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SS France (1961)
Encyclopedia
SS France was a Compagnie Générale Transatlantique
(CGT, or French Line) ocean liner
, constructed by the Chantiers de l'Atlantique
shipyard at Saint-Nazaire
, France, and put into service in February 1962. At the time of her construction in 1960 she was the longest passenger ship
ever built, a record that remained unchallenged until the construction of the 345 meter in 2004.
France was later purchased by Norwegian Cruise Line
(NCL) in 1979, renamed SS Norway and underwent significant modifications that better suited her for cruising
duties. She was sold to be scrapped in 2006, and scrapping was completed in late 2008.
from 1961 to 1974, combining regular transatlantic crossings - six days and nights - with occasional winter cruises, as well as two world circumnavigations.
As the SS Norway she was the flagship of the Norwegian Cruise Line
from 1980 to approximately 2001.
Some, like ship historian John Maxtone-Graham
, believe that France was purposely built to serve as both a liner and a cruise ship, stating: "Once again, the company had cruise conversion in mind... for cruises, all baffle doors segregating staircases from taboo decks were opened to permit free circulation throughout the vessel." However, others, such as ship historian William Miller, have asserted that France was the "last purposely designed year-round transatlantic supership."
, which by the 1950s were considered old and outdated. Without these vessels, however, the French Line had no ability to compete against their rivals, most notably Cunard
Line, which also had plans for constructing a new modern liner. It was rumoured that this ship would be a 75,000-ton replacement for their ships and . (This ship would eventually be the 68,000-ton .) Further, the United States Lines
had put into service in 1952 the , which had broken all speed records on her maiden voyage, with an average speed of 35.59 knots (65.91 km/h).
At first, the idea of two 35,000-ton running mates was considered to replace Ile de France and Liberté. However, Charles de Gaulle
(the future President of France) opined that it would be better for French national pride (which was flagging due to the then ongoing Algerian War of Independence
) to construct one grand ocean liner as an ocean-going showcase for France, in the tradition of the . The idea of the liner caused some controversy, with some for and others against it, as its construction would be publicly funded, leading to raucous debates in the French parliament. The dealing lasted three and a half years, and though the letter commissioning the construction was finally signed by the Chairman of the Compagnie Générale Transatlantique, Jean Marie, on 25 July 1956, debate about the form, cost and construction schedule for France lasted a further year.
Beyond the luxuries, the French Line had to also face the realities that transatlantic passenger trade was, at that time, forecast to decline due to increased air travel. Also, costs to operate ships were increasing, mostly due to prices of crude oil. Thus, the new ship would be larger than Ile, but smaller and cheaper to operate than Normandie. She would also only be a two-class liner, which would, like the recently built , be able to be converted from a segregated, class restricted crossing mode to a unified, classless cruising mode, thereby allowing the ship to be more versatile in its operations. Despite these requirements, she was still to be the longest ship ever built, as well as one of the fastest, meaning not only an advanced propulsion system, but also a hull design which would withstand the rigours of the North Atlantic
at high speed.
Hull G19 was built by Chantiers de l'Atlantique
shipyard, in Saint-Nazaire
, France
, her keel being laid down on 7 September 1957. She was built in a non-conventional manner: rather than constructing a skeleton which was then covered in steel hull plating, large parts of the ship were prefabricated
in other cities (such as Orléans
, Le Havre
and Lyon
). She was built with a unique double bottom
that enabled her to carry 8,000 tons of fuel - enough for the trip to New York
and back. The hull was fully welded, leading to weight savings, and had two sets of stabilisers fitted.
She was blessed by the Bishop of Nantes
, Monseigneur Villepelet, and launched on 11 May 1960, at 4:15 pm, by Madame Yvonne de Gaulle
, wife of the President, and was then named France, in honour both of the country, and of the two previous CGT ships to bear the name. By 4:22 pm France was afloat and under command of tugs. President De Gaulle was also in attendance at the launch, and gave a patriotic speech, announcing that France had been given a new Normandie, they were able to compete now with Cunard's Queens, and the Blue Riband
was within their reach. In reality, however, the 35 knot speed of United States would prove impossible to beat.
After the launch, the propellers were installed (the entire process taking over three weeks), the distinctive funnels affixed to the upper decks, the superstructure completed, life boats placed in their davits, and the interiors fitted out. France then undertook her sea trials on 19 November 1961, and averaged an unexpected 35.21 knots. With the French Line satisfied, the ship was handed over, and undertook a trial cruise to the Canary Islands
with a full complement of passengers and crew. During this short trip she met, at sea, Liberté which was on her way to the shipbreakers.
took place on 3 February 1962, with many of France's film stars and aristocracy aboard.
On 14 December 1962, France carried the Mona Lisa
from Le Havre to New York, where the painting was to embark on an American tour.
From the 13th July to 26 July 1967, France docked at the Île Notre-Dame
in Montreal
, acting as a secondary French pavilion at the 1967 World's Fair
, Expo 67
.
She sailed the North Atlantic run between Le Havre
and New York for thirteen years. However, by the beginning of the 1970s jet travel was by far more popular than ship travel, and the cost of fuel was ever increasing. France, which had always relied on subsidies from the French government, was forced to take advantage of these more and more.
Using the ship's versatile design to its full potential, the CGT began to send France on more cruises during the winter, which was off-season for the Atlantic trade. One design flaw, however, was revealed when the ship reached warmer waters: her two swimming pool
s, one each for first and tourist class, were both indoors; the first class pool deep within the ship's hull, and the tourist class pool on an upper deck, but covered with an immovable glass dome. The latter, perhaps, was the more aggravating in hot weather. She also had limited outdoor deck space, with much of what was available protected behind thick glass wind-screens; useful on the North Atlantic, but frustrating when blocking cooling breezes in the tropics. (Queen Elizabeth 2 suffered from a similar design flaw as well.)
Nonetheless, France's cruises were popular, and her first world cruise took place in 1972. Too large to traverse the Panama
and Suez Canal
s, she was forced to sail around Cape Horn
and the Cape of Good Hope
. That same year, with the destruction of Seawise University (former RMS Queen Elizabeth
) by fire in Hong Kong
, France became the largest passenger ship in the world in service.
Still, as the opening years of the decade progressed, the cruise market expanded, seeing the construction of smaller, purpose built cruise ship
s which could also fit through the Panama Canal. Worse, in 1973 the Oil Crisis
hit and the price of oil went from $3 US to $12 US per barrel. When the French government, at the end of the Trente Glorieuses
, realised that keeping France running would necessitate an additional ten million dollars a year, they opted instead to subsidise the then developing Concorde
. Without this government money, the French Line could not operate, and with a press release issued in 1974 it was announced that France would be withdrawn from service on the 25th October that year.
At that, the crew decided to take matters into their own hands: an eastbound crossing on the 6th September, her 202nd crossing, was delayed several hours while the crew met to decide whether to strike then and there, in New York, or six days later outside Le Havre
; Le Havre won, and the ship was commandeered by a group of French trade union
ists who anchored France in the entrance to the port, thereby blocking all incoming and outgoing traffic. The 1200 passengers aboard had to be ferried to shore on tenders, while approximately 800 of the crew remained aboard.
The hijackers demanded that the ship be allowed to continue to serve, along with a 35% wage increase for themselves. However, their mission failed, and the night of the hijacking proved to be the ship's last day of service for the CGT. It took over a month for the stand-off to end, and by the 7th December 1974, the ship was moored at a distant quay in Le Havre, known colloquially as quai de l'oubli - the pier of the forgotten.
By that time France had completed 377 crossings and 93 cruises (including 2 world cruises), carried a total of 588,024 passengers on trans-Atlantic crossings, and 113,862 passengers on cruises, and had sailed a total of 1,860,000 nautical miles.
, titled Le France.
The ship sat in the same spot for approximately four years, with the interiors, including all furniture, still completely intact. There were no plans to scrap the ship, or to sell it. However, in 1977 Saudi Arabia
n millionaire Akram Ojjeh
expressed an interest in purchasing the vessel for use as a floating museum for antique French furniture and artworks, as well as a casino and hotel off the coast of the south-east United States
. Though he purchased the ship for $24 million, this proposal was never realised, and others were rumoured to have floated, including bids from the Soviet Union
to use her as a hotel ship in the Black Sea
, and a proposal from China
to turn her into a floating industrial trade fair.
In the end, the ship was sold in 1979 to Knut Kloster, the owner of Norwegian Cruise Line
for $18 million for conversion by him into the world's largest cruise ship. Just before France was renamed Norway one last marriage was performed aboard the ship at the quay in Le Havre. The wedding was performed by Rev. Agnar Holme, the Norwegian Seaman's Priest. Greg Tighe, Director of Research and Corporate Development for NCL, was married to Lorraine Anne Evering (Tighe) in France's chapel. Witnesses included the ship's Captain, and several members of NCL's management team. This marked the last marriage to be performed aboard the SS France, which had hosted hundreds of weddings over its transatlantic career.
By August of that year Norway was moved to the Lloyd shipyards in Bremerhaven
, Germany
, where she would undergo renovations to the cost of $80,000,000 US.
, given the call sign LITA (literally meaning "small"), and was re-christened on 14 April 1980, as the first superliner employed exclusively in cruise service. On her maiden call to Oslo, senior steward Wesley Samuels of Jamaica
, in the presence of King Olav V
, hoisted the United Nations
flag as a sign of the ship's international crew.
She began her maiden voyage to Miami that same year, amidst speculation about her future in the cruise industry. France had been built as an ocean liner: for speed; long, narrow, with a deep draft, as well as an array of cabin shapes and sizes designed in a compact manner more for purpose travel than languid cruising. But Norway proved popular, and made the notion of the ship being a destination in itself credible. Her size, passenger capacity, and amenities revolutionized the cruise industry and started a building frenzy as competitors began to order larger ships.
As cruise competition attempted to take some of Norway's brisk business, Norway herself was upgraded several times in order to maintain her position as the "grande dame" of the Caribbean
. In September and October 1990, there was the addition of two decks atop her superstructure
, adding 135 new suites and luxury cabins. While many ship aficionados believe the new decks spoiled her original clean, classic lines, the new private veranda cabins on the added decks were instrumental in keeping Norway financially afloat during the later years of her operation, as these became a common feature throughout the cruise industry. She received additional refits in 1993 and 1996 in order to comply with the new SOLAS (Safety of Life At Sea) regulations.
Competition eventually overtook Norway, and she even started taking a back seat to other ships in NCL's lineup itself. No longer the "Ship amongst Ships", her owners severely cut back on her maintenance and upkeep. She experienced several mechanical breakdowns, fires, incidents of illegal waste dumping, and safety violations for which she was detained at port pending repairs. Despite the cutbacks, the ship remained extremely popular among cruise enthusiasts, some of whom questioned the owner's actions in light of the continuing successful operation of the , which had become a well-maintained rival operating 5-star luxury cruises still for Cunard
. In spite of this, the cutbacks continued and problems mounted even as the ship continued to sail with full occupancy. A turbo-charger fire erupted on Norway as she entered Barcelona
in 1999, which pulled her out of service for three weeks.
