Regie voor Maritiem Transport (RMT) was the
Belgian
Belgian may refer to:
* Something of, or related to, Belgium
* Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent
* Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German
*Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...
state-owned
ferry service and operated ferries on the
Ostend
Ostend ( nl, Oostende, ; french: link=no, Ostende ; german: link=no, Ostende ; vls, Ostende) is a coastal city and municipality, located in the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerk ...
-
Dover route under the name Oostende Lines. For the last few years until its demise in February 1997, the ferries from Ostend went to
Ramsgate instead of Dover in partnership with
Sally Line
Sally Line UK (sometimes referred to as Sally Ferries UK) was a British ferry operator on the English Channel and North Sea.
History
Sally Line was founded in 1981 by Michael Kingshott as a subsidiary of the Finland-based Rederi Ab Sally, and ...
.
History
On 28 February 1997 the Belgian state closed an important and historical period concerning transport of passengers from and to the UK. The first official crossing ever under the Belgian state took place in 1846, a history spanning 151 years.
Service was inaugurated between Ostend and Dover on 4 March 1846, by the paddle steamer ''Chemin de Fer'', which was later renamed ''Diamant''.
Owing to the great competition with lines serving
Calais,
Dunkirk,
Zeebrugge
Zeebrugge (, from: ''Brugge aan zee'' meaning "Bruges at Sea", french: Zeebruges) is a village on the coast of Belgium and a subdivision of Bruges, for which it is the modern port. Zeebrugge serves as both the international port of Bruges-Zee ...
,
Antwerp,
Rotterdam
Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"Ne ...
and
Hook of Holland
Hook of Holland ( nl, Hoek van Holland, ) is a town in the southwestern corner of Holland, hence the name; ''hoek'' means "corner" and was the word in use before the word ''kaap'' – "cape", from Portuguese ''cabo'' – became Dutch. The English t ...
, RMT upgraded their fleet through the years, from
paddle steamer
A paddle steamer is a steamship or steamboat powered by a steam engine that drives paddle wheels to propel the craft through the water. In antiquity, paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, where the first uses we ...
s to
turbine
A turbine ( or ) (from the Greek , ''tyrbē'', or Latin ''turbo'', meaning vortex) is a rotary mechanical device that extracts energy from a fluid flow and converts it into useful work. The work produced by a turbine can be used for generating ...
steamers,
diesel
Diesel may refer to:
* Diesel engine, an internal combustion engine where ignition is caused by compression
* Diesel fuel, a liquid fuel used in diesel engines
* Diesel locomotive, a railway locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engin ...
motor vessel
A motor ship or motor vessel is a ship propelled by an internal combustion engine, usually a diesel engine. The names of motor ships are often prefixed with MS, M/S, MV or M/V.
Engines for motorships were developed during the 1890s, and by th ...
s, and finally high speed ferries. Many of the line's ships were built at Antwerp by the shipyard of
SA John Cockerill.
A rare accident for the company occurred when the RMT paddle steamers ''Princesse Henriette'' and ''Comtesse de Flandre'' collided in heavy fog on 29 March 1889 when both attempt to avoid collision with a
fishing smack
A smack was a traditional fishing boat used off the coast of Britain and the Atlantic coast of America for most of the 19th century and, in small numbers, up to the Second World War. Many larger smacks were originally cutter-rigged sailing bo ...
offshore between
Ruytingen and
Dunkirk. ''Princesse Henriette'' struck ''Comtesse de Flandre'' on the starboard side, just abaft the paddle box, nearly slicing the vessel in half. The inrush of water caused a boiler explosion, and the ''Comtesse de Flandre'' sank with a loss of 15 lives, of whom four were passengers. ''Princesse Henriette'' rescued 32 survivors, including 19 passengers. Among the survivors was
Jerome Napoleon Bonaparte II.
A major shift in propulsion took place in 1905 with the construction of RMT's first turbine steamer, ''Princesse Elisabeth''.
RMT ferries saw use in both world wars. Early in the
First World War
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 ...
