Ship History


 RETURN TO THE HOMEPAGE                                                                                                                                                                                                                       S/S ILE DE FRANCE 1926

The Ile de France was a liner of innovation from the outset. The first large liner built after the conclusion of the First World War, she was not so much an engineering marvel as a decorative break from the traditions of passenger ship design. The Ile de France would herald the inception of the modernistic Art Deco designs into passenger shipbuilding and would be the forerunner for the artistic influence which would give birth to the Normandie of later years. The Ile de France would soon become the first ship of the CGT French Line's era of innovation, establishing new precedents in French maritime architecture.

Design and Construction (1912 - 1926):

Her construction was part of the agreement between the French Line (Compagnie Générale Transatlantique) and the French government dating back to November 1912. This agreement called for four passenger and mail liners, to be constructed in 1916, 1921, 1926, and 1931. The first, Paris, was laid down in 1914, but World War I disrupted her construction, and so she wasn't finished until June 1921. As a result, Ile de France, the second ship, was pushed back to 1926. The Île de France showed classical external lines and moderate speed, but was the first liner commissioned after the war to exceed 40,000 tons. Launched on 14 March 1926 at the Penhoet Chantiers de l'Atlantique Shipyard, St Nazaire the Ile de France was greeted into existence by thousands of proud government and company officials, workers, press, and french citizens. The ship would undergo fourteen months of fitting-out and left the shipyards on 29 May for her sea trials.

Following sea trials, the ship sailed to her home port of Le Havre on June 5th. In the following week, acclaim and praise would resonate from the thousands of press and french citizens who flocked to the pier to glimpse visit the new ship. The novelty of Art Deco aboard a ship was an immediate sensation and the reaction of the visiting press would be echoed in favourable reviews the following week. In the past years, ships had imitated the shore-style. The Deutschland, the Olympic and the Imperator had all shown an interior that could be found on any castle or chateau situated upon the ground. The Île de France was a ‘Floating Hollywood’, a floating luxury resort in itself. The vessel had been launched after the famous ‘Paris Exposition des Arts Decoratifs et Industriels Modernes’ in 1925, and had obviously inspired the French Line. The term ‘Art Deco’ was born.

The Île de France had been meant by the French to represent their country on the high seas, and that was not difficult to realise. The vessel included an entire Parisian pavement-café, a grand first class entrance hall and a dining room never dreamed of before, all very French – in Art Deco. In the years before the war, ships had mainly been profitable because of the immigrants from Europe, but now the more distinguished group of people was aimed at. The Île de France had three classes, but the third class had not at all the leading position in passenger-statistics as on earlier pre-war liners. The first class staterooms were in many different styles, and the ship had the greatest number of de luxe suites on the seas. The third class was also something new. Steerage had almost disappeared from ocean travelling, and the staterooms were highly improved. People such as teachers and students, and budget-tourists were now found in third class. The other classes were for the rich and famed.

Even though the Île de France could not claim to be the fastest vessel in the world, she had the quickest mail-system between Europe and America. On board, she carried a small mail-plane that could take off 200 miles from shore, making the French liner the fastest in one aspect.

The CGT French Line Prewar Years (1927 - 1939):

On June 22, 1927 the Ile de France sailed from Le Havre for her maiden voyage to New York with a call at Plymouth. The acclaim she received in Europe was echoed by the citizens of America. Her popularity was such that by 1935, the ship had carried more First-Class passengers than any other transatlantic liner.

When the Depression arrived in 1929, many old ships went to the scrappers because they were not wanted by those who could still afford to cross the Atlantic. The Île de France however was one of the favoured ships and did not suffer notably in the hard years. She continued to serve into the 1930s with a steady group of loyal passengers returning to her for her voyages.

In 1933, she was sent back to her builder's yards in order to be refitted to reduce serious vibration. Every piece of paneling in the ship was removed, padded, and then reinstalled.

On one crossing in 1936, the Île de France encountered the brand new Queen Mary on the Atlanic. The French ship sent the following message to the Queen: 'You are a very lovely lady'. The Queen Mary responded with: 'And you will always be a queen'.

The War Years (1939 – 1947):

When the Second World War broke out the Ile de France was laid up in September of 1939 at Pier 88 in New York, just opposite the Normandie. French Line had no intention to send her back to France for fear of enemy advances. So the Ile de France was towed to Staten Island, laid up again, and her staff of 800 was reduced to 100. However, the Île de France was not to be used by the French during the hostilities. She was put on loan to the British Admiralty in March, 1940, and then on May 1, she was sent to Europe and then Singapore with war materials. Once she was in the far east, she was formally seized by the British after the fall of France.