Slated for retirement, Norway sailed out of Manhattan
's west side piers for the last time on 9 September 2001, on yet another transatlantic crossing to Greenock
, Scotland
, and then on to her home port of Le Havre, France. Her passengers would learn of the terrorist attacks on New York
and Washington
two days later, while in mid-ocean. However, as the cruise industry reeled from the aftermath of the terrorist attacks, her owners decided to place her back into service - operating bargain-basement cruises from Miami, after a brief cosmetic refit that failed to address her mounting mechanical and infrastructure problems.
On 25 May 2003, after docking in Miami at 5:00 a.m., Norway was seriously damaged by a boiler explosion at 6:30 a.m. that killed eight crew members, and injured seventeen, as superheated steam flooded the boiler room, and blasted into crew quarters above through ruptured decking. None of the passengers were affected. On 27 June 2003, NCL/Star decided to relocate Norway, and she departed Miami under tow, although at first NCL/Star refused to announce her destination. However, she headed towards Europe and eventually arrived in Bremerhaven on 23 September 2003. NCL announced that constructing a new boiler was not possible; boiler parts, however, were available to repair her. In Bremerhaven she was used as accommodation for NCL crew training to take their places on board the line's new Pride of America.
stopping at Southampton
, England
and ending in New York
. A 6-day cruise to Bermuda
was planned but cancelled at the last minute in favor of fixing some problems. She set sail on her first inaugural cruise from Miami, Florida
on June 1, 1980, a 7-day cruise with only two stops one in Little San Salvador known as Great Stirrup Cay
then followed by a stop in St. Thomas
, USVI. The other days of the cruise were sea days as the Norway was the destination its self. This remained her main itinerary from 1980-1982 until NCL announced Nassau
, Bahamas was added. By 1985 St. Maarten, Netherlands Antilles
was added. In 1987 her new itinerary was introduced a 7-day cruise from Miami stopping at St. Maarten, St. John
, USVI; St. Thomas and Great Stirrup Cay. Her Western Caribbean cruises later introduced were 7-Days stopping at Cozumel
, Mexico
; Grand Cayman
, Cayman Islands
; Roatan
and NCL's private island Great Stirup Cay. Between regular cruising in the Caribbean and dry dock periods, she sailed many cruises to Western Mediterranean, Western Europe coast, Northern Europe, the British Isles and the Norwegian Fjords.
Her official farewell cruise was a 17-day Transatlantic cruise from Miami stopping at New York; Halifax, Nova Scotia
; St John's
, Newfoundland and Labrador
; Greenock
, Scotland
; Le Havre
, France
and ending in Southampton. But a decision was made to keep the Norway sailing bargin based Caribbean cruises out of Miami up until her demise in May 2003.
"Norway will never sail again," it was announced on 23 March 2004, by NCL Chief Executive Colin Veitch. The ship's ownership was transferred to NCL's parent company, Star Cruises
.
Due to large amounts of asbestos
aboard the ship (mostly in machine and bulkhead areas), Norway was not allowed to leave Germany for any scrap yards due to the Basel Convention
. However, after assuring the German authorities that Norway would go to Asia for repairs and further operation in Australia, she was allowed to leave port under tow. It was reported that the art from her two dining rooms, children's playroom, stairtower, and library were removed and placed in storage, to possibly be utilized on board a revitalized , or another ship in the NCL fleet. However, later photos of Norway at the scrapyards of Alang, India, would prove this statement to be untrue. Norway left Bremerhaven
under tow on 23 May 2005, and reached Port Klang
, Malaysia on 10 August 2005.
In fact, the ship was sold to an American naval demolition dealer for scrap value in December 2005. After eventually reselling the ship to a scrap yard, the ship was to be towed to India
for demolition. However, in light of protests from Greenpeace
, potentially lengthy legal battles due to environmental concerns over the ship's breakup, and amidst charges of fraudulent declarations made by the company to obtain permission to leave Bremerhaven, her owners cancelled the sale contract, refunded the purchase price, and left the ship where she was.
for repairs, and to take on new crew and supplies.
Upon learning of the ship's destination, Gopal Krishna, an environmentalist and an anti-asbestos activist, filed an application before the Supreme Court of India to ensure that the ship, reportedly containing asbestos, complied with the Court's 14 October 2003 order which sought prior decontamination of ships in the country of export before they could be allowed entry into Indian waters. On 17 May 2006, Kalraj Mishra expressed his concern to the Indian Parliament over possible hazards Blue Lady presented, and requested that the government put a halt to the ship's entry. However, as the Indian Supreme Court
had lifted any ban on the ship's entry, Blue Lady was anchored 100 km off the Indian coast in mid-July, coming from Fujairah
, UAE.
This also cleared the way for her scrapping at Alang, in Gujarat, pending an inspection of the on-board asbestos by experts from the Gujarat Pollution Control Board
(GPCB).
After GPCB chairman, K.V. Bhanujan, said the Board had constituted an experts' committee for inspection, Blue Lady was docked in Pipavav
, Kutch District. On the 2nd August 2006, after a five-day inspection, the experts declared the ship safe for beaching and dismantling in Alang. However, this prompted a fury of controversy over the legality of such an act, including a press release from the NGO Platform on Shipbreaking that critiqued the technical report, alleging that the Technical Committee was under undue pressure to allow the ship to be beached, and had failed to follow the Basel Convention and the Supreme Court of India's order that ships must be decontaminated of hazardous substances such as PCBs and asbestos, and, in any case, must be fully inventoried and formally notified prior to arrival in the importing country. No such notification was made by either Malaysia (last country of departure) nor Germany
(country where the ship became waste).
The NGO Platform on Shipbreaking also announced that it was prepared to launch a global campaign against Star Cruises and their subsidiary Norwegian Cruise Lines for corporate negligence in this case.
Photos from Alang revealed that Blue Lady was still partially afloat off the coast; her bow on dry beach at low tide, and the ship fully afloat at high tide. The photos also showed that neither NCL nor Star Cruises had removed any of the ship's on board furniture or artworks (including the murals in the Windward Dining Room and Children's Playroom, and the Steinway
piano in Le Bistro), as had previously been reported.
Fans of France became concerned about the future of the art pieces, both due to the ship lying at anchor in a very humid environment without power for air conditioning, and due to lack of concern for preservation on the part of the scrappers. Still, it was stated that as of early September 2006, the ship's owner had signed contracts with various buyers, including auctioneers and a French museum, to sell the artworks. Other fittings were to be sold by the ton.
Gopal Krishna again moved an application seeking compliance with the Basel Convention, and three days later the Indian Supreme Court decided that the scrapping was to be postponed, stipulating that the Technical Committee, which earlier approved the scrapping, were to write a new report to be submitted before the Court's final decision. That decision was reached on 11 September 2007 (the 33rd anniversary of the SS France's last day on the Atlantic), when the court ruled that Blue Lady was safe to scrap, a decision that was received negatively by ship aficionados and environmentalists alike.
By 4 December of the same year, it was confirmed that the tip of Blue Lady's bow had been cut; a ceremonial move done to most ships that end up in Alang just prior to the full scale breaking of a ship. It was confirmed on 20 January that Blue Lady has commenced scrapping. Scrapping began on the forward part of the sun deck. The suites added during the 1990 refit were gone by March.
By 12 July 2008 the bow and the stern of the ship had been removed, with little of the ship's famous profile still recognizable. By September 2008, most of what remained above the waterline had been cut away, and the ship's destruction was essentially completed by late 2008.
In 2009 the tip of the bow of France / Norway was returned to the country of her birth as one of a catalogue of auction pieces removed from the ship before scrapping commenced. The auction was held on 8 and 9 February. It is now on public display at Paris Yacht Marina, Port de Grenelle, Paris 15e.
In January 2010 one of the two sets of neon letters which sat atop the superstructure of France before her conversion was restored and put on display. The letters, which spell "France", are to be displayed at the Musée National de la Marine
in Paris
. They will then be returned to Le Havre and presented to the Musée Malraux
, facing the front of the harbor.
was designed with a traditional tumble-home, but with a flared stem line at the bow, which ended in a bulbous bow
beneath the waterline, evoking similar lines on . Also similar to Normandie, France was equipped with a whaleback on her bow. The hull also included a unique double bottom
that enabled her to carry 8,000 tons of fuel - enough for the trip to New York
and back. The shafts which turned her quadruple propellers were the longest yet built, and the rudder weighed 74 tons.
Deckhouses on the France's superstructure were built of aluminium
, to reduce the ship's weight, and therefore conserve fuel in her operation. Within the superstructure a full length outdoor promenade deck
was designed into both sides of the Pont Canots. However, unlike on many other ships, this deck did not wrap completely around the ship, being blocked at the forward end by cabins built in behind the bridgescreen.
One of France's most distinguishable features was her funnels, designed not only to be eye-catching but practically functional as well. They were constructed with two wings on the sides, each to lead the exhaust fumes outwards into the ship's slipstream
, where they would be caught by the wind and carried away from the passenger decks below. In addition, each stack had a device that filtered all solids from the outlet, returned it into the depths of the ship and then disposed of it into the ocean.
Despite the modern appearance of France, she was painted in the traditional CGT colours, used since the 19th century, of a black hull with red boot-topping and white superstructure, and funnels in red with black cap-bands.
The ship's exterior remained unchanged during her thirteen years of service.
Most notably, vast areas of deck space were opened up, and extended at the stern. A large lido
deck was created at the very aft, built so wide, to accommodate as many sunbathing passengers as possible, that it cantilevered over the hull below, which narrowed in towards the stern at that point. The terrace off the First Class Smoking Room was lost in the construction of an outdoor buffet restaurant, and the Patio Provençal on the Sun Deck was filled in with a top-side swimming pool
. This last addition created an odd space on Norway, where a tunnel-like space remained around the tank of the pool, into which the original exterior windows and doors of the surrounding cabins, which once looked into the Patio Provençal, still opened, all in their original 1960s colours.
At the forecastle
, behind the whaleback, giant davit
s were installed to hoist two two-story, 11-knot tenders
, built by Holen Mekaniske Verksted in Norway, and used to transfer passengers between Norway and island docks where the harbour would not allow for the ship's 9-meter (35 ft) draft. These tenders were named Little Norway I and Little Norway II, and were each themselves registered as ships, making Norway the only ship in the world to carry ships. (The tenders and davits are illustrated here.)
Below the waterline, the forward engine room
was dismantled and the two outboard propellers were removed to reduce fuel consumption as a high service speed was no longer required as she was now a cruise ship.
Her operation was revived three further times, in 1990, 1997, and 2001, after machinery, decks, and recreational facilities were renovated. During her 1990 refit, two further decks were added to the top of her structure that featured luxury suites with private verandas. This addition raised her overall tonnage to 76,049 (winning her back the title of largest passenger ship in the world, from the 73,000-ton MS Sovereign of the Seas), her passenger capacity to 2,565, and gave her a competitive edge against newer ships being built at that time which featured more and more private balcony suites for their passengers. But ship aficionados were incensed that these new decks, built with very rectilinear lines to accommodate the prefabricated cabin units within, ruined the original sweeping lines of France, and made Norway appear top-heavy.
