RMS ''Mauretania'' was a British

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 ...

that operated from 1939 to 1965. The ship was launched on 28 July 1938 at the

Cammell Laird Cammell Laird is a British shipbuilding company. It was formed from the merger of Laird Brothers of Birkenhead and Johnson Cammell & Co of Sheffield at the turn of the twentieth century. The company also built railway rolling stock until 1929, ...

yard in

Birkenhead Birkenhead () is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England. The town is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the west bank of the River Mersey, opposite Liverpool. It lies within the Historic counties of England, historic co ...

, England, and was completed in May 1939. She was one of the first ships built for the newly formed Cunard-White Star company following the merger in April 1934 of the

Cunard The Cunard Line ( ) is a British shipping and an international cruise line based at Carnival House at Southampton, England, operated by Carnival UK and owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. Since 2011, Cunard and its four ships have been r ...

and

White Star Line The White Star Line was a British shipping line. Founded out of the remains of a defunct Packet trade, packet company, it gradually grew to become one of the most prominent shipping companies in the world, providing passenger and cargo service ...

. On the withdrawal of the first in 1935, to prevent a rival company using the name and to keep it available for the new liner, arrangements were made for the

Red Funnel Red Funnel, the trading name of the Southampton Isle of Wight and South of England Royal Mail Steam Packet Company Limited,gross register tons, with an overall length of and a beam of TGOL
/ref> and had an exterior design similar to . The vessel was powered by two sets of Parsons single reduction-geared

steam turbine A steam turbine or steam turbine engine is a machine or heat engine that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam and uses it to do mechanical work utilising a rotating output shaft. Its modern manifestation was invented by Sir Charles Par ...

s giving and driving twin propellers. Her service speed was TGOL
/ref> with a maximum speed of .

Design and construction (1937–1939)

The second ''Mauretania'' was built by

and was the largest ship built in England at that time. She was also the second new ship delivered to the combined

Cunard-White Star Line Cunard-White Star Line Ltd, was a British shipping line which existed between 1934 and 1949. History The company was created to control the joint shipping assets of the Cunard Line and the White Star Line after both companies experienced finan ...

. ''Mauretania'' was laid down on 24 May 1937 as Yard Number 1029. This new medium-sized Cunarder was launched on 28 July 1938 by Mary Bates, wife of the Cunard White Star chairman

Percy Bates Sir Percy Elly Bates, 4th Baronet (12 May 1879 – 16 October 1946) was an English shipowner. Bates was born in Wavertree, Liverpool, the second son of Sir Edward Percy Bates, 2nd Baronet. He was educated at Winchester College from 1892 to 18 ...

. The ship was named ''Mauretania'' to honour the previous record breaking ocean liner which had been retired in 1935.TGOL
/ref> The ship was designed for the London to New York City service and was the largest vessel ever to navigate the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, s ...

and use the

Royal Docks Royal Docks is an area in the London Borough of Newham in the London Docklands in East London, England. The area is named after three docks – the Royal Albert Dock, the Royal Victoria Dock and the King George V Dock. They are more corre ...

. She was also intended to stand in for one of the Cunard Queens when they were undergoing maintenance. The new ''Mauretania''s smart and stylish accommodation marked a further enhancement to the standards of cabins, public rooms and general facilities provided for passengers of all grades by Cunard White Star Line.

World War II (1939–1947)

''Mauretania'' sailed on her maiden voyage from Liverpool to New York on 17 June 1939 under the command of Captain Arthur Tillotson Brown (who had delivered the previous ''Mauretania'' to the shipbreakers), after remaining in New York for a week she returned to Southampton via Cherbourg on Friday, 30 June 1939. Like , 25 years before, ''Mauretania'' was to experience only the briefest period of commercial operation before the outbreak of hostilities halted this work for over six years. Returning from the next voyage, ''Mauretania'' called at Southampton,TGOL
/ref>

Le Havre Le Havre is a major port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy (administrative region), Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the Seine, river Seine on the English Channel, Channe ...

and finally

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

where she berthed in the King George V Dock. From August she was switched to the London- New York service for which she was intended. Here she supplemented and on the London to New York service. On 11 August 1939 she left on her final prewar voyage to New York. She began her return voyage on September 30, and on October 2 the German English-language radio broadcast from Hamburg issued a veiled threat against her. On her return she was requisitioned by the government. ''Mauretania'' was armed with two guns and some smaller weapons, painted in battle grey, and then despatched to America at the end of December 1939. For three months the ship lay idle in New York, docked alongside , , and the

French Line French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), a ...

