The history of antipodean shipping owes much to the irregularity of British shipping company services to Australia and New Zealand in the latter half of the 19th century. Whereas Australia itself was well-served by several companies over the decades, New Zealand was not. In more recent times, New Zealand has been better served by several shipping companies, including Shaw Savill, Port Line and P&O, but only because of competition which developed as a result of the establishment of two specific shipping companies, namely the New Zealand Shipping Company and the Federal Steam Navigation Company. Indeed, although the New Zealand Shipping Company was established in New Zealand itself, and the Federal Steam Navigation Company was established in the UK, the NZ Shipping Company was to eventually take over the UK-based Federal SN Company before being itself taken over by P&O. This text seeks to examine in detail the history of the New Zealand Shipping Company as well as touching on the Federal Steam Navigation Company.

Prior to 1872, Shaw Savill and the Albion Line dominated the provision of shipping services to New Zealand. Whilst they were theoretically in competition with each other, in practice there was little evidence of this competition, and indeed one could be led to believe that they were in fact colluding with each other to monopolise the trade with New Zealand. In 1871, dissatisfaction within the colony of New Zealand over the class of vessels used on the service to England had grown over the years. It reached a climax that year as a result of the activities of two ships, namely the Helensea and the Bulwark. The Helensea’s cargo was in such poor condition that much of it had to be dug out of her holds, and the Bulwark took nine months to reach Auckland. Also, New Zealand businesses could see no reason why they should have to pay substantially higher freight rates than were being paid by Australians, given the relative proximity of New Zealand to Australia.

growing discontent with the ability and will of these two British shipping companies to cope with rapidly expanding trade, together with a vigorous spirit of colonial independence, led to businessmen in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin, New Zealand’s four main business centres, to consider the establishment of separate provincial shipping lines based in New Zealand. On 1st July 1872, the New Zealand Freight Co. Ltd., the first of these companies, was registered in Auckland, with financial support given by the Bank of New Zealand, and on 20th November a meeting was held in Christchurch comprising businessmen interested in establishing a new shipping line between London and New Zealand. They proposed a Colonial Shipping company, designed to increase the shipping potential to New Zealand with particular attention to the carriage of both immigrants and cargoes of consumer goods. about the same time, the Otago Freight association of Dunedin and the Wellington Freight association were formed, and, finally, a group of Christchurch businessmen, spurred on by the knowledge that the shipping contract between the government and Shaw Savill would expire in March 1873, agreed to form the New Zealand Shipping Company, which was registered in Christchurch on 6th January 1873. A major shareholder in this company was the New Zealand Loan and Mercantile agency Company, which was an associate of the Bank of New Zealand. The New Zealand Shipping Company, as it was to be called, thus relied entirely upon local support, and was a very courageous venture considering the dominance of British shipping on the high seas.

On 24th January 1873, the New Zealand Shipping Company Ltd. was registered in Christchurch with an authorised capital of £100,000, divided into shares of £10 each, of which 10 shillings was to be paid up. Mr J. L. Coster of the Bank of New Zealand became the company’s first Chairman and Mr C. W. Turner was sent to London, as the company’s agent. In June 1873, the Otago Freight association of Dunedin was absorbed into the New Zealand Shipping Company, and on 2nd June the vessel Punjaub sailed from London on the first NZ Shipping Company chartered sailing, arriving in Lyttelton on 20th September. By July 1873, the Otago and Wellington Freight associations and the New Zealand Freight Company had joined forces with the New Zealand Shipping Company to form a single commercial unit, which was owned and operated by New Zealanders. Whilst this newly enlarged New Zealand Shipping Company was controlled by its general Board in Christchurch, local Boards of advice were established in Dunedin, Wellington and Auckland, and these helped to foster the idea of a national undertaking. For many years, these local Boards were each represented on the general Board in Christchurch by at least one member. In November 1873, at the company’s first general meeting, the Board was able to announce that eighteen ships had been chartered and two had been purchased. The general Board had also resolved to form a London Board of advice, and this met for the first time on 19th May 1874. The London Board’s powers included the employment and general management of the Company’s own fleet and the provisioning and fitting of charters, but all its powers were to be subject to the directions of the Board in New Zealand itself.

During 1873, the New Zealand Shipping Company began to establish its own fleet by purchasing 4 second-hand iron full-rigged sailing ships, and, during the following 3 years, the Company placed orders for 12 new full-rigged sailing ships. given the nationality of the company in New Zealand, it is no surprise that to reflect the company, which was founded expressly as a national shipping line and therefore wished to promote its spirit of nationalism, should resolve to use native Maori names for each of its ships, and, as a result, the first of the new sailing ships to be ordered was called the Rakaia.

Just over four years from the date of its foundation, the Company had built up a homogeneous fleet of fine, fast, iron-hulled clipper ships, which quickly established a good reputation for being well-fitted, well endowed and well-officered. By also employing a large number of chartered vessels, the Company rapidly secured a large share of the passenger and cargo business between England and New Zealand. For example, in 1875, the peak year for the arrival of new settlers in New Zealand, the Company was responsible for the carriage of nearly 11,500 passengers. It is also worth noting that these clipper ships could carry, on average, no more than 300 emigrants. Also in 1875, the London Board of advice had given thought to the adoption of a distinctive livery for the fleet, and it recommended that all the Company’s ships should be painted black with white ports, masts and yards, of a uniform colour and that the boats should also be white.

Competition from other shipping companies, particularly Shaw Savill and the Albion Line, was keen, and there was a brief rate war in 1874, which eventually led to an agreement to charge uniform scales of freight at rates which, while recognised as being fair and reasonable by shippers, were deemed beneficial to the Company. Pressure from the New Zealand government for a steamship service from England to New Zealand led to an agreement between the New Zealand Shipping Company and Shaw Savill to run a steamship trial in 1879 to carry 600 immigrants at a rate which was considerably higher than the sailing ship rate. The NZ Shipping Company and Shaw Savill jointly chartered the steamship Stad Haarlem for this venture, and she took 57 days to complete the voyage from London to Lyttelton via Cape Town. However, despite her successful voyage, this trial resulted in a considerable financial loss accrued by the Company, and no other subsidies were made available to operate steamships. The shareholders were informed that this loss was apparently incurred despite the fact that the vessel was hired on exceptionally favourable terms, was full of passengers and cargo both outward and homeward, and performed her voyage extremely well and without incident. As a result of this setback, it would be another four years before the Company operated steamships again.

The government continued to push for a steamship service, which they thought would encourage what it deemed to be a more ‘suitable class’ of immigrants, plus it would provide a more reliable service for their frozen meat exports. Despite not liking steamships, the NZ Shipping Company chartered the vessel Fenstanton in 1883, to inaugurate the first steamship service from the UK to New Zealand. The Fenstanton was duly followed by the larger vessel British King, built by Harland & Wolff of Belfast. The NZ Shipping Company also chartered the White Star Line’s vessels ionic and Doric, both of which remained in service with Shaw Savill. The NZ Shipping Company then signed a charter with the government to run a regularly monthly service jointly with Shaw Savill. Five new ships were ordered from the Scottish yard of J. Elder and Co. (later the Fairfield Shipbuilding Company), and these ships, each just under 4,500 gross tons, were named after New Zealand mountains, namely Tongariro, Aorangi, Ruapehu, Kaikoura and Rimutaka. All had clipper bows, and were barque-rigged. They travelled out via the Cape of Good Hope, and back via Cape Horn, as the sailing clippers had done, but more than halved the passage times. Whereas the sailing ships frequently sighted no land between the UK and New Zealand, the steamships called at Plymouth, Tenerife, Cape Town and Hobart on the outward journey and at Montevideo, Rio de Janeiro and Tenerife on the return journey. These routes were maintained until 1914, with the opening of the Panama Canal.

In 1882, the Company began a frozen meat service from New Zealand to England. Prior to the development of refrigerating machinery, the normal cargo carried by the Company’s ships from New Zealand to England comprised bales of wool, wheat, casks of tallow, sacks of kauri gum, cases of preserved meats and other miscellaneous cargo. The installation of refrigerating machinery resulted in the ability of the ships to carry perishable cargoes, and, from small beginnings with just a few of the clipper ships equipped for refrigeration, the company was able to progress to become the operator of one of the largest refrigerated cargo fleets in the world. In the same year, orders were placed for the construction of 5 steamships, and, in 1883, the company started to operate a monthly steamship service, thanks to a government subsidy, between England and New Zealand, using the vessel Tongariro, although initially this service was operated using chartered vessels.

Although the size of the Company’s steamship fleet increased, its financial fortunes did not, and, by 1887, it was facing a severe financial crisis. A reduction in trade as a result of a recession in New Zealand coupled with poor management of the Company’s finances led to the need for a dramatic change in the way the company was run, and, in 1888, control of the company passed from Christchurch to London. Nevertheless, the London Board wisely decided to retain a colonial Board in Christchurch to act as a consultative body. The businessman Edwyn Sandys Dawes acquired the controlling interest of the Company in 1889, and this marked the start of a connection between the Company and the Dawes family, which was to last until 1970.

Although the first five steamships carried an average of 350 passengers, they were limited to an average of 90,000 cubic feet of refrigerated cargo space, and, as fast mail ships, they consumed a great deal of coal fuel. The need to carry large quantities of fuel inevitably had an adverse effect on freight capacity, as the space required for the coal severely limited the space available for cargo. The expiry of the mail contract with the government enabled the Company, under Dawes’s leadership, to focus on maximising refrigerated cargo capacity and minimising fuel costs whilst still offering a competitive passenger service. Consequently, in 1890, the Company started to build a fleet of cargo and passenger steamships of greatly improved capacity and economy. Notable amongst these was the Ruahine, which sailed on her first voyage from London in 1892 and which, at that time, was the largest ship in the New Zealand trade. She carried 410 passengers and had 212,450 cubic feet of refrigerated cargo space.

