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The French shipping company Messageries
Maritimes ordered Marechal
Petain in 1939. This line based at
Marseille mainly operated their ships on
the East Asia run. Being launched in the
midst of World War Two, Messageries
Maritimes decided to lay their incomplete
ship up at Port Bouc until the
hostilities had come to an end. In August
1944, the retreating German forces sunk
her in shallow waters to form a blockade.
Marechal Petain was raised
in 1946 and towed back to her builders to
be repaired and completed. After being
renamed La Marseillaise,
she set out on her maiden voyage from
Marseilles - Yokohama August 18th 1949.
The years following the Second World War
saw the countries of French Indo China
begin a series of guerrilla wars to avoid
being taken back under French rule.
France’s defeat in the Indo China
war in 1954 led to the Geneva Conference
awarding power to the nationalist
governments of Cambodia, Laos, North
Vietnam and South Vietnam.
The tensions that grew between North
and South Vietnam soon caused trade
between France and East Asia to decline.
This led to La Marseillaise
being sold to the Arosa Line in 1957 to
be operated on the Bremerhaven - New York
run under the name Arosa
Sky. After hitting financial
troubles the following year, Arosa sold
her to the Costa Line to be operated
between Naples, Genoa and La
Guaira/Venezuela under the name
Bianca C. On October 22nd
1961, while anchored off St
George/Grenada, an explosion in her main
boiler room caused a serious fire that
killed one of the crew. Although all the
passengers escaped the burning ship, two
died later from burns. Bianca
C burned for several days before
being towed clear of the port by the
British frigate Londonderry. Since
sinking soon after being towed clear of
St George, Bianca C has attracted
divers from all over the world, as she is
the largest shipwreck in the
Caribbean.
Above, Bianca C ablaze at St
George/Grenada
Below, the wreck of Bianca C
off the coast of Grenada
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