House Flags of German Shipping Companies (a)

Last modified: 2010-01-30 by jarig bakker
Keywords: alexandra | apollo shipping |
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• Rainer Abicht Elbreederei
• Adler Linie
• AIDA Cruises
• Alba Reederei
• Reederei Albrecht
• Förderverein Salondampfer Alexandra e.V.
• Alpha Reefer Transport
• O.F.Alsen & Sohn
• Alster A.G.
• Aktiengesellschaft "Alster"
• Alstertouristik
• Amisia
• M.G. Amsinck
• C. Andersen
• Anytime Chartering
• Apollo Shipping
• Heinrich F.C. Arp
• Artus Danziger Reederei
• Assen Reederei
• Atlantic Reederei R & W Joch

• Chr. F. Ahrenkiel Hamburg
• Albrecht & Co.
• Alster Bereederungsgesellschaft
• Alstership
• Argo
• Atlantic Tank Rhederei

• House Flags of German Shipping Companies
• House Flags of Shipping Companies
• Germany

Rainer Abicht Elbreederei

This Hamburg-based firm exploits a fleet of almost thirty boats of several sizes, offering harbour and river excursions (dogs allowed!) of all kinds: parties, visits, weddings, etc.  It is the largest operator of this kind in Hamburg.

Website: Flag: on a white field is placed a white disk bearing the white initial ‘A’ in script.
Although the disk seems to be sky-blue here, this must be an effect of the light as other photos (vessels’ names on top of page, clickable) show the colour consistent with above flagoid.  The reason I’m sending this one is the presence of the fine Hamburg flag serving as jack.
Jan Mertens, 3 Jun 2006

Adler Linie

Adler Linie - The company was located in Hamburg. Facing accidents and economic problems, there were negociations with Norddeutscher Lloyd in Bremen.
When Godeffroy claimed "vital Hamburgian interests" the company finally was overtaken by Hapag on 7 May 1875
Description of flag: It is a white flag with a completely surrounding red edge. In its centre is a black eagle, sitting on a horizontal bar and facing the hoist.
Source: Arnold KLUDAS: "Die Geschichte der deutschen Passagierschiffahrt (5 vols.)" Hamburg 1986; Reprint Laibach Slovenia-Buch Nr. 03617-8, flagchart; p.223.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 12 June 2007

AIDA Cruises

AIDA Cruises - It is a white flag with an inscription of coloured capitals “AIDA” (blue-red-yellow-green) and below in black slightly smaller “CRUISES”.
Source: I spotted this flag at the baptism of “AIDA diva” on 20 April 2007 in Hamburg.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 21 Mar 2009

Alba Reederei

Part of the Scherrieble Group, active in recycling, Alba Reederei GmbH & Co. KG is a German inland navigation company specialized in transporting bulk goods. Based at Mannheim, where the Neckar meets the Rhine, the firm was founded about forty years ago, operates a number of barges between 1100 and 1600 metric tonnes and owns a depot next to the River Neckar.

Dedicated page (German only), showing a flagoid: ‘Flagoid’ because the image lacks an important detail, fimbriation.  See it in better shape on a Binnenvaart page, concerning the vessel once named ‘Alba 5’ operated by ‘Alba Schiffahrt & Transport GmbH’ at Mannheim, which I take to be a former company name used in 1955, as the text suggests.
A red saltire defining two blue triangles (upper and lower) and two white ones (left and right), on the white triangles blue initials ‘A’ and ‘R’ respectively.  The red saltire is fimbriated white where it otherwise would have touched the blue triangles.
See Michael Harms’s site for a photo of the flag flying on the German vessel ‘Minerva’, select Gallery / Binnenschiffe / Frachtschiffe / M / Minerva (clickable).

This leaves me with a minor riddle, as the Binnenvaart site also shows a ‘Neckarfracht’ flag which very much resembles the above but for the company name and the colour of the initials which is black.  See it here in connection with the vessel ‘Beate’.
Until now I have only found barges named this way, but no company... so Binnenvaart may have made a mistake.
Jan Mertens, 27 Aug 2006

Reederei Albrecht

"Reederei Albrecht" operates the paddle steamer "Concordia II" on the river Harle between Carolinensiel and Harlesiel, Eastern Friesland, Lower Saxony. The "Concordia II" is named after a ship of the same name that sailed on the Harle in the 1850s.

The house flag of "Reederei Albrecht", as shown as a graphic on the company website, is horizontally divided black-white-red with a white square diamond outlined in black and charged with a black "A" in the middle.
Ivan Sache, 7 Sep 2008

Förderverein Salondampfer Alexandra e.V.

