Kronprinz Wilhelm Chapter Four

Prinz Heinrich’s State Visit of the United States

Prinz Heinrich [i]

In 1902 the Kronprinz Wilhelm would undertake the most important voyage it ever did under passenger service. This was not a voyage of the usual showmanship of being an ambassador for the impeccable service and high standards of the North German Lloyd Line -or honouring the monarch it was named after, this was a voyage to settle and improve the relationship between two of the biggest nations on 1900’s Earth. The relationship between Germany and the United States had been strained ever since Germany quickly rose to becoming a world power after the 1871 unification of the country. Kaiser Wilhelm II’s ensuing foreign policies of colonialism, naval superiority as well as a confrontation between both nations in the Philippines over the Samoan Islands had put both countries on ice with one another by the turn of the century.

In America the anti-German sentiment was high and many Americans were worried about Germany’s rapid expansion and viewed them as an aggressive and domineering presence. To counteract this, Kaiser Wilhelm II started a campaign to improve relations with the United States and improve Germany’s image abroad. A large part of this was his decision to send his own brother, Prinz Heinrich of Prussia across the sea on a highly-publicized state tour to meet President Roosevelt of the United States. As the Kaiser “extended his hand of friendship across the sea” , the vessel used to accomplish this would be none other than the brand new flagship of the North German Lloyd: the Kronprinz Wilhelm.

The Kronprinz in the Kaiserdock [i]

Preparation:

On January 30th the Kronprinz Wilhelm was taken to the giant Kaiserdock in Bremerhaven to specially fitted out for Prinz Henrich’s journey. The dock was specially built for the Kaiser Class liners and is still in use today. The work that was done included extremely meticulous maintenance of the ships machinery for the best possible crossing, as well as specially preparing the rooms the Prinz and his consort would use. The Prinz’s cabin was one of the four Cabins de Luxe on the Promenade Deck and included a saloon, bedroom and bathroom. He was also accompanied by Admiral von Tirpitz, the Secretary of State for the Navy, Vice Admiral von Seckondorff, and Adjutant Gen. von Plessen who would occupy the three other luxury suites near him. This was not the Prinz’s first time aboard the Kronprinz Wilhelm, he had already made previous crossings and was very fond of the ship’s smoking room and also had his meals in the First Class Dining Saloon amongst other passengers.

Departure:

Prinz Heinrich and his consort boarding the Kronprinz Wilhelm [i]

On February 10th Prinz Heinrich travelled with Kaiser Wilhelm II from Berlin from Potsdam. The next evening the Kaiser gave a farewell dinner to his brother with United States Ambassador, Mr. White present. At midnight the Prinz took a train to Kiel and and would stay there another four days. Finally, on February 15th Prinz Heinrich travelled to Bremerhaven where the Kronprinz Wilhelm would depart from. It was the afternoon when he would board the great liner in Bremerhaven in front of a large crowd. He first boarded a tender docked beside the wharf, and then stepped aboard the Kronprinz tied up next to the tender. The nearby forts all fired their guns in a salute, then the anchor was raised by Captain Richter and the ship set off on this incredibly sensationalized state visit.

The schedule was for Prinz Heinrich to land in America and be saluted by 21 guns from the American warships. He would then attend the launch of the Imperial Yacht Meteor with both Mr and Mrs Roosevelt, he would then travel to Washington and be invited by Roosevelt as a guest of the nation, and then attend a dinner with the President.

