Britannic: Third of Her Name

Britannic, launched in 1929 was the third White Star Line vessel to carry that name.  The first, launched in 1874 was one of the first steamers in the fleet.  She sailed for the company for more than 20 years and was a great success.  

The fist Britannic.

The second Britannic was launched in 1914 as the third ship of the Olympic-class.  She was requisitioned by the Admiralty and fitted out as a hospital ship.  In 1916 she struck a mine in the Aegean Sea and sank in an hour with a loss of thirty-three lives.  This loss, combined with other war losses and Titanic in 1912 proved difficult for White Star to overcome.

HMHS Britannic ca. 1915.  Photographed by Allen Green. Image in the public domain, from Wikimedia commons.

In the twilight of the 1920s, all of the shipping lines were preparing for the next generation of liners.  White Star began planning a new 1,000 foot ship, Oceanic, to compete with new liners from France and Germany, as well as rival Cunard.  However, White Star and its parent company, Royal Mail Group (sold out of IMM early in the decade) was rather insolvent.  After the onset of the Depression, the monies for such a giant ship could not be found.  Meanwhile, cabin class liners—ships that offered second cabin as the premium passenger space were very popular.  Older vessels, such as Baltic and Adriatic were converted to cabin liners.  However, the ships were becoming outdated. The plan to build one large liner and a new cabin liner was altered.  Harland and Wolf would build two smaller ships and use a new cost-effective technology—the diesel air injected engines—to power the ships.  These diesel driven vessels were called motorships and proved successful on the routes to South Africa and Australia run by the Union-Castle Line.  These ships consumed far less fuel than steam driven vessels.

Britannic in splendid motor liner style. Note the sleek low superstructure, raked pasts and squat funnels.

At the time of her launch, Britannic was the largest and fastest motorship in the British merchant fleet and one the first Art-Deco inspired British liners.  The sleek modern lines were balanced by traditional décor as well.  She was more conservative than her fleet mate Georgic(which was unabashedly Art-Deco).  The exterior reflected this as well.  Look at the bridge and superstructure at the front of each vessel, Britannic’s is squared while Georgic’s is rounded. 

The traveling public was immediately taken with the modern design and comfort of the two ships. The ships were routinely full—much more than the large express liners on both crossings and cruising. The ships were small enough to navigate exotic waters but large enough to carry many passengers in comfort across the stormy North Atlantic.

Britannic had some unusual features.  The first funnel was a dummy.  Inside was the Engineer’s smoking room and additional water storage.  The whistles were located on the second funnel and also on the foremast.  

Britannic made her maiden voyage from Liverpool to New York in June 1930.  She generally spent her summers on the North Atlantic and her winters cruising touring the Caribbean and Mediterranean.   When Cunard and White Star merged in the midst of the Depression, most of the White Star fleet was retired including the flagship, Majestic and the venerable Olympic. The new motorliners were among the few White Star ships to sail for the new company (Cunard-White Star, Ltd.)  In 1935, she moved to the London-New York service and remained there until World War II began.

The Britannic served as a troopship during the war, carrying some 180,000 troops and traveling more than 370,000 miles. Unlike her near sister Georgic, she escaped the war unscathed.

1:1250 Model of Britannic by Mercator.  Souvenir Spoon with ship's name and White Star Line logo. 

She was fully restored to passenger service after the war and replenished décor included furnishings from Aquitania. The post war rebuild reduced overall passenger capacity but added more space, amenities (including suites with private bathrooms) for a two0-class accommodation plan.  She ran a monthly service on the Liverpool-New York run intermixed with nine-week winter cruises to the Mediterranean.  In 1950, Cunard-White Star Line Company fully absorbed the White Star component and returned to business as the Cunard Line.  This was truly the end of the White Star line, yet Britannic and Georgic continued to sail with White Star colors and flew both house flags (the Queens however, ceased to fly the burgee).

Britannic leaving New York.

By the late 1950s Britannic began to experience mechanical troubles and spent much of her final months in service undergoing repairs at her New York pier.  She made her final Liverpool-New York sailing in November 1960.  In December she left under her own power for the ship breakers.

M/V Britannic (1930-1960).  Built for White Star Line by Harland & Wolff, Belfast, Northern Ireland.  26,943GRT; 712 feet long, 82 feet wide.  Burmeister & Wain diesels, twin screw.  Service speed 18 knots.  As built: 1,553 total passengers (504 cabin class, 551 tourist class, 498 third class).