Compañía Transatlántica Española
Encyclopedia
Compañía Transatlántica Española (CTE), also known as Spanish Line in documents in English, is a passenger ocean line
that has largely ceased operations although it still exists as a company. It is popularly known as "La Trasatlántica" in the Spanish language
(Catalan
: "La Transatlàntica").
was in Santander
in the 19th century and its head office was transferred to Barcelona after Antonio López y López, the owner of the company, married Catalan lady Lluïsa Bru Lassús.
"La Trasatlántica" was established in colonial Cuba
in 1850 as "Compañia de Vapores Correos A. López" by Spanish businessman Antonio López y López. It began operations with a 400-ton hybrid sailing ship-sidewheel steamer
.
Antonio López was knighted as Marquis of Comillas
in 1878. His company changed its name to "Compañía Transatlántica Española", its present name, after being registered as a joint stock company
in 1881. Following antonio's death in 1883, his fourth son, Claudio López Bru
, took charge of the company. By 1894 the Compañía Transatlántica Española fleet reached 33 vessels with a total of 93.500 registered tonne
s.
During the 1898 Spanish–American War, 21 CTE ocean liners were used by the Spanish Navy
as auxiliary vessels in order to assist in the war effort. They tried to break the blockade that the United States
were imposing on Cuba and the Philippines
, the last great colonies of the Spanish crown, but were mostly unsuccessful.
In 1920, after the difficult years of the First World War the Compañía Transatlántica embarked on a considerable expansion and modernization of its fleet. It worked together with the "Sociedad Estatal de Construcción Naval", a Spanish shipbuilding
company, in this effort. CTE built well-equipped and luxurious ocean-going steamships that could compete with the best shipping companies of the planet. Claudio López Bru, second Marquis of Comillas, died in 1925.
Following the proclamation of the Second Spanish Republic
in 1931, some of the Compañía Transatlántica's ocean liners underwent name changes for political reasons. Vessels named after Spanish royalty and aristocratic figures were re-christened; for example, steamer "Alfonso XIII", named after the newly-ousted king, became ship "Habana", after Havana
city in Cuba.
In 1939, as a result of the violence inflicted by both sides of the Spanish Civil War
the Compañía Transatlántica saw a great part of its fleet destroyed or in bad state of disrepair. Between 1950 and 1960 the shipping line was able to slowly recover but a storm was gathering which was to have almost lethal consequences for the company.
The arrival of the first passenger jets, like the Boeing 707
, and the ensuing popularization of air travel
, would deal a mortal blow to the transoceanic shipping lines throughout the world. Compañía Transatlántica shares crashed at the stock exchange and the ailing company was deprived of investors. In 1960, at one of the company's shareholder's meetings the idea was floated to transform CTE into an airline, but funds were not forthcoming. Between the mid-1960s and 1974, CTE liquidated practically all its fleet. One of the last luxury ocean-liners of the company was ship Virginia de Churruca, sold to Trasmediterránea
which used it for ferry services to the Balearic Islands
. The profits from sales like these, undertaken "at the point of death", were minimal.
In 1978 a non-functional Compañía Transatlántica Española, was integrated into the Instituto Nacional de Industria
(INI), an entity of the Spanish state that absorbed failed companies in order to service debt, among other purposes.
In 1994 "La Transatlàntica" became a private company. CTE still survives, but has been only engaged in minor real-estate operations, among other minor businesses. Nowadays the Compañía Transatlántica is not even a shadow of the transoceanic shipping company it was in its days of glory, when its luxury passenger liners cruised the waters of the oceans around the world.
, better known for the Sagrada Familia
. The CTE pavilion was demolished only a few years after its completion to make way for the Passeig Marítim, Barcelona's harbor promedade. Models of this now disappeared structure can be seen at the Sagrada Família museum.
There is a sculptural relief representing a Compañía Transatlántica allegory on one side of the monument "A López y López" in Barcelona. This work was executed by Catalan sculptor Rossend Nobas.