In 1899, the last of the Company’s sailing ships was sold, and, by then, the Company owned fifteen steamships. Out of the total of 18 sailing ships owned by the company between 1873 and 1899, 12 were built specifically for the company and six were purchased from other owners. The most significant event in the years between 1900 and 1914 occurred on 3 January 1912, when it was announced that an agreement had been reached whereby the Federal Steam Navigation Company, which owned a fleet of 12 passenger and refrigerated cargo steamships trading between the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand, would be absorbed into the New Zealand Shipping Company. Although now controlled by the New Zealand Shipping Company, ships of the Federal Steam Navigation Company would continue to bear the names of English counties and to fly their own distinctive house flag, which was also painted on their funnels.

By the outbreak of World War I in 1914, the combined fleet totalled 32 ships of which, unfortunately, 9 were lost during the early part of the hostilities. On 1 July 1916 it was announced that an agreement had been reached whereby the shares of the New Zealand Shipping Company would be acquired by the Peninsular and oriental Steam Navigation Company (P&O) in exchange for P&O deferred stock. Outwardly, there was no apparent change in the way that the New Zealand Shipping Company group was managed, and it continued to enjoy considerable autonomy. also in 1916, the Otaki became the first of the Company’s ships to transit the Panama Canal following its opening in 1914, although it would be another 4 years before the Canal was formally opened. At the end of World War I, the NZ Shipping Company had only four passenger ships remaining. To maintain the regular monthly service, a fifth ship was needed, so the vessel Shropshire of the Federal SN Co. was rebuilt with extra passenger facilities as the Rotorua.

In 1920, the New Zealand Shipping Company group introduced a more formal apprentice training scheme. Initially, under this scheme, 4 of the group’s ships were designated as training ships. They carried 20 or more apprentices, or cadets as they were called, who were given a structured programme of training and who, in effect, took over the role of the deck crew. During the period 1920 to 1971, the group designated a total of 12 different ships to act as cadet training ships at one time or another.

An important milestone in the history of the New Zealand Shipping Company occurred in 1929 when the Company took delivery of its first motor liner, the Rangitiki. She was the first of the new generation of Company ships to be powered by the diesel oil engine. She was followed later that year by her sister ships, the Rangitata and Rangitane. These ships were by far the largest ships constructed up to that time for the New Zealand trade. They had accommodation for 100 first, 86 second and 413 third class passengers, a capacity for refrigerated cargo in excess of 416,000 cubic feet and a service speed of 15 knots. This was a huge advance from the Company’s first steam ship, the Tongariro, which was built 46 years earlier and which had accommodation for 64 first, 36 second and 250 steerage class passengers, a refrigerated capacity of 81,200 cubic feet and a service speed of 13.5 knots. They were duly followed into service by three motor cargo ships of 11,000 tons in 1931, namely the Rotorua, Ruahine and Remuera, which completely modernised the NZSC fleet. These six ships were to dominate the London/Wellington passenger trade for the next 10 years until the outbreak of World War II. The Rangitane, Remuera, Rangitane and Rotorua were lost while the Rangitiki and Rangitata were deployed as troop transports from 1941 to 1945. Both of these latter vessels were returned to peacetime service by 1949. The New Zealand Shipping Company, the Port Line and the Ellerman Bucknall Line joined forces to form the Montréal-Australia-New Zealand (MANZ) Line in 1936 to maintain and develop the cargo service that had hitherto been run by Canadian National Steamships between Canada, Australian and New Zealand.

By the outbreak of World War II in 1939, the New Zealand Shipping Company group had built its fleet up to a total of 36 high class passenger and refrigerated cargo vessels. During that war a total of 19 ships were lost, one of the most notable casualties being the vessel Rangitane. The first of the Company’s ships lost through enemy action was the Turakina, built in 1923, and she was sunk after a fierce engagement with a German Surface raider Orion in the Tasman Sea on 20th august 1940. The RMS Rangitane (16,712 grt) was one of three sister ships owned by the New Zealand Shipping Company, the other sisters being the Rangitata and Rangitiki, delivered to the company in 1929 for the important route between Britain and New Zealand. Rangitane was built by John Brown & Company and launched on 27th May 1929. The three ships were 530 feet in length and nearly 70 feet in the beam. They could carry nearly 600 passengers in 1st 2nd and 3rd classes, 200 crew members and substantial cargo. They were powered by Brown Sulzer diesel engines with a total output of 9,300 hp, driving twin propellers. In wartime, they were significantly vulnerable to enemy attack, carrying only token armament.

