model of Queen Mary 2 which he designed. BELOW On 16 January 2002 Cunard President Pamela Conover initiated construction of Queen Mary 2 when she started the steel-cutting machine.
Queen Mary 2 at the outfitting dock at St Nazaire in July 2003.
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 83
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 83
09/07/2021 10:28
The stern of Queen Mary 2 showing the hybrid cruiser transom stern and her propulsion pods.
ABOVE Optimised at the hydrodynamic laboratory MARIN, Queen Mary 2’s bulbous bow minimises wavemaking and reduces resistance.
not a pseudo-liner-cum-cruise-ship; it is fair to say that there was little comprehension within Carnival’s management of what would be required in terms of ship design to regularly accomplish North Atlantic crossings. A presentation was made showing the effects of bad weather off New York on the Italian Line’s Michelangelo in April 1966, when the superstructure was ripped open and passengers were swept overboard to their deaths. I remember more than anything else that this was the game changer, and it was agreed thereafter that I could build my liner as long as I could design one that could demonstrate she could pay her way. The major issue was that an ocean liner costs considerably more to build
ABOVE The forward superstructure was the most complicated shape to build and was modelled on a collapsing seaside sand castle.
Queen Mary 2 structurally complete with outfitting continuing. Note the two slots for the port stabilisers and the three-part bilge keel. ABOVE The funnel under construction. BELOW The funnel is ready to be mounted.
84 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 84
09/07/2021 10:28
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
and operate than a cruise ship due to, firstly, the greater structural integrity, needed so that the ship can maintain speed in rough weather; secondly, the more powerful machinery required to achieve the higher speed and to counteract adverse wind and waves; and thirdly, a more streamlined hull shape, which reduced space on board and thus revenue-earning capacity, but was necessary to enable her to be driven at speed in rough weather without damage; and lastly, larger public spaces were required for entertaining guests during extended days at sea. A rough estimation concluded that the liner premium was 40 per cent, and there was no prospect of building such a ship unless this chasm could be bridged. This effectively meant maximising the number of balcony cabins which attracted a premium fare, although the trouble was that Atlantic storms and balconies do not mix well. Hitherto, the three previous Queens were designed with the main public rooms high in the ship, and cabins below. I decided
that, if the public rooms were moved down within the hull, the first and subsequent cabin decks could all be balcony-equipped, as the height would give a margin of storm protection. Additionally, the three cabin decks within the hull were given solid steel balconies for additional protection, rather than being glazed, as were the cabins in the superstructure. While neatly increasing cabin revenue potential, this arrangement provided public spaces with clear heights, especially where two decks were used within several public rooms. Economy of scale was also employed to narrow the 40 per cent differential. The axiom is that the larger a passenger ship is built, the cheaper each passenger bed becomes; operational costs similarly reduce on a per head basis. Whereas the early Queens were about 80,000gt, and QE2 was 65,000gt, the new ship would be 150,000gt. Although passenger numbers would not be significantly higher than on the previous Queens, all the cabins would be en suite, bedded (rather than having
ABOVE Queen Mary 2 at St Nazaire, a few hours before her formal delivery to Cunard.
ABOVE Queen Mary 2’s windscreens and funnel were model tested within the windtunnel at the Danish Maritime Laboratory Force at Lyngby BELOW Looking up from within the building dock at Queen Mary 2’s bulbous bow and newly installed upper bow.
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 85
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 85
09/07/2021 10:28
some bunked berths), and a significant number would be large suites. The ship was specifically designed to evoke the spirit of the great ‘Ships of State’ of the 1930s, all to First class standards. For propulsion, the original intention was to utilise two podded propulsors and a central shaftline. However, early studies revealed that the pressure pulses induced by the centre propeller would have caused excessive vibrations in the aft part of the ship. Therefore, it was decided to specify four propulsion pods; the two forward pods were fixed in orientation just providing forward and aft thrust, while the two stern pods were specified as fully azimuthing. Rolls-Royce-Alstom developed the Mermaid pod system, and it was natural that, with Alstom building the ship at the Chantiers de l’Atlantique shipyard at St Nazaire in France, that system would be chosen over the ABB Azipod competitor. Each of the four 21.5MW-rated units weigh approximately 320 tonnes with its attendant fittings within the hull,
and thus each pod is the equivalent in weight of a Boeing 747 airliner fully fuelled on take-off. So, in a way, four 747 jumbo jets hang beneath Queen Mary 2’s stern. Although the fitting of a small course-keeping rudder was initially considered, this was deemed unnecessary when Mermaid agreed to install electrical, rather than hydraulic, steering activation, which was a world first. Queen Mary 2 has three other unusual hydrodynamic features. The three huge 3.2MW bow thrusters are set within tunnels with butterfly-type closing doors, similar to those previously fitted to QE2. These doors streamline the hull surface, minimised drag at high speed, and improved efficiency.
