Chapter XIX.
The Eastern Steam Navigation Co., Ltd., and the Great Eastern, steamship.
In the year 1851 a steamship company was promoted in London, under the title of the Eastern Steam Navigation Company, Limited, for the purpose of establishing a direct line of leviathan steamers between England and India, via the Cape of Good Hope.
The services of the most distinguished engineers of the period were secured, Mr. I. K. Brunel being appointed the consulting engineer of the company. An order was placed with Messrs. Scott Russell & Co. for the pioneer steamer, which it was at first the intention of the company to call the Leviathan, but that name was subsequently abandoned in favour of Great Eastern. She was to be propelled by paddle wheels and a propeller. Mr. Scott Russell designed the lines, and constructed the hull of the vessel, as well as the engines of 1,000 h. p. nom. to drive the paddle wheels. Messrs. James Watt & Co., of Soho, designed and constructed the engines, of 1,500 h. p. nom., to drive the screw propeller. As a matter of course, some considerable time was occupied in preparing the plans for so gigantic a ship—one which was not only the largest ever built up to that date, but which remained the largest steamer built to the end of the 19th century. The necessary plans, specifications and yard preparations were completed during the spring of 1854, and on the 1st of May of that year, the construction of the Great Eastern was commenced by Mr. Scott Russell in his shipbuilding yard at Millwall, on the north side of the Thames. She was built with a double hull from the keel to the water line, the inner and the outer skin being of equal thickness of iron, with a space between of 34 inches. If required for ballasting purposes, this space could be filled with 2,500 tons of water. The length of the Great Eastern was 675 feet, her breadth 83 feet, and her depth 60 feet. She was divided into 60 watertight compartments, each 60 feet long. She carried six masts—the mizzen mast of wood, and the remaining five of hollow wrought iron. Three of these masts carried square sails, the other three were fore and aft rigged. She had five funnels, two of which were placed forward of the paddle boxes and three aft. Her hull was constructed of 30,000 plates of iron, weighing 10,000 tons, and joined together by 3,000,000 rivets. “Her cylinders, the four largest in the world ... (each) 18 feet long, 6 feet in diameter, and 28 tons weight, were successfully cast at the Engineering Works of Messrs. Scott Russell & Co., Millwall.”[22]
Great Eastern s.s.
Copied by permission of Messrs C. W. Kellock & Co.
In her equipment were included twenty large lifeboats, and it was intended that she should carry in addition two small steamers, each 100 feet long, to be used for landing and embarking passengers or luggage.
She was designed to carry 10,000 troops or 4,000 passengers, viz., 800 first-class, 2,000 second-class, and 800 third-class, in addition to a crew of about 400, and she was capable of stowing 12,000 tons of coal.
Although, nominally, the engines which drove the paddle wheels were of 1,000 h. p., they were capable of working up to 5,000 h. p., while the screw engines worked up to 6,000 h. p., or with combined paddle and screw her engines could develop 11,000 h. p., which it was estimated would enable her to maintain at sea a speed of 20 knots per hour, and to accomplish the voyage between England and Australia in 30 days.
“It is a question of much interest to determine what amount of speed this power will impart to the vessel. Messrs. James Watt & Co.’s anticipation is that the speed of the vessel will be about seventeen miles per hour, and from that to eighteen miles seems to be about the limit engineers have hitherto predicted. But we believe that these anticipations fall very short of what the real speed will be, and which we do not hesitate to predict, will turn out to be between twenty-four and twenty-five miles per hour.” (“Illustrated London News,” 23rd May, 1857).
On Tuesday, 3rd November, 1857, the first attempt was made to launch the Great Eastern. The hour named for commencing the launching operations was 11 o’clock, and was kept fairly punctually. The chief machinery for moving the hull was boxed off, and nearly altogether out of sight. The vessel’s name, Leviathan, was given by Miss Hope (who afterwards became the Duchess of Newcastle), the daughter of the Chairman of the Great Eastern Steam Navigation Company, and the name displayed upon a board; the change of name from Great Eastern to Leviathan occasioning a good deal of surprise. After the customary bottle of wine was smashed against the vessel’s bow, a “fortissimo obligate” of sledge hammers resounded above and around—then ceased. The great ship moved for a few feet, then stopped. The congregated thousands waited in suspense, when suddenly a terrific report was heard. One of the powerful drums used in the launch had cracked. An order had been misunderstood; the after-winch handles were turned the wrong way; the heavy iron handles revolved wildly, striking down the men, fracturing their arms and legs, and with a fatal result in one instance.
A second attempt was made to launch the Leviathan on Thursday, 19th November, 1857, but the efforts were even less successful than on the first occasion, for despite all the mechanical power brought to bear on her she would not move an inch.
