History is full of "what ifs." What if Hitler had been killed in World War I? Would the second World War have happened? One single event can change history. On this page we will look at the what ifs of ocean liner history.  (And according to the many worlds/multi-verse theory, this probably happened in a parallel universe!)
Feel free to chime in if you have an alternate history you would like to see here. I will give it due consideration. I do ask that you try to make it as realistic as possible.

     In 1934, the nearly bankrupt White Star Line was merged into the also ailing Cunard Line to create the Cunard White Star Line. Cunard controlled the company with 62% of the shares vs. 42% for White Star. The merger was forced on Cunard as a condition to get a government loan to complete the Queen Mary and build a sistership. With a cruising speed of over 28 knots, these new Cunarders would make possible a 2 ship express service across the Atlantic for the first time. It had required 3 vessels to provide weekly departures from Southampton and New York before this period. At the time of the merger Cunard had 16 liners and WS had 10. The combination of the two fleets was very hard on the WS side with 7 of the former WS ships retired by 1936.
   White Star's problems really began when it was sold by IMM to the Royal Mail Group in 1927. To make a long story short, financial mismanagement severely weakened White Star and the Great Depression finished it off. But what if IMM had not sold the company in 1927 or if another firm had purchased White Star in 1927? History might have been a little different.......... (More to come)

Copyright ©2008 Brent Holt. No part of the content of this site may be reproduced or retransmitted without the prior written consent of the owner. Any use or sale for profit is strictly prohibited. All rights are reserved.

This page designed by Brent Holt
E-mail the Webmaster