| Article number: | 10.20.006 |
The motor ship Willem Ruys was built between 1938 and 1947 as a passenger ship for the Royal Rotterdam Lloyd. As an Italian cruise ship under the name Achille Lauro, the ship became known for the hijacking in 1985 and the fire and sinking in 1994.
The ship was ordered in 1938 by the Rotterdam Lloyd from the shipyard Koninklijke Maatschappij De Schelde (KMS) in Vlissingen and was assigned construction number 214. Under this construction number, a name not yet known, the keel was laid on 25 January 1939. As a result of the Second World War and post-war material shortages, the ship could not be completed and remained on the slipway in Vlissingen city centre for seven and a half years. Experts disagree on the role the ship under construction might have played in preventing the German occupier's intended destruction of the shipyard. After the liberation of Vlissingen, the freshwater installation on board the ship supplied drinking water to the city for two weeks. When the dykes of Walcheren were bombed in three places in 1944, causing a large part of the island to be flooded, the lifeboats of the Willem Ruys were used for water transport.[1]
The ship was intended as a counterpart to the Oranje, which competitor Steamship Company Netherlands had ordered in 1937. Like the Oranje, the Willem Ruys had a streamlined superstructure with two carefully proportioned, also streamlined funnels. The interior design of the ship was also less opulent than was customary until the early 1930s, but it was the work of a team of designers including architect Eschauzier. Technically, it was unique that the two propellers were driven via gearboxes by eight high-speed diesel engines. The Willem Ruys was not as fast as the Oranje, but offered space for more passengers and cargo.
It was not until 1 July 1946 that the ship was christened and launched. It was named "Willem Ruys", after the Lloyd director Willem Ruys (1894-1942), who was executed during the war. At the same time, the Rotterdam Lloyd obtained the Royal designation. On 28 September 1947, the ship left the shipyard for its first sea trial, after which it was moored at the Lloydkade in Rotterdam for the final fitting-out work. The maiden voyage began on 2 December 1947.
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Drawing number |
10.20.006 |
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Author |
C. van der Kellen |
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Description |
passenger ship MS "Willem Ruys" (1939/1947) - Royal Rott. Lloyd |
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Quality |
construction frames to the waterline; side view; deck plans; some details |
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Scale |
1 : 500 |
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Number of sheets A00 |
0 |
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Number of sheets A0 |
0 |
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Number of sheets A1 |
0 |
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Number of sheets A2 |
1 |
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Number of sheets A3 |
0 |
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Number of sheets A4 |
0 |
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Total number of drawing sheets |
1 |
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Number of A4 text sheets |
0 |
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Weight in grams |
45 |
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Particulars |
LOA 39 cm |
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Remarks |