MS Christian IV
Encyclopedia
MS Julia is a cruiseferry
Cruiseferry
A cruiseferry is a ship that combines the features of a cruise ship with a Ro-Pax ferry. Many passengers travel with the ships for the cruise experience, staying only a few hours at the destination port or not leaving the ship at all, while others use the ships as means of...
owned and operated by Fastnet Line
Fastnet Line
Fastnet Line operate a passenger & freight ferry service from Ringaskiddy, Cork, Ireland to Swansea, Wales.-History:From 1987 to 2006, the Swansea Cork ferry was operated by Swansea Cork Ferries Limited, an Irish-based company. The service ceased operating after the 2006 season...
on a service connecting Swansea
Swansea
Swansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower Peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
to Cork
Cork (city)
Cork is the second largest city in the Republic of Ireland and the island of Ireland's third most populous city. It is the principal city and administrative centre of County Cork and the largest city in the province of Munster. Cork has a population of 119,418, while the addition of the suburban...
. She was built in 1982 as MS Olau Britannia by Weser Seebeckswerft in Bremerhaven
Bremerhaven
Bremerhaven is a city at the seaport of the free city-state of Bremen, a state of the Federal Republic of Germany. It forms an enclave in the state of Lower Saxony and is located at the mouth of the River Weser on its eastern bank, opposite the town of Nordenham...
for Olau Line
Olau Line
Olau Line was a shipping company that existed between the years 1956 and 1994. It operated a ferry service from the United Kingdom to the Netherlands from 1974 until 1994. Originally based in Denmark, the company passed under ownership of the German TT-Line in 1980.-History:Olau Line was founded in...
, who used her on Sheerness
Sheerness
Sheerness is a town located beside the mouth of the River Medway on the northwest corner of the Isle of Sheppey in north Kent, England. With a population of 12,000 it is the largest town on the island....
—Vlissingen service. In 1990 she was sold to Fred. Olsen Lines and renamed MS Bayard for services between Norway and Denmark. In 1991 Fred. Olsen Lines was sold to Color Line
Color Line
Color Line AS is the largest cruiseferry line operating on routes to and from Norway. The company is also one of the leading operators in Europe. Color Line provides transportation for people and cargo, hotel accommodation, shopping, restaurants and entertainment...
and the Bayard passed under their ownership under the name MS Christian IV. In 2008 she was sold to Stella Lines and renamed MS Julia for service between Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
and St. Petersburg. This was a failure and after just two months the Julia was laid up. In 2009 she was sold to Fastnet Line
Fastnet Line
Fastnet Line operate a passenger & freight ferry service from Ringaskiddy, Cork, Ireland to Swansea, Wales.-History:From 1987 to 2006, the Swansea Cork ferry was operated by Swansea Cork Ferries Limited, an Irish-based company. The service ceased operating after the 2006 season...
and entered service on their Swansea—Cork route in 2010, retaining her earlier name.
1982—1990: Olau Line
The Olau Britannia was delivered as the younger sister of MS Olau HollandiaMS Nordlandia
MS Nordlandia is a cruiseferry owned by the Finnish shipping company Eckerö Line on their route connecting Helsinki, Finland, to Tallinn, Estonia. She was built in 1981 by AG Weser Seebeckswerft, Bremerhaven, West Germany for Olau Line as MS Olau Hollandia...
on May 5, 1982. Two days later she was christened by Princess Margaret in Sheerness
Sheerness
Sheerness is a town located beside the mouth of the River Medway on the northwest corner of the Isle of Sheppey in north Kent, England. With a population of 12,000 it is the largest town on the island....
and placed on the route Sheerness—Vlissingen. In August 1984 the ship collided with the freighter MS Mont Louis in the English channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
. Olau Line ordered larger replacements for the Olau Hollandia and Olau Britannia in the late 1980s (confusingly the replacements were also called MS Olau Hollandia and MS Olau Britannia. In preparation for delivery of the second Olau Britannia, the first Olau Britannia was sold to Nordström & Thulin, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
on October 4, 1989, to be delivered in 1990. However, already on October 11 Nordström & Thulin resold the ship to Fred. Olsen & Co.
Fred. Olsen & Co.
Fred. Olsen & Co. is a large shipping company based in Oslo, Norway. The company was founded by Petter Olsen in 1848. Today it is the holding company that controls the Olsen family's interest through Bonheur and Ganger Rolf.-History:...
.
1990—2008: Fred. Olsen Lines and Color Line
In May 1990 the ship was delivered to her new owners and renamed MS Bayard. After a refit at Blohm & Voss, HamburgHamburg
-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...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, the Bayard was set in on Kristiansand
Kristiansand
-History:As indicated by archeological findings in the city, the Kristiansand area has been settled at least since 400 AD. A royal farm is known to have been situated on Oddernes as early as 800, and the first church was built around 1040...
