The New Cunard Queens

NILS SCHWERDTNER has been interested in the history of passenger shipping since childhood. He is the author of three books and numerous articles on maritime themes and regularly lectures on shipping issues. He lives in Hamburg.

CQ

THE NEW

UNARD UEENS Queen Mary 2 Queen Victoria Queen Elizabeth

NILS SCHWERDTNER

Copyright © Koehlers Verlagsgesellschaft mbh, Hamburg 2007 Translation Copyright © Seaforth Publishing 2008 This paperback edition first published in 2011 by Seaforth Publishing, Pen & Sword Books Ltd, 47 Church Street, Barnsley S70 2AS British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN 978 1 84832 106 9 First published in 2007 as Die Neuen Queens der Cunard Line

by Koehlers Verlagsgesellschaft mbh All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission in writing of both the copyright owner and the above publisher.

Translated by Geoffrey Brooks Typeset and designed by Roger Daniels Printed and bound in China by 1010 Printing International Ltd.

HALF TITLE PAGE

On her first transatlantic crossing the Queen Victoria was accompanied by her fleetmate Queen Elizabeth 2 – a voyage that brought about some unique photographic opportunities DAVID PIKE

TITLE PAGE

23 February 2006: QM2 meets her predecessor CUNARD

CONTENTS

New Foreword 6 Foreword 9 1 The Queens of the North Atlantic 10 2 Cunard Makeover 36 3 Atlantic Dawn 52 4 Getting There is Half the Fun 128 5 Queen Victoria 146 6 A Third Queen Elizabeth 174 Acknowledgements 189 Bibliography 190 Index 191

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I

fortunate happen-

farewells; the final encounter of

stance for English-speaking

Cunard White Star’s first two Queens,

ocean liner enthusiasts that mar-

Mary and Elizabeth, passing close by

T WAS A

itime historian Nils Schwerdtner’s

at sea stands out in that regard.

The New Cunard Queens was

But on our crossing QE2 was there

recently translated from its original

for the glorious asking, day after

German into English. Since then

FOREWORD

much has happened at Cunard, and

incomparable day. To accommodate hundreds of passenger photographers

this updated and evocative new edition should be required

aboard both vessels, the two masters switched sides every

reading for everyone interested in Great Britain’s archetypal

morning for alternate sunshine advantage. Of the vessels’

passenger line, the North Atlantic’s first steamship mail serv-

two passenger loads, it would be safe to say that we aboard

ice, established by Haligonian Samuel Cunard 171 years

Queen Victoria had unquestionably the most evocative view.

ago in 1840.

The New York payoff involved a glorious rendezvous of

I was first introduced to Schwerdtner in Hamburg at the

the company’s three existing Queens. QE2, Queen Mary 2

time of Queen Victoria’s debut in December 2007. The

and Queen Victoria were united for the first time below the

fifth Cunard Queen, she was the first constructed at Italy’s

Statue of Liberty’s feet. What an epic occasion and it was

Fincantieri shipyard. After her Southampton christening

one that would be repeated, with a slightly different cast of

by the Duchess of Cornwall, our chilly and unconventional

characters, five years later on 13 January, 2011.

maiden voyage was a North European Christmas market

For that event, my wife Mary and I had embarked again

circuit. And to have encountered Nils as well and yet again

aboard Queen Victoria (in command, Captain Inger Olsen,

savor the flavor and astonishing vigor of Germany’s

the company’s first lady captain), crossing this time with

legendary North Sea port was a double blessing.

brand new Queen Elizabeth, also built at Fincantieri. Yet

Shortly afterwards, in the new year, we re-embarked aboard Queen Victoria for her first westbound passage

again, the tandem crossers were united in-harbor with flagship Queen Mary 2, fresh up from the Caribbean.

across the notorious ‘Winter North Atlantic’ from

New Queen Elizabeth’s profile is somewhat different

Southampton to New York. The weather proved, apart

from Queen Victoria’s. She has a greater displacement and

from occasionally fractious seas, essentially benign. We

is adorned with a squared-off counter stern that I much

crossed in comforting tandem with, at that time, the

admire. From afar, of course, we could not absorb what

shortly-to-be-retired Queen Elizabeth 2.

I know of her splendid interiors. I especially look forward

Tandem sailings, unique Cunard protocol for their most

to seeing Viscount Linley’s handsome marquetry view of

recent and, in this event, most venerable Queens, are

first Queen Elizabeth decorating the staircase’s lowest land-

exhilarating, vast improvements over conventional solo

ing in the Grand Lobby. Shortly after World War II, A P

crossings.