's ,TGOL
/ref> until it was decided to use her as a

troopship A troopship (also troop ship or troop transport or trooper) is a ship used to carry soldiers, either in peacetime or wartime. Troopships were often drafted from commercial shipping fleets, and were unable to land troops directly on shore, typic ...

. On 20 March 1940 she sailed from New York to

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, via

Panama Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a country in Latin America at the southern end of Central America, bordering South America. It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and ...

, to be converted for her new role.TGOL
/ref> This conversion work was carried out in April and in May she left Sydney as part of one of the greatest convoys ever mustered for the transport of troops. With her were ''Queen Mary'', ''Queen Elizabeth'', and ''Aquitania'', with 2,000 troops, bound for the

River Clyde The River Clyde (, ) is a river that flows into the Firth of Clyde, in the west of Scotland. It is the eighth-longest river in the United Kingdom, and the second longest in Scotland after the River Tay. It runs through the city of Glasgow. Th ...

via South Africa. Other notable liners in this great convoy were , , , and . During the early stages of the war the ship transported Australian troops to Suez, India and Singapore but later she mainly served in the North Atlantic. In addition she shuttled Italian prisoners of war from the Middle East to South Africa, for internment, after their defeat in North Africa. Like ''Aquitania'', she amassed over during the course of her war duties, first crossing of the Indian Ocean, then working the Atlantic with American and Canadian troops and finally serving in the Pacific. One of her wartime voyages, of , took her right around the world, taking 82 days to complete. During this epic voyage she established a speed record for the crossing time from

Fremantle Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia located at the mouth of the Swan River (Western Australia), Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Australi ...

, Australia to

Durban Durban ( ; , from meaning "bay, lagoon") is the third-most populous city in South Africa, after Johannesburg and Cape Town, and the largest city in the Provinces of South Africa, province of KwaZulu-Natal. Situated on the east coast of South ...

, South Africa. The distance was covered in 8 days and 19 hours at an average speed of . Another wartime troop transport voyage began in New York on 10 May 1943 and ended in

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 24 June 1943, with calls en-route at

Trinidad Trinidad is the larger, more populous island of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, the country. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is the southernmost island in ...

, Rio de Janeiro,

Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...

and Diego-Suarez. On 8 January 1944 she was involved in a minor collision with the American tanker ''Hat Creek'' in New York harbour. During World War II, she travelled and carried over 340,000 troops. ''Mauretania'' was not designed to be an exceptionally fast ship and during six years of war duty, her engines had received little attention but still achieved a turn of speed in 1945 making the passage from Bombay to the UK via the Cape at an average speed of . After the war's end, ''Mauretania'' made several further voyages for the government repatriating troops.TGOL
/ref> This mainly took the ship to Canada and Singapore. In addition, she made at least one voyage from New Zealand via Australia and South Africa to

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

. Women and children were crammed ten to a cabin in the bunks used by the troops, while the men were in "dormitories" for sixty, sleeping in hammocks. On that voyage she sailed from Cape Town on 10 September 1945. She was delayed for three days off Liverpool by strong winds, and finally docked on 25 September. ''Mauretania'' took the first dedicated sailing of British

war brides War brides are women who married military personnel from other countries in times of war or during military occupations, a practice that occurred in great frequency during World War I and World War II. Allied servicemen married many women in o ...

and their children being patriated to Canada to join their husbands, landing at

Pier 21 Pier 21 is a former ocean liner terminal and immigration shed from 1928 to 1971 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Nearly one million immigrants came to Canada through Pier 21, and it is the last surviving seaport immigration facility in Canada. T ...

Halifax, Nova Scotia Halifax is the capital and most populous municipality of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Nova Scotia, and the most populous municipality in Atlantic Canada. As of 2024, it is estimated that the population of the H ...

in February 1946. On 2 October 1946 she returned to Liverpool, was released from government service and immediately went into

Gladstone Dock Gladstone Dock is a dock on the River Mersey, England, and part of the Port of Liverpool. It is situated in the northern dock system in Bootle. The dock is connected to Seaforth Dock to the north and what remains of Hornby Dock to the south. ...

to be reconditioned by Cammell Laird & Co. for return to Cunard-White Star service.TGOL
/ref>

Post-war (1947–1962)

After a complete overhaul and refurbishment of the interior, ''Mauretania'' made her first post-war Atlantic crossing to New York City, departing on 26 April 1947. After using

as her home port for the first two voyages she was thereafter based at

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

. Here she acted as the relief ship for and , standing in on the transatlantic service when one of them was undergoing maintenance. By this time the London to New York service had been discontinued as , with which she had operated the service was in no fit state to resume passenger duties, while the other partner, , had been transferred to a new Liverpool to New York service. Later that year she began to be used as a

cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports of call, where passengers may go on Tourism, tours k ...

