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1960.08.00.De Sea Breezes.Historique de la NCHP en anglais
Article du magazine "Sea Breezes". Le PDF n'a pas été conservé.
Compagnie havraise peninsulaire
Another detailed historical survey of a prominent European shipping company by the distinguished French author and authority on maritime matters who needs no introduction to readers of "Sea Breezes".
By Contre-Admiral M. Adam, CVO, CBE
Steam shipping relations between Le Havre and ports of the Iberian peninsula were first opened in 1860 by a local ship-owner, Eugene Grosos, with vessels of a relatively small size. Later, this firm's activities were extended to Antwerp, North Africa and Italy. These services were the forerunners of those of a new shipping company, formed on February 28, 1882, under the name of Compagnie havraise péninsulaire de navigation à vapeur, with a capital of five million francs. Its first ships were purchased from Eugene Grosos on March 16, 1882. They were: "Ville-de-Brest", built by J. Laing, Sunderland in 1862 (1,017 tons); "Ville-du Havre" (I) from the same builders in the same year (645 tons); "Constantin", ex-"Haco" (Scotts of Greenock) 1870 (537 tons); "Emma" (J. Blumer, Sunderland) 1872 (776 tons); "Ville-d'Anvers" (ex-"Cathcart") (G.W. Dodgin, North Shields) 1874 (451 tons); "Ville-d'Alger" (I) (J. Laing, Sunderland) 1880 (1,699 tons); "Ville-de-Messine" (ex-"Ariadne") (W. Pile, Sunderland) 1870 (1,003 tons); and the "Ville-de-Lisbonne" (Thompson, Sunderland) 1881 (1,892 tons).
At the same time, new tonnage was laid down, and eight steamers were delivered between 1882 and 1884. Two sister-ships built at Sunderland by J. Blumer and R. Thompson were the "Ville-de-Malaga" (1,520 tons) and "Ville-de-Tarragona" (1,570 tons). Both had unfortunate careers. On August 14, 1897, having been sold a year earlier to Hulin of Rouen, the "Ville-de-Malaga" struck a wreck near the Channel Islands. Beached at Alderney, she had to be broken up where she lay. The "Ville-de-Tarragona", leaving Le Havre on the night of November 13, 1907 was sunk in collision by the outward bound steamer "Suzanne-et-Marie" and was later broken up where she lay (see the photograph of the week reproduced in this article).
The "Ville-de-Valence" (1,615 tons), "Ville-de-Cadix" (1,624 tons) and "Ville-de Palerme" (1,625 tons) all came from R. Thompson's yard where the last-named was launched on June 28, 1883. The "Ville-de-Metz" (I) (2,310 tons) and "Ville-de-Strasbourg" (I) (2,312 tons) were products of J. Laing, who launched the first one in December 26, 1882. The last ship to enter the fleet was the rather smaller "Ville-de-Riposto" (1,451 tons), built by R. Thompson.
[Picture: The "Ville-de-Messine", ex-"Ariadne ", one of the early Compagnie havraise péninsulaire steamers built 1870 and sold to Italian owners in 1904.]
By 1885 the company's services had been widely extended and its ships could be met in the Persian Gulf, the Indian Ocean, and the Mozambique channel. The conquest of Madagascar opened up a new field of activity and more ships became necessary to meet the increased demand for tonnage. The "Ville-de-Metz" (II) (3,265 tons) was launched by Laing at Sunderland on June 23, 1887, the first ship of the name having been lost on August 29, 1886; she was followed in February 1888 by the "Ville-de-Belfort" (2,846 tons), from the same builders, while the 2,470-ton "Obock" (from the yard of Schlesinger, Davis at Sunderland in 1884) was purchased in November 1888. The new "Ville-de-Metz" was an excellent ship for her day, with a speed of 14-5 knots and accommodation for 22 first and 12 second-class passengers.
The firm of Laing was again selected for the next couple: the "Ville-du-Havre" (II), laid down as the "Ville-de-Mulhouse", launched on November 23, 1889, and the "Ville-de-Paris" (I), on August 16, 1890. The "Madagascar" (T), of 2,849 tons, came from Swan, Hunter's yard at Newcastle, having been bought on the stocks. These last three ships were the first steel steamers built for the company.