, whose interiors had been on a scale never surpassed either before or since her construction. On top of this they had to work within the more strict fire regulations laid down after the end of World War II
, which gave them a limited palette consisting of few woods and much aluminium, Formica, and plastic veneers. This was very much like the interiors of the , put into service nearly ten years previous, and inspired the design of the public rooms on the eight years later. Also, fire regulations would not allow France to have the grand vistas that were constructed through Normandie's main First Class rooms. France's only double-height spaces were the theatre, First Class smoking room, and both First and Tourist Class dining rooms.
One area given an unusual amount of attention was the ship's kitchens; 1,500 square meters in area, and placed almost amidships, between the two dining rooms which the one kitchen served. It was thought by the CGT directors that France would not only display the best in French art and design, but also French cuisine
. The kitchens were equipped with the most advanced machinery available, as well as many traditional cooking aides, including a stove that was 12 meters long and 2.5 meters wide. Staffed with 180 of France's best cooks, sauce and pastry chefs, rotisserie cooks, head waiters and wine stewards, this team made France one of the finest restaurants in the world, and the food on board prompted food critic Craig Claiborne
to state France's Grille Room was the "best French restaurant in the world."
France's dog kennels were located on the Sun Deck, and, as they served both European and American dogs, the run was installed with both a Parisian milestone and a New York City fire hydrant."
For First Class passengers, the Pont Veranda (Veranda Deck) held most of the public rooms. These included the Library and Reading Room, Smoking Room, Grand Salon, and balcony of the theatre, which was dedicated to First Class passengers only. These rooms were arranged down the centre of the ship, with large, glass enclosed promenades to either side. The Library was a circular room with glass and lacquered aluminum enclosed book-cases all around, holding 2,200 editions, and was overseen by an attendant who regulated the borrowing and returning of books, as well as assisting passengers with their choices. The Grand Salon had a raised ceiling in the centre, over the abstract grey and white marble mosaic dance floor, with lower more intimate spaces at the corners. The theatre, which functioned both as a Proscenium
and cinema
, sat 185 in the balcony, and 479 on the orchestra level, and had a projection booth which could handle 16, 35, and 70 mm film. Until the 1990s it was the largest theatre ever constructed on a ship. However, one of the main showpieces of the First Class salons was the Smoking Room at the very aft of the Pont Veranda. Two stories high, with a raised section in the centre flanked by large columns, and double-height windows to port and starboard, the room was one of the most imposing aboard the ship.
One level down was Pont Promenade, the main Tourist Class deck. The main lounges and rooms here were the Library, Smoking Room, Grand Salon, and orchestra level of the theatre. Like the Pont Veranda, Pont Promenade also had a glass enclosed promenade along the port and starboard sides of the ship, though the windows did not run full height, nor were the spaces as long.
Pont A held both First Class and Tourist Class dining rooms. These rooms served as the gastronomic counterparts to the smoking rooms, in terms of importance, and thus of form and décor. The First Class Dining Room was located amidships, and spanned the full width of the ship, accommodating 400 passengers. The centre of the space rose to a circular dome, some 5.5 m (18 ft) high, and as on Normandie, passengers entered from one deck up (Pont Principale) and descended a grand, central staircase to the main dining room floor. Glassware, of which there was 4,800 wine and water glasses, was provided by Saint-Louis crystal factory, and tableware consisted of 22,000 china items, with 25,500 pieces of silverware. The Tourist Class Dining Room similarly was two decks high, but differed in that it had dining on the upper level, with only a well between the two floors, and no connecting staircase. It was placed aft of the kitchens, and sat 826 people. Next to the upper level of this dining room was the Children's Dining Room, which allowed both First and Second class parents to dine without the "inconvenience" of young children.
After the first few of France's cruises, CGT executives realised that there was a problem regarding the naming of the public rooms. After her entrance into service, the rooms were simply known as the "First Class Grand Salon," "First Class Dining Room," "Tourist Class Library," etc. However, during a cruise, where class barriers were withdrawn and all passengers were allowed to use all the spaces equally, it became a slight embarrassment for a passenger travelling in a large cabin to ask a steward for directions to the Tourist Class Dining Room. Hence, proper names were applied to each room to avoid the issue:
Some anomalies that contravened the class lines were Bar de l'Atlantique, essentially an after-hours club for drinking and dancing late into the night which was open to both First and Second Class passengers, the Tourist Children’s' Playroom, and the Chapel, open as well to both classes, all of which were located on First Class Pont Veranda.
The décor of the rooms was regarded itself as art, with many notable French designers and artists commissioned to create the most striking spaces at sea. Beyond this, many pieces of artwork were especially ordered to adorn the walls of the dining rooms, lounges and cabins. Within the Salon Riviera the tapestry by Jean Picart le Doux dominated the entire forward wall, at 17.4 m (57 ft) long. In the same room two paintings by Roger Chapelain-Midy occupied niches in opposite corners to the aft. The overall interior was designed by Arbus, who had previously worked with Chapelain-Midy to design sets for a performance of Les Indes galantes
at the Palais Garnier
in 1952. Slightly forward, the Salon Fontainebleau was decorated by Maxime Old, and within was contained three tapestries by Lucien Coutaud (Les femmes fleurs), two by Claude Idoux (Jardin magique, Fée Mirabelle) and Camille Hilaire (Sous-bois, Forêt de France). Near to that room was the Salon Debussy (Music Room) with thee bronze lacquered panels by Bobot, and a bronze abstract sculpture of a young woman playing a flute, by Hubert Yencesse. The theatre's interior was done in red, grey and gold by Peynet, with the ceiling in grey mosaic tile, and the port and starboard walls in vertical gold lacquered aluminium panels, tilted outwards to allow for recessed lighting from behind. The Chapel's interior was created by Anne Carlu Subes (daughter of Jacques Carlu
) in silver anodized aluminium panels arranged in a 45-degree grid pattern. Jacques Noël created trompe l'oeil
panels for all four walls of the First Class Children's Playroom in a Renaissance
theme, and Jean A. Mercier painted a full mural entitled Une nouvelle arche de Noé (A New Noah's Arc) for the Tourist Class Children's' Playroom, using an abstract rendition of France as the Arc. The Bar de l'Atlantique contained two ceramics by Pablo Picasso
, as well three other ceramic sculptures (Faune cavalier, Portrait de Jacqueline and Joueur de flûte et danseuse) by the artist in the Salon Saint-Tropez.
Lower down the dining rooms were fitted out with the intention that the rooms would be visual equivalents of the excellent food served within them. The Chambord dining room was decorated by Mrs. Darbois-Gaudin in gold anodized
aluminium, with monochrome chairs in red, orange and cream. The dome, painted black, contained an array of recessed pot-lights, and sat within a circular band of translucent, fluorescent-lit panels, all on a truncated rotunda of gold aluminium. Around all four walls of the room Jean Mandaroux's continuous mural, painted on 17 lacquered aluminium sheets, was entitled Les plaisirs de la vie: The Pleasures of Life. Less sumptuous in design, the Versailles dining room was done by Marc Simon in tones of green, white and grey. The walls were produced from Polyrey and Formica
with a decoupage
d gold leaf abstract pattern. Only the forward wall held a mural done in 14 engraved glass panels by Max Ingrand, as well as two tapestries, Les amoureux du printemps by Marc Saint-Saëns, and Paysage provençal by Auvigné. Lowest in the ship, the walls of the First Class swimming pool were covered with back-lit engraved glass panels by Max Ingrand, and a ceramic sculptural fountain by Jean Mayodon sat at the forward end of the room.
The First Class cabins also showcased design and art, especially in the Appartements de Grand Luxe. There were two aboard France, amidships, on the port and starboard sides, on Pont Supérieur. Each had a salon, dining room, two bedrooms, and three bathrooms. The Appartement de Grand Luxe Île de France
held a painting, La place de la Concorde, by Bernard Lamotte
, as well as one, Parc de Versailles
, by Jean Carzou
, who also designed the suite's main salon. Slightly less expensive were the Appartements de Luxe, of which there were 12. Each of these was decorated by artists, including the bathrooms where mosaic artwork adorned the walls around tubs and showers.
and aluminium handrails, an aluminium chandelier was placed over the two-storey space, and a spiral staircase was installed to connect the two levels. The former Salon Saint Tropez became Norway's North Cape Lounge for cabaret
and other shows; the décor more dark and muted. Further forward on the same deck, the old Café Rive Gauche was transformed into the ship's Monte Carlo
casino
. With the promenade windows now within cabins, no daylight penetrated to the casino, and so all windows were filled in. The Tourist Class swimming pool, its glass dome gone after the construction of the open pool deck above, was filled with neon lights and covered with a glass dance floor as part of the remodelling of the entire space into the ship's Dazzles disco.
However, most First Class rooms were left intact, save for the Salon Riviera and Salon Fontainebleau. The former was transformed into the Club International (dubbed Club-I by Norway aficionados), where every element of the original décor was removed. The square columns were made round with vertical aluminium fluting, the walls were repainted in a cream with baby-blue in the ceiling and wall niches, and all the original artwork and furniture was removed. In the corner niches oversized, crystal encrusted Neptune
statues were placed, and similar crystal garlanded busts sat on brackets on the forward bulkhead. Lounge seating, sofas and rattan chairs were placed amongst potted ferns, giving the room an overall Miami art-deco feel. Only the railings and bronze, star-shaped light fixtures were original to the room. The latter space was gutted and remade into Checkers Cabaret; a small show lounge with abstract chrome palm trees around the columns, red lacquered wall panels, and a black and white checker board
dance floor, again evoking a 1920s jazz club. The First Class Library remained untouched, and still used for the same purpose, while the Salon Debussy was turned into a shop, though its bronze décor and distinctive ceiling remained intact. To either side of these rooms ran the original First Class promenade decks, which were now turned into main circulation halls along the ship's principal public deck; the starboard dubbed Fifth Avenue
and the port as Champs-Élysées
, complete with columnar advertising posts similar to those found in Paris
.
Her engines consisted of eight high-pressure, super-heating boilers delivering 65 kg per cc and 500 degrees Celsius, all weighing 8,000 tons. This delivered 175,000 hp
, and provided for a maximum speed of 35 knots, with a fuel consumption of 750 tonnes of oil in a 24 hour period; at her trials she showed a fuel consumption of 900 kg at a speed of 31 knots, a 50% improvement on Normandie. The machinery turning the four propellers was divided into two fore and aft groups, as was the electrical generating station.
When France was converted into Norway, the speed for trans-Atlantic crossing was not needed, and so the forward boilers and engines were shut down and eventually dismantled. This move cut down fuel consumption to 250 tonnes per 24 hours. The remaining four boilers and engine room were made fully automated, and operated from either a central control station below decks, or from the bridge. Five bow and stern thrusters, developing 10,600 hp, were also installed to increase manoeuvrability in ports without the assistance of tugs.
Compagnie Générale Transatlantique
The Compagnie Générale Transatlantique , typically known overseas as the French Line, was a shipping company established during 1861 as an attempt to revive the French merchant marine, the poor state of which was indicated during the Crimean War of 1856...
(CGT, or French Line) 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...
