Hamburg Atlantic Line
Encyclopedia
| Hamburg Atlantic Line German Atlantic Line Hanseatic Tours  |
|
| Originally founded | 1958 |
|---|---|
| Originally defunct | 1973 |
| Re-established | 1991 |
| Defunct | 1997 |
| Fate | Acquisition Takeover In business, a takeover is the purchase of one company by another . In the UK, the term refers to the acquisition of a public company whose shares are listed on a stock exchange, in contrast to the acquisition of a private company.- Friendly takeovers :Before a bidder makes an offer for another... |
| Successor | Hapag-Lloyd Cruises |
| Location | Hamburg Hamburg -History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808... ,  West Germany |
| Industry | Ocean liner Ocean liner An ocean liner is a ship designed to transport people from one seaport to another along regular long-distance maritime routes according to a schedule. Liners may also carry cargo or mail, and may sometimes be used for other purposes .Cargo vessels running to a schedule are sometimes referred to as... and cruise ship Cruise ship A cruise ship or cruise liner is a passenger ship used for pleasure voyages, where the voyage itself and the ship's amenities are part of the experience, as well as the different destinations along the way... traffic |
| Key people | Axel Bitsch Christensen, Vernicos Eugenides, Dirk Moldenhauer |
Hamburg Atlantic Line (German:
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
Hamburg Atlantik Linie) was an ocean liner
Ocean liner
An ocean liner is a ship designed to transport people from one seaport to another along regular long-distance maritime routes according to a schedule. Liners may also carry cargo or mail, and may sometimes be used for other purposes .Cargo vessels running to a schedule are sometimes referred to as...
and cruise ship
Cruise ship
A cruise ship or cruise liner is a passenger ship used for pleasure voyages, where the voyage itself and the ship's amenities are part of the experience, as well as the different destinations along the way...
operating company established in Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
in 1958 by Axel Bitsch Christensen and Vernicos Eugenides, the latter being the adopted son of Home Lines
Home Lines
Home Lines was an Italian passenger shipping company that operated both ocean liners and cruise ships. The company was founded in 1946, and it ceased operations in 1988 when merged into Holland America Line. Although based in Genoa, Homes Lines was an international company with ships registered in...
' founder Eugen Eugenides. In 1966 the company changed its name to German Atlantic Line (German: Deutsche Atlantik Linie). Liner services were abandoned in 1969, after which the company's ships concentrated solely on cruising. Due to the 1973 oil crisis
1973 oil crisis
The 1973 oil crisis started in October 1973, when the members of Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries or the OAPEC proclaimed an oil embargo. This was "in response to the U.S. decision to re-supply the Israeli military" during the Yom Kippur war. It lasted until March 1974. With the...
, German Atlantic Line closed down in December 1973.
In 1991 Dirk Moldenhauer, the captain of the last German Atlantic Line ship in service, acquired the rights to the Hamburg/German Atlantic Line logo and established Hanseatic Tours which used the same livery and ship names as the German Atlantic Line. In 1997 Hapag-Lloyd
Hapag-Lloyd
Hapag-Lloyd is a German transportation company comprising a cargo container shipping line, Hapag-Lloyd AG, which in turn owns other subsidiaries such as Hapag-Lloyd Ships and a cruise line, Hapag-Lloyd Cruises which is now integrated into TUI AG, Hanover...
acquired Hanseatic Tours, and their operarations were merged to those of Hapag-Lloyd Cruises. The last Hanseatic Tours vessel, MS Hanseatic
MS Hanseatic
MS Hanseatic is a five-star cruise ship owned by the Hapag-Lloyd cruise line. It is the only five-star expedition-cruise ship worldwide. Built in 1991, she specialises in trips to the Antarctic. She was built as Society Adventurer, but was renamed when she was purchased by Hanseatic Tours, as the...
has retained the Hanseatic Tours livery even in Hapag-Lloyd service.
1958-1966: Hamburg Atlantic Line
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Christensen convinced his friend Vernicos Eugenides, the chairman of Home Lines
Home Lines
Home Lines was an Italian passenger shipping company that operated both ocean liners and cruise ships. The company was founded in 1946, and it ceased operations in 1988 when merged into Holland America Line. Although based in Genoa, Homes Lines was an international company with ships registered in...