, the turbine steamer ''Jan Breydel'' evacuated
Elisabeth of Bavaria, Queen of Belgium
Elisabeth of Bavaria (Elisabeth Gabriele Valérie Marie; 25 July 187623 November 1965) was Queen of the Belgians from 23 December 1909 to 17 February 1934 as the spouse of King Albert I, and a duchess in Bavaria by birth. She was the mother ...
and the royal children on 28 August 1914. Later, vessels of the line evacuated diplomats, troops and important officials before the fall of
Antwerp.
One RMT paddle steamer, ''Flandre'', fell into German hands and was employed by them as a depot ship. ''Flandre'' was scuttled at Ostend upon the withdrawal of German troops in October 1918.
The paddle steamer ''Marie Henriette'' was wrecked on 24 October 1914 on rocks while attempting to enter
Barfleur
Barfleur () is a commune and fishing village in Manche, Normandy, northwestern France.
History
During the Middle Ages, Barfleur was one of the chief ports of embarkation for England.
* 1066: A large medallion fixed to a rock in the harbour ...
with 650 wounded military personnel on board. The accident was attributed to the harbour lights having been unexpectedly extinguished.
Later, the paddle steamer ''Princesse Clementine'' and turbine steamer ''Princesse Elisabeth'' were employed as fast military transports between Dover and ports in
Flanders
Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to cultu ...
, whilst the paddle steamer ''Rapide'' and turbine steamer ''Stad Antwerpen'' saw service as
hospital ship
A hospital ship is a ship designated for primary function as a floating medical treatment facility or hospital. Most are operated by the military forces (mostly navies) of various countries, as they are intended to be used in or near war zones. I ...
s. The company's newest vessel at the time, the turbine steamer ''Ville de Liège'', was used as a fast evacuation transport (technically not a hospital ship, as the steamer was armed and painted in
dazzle camouflage).
Owing to its lower speed, the line's oldest vessel at the time, the paddle steamer ''Belgique'' (built in 1862) was employed during the war in more militarily protected waters as an ammunition transport between
Southampton
Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
and
Le Havre
Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very ...
.
After augmenting the fleet postwar with additional turbine ferries, RMT received its first diesel ferry, ''Prince Baudouin'', in 1934.
When RMT began transporting automobiles and lorries as well as passengers, cars had to be loaded onto a steamer's aft deck and offloaded again using a quay crane. Service was greatly improved in 1936 when the turbine steamer ''Ville de Liège'' was renovated as a roll on-roll off
car ferry and renamed ''London-Istanbul''.
After the fall of Belgium and France in June 1940, vessels of RMT were taken into 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 ...
for use in the
landing ship infantry role. These included the steamers ''Prince Charles'' (270 troops), ''Prince Leopold'' (255 troops), ''Princesse Astrid'' (247 troops), ''Princesse Josephine Charlotte'' (210 troops), ''Prince Baudouin'' (384 troops), ''Prins Albert'' (350 troops), and ''Prince Philippe'' (350 troops). An older steamer, ''Princesse Marie José'', was employed as an auxiliary patrol vessel. HMS ''Prince Philippe'' was lost in a collision on 15 July 1941, whilst HMS ''Prince Leopold'' was sunk by a
U-boat
U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare ro ...
on 29 July 1944.
After the war, the surviving ships were returned to RMT. In 1949 the company took delivery of the motor vessel ''Prinses Josephine Charlotte'', the first of a series of car ferries.
The standard timetable for most of the 1980s and 90s saw six crossings per day in each direction.
In addition to traditional car ferries, RMT also operated two
Boeing Jetfoils (for foot-passengers only) that reduced crossing times from 4 hours to 100 minutes. They were popular with connecting rail passengers, and a supplement was payable. However, these services were prone to cancellation in bad weather, with passengers re-directed to the car ferry.