In July 1893 and October 1895, two ships were acquired from the Compagnie maritime du Pacifique—the "Tafna" (Schlesinger, Davis Newcastle in 1880) and the "Perou" (J. Laing, Sunderland, launched February 24, 1890) whose names remained unchanged. Both steamers did not last long in the fleet, being sold in 1899. The company again returned to J. Laing for the next six ships: the "Ile-de-la-Reunion" (I) (launched May 15, 1897), "Ville-de-Tamatave" (I) (November 30, 1898), "Diego-Suarez" (April 28, 1900), "Ville-de-Majunga" (1) (November 22, 1900), "Djibouti" (July 3, 1901) and the "Havraise" (1903).
At Dunkirk, the recently opened Ateliers et Chantiers de France built the "Ville-de-Paris" (II) (launched August 9, 1903) and the "Ville-du-Havre" (III) (December 6, 1903). They were the last ships of the fleet to have clipper stems, a fashion to which the company remained loyal for quite a long time. All the above mentioned ships could accommodate 22 first and 32 second-class passengers. The "Ville-de-Paris" and "Ville-du-Havre" were taken over in May 1904, on a 3-year time charter by Lamport and Holt for their South American service, and during this period their funnel colors were changed from the company's black, red, black to the well-known blue, white, black. The "Havraise" had the unusual experience of being bottled up in the port of Pointe des Galets (Shingle Point), between March 28 and December 23, 1926 when a tidal wave completely closed the port's entrance with an accumulation of shingle which had to be cleared in most difficult conditions.
In order to benefit from the 1912 law which aided French shipping and shipbuilding, the Compagnie Havraise Péninsulaire had to sell several of its foreign-built ships and to allocate all new orders to French yards. A whole series of new steamers—of the 3-island type— was ordered, two at the Ateliers et Chantiers de France: the lie de la Reunion (П) (launched August 25, 1907) and the Eugene Grosos (December 26, 1908) while the Graville yard of the Forges et Chantiers de la Méditerranée built the others: the Ville-de-marseille (launched October 21, 1910) and the Ville-de-Bordeaux (May 29, 1911), "Ville-d'Oran" (December 8, 1911) and the "Ville-d’Alger" (II) (September 12, 1912). All had cabins for 20 first-class passengers. The "Ville-d'Oran", renamed "Madagascar" (II) in 1944, survived up to March 1950 when she was scrapped at Ghent. The "Ville-d'Alger" had to be abandoned on fire off La Reunion on February 1, 1920; her wreck was discovered on the 22nd, ashore in an islet near Madagascar.
[Picture: Wreck of the "Ville-de-Tarragone " in Havre harbour after the ship had been in collision, with the steamer " Suzanne-et-Marie".]
[Picture: Second "Ville-de-Paris" in the fleet, pictured here with Lamport and Holt funnel colors when running on charter for the British firm.]
In November 1913 the 2,808-ton "Alexander", ex-"Highland-Chief", launched on March 20, 1890 by A. Stephen of Linthouse, was purchased and renamed "Ville-de-Mostaganem". She was sold in April 1915 to the French Line and sunk on September 9, of the same year by £/-39, near the port whose name she bore.
During the First World War only one ship was completed—the 7,200-ton "Conde", launched at Graville in 1915, while a small steamer, the "Salona", ex-"Clarence" (Mackie and Thomson, Glasgow, 1903) was purchased during 1917 and renamed "Bouvet". She had the misfortune to be sunk in collision with the Messageries Maritimes vessel "Orenoque", at Bona on September 13, 1917. A third ship must also be mentioned, the "Ville-de-Verdun" (I) also built in 1917 by the North of Ireland Shipbuilding Company at Londonderry and which was torpedoed and sunk on her maiden voyage, on February 6, 1918, near Torrovieja. The "Ville-de-Bordeaux" and "Djibouti" had also been sunk during the war.
