# MV Valasquas, Mc Andrews Lines



## tracyleanne (Sep 17, 2010)

I've been searching for info on the ship and company. it sailed out of Shadwell bason early 60s to Barcalona,Ibeza,San Falue returning to Tower Bridge Small passenger cargo can anyone help. 
Thanx Tracy leanne


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## BillH (Oct 10, 2007)

I presume this is the vessel in question.

VELAZQUEZ 
O.N. 186143. 2,196g. 979n. 2,570d. 334’ 4” x 45’ 6” x 18’ 1”
Two, 10-cyl. 4 S.C.S.A. (400 x 600mm) oil engines made by Maschinenbau-Augsburg-Nuernberg (MAN), Nuernberg, single reversed geared to screw shaft. 3,800 BHP. 15 kts.
12 passengers
29.7.1954: Launched by Werft Nobiskrug, Rendsburg (Yard No. 571) for MacAndrews & Company Ltd., London. 
4.12.1954: Completed. 
1968: Sold to Ocean Shipping & Enterprises Company (Liberia) Inc, Liberia, and renamed OCEAN TRUST. 
1969: Sold to Tunas (Hong Kong) Ltd., and renamed SUMBER TUNAS II under Somali Republic registry. 
1974: Sold to P.T.Pelayaran Nusantara “Naga Laut” Indonesia. 
18.9.1977: Fire broke out aboard. 
21.9.1977: Sank under tow at position 08.30.50S., 125.36.30E., about 2 miles from Timor Dill.


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## NoR (Mar 24, 2008)

*VELAZQUEZ nice looking ship*

Found a pic of her nice looking ship. Did some time on the Villegas myself.


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## tracyleanne (Sep 17, 2010)

Thanx a lot couldnt have done it without you guys


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## peterbsnow (Sep 20, 2010)

Macandrews had a fleet of small cargo vessels that traded between UK and Portugal. they may have also gone as far as the Mediterranean. Velazquez was one of a fleet of sister ships , the sisters being Valdez, Vargas, Velarde and Verdaguer.
Villegas, mentioned above, was slightly smaller, her sisters being Vives and Valdivia.
I think, but maybe wrongly, that MacAdnrews was a subsidiary of Andrew Weir and Co., the owners of Bank Line.


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## Scurdie (Aug 6, 2009)

You mean VELAZQUEZ, named after the Spanish artist. A smart-looking, white-painted vessel. I remember the ship for one reason only: during a dock strike in London c. 1960, she was diverted to Montrose, Scotland, which as a non-union port could handle her. It was a busy time for the harbour, for not only was she an unusually large ship for the port, but she carried a wide variety of cargo, much of it perishable (fruit etc.), which therefore had to be forwarded rapidly to its intended destinations in the south of England - something which was done regularly at London but not in Montrose! There were a few passengers too, but their conditions of carriage said "to a UK port", so they had to find their own way south!
A year or two later, the same diversion arose for VALDEZ, but if I recall correctly, her cargo then was mostly potatoes which caused fewer problems.


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## Alistair Macnab (May 13, 2008)

*Macandrews...*

Just for the record, Macandrews was a wholly-owned subsidiary of United Baltic Corporation (UBC) being bought from the wreckage of the Royal Mail Group by the Andrew Weir Organization in 1935 and assigned to UBC.
UBC, in turn, was originally 50-50 owned by Andrew Weir's and the Danish East Asiatic Company until Weir's bought out the EAC 50% in the 1980s and became sole owners.
Main trade routes for Macandrews were between UK ports and Spain and Portugal. They had extensive agency interests throughout the Iberian Peninsula and owned and operated a container/ro-ro terminal in Bilbao. Macandrews were one of the oldest shipping companies in the UK dating from 1770 and were originally Liverpool based.


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## NoR (Mar 24, 2008)

*Macandrews.........*

Re. Shadwell Basin,

I did one trip in the Pacheco (pic attached) and I'm sure it was to and from Shadwell Basin. If I remember right there was a big bonded vault adjacent or beneath the dock. Some of us were shown around it one day by a customs guy. The vault was massive with casks of spirits appearing to fade into the distance. We were told that part of it was inaccessible since the Blitz.