—Hirtshals
Hirtshals
Hirtshals is a town in Hjørring municipality in Region Nordjylland on the north coast of the island of Vendsyssel-Thy at the top of the Jutland peninsula in northern Denmark, Europe.-The town of Hirtshals:...
route in June 1990. For the winter season she was transferred to Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
—Hirtshals
Hirtshals
Hirtshals is a town in Hjørring municipality in Region Nordjylland on the north coast of the island of Vendsyssel-Thy at the top of the Jutland peninsula in northern Denmark, Europe.-The town of Hirtshals:...
service. Fred. Olsen sold its Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
n ferry operations to Color Line in December 1990, and in January 1991 the Bayard was renamed MS Christian IV. The ship was kept on the Oslo — Hirtshals service until April 1994, when she returned to the Kristiansand — Hirtshals route. In March 1995 the ship temporarily sailed on the Moss
Moss, Norway
is a coastal city and a municipality in Østfold county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Moss. The city of Moss was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838...
—Kiel
Kiel
Kiel is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 238,049 .Kiel is approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the north of Germany, the southeast of the Jutland peninsula, and the southwestern shore of the...
route, after which she reverted back to her older route. The ship was refitted in 1999 at Fredericia Værft in Denmark, with additional restaurants and better conference facilities. She was refitted again in 2005, this time at Remontowa, Gdansk
Gdansk
Gdańsk is a Polish city on the Baltic coast, at the centre of the country's fourth-largest metropolitan area.The city lies on the southern edge of Gdańsk Bay , in a conurbation with the city of Gdynia, spa town of Sopot, and suburban communities, which together form a metropolitan area called the...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
. In March 2008 she was replaced by the new on the Kristiansand—Hirsthals route, and laid up at Sandefjord
Sandefjord
is a city and municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Sandefjord. The municipality of Sandefjord was established on 1 January 1838...
. Between 2008-04-10 and 2008-06-15 the Christian IV sailed on the Larvik
Larvik
is a city and municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Larvik. Larvik kommune - has about 41 364 inhabitants and covers 530 km2....
—Hirsthals route, replacing – that had been sold to the Mediterranean Shipping Company – until the delivery of the new MS Superspeed 2.
2008 onwards: Stella Lines
On 2008-05-20 the Christian IV was sold by Color Line to Stella Naves Russia (Stella Lines), a subsidiary of the FinnishFinland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
freight shipping and stevedoring operator Stella Company Group, for €13 million. The ship was delivered to her new owners in July 2008, and subsequently renamed Julia. On 2008-08-01 she entered service on Stella Lines' Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
—St. Petersburg route. Passenger numbers on the Julia were low due to the bureaucracy related to applying a visa
Visa (document)
A visa is a document showing that a person is authorized to enter the territory for which it was issued, subject to permission of an immigration official at the time of actual entry. The authorization may be a document, but more commonly it is a stamp endorsed in the applicant's passport...
in order to travel between Finland and Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. Additionally due to restrictions imposed by the Port of Helsinki
Port of Helsinki
Port of Helsinki is owned by the city of Helsinki and is Finland's main port, specialized in unitized cargo services for Finnish companies engaged in foreign trade. Helsinki is also the busiest passenger port in Finland, with diverse services to Tallinn, Stockholm, Travemünde, Rostock, Gdynia and St...
the Julia could not carry any freight on the service. On 2008-09-20 the Russian State Duma
State Duma
The State Duma , common abbreviation: Госду́ма ) in the Russian Federation is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia , the upper house being the Federation Council of Russia. The Duma headquarters is located in central Moscow, a few steps from Manege Square. Its members are referred to...
approved a law change allowing passengers arriving by scheduled ferry services to visit Russia for up to 72 hours without a visa.
Despite this legislation change the Helsinki—St. Petersburg service of the Julia was terminated due slower than expected growth of the passenger numbers, failure to acquire additional funding due to the economic crisis of 2008 and larger than expected harbour expenses in St. Petersburg. On 9 October 2008 Stella Lines CEO Kari Juvas stated that the company would make the decisions about the future of the Julia within the next few days. According to Juvas the alternatives are selling the ship or utilizing the ship on a service between Kotka
Kotka
Kotka is a town and municipality of Finland. Its former name is Rochensalm.Kotka is located on the coast of the Gulf of Finland at the mouth of Kymi River and it is part of the Kymenlaakso region in southern Finland. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water....