RIGHT The fineness of Queen Mary 2’s forebody is one of the elements of her being defined as a liner rather than a cruise ship
ABOVE Queen Mary 2’s stern is a hybrid transom-cruiser for efficiency and seakeeping. BELOW The Mermaid propulsion pods each deliver 31.5MW and weigh about 320 tonnes. The forward pair are fixed, while the aft pair are azimuthing and steer the ship.
86 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 86
09/07/2021 10:28
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
Queen Mary 2 is a very majestic vessel and a true ocean liner. (By courtesy of Cunard Line)
Queen Mary 2 passing THV Patricia in the Little Russel off Guernsey during a visit to the Channel Islands in August 2013. (Tony Rive)
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 87
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 87
12/07/2021 09:24
The bedroom of the Balmoral Duplex on Queen Mary 2 was inspired by Eltham Palace.
The Chart Room is a popular bar, especially for pre-dinner drinks.
The staircase of the Britannia Restaurant was specially designed to provide the ultimate grand descent for ladies in their finery.
The spectacular Illuminations planetarium and lecture hall.
The Britannia Restaurant is an elegant dining room that would have been at home on any ‘Ship of State’.
The second feature is that the four propellers were each built up from four stainless steel, rather than nickel-aluminium bronze, propellers. The stainless steel blades retain their mirror like surface and high efficiency, while standard blades would have required constant polishing to have maintained efficiency. Eight spare blades, two for each propeller, were mounted on the fore deck, resembling futuristic sculptures and dubbed ‘the Commodore’s cufflinks’.
The Commodore Club is located at the forward end of Deck 9 and has commanding views seaward.
The third special element relates to the design of the stern, which is a hybrid Costanzi type cruiser/transom stern. The cruiser element is good for seakeeping, while the transom is good for hydrodynamic performance. This type of stern was used in the mid1960s on the cruise ships Oceanic and Eugenio C, and was found to be a good compromise for Queen Mary 2. Unlike QE2, which employed an aluminium superstructure, Queen Mary 2 as delivered was built entirely of steel.
This was to achieve a long fatigue life of at least 40 years without the requirement for major structural repairs. QE2 had suffered extensive cracking as soon as she entered service, and remedial action was constantly needed. On 6 November 2000 Project Queen Mary was ordered by Carnival from Alstom, with delivery set for December 2003. For the first year, long lead items such as the four medium speed diesels, two gas turbines, podded propulsors and bow thrusters were ordered whilst
88 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 88
09/07/2021 10:28
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
Queen Mary 2 sailing down Southampton Water in October 2010, a few days after a small fire broke out on board. The fire was immediately extinguished and neither passengers nor crew were adversely affected, and neither was the operation of the ship. It was caused by one of QM2’s gas turbines. Her itinerary was impacted, but not because of the fire. Due to high winds and rough seas, she arrived at New York two hours late on 7 October and departed an hour later than scheduled that evening. (Trevor Boston)
ABOVE The Grand Lobby provides a perspective on the size of Queen Mary 2.
ABOVE Queen Mary 2 has eight spare propeller blades mounted forward.
full scale planning for the rest of the ship continued. The first steel was cut in January 2002, and the first blocks were lowered into the building dock on 4 July that year. At the end of March 2003 the ship was floated out from the building dock and towed to the outfitting quay for completion. Two sets of extensive sea trials confirmed that the ship fully met the design specification, including achieving 29.62 knots maximum speed, well above the 29.35 knots specified. Queen Mary 2 was delivered on 22 December 2003 and was named by HM The Queen at Southampton on 8 January 2004. She subsequently entered service on 12 January 2004, sailing to Fort Lauderdale on her maiden cruise. After a Caribbean cruise season, she began her transatlantic career proper in April. Queen Mary 2 originally operated a six-day crossing schedule, but she now runs on a seven-day schedule to
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 89
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 89
09/07/2021 10:28
Queen Mary 2 manoeuvres off The Battery in New York Harbour as she prepares to sail to Southampton.