On her final voyage, which had been delayed by labour disputes, the Rangitane carried 14,000 tons of cargo, including foodstuffs and silver bullion, valued at over £2 million at 1940 prices. She carried 111 passengers, including CORB nurses, Polish sailors, servicemen and radar technicians. The Captain was Lionel Upton, a naval reservist who had been awarded the Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) for his mine clearance work after World War I. The Rangitane left Auckland Harbour in the early afternoon of Sunday 24th November 1940, en route across the Pacific Ocean to Britain via the Panama Canal. She was intercepted early in the morning of 27th November, 300 miles east of New Zealand by the German surface raiders Komet and Orion and their support ship Kulmerland. Another ship, the SS Holmwood, had been stopped and sunk by the German flotilla on 24th November, but warning of the impending danger had not been passed on to the Rangitane. This was later held to have been a factor in her sinking.

The Germans signalled the Rangitane to stop and not to transmit anything. Following standard admiralty instructions, however, Captain Upton ordered ‘QQQQ’ (suspicious vessel) to be broadcast, which prompted the jamming of signals and shelling by the Germans. The main transmitter was soon disabled and the emergency set was used to send ‘RRRR’ (raider attack), which was received and relayed. There then followed a brief period of confusion. One German raider, suffering steering problems, sailed directly at Rangitane, which in turn, with her own steering damaged by the shelling, also steered directly at a German ship before circling. At this point, the Rangitane’s helmsman reported loss of steering.

The interception had been made in the dark and the German ships were unsure of what they had found, believing that it was probably a cruiser-sized warship. Their attack was made on the basis that it was the tactic most likely to allow their own escape. Once he knew that the distress signals had been received in New Zealand, Upton ordered the ship’s surrender. The shelling had caused widespread fires and some casualties and with damaged steering, escape would be unlikely. Once hove to, sensitive documents such as code books were destroyed and crew were instructed to destroy key engine components, to prevent the Rangitane being taken as a prize. Despite the surrender, shelling continued and, angry, Upton ordered full speed and return fire from the ship’s guns, but this was prevented by destruction of telephones. The German shelling ceased and Upton ordered everyone aboard to abandon ship. Sixteen people, eight passengers and eight crew died as a result of the action, including those who died later of injuries. Prize crews took control of Rangitane at dawn and supervised an orderly and rapid evacuation. Survivors, 296 passengers and crew, were taken across to the German ships by lifeboats or German boats and sent below.

The Rangitane’s broadcast warnings required that the Germans clear the area quickly, before allied aircraft arrived. Although she was clearly on fire and sinking, the German raider Komet fired a single torpedo and the Rangitane listed quickly to port and sank at 6.30 am. The flying boat Aotearoa was the first allied unit on the scene later in the day at about 2.30 pm, but found only an oil slick and debris. A subsequent air search missed the remaining raiders, although they themselves saw one of the search aircraft.

The treatment given by the Germans to their prisoners was humane and as good as could be expected in the crowded conditions aboard the raiders, and those who died were given proper funerals. However, the number of prisoners aboard the German ships caused concern to the German commanders, and they decided to release most of them. After an intended release at Nauru had been thwarted by poor weather and further actions had captured more prisoners, many of the survivors were released on the tiny island of Emirau, off New Guinea. The remainder, mostly of military age, were transported back to the German-occupied French city of Bordeaux and eventually to prisoner-of-war camps in Germany. In terms of wartime casualty data, the Rangitane was one of the largest passenger liners to be sunk during World War II. The German raider Orion was herself later intercepted and sunk by the British submarine HMS Truant in the Bay of Biscay, and all her survivors were rescued.

The Rangitata (16,737 grt), sister of the Rangitane, was also a diesel-driven ocean passenger liner, built in 1929, but, unlike her sister, was fortunate enough to survive the war and was finally scrapped in 1962. She was operated by the New Zealand Shipping Company on its transpacific service between London and Wellington, New Zealand, via the Panama Canal with her two sister ships Rangitiki and Rangitane. She, along with her sisters, dominated the London-Wellington service for the next ten years, and the three vessels provided a four weekly service between England and New Zealand, making the voyage in 32 days via the Panama Canal. On 4th December 1939, the Rangitata was requisitioned as a personnel carrier and served as a passenger transport ship until 1941, when she was converted to a troopship with a capacity of 2,600 troops. During her service in World War II, the Rangitata also experienced her share of potential danger. In November 1940, convoy HX48, which comprised 38 ships including the Rangitata, was bound for Britain when it was attacked by the German pocket battleship admiral Scheer. The Rangitata managed to escape but was shaken by enemy fire. She was returned to civilian control on 15th august 1946, and was used for a short period in the transportation of war brides. She re-entered service on the New Zealand run in 1948, and remained in service until 1962, when she was sold for scrap.

The Rangitiki (16,698 grt) was originally planned in 1925, and was the first of the three famous ‘Rangi-Boats’, ordered by the New Zealand Shipping Company on 16th august 1927 from the John Brown & Co., Ltd. shipyard at Clydebank, Scotland. She was launched on 29th august 1928, but was found to be somewhat unstable in ballast conditions. As a result, prior to her maiden voyage, some topsides modifications were made including the removal of two sets of samson posts and derricks. The Rangitiki was delivered to the NZ Shipping Company on 31st January 1929, and commenced her maiden voyage on 15th February from Southampton to Wellington, via Curacao and the Panama Canal, arriving some five weeks later, thus becoming the first motor ship on a direct route from England to New Zealand. By the end of May 1929, her first voyage was over, and the ship returned to England, whereupon further structural modifications were made to overcome the continuing problem of instability. These modifications included the removal of most of the bridge structure including the associated deck, the shortening of the two funnels, and the installation of additional permanent ballast. While still under construction, the two sister ships, Rangitata and Rangitane, were subjected to the same changes in design and modifications, and later took to the water in their modified mode. The three so-called ‘Rangi-Boats’ were immediately identifiable from all the other NZ Shipping Company ships by their twin-funnel design, and were the only ships dressed in the Shipping Company’s colours to have this feature. In fact, the fore funnel was a dummy which housed the radio room, with a roof hidden from passenger view where it is claimed, however unofficially, that certain crew members were able to sunbathe au naturel!

During the war, both the Rangitiki and Rangitata served as convoy ships on the transatlantic and South Atlantic routes. In 1940 the Rangitiki ferried hundreds of children of the evacuation from Britain to Australia. Both the Rangitiki and Rangitata later served as troop ships, each carrying up to 2600 British and American soldiers at a time all over the world. The Rangitiki sailed to Melbourne, Sydney, Bombay, Shanghai and Taipei, Egypt and Aden, and was on convoy duty to Algeria just two weeks after the allies invaded Africa. Sometime after the end of hostilities she was in Japan. In November 1940, the Rangitiki became the target of unwanted attention from the German pocket battleship admiral Scheer. As she was the largest ship in Convoy HX84 with her very distinctive two-funnel profile, she was a prime target for the enemy warship. But for the gallant action by the sole naval escort, the armed Merchant Cruiser HMS Jervis Bay, commanded by Captain Fogarty Fegen, RN, the Rangitiki’s career may have come to an end in the North Atlantic that evening. However, owing to the gallant action of the Jervis Bay, she was one of the thirty-two ships in the convoy to reach safety in port.

Little more than a month later, on Christmas Eve 1940, the Rangitiki was sailing with Convoy WS5 on the shipping route to Sierra Leone about 700 miles west of Cape Finisterre. The convoy was sighted by the German heavy cruiser admiral Hipper, which shadowed the allied ships through the night. The German cruiser closed in the early morning of Christmas Day, only to discover that the convoy of troop transports was accompanied by a large number of armed escorts. During the ensuing battle, the admiral Hipper sank one merchant ship, and damaged another, but was forced to disengage because of the heavy British escort and engine problems, having also suffered some damage during the engagement. During the immediate post-war years, Rangitiki transported immigrants from Malta to Australia, war brides to the United States and servicemen from all over to their homes.

Originally fitted with two Sulzer S90 five-cylinder, single-acting two-stroke diesel engines, the largest of their type and built under licence by John Brown, she was reengined with replacement Doxford vertically opposed two-stroke marine engines, together developing 12,920 bhp, in a ten-month period over the change of year 1947/48, when the entire ship was refurbished at a cost of £1.5 million for the resumption of her peacetime service as a cargo liner for the New Zealand trade. In 1948, the two remaining sisters were returned to the New Zealand Shipping Company fleet, and carried out their tasks without incident until 1962, when they were sold for scrap. The Rangitiki left Southampton for her first voyage to New Zealand after being returned to commercial service on 26th September 1948 arriving in Wellington five weeks later on 27th October, having survived a weeklong storm close to hurricane proportions.

In 1957, the penultimate British governor-general of New Zealand, Lord Cobham, made the trip to New Zealand aboard the Rangitiki, with the last British governor-general, Sir Bernard Fergusson, making the trip in the new Rangitane in 1962. The Rangitiki almost suffered the shame of having to issue a call to be refloated after running aground for a brief period on the Goodwin Sands within a few hours of leaving Tilbury in 1958, but she successfully refloated herself after a short time. By early 1959, the Rangitiki had made 79 voyages, and she made another eight before she was sold from the fleet and broken up. The Rangitata’s last voyage in 1962 was slightly ahead of that of the Rangitiki, and the ships made rendezvous in mid-Pacific as the Rangitata was making her final homeward run, and the Rangitiki making her final outward trip. By all accounts, there was much cheering and waving and the sounding of the ships’ sirens as the two sisters passed quite close to each other. It was observed that there was a sense of the fact that a grand era of passenger shipping was coming to an end, with this special meeting being perhaps the definitive moment. Indeed, similar sentiments and emotions were expressed by those on board both Cunard liners Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth when five years later, in 1967, they made a similar arranged close pass in the middle of the Atlantic before the Queen Mary’s final departure for her resting place at the port of Long Beach, California. On her 87th voyage, the Rangitiki set sail from Wellington, New Zealand for the last time in May 1962, arriving at London’s Royal Albert Docks on 13th July. On 26th July 1962 the venerable vessel arrived in Santander, Spain after a short two-day trip from England manned by a skeleton crew. She was later broken up for scrap in Valencia, on the Spanish Mediterranean coast, having enjoyed an illustrious yet eventful career of 34 years, a sad end to such a fine vessel.