On Monday, 11th January, 1858, launching operations were resumed at Millwall, and the monster ship was moved riverwards to the extent of 20 feet. On Tuesday a further advance was made until a little after 3 o’clock in the afternoon, when, having moved 16 feet 10 inches aft, and 15 feet 1 inch forward, it was thought desirable to suspend operations. At high water on the latter day the ship was water borne to the height of 7½ feet, which had the effect of diminishing the resistance to the extent of 4,000 tons. The yard and river banks were crowded with spectators on the following day (Wednesday), in the expectation that the ship would float, but she was only moved another 2½ inches. On Thursday the Leviathan was pushed down the full extent of the ways, and there left for the next spring tides.
The completion of the launch of this stupendous and beautiful vessel took place on Sunday, 31st January, 1858, under the most favourable circumstances, and unattended with a single accident, the high tide lifting the vessel clear off the ways.
It is incomprehensible how so eminent an engineer as Brunel should have made such a mistake as to attempt to force so huge a fabric broadside on into the river. The costly experiment added £120,000 to the cost of the ship, and practically ruined the company.
From the commencement of the company’s operations, the directors were hampered by the failure of many of the shareholders to meet the calls upon their shares when due. To add to these difficulties, Messrs. Scott Russell & Co. (the builders of the ship), in 1855, found themselves unable to meet their obligations, and to complete the construction of the Great Eastern.
At the half-yearly meeting of the company, held on the 15th February, 1856, the chairman reported that the failure of Mr. Scott Russell would be a cause of some delay, and of some increased cost in the completion of their vessel, which would be undertaken by the company’s engineer, Mr. I. K. Brunel. Twelve months later it was announced that calls to date amounted to £606,000, of which nearly £200,000 remained unpaid, owing to a number of other shareholders, in addition to Mr. Scott Russell, having become insolvent.
The opening months of 1858 saw the Great Eastern successfully launched, but the Great Eastern Steam Navigation Company had not the funds necessary for her equipment. During the year the company was wound up by the sale and transfer of the ship to a new company for the sum of £160,000—
“All the capital had been expended, the public refused to advance any more money, and if the directors wished their ship to be anything but a helpless, unfinished carcase on the waters £300,000 more must be found to make her ready for sea. To the exertions of Mr. Campbell (the present chairman of the Board), and to Mr. William Jackson (the eminent and well-known contractor of Birkenhead), we believe is greatly owing the pleasant result of our being at length able to announce that the Great Eastern is ready for sea. But one still more remarkable aid was forthcoming, and which we could hardly believe, only that we have it on the best authority—it was a subscription of no less than £50,000 of the supplementary capital, in sums of £1 to £5, by persons in the humblest ranks of life (domestic servants, costermongers, greengrocers and labourers)—who tendered their money avowedly without any expectation of profit, but solely that they might hear of the great ship, which they looked upon as the pride of England, being fairly afloat on the deep waters. Such a fact at once took the vessel out of the category of mere commercial undertakings, and more than anything else stimulated the brave men who were her projectors to renewed exertions for her ultimate completion.” (“Illustrated London News,” 13th August, 1859).
The sum of £300,000 having been subscribed for the new undertaking, the directors had, after paying for the vessel, a surplus of £140,000 to complete her equipment and make her ready for sea. Her new owners took possession of her early in 1859, but it was not until September of that year that she was sufficiently complete to make her first trial trip. While on this trip, and when off Hastings, a shocking accident occurred, through the explosion of one of the funnel casings, causing the death of six men, injuring several others, and virtually wrecking the grand saloon. As no further damage was done to the hull or machinery, she proceeded to Portland, and the necessary repairs having been completed at an outlay of £5,000, she resumed her voyage to Holyhead on the 8th October. She started on her return trial trip from Holyhead to Southampton on the 2nd November, 1859, where she remained until the 17th June, 1860.
The Great Eastern was advertised to leave Southampton on her first voyage to New York on Saturday, 16th June, 1860, but, in consequence of bad weather on that date, the sailing was postponed until the following morning. She carried only 36 passengers, including several ladies, on this trip. The voyage across the Atlantic occupied eleven days. The greatest speed attained was 14½ knots per hour, and the greatest distance run by her in any one day was 333 miles. Immense crowds assembled to witness her arrival in New York Harbour, and she was welcomed with great enthusiasm. She passed the battery at 4-30 p.m. on the 28th June, 1860.
The promoters of the Great Eastern Steam Navigation Company were very sanguine that the Government would frequently employ their vessel for the conveyance of troops, of which they estimated she could carry ten thousand. The Government very wisely never risked so great a body of men in one vessel.
