The idea of such a publicly funded liner was controversial, leading to raucous debates in the French parliament. Charles de Gaulle (the future President of France) opined that it would be better for French national pride, then flagging due to the then ongoing Algerian War of Independence, to construct one grand ocean liner, in the tradition of SS Normandie, as an ocean-going showcase for France. Īt first, the idea of two 35,000-ton running mates was considered to replace Ile de France and Liberté. (This ship would eventually be the 68,000-ton Queen Elizabeth 2.) Further, the United States Lines had put into service in 1952 SS United States, which had broken all speed records on her maiden voyage, with an average speed of 35.59 knots (65.91 km/h 40.96 mph). It was rumoured that this ship would be a 75,000-ton replacement for their ships RMS Queen Mary and RMS Queen Elizabeth. Without these vessels the French Line had no ability to compete against their rivals, most notably the Cunard Line, which also had plans for constructing a new modern liner. for cruises, all baffle doors segregating staircases from taboo decks were opened to permit free circulation throughout the vessel." However, others, such as ship historian William Miller, have asserted that France was the "last purposely designed year-round transatlantic supership." History Concept and construction įrance was constructed to replace the line's other ageing ships like SS Ile de France and SS Liberté, which were outdated by the 1950s. Some, like ship historian John Maxtone-Graham, believe that France was purposely built to serve as both a liner and a cruise ship, stating: "Once again, the company had cruise conversion in mind. During her last years, to save fuel costs, crossings took six days/nights. She was renamed SS Blue Lady and sold to be scrapped in 2005, and scrapping was completed in late 2008.įrance was the French Line flagship from 1961 to 1974, combining regular five days/nights transatlantic crossings with occasional winter cruises, as well as two world circumnavigations. At the time of her construction in 1960, the 316 m (1,037 ft) vessel was the longest passenger ship ever built, a record that remained unchallenged until the construction of the 345 m (1,132 ft) RMS Queen Mary 2 in 2004.įrance was later purchased by Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) in 1979, renamed SS Norway and underwent significant modifications to refit her for cruising duties. SS France was a Compagnie Générale Transatlantique (CGT, or French Line) ocean liner, constructed by the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard at Saint-Nazaire, France, and put into service in February 1962. Lloyd Werft (Refitting for Cruising Duties) Miami, Key West, Cozumel, Roatán, Great Stirrup Cay, Miami, and also European cruises
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