, constructed by the Chantiers de l'Atlantique
Chantiers de l'Atlantique
Chantiers de l'Atlantique is part of the South Korean STX Shipbuilding Group and one of the world's largest shipyards, based in Saint-Nazaire, France...
shipyard at Saint-Nazaire
Saint-Nazaire
Saint-Nazaire , is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France.The town has a major harbour, on the right bank of the Loire River estuary, near the Atlantic Ocean. The town is at the south of the second-largest swamp in France, called "la Brière"...
, France, and put into service in February 1962. At the time of her construction in 1960 she was the longest passenger ship
Passenger ship
A passenger ship is a ship whose primary function is to carry passengers. The category does not include cargo vessels which have accommodations for limited numbers of passengers, such as the ubiquitous twelve-passenger freighters once common on the seas in which the transport of passengers is...
ever built, a record that remained unchallenged until the construction of the 345 meter in 2004.
France was later purchased by Norwegian Cruise Line
Norwegian Cruise Line
Norwegian Cruise Line is a company operating cruise ships, headquartered in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida. It began operations in 1966 under the name Norwegian Caribbean Line. The company is best known for its Freestyle Cruising concept, which means that there are no set times or...
(NCL) in 1979, renamed SS Norway and underwent significant modifications that better suited her for cruising
Cruising (maritime)
Cruising by boat is a lifestyle that involves living for extended time on a boat while traveling from place to place for pleasure. Cruising generally refers to trips of a few days or more, and can extend to round-the-world voyages.- History :...
duties. She was sold to be scrapped in 2006, and scrapping was completed in late 2008.
Characteristics
SS France was the French Line flagshipFlagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...
from 1961 to 1974, combining regular transatlantic crossings - six days and nights - with occasional winter cruises, as well as two world circumnavigations.
As the SS Norway she was the flagship of the Norwegian Cruise Line
Norwegian Cruise Line
Norwegian Cruise Line is a company operating cruise ships, headquartered in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida. It began operations in 1966 under the name Norwegian Caribbean Line. The company is best known for its Freestyle Cruising concept, which means that there are no set times or...
from 1980 to approximately 2001.
Some, like ship historian John Maxtone-Graham
John Maxtone-Graham
John Maxtone-Graham is a well-known cruise ship speaker. He was raised in Hoboken, New Jersey and graduated from Brown University in 1951. He served in the United States Marine Corps during the Korean War and had once worked unsuccessfully as a Broadway stage manager...
, believe that France was purposely built to serve as both a liner and a cruise ship, stating: "Once again, the company had cruise conversion in mind... for cruises, all baffle doors segregating staircases from taboo decks were opened to permit free circulation throughout the vessel." However, others, such as ship historian William Miller, have asserted that France was the "last purposely designed year-round transatlantic supership."
Concept and construction
The ship was constructed to replace the line's other ageing ships like the and SS LibertéSS Europa (1930)
The SS Europa was a German built ocean liner constructed for the Norddeutsche Lloyd line to work the transatlantic sea route...
, which by the 1950s were considered old and outdated. Without these vessels, however, the French Line had no ability to compete against their rivals, most notably Cunard
Cunard Line
Cunard Line is a British-American owned shipping company based at Carnival House in Southampton, England and operated by Carnival UK. It has been a leading operator of passenger ships on the North Atlantic for over a century...
Line, which also had plans for constructing a new modern liner. It was rumoured that this ship would be a 75,000-ton replacement for their ships and . (This ship would eventually be the 68,000-ton .) Further, the United States Lines
United States Lines
United States Lines was a transatlantic shipping company that operated cargo services from 1921 to 1989, and ocean liners until 1969—most famously the SS United States.-1920s:...
had put into service in 1952 the , which had broken all speed records on her maiden voyage, with an average speed of 35.59 knots (65.91 km/h).
At first, the idea of two 35,000-ton running mates was considered to replace Ile de France and Liberté. However, Charles de Gaulle
Charles de Gaulle
Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle was a French general and statesman who led the Free French Forces during World War II. He later founded the French Fifth Republic in 1958 and served as its first President from 1959 to 1969....
(the future President of France) opined that it would be better for French national pride (which was flagging due to the then ongoing Algerian War of Independence
Algerian War of Independence
The Algerian War was a conflict between France and Algerian independence movements from 1954 to 1962, which led to Algeria's gaining its independence from France...
) to construct one grand ocean liner as an ocean-going showcase for France, in the tradition of the . The idea of the liner caused some controversy, with some for and others against it, as its construction would be publicly funded, leading to raucous debates in the French parliament. The dealing lasted three and a half years, and though the letter commissioning the construction was finally signed by the Chairman of the Compagnie Générale Transatlantique, Jean Marie, on 25 July 1956, debate about the form, cost and construction schedule for France lasted a further year.
Beyond the luxuries, the French Line had to also face the realities that transatlantic passenger trade was, at that time, forecast to decline due to increased air travel. Also, costs to operate ships were increasing, mostly due to prices of crude oil. Thus, the new ship would be larger than Ile, but smaller and cheaper to operate than Normandie. She would also only be a two-class liner, which would, like the recently built , be able to be converted from a segregated, class restricted crossing mode to a unified, classless cruising mode, thereby allowing the ship to be more versatile in its operations. Despite these requirements, she was still to be the longest ship ever built, as well as one of the fastest, meaning not only an advanced propulsion system, but also a hull design which would withstand the rigours of the North Atlantic
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
at high speed.
Hull G19 was built by Chantiers de l'Atlantique
Chantiers de l'Atlantique
Chantiers de l'Atlantique is part of the South Korean STX Shipbuilding Group and one of the world's largest shipyards, based in Saint-Nazaire, France...
shipyard, in Saint-Nazaire
Saint-Nazaire
Saint-Nazaire , is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France.The town has a major harbour, on the right bank of the Loire River estuary, near the Atlantic Ocean. The town is at the south of the second-largest swamp in France, called "la Brière"...
, 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...
, her keel being laid down on 7 September 1957. She was built in a non-conventional manner: rather than constructing a skeleton which was then covered in steel hull plating, large parts of the ship were prefabricated
Prefabrication
Prefabrication is the practice of assembling components of a structure in a factory or other manufacturing site, and transporting complete assemblies or sub-assemblies to the construction site where the structure is to be located...
in other cities (such as Orléans
Orléans
-Prehistory and Roman:Cenabum was a Gallic stronghold, one of the principal towns of the Carnutes tribe where the Druids held their annual assembly. It was conquered and destroyed by Julius Caesar in 52 BC, then rebuilt under the Roman Empire...
, 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...
and Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
). She was built with a unique double bottom
Double bottom
A double bottom is a ship hull design and construction method where the bottom of the ship has two complete layers of watertight hull surface: one outer layer forming the normal hull of the ship, and a second inner hull which is somewhat higher in the ship, perhaps a few feet, which forms a...
that enabled her to carry 8,000 tons of fuel - enough for the trip 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...
and back. The hull was fully welded, leading to weight savings, and had two sets of stabilisers fitted.
She was blessed by the Bishop of Nantes
Nantes
Nantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the 6th largest in France, while its metropolitan area ranks 8th with over 800,000 inhabitants....
, Monseigneur Villepelet, and launched on 11 May 1960, at 4:15 pm, by Madame Yvonne de Gaulle
Yvonne de Gaulle
Yvonne de Gaulle , born as Yvonne Charlotte Anne Marie Vendroux, was the wife of Charles de Gaulle. They were married on April 7, 1921. She was sometimes known as "Tante Yvonne"...
, wife of the President, and was then named France, in honour both of the country, and of the two previous CGT ships to bear the name. By 4:22 pm France was afloat and under command of tugs. President De Gaulle was also in attendance at the launch, and gave a patriotic speech, announcing that France had been given a new Normandie, they were able to compete now with Cunard's Queens, and the Blue Riband
Blue Riband
The Blue Riband is an unofficial accolade given to the passenger liner crossing the Atlantic Ocean in regular service with the record highest speed. The term was borrowed from horse racing and was not widely used until after 1910. Under the unwritten rules, the record is based on average speed...
was within their reach. In reality, however, the 35 knot speed of United States would prove impossible to beat.
After the launch, the propellers were installed (the entire process taking over three weeks), the distinctive funnels affixed to the upper decks, the superstructure completed, life boats placed in their davits, and the interiors fitted out. France then undertook her sea trials on 19 November 1961, and averaged an unexpected 35.21 knots. With the French Line satisfied, the ship was handed over, and undertook a trial cruise to the Canary Islands
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
with a full complement of passengers and crew. During this short trip she met, at sea, Liberté which was on her way to the shipbreakers.
Service history as SS France
France's maiden voyage to New YorkNew 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...
took place on 3 February 1962, with many of France's film stars and aristocracy aboard.
On 14 December 1962, France carried the Mona Lisa
Mona Lisa
Mona Lisa is a portrait by the Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci. It is a painting in oil on a poplar panel, completed circa 1503–1519...
from Le Havre to New York, where the painting was to embark on an American tour.
From the 13th July to 26 July 1967, France docked at the Île Notre-Dame
Île Notre-Dame
Île Notre-Dame is an artificial island built in 10 months from 15 million tons of rock excavated for the Montreal Metro in 1965. It was created for Expo 67 to celebrate Canada's centennial. The island is part of the city of Montreal and forms part of the Hochelaga Archipelago...
in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, acting as a secondary French pavilion at the 1967 World's Fair
World's Fair
World's fair, World fair, Universal Exposition, and World Expo are various large public exhibitions held in different parts of the world. The first Expo was held in The Crystal Palace in Hyde Park, London, United Kingdom, in 1851, under the title "Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All...
, Expo 67
Expo 67
The 1967 International and Universal Exposition or Expo 67, as it was commonly known, was the general exhibition, Category One World's Fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, from April 27 to October 29, 1967. It is considered to be the most successful World's Fair of the 20th century, with the...
.
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...
and New York for thirteen years. However, by the beginning of the 1970s jet travel was by far more popular than ship travel, and the cost of fuel was ever increasing. France, which had always relied on subsidies from the French government, was forced to take advantage of these more and more.
Using the ship's versatile design to its full potential, the CGT began to send France on more cruises during the winter, which was off-season for the Atlantic trade. One design flaw, however, was revealed when the ship reached warmer waters: her two swimming pool
Swimming pool
A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, or simply a pool, is a container filled with water intended for swimming or water-based recreation. There are many standard sizes; the largest is the Olympic-size swimming pool...
s, one each for first and tourist class, were both indoors; the first class pool deep within the ship's hull, and the tourist class pool on an upper deck, but covered with an immovable glass dome. The latter, perhaps, was the more aggravating in hot weather. She also had limited outdoor deck space, with much of what was available protected behind thick glass wind-screens; useful on the North Atlantic, but frustrating when blocking cooling breezes in the tropics. (Queen Elizabeth 2 suffered from a similar design flaw as well.)
Nonetheless, France's cruises were popular, and her first world cruise took place in 1972. Too large to traverse the Panama
Panama Canal
The Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...
and Suez Canal
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
s, she was forced to sail around Cape Horn
Cape Horn
Cape Horn is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island...
and the Cape of Good Hope
Cape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa.There is a misconception that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa, because it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. In fact, the...
