The Normandie had a threefold purpose: to be the world's largest liner ever, to be the fastest on the North Atlantic, and to be a floating center of French art and decoration. Of these, the Normandie triumphed in all three, being the first liner over 60,000 tons and 1,000 feet, capturing the Blue Riband (though it was continually denied by the French Line, in case she did not beat the Rex), and was an extremely beautiful ship.
However, not all of France was full of pride when speaking of the new liner. Some thought it was inexcusable foolishness, due to the Great Depression, which was in full swing at the time. But, on October 29, 1932, the First Lady of France, Madame Lebrun, launched the ship, naming her Normandie. Her hull slipped into the Loire, but with a backwash that swept 100 into the water.
The public found it absolutely amazing to look at the Normandie. She had three large raked red-and-black funnels, which diminished in height further aft (the third of which was a dummy), her outdoor decks were clear as all her technical equipment was below decks, and her bow was exquisitely raked. The interior decoration wasn't all that made the Normandie
unique, either. Her machinery was rather novel as well. As
with most However, the Normandie was not all fun and games. There were two problems. First off, she suffered from vibrations. These were solved with a new set of propellers. The other problem had a more concrete name. Its name was Queen Mary, being built across the channel. When it was found out that Queen Mary would be 81,000 tons, Normandie would no longer be the world's largest ship. So, in Normandie's 1935-36 winter overhaul, a new deckhouse was built on her aft decks, which raised her gross tonnage from 79,000 to 83,000 - larger than the Queen Mary. There was a second battle when it came to the Queen Mary. That was regarding the Blue Riband, of which Normandie was the holder. The Queen Mary took the Blue Riband in August 1936, going 30.14 knots. In March 1937, Normandie regained the Riband. However, in August 1938, Queen Mary won the Blue Riband from the Normandie for good, with a speed of 31.6 knots. On
August 28, 1939, Normandie was temporarily laid up at New York's
Pier 88, due to the threat of war in Europe. As it turned out, the Normandie
would never turn her propellers again. France eventually fell to the
Nazis, but the Normandie was safe, being in the (at the time) The Normandie lay idle for a very long time. The Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth came and went, and the Normandie still lay idle. This period was notable in that it was the only time the Normandie, Queen Mary, and Queen Elizabeth were ever together, as seen at right. Since Britain was at war, the Queens were painted in gray, but the Normandie remained in her peace-time colors. While she sat in her French Line red and black, she was the target of several rumors. These rumors placed her as becoming a troop ship, an aircraft carrier, or both. The correct story was that the Normandie would be best suited as a troop ship. Five days after the attack on Pearl Harbor, on December 12, 1941, Normandie was seized by the United States government...
On December 27, Normandie was transferred to the
Navy Department and renamed the USS Lafayette, with the designation
AP-53. The former Normandie's interiors were removed and
taken ashore, and then after Unfortunately,
the Lafayette would never see trooping service in World War
II. Just days before she was to be completed for trooping, on
February 9, 1942, sparks from a worker's acetylene torch landed on a pile
of kapok life jackets. As a result, with kapok being as flammable as
it is, the whole ship went up in smoke. The fire spread
quickly. Everyone on board the Lafayette evacuated, and then
fire-fighting units ashore and afloat arrived at the scene, ready for
action, as a covering of orange-brown smoke The excitement caused by the fire lead to misjudgment on the part of the fire fighting crews. They were a bit overzealous with their water, and poured literally tons of water on the smoldering Lafayette. As a result, in the early hours of February 10, the Lafayette, unable to stand the additional pressure of being seriously top-heavy due to her watertight compartments keeping the firefighting water at her top, she snapped her mooring lines, and capsized. The Lafayette was now on her side. In her
capsized state, she stayed as she was for eighteen months. Nothing
was done except six investigations, in order to On her side, the salvaging of the former Normandie
would be one of the most difficult salvage jobs ever. Her funnels,
masts, and superstructure had to be slowly and systematically removed by
floating cranes, while at the same time, pumps had to push harbor water
out of her hull. Late in the summer of 1943, Lafayette was
back in an upright position, amidst talk that she would now definitely
become an aircraft carrier. On October 27, 1943, she was returned to
the Navy, and was then towed to Brooklyn, and laid up, Two more years passed, and the war was over. On October 11, 1945, she was stricken from the Navy's list of ships. Vladimir Yourkevitch, the original designer of the Normandie, presented a scheme showing her cut down, and restored as a medium-size passenger ship. However, the United States Maritime Commission now had title to the Lafayette, and they had no more use for or interest in the ship. As a result, she was sold to Lipsett Incorporated, and was towed to Port Newark, New Jersey, and scrapped. This $60,000,000 ship of genius realized only $161,000 in the end. Within a year, only the legend remained.
The USS Lafayette is leaving New York Harbor for the last time...
The USS Lafayette, the former Normandie, is scrapped. Normandie Vital Statistics: Gross tonnage: 79,280 (1935), 82,799, then 83,423 (1936) Length: 1,028 feet Width: 117 feet Machinery: Steam turbo-electric engines geared to quadruple screw Speed: 29 knots Capacity: 848 First, 670 Tourist, 454 Third Built: Chantiers de l'Atlantique, St. Nazaire, France, 1935 Demise: Burned and capsized in New York, February 9-10, 1942; scrapped in 1946-1947. Thanks to The Great Ocean Liners for the picture of the Normandie being scrapped. The Classic Liners of Long Ago © 2000-2007 Nick Works, Inc. |
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The
Normandie was one of those ocean liners that only comes once in a
long time. She was novel, innovative, glittering, and exceptionally
advanced. Built by the Chantiers de l'Atlantique, in St. Nazaire,
France, she was the third of four liners that the French Line constructed
as part of an agreement with the French government in 1912. The
first was the Paris, and the second was the Ile de France.
In
January 1931, her keel plates were laid down. In the following
months, the office of the French Line released alluring details about the
ship and her accommodation, as well as was overwhelmed with name
suggestions. Possible names included La Belle France, Président
Paul Doumer, and even Maurice Chevalier.
During
the harshest of the depression years, work stopped on the Normandie,
just like what happened to the Queen Mary. However, unlike
the Queen Mary, the Normandie's work stoppage didn't last
very long, and work soon resumed. And thus in May 1935, Normandie
entered into service, and immediately captured the Blue Riband, with a run
of 29.98 knots, soundly beating the Rex's old record of 28.92.
However, more so than all of that, Normandie's
interior was absolutely astounding. For instance, the main dining
room was decorated in hammered glass and bronze with Lalique
fixtures. It was longer than the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles, was
three decks high, and seated 1,000. There was also a theater, first
of its kind on a liner, that contained a stage for live
performances. Each adjoining first-class cabin was done in a
different style, with 400 different styles overall on the liner.
liners
of her day, Normandie made use of steam turbines. The problem
with steam turbines, though, was that they could only go one direction, so
a ship using conventional turbines would have to have a second set of
turbines to go astern. This problem was solved on the Normandie by
installing a few "middlemen" of sorts. The turbines would
power an electrical generator, which in turn would power electric engines,
which would turn the propellers. It was quite successful, and as the
engines were reversible, it solved the turbine problem.
neutral United States. Her funnels were capped, her furniture was covered with dust covers, and her staff was reduced to 115.
some dry-docking in Boston, she was back in
New York, to be converted to the Lafayette, troop carrier.
began
to hang over the city.
determine
who was to blame. All the while, the Navy had to decide what to do
with the USS Lafayette. With the urgency of the war in mind,
with the need for another large troop ship, it was determined that the Lafayette
would be salvaged.
pending
decision on what her future would be.
