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Chapter 5
1919 - 1939
Between the Wars
ROTTERDAM IV At the end of the war in 1918 only the NIEUW AMSTERDAM remained on the Company's New York passenger service. The ROTTERDAM rejoined her in February 1919, the NOORDAM in March and the RYNDAM in the Autumn of that year, after release from American trooping service. Two new 15,000 ton turbine ships, VOLENDAM and VEENDAM, were ordered from Harland & Wolff and completed in 1922 - 23. When these came into service the NOORDAM was chartered to the Swedish-America Line as the KUNGSHOLM. The pre-war position had therefore been rapidly re-established. Channel ports of call were changed from Brest and Falmouth to Boulogne and Plymouth in 1919, and finally to Boulogne and Southampton in 1923.
VEENDAM II A new STATENDAM was also ordered, from Harland & Wolff, similar to her previous namesake but somewhat smaller and with cruiser, instead of counter, stern. She was launched in 1924 but the American immigration restrictions of that year having changed the whole pattern
of North Atlantic passenger services, work was suspended until 1927 when the ship was towed to Holland for completion by the Wilton-Fijenoord Company. She sailed on her maiden voyage in April 1929, reaching New York on the 300th anniversary of the arrival of the first Dutch ships which carried the founders of the settlement that has since become New York City. Prior to 1914 publicity material had depicted a very large three-funnelled Holland-America liner named STATENDAM. Now at last for ship-lovers a long-standing mystery seemed solved. As completed, the ship had accomodation for 510 first-class,344 second-class, 374 tourist-class and 426 third-class passengers. Single-reduction geared turbines of 20,000 h.p. driving twin screws gave her a speed of 18 knots. In her day this fine ship was known as the "Queen of the Spotless Fleet".
STATENDAM III Accomodation on the other passenger ships was also altered as a result of the immigration restrictions: the ROTTERDAM carried 539 first-class and 643 tourist passengers, the NIEUW AMSTERDAM, 300 cabin and 860 tourist passengers.
Part of the compensation for the loss of the wartime STATENDAM (JUSTICIA) was 60,000 tons of shipbuilding materials, by which construction of fourteen new ships in Holland was expidited. The Cuba, Mexico and Gulf line was reopened in 1919 and four new 8,800 ton, two-funnelled ships, MAASDAM, EDAM, LEERDAM and SPAARNDAM, were completed in 1921 - 22 for an augmented service with accomodation for 14 first, 174 second and 800 third-class passengers, the latter being catered for by calls at Spanish ports. Like the contemporary new freighters these vessels were driven by double-reduction geared steam turbines. They were originally intended to be freights of the 'G' class, described below, but were modified to include pasenger accomodation and a dummy funnel. Later, in 1934, they were reconstructed with one funnel and accomodation for 20 cabin class passengers only, and were put on North Atlantic routes.
MAASDAM III A 4,321 ton passenger ship, the WARSZAWA, was purchased in 1920 to convey emigrants from the Baltic ports of Danzig and Libau to Rotterdam for transfer to the trans-Atlantic ships. She was sold in 1926, after US immigration restrictions came into force.
Although the Holland-America Line possessed 22 cargo ships at the end of the war, half of them were old and a large amount of new tonnage would become essential to operate the existing and projected freight service. Ten ships were therefore ordered from Dutch builders. Eight 6,800 ton 'B' class - BURGERDYK, BLYDENDYK, BINNENDYK, BLOMMERSDYK, BREEDYK, BILDERDYK, BOSCHDYK and BEEMSTERDYK - were delivered in 1921-22. Two larger 'G' class ships, GAASTERDYK and GROOTENDYK of 8,400 tons, followed in 1922-23. All these were driven by double-reduction geared turbines. Two other 6,800 tonners of the immediate post-war period were VECHTDYK, built at Sunderland, and the STADSDYK, purchased from Japan, both were triple-expansion engines. At the same time the first Holland-America motor ships, originally ordered in 1914, were delivered by Harland & Wolff. These were the DINTELDYK and DRECHTDYK, twin-screw, 9,300 ton ships with four-stroke single-acting eight-cylinder Harland-Burmeister and Wain engines. After delivery of these 14 new ships, even of the old freighters were sold.