Herbert identified newly renovated Lizzie in a memorable

Each day, there was that immortal profile close by, plung-

quatrain as ‘infant of the fleet’; infant or no, she was the

ing gracefully into eastbound seas with effortless brio. Mid-

world’s largest ocean liner, her interiors richly panelled

ocean meetings between passenger vessels under way are

with inlaid woods. Many of this recent namesake’s pub-

rare, save in the event of carefully orchestrated nostalgic

lic rooms exhibit similarly evocative décor.

7 Also on board is an

porates their company’s

exquisite portrait of Her

name into all their name-

Majesty, godmother to the

boards, while Holland-

vessel that bears her name,

America remains wedded

executed by a talented

to their ‘-dam’ suffixes and

young British artist. I hear

Royal Caribbean appends

too that the upper level of

‘of the Seas’ to theirs,

her

Cunard’s identifier is the

Britannia

Dining

Room is most attractively

simple

designed and decorated.

undeniably distinctive and

But though denied any

prefix

Queen,

regally privileged.

glimpse of her interiors, we

For what that naming

enjoyed a compelling noc-

policy guarantees is roy-

turnal spectacle of her

alty’s continued christen-

beautifully

illuminated

ing participation. And not

profile, for all the world

only the august patronage

like a glittering diamond

of Her Majesty but also

brooch set upon the black

the majestic panoply of the

velvet of night, an evoca-

house of Windsor –

tive view that her on-board

counter-marching detach-

passengers never see; but

ments of Royal Marines,

they in turn doubtless

Scots Guards and heraldic

enjoyed the corresponding

flourishes of the House-

vision of Queen Victoria pinned to her own velvet sea.

hold Trumpeters. Film and rock stars, recruited as god-

Now three great Cunard Queens, two of them named

mothers, pale in comparison beside the unparalleled clout

after the company’s first pair, are in heroic service and we

of Britain’s royal family, of which new generations are in

await with keen interest any hint of the company’s next

train. Thanks to the forthcoming wedding of Prince

vessel. It is said, on good authority, that Micky Arison,

William, Prince of Wales in waiting, it seems likely that

guiding genius of Carnival Corporation that owns the

his bride Katherine will someday serve as royal godmother

Cunard Line, already has an historic queen’s name in mind

in waiting as well.

for any subsequent new-building.

Such is Cunard’s current naming policy that we know

Cunard’s inspired Queen continuum remains an enviable blessing.

it will bear a Queen prefix. Samuel Cunard’s ancient ‘– ia’ suffix has been relegated to history; there will be no subsequent Aquitania or yet another Mauretania or Caronia. Contemporary shipboard nomenclature reflects a consistent branding strategy. Whereas Princess incor-

J OHN M AxTONE -G RAHAM

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An advertisement of the time CUNARD

After the Second World War Queen Elizabeth was the flagship of the British Merchant Navy FOTOFLITE

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warship-grey and manned only by a skeleton crew, the new liner entered New York on 7 March 1940 and made fast alongside Queen Mary.

The ‘conscription notices’ were not long in coming. Two weeks later Queen Mary sailed for Sydney for conversion into a troop transport for 5,500 (her normal passenger capacity being 2,139). Queen Elizabeth followed a few months later. Together with Aquitania, which had now served in both world wars, and the brand-new second Mauretania, the two Cunard flagships worked together in Crown service. During the early war years they were to be found in harbours all around the world, bringing Australian troops to Britain, British troops to the Red Sea and US soldiers to Australia and transporting POWs, all at high speed and in the strictest secrecy. They always managed to give the enemy the slip, if only by a hair’s breadth on occasion. As the war went on the Queens were placed under US Navy control and put to the use for which they had been built, to carry large numbers of people across the Atlantic in the shortest possible time – even if the passengers wore battledress.

The Americans designed a ‘hot bed’ system in which the sleeping berths would be occupied round the clock, making it possible to ship whole divisions. In July 1943 Queen Mary set the record with 16,683 crew and troops aboard.

By the war’s end the two ships had carried 1,242,532 soldiers around the world, causing Sir Percy Bates to estimate that the Cunard liners had shortened the war by a year. After months repatriating Allied troops, both ships were thoroughly overhauled, and not until 1947 did the transatlantic express steamship service designed twenty years previously become reality.