The streamlined bow of Queen Mary 2 enables her to be driven at speed in the most adverse conditions.
minimise fuel costs. The ship’s four diesel engines and two gas turbines provide the ship with almost 120MW and enormous flexibility, and she is able to maintain her schedule in all weathers. The author has been on an Atlantic crossing with force 12 seas and 120-knot winds, through which the ship maintained 24.5 knots with ease, all with relatively little motion or discomfort. No other passenger ship in service is able to match this performance, and it certainly distinguishes Queen Mary 2 as a liner, rather than a cruise ship. Queen Mary 2 follows the accommodation grades pioneered by QE2, with standard cabins (inside, outside, balcony), Princess Grill mini-suites and Queens Grill (suites, penthouses, royal and duplex suites). Each cabin grade is paired with a restaurant and there are numerous
90 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 90
09/07/2021 10:28
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
ABOVE Queen Mary 2 has the largest Library at sea and it is a very popular facility. (Cunard) BELOW Queen Mary 2’s funnel is somewhat squat to allow her to pass under New York’s Verrazano Narrows Bridge.
other eating options around the ship. There are many bars, such as the Commodore Club at the forward end of the superstructure, which follows the curve of the ‘falling sandcastle’ frontage. That was the inspiration for the shape, in keeping with the desire to be a modern interpretation of the original Queen Mary’s superstructure. Other signature spaces include the Chart Room Bar, Illuminations (planetarium and lecture auditorium), Royal Court Theatre (show lounge), Queens Room (ballroom) and Britannia Restaurant; the latter is considered by the author to be one of the most iconic spaces ever to put to sea. A very special feature on board Queen Mary 2, which is heard rather than seen, is the Tyfon whistle set. There are two huge whistles mounted on the forward end near the top of the funnel with an audible range of ten miles. The starboard whistle was
BELOW The Tyfon whistles at the top of Queen Mary 2’s funnel have an audible range of ten miles.
ABOVE The Regatta Bar disappeared when an additional partial deck of cabins was added in 2016. ABOVE RIGHT The Tyfon whistle from the middle funnel of the first Queen Mary on display inside the ship. RIGHT The entrance to the extra tariff Todd English Restaurant was a popular meeting point. (SMP)
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 91
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 91
09/07/2021 10:28
ABOVE Queen Mary 2 off Guernsey tendering passengers ashore. (Stephen Payne) BELOW Queen Mary 2 pictured from the deck of Queen Elizabeth 2 on the occasion of the latter’s last departure from New York, 16 October 2008.
ABOVE The Navigating Bridge.
originally installed on the centre funnel on Queen Mary (1936) and is on loan to Cunard, while the port whistle is a replica. Both were made by Kockums in Sweden, and they have now been specially adapted to run off compressed air rather than steam. As this bookazine is published, cruising is poised to return in earnest after more than a year of inactivity due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Queen Mary 2 will
92 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 92
09/07/2021 10:29
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
ABOVE The enormous Lego model of QM2 in dry dock at Hamburg Maritime Museum.
ABOVE Most passengers do not see the Crew Mess Servery on board Queen Mary 2.
ABOVE Services at the Beauty Salon are always in demand, especially for formal nights.
resume her transatlantic crossings and seasonal winter cruises, which she will looks set to maintain for at least another 20 years. She is the ship that everyone thought would be impossible and never be built. But she turns heads wherever she sails and has proved extremely popular. There is only one Queen Mary 2 and she is the bastion of modern-day Cunard on the North Atlantic. And long may this continue to be so!
BELOW 36 The elegant sitting room of the Balmoral Duplex on board Queen Mary 2.
BELOW Starters for dinner in preparation within the Britannia Restaurant galley.
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 93
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 93
09/07/2021 10:29
CHAPTER 8
THE DREAMLINERS: Q3 AND Q5 An early sketch for the Swan Hunter Vickers Armstrong bid proposal for Q3. (By courtesy Michael Gallagher).