In response to the announcement of the Channel Tunnel project, RMT ordered one of the first cross-channel super ferries. The
Prins Filip cost $100,000,000, and at 28,828
gross register tons was the largest ferry operating on the short sea routes of the
English Channel
The English Channel, "The Sleeve"; nrf, la Maunche, "The Sleeve" (Cotentinais) or ( Jèrriais), (Guernésiais), "The Channel"; br, Mor Breizh, "Sea of Brittany"; cy, Môr Udd, "Lord's Sea"; kw, Mor Bretannek, "British Sea"; nl, Het Kana ...
from 1991 to 2001 (with the introduction in the latter year of the
Seafrance Rodin
François Auguste René Rodin (12 November 184017 November 1917) was a French sculptor, generally considered the founder of modern sculpture. He was schooled traditionally and took a craftsman-like approach to his work. Rodin possessed a uniqu ...
).
Nonetheless, the opening of the
Channel Tunnel in 1994 led to shorter transit times across the Channel for cars and freight, while new high-speed
Eurostar
Eurostar is an international high-speed rail service connecting the United Kingdom with France, Belgium and the Netherlands. Most Eurostar trains travel through the Channel Tunnel between the United Kingdom and France, owned and operate ...
services running directly between
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
and
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
rendered traditional rail-sea-rail journeys obsolete. Unable to stem heavy financial losses, the Belgian government took the decision to close the company in 1997. Many of the assets were sold to
Transeuropa Ferries which revived the route between Ramsgate and Ostend, first as a freight-only service, and subsequently taking passengers and cars. However, this itself closed in 2013 and there is currently no car ferry between South East England and Belgium.
Sealink
As part of the
Sealink
Sealink was a ferry company based in the United Kingdom from 1970 to 1984, operating services to France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Isle of Man, Channel Islands, Isle of Wight and Ireland.
Ports served by the company included: Dover, Folkesto ...
consortium, Regie voor Maritiem Transport connected
Oostende railway station
Oostende railway station ( nl, Station Oostende, french: Gare d'Ostende, List of IATA-indexed railway stations, IATA code: ZGJ), officially Oostende, is a railway station in Ostend, West Flanders, Belgium. It is operated by the National Railway C ...
with
Dover Western Docks (the
Sealink
Sealink was a ferry company based in the United Kingdom from 1970 to 1984, operating services to France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Isle of Man, Channel Islands, Isle of Wight and Ireland.
Ports served by the company included: Dover, Folkesto ...
and
Southern Region of British Rail
The Southern Region was a region of British Railways from 1948 until 1992 when railways were re-privatised. The region ceased to be an operating unit in its own right in the 1980s. The region covered south London, southern England and the south ...
) terminal. At Ostend, direct international rail connections ran daily as far as
Cologne
Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...
,
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...
,
Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
,
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
and
Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...
.
The UK arm of Sealink was privatized in 1984, and disagreements with the new owners of the UK operation led to RMT leaving the consortium.
Between 1985 and 1990, RMT operated in partnership with
European Ferries
European Ferries Group plc was a company that operated in passenger and freight ferries, harbour operation and property management in the United Kingdom and the United States. It was taken over by the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Com ...
under the Townsend Thoresen and P&O badges, and subsequently independently, as Oostende Lines.
In 1993, RMT went into partnership with
Sally Line
Sally Line UK (sometimes referred to as Sally Ferries UK) was a British ferry operator on the English Channel and North Sea.
History
Sally Line was founded in 1981 by Michael Kingshott as a subsidiary of the Finland-based Rederi Ab Sally, and ...
transferring its UK terminal from the
Port of Dover to the
Port of Ramsgate
The Port of Ramsgate (also known as Port Ramsgate, Ramsgate Harbour, and Royal Harbour, Ramsgate) is a harbour situated in Ramsgate, south-east England, serving cross-Channel freight traffic and smaller working and pleasure craft. It is owned an ...
. However, inferior road and rail connections did not help the company's financial position and contributed to its financial losses and eventual closure.
See also
*
MS ''Calais Seaways''
References
{{Reflist
External links
History of RMT
Ferry companies of Belgium