Last modified: 2007-03-10 by ivan sache
Keywords: goulandris | general steam navigation company of greece | greek line | letter: gamma (white) | united shipping and trading company of greece | star (white) | ormos | crown (yellow) | rope (yellow) |
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Ioannis Goulandris, from the Aegean island of Andros, founded a shipping
company with his five sons to connect the islands of the
Aegean Sea together. The family helped the Allies during the Second World War
and received credits from the Americans.
The tycoon Basil P. Goulandris succeeded his father in the 1950s; he
moved to Switzerland with his wife Elise in 1965. They first bought a
20,000 sq. m property in Jouxtens-Mézery, near Lausanne, and then moved into the posh mountain station of Gstaad. Goulandris' mother company
was the Orion & Global Group, involved in worldwide passenger and cargo
transport, with a maximum number of 70 ships. During the Gulf War in
1992, Goulandris rented three supertankers to Iran and made a
significant profit.
The fortune of Goulandris was estimated at 1,5 billion USD, which
allowed him to build a famous painting collection including five works
by Vincent Van Gogh. Goulandris and his wife set up the Goulandris
Foundation, dedicated to art and the economic development of the island
of Andros.
Source: Celebrities in Switzerland website
Ivan Sache, 17 March 2006
![[Greek Line house flag]](../images/g/gr~hfgli.gif)
House flag of General Steam Navigation Company of Greece - Image by San Pavlos, 27 December 2002
The General Steam Navigation Company of Greece (marketed as the Greek Line) was formed in 1939 to run transatlantic sailings from Greece. As air travel hit passenger figures in the 1960s, the vessels devoted more time to cruising. The Company began to fall on hard times in the early 1970s, following the death of Basil Goulandris, owner and chairman of the Greek Line. It collapsed finally in 1975, although their two final ships, Olympia and Queen Anna Maria, sail on (in 2002) as the Regal Empress and Topaz.
Source: Simplon Postcards website
According to Flags, Funnels and Hull Colours [ste59], the house flag of the Greek Line is blue with a white Greek letter Γ in the middle.
San Pavlos, 27 December 2002
The Greek Line was operated by the brothers Nicholas, Leonidas and Basil
Goulandris, who also operated as Goulandris Brothers. Talbot-Booth shows a white flag with the blue Γ in his Second World War books but post World War
sources show the blue flag version. They used two flags, the one shown above
being for vessels registered in Greece whilst for others registered in
the United Kingdom or Liberia the flag displayed a white G.
The three brothers (another branch of the family
shifted to New York during and post Second World War and built up another large
part of the family shipping empire) operated from Piraeus and London
from the 1920s and still operate, based on Goulandris Brothers Ltd. of London but working through Goulandris Brothers (Hellas) Ltd. of
Piraeus. They are shown in Lloyds as only being agents but are
probably the ultimate owners. After the Second World War their fleet was increasingly
changed to flags of convenience registry under a myriad of
subsidiaries which appears to have included Ormos Shipping Co. Ltd. of
London whom Lloyds show as being agents for some of the Goulandris
companies, hence their association with some of the ships which were
operated through the Greek Line which was of course also a subsidiary
based in Piraeus and initially flew the "group" Goulandris flag.
Neale Rosanoski, 30 December 2005
![[Goulandris Brothers house flag]](../images/g/gr~hfgbr.gif)
House flag of Goulandris Brothers - Image by Jarig Bakker, 6 January 2005
The Caltex book of Flags and Funnels (1959) shows a similar house flag for Goulandris Brothers. Brown 1951 shows for the Goulandris brothers in their agency in London a blue flag with a Latin G.
Jarig Bakker, 6 January 2005
![[Goulandris house flag]](../images/g/gr~hfust.gif)
House flag of United Shipping & Trading Co. of Greece - Image by Jarig Bakker, 31 January 2006
According to Brown's Flags and Funnels of Shipping Companies of the World (1995) [lgr95], the house flag of United Shipping & Trading Co. of Greece is blue with a white star.
Jarig Bakker, 31 January 2006
![[Ormos house flag]](../images/g/gr~hform.gif)
House flag of Ormos - Image by Jarig Bakker, 4 July 2004
The Dutch flagchart Vlaggen in de haven van Amsterdam (flags in the harbour of Amsterdam, no date), shows for the Greek Line (ship: Arkadia, ex-New Australia, ex-Monarch of Bermuda) a blue flag with a yellow inner border, and, in the center, an arrow-like item pointing upwards between two mirrored letters Γ, all over a short piece of rope, all yellow and forming a crown.
Jarig Bakker, 4 July 2004
According to Bonsor the Greek Line adopted in 1954 a blue flag bearing a yellow trident and having a ropework base of yellow and light blue. However Harnack, in his 1957 notes for the next edition of All About Ships & Shipping, apparently had access to an actual flag as he quotes measurements of 12 feet by 8 feet and his drawing shows the yellow design within the yellow frame. The emblem within is noted as being a Greek G and inverted G, that is the outer portions are a Γ and reverse Γ. Unfortunately he does not describe the central part, which Bonsor calls a trident but it is more of a spear or harpoon.
Neale Rosanoski, 30 December 2005