The First Leg:

Prinz Heinrich, Captain Richter and his consort aboard the Kronprinz [i]

The Kronprinz Wilhelm left Bremerhaven on the carrying her most-esteemed guest with an aim of arriving in New York on the the 22nd . This ship slowly sailed down the Weser under a cloudless sky with people watching and cheering from the shores. Captain Richter felt confident they would reach New York perfectly on schedule as long as this weather held. Prinz Heinrich was a sailor himself, being fond of yachting and was very interested with the operations and running of the flagship of the North German Lloyd. He and his suite first walked around the decks, before he personally went to the bridge to be in the company of Captain Richter. Almost every day of the voyage, no matter what weather occurred or how hard the ship was pitched up and down, the pair would always be seen on the bridge deep in conversation appreciating everything maritime. Despite the constant pitching and waves crashing over the bow, the Prince would only congratulate Captain Richter on the seaworthiness of his ship. It was said that if one did not recognise him, they would have surely thought of him as any such crew member on the Kronprinz.

During dinners, the Prince and his suite were given a dedicated section of the Dining Saloon, complete with a panel to shelter them from the other passengers. Right from the very first time they sat down here, the Prince requested the panel be removed. During meals the band would play German and American airs. Despite the enormous amount of attention he and his group got from the other passengers, he never minded any of it. Another favourite place of his was the First Class Smoking Room which was where he would spend an hour in after dinner. By the 16th of February, they had reached Southampton and the first leg of the trip was over – completed on time and in high spirits. This would unfortunately not last for the final stretch.

Crossing the Pond:

The cabin the Prince occupied aboard the Kronprinz Wilhelm [i]

At 9pm on the 16th February, the Kronprinz Wilhelm left Cherbourg for the final straight shot to New York. Those who had recently embarked were eager to see him and he left the bridge at 10pm to go towards his favourite reside at the First Class Smoking Room. Surprisingly, throughout the voyage the Prince was more than happy to mingle and converse with the other passengers with whom he had much enjoyment. By Tuesday the 18th, the weather had severely worsened and the seas became rough. By noon it had gotten so severe the ship had to reduce speed and passengers sought the indoors for the remainder of the voyage as wave after wave crashed into the ship. Prinz Heinrich on the other hand being a seaman, never missed his morning strolls on the decks and always seemed to be on the bridge with Captain Richter when the weather was at its worst.

By this point, most of First Class was very well acquainted with the Prince and he would surprisingly make time to see every kind of passenger that voyage. He, Captain Richter and Staff Surgeon Dr. Reich made a tour of the ship and visited the Second and Third quarters. He even sat down at a table in the Second Class Smoking Room and joined in the conversation of several American guests there. The group would then have a long discussion with the Prince asking about the habits, people and transportation in the United States and how much he looked forward to visiting there.

By Wednesday the 19th, it was clear to Captain Richter that the Kronprinz would be a day late and he disappointedly informed the Prince. Prinz Heinrich wasn’t discontented and still complimented Richter’s ability under the severe conditions. The next day on the 20th and the weather still refused to give up, but the mood of the voyage was lightened by a massive 38-piece Imperial Marine Band over dinner which the Prince and his consort encored. On Friday the 21st, the weather was still going strong and they 900 more miles to go before reaching New York. After dinner Prinz Heinrich again conversed with a group of Americans about everything American in the First Class Smoking Room. Saturday the 22nd was the second last day of the voyage, and the weather was finally improving. Prinz Heinrich led a group down to the Kronprinz’s massive engine room and explained to them the workings of the machinery.

The Kronprinz Wilhelm ended up having a crossing time of 6 days, 15 hours and 19 minutes. The weather caused the Kronprinz Wilhelm to sail at an average speed of 18.56 knots. The results for each day are shown below:

Day Sunday 16thMonday 17thTuesday 18thWednesday 19thThursday 20thFriday 21stSaturday 22nd
Total Knots348520491430394480457
Knots/hr14.521.620.4617.9216.422019.04

Arrival in New York:

Symbolised:

US 10 cent stamp [i]

Over ten years later in 1913, this event was actually commemorated on the US ten-cent postal stamp. On January 17th, the post office department officially printed their design for the ten-cent stamp, and it was of the Kronprinz Wilhelm and a mail tender. This was one of countless designs that was chosen. The Kronprinz was picked by the postmaster general because she represented both American and German industry. This particular image called back to 1902: when the Kronprinz Wilhelm carried Prinz Heinrich of Prussia for his official state visit to America. Other designs had included images that represented American industry, and this one being chosen caused debate on whether it was a slap in the face for American ship owners, or a pat on the back for German ones.

