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HISTORY
SS Europa, later SS Liberté,
IMO 5607332, was a German ocean liner built for the Norddeutsche Lloyd
line (NDL) to work the transatlantic sea route. She and her sister ship,
Bremen, were the two most advanced, high-speed steam turbine ocean
vessels in their day, with both earning the Blue Riband.
After World War II French line Compagnie Générale Transatlantique was
awarded the Europa as a war prize to replace the destroyed SS Normandie,
which had caught fire and capsized at her moorings while interned by the
United States in New York City. Europa was refitted at Le Havre and
rechristened the Liberté, serving until the arrival of the SS France in
1961 as the premier liner in the Compagnie's fleet. She was laid up in
1962 and scrapped at La Spezia, Italy, in 1963.
Construction
Europa was built in 1929 with her sister ship SS Bremen to be the second
50,000–gross ton North German Lloyd liner. They both were powered with
advanced high-speed steam turbine engines and were built with a bulbous
bow entry and a low streamlined profile.
Europa and her slightly larger sister ship were designed to have a
cruising speed of 27.5 knots, allowing an Atlantic crossing time of 5
days. This enabled Norddeutsche Lloyd to run regular weekly crossings
with two ships, a feat that previously required three.
The launching of Europa took place at Blohm & Voss shipyard, Hamburg on
Wednesday, August 15, 1928. Europa was intended to be completed in
spring 1929. However, on the morning of 26 March 1929, a fire broke out
while still at the equipment dock. The fire raged all day long and it
was not until the evening when the fire was under control. The ship's
turbines were damaged heavily and also the remainder of the ship had
been significantly damaged. After long discussions between builder and
shipping company, it was decided to repair the ship. Within eleven
months the ship was finished and completed on February 22, 1930. The
cause of the fire has never been clearly identified.
Blue Riband
Europa made her maiden voyage to New York on 19 March 1930 taking the
westbound Blue Riband from SS Bremen with the average speed of 27.91
knots and a crossing time of 4 days, 17 hours and 6 minutes. During the
voyage many of her passengers were disturbed by the soot coming out of
Europa's low funnels. The problem was corrected by raising the funnels
by 15 feet, though decreasing her low profile. After they were raised,
there were no more complaints. She held the Riband until Bremen
recaptured it in June 1933.
Aircraft
Like Bremen, Europa had a small seaplane launched from a catapult on her
upper deck between the funnels. The airplane flew from the ship to a
landing at the seaplane port in Blexen. The pilots and technicians
gained experience later applied to equipping German warships with
on-board aircraft.
The catapult was removed from both Bremen and Europa after a few years
of service, because it was too expensive and complex.
World War II
Europa was inactive for most of World War II. There were plans to use
her as a transport in Operation Sea Lion, the intended invasion of Great
Britain, and later conversion to an aircraft carrier. None of these
plans came to pass, and in 1945, she was captured by the Allies and used
as a troopship, sailing as the USS Europa (AP-177). The United States
claimed the ship as a war prize on 8 May 1945 and gave the vessel to the
US Navy, which commissioned Europa 25 August 1945 with Captain B. F.
Perry in command. Europa cleared Bremerhaven on 11 September 1945 for
Southampton, England, where she loaded 4,500 homeward-bound American
troops, arriving in New York City on 24 September. After alteration to
increase her troop-carrying capacity, she made two voyages to
Southampton to bring US servicemen home to the United States. She sailed
from New York once more, on 15 March 1946, bound for Kirkwall in the
Orkney Islands, and Bremerhaven, where she moored on 24 March.
Europa suffered from small fires caused by the removal of the ship's
original high-quality fittings and installation of inferior replacements
to compensate for material shortages in the war effort. Also, several
serious hull cracks were discovered. The vessel was decommissioned on 2
May 1946 and delivered to the State Department on 8 June 1946. She was
later transferred to France in partial payment of war reparations.
French Line
After World War II French line Compagnie Générale Transatlantique was
awarded the Europa as a war prize to replace the destroyed SS Normandie,
which had caught fire and capsized at her moorings while interned by the
United States in New York City. Europa was taken to Le Havre for
refitting - which proved fraught with difficulties. On December 8, 1946
a storm caused her to break free from her moorings and she collided with
the wreck of Paris, causing significant damage to her hull. She was
raised in April 1947 and towed to the Chantiers de l'Atlantique Shipyard
in Saint-Nazaire to complete her refitting. She suffered some further
damage when the ship caught fire once again in October 1949, resulting
in damage to some of her passenger space. Finally, on August 2, 1950,
wearing CGT black-topped red funnels in place of NDL yellow, she made
her maiden voyage to New York under her new name, Liberté. After five
years and two near disasters the crossing was uneventful, and she went
on to serve as the premier transatlantic liner in the French Line fleet
until the arrival of the 66,000-ton SS France in 1961. Liberté was laid
up in 1962 and scrapped at La Spezia, Italy, in 1963.
Liberté was featured prominently in the Jane Russell film The French
Line. Liberté made an appearance in the opening credits of the 1953
movie How to Marry a Millionaire, as well as the 1954 classic film
Sabrina, starring Audrey Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart, in the final
scenes of the film.
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