during the winter months to the West Indies and the Caribbean. These so-called 'dollar earning cruises' assisted the shattered British economy. In 1948 ''Mauretania'' was used to return home the

Wright Brothers The Wright brothers, Orville Wright (August 19, 1871 – January 30, 1948) and Wilbur Wright (April 16, 1867 – May 30, 1912), were American aviation List of aviation pioneers, pioneers generally credited with inventing, building, and flyin ...

historic first aircraft, the 1903 ''

Wright Flyer The ''Wright Flyer'' (also known as the ''Kitty Hawk'', ''Flyer'' I or the 1903 ''Flyer'') made the first sustained flight by a manned heavier-than-air powered and controlled aircraft on December 17, 1903. Invented and flown by brothers Wrigh ...

'', where it had been on loan to the Science Museum since 1928. During the next decade she served on the Southampton to New York route during the summer months and operated on cruises from New York during the winter months. When ''Mauretania'' was taken in for her annual overhaul at Liverpool in December 1957 the opportunity was taken to fit air conditioning throughout the ship.

Cruising and retirement (1962–1965)

By 1962, ''Mauretania'' was facing competition from more modern ships and was beginning to lose money for Cunard Line. In October 1962 the ship was painted pale green, like (the famed Green Goddess), and converted into a cruise ship.TGOL
/ref> The passenger accommodation was adjusted to accommodate 406 First class, 364 Cabin class and 357 Tourist class passengers. On 28 March 1963 she began a new Mediterranean service calling at New York, Cannes, Genoa and Naples.TGOL
/ref> This was a failure, and by 1964 she was mainly employed cruising from New York to the West Indies. ''Mauretania''s final voyage was a Mediterranean cruise which left New York on 15 September 1965.TGOL
/ref> It was announced that on her return to Southampton, ''Mauretania'' would be withdrawn from service and sold. She arrived at Southampton on 10 October 1965 and had already been sold to the

British Iron & Steel Corporation The British Iron & Steel Corporation (Salvage) Ltd., commonly referred to as BISCO, was an organisation created during World War II to recycle scrap steel. BISCO's duties included making the arrangements for the scrapping of surplus Royal Navy s ...

. Leaving Southampton on 20 November for her final voyage, she arrived at

Thos. W. Ward Thos. W. Ward Ltd was a Sheffield, Yorkshire, business primarily working steel, engineering and cement. It began as coal and coke merchants. It expanded into recycling metal for Sheffield's steel industry, and then the supply and manufacture ...

shipbreaking Ship breaking (also known as ship recycling, ship demolition, ship scrapping, ship dismantling, or ship cracking) is a type of ship disposal involving the breaking up of ships either as a source of parts, which can be sold for re-use, or for ...

yard in

Inverkeithing Inverkeithing ( ; ) is a coastal town, parish and historic Royal burgh in Fife, Scotland. The town lies on the north shore of the Firth of Forth, northwest of Edinburgh city centre and south of Dunfermline. A town of ancient origin, Inverke ...

, Fife, Scotland three days later.TGOL
/ref> She was commanded by Capt. John Treasure Jones who had been Master since 1962. He navigated the mud straits of the Forth without

tugboat A tugboat or tug is a marine vessel that manoeuvres other vessels by pushing or pulling them, with direct contact or a tow line. These boats typically tug ships in circumstances where they cannot or should not move under their own power, suc ...

s, and made the final berthing through the shallows above the mud banks on the midnight high tide. It is rumoured that on the way to Fife she sailed up the River Douglas in Lancashire by mistake and became grounded in the mud banks, but this is unlikely as photographs and footage of the ''Mauretania'' at Inverkeithing were taken after her arrival. Regardless, scrapping began a few weeks later. By late April 1966, her funnels were gone; by mid-1966, the superstructure was removed. Scrapping was finished by late 1966.

Post scrapping

Furnishings from the ship were sold during and post scrapping. Paneling, mill work, and other materials from the ship were used in the Famous-Barr department store's Mauretania Room at the West County Center Mall in Des Peres, Missouri, a suburb of

St Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...

. The Mauretania Room was a 120-seat luxurious ladies' tea room that opened with the store in 1969. The room was removed prior to the demolition and reconstruction of the mall in 2001 to make room for additional shopping as the times changed. The present location of these furnishings is unknown.

References

External links

Greatships: ''Mauretania II'' on "The Great Ships" website

Chris' Cunard Page

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mauretania (1938) 1938 ships Ships built on the River Mersey Ocean liners Ships of the Cunard Line Steamships