In autumn 1941, she returned to New York. She went into the Todd Shipyards, and 120 days later, was a full-fledged troopship. This entailed removing her peacetime decor and painting the ship all gray, as well as installing berths for 9,706 soldiers, new kitchen facilities, a complete overhaul of her machinery, and the scrapping and replacement of her entire plumbing system. Afterwards, the Ile de France was employed in trooping, with an Asiatic crew under P&O management. She sailed under dual flags - that of Britain, and that of Free France.

She was first based out of Saigon, and then later, this was changed to Bombay. She worked with Cunard's second Mauretania, and the Dutch Nieuw Amsterdam. These three liners worked the Cape Town-to-Suez shuttle. Later, in 1943, she was switched to the North Atlantic, and put under Cunard management. Here she worked with the Compagnie Sud-Atlantique's Pasteur.

In 1945, the Ile de France was officially decommissioned. With little time for a refit, she was hurriedly sent on "austerity" and "repatriation" voyages to Canada, New York, and Indochina. She was handed back to the French Line in 1947. 

The CGT French Line Postwar Years (1947 - 1959):

In 1947, the Ile was returned to French possession. After the war, the Île de France was once again the prime ship of the French Line, since the Normandie’s tragic end in New York harbour in 1942. The French Line immediately sent their ship to the Penhoët ship yard for conversion back to a passenger liner. Many significant changes were made as part of the refit.  The ships accommodations were also altered to 541 First, 577 Cabin, and 227 Tourist class passengers.The most apparent change was that of the exterior. The three funnels were removed and replaced by a more stylish duo. The straight black hull had been turned up to meet her upper fore peak, to resemblance with the French Lines new look as on the Normandie. These changes resulted in an increased gross tonnage, and now the French vessel could boast a 44,356-tonnage. The Île de France went back into service in 1949, and proved to be just as popular as before the war.

From the start of her first post-war maiden passenger voyage on the 21st July 1949, the new Ile de France departed from Le Havre to New York. Her offering of First Class service and accommodation continued to attract passengers who enjoyed the renown hospitality of the French Line. In 1950 she was joined by the former Europa, renamed as the Liberte.

At about 11.00 p.m. on the 25th July 1956, the Île de France was on one of her voyages from New York to Le Havre. At the same time the Swedish liner Stockholm collided with the Italian liner Andrea Doria. The French liner received a distress call from the stricken vessel, but hesitated somewhat before telling the Andrea Doria that she turned her bow and speeded towards the given position. When the Île de France arrived at the scene, she could hardly see anything. The French liner’s captain came up with the idea to floodlight his entire ship so that he could see better himself, and to help the Italian liner’s passengers. He could now see that the Andrea Doria was listing heavily to starboard, and the Stockholm , while still seeming to remain afloat had a totally crushed bow. Since the Stockholm was not safe due to her smashed bow, the Stockholm's lifeboats shipped the remaining Andrea Doria’s passengers to the Île de France. At 06.15 a.m., the French ship prepared to sail back to New York and land her new passengers. The Île de France then made a wide circle around the Andrea Doria and blasted her whistle whilst hoisting the French flag thrice in order to honour the doomed liner.

By 1958, she celebrated her 31st birthday but unfortunately the jet age had come to dominate transatlantic travel and ocean was on a rapid decline. The venerable old liner was also beginning to show her age. As a result CGT French Line decided to retire the Ile de France on the 17th November 1958.

The Final Years (1958 – 1959):

With CGT French Line having retired the Ile de France from service in November 1958 many ideas were sparked about her future. Some wanted her for a museum. Another wanted her as a hotel along the French Riviera. The Sheraton firm wanted her as a tourist center at Martinique in the Caribbean.

In the end the ship was sold to a Japanese scrapping company and departed Le Havre on the 16th February 1959. Unceremoniously renamed Furansu Maru for the voyage, the send-off she received was one long remembered in the hearts of those who had occasion to sail aboard the French Line's most popular post-war liner.

The Furansu Maru was chartered to a Hollywood film company for $4,000 per day, and renamed the Claridon, she was to become a floating prop for the movie "The Last Voyage", a disaster-style movie about the last sailing of a transpacific liner. The CGT French Line was furious, took the filmmakers to court over it, and succeeded in obtaining an order to have the funnels repainted (they were still red and black, but had a white diamond in the middle, with an "M" in the middle of that), and enjoining the filmmakers from using the name Ile de France, or even showing any French words at all on the ship. The bow of the ship was also repainted from the French Line's "clipper" paint scheme to a more traditional paint scheme.

After the court battle was over, the Claridon was positioned offshore in the Inland Sea, she was partly sunk, the top of the forward funnel released and sent crashing into the deckhouse, and her interiors made victim of explosive devices. Following the filming, the Claridon was refloated, and she was scrapped.

However she will always live on as the legendary Ile de France.

 

        (c) Cruise Ship History Collection 2018 including www.thecunarders.co.uk                                                                                                                                                                              A Edward Elliott