The fifteen years following the Second World War were a last high point in the development of the transatlantic liner. For the last time glamour and splendour would set the tone aboard, the passenger lists were full, and with

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optimism new tonnage was planned and put into service. The Second World War survivors were joined by the United States, which took the Blue Riband from Queen Mary in 1952, Independence and Constitution of the American Export Lines and Andrea Doria and Cristoforo Colombo of the Italian shipping company Italia.

CGT built the last French super-liner France

Following the decline of Atlantic passenger traffic, Cunard took steps to market its vessels as cruise ships AUTHOR’S COLLECTION

but the Queens remained the great moneyspinners on the North Atlantic. The peak was reached in 1957. Never before had so many passengers crossed the Atlantic by ship, and never would they do so again, for 1957 was also the year in which for the first time the number of passengers making the crossing either way by air was equal to the number going by sea. In October 1958 PanAm introduced the first passenger jet aircraft, the Boeing 707, for the North Atlantic service. Where previously the

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crossing was a matter of days, now it was hours, and the shipping companies were easily beaten for price. Deep gloom invaded the boardrooms, and the statistics said it all: from 1961 the Queens were loss-makers, losing up to £1 million annually (nowadays fifteen times that).

The low point was reached when Queen Elizabeth made a winter crossing with only 130 passengers. From February 1963 the two flagships were withdrawn from the regular liner service and used for cruises instead, Queen Elizabeth from New York to the Caribbean, Queen Mary to southern European waters.

In 1959 Cunard had announced its intention to replace the Queens with a new pair of superliners. The first of these planned ships, the successor to the Queen Mary, was known under the project description Q3. Fortunately the new Chairman of Cunard, Sir John Brocklebank, who took over at the end of 1959, had sufficient foresight to recognise the signs of the times. At first he dedicated himself to a study of the Q3 project, and after intensive negotiations with the British government the necessary credits seemed guaranteed. By now the transatlantic passenger shipping market had begun to collapse. Viewed in retrospect, Sir John therefore made the only correct decision and asked his teams to design a smaller ship with two propellers (the old Queens had four each). It would be possible to retain the same passenger capacity, he reasoned, because the engines would take up less space and an additional deck could be incorporated using materials such as aluminium for the superstructure.

In the course of the commercial development it became ever clearer that the Q4, as the new ship was known, would not be a pure transatlantic liner: although fully equipped technically as a liner, it was also a purpose-built cruise ship, and the three passenger classes that had originally been planned were reduced to two. Ultimately this division was only reflected in cabin and restaurant sizes and furbishings,

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CUNARD MAKEOVER

Impressive publicity: the famous Cunard red and black funnels CUNARD, AUTHOR’S COLLECTION

1990 marked 150 years since the first voyage of RMS Britannia, and Cunard celebrated this anniversary with theme voyages and other special events throughout the year. The flagship QE2 had moored at Yokohama on 28 December 1989 under charter for six months as a floating hotel and exhibition centre to the promoters of ‘World Exposition 1990’. After a few Pacific cruises QE2 returned to New York on 7 July 1990, and her subsequent voyages that year matched the theme of her owners’ 150th anniversary. Under Captain Robin Woodall she had made her fastest transatlantic passage to date, leaving New York on 17 July and arriving at Southampton four days, six hours and fifty-seven minutes later for an average speed of 30.16 knots. Next the liner became the star of a special kind of birthday celebration for Cunard when, fully booked, she departed from Southampton for a gala voyage around the British Isles, her first stop being at Cobh, where the ship’s arrival

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couch, open the voyage literature at the same page he has done for days and succumb to dreams, gazing at the rolling ocean and drifting clouds and cloudscapes.

Thus we find ourselves unintentionally in the Commodore Club, in one of those marvellous cream-coloured leather armchairs, drunk with the view through the man-sized windows of the sea and forecastle storeys below. A soft drink sparkles on the small table by the armchair and a deep, silent sigh escapes us at this sight. The impersonal changing theatre induces in us a certain tranquillity. Countless are the shades of colour in the movements of sea and cloud.

