MS Giulio Cesare
Encyclopedia
MS Giulio Cesare was a luxurious ocean liner built for the Italian Line
Italian Line
The Italian Line or Italia Line, also known as the Italia di Navigazione S.p.A., was a passenger shipping line that operated regular transatlantic services between Italy and the United States, and Italy and South America...

. She was a sister ship to MS Augustus
MS Augustus (1952)
MS Augustus is a 27,090 GRT, luxurious ocean liner built in 1950 for Italian Line. She was the sister ship to MS Giulio Cesare that was launched in the same year. These two ships were built to the same design, with similar specifications. After the Augustus was sold to Hong Kong, she sailed under...

 that was launched in the same year. She was built for the South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...

 service like her sister. These two ships' specification and design were very similar.

During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, the Italian Line had lost a large portion of its fleet, including the ocean liner . The surviving ships were refitted and repaired, and returned to passenger service after the war was over. However, the surviving ships like and her sister ship , and the and her sister ship , all could carry small numbers of passengers. The Italian Line
Italian Line
The Italian Line or Italia Line, also known as the Italia di Navigazione S.p.A., was a passenger shipping line that operated regular transatlantic services between Italy and the United States, and Italy and South America...

 needed new liners for the South American service. It placed an order with Cantieri Riuniti dell' Adriatico
Cantieri Riuniti dell' Adriatico
Cantieri Riuniti dell'Adriatico was an Italian manufacturer in the sea and air industry which was active from 1930 to 1966. This shipyard is now owned by Fincantieri....

 to build two new 27,000 GRT ocean liners, to be christened Giulio Cesare and Augustus.

The building of the 27,000 GRT Giulio Cesare and Augustus marked the start of a new era for the Italian Line; furthermore, other large Italian liners were being built, such as the and her sister ship , both 29,000 GRT. In 1958, these two great liners were followed by . and her sister ship were the last and the biggest liners of the Italian Line.

Design and construction

MS Giulio Cesare was built by Cantieri Riuniti dell' Adriatico
Cantieri Riuniti dell' Adriatico
Cantieri Riuniti dell'Adriatico was an Italian manufacturer in the sea and air industry which was active from 1930 to 1966. This shipyard is now owned by Fincantieri....

, Monfalcone
Monfalcone
Monfalcone is a town and comune of the province of Gorizia , located on the coast of the Gulf of Trieste. Monfalcone means "Mount of Falcon" in Italian....

 (Yard #1756) but was engines by Societa Anonima Fiat, Turin
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...

. She was launched on May 18, 1950 in the presence of Md. Donna Ida Einaudi, wife of the President of Italy. The ship was completed in September 1951 and made her maiden voyage on October 27, 1951 from Genoa
Genoa
Genoa |Ligurian]] Zena ; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is a city and an important seaport in northern Italy, the capital of the Province of Genoa and of the region of Liguria....

 to Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...

 and then to Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...

.

The Augustus and the Giulio Cesare were powered by Societa Anonima Fiat diesel engines. These engines were the largest and most powerful ever built, and were found to cause severe vibrations in her passenger accommodation, however, they produced 35,000 HP, providing 23.3 knots, which made her popular.

The exterior design of Giulio Cesare and her sister attracted many passengers because of their fat and round bows, curved superstructures, modern masts, tall large funnel, and graceful sterns. They also provided full air-conditioning for passengers. The ships were divided into three classes: First, Cabin, and Tourist. There were swimming pools for each class. The First class cabins had two or four roomed suites, one and two berth cabins, and private facilities and phones. The Cabin class were provided with a bathroom and one, two or four berth cabins. The Tourist Class accommodation lacked some of the luxuries of the other classes, but were still considered modern and comfortable .

Service history

She was initially placed on the Genoa-Buenos Aires service after her maiden voyage. But she was transferred to the Genoa-Cannes
Cannes
Cannes is one of the best-known cities of the French Riviera, a busy tourist destination and host of the annual Cannes Film Festival. It is a Commune of France in the Alpes-Maritimes department....

-Naples-New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

 service on June 29, 1956 and operated this route until 1960 when she was returned to the Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

-South America route after she has made 32 round voyages on the North Atlantic route. She remained on her South America route for the next thirteen years. She was refitted in 1964. After the refit, she received a new cinema, and the Cabin and Tourist Class dining rooms were combined. Her three classes were also merged into a First and Tourist class after the refit. However the number of passengers she and her sisters were carrying began to decline. She developed problems with her rudder on January 14, 1973 and had return to Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...

. The Italian Line decided to sell her for scrap. She was laid up at Naples on January 14, and departed on April 20 for the Terrestre Marittima Shipyards, La Spezia, Italy where she was broken up, the first post-war built Italian liner to be scrapped.

External links

  • http://www.ssmaritime.com/augustus.htm
  • http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/descriptions/ShipsG.html
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK