German Combination Ships to the South Atlantic

[Brian Probetts (Site Admin)]

Santa Ines.jpg

After the Second World War, in the late 1940s, the once mighty German passenger liner fleet was in ruins. There were few survivors, in fact, with some going as reparations to the British, others to the Soviets and, largest of all, the 50,000-ton Europa to the Americans (but then soon allocated as reparations to the French, to later become the celebrated Liberte).

There were two distinct trans-Atlantic liner runs: the Hamburg America Line and the North German Lloyd, combined in the early ‘30s as Hapag-Lloyd, looked after the northern run to New York; the Hamburg-South America Line covered southern waters, to the East Coast of South America. Amidst very strict Allied limitations, the German fleet was allowed, very slowly, to rebuilt in the early ‘50s.
Having had fine liners, such as the superb, three-funnel Cap Arcona, before the War, they could rebuild but in great moderation.
So they built six combination passenger-cargo ships, each carrying up to 28 all-first class passengers, for the long-haul run from Hamburg to Rio, Montevideo and Buenos Aires --- with stops en route at Bremen, Rotterdam, Antwerp and then Las Palmas in the Canaries.

Handsome-looking ships capped by red & white funnels, they had splendid passenger quarters, decorated in rather opulent Edwardian styles. There was a fine dining room, smoking room, bar and small swimming pool on the otherwise small sun deck. All of the staterooms had, and rather uniquely for the time, a private bathroom.
The Santa Ines and Santa Teresa were slightly larger, at 9,000 tons and 479 feet in length; the Cap Salinas, Santa Elena, Santa Isabel and Santa Ursula were smaller, at 7,200 tons. Diesel-driven with single screws, they were quite slow, however, managing a mere 13 knots at top speed. Captain Klaus Schacht was then employed aboard the ships of Hamburg-Sud, as it was dubbed. “The Santa Ursula and her sisters were marvelous vessels,” he recalled. “They had great interiors. They were always full with passengers.

Germany had a huge link with Argentina in particular and trade was always very, very strong. For cargo, there was German and other European industrial goods going to South America and then returning with skins, meats, coffee, fertilizers and lots of special oils made from South American beans. We also carried vegetable oils in tanks. Hamburg-South America Line was one of the great merchants of Hamburg.” ​

Photo: The handsome Santa Ines.​