''RC Rickmers'' was a German five-masted steel clipper barque with auxiliary engine built in 1906 by the firm Rickmers Rice Mill, Freight and Shipbuilding Company (Rickmers Reismühlen Rhederei and Schiffbau A.G., simple known as Rickmers A.G.) of
Bremerhaven
Bremerhaven (, , Low German: ''Bremerhoben'') is a city at the seaport of the Free Hanseatic City of Bremen, a state of the Federal Republic of Germany.
It forms a semi-enclave in the state of Lower Saxony and is located at the mouth of the R ...
, Germany for the company's Rickmers Line. She was the largest sailing ship in the world from 1907 (sinking of ''
Thomas W. Lawson'') to 1911 (launching of ''
France II'')
[Scientific American Volume 95 Number 14 (October 1906) ] and the second German five-masted barque.
Rickmers A.G.
Rickmers shipyard was founded by R. C. Rickmers in 1839. In the beginning of the 20th century the shipyard employed some 650 personnel and built several extraordinary large sailing vessels for its parent company's rice trade.
The largest sailing vessel in the world
''R. C. Rickmers'' was built in 1906 and was the largest ship in the world from 1907, when ''
Thomas W. Lawson'' sunk and until 1911, when ''
France II'' was launched''.'' Her captain was August Walsen. She arrived at New York in the fall of 1906 on her maiden voyage from
Bremen
Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the Germany, German States of Germany, state Bremen (state), Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie H ...
to
Saigon
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, population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2
, population_demonym = Saigonese
, blank_name = GRP (Nominal)
, blank_info = 2019
, blank1_name = – Total
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and
Bangkok
Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populatio ...
through
Cape Horn
Cape Horn ( es, Cabo de Hornos, ) is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island. Although not the most southerly point of South America (which are the Diego Ramí ...
.
Scientific American
''Scientific American'', informally abbreviated ''SciAm'' or sometimes ''SA'', is an American popular science magazine. Many famous scientists, including Albert Einstein and Nikola Tesla, have contributed articles to it. In print since 1845, it i ...
hosted a featured story about ''R. C. Rickmers'' in its October 1906 issue.
Under the sails ''R. C. Rickmers'' was able to sail at about 13 to 14 knots with the maximum speed of 17 knots. While using the steam engine she could have been driven at 8 knots without a load and 6 to 7 knots with a cargo.
Voyages
In the first two and half years in trade she sailed 100,000 miles.
She completed multiple voyages around the world:
* East Asia (Singapore, Kobe and Hiogo, Japan, Saigon on her maiden voyage)
* Far East (
Vladivostok
Vladivostok ( rus, Владивосто́к, a=Владивосток.ogg, p=vɫədʲɪvɐˈstok) is the largest city and the administrative center of Primorsky Krai, Russia. The city is located around the Zolotoy Rog, Golden Horn Bay on the Sea ...
)
*U.S. west coast (San Francisco, Los Angeles and Portland, Oregon)
* Australia (
New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
) and to South America (
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the eas ...
)
In 1912 and 1913 she made two major trips:
* Cardiff - Philadelphia - Cape of Good Hope - Kobe, Japan - Portland, Oregon - Antwerp
* Cardiff - Philadelphia - Cape of Good Hope - Japan - Vladivostok - Indian Ocean - Hull
Russian
Tsar Nicholas II
Nicholas II or Nikolai II Alexandrovich Romanov; spelled in pre-revolutionary script. ( 186817 July 1918), known in the Russian Orthodox Church as Saint Nicholas the Passion-Bearer,. was the last Emperor of Russia, King of Congress Polan ...
visited the ship during her stay in Vladivostok .
Fate
At the onset of
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
, in August 1914, ''R. C. Rickmers'' was seized by the
British Admiralty as a war prize at
Cardiff
Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a ...
. She was renamed ''Neath'' and placed on cargo trade.
On 27 March 1917, while under the British flag returning from
Mauritius
Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...
to
Le Havre
Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, ver ...
with a cargo of sugar, ''Neath'' was sunk by the German submarine off the coast of Ireland. All of her crew survived, with the ship's captain being taken prisoner by ''U-66''.
See also
*
List of large sailing vessels
This is a list of large sailing vessels, past and present, including sailing mega yachts, tall ships, sailing cruise ships, and large sailing military ships. It is sorted by overall length.
The list, which is in the form of a table, covers vessel ...
References
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:R. C. Rickmers
1906 ships
Individual sailing vessels
Maritime incidents in 1917
Five-masted ships
Merchant ships of Germany