Shipping line
-History of shipping lines:Large-scale shipping lines became widespread in the nineteenth century, after the development of the steamship in 1783. At first, Great Britain was the centr of development; in 1819, the first steamship crossing of the Atlantic Ocean took place and by 1833, shipping lines...
that has largely ceased operations although it still exists as a company. It is popularly known as "La Trasatlántica" in the Spanish language
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
(Catalan
Catalan language
Catalan is a Romance language, the national and only official language of Andorra and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Catalonia, the Balearic Islands and Valencian Community, where it is known as Valencian , as well as in the city of Alghero, on the Italian island...
: "La Transatlàntica").
History
The Compañía Transatlántica Española's first office in SpainSpain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
was in Santander
Santander, Cantabria
The port city of Santander is the capital of the autonomous community and historical region of Cantabria situated on the north coast of Spain. Located east of Gijón and west of Bilbao, the city has a population of 183,446 .-History:...
in the 19th century and its head office was transferred to Barcelona after Antonio López y López, the owner of the company, married Catalan lady Lluïsa Bru Lassús.
"La Trasatlántica" was established in colonial Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
in 1850 as "Compañia de Vapores Correos A. López" by Spanish businessman Antonio López y López. It began operations with a 400-ton hybrid sailing ship-sidewheel steamer
Steamboat
A steamboat or steamship, sometimes called a steamer, is a ship in which the primary method of propulsion is steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels...
.
Antonio López was knighted as Marquis of Comillas
Comillas
Comillas is a small township and municipality in the northern reaches of Spain, in the autonomous community of Cantabria. The Marquisate of Comillas, a fiefdom of Spanish nobility, holds ceremonial office in the seat of power at a small castle which overlooks the town.-Marquis of Comillas:The first...
in 1878. His company changed its name to "Compañía Transatlántica Española", its present name, after being registered as a joint stock company
Joint stock company
A joint-stock company is a type of corporation or partnership involving two or more individuals that own shares of stock in the company...
in 1881. Following antonio's death in 1883, his fourth son, Claudio López Bru
Claudio López Bru
Claudio Lopez Bru, segundo Marques de Comillas and Grandee of Spain , was a Catalan businessman , an immensely rich shipping magnate and landowner....
, took charge of the company. By 1894 the Compañía Transatlántica Española fleet reached 33 vessels with a total of 93.500 registered tonne
Tonne
The tonne, known as the metric ton in the US , often put pleonastically as "metric tonne" to avoid confusion with ton, is a metric system unit of mass equal to 1000 kilograms. The tonne is not an International System of Units unit, but is accepted for use with the SI...
s.
During the 1898 Spanish–American War, 21 CTE ocean liners were used by the Spanish Navy
Spanish Navy
The Spanish Navy is the maritime branch of the Spanish Armed Forces, one of the oldest active naval forces in the world. The Armada is responsible for notable achievements in world history such as the discovery of Americas, the first world circumnavigation, and the discovery of a maritime path...
as auxiliary vessels in order to assist in the war effort. They tried to break the blockade that the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
were imposing on Cuba and the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, the last great colonies of the Spanish crown, but were mostly unsuccessful.
In 1920, after the difficult years of the First World War the Compañía Transatlántica embarked on a considerable expansion and modernization of its fleet. It worked together with the "Sociedad Estatal de Construcción Naval", a Spanish shipbuilding
Shipbuilding
Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to before recorded history.Shipbuilding and ship repairs, both...
company, in this effort. CTE built well-equipped and luxurious ocean-going steamships that could compete with the best shipping companies of the planet. Claudio López Bru, second Marquis of Comillas, died in 1925.
Following the proclamation of the Second Spanish Republic
Second Spanish Republic
The Second Spanish Republic was the government of Spain between April 14 1931, and its destruction by a military rebellion, led by General Francisco Franco....
in 1931, some of the Compañía Transatlántica's ocean liners underwent name changes for political reasons. Vessels named after Spanish royalty and aristocratic figures were re-christened; for example, steamer "Alfonso XIII", named after the newly-ousted king, became ship "Habana", after Havana
Havana
Havana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of — making it the largest city in the Caribbean region, and the most populous...
city in Cuba.