Two sister-ships came out in 1918: the "Ville-d'Arras" (Londonderry) and the "Ville-de-Reims" (Wm. Hamilton, Port Glasgow) while an important order for more or less similar ships was placed with the North of Ireland S.B. Company. Unfortunately, post-war economic conditions deteriorated so fast that three of these orders had to be cancelled. However, the following ships were completed and delivered to the company: the "Ville-du-Havre" (IV) and "Ville-de-Rouen" (I) (laid down as the "Ville-de-Nantes") which were torpedoed and sunk, a month apart, in 1942; the "Ville-de-Metz" (III), "Ville-de-Strasbourg" (II), "Ville-de-Verdun" (II) and "Ville-d’Amiens".
Orders for the "Ville-de-Belfort", "Lyon" and "Nantes" were cancelled, while the company was very glad to turn over to the Messageries Maritimes (which purchased them later, in 1928) on a long term bareboat charter the "Ville-d’Amiens", "Ville-de-Strasbourg" and "Ville-de-Verdun". These drastic measures were, however, not sufficient to extricate the company from a most difficult situation and, in 1930, it had to hand over the management of its fleet to a tenant formation. In 1934 a new company was formed under the control of MM. Worms, well-known ship-owners to which the new and important Le Trait shipyard also belonged. It took the modified title of Nouvelle Compagnie havraise péninsulaire de navigation while assuming the property of the whole existing fleet, while on the old house-flag, red background with a green border, the initials NCHP replaced the former CHP.
Meanwhile, the following post-war additions had been made: the "Catinat", ex-"German "Menes" (Tecklenburg A.G., Geestemunde, 1913) purchased in 1920; the "Ville-de-Djibouti" (I) ex-"Port-du-Havre" (Russell and Company, Port Glasgow, 1914) and the "Bourbonnais", ex-"Port-de-Boulogne" (Greenock and Grangemouth Dockyard Company, 1914) purchased respectively in December 1921 and June 1922.
When conditions had become more settled new construction began again during 1930 and two sister-ships were laid down by the Ateliers et Chantiers de la Seine Maritime, at Le Trait. Launched on January 22 and June 1, 1931, the "Ville-de-Tamatave" (II) and "Ville-de-Majunga" (II) had a deadweight capacity of 7,400 tons and accommodation for 22 cabin passengers.
[Picture: "Ville-de-Valence" with a deck cargo of wine casks (from an original drawing by the author)]
[Picture: "Havraise" (4,646 gross tons) of 1903, one of the last ships in the fleet to have a clipper stem]
The first NCHP motorship left the slip at Le Trait on July 19, 1939. Named "Malgache", she had been built to Government order and was handed over to the company. A single-screw vessel of nearly 9,000 tons deadweight, she is propelled by an 8,000-h.p. 2-stroke, single-acting 10-cylinder Sulzer engine and reached 17-9 knots on trials. Twelve cabin-passengers could be accommodated originally. She left Le Havre on her maiden voyage to Madagascar on August 9, 1939. Seized at Bordeaux by the Germans in July 1940, she was found in good condition at Hamburg in 1945 and hoisted the company's house-flag again; she is still in commission.
During the Second World War, again four ships were lost. The "Ville-de-Rouen" (I) was captured in July 1941 by British naval forces off Cape-Town and while under Glen Line management, was sunk near the Azores on December 28, 1942; the "Ville-de-Metz" (II) seized by the Germans on August 4, 1940 and renamed "Othmarschen", was lost in Norway in February 1943; the "Ville-de-Tamatave" (II) also captured by British naval forces in November 1941, was sunk off New York on January 24, 1943; the "Condé", seized by the Germans at Nice was severely damaged there, and sunk by Allied bombing, on August 7, 1944. She was refloated on December 28, 1944 and after being used as a coal hulk at Marseilles was sold for scrap on May 9, 1947, at La Seyne.
To make up for these losses, the NCHP in 1945 received the "Empire-Moulmein" (J. Readhead, South Shields, 1944) renamed "Ville-de-Diego-Suarez" in 1948, and in 1946, the Liberty ship "William-M.-Eastland" (Todd, Houston, 1944) renamed "Le-Havre" and in June 1948 the "Ville-du-Havre" (V). Two more Liberty ships were later transferred; in August 1950, the "Colmar", from the Société nouvelle d'armement and in September 1952, the "Plouharel", from the Chargeurs réunis.