After the war, the Company embarked upon a bold and courageous programme of fleet development, and by 1951, 12 new refrigerated cargo and 3 new passenger and refrigerated cargo liners had been purchased. With the success of the now ageing vessels Rangitiki and Rangitata, the New Zealand Shipping Company decided to build three new ships, Rangitoto and Rangitane, both completed in 1949, and the smaller Ruahine, which was completed in 1951. These would be the final three ships to be built for NZSC. In 1962, these ships would be joined by the ex-Cunard cargo-passenger liner Parthia, which was renamed Remuera. Several NZ Shipping Company cargo vessels were later transferred to the Federal Steam Navigation company in later years. The Paparoa (10,006 grt) was built in 1944 by Stephen Alexander & Sons Ltd. of Glasgow, and was transferred to the Federal Steam Navigation Company in 1967 and scrapped in 1970. The Hurunui (11,276 grt) was built in 1948 and was transferred to the Federal SN Company in 1967 and scrapped in 1973. The Pipiriki (10,065 grt) was built by Alexander Stephen & Sons Ltd. in 1944 and was transferred to the Federal SN Company in 1966. The Rakaia (8,213 grt) was built by Harland & Wolff Ltd. in 1945 and was transferred to the Federal Line in 1966. The Haparangi (11,281 grt) was built by John Brown & Company Ltd., Clydebank in 1947 and was transferred to the Federal Line in 1967. The Wharanui (8,701 grt) was built by John Brown & Company Ltd., Clydebank, in 1956, and was transferred to the Federal SN Company in 1967.

The Rangitane (21,867 grt) was a passenger liner launched on 30th June 1949 and delivered to the NZ Shipping Company in 1949 by John Brown & Co., Clydebank, and was named after her twin-funnelled predecessor which had been torpedoed and sunk in 1940. She was powered by twin Doxford diesels, driving two propellers, and delivering a service speed of 16.5 knots. She had a crew of 270 and was employed on the Company’s transpacific services to New Zealand from London and, as well as her six-hold cargo space she had accommodation for 436 one class passengers, although this capacity was later increased to 462. She had all the usual public rooms, with an emphasis on simplicity and comfort rather than luxury. She had four passenger decks, and her dining saloon and a separate children’s dining saloon were on ‘D’ deck. She had 40 single cabins, 28 having bathrooms, and 36 twin-berth cabins, with 22 having bathrooms. There were also 16 x 3- berth cabins, 19 x 4-berth cabins and 21 x 6- berth cabins. She also had 658,140 cu ft of cargo space for both traditional cargo as well as perishable cargoes in her refrigerated holds, which meant that there was ample open deck space for the relatively small number of passengers. She was employed on the London-Curaçao-Panama-Papéeté- Wellington-Auckland route until 1969, when falling passenger numbers due to competition from air travel resulted in her sale to the orient overseas Line of C.Y. Tung of Taiwan and renaming as the oriental Esmeralda. She was then deployed on round-the-world cruising activities, and after a few years of operating cruises with this company, the vessel was finally scrapped in Taiwan in 1976.

The Rangitoto (21,809 grt) was built by Vickers Armstrong at Wallsend, and was launched on 12th January 1949. She was the first NZSC one class cargo-passenger liner, as the three previous ‘Rangi’ ships were built with three classes. She was powered by twin Doxford diesels, and was equipped with single-class passenger accommodation. At the end of her successful maiden voyage, she arrived in Wellington on 25th September 1949. In 1969, she too was sold to C. Y. Tung of Hong Kong and was renamed oriental Carnaval. She was finally broken up in 1976. In 1965, both ships had their aft mainmasts removed and were transferred to the fleet of Federal Steam Navigation, with their funnels repainted in their colours.

With the arrival of P&O’s super liners, Oriana and Canberra, at the beginning of the 1960s, the Federal Steam Navigation Company announced in 1968 that both the Rangitoto and Rangitane would be withdrawn. The Rangitane was the first to be sold. Decommissioned and renamed Jan, she was to head for the breakers in Piraeus, Greece. However, she was instead resold to the Hong Kong-based orient overseas Line of C. Y. Tung late in 1968.