In 1939, as a result of the violence inflicted by both sides of the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
the Compañía Transatlántica saw a great part of its fleet destroyed or in bad state of disrepair. Between 1950 and 1960 the shipping line was able to slowly recover but a storm was gathering which was to have almost lethal consequences for the company.
The arrival of the first passenger jets, like the Boeing 707
Boeing 707
The Boeing 707 is a four-engine narrow-body commercial passenger jet airliner developed by Boeing in the early 1950s. Its name is most commonly pronounced as "Seven Oh Seven". The first airline to operate the 707 was Pan American World Airways, inaugurating the type's first commercial flight on...
, and the ensuing popularization of air travel
Air travel
Air travel is a form of travel in vehicles such as airplanes, helicopters, hot air balloons, blimps, gliders, hang gliding, parachuting or anything else that can sustain flight.-Domestic and international flights:...
, would deal a mortal blow to the transoceanic shipping lines throughout the world. Compañía Transatlántica shares crashed at the stock exchange and the ailing company was deprived of investors. In 1960, at one of the company's shareholder's meetings the idea was floated to transform CTE into an airline, but funds were not forthcoming. Between the mid-1960s and 1974, CTE liquidated practically all its fleet. One of the last luxury ocean-liners of the company was ship Virginia de Churruca, sold to Trasmediterránea
Acciona Trasmediterránea
Acciona Trasmediterránea is part of the Acciona group. It operates passengers and cargo ferries between mainland Spain and the Canary Islands, the Balearic Islands, and northern Africa.-History:...
which used it for ferry services to the Balearic Islands
Balearic Islands
The Balearic Islands are an archipelago of Spain in the western Mediterranean Sea, near the eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula.The four largest islands are: Majorca, Minorca, Ibiza and Formentera. The archipelago forms an autonomous community and a province of Spain with Palma as the capital...
. The profits from sales like these, undertaken "at the point of death", were minimal.
In 1978 a non-functional Compañía Transatlántica Española, was integrated into the Instituto Nacional de Industria
Instituto Nacional de Industria
'Instituto Nacional de Industria' , literally National Institute of Industry, was a Spanish state-owned financing and industrial holding company, currently succeeded by the Sociedad Estatal de Participaciones Industriales' .-History:...
(INI), an entity of the Spanish state that absorbed failed companies in order to service debt, among other purposes.
In 1994 "La Transatlàntica" became a private company. CTE still survives, but has been only engaged in minor real-estate operations, among other minor businesses. Nowadays the Compañía Transatlántica is not even a shadow of the transoceanic shipping company it was in its days of glory, when its luxury passenger liners cruised the waters of the oceans around the world.
Monuments
The Compañía Transatlántica Española pavilion at the 1888 Universal exhibition in Barcelona was located in its Maritime Section. It was one of the works of famous Catalan architect Antoni GaudíAntoni Gaudí
Antoni Gaudí i Cornet was a Spanish Catalan architect and figurehead of Catalan Modernism. Gaudí's works reflect his highly individual and distinctive style and are largely concentrated in the Catalan capital of Barcelona, notably his magnum opus, the Sagrada Família.Much of Gaudí's work was...
, better known for the Sagrada Familia
Sagrada Familia
The ' , commonly known as the Sagrada Família, is a large Roman Catholic church in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, designed by Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí...
. The CTE pavilion was demolished only a few years after its completion to make way for the Passeig Marítim, Barcelona's harbor promedade. Models of this now disappeared structure can be seen at the Sagrada Família museum.
There is a sculptural relief representing a Compañía Transatlántica allegory on one side of the monument "A López y López" in Barcelona. This work was executed by Catalan sculptor Rossend Nobas.