Cycling towards the Danish-German border, I saw a ship on the Kiel canal belonging to the shipping company Förderverein Salondampfer Alexandra e.V., whose only purpose is to preserve and sail the Salondampfer Alexandra, Flensburg. Its house flag is per saltire yellow over blue.
Peter Hans van den Muijzenberg, 27 Aug 2001

Alpha Reefer Transport

Alpha Reefer Transport GmbH., Hamburg - white flag, 1,5 circle; the full circle containing a honeycomb structure, all blue.
Image after Brown's Flags and Funnels Shipping Companies of the World, compiled by J.L. Loughran, Glasgow, 1995 [lgr95]
Jarig Bakker, 4 Dec 2005

I'm wondering if the honeycomb could be a stylized representation of a snowflake - after all the "Reefer" in the company name seems to ring of a refridgerated cargo ship. Any info?
Phil Nelson, 4 Dec 2005

O.F.Alsen & Sohn

In 1863 Otto Friedrich Alsen founded the Alsen'sche Portland-Cement Fabrik. The company expanded very quickly and Alsen needed not only small ships for the transportation of cement but also bigger ones to get timber for the wooden cement-barrels from Norway. So he founded in 1868 the "O.F.Alsen&Sohn" shipping-company. The company used a white flag with black capital letters "OFA" in the centre.
In 1884 the shipping-company was renamed to "Reederei der Alsen'schen Portland-Cement Fabriken".
The last ship was sold in 1902 and finally got lost on 18 March 1910.
The shipping-company was dissolved then. The company used a yellow flag with a black capital "A" in the centre (see below).
(Source: Jürgen Meyer: "Hamburger Segelschiffe von 1795-1945"; ISBN 3-89225-400-1; Hamburg 1999; p.132ff).
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 19 Mar 2007

O.F.Alsen & Sohn (last design)

Alster A.G.

This flag is blue with some kind of bird with spread wings in the center and 4 stars, looking suspiciously 6-pointed, in the corners, all white.
My image can't be considered anything but the sketch of a reconstruction, since the original image is so blurry and I couldn't find another source for this flag or for the central bird. I can't say weather it's an eagle, a seagull, or even a pigeon, for that matter...
The caption, though, is almost clear: seems to read something in the lines of Alsher A. G.
Jorge Candeias, 14 May 2004

Aktiengesellschaft "Alster"

Aktiengesellschaft "Alster" - The company was established in 1898 and the most important shareholder was Rob M. Sloman. Sloman sold his shares in 1912 to the company "E.C.Schramm&Co." in Bremen and that was the end of the company.
The company used atypical Sloman flag; i.e. a dark blue flag (FIAV-code B++) with a white 5-point star in each corner. In the centre was a dark blue swan spreading his wings and facing the flyend.
Source: Jürgen Meyer: "Hamburger Segelschiffe von 1795-1945"; ISBN 3-89225-400-1; Hamburg 1999; p.187ff.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 3 Apr 2007

Alstertouristik

ATG Alstertouristik-GmbH - It is a company running transport of passengers on the River Alster in Hamburg. I spotted this flag at the Außenalster on 3 April 2004.
Description of flag: a red cloth with a white swan swimming upon three white horizontal line facing the hoist. Underneath the lines there is a small white bow at the lower fly.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 19 Mar 2007

ATG-Alstertouristik I know in the company logo the swan is facing the right side (visible) but on the flag ist facing the hoist i.e. the left side (visible).
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 23 Mar 2007

Amisia

"Amisia" Schiffahrtsgesellschaft Gebrüder Schmitz
The company was located in Emsdetten (Steinfurt county), next to Rheine. Amisia is referring to river Ems, which flows through the city. It is a green over white over green horizontal triband with ratio approx 1:3:1 and a red capital “A” in the white stripe.
Source: Title: „Flaggen, Schornsteine, Reedereien- Flaggen und Schornsteine der deutschen Reedereien und ihre Schiffe über 300 BRT“; Hamburg 1957; p.F1.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 8 Apr 2009

M.G. Amsinck

M.G.Amsinck - Martin Garlieb Amsinck was merchant and owner of a dockyard. In 1859 he owned 4 ships and in 1870 even 11. After the German-French War
1870/71 the importance of iron increased and wood was no longer needed. So the dockyard was closed spontaneously and Amsinck only kept his shipping company. The shipping company closedwhen the last ship was sold in 1907.
The company used a quarterly divided flag white (with a light green serifed "A" (FIAV-code V--), red, red and white with three light-green leaves (FIAV-code V--) maybe from an oak.
Source: Jürgen Meyer: "Hamburger Segelschiffe von 1795-1945"; ISBN 3-89225-400-1; Hamburg 1999; p.97ff.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 28 Mar 2007