. That same year, with the destruction of Seawise University (former RMS Queen Elizabeth
RMS Queen Elizabeth
RMS Queen Elizabeth was an ocean liner operated by the Cunard Line. Plying with her running mate Queen Mary as a luxury liner between Southampton, UK and New York City, USA via Cherbourg, France, she was also contracted for over twenty years to carry the Royal Mail as the second half of the two...
) by fire in Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, France became the largest passenger ship in the world in service.
Still, as the opening years of the decade progressed, the cruise market expanded, seeing the construction of smaller, purpose built 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...
s which could also fit through the Panama Canal. Worse, in 1973 the 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...
hit and the price of oil went from $3 US to $12 US per barrel. When the French government, at the end of the Trente Glorieuses
Trente Glorieuses
Les Trente Glorieuses refers to the thirty years from 1945-1975 following the end of the Second World War in France. The name was first used by the French demographer Jean Fourastié...
, realised that keeping France running would necessitate an additional ten million dollars a year, they opted instead to subsidise the then developing Concorde
Concorde
Aérospatiale-BAC Concorde was a turbojet-powered supersonic passenger airliner, a supersonic transport . It was a product of an Anglo-French government treaty, combining the manufacturing efforts of Aérospatiale and the British Aircraft Corporation...
. Without this government money, the French Line could not operate, and with a press release issued in 1974 it was announced that France would be withdrawn from service on the 25th October that year.
At that, the crew decided to take matters into their own hands: an eastbound crossing on the 6th September, her 202nd crossing, was delayed several hours while the crew met to decide whether to strike then and there, in New York, or six days later outside 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...
; Le Havre won, and the ship was commandeered by a group of French trade union
Trade union
A trade union, trades union or labor union is an organization of workers that have banded together to achieve common goals such as better working conditions. The trade union, through its leadership, bargains with the employer on behalf of union members and negotiates labour contracts with...
ists who anchored France in the entrance to the port, thereby blocking all incoming and outgoing traffic. The 1200 passengers aboard had to be ferried to shore on tenders, while approximately 800 of the crew remained aboard.
The hijackers demanded that the ship be allowed to continue to serve, along with a 35% wage increase for themselves. However, their mission failed, and the night of the hijacking proved to be the ship's last day of service for the CGT. It took over a month for the stand-off to end, and by the 7th December 1974, the ship was moored at a distant quay in Le Havre, known colloquially as quai de l'oubli - the pier of the forgotten.
By that time France had completed 377 crossings and 93 cruises (including 2 world cruises), carried a total of 588,024 passengers on trans-Atlantic crossings, and 113,862 passengers on cruises, and had sailed a total of 1,860,000 nautical miles.
First decommissioning
The mothballing of France was met with dismay by much of the French population, resulting in a song by Michel SardouMichel Sardou
Michel Sardou is a French singer.He was born in Paris, the son of Fernand Sardou and Jackie Rollin . Contrary to claims common towards the beginning of his career, he is not the grandson of the dramatist Victorien Sardou...
, titled Le France.
The ship sat in the same spot for approximately four years, with the interiors, including all furniture, still completely intact. There were no plans to scrap the ship, or to sell it. However, in 1977 Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
n millionaire Akram Ojjeh
Akram Ojjeh
Akram Ojjeh was a Syrian born Saudi businessman. Ojjeh founded Techniques d'Avant Garde, an investment company focused on advanced technologies. Ojjeh was an intermediary in deals between Saudi Arabia and France, particularly arms sales. Ojjeh brokered the sale of tanks, aircraft, Thomson...
expressed an interest in purchasing the vessel for use as a floating museum for antique French furniture and artworks, as well as a casino and hotel off the coast of the south-east United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Though he purchased the ship for $24 million, this proposal was never realised, and others were rumoured to have floated, including bids from 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....
to use her as a hotel ship in the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
, and a proposal from China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
to turn her into a floating industrial trade fair.
In the end, the ship was sold in 1979 to Knut Kloster, the owner of Norwegian Cruise Line
Norwegian Cruise Line
Norwegian Cruise Line is a company operating cruise ships, headquartered in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida. It began operations in 1966 under the name Norwegian Caribbean Line. The company is best known for its Freestyle Cruising concept, which means that there are no set times or...
for $18 million for conversion by him into the world's largest cruise ship. Just before France was renamed Norway one last marriage was performed aboard the ship at the quay in Le Havre. The wedding was performed by Rev. Agnar Holme, the Norwegian Seaman's Priest. Greg Tighe, Director of Research and Corporate Development for NCL, was married to Lorraine Anne Evering (Tighe) in France's chapel. Witnesses included the ship's Captain, and several members of NCL's management team. This marked the last marriage to be performed aboard the SS France, which had hosted hundreds of weddings over its transatlantic career.
By August of that year Norway was moved to the Lloyd shipyards 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...
, 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...
, where she would undergo renovations to the cost of $80,000,000 US.
Service history as SS Norway
The SS Norway was registered in OsloOslo
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...
, given the call sign LITA (literally meaning "small"), and was re-christened on 14 April 1980, as the first superliner employed exclusively in cruise service. On her maiden call to Oslo, senior steward Wesley Samuels of Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
, in the presence of King Olav V
Olav V of Norway
Olav V was the king of Norway from 1957 until his death. A member of the House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg, Olav was born in the United Kingdom as the son of King Haakon VII of Norway and Queen Maud of Norway...
, hoisted the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
flag as a sign of the ship's international crew.
She began her maiden voyage to Miami that same year, amidst speculation about her future in the cruise industry. France had been built as an ocean liner: for speed; long, narrow, with a deep draft, as well as an array of cabin shapes and sizes designed in a compact manner more for purpose travel than languid cruising. But Norway proved popular, and made the notion of the ship being a destination in itself credible. Her size, passenger capacity, and amenities revolutionized the cruise industry and started a building frenzy as competitors began to order larger ships.
As cruise competition attempted to take some of Norway's brisk business, Norway herself was upgraded several times in order to maintain her position as the "grande dame" of 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...
. In September and October 1990, there was the addition of two decks atop her superstructure
Superstructure
A superstructure is an upward extension of an existing structure above a baseline. This term is applied to various kinds of physical structures such as buildings, bridges, or ships...
, adding 135 new suites and luxury cabins. While many ship aficionados believe the new decks spoiled her original clean, classic lines, the new private veranda cabins on the added decks were instrumental in keeping Norway financially afloat during the later years of her operation, as these became a common feature throughout the cruise industry. She received additional refits in 1993 and 1996 in order to comply with the new SOLAS (Safety of Life At Sea) regulations.
Competition eventually overtook Norway, and she even started taking a back seat to other ships in NCL's lineup itself. No longer the "Ship amongst Ships", her owners severely cut back on her maintenance and upkeep. She experienced several mechanical breakdowns, fires, incidents of illegal waste dumping, and safety violations for which she was detained at port pending repairs. Despite the cutbacks, the ship remained extremely popular among cruise enthusiasts, some of whom questioned the owner's actions in light of the continuing successful operation of the , which had become a well-maintained rival operating 5-star luxury cruises still for Cunard
Cunard Line
Cunard Line is a British-American owned shipping company based at Carnival House in Southampton, England and operated by Carnival UK. It has been a leading operator of passenger ships on the North Atlantic for over a century...
. In spite of this, the cutbacks continued and problems mounted even as the ship continued to sail with full occupancy. A turbo-charger fire erupted on Norway as she entered Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
in 1999, which pulled her out of service for three weeks.
Slated for retirement, Norway sailed out of Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
's west side piers for the last time on 9 September 2001, on yet another transatlantic crossing to Greenock
Greenock
Greenock is a town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council area in United Kingdom, and a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, and then on to her home port of Le Havre, France. Her passengers would learn of the terrorist attacks on 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...
and Washington
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
two days later, while in mid-ocean. However, as the cruise industry reeled from the aftermath of the terrorist attacks, her owners decided to place her back into service - operating bargain-basement cruises from Miami, after a brief cosmetic refit that failed to address her mounting mechanical and infrastructure problems.
On 25 May 2003, after docking in Miami at 5:00 a.m., Norway was seriously damaged by a boiler explosion at 6:30 a.m. that killed eight crew members, and injured seventeen, as superheated steam flooded the boiler room, and blasted into crew quarters above through ruptured decking. None of the passengers were affected. On 27 June 2003, NCL/Star decided to relocate Norway, and she departed Miami under tow, although at first NCL/Star refused to announce her destination. However, she headed towards Europe and eventually arrived in Bremerhaven on 23 September 2003. NCL announced that constructing a new boiler was not possible; boiler parts, however, were available to repair her. In Bremerhaven she was used as accommodation for NCL crew training to take their places on board the line's new Pride of America.
Former Itineraries as the SS Norway
NCL originally planned for the Norway to sail empty from Germany to Miami but a Pre-inaugural cruise was added with only a select number of passengers allowed to sail. Starting from Olso, NorwayNorway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
stopping at 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...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and ending in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. A 6-day cruise to Bermuda
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
was planned but cancelled at the last minute in favor of fixing some problems. She set sail on her first inaugural cruise from Miami, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
on June 1, 1980, a 7-day cruise with only two stops one in Little San Salvador known as Great Stirrup Cay
Great Stirrup Cay
Great Stirrup Cay is a small island that is part of the Berry Islands in the Bahamas. Norwegian Cruise Line purchased the island from Belcher Oil Company in 1977 and developed it into a private island for their cruise ship passengers....
then followed by a stop in St. Thomas
Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands
Saint Thomas is an island in the Caribbean Sea and with the islands of Saint John, Saint Croix, and Water Island a county and constituent district of the United States Virgin Islands , an unincorporated territory of the United States. Located on the island is the territorial capital and port of...
, USVI. The other days of the cruise were sea days as the Norway was the destination its self. This remained her main itinerary from 1980-1982 until NCL announced Nassau
Nassau, Bahamas
Nassau is the capital, largest city, and commercial centre of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. The city has a population of 248,948 , 70 percent of the entire population of The Bahamas...
, Bahamas was added. By 1985 St. Maarten, Netherlands Antilles
Netherlands Antilles
The Netherlands Antilles , also referred to informally as the Dutch Antilles, was an autonomous Caribbean country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, consisting of two groups of islands in the Lesser Antilles: Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao , in Leeward Antilles just off the Venezuelan coast; and Sint...
was added. In 1987 her new itinerary was introduced a 7-day cruise from Miami stopping at St. Maarten, St. John
Saint John, U.S. Virgin Islands
Saint John is an island in the Caribbean Sea and a constituent district of the United States Virgin Islands , an unincorporated territory of the United States. St...
, USVI; St. Thomas and Great Stirrup Cay. Her Western Caribbean cruises later introduced were 7-Days stopping at Cozumel
Cozumel
Cozumel is an island in the Caribbean Sea off the eastern coast of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, opposite Playa del Carmen, and close to the Yucatan Channel. Cozumel is one of the ten municipalities of the state of Quintana Roo...
, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
; Grand Cayman
Grand Cayman
Grand Cayman is the largest of the three Cayman Islands and the location of the nation's capital, George Town. In relation to the other two Cayman Islands, it is approximately 75 miles southwest of Little Cayman and 90 miles southwest of Cayman Brac.-Geography:Grand Cayman encompasses 76% of...