, to invest 6 million DM in the new company, making it possible for Christensen to raise enough loan to purchase a ship. Hamburg Atlantic Line acquired their first ship in January 1958 when they purchased the 1930-built SS Empress of Scotland from Canadian Pacific Steamships. After substantial rebuilding, the ship re-emerged as the first SS Hanseatic in June 1958, and was placed in service connecting Cuxhaven, Germany to New York
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
via Le Havre
Le Havre
Le Havre is a city in the Seine-Maritime department of the Haute-Normandie region in France. It is situated in north-western France, on the right bank of the mouth of the river Seine on the English Channel. Le Havre is the most populous commune in the Haute-Normandie region, although the total...
(France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
), Southampton
Southampton
Southampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
(United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
) and Cobh
Cobh
Cobh is a seaport town on the south coast of County Cork, Ireland. Cobh is on the south side of Great Island in Cork Harbour. Facing the town are Spike Island and Haulbowline Island...
(Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
). During the winter season she was also used for cruising out of New York to the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
. Coinciding with Hamburg Atlantic beginning transatlantic service, Home Lines ceased transatlantic service so that the two companies in which Vernicos Eugenides had large investments in would not compete with each other. After a good year in the transatlantic service in 1959, passenger numbers begun to drop due to competition from air traffic. By 1965 the Hanseatic made only
eight round crossings, spending the rest of the year cruising.
Already in 1962 Axel Bitsch Christensen had begun planning for a new ship to replace the Hanseatic. He had trouble securing a loan to fund the new building, but was not discouraged and drew up an unusual plan for gathering funds. A new company, German Atlantic Line, was established; shares of the new company were offered to past Hamburg Atlantic passengers, and enough funds for the new ships were gathered using this method. However, before an order could be placed for the new ship, the Hanseatic caught fire on 6 September 1966 while in New York harbour. There were no casualties, but after the hulk of the ship was towed back to Germany, she was deemed too expensive to repair and was sent to scrappers. An order for the new SS Hamburg was placed with Deutsche Werft
Deutsche Werft
Deutsche Werft was a German shipbuilding company, located in Hamburg, Germany. It was founded in 1918 on initiative by Albert Ballin and with Gutehoffnungshütte , Allgemeine Elektricitäts-Gesellschaft and Hamburg Amerikanische Packetfahrt Actien Gesellschaft as investors.During World War II...
during the following month, but the company needed another ship to operate until the new ship would be completed.
1966-1973: German Atlantic Line
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
-based ZIM Lines. By this time the decision was made to abandon the name Hamburg Atlantic Line, and the company began to be marketed as the German Atlantic Line. The former Shalom, that had been renamed SS Hanseatic, set on a crossing from Hamburg to New York on 16 December 1967 with invited guests onboard. After the initial crossing she began making cruises out of New York. In 1968 the German Atlantic Line decided to abandon transatlantic service, concentrating solely on cruising. The Hanseatic did still cross the Atlantic twice a year on repositioning trips between Europe and America.
The new SS Hamburg was delivered to German Atlantic Line on 20 March 1969, entering service on 28 March 1969 with a cruise from Hamburg to South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
. She was the first major German-built, German-flagged passenger ship to enter service since 1938. By this time the company was collaborating with Holland America Line
Holland America Line
The Holland America Line is a cruise shipping company. It was founded in 1873 as the Netherlands-America Steamship Company , a shipping and passenger line. Headquartered in Rotterdam and providing service to the Americas, it became known as Holland America Line...
, who acted as German Atlantic's agents in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
.
Around the time of the Hamburg
Hapag-Lloyd
Hapag-Lloyd is a German transportation company comprising a cargo container shipping line, Hapag-Lloyd AG, which in turn owns other subsidiaries such as Hapag-Lloyd Ships and a cruise line, Hapag-Lloyd Cruises which is now integrated into TUI AG, Hanover...
, but nothing came of this. By September 1973 the company's debts were estimated at 50-70 million DM, so when Home Lines
Home Lines
Home Lines was an Italian passenger shipping company that operated both ocean liners and cruise ships. The company was founded in 1946, and it ceased operations in 1988 when merged into Holland America Line. Although based in Genoa, Homes Lines was an international company with ships registered in...
lost their SS Homeric and expressed interest in buying the Hanseatic as a replacement, German Atlantic had no choice but to sell the ship or face bankruptcy. On 25 September 1973 the Hanseatic was sold and renamed SS Doric. On the same date the Hamburg was in turn renamed Hanseatic, but at the same time plans were being drawn to sell her to Hapag-Lloyd.
