Internet's guide to Aquitania
RMS Aquitania Chronicles
Name - Aquitania
A.K.A - Ship Beautiful, Old Irrepressible
Company - Cunard, Cunard White Star
Sister ships - Lusitania, Mauretania
Builders - John Brown & Co Ltd
Length - 901 feet
Gross tonnage - 45,647 tons
Number of funnels - 4 funnels
Propulsion - Quadruple screw
Service speed - 23 knots
Accommodations - 597 1st class, 614 2nd class, 2,052 3rd class
Maiden voyage - May 30, 1914
Final voyage - 1949
Demise - scrapped
The R.M.S. Aquitania built for Cunard and was launch on April 21, 1913 she was the answer to White Star's Olympic class ships and Hamburg-Amerika's Imperator. Aquitania was the third sister ship to the blue ribbon winners Lusitania and Mauretania, Aquitania was slower but made up for it with her luxurious rooms. R.M.S. Aquitania would come into service two week before the out break of the grate war, WW1. Cunard also made sure that there were lifeboat's provided for all those on board, because of the Titanic disaster. Aquitania left Liverpool on her maiden voyage on May 30, 1914 but the tragic loss of the Empress of Ireland the day before and 1,000 of those on board overshadowed this event. The Aquitania made two more voyages to New York before the outbreak of WW1.
R.M.S. Aquitania was requisitioned by the Government to serve as an armed merchant cruiser, she was converted in Liverpool. After that the Aquitania was then commissioned into the Royal Navy on August 7, 1914. The now H.M.S. Aquitania first assignment was to patrol the Western Approaches. On her next voyage she collided with the Leyland ship Canadian on August 22, 1914 during thick fog. The conclusion was that the subsequent inquiry was that the Aquitania was too large to be used as a armed merchant cruiser. After repair work was done, the Aquitania was again requisitioned by the Government in June 18, 1915 as a troopship and assist in the Gallpoli campaign. The now H.M.T. Aquitania left Liverpool on June 25,1915 with over 5,000 troops on board. Only after three voyages as a troop transport the Aquitania was then converted into a hospital ship. The now H.M.H.S Aquitania could carry about 4,200 wounded, witch was more then Titanic's sister Britannic, witch could carry 3,309 wounded. Together they made a grate team.
On April 10, 1916 the Aquitania was decommissioned from Government service and was reconditioned by Harland & Wolff so she could return to passenger service. But again when the Aquitania was almost completed for passenger service the Government requisition the Aquitania to serve as a hospital ship again on November 1916. The Aquitania would served in the Mediterranean for the rest of the year, and was then anchored in the Solent for most of 1917. When The United States entered the war in December 1917, Aquitania was back into transport service transporting the American Expeditionary Force. Finally when the Grate War was over, the Aquitania had survived but sadly many ships sank. Her sister Lusitania sank as a passenger liner taking 1,195 life's to there watery grave, Britannic also sank with the death of 30 people (they died from the propeller). Aquitania last duty was after the War transporting Canadian troops.
November 1919 the Aquitania went into an extensive refit at Armstrong Whitworth & Co, the refit was done on June 1920, she was converted from coal to oil. Also Aquitania bridge was entirely rebuilt ontop of the old bridge at about half the size of the old one, this was done because the officers could not see properly from the original bridge. After she made a voyage from Liverpool to New York in July 17, 1920 the Aquitania operate on the Southampton Cherbourg New York route with the Mauretania and the former Imperator (later renamed Berengaria) witch was handed over to Cunard to replace the Lusitania. In later refits 1926,1927,1928 the Aquitania was extensively modernized in passenger accommodations to sail with the changing time and style.
The Aquitania was again lucky, in 1934 Cunard merged with White Star making a huge sur plus on ships, many ships had to go including her sister Mauretania. But Aquitania was to fallow later only one thing would save her from her being scrapped a little longer. In February 3, 1932 Aquitania made her first cruise from New York and cruised around the Mediterranean. She would later do more cruises on this route and also the New York Bermuda route. Later in November the ship underwent considerable internal reconstruction, First class was reduced to 650, the new tourist class was enlarged also a theater was added. The Aquitania continued a mixture of Atlantic crossings and cruises, all seemed good except that Aquitania was on the verge of being scrapped, but then again the Aquitania was called for war service in WW2.
The Aquitania was then requisitioned as a troop ship in November 21, 1939. First she transported Canadian troops, then she underwent a refit in United States and armed with six inch guns in 1940. Then she was transporting Australian and New Zealand troops, she also made two passages between Pearl Harbor and San Francisco. Then the Aquitania was employed on the Atlantic for the rest of the War. Again the Aquitania had survived another war ! Unharmed and the war over she was used in transporting Canadian and American troops, also she was used later to carry the wives and children of Canadian servicemen over to Canada. On April 1, 1948 she was released by the Ministry of Transport and returned to Cunard. Then the Canadian Government chartered Aquitania to carry Canadian emigrants between Southampton and Halifax, this contract was renewed in 1949. After she was done on December 1, 1949 Aquitania was the last of the 4 funnel steamers and was the longest serving Cunard liner built in the 20th century, but she was also worn out, on one of her crossing under the Canadian government charter a piano fell thought the floor. Cunard did not want to do a refit on a ship that was going to be scrapped prier to WW2, so Cunard announced that the Aquitania would be withdrawn from service.
On January 9, 1950 Messrs Hampton & Sons Ltd were employed to auction Aquitania furnishings and equipment, later that month the RMS Aquitania was sold to the British Iron & Steel Corporation Ltd for £ 125,000. Aquitania sailed from Southampton to Scotland to be broken up.