With courageous determination, the leaders of the NCHP planned an important building programme for the rejuvenation of their fleet. Two sister passenger and cargo motor-ships were laid down at Le Trait: the "Ville-de-Tamatave" (Til), launched on September 23, 1949, and the "Ville-de-Tananarive", on May 31, 1950. Each driven by an 8,000-h.p. 2-stroke, single-acting, 10-cylinder Sulzer engine, they exceeded 17 knots on trials. They had very comfortable accommodation for 30 cabin passengers, but recently this number has been reduced to 12 to allow more space for carrying motor-cars.
They were followed by three ships with similar hulls, but modified superstructures: from the Odense shipyard, the "Île-de-la-Réunion" (III) (launched October 28, 1949) and the "Île-Maurice" (June 16, 1951), while Le Trait launched the "Nossi-Bé" on July 10, 1952; these ships are driven by Burmeister and Wain engines.
[Picture:"Ville-de-Nantes" (7,000 gross tons) built 1959]
[Picture:"Nossi-Bé" (6,941 gross tons), built 1952]
The Madagascar coastal services had next to be strengthened, and the necessary ships were obtained by the purchase of second-hand tonnage: in November 1949, the motor-ship "Île-Sainte-Marie", ex-"Lyngaa", ex-"Titan" (which had been built by the Unterweser A.G., Wesermunde in 1943); in February 1951, the "Ville-de-Manakara", ex-"Chateau-Pavie" (Henderson, Glasgow in 1930) and in April of the same year, the "Ville-de-Tuléar" (I), ex-"Chateau-Latour" (Loire, Nantes, 1914). The two last-named have since been sold out of the fleet.
Early in August 1952, the cargo motor-ship "Lotte-Skou", on the slips of the Kieler Howaldstwerke, was purchased and launched as Les Comores on August 30, 1952. Her MAN 2-stroke, double-acting, 7-cyIinder engine gave her a 15.75 knots trials speed. In May 1954 the motor coaster "Commerz" (Stulcken, Hamburg, launched October 22, 1952) was acquired and renamed "Ville-de-Fort-Dauphin".
Having thus provided for its passenger and coastal services, the NCHP then concentrated on the building up of a fleet of cargo motor-ships of two different sizes. The 8,745-ton (deadweight) "Ville-de-Djibouti" (II) was launched at Le Trait on May 13, 1957, while a sister-ship, the "Ville-de-Nantes", was delivered from the same yard last year. Of the larger type, the "Ville-de-Rouen" (launched May 13, 1957) and the "Ville-de-Dunkerque" (September 24, 1957) have been built at Le Trait, while the "Ville-de-Majunga" (III) was launched on June 21, 1958 at Bordeaux, by the Forges et Chantiers de la Gironde. The building of a still larger 12,500-ton motor-ship, to be named "Ville-du-Havre" (VI), is planned at Le Trait. All the above are driven by Burmeister and Wain engines and are good for 16 knots service speed. It is interesting to note that they are fitted exclusively with A.C. electric current—for the first time in this class of ocean-going ship.
[Picture: The old "Château-Latour" of the Cie Worms bought in 1951 and renamed "Ville-de-Tuléar" (I) to be scrapped in 1955 after a useful career of 41 years]
On February 10, 1958, the Ottensener Eisenwerke launched at Hamburg the motor coaster "Ville-de-Tuléar" (II), which left Le Havre on June 1, 1958 to take up her duties at Madagascar. The latest acquisition is the motorship Atlanta (680 tons deadweight) purchased in June 1958 for the company's Persian Gulf feeder service. She has been turned over to a branch firm, the Société iranienne d'enterprises maritimes, and, on January 13, 1959 became the "Kamal", under the Iranian flag.
Later, in May 1959, the 7,210-ton (deadweight) cargo motor-ship "Pierre-Eugène-de-Caplane", which was already under the NCHP flag on a long time charter, was purchased from the Cie commerciale de l'AEF and renamed "Ville-de-Manakara" (II).