Taking the long-awaited Blue Riband

The first season:

Passengers boarding the Kronprinz Wilhelm in Bremerhaven
(Author’s Collection)

By mid 1902 -almost a year after entering service, there was much disgruntlement aboard the Kronprinz Wilhelm. The vessel had proved wonderful in all regards expected, but it had not taken the Blue Riband back yet as the Deutschland still held both ways. This was Lloyd’s biggest hope with this vessel, and they had already gone through several annoying disappointments. It seemed the Kronprinz was always held back by bad luck or something else during its first few seasons. As mentioned, on the maiden voyage the vessel was hindered by the might of the seas including a devastating rogue wave. The result was an average time of 19.74 knots despite the Kronprinz hitting nearly 24-knot speeds during the last days of the crossing. The next crossing by the Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse was 22.23 knots and the Deutschland was over 23 knots. Then, during the Kronprinz’s greatest time of honour: Prinz Heinrich’s state visit of America, the ship had another very another slow crossing of 6 days, 15 hours and 19 minutes. These times only rubbed salt in the pride of the crew, who knew their ship hit over 23 knots during her trials and could do much better.

The next westbound crossing of the Kronprinz frustrated them further as her passage time was 5 days, 21 hours and 10 minutes at an average speed of 21.59 knots. North-Westerly winds and bad weather had again held the ship back. This only prompted the crew to work harder and push their vessel further when conditions got better. Things were improving as the Kronprinz made the papers with her arrival on the 23rd December 1901. This was the ship’s fastest crossing yet, with 5 days 15 hours and 20 minutes with an average speed of 22.57 knots.

Things were not all bad, Kaiser Wilhelm II himself sailed aboard the Kronprinz on April 17th on a yachting party. He invited many prominent figures including Lloyd Director Heinrich Wiegand, George Plate, and several of the heads of the Vulkan Shipyard: Flohr, Zimmerman and Schlutow.

The incident:

As if all the previous annoyances were not enough, just when victory was finally within the Kronprinz’s grasp it was ripped away again. In June 1902 the Kronprinz passed Eddystone Lighthouse in Britain signifying the end of her crossing. When the crew tallied up the results, they were ecstatic: the Kronprinz Wilhelm had just completed a brand new record westbound crossing at 23.53 knots! This was 0.02 knots faster than the Deutschland’s record and this story was ready to hit the record books. Kaiser Wilhelm II and the namesake Kronprinz Wilhelm even personally sent the Lloyd a telegram congratulating them on their success. However the director of Hapag: Albert Ballin, was not convinced and he redid the calculations himself. Ballin instead found out that the Kronprinz had travelled at 23.47 knots which was just 0.04 knots behind the Deutschland’s record crossing of 23.51 knots. Lloyd and Hapag immediately threatened to sue each other but by August, Ballin was proven right and the Lloyd had to accept that they were wrong and the ship took another blow of embarrassment.

The German Record-Ship

Despite the setback, the Kronprinz had proven to be capable of giving the Deutschland a run for her money and was narrowly closing in on her goal. In May, she set the best record for a crossing by any large steamer between Plymouth and Cherbourg. The time was confusing stated as: “26 4-10 knots an hour”.

On the Kronprinz sped, with her best day’s run being a staggering 24.21 knots average speed.

It was time to check the time elapsed: Deustchland’s eastbound record of 2 years was a time of 5 days, 12 hours and 29 minutes. The Kronprinz had just arrived in New York 32 minutes faster, at a time of 5 days, 11 hours and 57 minutes.

Day
Total Knots349574574581573396
Knots/hr14.5423.9223.9224.2123.8616.50

Bibliography