Franconia II – 1923 – 1956

• Gross Tonnage – 20,158 tons
• Dimensions – 183.27m (190.18m overall) x 22.46m: 601.3ft (624ft overall) x 73.7ft.
• Number of funnels – 1
• Number of masts – 2
• Construction – Steel
• Propulsion – Twin-screw
• Engines – Steam turbines (double-reduction)
• Service speed – 16 knots
• Builder – John Brown & Co, Glasgow
• Launch date – 21 Oct 1922
• Passenger accommodation – 330 First, 420 Second, 950 Third)

The Franconia was one of over a dozen new ships built for Cunard in the early 1920s. Like the Scythia and Samaria, which she resembled, she was meant for the Liverpool-New York trade, but the Franconia was also intended to cruise. She was designed by Leslie Peskett, Cunard’s naval architect, built by John Brown & Co on the Clyde and launched on 21 October 1922 by Lady Royden, the wife of Sir Thomas Royden, chairman of Cunard. Her accommodation was regarded as being particularly fine: the first class smoking room being a reproduction of an English inn, complete with oak panelling and a brick inglenook fireplace.

Her maiden voyage was between Liverpool and New York on 23 June 1923 and she continued on this route during the summer months until the outbreak of war (with the exception of two voyages each way in 1934, which went from Southampton). Her winters were spent on world cruises.

On 10 April 1926 she was involved in a collision leaving Shainghai harbour. While leaving her wharf she ran aground, her stern swinging around and hitting a Japanese cargo vessel and an Italian gunboat, the Libia. A buoy then became tangled in the Franconia’s propellers, sinking a lighter in the process and killing four members of its crew.

In September 1939 she was requisitioned as a troopship and refitted at Liverpool. Her first duty was to transport troops to Malta, but while travelling in convoy with the Alcantara and Empress of Australia was involved in a collision with the former (a Royal Mail Lines ship that had been requisitioned as an Armed Merchant Cruiser). As a result of this accident the Franconia had to undergo major repairs at Malta. Later, during the evacuation of the British Expeditionary Force from France, she was damaged by air raids while carrying 8,000 troops. For the rest of the war she continued as a trooper, travelling to India and the Middle East via Cape Town and taking part in the invasions of Madagascar, North Africa and Italy. In 1944 she carried American troops from New York to the Mediterranean. During her period of Government service she covered 319,784 miles and carried 189,239 troops.

The Franconia’s moment of war time glory came in January 1945. The ‘Big Three’ – Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin – were to meet at Yalta on the Black Sea to discuss the shape of post-war Europe. The Franconia acted as the base for the British delegation, returning to Liverpool in March 1945.

After the end of the war, the Franconia, like many of the requisitioned vessels, continued in government service repatriating troops and prisoners of war. She returned to Cunard’s control in June 1948 and was sent to the Clyde for a nine-month reconditioning. On 2 June 1949 she resumed a passenger service, this time sailing from Liverpool to Quebec, she continued on the Canada service until 1956, from June 1955 sailing Southampton-Le Havre-Qubec.

The Franconia’s withdrawal from service was announced in October 1956. He last sailing was on 3 November between Liverpool and New York and back again. The return voyage was disrupted with mechanical faults and she was four days late when she reached Liverpool. She had been meant to carry troops to Suez, but the unreliability of her engines meant that she was withdrawn from this duty. She was sold to the British Steel & Iron Corporation and left Liverpool on 14 December 1956 to be scrapped at Inverkeithing.

Cunard Line’s R.M.S. Aquitania, one of the greatest of all liners, was built for Cunard by John Brown & Co., and was launched in 1913. After her maiden voyage from Liverpool to New York on 30 May 1914, she made only 2 more Atlantic crossings before World War I began. During the war she served as an armed merchant cruiser, a hospital ship and a troop transport. She returned to commercial service in June 1919, but later that year was taken out of service for refitting and conversion from coal to oil.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt with his son Elliott aboard the Acquitania in 1931.

Postcard scenes from the great ship.

In 1920, Cunard followed White Star’s lead and moved its principal New York service from Liverpool to Southampton, which became Aquitania’s new home. In 1931, she became the first liner to accomplish a two-week turnaround between trips across the Atlantic, departing Southampton on 7 and 21 July.

When World War II began, she was again called into service as a troop transport, one of a small number of ships to serve in both World Wars.

In 1948-49, Aquitania was placed on a Southampton-Halifax austerity route; her last transatlantic crossing was from Halifax (departing 24 November 1949) to Southampton (arriving 1 December 1949).

After making 443 transatlantic roundtrips, steaming over 3 million miles and carrying almost 1.2 million passengers over a 35-year career, Aquitania was scrapped in 1950.

youTUBE video of the Aquitania and passage to being scrapped.