The only occasion on which the Great Eastern was made use of as a troopship was during the threatened rupture between England and the Federal Government of America, in connection with the “Trent Affair.” She made her first entry into the port of Liverpool on the 4th June, having made the passage from New York in 9 days 11 hours. She had on board 212 passengers and a large cargo. On Thursday, 27th June, 1861, she sailed out of the Mersey on a voyage to Quebec, with troops to reinforce the Canadian garrisons. The day was cloudless, there was brilliant sunshine, and the piers and dock walls for five miles, as well as the landing-stages, were lined with spectators, who, as the great ship passed them, responded most heartily to the cheers raised by the soldiers who thronged the upper deck and the lower portions of the rigging.
As she passed the landing-stages she fired salutes, and also on passing the Rock Battery. There were on board the Great Eastern, not 10,000 troops as her promoters anticipated, but 2,125 men of all ranks, accompanied by 159 wives and 244 children of the soldiers. There were also about 40 civilian passengers in the saloon.
She left Quebec on her return voyage on the 6th August, arriving in Liverpool on the 15th idem, and resumed her sailings to New York.
She sailed from Liverpool for New York on the 10th September, under the command of Captain Walker, having on board 175 cabin and 193 steerage passengers. On the following Thursday she encountered a heavy gale, during which, when about 280 miles westward of Cape Clear, her steering apparatus became deranged and broken, and five of her lifeboats were carried away. For two days and nights she lay helpless, exposed to a terrific sea. Her internal fittings were in consequence seriously damaged, and her passengers greatly alarmed for their safety. The Captain decided to abandon the voyage and put back to Queenstown, arriving in the harbour on the Tuesday following. The passengers, when once more on terra firma, relieved their feelings by publishing some very angry letters in the Press, in which they reflected very severely on the managers of the company, but gave unqualified praise to Captain Walker for the manner in which he had handled the great ship in her disabled state.
The laying of submarine cables, commenced in 1865, offered employment for which the Great Eastern was specially suitable, and in which she was constantly engaged for a period of ten years.
Shortly after noon on the 30th June, 1866, the Great Eastern left the Medway, having on board the second Atlantic cable. She was convoyed by H.M.S. Adder as far as the Nore. As she steamed past Garrison Point she was loudly cheered by a vast concourse of people who had gathered there. She proceeded direct to Berehaven, in the extreme South-West of Ireland, which was to be her starting point for laying the submarine cable. Four weeks later, or to be exact, about 5 o’clock (English time) on the 27th July, this great task was successfully accomplished. One of the earliest messages transmitted by the cable was the following from H.M. Queen Victoria to the President of the United States of America:—
“The Queen congratulates the President on the successful completion of an undertaking which she hopes may serve as an additional bond of union between the United States and England.”
President Johnson suitably acknowledged the Royal despatch, and reciprocated the good wishes contained in it. [A most interesting diary of the Atlantic Telegraph Expedition is published in the Annual Register for 1866.]
In 1867 her cable-laying services were interrupted by a charter to a French company, who employed her between Brest and New York, carrying passengers to and from the great French Exhibition. For this service she was fitted with new boilers for the screw engines, and her saloons were altered and redecorated.
After the completion of her charter with the French company, she was taken up by the Telegraphic Construction and Maintenance Company, in whose service she remained for seven years. During this period she succeeded in laying the cable between Brest and Duckburgh, near Boston, Mass., in 1868; between Aden and Bombay in 1870; between Valentia and Heart’s Content, in 1873 and 1874; completing her charter to the Telegraphic Construction Company in July, 1875. The amount received for charter was at the rate of £20,000 per annum, nett form.
The last years of this noble vessel were ignominious. She was chartered in 1886 by “Lewis’s,” who used her for a couple of years as a huge floating advertisement on the Mersey. She afterwards went to several Ports as a “show” ship, and finally returned to the Mersey to be broken up on the 20th November, 1888. Her owners at this time were probably the only persons who ever realized a handsome profit out of her during her varied career. The following is a list of the prices obtained at the sale of the various parts of the hull and equipment:—
Eleven-ton Trotman’s anchor, 33 guineas, in addition to a number of other anchors, which realized £3 to £7 15s. per ton; oak lifeboat, 2 guineas; cutter, 30s.; iron masts, £9 to £17 10s. each; copper steam piping, £2,960; gun metal, £6,400; scrap yellow brass, £1,760; sheet lead, £367 10s.; lead piping, £367 10s.; iron plates forming the hull, £12,600; iron beams, £2 13s. per ton; scrap rivets, £2 6s. per ton; boiler tubes, £49 7s. 6d.[23]
So ended the career of the most celebrated ship of the 19th century.
FOOTNOTES:
[22] “Illustrated London News.”
[23] The above figures are obtained from “Donaldson’s Engineers’ Annual,” 1900, by permission.