MS Victoria (1936)
Encyclopedia
Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean located in the tropics of the Western hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico and Central America to the west and southwest, to the north by the Greater Antilles, and to the east by the Lesser Antilles....
. Victoria was sold to Louis Cruise Lines
Louis Cruise Lines
Louis Cruises is a Cyprus-based cruise line that operates cruises from Cyprus, France, Italy, India and Greece . The company also charters several ships to Thomson Cruises...
in 1993 which operated the ship as Princesa Victoria until it was scrapped in 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...
in 2004. Victoria retained a classic liner look with several features unchanged since her pre-war construction for her entire operational life.
Construction and war service
The ship was originally built by Harland & Wolff of BelfastBelfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
in 1936 as the Union-Castle
Union-Castle Line
The Union-Castle Line was a prominent British shipping line that operated a fleet of passenger liners and cargo ships between Europe and Africa from 1900 to 1977. It was formed from the merger of the Union Line and Castle Shipping Line...
liner Dunnottar Castle. She had a gross tonnage of 15,054 tons. She departed on her maiden voyage from 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...
to Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
in July 1936. Upon her return, she commenced her regular service, Tilbury
Port of Tilbury
The Port of Tilbury is located on the River Thames at Tilbury in Essex, England. It is the principal port for London; as well as being the main United Kingdom port for handling the importation of paper. There are extensive facilities for containers, grain, and other bulk cargoes. There are also...
(London) - Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, serving as supply ship for St. Helena.
At the outbreak of the war, Dunnottar Castle was converted into an armed merchant cruiser by the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
. She departed on her first tour of duty on 14 October 1939. In 1942, she commenced duties as troop ship until 1948, when she was decommissioned from Naval service. She immediately received a comprehensive overhaul and resumed her London to Africa service in 1949, which continued for the next nine years.
Career as cruise liner
Dunnottar Castle was bought by Incres Steamship Co in 1958 and substantially refitted as a cruise liner at the Wilton-FijenoordWilton-Fijenoord
Wilton-Fijenoord was a shipbuilding and repair company in Schiedam in the Netherlands from 1929 to 1999.The company has since been fully absorbed into Damen Shiprepair.-Ships built:* De Zeven Provinciën class cruiser:** HNLMS De Ruyter,...
shipyard near Rotterdam
Rotterdam
Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...
. The ship received a new engine, new superstructure and a new raked bow, changing her overall appearance significantly. The first and tourist class cabins were reconstructed into 600 single-class cabins with private facilities and air-conditioning.
Incres renamed her Victoria and ran her out of 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...
on West Indies cruises.
In 1964, she was sold to Victoria SS Co Monrovia, a subsidiary of Swedish company Clipper Line from Malmo
Malmö
Malmö , in the southernmost province of Scania, is the third most populous city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg.Malmö is the seat of Malmö Municipality and the capital of Skåne County...
. She retained both her name and service. Incres Line continued as agents for the ship. For eleven years, Victoria made cruises from the United States to the Caribbean.
In 1975, the company sold her to Chandris Lines and she ran on Caribbean and European cruises until 1993 with a minor refurbishment in 1987.
Final years
The ship's final incarnation was as the Princesa Victoria making 2 and 3-day cruises from CyprusCyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
under the ownership of Louis Cruise Lines
Louis Cruise Lines
Louis Cruises is a Cyprus-based cruise line that operates cruises from Cyprus, France, Italy, India and Greece . The company also charters several ships to Thomson Cruises...
. During the winter seasons, Princesa Victoria was laid up in Perama
Perama
Perama is a port city and a suburb of Piraeus that lies on the southwest edge of the Aegaleo mountains. It creates the western terminus of the Port of Piraeus and there is also a port that provides ferry services to Salamis. The town has only one main road connecting Lambrakis and Ralli Avenues,...
. She was used as a shore-side hotel-ship for Expo '98
Expo '98
Expo '98 was an official specialised World's Fair held in Lisbon, Portugal from Friday, May 22 to Wednesday, September 30, 1998. The theme of the fair was "The Oceans, a Heritage for the Future," chosen in part to commemorate 500 years of Portuguese discoveries...
and for the G8
G8
The Group of Eight is a forum, created by France in 1975, for the governments of seven major economies: Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States. In 1997, the group added Russia, thus becoming the G8...
summit in Genoa
Genoa
Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....
in 2001.
Finally, the ship was laid up in 2002 and broken up in 2004 at the Kumar Steel Breakers Yard in 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...
. At the time, she was the oldest large liner still operating anywhere in the world.