''Espagne'' 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 ...

which was built in 1909–10 for Compagnie Générale Transatlantique. She served as a troopship during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and was in service until 1932, and was scrapped in 1934.

Design

''Espagne'' was ordered from Chantiers & Ateliers de Provence, Port de Bouc, Bouches-du-Rhône on 29 May 1908 as Yard No.30 for Compagnie Générale Transatlantique. She was long, with a beam of and a depth of . She was assessed at , , . The ship was powered by two 4-cylinder triple expansion steam engines. The engines had cylinders of 33 inches (85 cm), 53 inches (137 cm) and two of 66 inches (170 cm) diameter by stroke. The engine was built by Chantiers & Ateliers de Provence. Rated at 1,376 NHP, they could propel the ship at with her twin screw propellers.

History

''Espagne'' was the only transatlantic

built by Chantiers & Ateliers de Provence. Launched on 19 December 1909, she was completed in October 1910. Her port of registry was

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 the Code Letters OGPR were allocated. ''Espagne'' served on routes to

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

and the

West Indies The West Indies is an island subregion of the Americas, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, which comprises 13 independent island country, island countries and 19 dependent territory, dependencies in thr ...

. In April 1911, she was chartered as a troopship along with and to transport 2,700 troops from

Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...

, France,

Algiers Algiers is the capital city of Algeria as well as the capital of the Algiers Province; it extends over many Communes of Algeria, communes without having its own separate governing body. With 2,988,145 residents in 2008Census 14 April 2008: Offi ...

, Bône and Philippeville,

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

. In September 1911, she developed a leak on arrival at

Santander, Spain Santander ( , ; ) is the capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Cantabria, Spain. It has a population of 172,000 (2017). It is a port city located in the northern coast of the Iberian Peninsula, facing the Cantab ...

and was taken to Le Havre for repairs. In mid-1912, she was used on the Le Havre – New York route. Following the Tampico Affair, ''Espagne'' transported 100 refugees from Puerto Mexico to

Veracruz Veracruz, formally Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Veracruz de Ignacio de la Llave, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entit ...

, Mexico. ''Espagne'' returned to the Le Havre – New York route from mid-1914. She transferred to the

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( ; ; Gascon language, Gascon ; ) is a city on the river Garonne in the Gironde Departments of France, department, southwestern France. A port city, it is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the Prefectures in F ...

– New York route in 1915. In February 1916, American passengers booked to travel on ''Espagne'' received anonymous letters telling them not to. From 1916–20, she served as a troopship. ''Espagne'' returned to the Central American and Caribbean routes in 1920. In 1926, a decree was issued in Mexico that all priests had to be born there. A number of Spanish priests were

arrest An arrest is the act of apprehending and taking a person into custody (legal protection or control), usually because the person has been suspected of or observed committing a crime. After being taken into custody, the person can be question ...

ed and deported. Fourteen of them travelled on ''Espagne'' from Veracruz to a Spanish port in February 1926. On 20 August 1926, she struck a rock off

A Coruña A Coruña (; ; also informally called just Coruña; historical English: Corunna or The Groyne) is a city and municipality in Galicia, Spain. It is Galicia's second largest city, behind Vigo. The city is the provincial capital of the province ...

, Spain and damaged one of her propellers. ''Espagne'' served until June 1932, when she was laid up. She was scrapped at

Saint-Nazaire Saint-Nazaire (; ; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Loire-Atlantique Departments of France, department in western France, in traditional Brittany. The town has a major harbour on the right bank of the Loire estuary, near the Atlantic Oc ...

Loire-Atlantique Loire-Atlantique (; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Louére-Atantique''; ; before 1957: ''Loire-Inférieure'', ) is a departments of France, department in Pays de la Loire on the west coast of France, named after the river Loire and the Atlantic Ocean. ...

in May 1934, by the company M. Glotz.

References

External links

A short video dedicated to the Espagne with numerous photographs
{{DEFAULTSORT:Espagne (1909) 1909 ships Ships built in France Passenger ships of France Merchant ships of France World War I merchant ships of France Troop ships of France Ships of the Compagnie Générale Transatlantique Maritime incidents in 1926