Powerful deep blue, its small waves capped with white horses. A pale sky and cirrus. Sea glittering in the sunlight. A grey sky with fast-moving ribbons of cloud and blue-grey sea. A smooth, dark sea with a long swell under a yellowish sky after the last of the sunset. A confused sea, apparently wrestling with itself, oblivious of the great ship. And through these dream worlds QM2 pursues her course calmly. She has a destination which she must reach even if we prefer to tarry. One realises that here lies the true reason why one must still cross the Atlantic by ship rather than aircraft, and why one prefers a transatlantic crossing to a Norwegian cruise – it gives one time. For those active in their careers,

QM2 drawn by Dietmar Borchert to 1:1000 scale

and who have chosen an exquisite break aboard QM2, the sweet luxury of loafing is certainly one of the main attractions of such a voyage.

Yet one should not think that QM2 has nothing to offer but inactivity (more easily available at the seaside), for sooner or later the internal batteries will be recharged. One has conversed, got to know a few people and aroused the desire to undertake something with new acquaintances or ‘friends whom one has just met’. A feeling of friendship and closeness which connects those aboard is almost universal.

Strangers suddenly exchange rare details of their lives and circumstances as if they had known each other for years. Friendships are quickly made aboard and dissolve at the destination just as quickly without anybody taking it amiss.

Perhaps behind it all is simply the desire to share pleasant times with people in whose presence one feels comfortable.

Thus already during the first day at sea one tends to follow one’s own agenda, which is pursued for the remainder of the voyage with a few minor changes as if it were the most natural thing in the world. We came aboard with the plan to have no plan, and in reality we have none, and simply pursue our personal need for the right mixture of rest, diversion and conversation and to satisfy our appetite for good food. One should therefore not be surprised that

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on clear, warm days the after-deck is well covered with deckchairs for snoozing or chat.

The Promenade Deck circuit is the domain of the joggers, who make their rounds untiringly from morning to evening. On smaller ships they form the contingent of most feared passengers, defending their right of passage if necessary by the use of elbows and other body parts. Aboard QM2 the deck is broad enough to allow joggers and strollers to coexist peacefully. Walkers have never resolved the centuries-old problem of the deck greeting. While promenading one will meet the same people circulating in the opposite direction. On the first encounter one will exchange polite greetings, on the second one may nod or exchange a word. But nearly all passengers express ignorance of how to behave the third time round. Should the parties ignore each other? Attempt to exchange glances? If the important thing is fresh sea air and a wonderful view then one’s private balcony beckons, but there one is restricted, and one needs the variety to be found on deck.

At the stroke of midday the two foghorns roar as a prelude to the Commodore’s announcement. He provides a nautical summary of the last twenty-four (or twenty-five) hours and gives the ship’s position and the mileage covered. In days of yore the latter was of great importance, for the Pool – betting on the

mileage – was the most popular ‘book’ aboard the old ocean liners, and even today one can place a bet on the daily run. The weather forecast is followed by special announcements – the sighting of dolphins, or a toast to Her Majesty on one of her birthdays, for example.

Ah, time for a dry sherry before lunch. We choose the Chart Room for its proximity to the Britannia Restaurant. After dining one either takes to a deckchair to enjoy the pleasant heaviness induced by culinary delicacies, or keeps moving and finds an afternoon activity.

Wächter writes: If one looks more closely at the Daily Programme, one will see that the overlapping crazy mixture of directed, undirected, supervised, led and accompanied activities are part of a system. There are five categories, which we can identify as: (1) intellectual meandering, (2) creative ideas, (3) social games, (4) sports and (5) cultural pursuits.

Deep thought, boredom and dryness are the deadly sins. One can permit his mind to travel a little, but marathons are not encouraged.

The many maritime paintings and the (not totally convincing) Maritime Quest invite a maritime tour of discovery. The many works of art with which the QM2 is adorned often demand that one stop to admire with a mind

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A THIRD QUEEN ELIZABETH

Cunard’s third ship to be named Queen Elizabeth was built in an altogether straightforward manner. Where an aura of technical challenge had surrounded Queen Mary 2, and Queen Victoria literally had to be built twice, the new Queen Elizabeth was simply laid down and constructed, like an assembly line model. The connoisseur would add that of course she is an assembly line model; she is the eleventh ship in Carnival’s Vista class.

Nevertheless, her construction was remarkably straightforward from another point as well – public relations. Ship lovers throughout the world have known Cunard as a rather secretive company (unless one had a personal contact), never willing to disclose more information than necessary about current affairs, let alone projects coming up. It should be remembered that in the early project stages of Queen Mary 2 information was slow and sparse. The then President said, ‘We can’t be, and we won’t be, rushed.’ And Queen Victoria, once announced, simply