, Cayman Islands
Cayman Islands
The Cayman Islands is a British Overseas Territory and overseas territory of the European Union located in the western Caribbean Sea. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac, and Little Cayman, located south of Cuba and northwest of Jamaica...
; Roatan
Roatán
Roatán, located between the islands of Útila and Guanaja, is the largest of Honduras' Bay Islands. The island was formerly known as Ruatan and Rattan...
and NCL's private island Great Stirup Cay. Between regular cruising in the Caribbean and dry dock periods, she sailed many cruises to Western Mediterranean, Western Europe coast, Northern Europe, the British Isles and the Norwegian Fjords.
Her official farewell cruise was a 17-day Transatlantic cruise from Miami stopping at New York; Halifax, Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...
; St John's
St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador
St. John's is the capital and largest city in Newfoundland and Labrador, and is the oldest English-founded city in North America. It is located on the eastern tip of the Avalon Peninsula on the island of Newfoundland. With a population of 192,326 as of July 1, 2010, the St...
, Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada. Situated in the country's Atlantic region, it incorporates the island of Newfoundland and mainland Labrador with a combined area of . As of April 2011, the province's estimated population is 508,400...
; Greenock
Greenock
Greenock is a town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council area in United Kingdom, and a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
; 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...
and ending in Southampton. But a decision was made to keep the Norway sailing bargin based Caribbean cruises out of Miami up until her demise in May 2003.
Second decommissioning
Star Cruises
Star Cruises , a member of Genting Hong Kong, is the sixth largest cruise line in the world behind companies such as Carnival Corporation and Royal Caribbean Cruises...
.
Due to large amounts of asbestos
Asbestos
Asbestos is a set of six naturally occurring silicate minerals used commercially for their desirable physical properties. They all have in common their eponymous, asbestiform habit: long, thin fibrous crystals...
aboard the ship (mostly in machine and bulkhead areas), Norway was not allowed to leave Germany for any scrap yards due to the Basel Convention
Basel Convention
The Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal, usually known simply as the Basel Convention, is an international treaty that was designed to reduce the movements of hazardous waste between nations, and specifically to prevent transfer of...
. However, after assuring the German authorities that Norway would go to Asia for repairs and further operation in Australia, she was allowed to leave port under tow. It was reported that the art from her two dining rooms, children's playroom, stairtower, and library were removed and placed in storage, to possibly be utilized on board a revitalized , or another ship in the NCL fleet. However, later photos of Norway at the scrapyards of Alang, India, would prove this statement to be untrue. Norway left 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...
under tow on 23 May 2005, and reached Port Klang
Port Klang
Port Klang is a town and the main gateway by sea into Malaysia. Colonially known as Port Swettenham, it is also the location of the largest and busiest port in the country. As such, its economic progress has been greatly influenced by the port activities in its area...
, Malaysia on 10 August 2005.
In fact, the ship was sold to an American naval demolition dealer for scrap value in December 2005. After eventually reselling the ship to a scrap yard, the ship was to be towed to India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
for demolition. However, in light of protests from Greenpeace
Greenpeace
Greenpeace is a non-governmental environmental organization with offices in over forty countries and with an international coordinating body in Amsterdam, The Netherlands...
, potentially lengthy legal battles due to environmental concerns over the ship's breakup, and amidst charges of fraudulent declarations made by the company to obtain permission to leave Bremerhaven, her owners cancelled the sale contract, refunded the purchase price, and left the ship where she was.
SS Blue Lady
The SS Norway was sold in April 2006 to Bridgend Shipping Limited of Monrovia, Liberia, renamed SS Blue Lady in preparation for scrapping. One month later she was again sold, to Haryana Ship Demolition Pvt. Ltd., and was subsequently left anchored in waters off the Malaysian coast after the government of Bangladesh refused Blue Lady entry into their waters due to the onboard asbestos. Three weeks later, the ship began its journey towards Indian waters, though it was announced that she had left Malaysian waters for the United Arab EmiratesUnited Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates, abbreviated as the UAE, or shortened to "the Emirates", is a state situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman, and Saudi Arabia, and sharing sea borders with Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran.The UAE is a...
for repairs, and to take on new crew and supplies.
Upon learning of the ship's destination, Gopal Krishna, an environmentalist and an anti-asbestos activist, filed an application before the Supreme Court of India to ensure that the ship, reportedly containing asbestos, complied with the Court's 14 October 2003 order which sought prior decontamination of ships in the country of export before they could be allowed entry into Indian waters. On 17 May 2006, Kalraj Mishra expressed his concern to the Indian Parliament over possible hazards Blue Lady presented, and requested that the government put a halt to the ship's entry. However, as the Indian Supreme Court
Supreme Court of India
The Supreme Court of India is the highest judicial forum and final court of appeal as established by Part V, Chapter IV of the Constitution of India...
had lifted any ban on the ship's entry, Blue Lady was anchored 100 km off the Indian coast in mid-July, coming from Fujairah
Fujairah
Fujairah is one of the seven emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates, and the only one on the Gulf of Oman in the country's east instead of Persian Gulf .-History:...
, UAE.
This also cleared the way for her scrapping at Alang, in Gujarat, pending an inspection of the on-board asbestos by experts from the Gujarat Pollution Control Board
Gujarat Pollution Control Board
The Government of Gujarat constituted the Gujarat Pollution Control Board on October 15, 1974 with a view to protect the environment, prevent and control the pollution of water in the State of Gujarat, that occupies a prominent niche in progressive and industrial development of the country...
(GPCB).
After GPCB chairman, K.V. Bhanujan, said the Board had constituted an experts' committee for inspection, Blue Lady was docked in Pipavav
Pipavav
Pipavav is located at latitude 20°54'N and longitude 71°30'E on the coast of Gujarat, India. By road it is 2 hours from Amreli, 30 minutes from Rajula city, 2.5 hours from Bhavnagar on the east and 1.5 hrs from Diu in the west....
, Kutch District. On the 2nd August 2006, after a five-day inspection, the experts declared the ship safe for beaching and dismantling in Alang. However, this prompted a fury of controversy over the legality of such an act, including a press release from the NGO Platform on Shipbreaking that critiqued the technical report, alleging that the Technical Committee was under undue pressure to allow the ship to be beached, and had failed to follow the Basel Convention and the Supreme Court of India's order that ships must be decontaminated of hazardous substances such as PCBs and asbestos, and, in any case, must be fully inventoried and formally notified prior to arrival in the importing country. No such notification was made by either Malaysia (last country of departure) nor 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...
(country where the ship became waste).
The NGO Platform on Shipbreaking also announced that it was prepared to launch a global campaign against Star Cruises and their subsidiary Norwegian Cruise Lines for corporate negligence in this case.
Photos from Alang revealed that Blue Lady was still partially afloat off the coast; her bow on dry beach at low tide, and the ship fully afloat at high tide. The photos also showed that neither NCL nor Star Cruises had removed any of the ship's on board furniture or artworks (including the murals in the Windward Dining Room and Children's Playroom, and the Steinway
Steinway & Sons
Steinway & Sons, also known as Steinway , is an American and German manufacturer of handmade pianos, founded 1853 in Manhattan in New York City by German immigrant Heinrich Engelhard Steinweg...
piano in Le Bistro), as had previously been reported.
Fans of France became concerned about the future of the art pieces, both due to the ship lying at anchor in a very humid environment without power for air conditioning, and due to lack of concern for preservation on the part of the scrappers. Still, it was stated that as of early September 2006, the ship's owner had signed contracts with various buyers, including auctioneers and a French museum, to sell the artworks. Other fittings were to be sold by the ton.
Gopal Krishna again moved an application seeking compliance with the Basel Convention, and three days later the Indian Supreme Court decided that the scrapping was to be postponed, stipulating that the Technical Committee, which earlier approved the scrapping, were to write a new report to be submitted before the Court's final decision. That decision was reached on 11 September 2007 (the 33rd anniversary of the SS France's last day on the Atlantic), when the court ruled that Blue Lady was safe to scrap, a decision that was received negatively by ship aficionados and environmentalists alike.
By 4 December of the same year, it was confirmed that the tip of Blue Lady's bow had been cut; a ceremonial move done to most ships that end up in Alang just prior to the full scale breaking of a ship. It was confirmed on 20 January that Blue Lady has commenced scrapping. Scrapping began on the forward part of the sun deck. The suites added during the 1990 refit were gone by March.
By 12 July 2008 the bow and the stern of the ship had been removed, with little of the ship's famous profile still recognizable. By September 2008, most of what remained above the waterline had been cut away, and the ship's destruction was essentially completed by late 2008.
In January 2010 one of the two sets of neon letters which sat atop the superstructure of France before her conversion was restored and put on display. The letters, which spell "France", are to be displayed at the Musée National de la Marine
Musée national de la Marine
The Musée national de la Marine is a maritime museum located in the Palais de Chaillot, Trocadéro, in the XVIe arrondissement of Paris. It has annexes at Brest, Port-Louis, Rochefort , Toulon and Saint-Tropez...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. They will then be returned to Le Havre and presented to the Musée Malraux
Musée Malraux
The Musée Malraux is a museum in Le Havre, France. It was designed by Atelier LWD, an architecture studio led by Guy Lagneau, Michel Weill and Jean Dimitrijevic. It is named after André Malraux, who was Minister of Culture when the museum was opened in 1961...
, facing the front of the harbor.
SS France
When France was commissioned in 1956 the French Line asked for a ship which was to be the longest ever built, as well as one of the fastest. But beyond the technicalities, the ship was also to be a Ship of State - an ocean going symbol of France - and thus had to be artfully designed. Her 316 meter (1,035 ft) hullHull (watercraft)
A hull is the watertight body of a ship or boat. Above the hull is the superstructure and/or deckhouse, where present. The line where the hull meets the water surface is called the waterline.The structure of the hull varies depending on the vessel type...
was designed with a traditional tumble-home, but with a flared stem line at the bow, which ended in a bulbous bow
Bulbous bow
A bulbous bow is a protruding bulb at the bow of a ship just below the waterline. The bulb modifies the way the water flows around the hull, reducing drag and thus increasing speed, range, fuel efficiency, and stability...
beneath the waterline, evoking similar lines on . Also similar to Normandie, France was equipped with a whaleback on her bow. The hull also included a unique double bottom
Double bottom
A double bottom is a ship hull design and construction method where the bottom of the ship has two complete layers of watertight hull surface: one outer layer forming the normal hull of the ship, and a second inner hull which is somewhat higher in the ship, perhaps a few feet, which forms a...
that enabled her to carry 8,000 tons of fuel - enough for the trip 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...
and back. The shafts which turned her quadruple propellers were the longest yet built, and the rudder weighed 74 tons.
Deckhouses on the France's superstructure were built of aluminium
Aluminium
Aluminium or aluminum is a silvery white member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al, and its atomic number is 13. It is not soluble in water under normal circumstances....