The NCHP has now a well balanced fleet of modern and mostly fast ships; having weathered the storms of two wars and the subsequent crises, it is now able to look at the future with confidence, thanks to its spirit of adventure, tempered by a wise and astute management. Having been so long part and parcel of Le Havre maritime tradition, its ships, though smaller than the North Atlantic liners, are, none the less, the pride of this very active and important French port.
Fleet list
Ships belonging to the CHP and NCHP fleets
|
Name |
Year Built |
Gross tons |
Remarks |
|
Ville-de-Brest |
1862 |
1,017 |
Bought 1882 Trom E. Grosos. Sold 1890. Became Turkish Yildiz. |
|
Ville-du-Havre |
1862 |
645 |
Bought 1882 from E. Grosos. Sunk April 28, 1889 in collision with British steamer Barnesmore in fog, near Gibraltar. |
|
Constantin |
1870 |
537 |
Ex- Haco. Bought 1882 from E. Grosos. Sold 1901 to-P. Durand. Sunk November 9, 1910 in collision with French steamer Aurore. |
|
Emma |
1872 |
776 |
Bought from E. Grosos. Sold 1886. Became British John Haves. |
|
Ville-d’Anvers |
1874 |
451 |
Bought 1882 from E. Grosos. Scrapped 1900. |
|
Ville-d’Alger |
1880 |
1 699 |
Bought 1882 from E. Grosos. Sold November 1910 to P. Durand, renamed Gironde, then (July 1911) to Affréteurs réunis. |
|
Ville-de-Messine |
1870 |
1,003 |
Bought 1882 from E. Grosos. ex-Ariadne. Sold March 1904. Became Italian Spes. |
|
Ville-de-Lisbonne |
1881 |
1,892 |
Bought 1882 from E. Grosos. Lost February 17. 1883 at Cape Hogue. |
|
Ville-de-Malaga |
1882 |
1,520 |
Sold 1896 to Hulin. Lost August 14. 1897 near Alderney. |
|
Ville-de-Tarragone |
1882 |
1,570 |
Sunk in collision November 13. 1907 in Havre harbour. |
|
Ville-de-Valence |
1882 |
1,615 |
Sold 1905. Became Italian Amor. |
|
Ville-de-Metz (I) |
1882 |
2.310 |
Lost on South American coast August 29, 1886. |
|
Ville-de-Cadix |
1883 |
1.624 |
Went missing in November 1893 near Cape St. Vincent. |
|
Ville-de-Palerme |
1883 |
1.625 |
Lost May 9, 1886 on Ushant in thick fog. |
|
Ville-de-Strasbourg (I) |
1884 |
1,451 |
September 1898 sold to Madagascar owners. Lost January 29. 1899 near Farafangana. |
|
Ville-de-Metz (II) |
1887 |
3,265 |
Sold July 1093; became British Otto Berg. |
|
Ville-de-Belfort |
1888 |
2,846 |
Sold August 1900. Became Italian Balilla, later (1903) Citta-di-Reggio. |
|
Obock |
1884 |
2,470 |
Purchased November 1888 from Poingdestre and Mesnier. Sunk June 22, 1894 in collision in fog near Channel Islands. |
|
Ville-du-Havre (II) |
1889 |
3.165 |
Sold 1902. Became British Lonsdale. |
|
Ville-de-Paris (I) |
1890 |
3,496 |
Sold 1902. Became British Alexandria. |
|
Madagascar |
1890 |
2,849 |
Bought on stocks. Scrapped 1910. |
|
Tafna |
1880 |
1,580 |
Bought July 1893 from Cie maritime du Pacifique. Sold October 1899. Became Greek Acropolis. |
|
Pérou |
1890 |
3,090 |
Bought October 1895 from Cie maritime du Pacifique. Sold July 1899. Became Spanish Ida, later Navarra. |