D
uring the late 1950s the first considerations were taken by Cunard with respect to the eventual replacement of Queen Mary. Originally designed in the late 1920s and commissioned in 1936, Queen Mary had turned 20 in 1956 and a replacement would take time to design and build. Although a masterpiece of design and shipbuilding
ABOVE An overhead view of John Brown’s proposal for Q3. (By courtesy Michael Gallagher)
when she was delivered, Queen Mary was ageing, inefficient and relied on heavy, costly maintenance to keep her in good condition. Competition on the Atlantic was fierce, and a fleet of new ‘Ships of State’ were poised to enter service, such as Rotterdam, Leonardo da Vinci and France. Cunard’s initial thoughts for their new ship, dubbed Q3 – the third Queen, centred around a three-class single-role 75,000gt transatlantic liner. This concept was at odds with some of the competition, such as Holland America Line’s Rotterdam (1959), which was designed to be a dualpurpose ship for seasonal two-class transatlantic service and off-season cruising. Rotterdam sailed as a singleclass ship when cruising and provided duality through having two classes which could easily be combined by moving some portable barriers. The key to her success was for the public rooms of the classes to be of a comparable standard and for the majority of the Tourist class to be provided with private facilities. Italian Line’s Leonardo da Vinci, which followed her in 1960, suffered somewhat from her three class layout,
where only the top two classes (First/ Cabin) were complimentary, Tourist being quite disparate. Against this background Cunard continued to develop plans for Q3. Unfortunately, there was little respect for the looming threat of transatlantic air services using Boing 707 jet aircraft. Cunard considered that the majority of potential transatlantic passengers would still elect to travel by sea on a five-day passage rather than an eight-hour flight, but the reality was quite different. Passenger numbers plummeted, especially in the winter,
94 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 94
09/07/2021 10:29
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS An impression of what might have been – Q3 leaving New York by Mervyn Pearson (By courtesy of David Williams)
and the losses mounted. Despite this disturbing situation, Cunard pressed ahead with the three-class single-role Q3, which the Line hoped would lure passengers away from the airliners. Cunard’s financial reserves and operating profits were such that they would require a sizeable government loan to pay for part of the cost of building the new ship. Accordingly, the government formed the Chandos Committee to evaluate the request and define the terms under which a loan
BELOW A John Brown & Co model of their proposal for Q3. (By courtesy Michael Gallagher).
ABOVE An early sketch of the Swan Hunter Vickers Armstrong version of Q3. (By courtesy Michael Gallagher)
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 95
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 95
09/07/2021 10:29
could be granted, if deemed acceptable. Suffice to say, the application was successful, and Cunard was free to proceed. While several UK shipyards were approached to submit tenders for the construction of the ship, Cunard unexpectedly ran into difficulties from their shareholders. Although the Cunard management still had faith in the Q3 concept, a growing shareholder contingent did not, and, after considerable deliberation, Q3 was abandoned in the pre-contract phase on 19 October 1961. The matter of replacing Queen Mary remained, however, and ultimately was solved through the building of Q4 (Queen Elizabeth 2), which entered service in May 1969 as a single replacement for both Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth. Nearly two decades later, after spending £100 million on re-engining Queen Elizabeth 2 during the winter of 1986-87, Cunard’s management at parent group Trafalgar House looked to the future. In conjunction with the Finnish Naval Architectural firm Deltamarin, plans and specifications were drawn up for a 90,000gt vessel which would carry 3,800 passengers and crew. Propulsion power of 210MW
would theoretically provide a maximum speed of 39.5 knots and a service speed of 37.5 knots. By comparison the 150,000gt Queen Mary 2 has 86MW of propulsion power and achieved 29.62 knots on sea trials.
ABOVE Early models of Cunard’s proposed Q3 depicted her with a conventional funnel. (By courtesy of Michael Gallagher) BELOW Plans for the Cunard single-role transatlantic liner Q3 were developed by the company’s technical office. (By courtesy of Michael Gallagher)
96 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 96
09/07/2021 10:29
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS
Although conceived as a dualpurpose vessel, in transatlantic mode she would have carried up to four classes, presumably similar to the Queens Grill, Princess Grill, First Class and Tourist Class, under which Queen Elizabeth 2 operated. Trafalgar House raised £400 million for financing the project, but it came at a time when other areas of the business encountered problems. The Q5 project was also under strain, as estimated costs began to rise and, as she would have been a very expensive ship to operate, by 1992 the project had been shelved. Queen Elizabeth 2 would remain the only transatlantic Queen until 2004, when Queen Mary 2 entered service.
ABOVE The original look of Q3 with a conventional funnel. (By courtesy of Michael Gallagher). BELOW Q5 would have been a very innovative but very expensive ship to operate. This image was drawn by David Hutchings. (By courtesy of David Williams)
ABOVE Full broadside view of the latter variant of Q3. The red parallelogram would have depicted the Cunard houseflag. (By courtesy of Michael Gallagher)
LEFT The final form of Q3 had the funnel displaced by a thin uptake. (By courtesy Michael Gallagher).