, to reduce the ship's weight, and therefore conserve fuel in her operation. Within the superstructure a full length outdoor promenade deck
Promenade deck
The promenade deck is a deck found on several types of passenger ships and riverboats. It usually extends from bow to stern, on both ddd,çsides, and includes areas open to the outside, resulting in a continuous outside walkway suitable for promenading, thus the name.On older passenger ships, the...
was designed into both sides of the Pont Canots. However, unlike on many other ships, this deck did not wrap completely around the ship, being blocked at the forward end by cabins built in behind the bridgescreen.
One of France's most distinguishable features was her funnels, designed not only to be eye-catching but practically functional as well. They were constructed with two wings on the sides, each to lead the exhaust fumes outwards into the ship's slipstream
Slipstream
A slipstream is a region behind a moving object in which a wake of fluid is moving at velocities comparable to the moving object . The term slipstream also applies to the similar region adjacent to an object with a fluid moving around it...
, where they would be caught by the wind and carried away from the passenger decks below. In addition, each stack had a device that filtered all solids from the outlet, returned it into the depths of the ship and then disposed of it into the ocean.
Despite the modern appearance of France, she was painted in the traditional CGT colours, used since the 19th century, of a black hull with red boot-topping and white superstructure, and funnels in red with black cap-bands.
The ship's exterior remained unchanged during her thirteen years of service.
SS Norway
However, through conversion of France into a ship used for cruising, many alterations were made to her exterior decks.Most notably, vast areas of deck space were opened up, and extended at the stern. A large lido
Lido
The Lido is an 11 km long sandbar located in Venice, northern Italy, home to about 20,000 residents. The Venice Film Festival takes place at the Lido every September.-Geography:...
deck was created at the very aft, built so wide, to accommodate as many sunbathing passengers as possible, that it cantilevered over the hull below, which narrowed in towards the stern at that point. The terrace off the First Class Smoking Room was lost in the construction of an outdoor buffet restaurant, and the Patio Provençal on the Sun Deck was filled in with a top-side swimming pool
Swimming pool
A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, or simply a pool, is a container filled with water intended for swimming or water-based recreation. There are many standard sizes; the largest is the Olympic-size swimming pool...
. This last addition created an odd space on Norway, where a tunnel-like space remained around the tank of the pool, into which the original exterior windows and doors of the surrounding cabins, which once looked into the Patio Provençal, still opened, all in their original 1960s colours.
At the forecastle
Forecastle
Forecastle refers to the upper deck of a sailing ship forward of the foremast, or the forward part of a ship with the sailors' living quarters...
, behind the whaleback, giant davit
Davit
A davit is a structure, usually made of steel, which is used to lower things over an edge of a long drop off such as lowering a maintenance trapeze down a building or launching a lifeboat over the side of a ship....
s were installed to hoist two two-story, 11-knot tenders
Ship's tender
A ship's tender, usually referred to as a tender, is a boat, or a larger ship used to service a ship, generally by transporting people and/or supplies to and from shore or another ship...
, built by Holen Mekaniske Verksted in Norway, and used to transfer passengers between Norway and island docks where the harbour would not allow for the ship's 9-meter (35 ft) draft. These tenders were named Little Norway I and Little Norway II, and were each themselves registered as ships, making Norway the only ship in the world to carry ships. (The tenders and davits are illustrated here.)
Below the waterline, the forward engine room
Engine room
On a ship, the engine room, or ER, commonly refers to the machinery spaces of a vessel. To increase the safety and damage survivability of a vessel, the machinery necessary for operations may be segregated into various spaces, the engine room is one of these spaces, and is generally the largest...
was dismantled and the two outboard propellers were removed to reduce fuel consumption as a high service speed was no longer required as she was now a cruise ship.
Her operation was revived three further times, in 1990, 1997, and 2001, after machinery, decks, and recreational facilities were renovated. During her 1990 refit, two further decks were added to the top of her structure that featured luxury suites with private verandas. This addition raised her overall tonnage to 76,049 (winning her back the title of largest passenger ship in the world, from the 73,000-ton MS Sovereign of the Seas), her passenger capacity to 2,565, and gave her a competitive edge against newer ships being built at that time which featured more and more private balcony suites for their passengers. But ship aficionados were incensed that these new decks, built with very rectilinear lines to accommodate the prefabricated cabin units within, ruined the original sweeping lines of France, and made Norway appear top-heavy.
SS France
France's interiors were where the ship displayed its purpose as a showcase of modern French art and design. However, the interior designers were burdened with the pressure of living up to France's last great Ship of State, the SS NormandieSS Normandie
SS Normandie was an ocean liner built in Saint-Nazaire, France for the French Line Compagnie Générale Transatlantique. She entered service in 1935 as the largest and fastest passenger ship afloat; she is still the most powerful steam turbo-electric-propelled passenger ship ever built.Her novel...
, whose interiors had been on a scale never surpassed either before or since her construction. On top of this they had to work within the more strict fire regulations laid down after the end of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, which gave them a limited palette consisting of few woods and much aluminium, Formica, and plastic veneers. This was very much like the interiors of the , put into service nearly ten years previous, and inspired the design of the public rooms on the eight years later. Also, fire regulations would not allow France to have the grand vistas that were constructed through Normandie's main First Class rooms. France's only double-height spaces were the theatre, First Class smoking room, and both First and Tourist Class dining rooms.
One area given an unusual amount of attention was the ship's kitchens; 1,500 square meters in area, and placed almost amidships, between the two dining rooms which the one kitchen served. It was thought by the CGT directors that France would not only display the best in French art and design, but also French cuisine
Cuisine
Cuisine is a characteristic style of cooking practices and traditions, often associated with a specific culture. Cuisines are often named after the geographic areas or regions that they originate from...
. The kitchens were equipped with the most advanced machinery available, as well as many traditional cooking aides, including a stove that was 12 meters long and 2.5 meters wide. Staffed with 180 of France's best cooks, sauce and pastry chefs, rotisserie cooks, head waiters and wine stewards, this team made France one of the finest restaurants in the world, and the food on board prompted food critic Craig Claiborne
Craig Claiborne
Craig Claiborne was an American restaurant critic, food writer and former food editor of the New York Times. He was the author of numerous cookbooks and an autobiography...
to state France's Grille Room was the "best French restaurant in the world."
France's dog kennels were located on the Sun Deck, and, as they served both European and American dogs, the run was installed with both a Parisian milestone and a New York City fire hydrant."
For First Class passengers, the Pont Veranda (Veranda Deck) held most of the public rooms. These included the Library and Reading Room, Smoking Room, Grand Salon, and balcony of the theatre, which was dedicated to First Class passengers only. These rooms were arranged down the centre of the ship, with large, glass enclosed promenades to either side. The Library was a circular room with glass and lacquered aluminum enclosed book-cases all around, holding 2,200 editions, and was overseen by an attendant who regulated the borrowing and returning of books, as well as assisting passengers with their choices. The Grand Salon had a raised ceiling in the centre, over the abstract grey and white marble mosaic dance floor, with lower more intimate spaces at the corners. The theatre, which functioned both as a Proscenium
Proscenium
A proscenium theatre is a theatre space whose primary feature is a large frame or arch , which is located at or near the front of the stage...
and cinema
Movie theater
A movie theater, cinema, movie house, picture theater, film theater is a venue, usually a building, for viewing motion pictures ....
, sat 185 in the balcony, and 479 on the orchestra level, and had a projection booth which could handle 16, 35, and 70 mm film. Until the 1990s it was the largest theatre ever constructed on a ship. However, one of the main showpieces of the First Class salons was the Smoking Room at the very aft of the Pont Veranda. Two stories high, with a raised section in the centre flanked by large columns, and double-height windows to port and starboard, the room was one of the most imposing aboard the ship.
One level down was Pont Promenade, the main Tourist Class deck. The main lounges and rooms here were the Library, Smoking Room, Grand Salon, and orchestra level of the theatre. Like the Pont Veranda, Pont Promenade also had a glass enclosed promenade along the port and starboard sides of the ship, though the windows did not run full height, nor were the spaces as long.
Pont A held both First Class and Tourist Class dining rooms. These rooms served as the gastronomic counterparts to the smoking rooms, in terms of importance, and thus of form and décor. The First Class Dining Room was located amidships, and spanned the full width of the ship, accommodating 400 passengers. The centre of the space rose to a circular dome, some 5.5 m (18 ft) high, and as on Normandie, passengers entered from one deck up (Pont Principale) and descended a grand, central staircase to the main dining room floor. Glassware, of which there was 4,800 wine and water glasses, was provided by Saint-Louis crystal factory, and tableware consisted of 22,000 china items, with 25,500 pieces of silverware. The Tourist Class Dining Room similarly was two decks high, but differed in that it had dining on the upper level, with only a well between the two floors, and no connecting staircase. It was placed aft of the kitchens, and sat 826 people. Next to the upper level of this dining room was the Children's Dining Room, which allowed both First and Second class parents to dine without the "inconvenience" of young children.
After the first few of France's cruises, CGT executives realised that there was a problem regarding the naming of the public rooms. After her entrance into service, the rooms were simply known as the "First Class Grand Salon," "First Class Dining Room," "Tourist Class Library," etc. However, during a cruise, where class barriers were withdrawn and all passengers were allowed to use all the spaces equally, it became a slight embarrassment for a passenger travelling in a large cabin to ask a steward for directions to the Tourist Class Dining Room. Hence, proper names were applied to each room to avoid the issue:
- First Class Salon - Salon Fontainebleau
- First Class Music Room - Salon Debussy
- First Class Card Room - Salon Monaco
- First Class Smoking Room - Salon Riviera
- First Class Dining Room - Salle à Manger Chambord
- Tourist Class Salon - Salon Saint Tropez
- Tourist Class Music Room - Salon Ravel
- Tourist Class Smoking Room - Cafe Rive Gauche
- Tourist Class Dining Room - Salle à Manger Versailles
Some anomalies that contravened the class lines were Bar de l'Atlantique, essentially an after-hours club for drinking and dancing late into the night which was open to both First and Second Class passengers, the Tourist Children’s' Playroom, and the Chapel, open as well to both classes, all of which were located on First Class Pont Veranda.
Art
The décor of the rooms was regarded itself as art, with many notable French designers and artists commissioned to create the most striking spaces at sea. Beyond this, many pieces of artwork were especially ordered to adorn the walls of the dining rooms, lounges and cabins. Within the Salon Riviera the tapestry by Jean Picart le Doux dominated the entire forward wall, at 17.4 m (57 ft) long. In the same room two paintings by Roger Chapelain-Midy occupied niches in opposite corners to the aft. The overall interior was designed by Arbus, who had previously worked with Chapelain-Midy to design sets for a performance of Les Indes galantes
Les Indes galantes
Les Indes galantes is an opéra-ballet consisting of a prologue and four entrées by Jean-Philippe Rameau with libretto by Louis Fuzelier...
at the Palais Garnier
Palais Garnier
The Palais Garnier, , is an elegant 1,979-seat opera house, which was built from 1861 to 1875 for the Paris Opera. It was originally called the Salle des Capucines because of its location on the Boulevard des Capucines in the 9th arrondissement of Paris, but soon became known as the Palais Garnier...
in 1952. Slightly forward, the Salon Fontainebleau was decorated by Maxime Old, and within was contained three tapestries by Lucien Coutaud (Les femmes fleurs), two by Claude Idoux (Jardin magique, Fée Mirabelle) and Camille Hilaire (Sous-bois, Forêt de France). Near to that room was the Salon Debussy (Music Room) with thee bronze lacquered panels by Bobot, and a bronze abstract sculpture of a young woman playing a flute, by Hubert Yencesse. The theatre's interior was done in red, grey and gold by Peynet, with the ceiling in grey mosaic tile, and the port and starboard walls in vertical gold lacquered aluminium panels, tilted outwards to allow for recessed lighting from behind. The Chapel's interior was created by Anne Carlu Subes (daughter of Jacques Carlu
Jacques Carlu
Jacques Carlu was a French architect and designer, working mostly in Art Deco style, active in France, Canada, and in the United States....
