Front cover of Oceanum
Translation of the German article of Anny von Hamburg by Peer Schmidt-Walther in the Oceanum yearbook of 2024, 9th edition. www.oceanum.de
Index page
Page 258 - Peer Schmidt-Walther: Between Cargo Tramp and Luxury Expedition - The Three-Masted Ship ANNY VON HAMBURG is Brought Back to Life
Pages 258-259
Between cargo tramp and luxury expedition
Three-masted ANNY VON HAMBURG brought back to life
▷ Peer Schmidt-Walther (text) and Jan Rautavaara (photos)
She has an impressive history. Anyone who sees her for the first time is captivated. This was true over 110 years ago – and her elegant design continues to enchant visitors today. She was built in 1914 at the renowned C. Lühring shipyard in Hammelwarden on the Lower Weser River. Seven more sister ships followed.
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The steel cargo sailing ship's first major voyage took her to St. Petersburg, and that's where it ended. When the First World War broke out, ANNY was promptly confiscated by Russia and subsequently served as a barracks ship for the Czar's naval cadets.
It wasn't until 1925 that she returned to Germany as a hulk. At the Wilhelmsburg shipyard, Ernst Harms converted her back into a cargo ship and renamed her HANNA. After the war, the schooner changed hands several times and was eventually converted into a motor vessel. During this conversion, she received a smaller rigging and a 120 hp two-stroke engine from the Hanseatic Works in Bergedorf. In 1936, the Glückstadt shipowner Max Both acquired the motor schooner and renamed her KURT BOTH. Her home port remained Hamburg, and she was then used for tramping to Scandinavia.
From Schooner to Motor Vessel
In 1940, the three-masted schooner was converted into a one-and-a-half-masted vessel with a new, 150 hp four-stroke engine from Deutsche Werke in Kiel. During World War II, the sailing ship transported cement from Bremen to Heligoland, as the North Sea island was being fortified.
In 1950, the KURT BOTH was lengthened by eight meters at the Fritz Frank shipyard in Hamburg-Wilhelmsburg. After the bowsprit was removed in 1952 at Hugo Peters in Wewelsfleth/ Stör, the schooner was finally converted into a motor vessel. After almost 32 years, the ship was removed from the Hamburg shipping register in 1957. It had been sold for 230,000 DM to Oscar Abrahamsson & Sons in Sweden, for whom it sailed as the RINGÖ. In 1963, the Finn Paul Grönquist acquired it and operated it for another 16 years as a coastal freighter transporting sand and gravel along the Finnish coast between Helsinki and Porvoo.
In 1980, Jörn Deistler, managing director of Germania Schiffahrt, Hamburg, discovered the ship in the port of Karlskrona. The former gaff schooner was partially burned out and looked completely different. Using old blueprints from the Lühring shipyard, a faithful restoration was planned. But first...
Picture captions: As the coastal freighter KURT BOTH in the timber trade and as the coastal freighter RINGO in the gravel trade in 1957 (sign: Rautavaara)
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Four schooner masts and a sleek white hull: the unmistakable hallmarks of ANNY.
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Picture caption: A glimpse into the wooden saloon with dining table and sitting area also impresses with its woodwork (right). (Sig. Rautavaara)
... she was reflagged to England (1985) and Antigua (1989), and then cruising the Aegean and Mediterranean Seas in the summer, and sailing around the Canary Islands and through the Caribbean in the winter. She was always present at Kiel Week and Hanse Sail as a Sail Training Ship (STS).
A sailor waxes lyrical
From 1997 to 1998, she underwent a complete overhaul in Wilhelmshaven and subsequently sailed for the Thien & Heyenga company under the Portuguese flag with Madeira as her home port until 2004. From then on, the Hanse-Kogge-werft e. V. association took over the helm. And thus, she reappeared in the Hamburg ship register.
The ship then languished in Leer's leisure harbor for about eight years after shipowner Hermann Buss attempted to transfer it to Leer (East Frisia) in 2007. In September 2018, the 119-year-old three-masted schooner was acquired by entrepreneur Hans Georg Näder. He intended to have it repaired again and then operated by the shipping project Timbercoast, which he supports and which is committed to transporting cargo in a climate-friendly manner using sailing ships. The cargo sailing vessel AVONTUUR is currently the company's only ship. He wanted to use the ANNY as a cargo sailing vessel once more. To do this, the hull first had to be examined very closely. However, an initial ultrasound examination of the hull revealed the ANNY to be in very poor condition, apart from the rigging, which urgently needed an overhaul. The foremast was nothing but scrap metal, and everything beneath the teak deck was rusting away. A complete restoration would have cost, according to conservative estimates, between two and three million euros. Like all previous owners, Näder wanted to save this gem from ruin. It's enough to make any sailor swoon. The interior and the saloon alone, judging from old photos, were simply magnificent. Converting it back into a freighter would have been a tragedy. Perhaps the former cargo sailing ship would one day become a passenger ship under sail?
