Design and Construction (1945-1947):

In 1945 with the Second World War virtually over, the South African Government invited Union-Castle to discuss a new mail contract. The magnificent fleet that had been built up in the prewar years had suffered significant losses. Those that had survived were still engaged under government requisition on troopship duties. As a result of the discussions a new mail contract was successfully negotiated. It was a 10 year contract for a weekly service to start in January 1947, and Union-Castle quickly announced the construction of two new large passenger liners, each of 28,000 tonnes. They were to be built by Harland & Wolff in Belfast to replace the Warwick Castle and Windsor Castle which had been sunk during the Second World War. While other shipping companies were holding back after the war, Sir Vernon Thomson (Chairman of Union-Castle Line) had the foresight and courage to go ahead immediately with ordering new ships.

These ships were the Pretoria Castle and the Edinburgh Castle. Their Majesties King George VI and Queen Elizabeth with their two daughters, the present Queen and Princess Margaret, had visited South Africa in the spring of 1947. So it was appropriate that the Edinburgh Castle was launched on the 19th October 1947 by HRH Princess Margaret. Indeed it was the Princess's first major public engagement. These two sister ships were based on and were an enlarged version of the prewar Capetown Castle and reverted to steam propulsion. The two ships cost around £3 million each at the time. But by 1953 this cost would have doubled to over £6 million!

Union-Castle Line Era (1947 – 1976):

The Edinburgh Castle entered service in 1948 and gave long and distinguished service for Union-Castle on the mail service to Cape Town. In 1956 the Edinburgh Castle became the first ship to use the new Union-Castle Terminal at 102 berth in Southampton Docks on the 10th February 1956. In 1962 she was refurbished and her external profile altered slightly with a rearrangement and shortening of her masts.