, Finland and Sillamäe
Sillamäe
Sillamäe is a town in Ida-Viru County in the northern part of Estonia, on the southern coast of the Gulf of Finland. It has a population of 16,183 and covers an area of 10.54 km²...
, Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
. Juvas had stated that Stella was interested in operating a ship on the Kotka—Sillamäe route already in July 2007. The Russia-based companies Morskoi Voksal and Inflot, alongside with the City of St. Petersburg planned on acquiring the share majority of Stella Lines and providing funding for recommencing service on the Helsinki—St. Petersburg route with the Julia. However, on 3 November 2008 it was reported that the City of St. Petersburg had withdrawn from the purchase. On the same date Kim Sjöblom of Stella Lines stated the company are looking for other funders allowing the service to be restarted. These attempts failed and Stella Lines was declared bankrupt on 6 November 2008, with the ownership of the Julia passing to Stella's creditors Aktia Savings Bank
Aktia Savings Bank
Aktia Bank plc is a Finnish bank owned by Finnish savings bank foundations, institutions, savings banks and private individuals.Aktia serves as the central financial institute for savings and local co-operative banks....
.
Reportedly several companies have expressed an interest in buying the Julia, but none have been able to raise the capital needed to buy her. On 17 February 2009 it was reported that one of the potential buyers for the Julia is Irish shipowner Frank Allen
Frank Allen
Frank Allen may refer to:* Frank Allen , The Searchers' bassist* Frank G. Allen , Governor of Massachusetts* Frank M...
, who had acquired a loan from a Finnish bank to purchase the ship for use on a service between Cork
Cork (city)
Cork is the second largest city in the Republic of Ireland and the island of Ireland's third most populous city. It is the principal city and administrative centre of County Cork and the largest city in the province of Munster. Cork has a population of 119,418, while the addition of the suburban...
and Swansea
Swansea
Swansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower Peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
under the brand of B&I Line, which would be re-established for this service. A public auction to sell the Julia was held on 26 February 2009, but no bids were made. In a second auction held on 12 March 2009 B&I Line made the highest bid of €6 million, but confusion surrounded the initial undertaking of €1.5 million to secure the ship and she remained unsold. No further auction was held, instead the bankrupt's estate negotiated directly with potential buyers. In addition to B&I Line, Greek Halkidon Shipping Corporation and two unnamed Finnish companies were reported to have shown interest in the ship.
2009 onwards: Fastnet Line
The West Cork Tourism Co-operative announced on 2 April 2009 that they were close to agreeing on a deal to buy the Julia. On the 7 April 2009 the West Cork Tourism co-operative shareholders, meeting in Skibbereen gave their overwhelming support to the deal and elected a Board of Directors with the power to conclude the deal with the Finnish liquidator. The co-operative was setting up the new ferry company to run the service, which was to be called Fastnet LineFastnet Line
Fastnet Line operate a passenger & freight ferry service from Ringaskiddy, Cork, Ireland to Swansea, Wales.-History:From 1987 to 2006, the Swansea Cork ferry was operated by Swansea Cork Ferries Limited, an Irish-based company. The service ceased operating after the 2006 season...
after Fastnet Rock
Fastnet Rock
Fastnet Rock is a small island in the Atlantic Ocean and the most southerly point of Ireland. It lies southwest of Cape Clear Island and from County Cork on the Irish mainland...
off the West Cork coast. The West Cork Tourism Co-operative announced on 5 May 2009 that they will launch the new ferry service on 1 March 2010 and they are going ahead with the purchase of the Julia. Following a funding agreement with an unnamed Finnish bank, a preliminary sale agreement was signed between Fastnet Line and Julias owners on 15 July 2009 for an undisclosed price. However, the deal was subject to ratification by the Finnish court of law as the offer made by Fastnet is reportedly less than the €13 million debt attached to the ship. The court decided to sell the Julia and this was announced on 15 September 2009 following discussions with the creditors of Stella Lines.
The West Cork Tourism Co-Op also announced on the 15 September that it had completed the purchase of the Julia through its wholly owned subsidiary Fastnet Line Ltd and that it was pressing ahead with its plans to start the service on 1 March 2010 between Cork
County Cork
County Cork is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and is also part of the province of Munster. It is named after the city of Cork . Cork County Council is the local authority for the county...
and Swansea
Swansea
Swansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower Peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
with the Julia. After some required certification, the service began on 10 March 2010 with a sailing from Swansea to Ringaskiddy.
Vehicle capacity
MS Julia has the vehicle capacity of 440 cars plus 30 trailers and trucks. It can carry 1,860 passengers.Facilities
- Cinema
- Children's play area
- Shops
- Tourist information desk
- Casino
- Pet kennels