SS L'Atlantique

SS "L'Atlantique", owned by the Compagnie de Navigation Sud Atlantique (a subsidiary of the Compagnie Générale Transatlantique or Grench Line) was the largest and most luxurious ocean liner on the Europe-South America run until her untimely destruction by fire.

History

"L'Atlantique" was 717 feet long and registered over 42,000 gross tons, surpassing her closest rival, the German "Cap Arcona" of the Hamburg-South America Line in size and speed. Her sumptuous interiors, which included a department store, rivaled those of liners on the North Atlantic run. Most of her interior spaces were designed by the same interior decorators who designed the "Ile de France" and the legendary "Normandie".

While her interiors were beautiful, her exterior appearance was not; her funnels were too short, she had no sheer and she had a rather top-heavy appearance. Her funnels were later raised in height to improve her looks.

Demise

"L'Atlantique" made only nine round voyages. On January 3, 1933, sailing without passengers to Le Havre, France, for a refit, fires mysteriously broke out in several cabins at once. The crew bravely attempted to extinguish the fires, but the speed and intensity (as well as the rough seas) made it impossible, and soon the "L'Atlantique" was ablaze from stem to stern. Naval ships and salvage tugs eventually brought the ship into tow, but not before nine crewmen died fighting the fire.

The ship's engines and boilers were unharmed, but her interiors were totally destroyed. Sabotage by the French Communist Party was suspected, but could not be proven. Sud-Atlantique said she was beyond repair, but her underwriters believed that she could be salvaged. The line took the insurance company to court. In the meantime, the ship remained at her berth, a forlorn sight. It was not until 1936 that the courts decided in the favor of the shipping line, and the vessel was towed to Port Glasgow and scrapped. According to Les Streater's book, as "L'Atlantique" was towed to her doom, she passed the brand-new RMS "Queen Mary", about to depart on her maiden voyage. As the ships passed, "Queen Mary"'s captain blew his ship's whistle in a poignant tribute to the soon-to-be-scrapped liner.

References

* Les Streater "L'Atlantique: Queen of the South Atlantic"
* [http://classicliners.nicholaswwilson.com/ships/l'atlantique.htm "The Story of the L'Atlantique"]