Can anyone confirm?


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## Eric Wallace (Jan 17, 2006)

Nor when were you on the Villagus?I was 4th/eng in 1957.nice run from London to Portugal and Spain.some photos of some officers on my photos.Eric Wallace


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## NoR (Mar 24, 2008)

Eric

Was on the Villegas 1968ish Capt Carrivick.


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## Wilco (Aug 12, 2005)

tracyleanne said:


> I've been searching for info on the ship and company. it sailed out of Shadwell bason early 60s to Barcalona,Ibeza,San Falue returning to Tower Bridge Small passenger cargo can anyone help.
> Thanx Tracy leanne


In the mid 1950's I did several trips on the Velazquez as 2nd mate.
The usual schedule was to sail with general cargo out of London Dock, never Shadwell basin on a friday p.m. tide. The return was programmed to be 3 weeks later on either the late thursday tide or early friday morning always to Butlers Wharf on the south side of the river. This enabled a large proportion of the fresh produce carried to be in the markets, Covent Garden etc, in time to be sold for the week end.
The Shadwell basin ships of Mac's were on the Portugal run not Spain.
The ships were kept imaculately even the holds being painted white. No "dirty" cargo was ever carried outward. Dishcharge was at a whole range of Spanish ports starting at Seville up to Barcelona.
The homeward loading ports did, to a degree, depend on the season.
Sometimes we would start by loading cork at San Feliu & Palamos up near the french border, Barcelona for wine & general plus oranges in season, sometimes Tarragona for casks of wine then possibly Almeria if grapes were in season or maybe Valencia for tomatoes or oranges. Mac's would call at any port if a minimum of 50 deadweight tons was on offer. We sometimes call at 15 or 16 ports out & home one a 3 week round trip.
The Velazquez was capable of 17+ knots some of which was kept in reserve for a spurt if their was to be a problem make the tide to berth at Butlers on time.
Mac's in general, out of London, were known as the Polish Navy as the deck crowd were predominately expatriate Poles who had remained in the London area after the war.
The Velazquez carried 12 passengers on a round trip basis.
I also served on the Valdivia as 2nd mate.
Regards,
Wilco


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## John Francis 1 (Nov 8, 2020)

peterbsnow said:


> Macandrews had a fleet of small cargo vessels that traded between UK and Portugal. they may have also gone as far as the Mediterranean. Velazquez was one of a fleet of sister ships , the sisters being Valdez, Vargas, Velarde and Verdaguer.
> Villegas, mentioned above, was slightly smaller, her sisters being Vives and Valdivia.
> I think, but maybe wrongly, that MacAdnrews was a subsidiary of Andrew Weir and Co., the owners of Bank Line.


I joined the Palacio in 1963 and we went to Spain Casablanca Tunis then the Spanish ports loaded wine in Tarragona then Cadiz then back to London


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## Velazquez (Jan 20, 2021)

BillH said:


> I presume this is the vessel in question.
> 
> VELAZQUEZ
> O.N. 186143. 2,196g. 979n. 2,570d. 334’ 4” x 45’ 6” x 18’ 1”
> ...





tracyleanne said:


> I've been searching for info on the ship and company. it sailed out of Shadwell bason early 60s to Barcalona,Ibeza,San Falue returning to Tower Bridge Small passenger cargo can anyone help.
> Thanx Tracy leanne


The Velazquez actually appered, as herself, in an episode of the 1950s television series 'Scotland Yard'. In this episode released in 1957, entitled 'The Mail Van Murder', the vessel harboured a murderer. In the climactic scene, Police board the Velazquez and challenge the captain after which a fight occurs and the murderer is knocked unconcious. He falls overboard and into the Thames to drown. There were a significant number of shots filmed aboard this vessel and you can see that it appears in very good order. The Velazquez looks very impressive throughout.


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