paddlesteamers.info : The Internet's leading database of
Paddle Steamers past and present
UK to France : Short Sea Ferry Services
French Services : Calais - Dover Compagnie des Chemins de Fer du Nord : From 1923 SA de Gerance et d'Armeament
French sailings out of Calais were in the hands of the regional railway company
Above
: Le Nord and sister ship Pas-de-Calais were the ultimate French
cross-channel paddle ferries, with the latter appearing in 1899 as a
dirct contemporary of the UK's last new vessel Mabel Grace which was on
the Folkestone to Boulogne route. The French sisters were considerably
larger and considerably longer-lived, surviving until 1923. This made
them the last paddlers on the UK-France run by some considerable margin
and their demise left only one paddle steamer on a cross-channel route
: the Belgian steamer Princesse Clementine which sailed from Ostend (albeit as reserve steamer after 1923).
The twins were only marginally smaller than the UK's
largest passenger paddle steamer (the exceptional Great Eastern
excluded) Empress Queen which sailed primarily on the Irish Sea
between Liverpool and Douglas (Isle of Man)
The image is from a contemporary postcard and is in the public domain
Calais
1896
Withdrawn in 1911
Torpedoed and sunk in 1916
Le Nord
1898
Ateliers et Chantiers de la Loire, St Nazaire
Length 102.7 m GRT 2038 Speed 21.5 kts
Seaplane transport during WWI
Transferred in 1920 to SA de Gerance et d'Armeament but remined on station
Withdrawn in 1923
Le Pas de Calais
1899
Ateliers et Chantiers de la Loire, St Nazaire
Length 102.7 m GRT 2038 Speed 21.5 kts
Seaplane transport during WWI
Transferred in 1920 to SA de Gerance et d'Armeament but remined on station
Withdrawn in 1923
The
paddle steamers were replaced by two turbine steamers purchased from
the South Eastern & Chatham Railway, Invicta (1905) and
Empress (1907)
Return to
Historical Database