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Ocean Liner

RMS Homeric, originally launched as Columbus, was an ocean liner built for Norddeutscher Lloyd and launched in 1913 at the F. Schichau yard in Danzig, Germany (now Gdańsk, Poland). Columbus was ceded to Great Britain in 1919 as part of German war reparations. She was sold to the White Star Line in 1920, which named her Homeric. Her sister ship Hindenburg remained in German ownership and was renamed Columbus. Homeric was operated by White Star from 1922 to 1935.

The White Star Line originally planned for its three Olympic class liners, Olympic, Titanic and Britannic, to operate a weekly transatlantic express service. However Titanic was lost on her maiden voyage after striking an iceberg in 1912, and Britannic was lost in the First World War after striking a mine in the Aegean in 1916. Another of the line’s express ships, the 17,000 ton Oceanic of 1899, was also lost during war service in 1914. When Olympic re entered civilian service in 1920, she lacked any suitable running mates. Under the terms of the Treaty of Versailles which entitled Britain to war reparations, White Star looked to obtain some large German liners which had been under construction during the war but were left unfinished. One was the 56,000 ton Bismarck, the third and largest of Albert Ballin’s great Imperator class trio, left unfinished at the Blohm & Voss Shipyard. This was equally sold to the White Star Line and Cunard Line and renamed Majestic. Another was the 34,000 ton Columbus at F. Schichau in Danzig. Launched on 17 December 1913, Columbus was the first of two vessels ordered by Norddeutscher Lloyd (North German Lloyd) for their Bremerhaven to New York service. At 34,000 tons, Columbus was, at the time, the largest twin screw ship powered by reciprocating engines in the world. She was built for a relatively modest service speed of just a shade over White Star Line purchased the unfinished Columbus in 1920, and renamed her Homeric. The ship was completed and entered service two years later. At the forward end, beneath the navigating bridge one deck above, was a drawing room with plate glass windows offering views of the bow and the sea beyond. After the drawing room came a reading and writing room, followed by the lounge, music room, smoking room, and a glass enclosed veranda at the aft end of the deck. The sides of each room offered "an unbroken vista" of the full 340 foot length of this sequence of rooms. The largest of the main suite of rooms was the lounge, 94 ft. long and 47 ft. wide, with a 20 foot high vaulted skylight at its center. The lounge was dominated by two large paintings at each end, one of Columbus landing in the New World, and the other of Columbus being received by Queen Isabella and Ferdinand II. Between the windows were fluted columns with gilded Doric capitals, and the room was furnished in an assortment of styles and upholstery. At the center of the room the carpet could be removed to reveal a circular dance floor with room for 300 dancers. The First Class dining room, located on D Deck, was overlooked by a gallery and featured "an inverted dome of crystal pendants centered in a ceiling of white and gold." The Smoking Room was decorated in the Old Dutch style, with floor to ceiling walnut paneling and a carved, white painted ceiling. On either side of the room were 18 foot high bow windows hung with buff and olive colored silk curtains. The furniture was overstuffed and upholstered in Morocco leather and wool tapestry.

Resplendent in her White Star livery, the newly completed Homeric arrived in Southampton 21 January 1922, and on 15 February 1922, Homeric departed Southampton on her maiden voyage to New York. She joined the venerable old Olympic, still one of the most stylish ships on the Atlantic, and in May, Bismarck successfully transformed into the flagship Majestic would arrive and complete the three ship express service, operating in direct competition against the rival Cunard Line's trio of Mauretania, Aquitania, and Berengaria (the former German Imperator). On 19 April 1925 Homeric received the distress call 'Now very danger. Come quick' from the Japanese freighter which was listing dangerously in heavy seas and taking on water. Homeric was 70 mile (113 km) away and sped to Raifuku Marus position at 20 knots. However when she arrived, Raifuku Maru was listing at a 30 degree angle, and the rough seas prevented Homeric from getting close enough to rescue any of the stricken ship's crew, who had attempted unsuccessfully to get away in their lifeboats, which were smashed by the rough seas. Homerics crew and passengers watched helplessly as the Japanese freighter sank with all thirty eight of her crew. This incident became controversial at the time: When Homeric reached New York, several passengers spoke to the press accusing Homerics crew of not making enough effort to rescue the crew of the stricken ship. The Japanese press even accused the Homerics crew of racism. These accusations were denied strenuously.