RMS ''Empress of France'' was an

ocean liner An ocean liner is a type of passenger ship primarily used for transportation across seas or oceans. Ocean liners may also carry cargo or mail, and may sometimes be used for other purposes (such as for pleasure cruises or as hospital ships). The ...

built in 1928 by John Brown at

Clydebank Clydebank () is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland. Situated on the north bank of the River Clyde, it borders the village of Old Kilpatrick (with Bowling, West Dunbartonshire, Bowling and Milton, West Dunbartonshire, Milton beyond) to the w ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

for the

Canadian Pacific Steamships CP Ships was a large Canadian shipping company established in the 19th century. From the late 1880s until after World War II, the company was Canada's largest operator of Atlantic and Pacific steamships. Many immigrants travelled on CP ships fr ...

and launched as SS ''Duchess of Bedford'' in 1928. She was renamed ''Empress of France'' in 1947.Haworth, R.B
Miramar Ship Index''Empress of France,'' ID#1160482

''Duchess of Bedford''

''Duchess of Bedford'' was one of four 20,000-gross ton Canadian Pacific liners along with

sister ship A sister ship is a ship of the same Ship class, class or of virtually identical design to another ship. Such vessels share a nearly identical hull and superstructure layout, similar size, and roughly comparable features and equipment. They o ...

s ''Duchess of York'', ''Duchess of Richmond'', and ''Duchess of Atholl''. The quartet were "Mini-''Empress''es," built to go further up the

St. Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (, ) is a large international river in the middle latitudes of North America connecting the Great Lakes to the North Atlantic Ocean. Its waters flow in a northeasterly direction from Lake Ontario to the Gulf of St. Lawren ...

, past

Quebec City Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...

, to

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, hoping to cater to travellers who would then travel by train to

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

and the American Midwest – a faster journey than it would take going through New York. All were equipped with hot and cold running water in all cabins. The class were known as the "Drunken Duchesses" for their tendency to roll. Among ''Duchess of Bedford''s better-known passengers in 1931 was

Montagu Norman Montagu Collet Norman, 1st Baron Norman DSO PC (6 September 1871 – 4 February 1950) was an English banker, best known for his role as the Governor of the Bank of England from 1920 to 1944. Norman led the bank during the toughest period in ...

, the

Governor of the Bank of England The governor of the Bank of England is the most senior position in the Bank of England. It is nominally a civil service post, but the appointment tends to be from within the bank, with the incumbent choosing and mentoring a successor. The governor ...

, who was en route from Canada to England when he received word the United Kingdom had permanently abandoned the gold standard. The writer Elspeth Huxley worked on her biography of Lord Delamere while crossing the Atlantic in 1933.

Troopship

At the outbreak of war in September 1939, ''Duchess of Bedford'' was commandeered by the Admiralty to bring civil and military officials from England to India. ''Duchess of Bedford'' was amongst the ships which evacuated Singapore in 1941. ''Duchess of Bedford'' transported 1,955 men of the 18th Infantry Division to Singapore before it fell, departing

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

on 19 January 1942 and arriving ten days later. ''Duchess of Bedford'' was joined by an "empress" sister ship in this convoy duty. The troopship SS ''Empress of Japan'' carried 1,981 men of the 18th Division. The convoy departed with evacuees on 30 January. ''Duchess of Bedford'' may best be known for her role in

Operation Torch Operation Torch (8–16 November 1942) was an Allies of World War II, Allied invasion of French North Africa during the Second World War. Torch was a compromise operation that met the British objective of securing victory in North Africa whil ...

, where, along with , she carried troops of the 16th Infantry Regiment, 1st Division, United States from

Greenock Greenock (; ; , ) is a town in Inverclyde, Scotland, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. The town is the administrative centre of Inverclyde Council. It is a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, and forms ...

stopping briefly in

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

, Scotland, to

Arzew Arzew or Arzeu (, ) is a seaport, port city in Algeria, 25 miles (40 km) from Oran. It is the capital of Arzew District, Oran Province. History Antiquity Like the rest of the Maghreb, the site of modern-day Arzew was originally in ...

, Algeria where she landed said troops on 8 November 1942 to facilitate the United States' first involvement in the theater and the overall invasion of Axis-held North Africa. After Allied forces successfully drove remaining German and Italian forces from North Africa, she again served, landing troops at Avola in the Invasion of Sicily, and again, with the invasion of the Italian mainland at Salerno.

''Empress of France''

War losses reduced the Canadian Pacific fleet considerably and only the Liverpool-Montreal route was reopened post war. The two surviving Cabin class Duchesses were upgraded to "Empress" status with much reduced passenger numbers (400 1st, 300 tourist, down from the pre-war three class capacity of 1,570). On 3 March 1947, ''Duchess of Bedford'' arrived at the Govan yard of the

Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company The Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, Limited, was a Scottish shipbuilding company in the Govan area on the Clyde in Glasgow. Fairfields, as it is often known, was a major warship builder, turning out many vessels for the Royal Na ...

for her overhaul and refit, during the course of which (in October 1947) she was renamed ''Empress of France''. Preliminary plans to name the ship ''Empress of India'' were laid aside when India's independence was declared in August 1947.Miller, William H. (2001)
''Picture History of British Ocean Liners, 1900 to the Present,'' p. 66.
/ref> She re-entered service from Liverpool to Montreal on 1 September 1948. In a 1958/1959 refit, her funnel tops were streamlined and her accommodation was revised to 218 1st class and 482 tourist. The ship was taken out of service in 1960; and she was broken up at Newport in late December of the same year.

Notes

References

* Haworth, R.B
Miramar Ship Index''Empress of France,'' ID#1160482
* Tate, E. Mowbray. (1986)
''Transpacific Steam: The Story of Steam Navigation from the Pacific Coast of North America to the Far East and the Antipodes, 1867–1941.''
New York: Cornwall Books. (cloth) {{DEFAULTSORT:Empress of France, 1928 1928 ships Ships built on the River Clyde Ships of CP Ships Steamships of Canada Ocean liners of Canada Troop ships of the United Kingdom Troopships of Canada

''Duchess of Bedford''

Troopship

''Empress of France''

See also

Notes

References