Cargo services to Boston, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Norfolk and Newport News were expanded. In 1920 a Rotterdam-South America line was started in conjunction with Van Nievelt Goudriaan & Co. and a new refrigerated cargo service from Dutch and UK ports, via the Panama Canal (opened in August 1914), to the Pacific Coast of Canada, USA and Mexico was run jointly with the RMSP (later known as the Royal Mail Line). Also from 1919, a Holland-British India line was operated to Indian ports and Rangoon, in association with other Dutch shipping companies.
It was not until 1928 that any more new ships were ordered. Two larger 'D's', the twin-screw motor ships DELFTDYK and DAMSTERDYK, were delivered by Fijenoord in 1929-30, with eight-cylinder four-stroke single-acting engines. Both ships survived the Second World War. DAMSTERDYK was re-engined with six-cylinder two-stroke engines and renamed DALERDYK in 1948-9. DELFTDYK, mined at the mouth of the Weser in 1950, was taken in hand and more extensively reconstructed in 1952. Renamed DONGEDYK, she was given a raked bow, increasing the length by 20 feet and new seven-cylinder engines, which raised her speed to 17 knots.
DALERDYK
NIEUW AMSTERDAM I AT ROTTERDAM In 1930 the slump put a stop to further developments and a number of the older ships were sold in the next three years. Best known amongst these was the NIEUW AMSTERDAM ( I ), one of the most popular ships of the Line up to that time. After a drastic financial reorganization, new capital was made available and the Company was able to weather the Depression under the Chairmanship of Mr. Willem van der Vorm, with Messrs. Willem H. deMonchy and Franciscus J. Bouman as Managing Directors. The darkness of the slump slowly lifted and by January 1936, the Company had sufficient confidence in the future to lay down a new flagship of 36,000 tons. It was fitting that she should take the name NIEUW AMSTERDAM ( II ), after her renowned predecessor, and she in her turn has proved to be one of the finest ships on the North Atlantic, becoming flagship of the Netherlands Mercantile Marine. Built by Rotterdam Dockyard Company, she sailed on her maiden voyage in Mat 1938. Measuring 759 ft. overall by 88 ft. beam, she provided excellent accomodation for 568 cabin class, 452 tourist class and 209 third class passengers. Single reduction-geared turbines developing 34,000 h.p. gave her a speed of 20 1/2 knots. When built she was the largest twin-screw ship in the world and the largest ship to be built in Holland.
NIEUW AMSTERDAM II Although the Holland-America Line had had no Dutch rivals on the New York service, the Red Star Line, operating from Antwerp under the Belgian flag, had put up serious competition. As part of the International Mercantile Marine Group, this line was powerfully backed. The IMM suffered heavily from the US immigration restrictions of 1924 and in the slump years, 1929-1933. By 1934, only 4,000 passengers were carried compared to 117,000 in 1913, and in 1935 the last of the Red Star ships were sold. Two of them, the 16,000 ton PENNLAND and WESTERNLAND, were subsequently re-purchased by the Holland-America Line in June 1939, with the right to operate on the Antwerp-New York run under the name "Red Star Line'.
The immediate pre-war period saw the completion of some fine Dutch motor ships, of massive appearance, for intermediate and cargo services. Prominent amongst them were the twin-screw 11,000 ton NOORDAM and ZAANDAM of 1938, with accomodation for no less than some respectively125 and 140 passengers. Proving very popular, this new departure was to have been followed by the larger, 12,000 ton ZUIDERDAM and WESTERDAM, carrying 123 first-class passengers. Under construction at the time of the German invasion, only the latter was eventually completed after the was with accomodation for 134 passengers. The two other ships of this period were the 9,200 ton freighters, SOMMELSDYK and SLOTERDYK, built at Odense in Denmark. They also were twin-screw motor ships.
WESTERDAM I
Next Chapter:
1940 - 1945
The Second World War
(The above text is from H. M. Le Fleming's Ships of the Holland-America Line, John Marshbank Ltd. Publishers, 1963, 1965.)
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