|
Île-de-la-Réunion (I) |
1897 |
3.658 |
Sold June 1902. Became British Swaledale, later (1910) Dutch Rijsbergen. |
|
Ville-de-Tamatave (I) |
1898 |
3.644 |
Sold January 1922 to Antokie. Scrapped 1924 at Le Havre. |
|
Diego-Suarez |
1900 |
3,883 |
Sold 1912. Became Italian Caterina Accame. |
|
Ville-de-Majunga (I) |
1900 |
3,657 |
Lost January 1928 in a cyclone on NC coast of Madagascar. |
|
Djibouti |
1901 |
4,305 |
Torpedoed and sunk off Cape Bengut. January 27, 1918. |
|
Havraise |
1903 |
4,646 |
Scrapped 1932. |
|
Ville-de-Paris (II) |
1903 |
5,020 |
Lost May 8, 1935 near Fort Dauphin (Madagascar). |
|
Ville-du-Havre (III) |
1903 |
5,026 |
Torpedoed and sunk by CMS, Bay of Biscay, January 6, 1917. |
|
Île-de-la-Réunion (II) |
1907 |
4,842 |
Scrapped 1934. |
|
Eugène-Grosos |
1908 |
4.836 |
Scrapped 1935. |
|
Ville-de-Marseille |
1910 |
4,785 |
Scrapped 1935. |
|
Ville-de-Bordeaux |
1911 |
4,857 |
Torpedoed and sunk in Western Mediterranean, January 18, 1918. |
|
Ville-d’Oran |
1911 |
4,857 |
Renamed Madagascar (II) 1944. Scrapped 1950. |
|
Ville-d’Alger (II) |
1912 |
4,857 |
Destroyed by fire near La Reunion February 1, 1920. |
|
Ville-de-Mostaganem |
1890 |
2,808 |
Ex-Alexander, ex-Highland-Chief, bought November 1913. Sold April 1915 to French Line. Sunk September 9, 1915 by U-39 near Mostaganem. |
|
Condé |
1915 |
7,200 |
Seized July 8, 1944 by Germans and sunk at Nice during 1944 landings. Scrapped 1947. |
|
Bouvet |
1903 |
2,648 |
Ex-Salona, ex-Clarence. Bought 1917. Sunk September 13 1917 in collision at Bona with MM Orenoque. |
|
Ville-de-Verdun (I) |
1917 |
4,576 |
Torpedoed and sunk February 6, 1918, near Torrevieja. |
|
Ville-d’Arras |
1918 |
4,836 |
Scrapped 1936. |
|
Ville-de-Reims |
1918 |
4,617 |
Sold August 1951. Became Italian Maja. |
|
Ville-du-Havre (IV) |
1918 |
5,083 |
Sunk November 8. 1942 on Moroccan coast by US submarine Finback. |
|
Ville-de-Rouen (I) |
1919 |
5,083 |
Sunk near the Azores, December 28, 1942. |
|
Ville-de-Metz (III) |
1920 |
7,007 |
Seized by Germans, August 4. 1940, renamed Othmarschen. Lost in Norway, February 1943. |
|
Ville-de-Strasbourg (II) |
1920 |
7,138 |
Sold 1928 to Messageries maritimes. Scrapped in UK 1952. |
|
Ville-de-Verdun (II) |
1920 |
7,007 |
Sold 1928 to Messageries maritimes. Sunk October 17, 1942 near Formosa. |
|
Catinat |
1913 |
7.057 |
Ex-Menes, bought 1920. Lost March 3, 1927 in a cyclone at Madagascar. |
|
Ville-de-Djibouti (I) |
1914 |
4,373 |
Ex-Port du Havre, ex-Bayverdun, ex-Verdun. Bought December 1921. Lost April 19, 1928 in a cyclone at Madagascar. |
|
Ville-d’Amiens |
1924 |
6,975 |
Sold 1928 to Messageries Maritimes. Scrapped 1953. |
|
Ville-de-Tamatave (II) |
1931 |
4,992 |
Sunk off New York, January 24 1943. |
|
Ville-de-Majunga (II) |
1931 |
4,971 |
Sold at Hong Kong May 1957, renamed Cathay. |
|
Bourbonnais |
1914 |
4,484 |