With the success of the Rangitoto and Rangitane, the New Zealand Shipping Company ordered a third ship to operate on the lucrative London-New Zealand service, but it was decided that she would be somewhat smaller at than her two earlier 21,000 grt sisters. The Ruahine (17,851 grt) was thus the third vessel of the series. She was built in 1950 by John Brown & Co, Clydebank, and was launched on 27th July 1950 by Mrs W.C. Dawes, the widow of the Chairman of the NZ Shipping Company from 1904 to 1920. She was also the third and the last post war ship to be built for the NZSC, and in addition, she would proudly bear her greatly-revered name for the next twelve years. Apparently, Mrs. Dawes, by this time an old lady, had also officiated at the launching of her predecessor Ruahine. The outward design of the Ruahine was very similar to her larger sisters, and at first sight she would easily be recognisable as a member of the fleet. There were, however, distinctive differences between her and her larger fleetmates, such as the fact that the Ruahine only had three lifeboats slung along on either side. Her after decks were very much shorter. Also, she had a different internal layout and accommodated fewer passengers than her two larger sisters. Thus, although she appeared to be very similar to her bigger sisters, it could be seen at close quarters that this was the Ruahine.

Like her two larger fleet-mates, she was powered by twin Doxford diesels, driving two propellers and delivering a service speed of 17 knots. She had a total cargo space of six holds, with a capacity of 155,857 cu ft, carrying both traditional cargo as well as perishable cargoes in refrigerated holds. With a slightly different layout, she accommodated a smaller number of passengers than her larger sisters, namely a capacity of 267 in single-class accommodation, along with a crew of 200. She had a total of four passenger decks, and just aft of 6 cabins forward on Promenade Deck, there was a large Lounge, followed by a Library, Writing room, Smoke room and the verandah Lounge with a dance floor. The swimming pool was located aft, and the spacious sports deck was located one deck above. One deck down also had a traditional outdoor covered promenade deck, and was the location for the children’s facilities. The full width Dining room was located on Main Deck. She operated the same transpacific route as the other two larger vessels.

She was completed and ran her sea trials in May 1951 and was duly delivered to her owners. She departed for her maiden voyage from London to Wellington on 22nd May 1951, sailing via Curacao, Panama, Papéeté (Tahiti) to Wellington, New Zealand. Later, she would also visit the ports of Auckland and Lyttelton. Returning to the UK, she would sail via Tahiti, Panama, Miami and Bermuda to London. With the addition of the Ruahine, the New Zealand Shipping company was able to once again operate the pre-war schedule of four-weekly departures from all ports of call by its fleet of liners. Departure from London was on every fourth Friday, and this popular schedule continued to operate as the ships carried their cargoes and passengers to and from New Zealand. in 1965, the NZ Shipping Company and the Federal Steam Navigation Co. merged and the Ruahine’s funnel, like that of her fleet-mates Rangitoto and Rangitane, was painted in her new livery, a red funnel with a black top and the company’s flag, although the ships continued to be managed by the New Zealand Shipping Company. However, later that year the Ruahine underwent a refit, which saw her accommodations remodelled and upgraded, but also her aft main mast was removed, which gave her a very different profile.

During the 1960s, new container ships were introduced onto the Pacific routes, which had faster turn-around times. Like her two fleet-mates, the Ruahine was also made redundant, and the company decided to place her on the market as well. She departed Auckland on her final voyage to Liverpool on Wednesday 18th June 1968, and sailed via Tahiti, the Panama Canal, Kingston, Miami and Bermuda, arriving at Liverpool on Tuesday 23rd July. After the conclusion of the voyage, the Ruahine was laid up and placed on the market for sale. Soon after, she was purchased by the Hong Kong shipping magnate C.Y. Tung in 1969 to join her fleet-mates which by this time had also become part of the C.Y. Tung fleet. She was renamed oriental Rio and became a cruise ship, to be engaged in round-the-world sailings. After a refit and comprehensive upgrade, she looked quite attractive in her new livery, a grey hull, with blood red boot topping, a bright yellow funnel with the company’s floral emblem. She departed on her maiden cruise from San Diego, California, on 26th February 1969. The oriental Rio operated in this identity for another three years on the Far East and South America service until 1973, when she was finally sold to be broken up in Kaohsiung, Taiwan that same year.