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Top picture caption: Without any masts in Hamburg-Finkenwerder in December 2022.
Bottom picture caption: The two sailing ship enthusiasts Juha Pokka and Jan Rautawaara.
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Picture caption: In the saloon, the dining table is festively set for the first gala dinner.
Faced with the avalanche of costs, however, all involved gave up. We know this from the barque GORCH FOCK II, whose cost estimates skyrocketed.
Doing a lot themselves
But salvation was at hand once again. Until then, ANNY had already been moored in Hamburg-Finkenwerder for months. And once again, it is Finns who have fallen under the spell of this sailing beauty: Captains Jan Rautawaara and Juha Pokka. They maintain silence about the purchase price: "All our reserves are gone for now," is all that can be revealed.
After the daunting backstory, now two madmen? Jan laughs: "Not at all, because we have a clear economic plan." The two friends, both seafarers, have known each other for 30 years and until recently owned the 53-year-old coastal motor vessel JEANNY.
After such a daunting history, are they now two madmen? Jan laughs: "Not at all, because we have a clear economic plan."
Neither are unrealistic dreamers, but rather dreamy businessmen. They bring decades of seafaring experience, craftsmanship, and knowledge of old, small ships. "We do a lot of the work ourselves," explains Jan, who usually stands on the bridge of a billionaire's yacht, but like his friend Juha has also captained all kinds of ships, large and small: freighters, sailing vessels, and cruise ships. Until 2022, Jan was captain of the 20,000 GT expedition yacht CRYSTAL ENDEAVOR, the last ship built by the Stralsund Volkswerft Shipyard. But he was also drawn back to the German North Sea coast for emotional reasons. He brought his "dream ship," the ANNY, with him...
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The nameplate just before installation: the final act of an intensive renovation.
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...always in his mind, which he had admired since childhood in Finland. In 1997, he even captained her on charter trips with guests along the North Sea coast.
Timeless Glamour of Classic Yachts
The final hour of rescue struck for the two ship enthusiasts after their purchase. Their motto: "Sailing is not just a destination, but also a journey."
As recently as February 2023, they moved the sailboat with "great potential" under its own power to Wischhafen, to the museum harbor there, because it was more affordable than Hamburg. Some work was carried out there. Finally, ANNY sailed under her own power to Helsinki in May 2023, where the masts were renewed in September. Final work is being carried out at the Suomenlinna shipyard, located on the fortress island in front of Helsinki, and the ship's classification is being restored. Afterward, the sails were bent on. The first charter bookings have already been confirmed.
“From Helsinki and Mariehamn, day charter trips with up to 30 guests will initially be undertaken through the archipelago waters, but for overnight stays there may only be ten,” Jan reveals the first step into the passenger voyage. Their ultimate goal is to create a miniature SEA CLOUD as an expedition sailing vessel with a unique private yacht atmosphere and top-class service. Other cruising areas of the slightly different sailing ship will then be Norway, Spitsbergen, the Caribbean and the Mediterranean, of course emission-free," as Jan Rautawaara emphasizes, "we want our guests to experience the timeless glamor of classic yachting."
Trips on the ANNY VON HAMBURG can be booked through Jan's company, NESS – Nordic Expedition Sailing Society: day charters, weekend trips, or even seven-day cruise sailing trips, depending on customer preferences. Each multi-day trip is individually planned according to the customer's wishes.
Technical Data
Type: Schooner
Rigging: Gaff rig
Masts: 3 (wood)
Sail area: 520 sq m
Shipyard: C. Lühring, Hammelwarden
Year built: 1914
1st Owner: Diedrich Hasseldieck, Nordenham
Names: ANNY (1914-1925), then HANNA (1925-1936), KURT BOTH (1936-1957, Swedish flag 1957-1963), RINGO (1963-1980, until 1979 as a motor coastal motor yacht under the Finnish flag), laid up in Karlskrona, ANNY VON HAMBURG (since 1980)
Sister ships: 7
Hull: Steel
Use: Passenger yacht
Length (LOA): 38.0 m,
Beam: 6.95 m,
Draft: (max.): 2.65 m
Engine: 280 hp (206 kW)
www.ness.fi
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