Ex-Port de Boulogne, ex-Baytigern, ex-St. Kenttgern. Bought September 1933. Scrapped 1952. |
|
* Malgache (ms) |
1939 |
6,725 |
|
|
*† Ville-de-Diego-Suarez |
1944 |
7,047 |
Ex-Colonel-Vieljeux, ex-Empire-Moulmeln. Bought 1945; renamed 1948. |
|
*† Ville-du-Havre |
1944 |
7,247 |
Ex-Le Havre, ex-William M. Eastland. Bought 1946; renamed 1948. |
|
* Île-Sainte-Marie (ms) |
1943 |
1,106 |
Ex-Lyngaa, ex-Titan. Bought November 1949. |
|
* Ville-de-Tamatave (III) |
1949 |
7,217 |
|
|
* Île-de-la-Réunion (III) (ms) |
1949 |
6,598 |
|
|
* Ville-de-Tananarive (ms) |
1950 |
7,154 |
|
|
*† Colmar |
1942 |
7,176 |
Ex-William T. Sherman. Transferred August 1950 from Sté nouvelle d'Armement. |
|
Ville-de-Manakara
|
1930 |
2,047 |
Ex-Château-Pavie. Bought February 1951 from Worms and Co. Sold March 1958 to Panamaman owners. |
|
Ville-de-Tuléar (I) |
1914 |
1,912 |
Ex- Château-Latour. Bought April 1951 from Worms and Co. Scrapped 1955. |
|
* Île-Maurice (ms) |
1951 |
6,589 |
|
|
* Nossi-Bé (ms) |
1952 |
6,941 |
|
|
* Les-Comores (ms) |
1952 |
4,031 |
Ex-Lotte-Skou. Bought on stocks. |
|
*† Plouharnel |
1943 |
7,176 |
Ex-Robert-Jordan. Transferred September 1952 from Chargeurs réunis. |
|
* Ville-de-Fort-Dauphin (ms) |
1953 |
1,970 |
Ex-Commerz. Bought May 1954. |
|
* Ville-de-Djibouti (II) (ms) |
1955 |
7,060 |
|
|
* Ville-de-Rouen (lI) (ms) |
1957 |
8,321 |
|
|
* Ville-de-Dunkerque (ms) |
1957 |
8,259 |
|
|
* Ville-de-Majunga (III) (ms) |
1958 |
8,200 |
|
|
* Ville-de-Tuléar (II) |
1958 |
1,958 |
|
|
* Ville-de-Nantes (ms) |
1959 |
7,000 |
|
|
* Ville-du-Havre (VI) |
|
|
Planned 12.000 dwt. |
|
* Ville-de-Manakara (II) (ms) |
1948 |
6,056 |
Ex-Pierre-Eugène-de-Caplane, 1959. Bought from the Cie commerciale de l’AEF. |
Ships belonging to Grosps, but under CHP or NCHP management
|
Colbert (I) |
1907 |
5,394 |
Torpedoed and sunk near Cape Rosa, April 30, 1917. |
|
Colbert (II) |
1904 |
5,568 |
Ex-Australind. Bought 1928. Sold 1933 to Cie baltique Ocean Mediterranean; renamed Scandinavie. Scrapped 1934. |
|
Calmine |
1916 |
5,823 |
Ex-Argonne, ex-Taifuku-Maru. Bought 1929 from Cie française de marine et commerce. Sold March 1934. Became Italian Wally. |
* Present fleet.
† Government vessels on bareboat charter.
[Picture: One of the first ships to be built for the company after the First World War, the "Ville-de-Rouen" (I) was torpedoed and sunk on December 28, 1942]
[3 pictures: The second "Île-de-la-Réunion"; "Condé" last and largest of a series of 3-isIand cargo vessels built for the company between 1907 and 1912, and the "Ville-d'Oran" during her trials off Le Havre in 1912 (note the builder's flag at the main)]
[Picture: "Ville-de-Majunga" (II) of 1931. She served the company until 1957 when sold to Hong Kong buyers and is now the "Cathay"]
[Picture: The "Malgache" first motorship in the fleet, which is still in service]
[Picture: "Ville-de-Tananarive", a fast passenger and cargo liner on the Madagascar and Indian Ocean services]