''Ocean Monarch'' was a

passenger A passenger is a person who travels in a vehicle, but does not bear any responsibility for the tasks required for that vehicle to arrive at its destination or otherwise operate the vehicle, and is not a steward. The vehicles may be bicycles, ...

steamship A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships ...

that was built by Vickers-Armstrongs in 1950. She served with Furness Bermuda Line for fifteen years, then with a Bulgarian company for three years, renamed ''Varna''. She spent much of the 1970s laid up, and was renamed ''Venus'' and then ''Riviera''. In the early 1980s, she was renamed ''Reina del Mar'' and refitted for further use as a cruise ship, but a fire gutted her; and she was scuttled on 1 June 1981 after another fire broke out.

History

''Ocean Monarch'' was built by

Vickers-Armstrongs Vickers-Armstrongs Limited was a British engineering conglomerate formed by the merger of the assets of Vickers Limited and Sir W G Armstrong Whitworth & Company in 1927. The majority of the company was nationalised in the 1960s and 1970s, w ...

Ltd, High Walker, at a cost of £2,500,000. She was yard number 119, and was launched on 27 July 1950, with completion in March 1951. She was the first postwar-built ship designed especially for the American cruise market. Accommodations were for 414 first class passengers only. ''Ocean Monarch'' was awarded a gold medal by the American Institute for Designing for her "outstanding beauty and unusual design features of a cruise ship". ''Ocean Monarch'' served the New York – Bermuda route. As well as conveying passengers she was used to supply fresh drinking water to the island. She served with

Furness Withy Furness Withy was a major United Kingdom, British transport business. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange. History The company was founded by Christopher Furness, 1st Baron Furness, Christopher Furness and Henry Withy (1852–1922) in 18 ...

via subsidiary Furness Bermuda Line until 1966. On 22 September she was laid up in the

River Fal The River Fal () flows through Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordere ...

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

. In 1967, she was sold to Navigation Maritime Bulgare and renamed ''Varna''. Operated by Balkantourist,

Varna Varna may refer to: Places Europe *Varna, Bulgaria, a city ** Varna Province ** Varna Municipality ** Gulf of Varna ** Lake Varna **Varna Necropolis * Vahrn, or Varna, a municipality in Italy * Varna (Šabac), a village in Serbia Asia * Var ...

, She was used on cruises from

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 ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. ''Varna'' was laid up in 1970 at

Perama Perama () is a coastal town and a suburb of Piraeus and belongs to the Piraeus regional unit and is the southwestern limit of Athens urban area. It lies on the southwest edge of the Aegaleo mountains, on the Saronic Gulf coast. It is 8 km ...

, Greece. In 1973, ''Varna'' was chartered by Sovereign Cruises, but only made two voyages with them. She was then laid up again. Her name was changed to ''Venus'' in 1977, and ''Riviera'' in 1978. in 1979, she was refurbished for use by Trans-Tirreno Express. She was chartered by SUR-Seereisen,

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, who announced a series of Mediterranean cruises to take place in summer 1981. Her name was changed to ''Reina del Mar''. Before these cruises took place the ship was renovated. On 28 May 1981, a fire broke out which completely gutted the passenger accommodation. The ship was towed out of Ambelakia, where the renovation was being carried out. The tow parted and ''Reina del Mar'' ran aground on

Salamina Island Salamis ( ; ) or Salamina () is the largest Greek island in the Saronic Gulf, about from the coast of Athens' port of Piraeus and about west of Athens center. The chief city, Salamina, lies in the west-facing core of the crescent on Salamis ...

. After being refloated, she was moored near '' Rasa Sayang'', which had also been gutted by fire. On 1 June 1981, a new fire broke out on ''Reina del Mar'', and she was then scuttled off Kynosoura.

Description and propulsion

The ship had a crew of about 250 and had berths for up to 414 passengers, all first class. Her

length overall Length overall (LOA, o/a, o.a. or oa) is the maximum length of a vessel's hull measured parallel to the waterline. This length is important while docking the ship. It is the most commonly used way of expressing the size of a ship, and is also ...

was , and her beam was .

References

Bibliography

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External links

Poem about ''Ocean Monarch''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ocean Monarch (1950) Ships built on the River Tyne 1950 ships Cruise ships Passenger ships of the United Kingdom Passenger ships of Bulgaria Passenger ships of Greece Ship fires Maritime incidents in 1981 Shipwrecks in the Mediterranean Sea