''Madiz'' is a 57 metre twin screw steel yacht built on the

River Clyde The River Clyde ( gd, Abhainn Chluaidh, , sco, Clyde Watter, or ) is a river that flows into the Firth of Clyde in Scotland. It is the ninth-longest river in the United Kingdom, and the third-longest in Scotland. It runs through the major cit ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, in 1902. In 2006, she broke a record in the shipping industry by being the only ship in the world to be in class "+100A1" with

Lloyd's Register Lloyd's Register Group Limited (LR) is a technical and professional services organisation and a maritime classification society, wholly owned by the Lloyd’s Register Foundation, a UK charity dedicated to research and education in science and ...

of Shipping, 100 years after the date of its building.

History

''Madiz'' was designed by G. L. Watson, and It is the last surviving ship to have been designed by him personally. She was built by the Ailsa Shipyard in Troon, Scotland on the Clyde. The yacht was originally named ''Triton'' and her first owner was philanthropist

James Coats Lieutenant colonel Sir James Stuart Coats, 3rd Baronet MC (13 April 1894 – 26 October 1966) was a British skeleton racer who competed in the late 1940s. He finished seventh in the men's skeleton event at the 1948 Winter Olympics in St. Mo ...

. Following his death, she was purchased in 1913 by Sir George Bullough, owner of the Scottish island of

Rùm Rùm (), a Scottish Gaelic name often anglicised to Rum (), is one of the Small Isles of the Inner Hebrides, in the district of Lochaber, Scotland. For much of the 20th century the name became Rhum, a spelling invented by the former owner, Sir ...

. He renamed her ''Rhouma''. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, ''Rhouma'' was hired for use as an auxiliary patrol yacht. Between the wars, she was lengthened and had an upper deck of cabins added, and her engines were converted to run on oil fuel. In

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, she served in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

as a Royal Patrol Yacht and transported

King George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of Ind ...

, Queen Elizabeth and

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

. Between 2003-2006, ''Madiz'' underwent a major refit and was re-classed under Lloyd’s Register of Shipping in her original Class of +100A1. In 2009, the ship was sold.

Construction

''Madiz'' is a classic yacht and retains most of her original deck equipment and unique panelling, the original Burma teak on much of the deck and all the deck’s side panelings. Cuban mahogany in the original master bedrooms and solid oak paneling in the reception areas. Originally she was powered by two steam engines. These were later replaced by Diesel engines (MTU Mercedes Maybach).

Footnotes

External links

The official Madiz homepage
{{Oldest surviving ships (pre-1919) Individual yachts Steam yachts Ships built on the River Clyde 1902 ships