The Remuera (13,619 grt) was originally built as the Cunard cargo-passenger liner Parthia of 1947 at the Harland & Wolff yard at Belfast. She was powered by four reduction- geared steam turbines, driving two propellers and delivering a service speed of 17 knots. She had a passenger capacity of 350, in single-class accommodation, and had four passenger decks, as well as a crew of 200. She, together with her sister Media (later the Cogedar Lines vessel Flavia), was originally used on intermediate Liverpool- New York and Canada services. By the late 1950s, the sisters had become uneconomic and were sold in 1961. The Parthia was sold to the New Zealand Shipping Co., and was renamed Remuera. She re-entered service on the London-Panama-New Zealand transpacific route on 1st June 1962, following the rebuilding of her promenade being extended aft and an increase of passenger accommodation, accommodating 99 more than when she was first built. She was now listed as 13,619 grt, somewhat smaller than her running mates.

During her 2.5 year service with the NZ Shipping Company, the Remuera suffered occasional turbine problems, which made her unprofitable for long voyages. Late in 1964, she was transferred to the P&O subsidiary Eastern & Australian Steamship Company, whereupon she underwent another refit. She was renamed Aramac, and operated services from Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane to the orient. In 1969, the Aramac was withdrawn from service and was replaced by the popular vessel Cathay. On 15th October 1969, the Aramac departed Sydney for her final voyage to Hong Kong, after which she departed for Taiwan, arriving there on 20th November, to be broken up.

Development of the NZ Shipping group continued steadily into the 1960s. The New Zealand Shipping Company was registered in New Zealand whilst the Federal Steam Navigation Company was registered in England, and, for tax purposes, it was decided to transfer ownership of all the New Zealand Shipping Company’s ships to the Federal Steam Navigation Company. As a result, in the mid 1960s, the familiar buff funnel steadily disappeared from view in favour of the Federal SN colours of red funnel with the company’s house flag superimposed, but the New Zealand Shipping Company continued to manage its former ships. However, by the late 1960s, with increasing competition from airlines, the remaining four ships were withdrawn and the other company cargo vessels were transferred to Federal colours. In 1971, a major rationalisation of the P&O group resulted in the New Zealand Shipping Company and Federal Steam Navigation Company being absorbed into the P&O general Cargo Division. The New Zealand Shipping Company name had lasted for almost a century. By 1973, the whole of the NZ Shipping/Federal SN Company had been merged with P&O. Within 10 years the traditional Maori named ships had disappeared and the company came to an end.

The original house flag adopted by The New Zealand Shipping Company in its sailing ship days was a red St. George’s Cross on a white field with the initials ‘N.Z.S.Co.’ in blue letters in each quarter. However, the Company’s early steamships carried a significant amount of sail, which meant that their funnels were often hidden from sight, especially when the vessels were approaching head on. It was, therefore, the custom for these steamships to fly a red, white and blue pennant above the house flag. By the time that the steamships had replaced the sailing ships and had discarded the use of sail, the custom of flying the pennant, or ‘Steam Cornet’ as it was known, had become so firmly established that it was adopted as an integral part of the Company’s house flag.

The origin of the Federal Steam Navigation Company’s house flag dates back to 1824 when it is claimed that the Sir Edward Paget, one of the clippers belonging to Wigram & Green, was anchored off Spithead flying the St. George’s Cross at the Main. That ensign was, and still is, the flag flown by an admiral, and so a naval pinnace was sent by an HM frigate to investigate. There being no admiral on board, the Master was censured and ordered to haul down his flag, but, thinking that his masthead looked bare, he rehoisted the flag after a blue pocket handkerchief had been sewn on the middle of the cross. These markings were adopted as the Company’s house flag and were also painted on each side of the funnel, which was otherwise red with a black top.

The company of Wigram & Greene split in 1843 and Wigram took the flag with him to Money, Wigram & Sons whilst the successors of Richard Green, Frederick Green & Co. used a version by placing the blue panel behind the cross. Money, Wigram & Sons came under the control of Allan Hughes of Allport & Hughes, their loading brokers, in 1882 and he acquired their remaining assets in 1884 after they sold off their ships. Allport & Hughes amalgamated in 1895 into Birt, Potter & Hughes who were financially and managerially involved in the formation of the Federal Steam Navigation Co. that same year. The Federal Steam Navigation Company was thus formed in 1895, and became the successor to Money, Wigram & Co. in 1904, it instituted a joint service with Houlder Brothers from New Zealand to Australia and South Africa, and in 1906 it commenced a joint service with Houlders and Shire Line. In 1912, the company was taken over by the New Zealand Shipping Company but continued to trade as a separate concern. Houlder Brothers withdrew from the joint service at the same time. In 1916, its parent company NZ Shipping Company was taken over by P&O Line, and both NZ Shipping Company and the Federal SN Company operated under separate identities within the P&O group for many years. By this time, the Federal Steam Navigation Company was operating passenger/cargo vessels, all equipped as reefer vessels for the transportation of perishable cargoes. However, when P&O rationalised its shipping functions in 1973 and restructured to create several shipping divisions, including the general Cargo Division, the remaining Federal ships were transferred to the P&O group’s general Cargo Division, with four of these being scrapped later in the 1970s and the rest sold to other concerns in the late 1970s and early 1980s.