What Happened to the Queen Elizabeth Cruise Ship?

By Robert Palmer

The Queen Elizabeth cruise ship is a Cunard liner, launched in 1938, and is one of the world’s most iconic vessels. The ship has sailed around the world, been featured in movies and books, and has hosted many royal events. The Queen Elizabeth has been a part of British history for over 80 years, but what happened to her?

The Queen Elizabeth was built in Scotland at John Brown & Co’s Clydebank shipyard. Designed for luxury passenger travel across the Atlantic, she was the largest and fastest liner of her time. She made her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York in 1940, and quickly established herself as one of the world’s most glamorous ships.

The ship continued to sail between Britain and America during World War II, serving as a troop transport vessel as well as providing entertainment for troops on leave. She was hit by two torpedoes while sailing in the Atlantic Ocean near Ireland, but managed to remain afloat despite extensive damage. After repairs were completed she returned to service ferrying troops between Europe and North America until the end of hostilities in 1945.

After the war ended, the Queen Elizabeth resumed her passenger routes between Britain and America until 1968 when she was sold off to Chinese investors who planned to turn her into a floating university. However this plan never materialised due to political unrest in China at that time. In 1972 she was sold again and renamed Seawise University before being damaged beyond repair by a fire that same year while docked at Hong Kong harbour.

In 1993, an ambitious project was unveiled to restore the Queen Elizabeth back to her former glory with plans for her to return to service as a luxury cruise ship once again; however this project proved too costly and was eventually abandoned. In 2008 she was finally scrapped at Alang Shipbreaking Yard in India after nearly 70 years of service.

Conclusion:

The Queen Elizabeth cruise ship is an iconic vessel with an interesting history spanning more than eight decades before its eventual scrapping in 2008 at Alang Shipbreaking Yard in India following unsuccessful attempts at restoration due to its prohibitive cost.