Registration number 259
Status Registered
a12admin

Details

Function Passenger Vessel
Subfunction Excursion
Location Chatham
Vessel type Thames Excursion Vessel
Current use Commercial Activity
Available to hire No
Available for excursions No

Construction

Builder Rowhedge Iron Works Co Ltd, Rowhedge
Built in 1935
Hull material Steel
Rig None
Number of decks 1
Propulsion Motor
Number of engines 1
Primary engine type Diesel
Boiler type None
Boilermaker None

Dimensions

Breadth: Beam
17.90 feet (5.46m)
Depth
6.59 feet (2.01m)
Length: Overall
113.93 feet (34.75m)
Tonnage: Gross
115.00

History

Built in 1935 at Rowhedge Iron Works to the order of Captain A Crouch, ROYAL PRINCESS is a passenger vessel designed to work on the Thames. With a steel hull and decks and passenger accommodation of teak she is representative of many similar river vessels but as the first in a line she is exceptionally well documented. At the time of her launch she was the first passenger motor ship built for work on the Upper Thames and attracted two lengthy articles at this time. 'Crossley Chronicles’, a periodical review of Crossley land and marine engines, wrote in detail about her engine and its suitability for its purpose; the engine described is a Crossley scavenge pump airless injection diesel of 125 hp in 5 cylinders at 450 rpm. An article in ‘The Motor Boat’ dated 12 April 1935 noted that she would start a regular service between Greenwich and Richmond – a considerable distance and at that time she was the only vessel to operate over the whole route. It is also notable that she was licensed to carry 350 passengers whereas today her maximum is 250 passengers. She remains in regular service between Westminster and Greenwich, Canary Wharf and the Thames Barrier.

As of May 2024, owners Thames Cruises has gone out of business.  ROYAL PRINCESS is under new ownership and has been towed to Chatham to be converted to a liveaboard. 

Sources

Geoffrey Hamer, Trip Out 1995/6 - A Guide to the Passenger Boat Services of the British Isles, G P Hamer, 1995
Crossley Chronicles, Crossley Brothers Ltd, pp1-5, Edition 109, June 1935 

Own this vessel?

If you are the owner of this vessel and would like to provide more details or updated information, please contact info@nationalhistoricships.org.uk

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Viscountess - starboard side view, taken from the promotional brochure.  Shows Viscountess on the Thames outside the Tower of London.

Registered, built 1926 by Salter Brothers Ltd, Oxford