You mention the three green leaves on the right side. Maybe oak ?) No. they are the three mistletoe leaves from the Amsinck familie weapon.
Originally from 15th century Netherlands.
Georg Teddy Amsinck, 25 Jan 2010

C. Andersen

C. Andersen, Hamburg - 5 horizontal stripes of red and white; blue diamond, with in the corners 4 white 8-pointed stars; in center white "CA".
Image after Brown's Flags and Funnels of British and Foreign Steamship Companies, compiled by F.J.N. Wedge, Glasgow, 1926 [wed26]
Jarig Bakker, 23 Feb 2005

Anytime Chartering

Anytime  Chartering & Shipping GmbH, ship brokers - The company is located in Buxtehude (Stade county). The flag is a modified version of the municipal flag of Neu-Wulmstorf Harburg county), which lies next to Buxtehude just between Buxtehude and Hamburg. The white annulet in the municipal flag is replaced by a yellow steering wheel with a black inscription “Anytime” in its top half and “Chartering in the bottom half.
Source: www.seemann-fischer.de
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 3 Apr 2009

Apollo Shipping

Dov Gutterman reported the link of Apollo Shipping GmbH & Co.KG - ASG and wavy lines on white.
Santiago Dotor, 6 Nov 2003

Heinrich F.C. Arp

The problem is that this flag is unclear and its caption is even more unclear. It's a triangular flag with a red border around the top and bottom and a narrow vertical stripe near the fly, also red (creating the shape of an A). In the larger white area there's some sort of abbreviation that I cannot make out. The caption is huge, occupying two lines of tiny little letters. Of course, it's totally blurred and all I can do is guess. Could the top line be "Hesmeth & C. Argo"?
Jorge Candeias, 6 Jan 2005

Cleverly done, this flag. I couldn't read all of the caption but it seemed like Heinrich ... Arp... something... The letters inside the 'A' were unclear, too. A Google search for "reederei arp" led to this faint trace. The fourth ship is the "Maike" owned by 'Reederei Arp & Thordsen'.
I checked the on-line 1912 Lloyds Flags & Funnels and there was No. 1433: i.e. 'Heinrich F.C. Arp (S. Öllgaard & Thoersen), Hamburg. 'Thoersen' seems to be correct, there are more traces now; the complete name of the firm would then be: 'Heinrich F.C. Arp Dampfschiffs-Reederei (S. Öllgaard und Thoersen)'.
Jan Mertens, 7 Jan 2005

Artus Danziger Reederei

"Artus" Danziger Reederei: five horizontal stripes, the second and fourth yellow, the others blue; a white disk on the central three stripes bearing a black A (funnel: black, bearing the flag in the form of a band)= Danzig.
Jan Mertens, 15 Nov 2003

At this webpage is the houseflag of Hugo Stinnes, as well as Artus Danziger (with a hexagon, no disk)
Info: "Artus Danziger Reederei & Handels-Aktiengesellschaft 1919-1927, Danzig

When World War I was over the German Shipping companies disappeared from the seas and most of the remaining ships had to be delivered to the Allies as war reparations. It was forbidden for the German Shipping companies to reopen their deep sea lines again, only coastal voyages were allowed.

Hugo Stinnes saw in November 1919 an opportunity to found a shipping company at Danzig which was a neutral free trade zone at that time to open a connection to ports of South America. In 1921 Artus started a service with cargo passenger ships to ports in South America. The first ship to open this new service was the ARTUS.

Hugo Stinnes died at the age of 54 in 1924, his successors were not able to hold the Stinnes empire together so in 1926 the Deutsch Austral & Kosmos took over the AG Hugo Stinnes und Seeschiffahrt und Handel. The Deutsch Austral & Kosmos with the Roland Linie and Hamburg Amerikanische Paketfahrt Aktien Gesellschaft (Hapag) entered into a covenant to split the liner services of cargo and passengers between them to the ports in South and West America. This was the end of the Artus Reederei & Handelsgesellschaft."
Jarig Bakker, 15 Nov 2007

Assen Reederei

Assen Reederei
The company was located in Lübeck-Travemünde. It is a red over yellow over red horizontal triband with ratio approx 1:3:1 with a red  man-trap in the centre.
Source: Title: „Flaggen, Schornsteine, Reedereien- Flaggen und Schornsteine der deutschen Reedereien und ihre Schiffe über 300 BRT“; Hamburg 1957; p.F1.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 8 Apr 2009

Atlantic Reederei R & W Joch

Atlantic Reederei R & W Joch K.G., Hamburg - white flag; in bottom fly blue "A"; in canton horizontal black over white over red stripes.
Image after Brown's Flags and Funnels Shipping Companies of the World, compiled by J.L. Loughran, Glasgow, 1995 [lgr95]
Jarig Bakker, 15 Sep 2005