) in silver anodized aluminium panels arranged in a 45-degree grid pattern. Jacques Noël created trompe l'oeil
Trompe l'oeil
Trompe-l'œil, which can also be spelled without the hyphen in English as trompe l'oeil, is an art technique involving extremely realistic imagery in order to create the optical illusion that the depicted objects appear in three dimensions.-History in painting:Although the phrase has its origin in...
panels for all four walls of the First Class Children's Playroom in a Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
theme, and Jean A. Mercier painted a full mural entitled Une nouvelle arche de Noé (A New Noah's Arc) for the Tourist Class Children's' Playroom, using an abstract rendition of France as the Arc. The Bar de l'Atlantique contained two ceramics by Pablo Picasso
Pablo Picasso
Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso known as Pablo Ruiz Picasso was a Spanish expatriate painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist, and stage designer, one of the greatest and most influential artists of the...
, as well three other ceramic sculptures (Faune cavalier, Portrait de Jacqueline and Joueur de flûte et danseuse) by the artist in the Salon Saint-Tropez.
Lower down the dining rooms were fitted out with the intention that the rooms would be visual equivalents of the excellent food served within them. The Chambord dining room was decorated by Mrs. Darbois-Gaudin in gold anodized
Anodising
Anodizing, or anodising in British English, is an electrolytic passivation process used to increase the thickness of the natural oxide layer on the surface of metal parts. The process is called "anodizing" because the part to be treated forms the anode electrode of an electrical circuit...
aluminium, with monochrome chairs in red, orange and cream. The dome, painted black, contained an array of recessed pot-lights, and sat within a circular band of translucent, fluorescent-lit panels, all on a truncated rotunda of gold aluminium. Around all four walls of the room Jean Mandaroux's continuous mural, painted on 17 lacquered aluminium sheets, was entitled Les plaisirs de la vie: The Pleasures of Life. Less sumptuous in design, the Versailles dining room was done by Marc Simon in tones of green, white and grey. The walls were produced from Polyrey and Formica
Formica
Formica is a genus of ants of the family Formicidae, commonly known as wood ants, mound ants, or field ants. Formica is the type genus of the Formicidae, and of the subfamily Formicinae...
with a decoupage
Decoupage
Decoupage is the art of decorating an object by gluing colored paper cutouts onto it in combination with special paint effects, gold leaf and so on. Commonly an object like a small box or an item of furniture is covered by cutouts from magazines or from purpose-manufactured papers...
d gold leaf abstract pattern. Only the forward wall held a mural done in 14 engraved glass panels by Max Ingrand, as well as two tapestries, Les amoureux du printemps by Marc Saint-Saëns, and Paysage provençal by Auvigné. Lowest in the ship, the walls of the First Class swimming pool were covered with back-lit engraved glass panels by Max Ingrand, and a ceramic sculptural fountain by Jean Mayodon sat at the forward end of the room.
The First Class cabins also showcased design and art, especially in the Appartements de Grand Luxe. There were two aboard France, amidships, on the port and starboard sides, on Pont Supérieur. Each had a salon, dining room, two bedrooms, and three bathrooms. The Appartement de Grand Luxe Île de France
Île-de-France (région)
Île-de-France is the wealthiest and most populated of the twenty-two administrative regions of France, composed mostly of the Paris metropolitan area....
held a painting, La place de la Concorde, by Bernard Lamotte
Bernard Lamotte
Bernard Lamotte was a Paris-born artist, illustrator, painter and muralist. He attended École des Beaux-Arts at the Sorbonne and studied under Bernand Corman and Lucien Simon . From 1932 to 1935, Lamotte traveled to Paris, Tahiti and New York...
, as well as one, Parc de Versailles
Versailles
Versailles , a city renowned for its château, the Palace of Versailles, was the de facto capital of the kingdom of France for over a century, from 1682 to 1789. It is now a wealthy suburb of Paris and remains an important administrative and judicial centre...
, by Jean Carzou
Jean Carzou
Jean Carzou , born Garnik Zouloumian, was a French-Armenian artist. Jean arrived in Paris in 1924 to study architecture. He started working as a theater decorator but he then quickly realized he preferred drawing and painting...
, who also designed the suite's main salon. Slightly less expensive were the Appartements de Luxe, of which there were 12. Each of these was decorated by artists, including the bathrooms where mosaic artwork adorned the walls around tubs and showers.
SS Norway
After the ship was purchased by Kloster in 1979 many of the original 1960s interiors were lost as rooms were either demolished within larger renovations, or redecorated to suit Caribbean cruising, under the direction of maritime architect Tage Wandborg and New York interior designer Angelo Donghia. Areas that were completely remodelled included all of the Tourist Class public rooms, and their indoor promenade areas were filled with prefabricated "junior suite" cabins. The former Versailles dining room, now the Leeward, saw the least remodelling, the wall finish and etched glass mural remaining; however, carpeting and furniture was replaced, the open well was lined with smoked glassSmoked glass
The term smoked glass refers to two different types of glass. It can be either of the following: Smoked glass is a flat sheet of glass held in the smoke of a candle flame such that one surface of the sheet of glass is covered in a layer of smoke residue...
and aluminium handrails, an aluminium chandelier was placed over the two-storey space, and a spiral staircase was installed to connect the two levels. The former Salon Saint Tropez became Norway's North Cape Lounge for cabaret
Cabaret
Cabaret is a form, or place, of entertainment featuring comedy, song, dance, and theatre, distinguished mainly by the performance venue: a restaurant or nightclub with a stage for performances and the audience sitting at tables watching the performance, as introduced by a master of ceremonies or...
and other shows; the décor more dark and muted. Further forward on the same deck, the old Café Rive Gauche was transformed into the ship's Monte Carlo
Monte Carlo
Monte Carlo is an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco....
casino
Casino
In modern English, a casino is a facility which houses and accommodates certain types of gambling activities. Casinos are most commonly built near or combined with hotels, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships or other tourist attractions...
. With the promenade windows now within cabins, no daylight penetrated to the casino, and so all windows were filled in. The Tourist Class swimming pool, its glass dome gone after the construction of the open pool deck above, was filled with neon lights and covered with a glass dance floor as part of the remodelling of the entire space into the ship's Dazzles disco.
However, most First Class rooms were left intact, save for the Salon Riviera and Salon Fontainebleau. The former was transformed into the Club International (dubbed Club-I by Norway aficionados), where every element of the original décor was removed. The square columns were made round with vertical aluminium fluting, the walls were repainted in a cream with baby-blue in the ceiling and wall niches, and all the original artwork and furniture was removed. In the corner niches oversized, crystal encrusted Neptune
Neptune
Neptune is the eighth and farthest planet from the Sun in the Solar System. Named for the Roman god of the sea, it is the fourth-largest planet by diameter and the third largest by mass. Neptune is 17 times the mass of Earth and is slightly more massive than its near-twin Uranus, which is 15 times...
statues were placed, and similar crystal garlanded busts sat on brackets on the forward bulkhead. Lounge seating, sofas and rattan chairs were placed amongst potted ferns, giving the room an overall Miami art-deco feel. Only the railings and bronze, star-shaped light fixtures were original to the room. The latter space was gutted and remade into Checkers Cabaret; a small show lounge with abstract chrome palm trees around the columns, red lacquered wall panels, and a black and white checker board
Draughts
Draughts is a group of abstract strategy board games between two players which involve diagonal moves of uniform pieces and mandatory captures by jumping over the enemy's pieces. Draughts developed from alquerque...
dance floor, again evoking a 1920s jazz club. The First Class Library remained untouched, and still used for the same purpose, while the Salon Debussy was turned into a shop, though its bronze décor and distinctive ceiling remained intact. To either side of these rooms ran the original First Class promenade decks, which were now turned into main circulation halls along the ship's principal public deck; the starboard dubbed Fifth Avenue
Fifth Avenue (Manhattan)
Fifth Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the center of the borough of Manhattan in New York City, New York, United States. The section of Fifth Avenue that crosses Midtown Manhattan, especially that between 49th Street and 60th Street, is lined with prestigious shops and is consistently ranked among...
and the port as Champs-Élysées
Champs-Élysées
The Avenue des Champs-Élysées is a prestigious avenue in Paris, France. With its cinemas, cafés, luxury specialty shops and clipped horse-chestnut trees, the Avenue des Champs-Élysées is one of the most famous streets and one of the most expensive strip of real estate in the world. The name is...
, complete with columnar advertising posts similar to those found in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
.
Power station
France was constructed by the CGT with speed and comfort in mind, and used the most advanced technology of the time in the design of the ship's propulsion system and other power generating machinery. Fuel costs were also an added factor.Her engines consisted of eight high-pressure, super-heating boilers delivering 65 kg per cc and 500 degrees Celsius, all weighing 8,000 tons. This delivered 175,000 hp
Horsepower
Horsepower is the name of several units of measurement of power. The most common definitions equal between 735.5 and 750 watts.Horsepower was originally defined to compare the output of steam engines with the power of draft horses in continuous operation. The unit was widely adopted to measure the...
, and provided for a maximum speed of 35 knots, with a fuel consumption of 750 tonnes of oil in a 24 hour period; at her trials she showed a fuel consumption of 900 kg at a speed of 31 knots, a 50% improvement on Normandie. The machinery turning the four propellers was divided into two fore and aft groups, as was the electrical generating station.
When France was converted into Norway, the speed for trans-Atlantic crossing was not needed, and so the forward boilers and engines were shut down and eventually dismantled. This move cut down fuel consumption to 250 tonnes per 24 hours. The remaining four boilers and engine room were made fully automated, and operated from either a central control station below decks, or from the bridge. Five bow and stern thrusters, developing 10,600 hp, were also installed to increase manoeuvrability in ports without the assistance of tugs.
External links
- The Classic Liners of Long Ago: France
- The liner France in French Lines Archives
- Compagnie Générale Transatlantique
- S/S Norway Preservation Foundation
- The Great Ocean Liners: "France
- http://www.maritimematters.com/
Image galleries
- Norway Farewell Transatlantic 2001; many photos of Norway, including interiors and details of artwork
- Slide show of SS France/Norway images
- Webpage Pictures galleries and personal stories from SS France and SS Norway
- SS france Pictures from the official French Line Archives (French captions)
- SS France: The tour page
- 3-D virtual still photo and movie renderings of SS France