MV GOTHIC 1948

The passenger and refrigerated cargo ship Gothic was built in 1948 by Swan, Hunter & Wigham Richardson at Wallsend for the Shaw, Savill & Albion Line. Designed for the UK–New Zealand service via the Panama Canal, she could carry over 11,000 tons of cargo and 85 first-class passengers at 17 knots.

In 1952, she was refitted at Cammell Laird as a royal yacht for a planned royal tour, which was postponed after King George VI’s death.

The white-hulled Gothic later gained fame when she carried Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh on their 1954 coronation world tour.

Her final years were marked by tragedy. On August 1, 1968, a major fire broke out around the bridge while she was en route from Wellington to Panama. Seven lives were lost, and the damaged ship was forced to return to New Zealand. Declared beyond repair, she was sold for scrap the following year and arrived at Kaohsiung on August 13, 1969, ending the career of one of Britain’s most distinguished postwar liners.

Source: Naval Nostalgia