Negotiations about the sale of the third Hanseatic continued with Hapag-Lloyd, as well as a potential buyer from Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, while debts continued to accumulate. On 1 December 1973 German Atlantic Line was forced to cease operations completely. The Hanseatic was laid up and eventually sold to the Black Sea Shipping Company of the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
(via an American intermediary) in 1974, becoming their SS Maxim Gorkiy. The Maxim Gorkiy spent most of her subsequent career under charter to various West German (and after German reunification
German reunification
German reunification was the process in 1990 in which the German Democratic Republic joined the Federal Republic of Germany , and when Berlin reunited into a single city, as provided by its then Grundgesetz constitution Article 23. The start of this process is commonly referred by Germans as die...
, German) tour operators.
1991-1997: Hanseatic Tours
Renaissance Cruises
Renaissance Cruises, originally founded in 1989 owned by Fearnley & Eger Rederi in Oslo - Norway, was a cruise line operator that operated year-round cruise itineraries to the Mediterranean, the Greek Isles, Tahiti and the South Pacific, Northern Europe and Scandinavia. The company ceased...
. Before delivery the ship was renamed MS Hanseatic Renaissance and entered service in Hanseatic Tours colours in May 1991. The Hanseatic Renaissance remained in Hanseatic service until 1992, when she was returned to her owners.
On 23 March 1993 Hanseatic Tours chartered the 1991-built MS Society Adventurer and renamed her MS Hanseatic
MS Hanseatic
MS Hanseatic is a five-star cruise ship owned by the Hapag-Lloyd cruise line. It is the only five-star expedition-cruise ship worldwide. Built in 1991, she specialises in trips to the Antarctic. She was built as Society Adventurer, but was renamed when she was purchased by Hanseatic Tours, as the...
. Although built two years previously, the ship has never seen active service as the company that had ordered her went bankrupt before she was completed, and the ship had been laid up until chartered to Hanseatic Tours. The fourth Hanseatic entered service on 27 March 1992 when she set on a cruise from Hamburg to Sevilla. Hanseatic Tours continued operations with one ship until 1997, when the company was purchased by Hapag-Lloyd
Hapag-Lloyd
Hapag-Lloyd is a German transportation company comprising a cargo container shipping line, Hapag-Lloyd AG, which in turn owns other subsidiaries such as Hapag-Lloyd Ships and a cruise line, Hapag-Lloyd Cruises which is now integrated into TUI AG, Hanover...
, with Dirk Moldenhauer becoming one of the chiefs of Hapag-Lloyds cruise operations. Even after entering service with Hapag-Lloyd Cruises, the fourth Hanseatic retained her name and Hanseatic Tours livery.
Ships
| Ship | IMO-number | Built | In service for HAL/GAL/HT |
Flag | Gross register tonnage Gross Register Tonnage Gross register tonnage a ship's total internal volume expressed in "register tons", one of which equals to a volume of . It is calculated from the total permanently enclosed capacity of the vessel. The ship's net register tonnage is obtained by reducing the volume of non-revenue-earning spaces i.e... |
Status as of 2009 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SS Hanseatic | 5514232 | 1930 | 1958–1966 | West Germany |
Burnt 1966, subsequently scrapped | |
| SS Hanseatic | 5321679 | 1964 | 1967–1973 | West Germany |
Sunk 2001 | |
| SS Hamburg SS Hanseatic |
6810627 | 1969 | 1969-1973 1973 |
West Germany |
Scrapped in Alang, India in 2009 | |
| MS Hanseatic Renaissance | 1991 | 1991–1992 |  Italy |
Since 2001 sailing as MS Spirit of Oceanus for Cruise West Cruise West Cruise West was an independent, destination focused small-ship cruise operator based in Seattle, Washington, USA. The line was the largest operator of U.S. flagged cruise vessels with nine currently operating. They were best known for their Alaska cruises but their reach includes destinations... |
||
| MS Hanseatic MS Hanseatic MS Hanseatic is a five-star cruise ship owned by the Hapag-Lloyd cruise line. It is the only five-star expedition-cruise ship worldwide. Built in 1991, she specialises in trips to the Antarctic. She was built as Society Adventurer, but was renamed when she was purchased by Hanseatic Tours, as the... |
9000168 | 1991 | 1993–1997 |  The Bahamas |
Since 1997 sailing for Hapag-Lloyd Hapag-Lloyd Hapag-Lloyd is a German transportation company comprising a cargo container shipping line, Hapag-Lloyd AG, which in turn owns other subsidiaries such as Hapag-Lloyd Ships and a cruise line, Hapag-Lloyd Cruises which is now integrated into TUI AG, Hanover... . Retains Hanseatic Tours livery. |