Transatlantic Queens I World of Ships I 97
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 97
09/07/2021 10:29
APPENDIX
TRANSATLANTIC QUEENS COMPARISON TABLE OF PARTICULARS (AS BUILT) QUEEN MARY
QUEEN ELIZABETH
Q3
QE2
Q5
QUEEN MARY 2
DATE
1936
1940
N/A
1969
N/A
2003
YARD NUMBER
534
552
N/A
736
N/A
G32
BUILDER
John Brown
John Brown
N/A
John Brown
N/A
Alstom
LENGTH OVERALL
1,019ft 6ins
1,031ft
920ft to 1,041ft
963ft
984ft 4ins
145m
BEAM
118ft
118ft
116ft
105ft
128ft
41m
DRAUGHT
39ft 4.5ins
39ft 6.5ins
35ft
32ft 6ins
34ft 7ins
10m
GROSS TONNAGE
81,000
83,000
75,000
65,000
90,000
150,000
FIRST CLASS
704
790
750
564
600
194 Queens Grill
SECOND CLASS
751
680
644
1,441
570
152 Princess Grill
THIRD CLASS
583
790
904
N/A
1.076
1,116 Britannia
CREW
1,101
1,190
1,298
906
1,203
1,253
POWER
160,000shp
160,000 shp
200,000shp
110,000shp
226MW
86MW
MACHINERY
Single reduction geared turbines
Single reduction geared turbines
Double reduction geared turbines
Double reduction geared turbines
Various considered steam and gas turbine
Medium speed diesel and gas turbines
SERVICE SPEED
28.5 knots
28.5 knots
28.5 knots
28.5 knots
37.5 knots
26.5 knots
PROPELLERS
4 shafts
4 shafts
4 shafts
2 shafts
3 -1 hull and 2 shafts
4 Mermaid pods
98 I World of Ships I Transatlantic Queens
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 98
09/07/2021 10:29
Transatlantic Queens part 3.indd 99
09/07/2021 10:29
New Bookazines from Kelsey Media £8.99
£8.99
£8.99
Traction Engines Tractors and Rollers ■ ARMSTRONG-WHITWORTH ■ AVELING & PORTER ■ AVELING-BARFORD ■ BARFORD-PERKINS ■ CLAYTON & SHUTTLEWORTH ■ FODEN
POST FREE (UK ONLY)
■ FOWELL ■ GARRETT & SONS ■ T GREEN & SONSwv ■ RUSTON, PROCTOR ■ HORNSBY & SONS ■ RUSTON & HORNSBY
POST FREE (UK ONLY)
On Sale Now
John Crawley
On Sale Now
On Sale Now
Vol 4 : THE MONO FILES
£8.99 POST FREE (UK ONLY)
RECALLING THE EARLY DAYS OF STEAM ON THE ROAD
BUSES AROUND HALIFAX
LOCKHEED MARTIN
On Sale Now
ELEVEN
On Sale Now
VINTAGE ROADSCENE ARCHIVE
‘ON THE BUSES’
On Sale Now
VINTAGE ROADSCENE ARCHIVE
ON THE BUSES
An enthusiast remembers the vehicles of Halifax, Hebble, Yorkshire Woollen and more
Volume 11
£8.99
VOLUME 11
£8.99
BRUCE HALES-DUTTON
E
VINTAGE OADSCEN www.roadscene.com
POST FREE (UK ONLY)
KELSEYmedia
THE RAILWAY THAT NEVER CLOSED 60s
POST FREE (UK ONLY)
08/06/2021 16:58
MILITARY TRUCKS ARCHIVE
AEC MILITARY VEHICLES 65 YEARS OF FRONT-LINE SERVICE MORE THAN
195
On Sale Now
3
£8.99
On Sale Now
On Sale Now
...and other railway curiosities
KELSEYmedia
001 Lockheed.indd 3
Rheidol
£8.99 £8.99
POST FREE (UKKELSEY ONLY) media
KELSEYmedia
R
REACHING FOR THE STARS
£8.99
RoB Vol 23
RARE IMAGES
CAMPBELTOWN & MACHRIHANISH
LINCOLNSHIRE COAST LIGHT RLY
COUNTY DONEGAL ROLLING STOCK
£8.99
£8.99
POST FREE (UK ONLY)
POST FREE (UK ONLY)
MVA-AEC-cover.indd 1
PACKED WITH INFORMATION AND SUPERB PHOTOGRAPHS
£8.99 POST FREE (UK ONLY)
31/03/2021 12:09
WRITTEN BY ENTHUSIASTS FOR ENTHUSIASTS
A4 Format, perfect-bound, 100 pages, full colour and mono archive images
Available from WH Smith High Street stores, selected supermarkets and other leading Newsagents, or Direct from the Publisher; Call 01959 543747 (Mon-Fri 8.30am-5.30pm) or On Line from the Kelsey Shop – go to shop.kelsey.co.uk/bkz Bookazine promo ad 200x270.indd 1
07/07/2021 12:12
