Remembering a legend, a look back at The Topaz (ex-Olympic, ex-Fiesta Marina, ex-Carnivale, ex-Queen Anna Maria, ex-Empress of Britain). A little over 1 year ago, The Topaz made her last journey to the beaches of Alang. Join us for a photographic retrospective of The Topaz’s visits to Singapore.

History

Hull number 731 was built in 1956 at Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering of Glasgow as the Empress of Britain for the Canadian Pacific Railway Company. She was originally designed to make the North Atlantic run between Liverpool and New York. When The Topaz started her scrapping process in late 2008, she had outlived her younger sister, the Empress of England by 34 years. She is probably most well known for the 18 years she served as the Carnivale, second ship in the Carnival Cruise Lines fleet.

Vital Statistics

Reconstruction

When sold to the Greek Line in 1965, she was renamed the Queen Anna Maria and underwent her first major alterations converting her to a full time cruise ship. From an exterior perspective, this is when the aft end of the Upper Deck was enclosed to create a show lounge and outdoor pools were added to Verandah Deck. In 1998, she was put on charter with Thomson Holidays and underwent reconstructive surgery to add 29 cabins on her forward Upper Deck between the bridge and fore castle. During this refit, she also received her single bow thruster. The Topaz spent her last 5 years working for Peace Boat, a Japan based non-profit organization that promotes non-aggression and peace.

The End

While anchored in the Singapore Straits during June of 2008, the chemical tanker Champion Brali collided with The Topaz. As a result of the collision, part of The Topaz’s bow was sheared off (photo below). On the 4^th of July in 2008, The Topaz arrived at her last port of call, the beaches of Alang and ended her 52 year career.