R. C. Rickmers (1906)

Painting of R. C. Rickmers by C.M. Knight-Smith, c. 1906
History
German Empire
NameR. C. Rickmers
Owner1906-1914, Rickmers Rice Mill, Freight and Shipbuilding Company
OperatorRickmers Line
Launched8 February 1906
Maiden voyageBremen to Saigon and Bangkok
FateSeized by the British in August 1914
History
United Kingdom
NameNeath
Owner1914-1917, British owner
FateSunk by the German submarine U-66 off the coast of Ireland on 27 March 1917
General characteristics
Typefive-masted steel clipper barque with auxiliary steam engine
Tonnage5,548 tons
Displacement11,360 tons (on her maximum draft)
Length441 feet
Beam53 feet 8 inches
Draft26 feet 9 inches when fully loaded
Depth32 feet
PropulsionSail and steam
Sail plan38 (40) sails on 5 masts
SpeedSail: 13-14 knots; Steam: 8 knots
Crew~45 men

RC Rickmers was a German five-masted steel clipper barque with auxiliary engine built in 1906 by the firm Rickmers Rice Mill, Freight and Shipbuilding Company (Rickmers Reismühlen Rhederei and Schiffbau A.G., simple known as Rickmers A.G.) of Bremerhaven, Germany for the company's Rickmers Line. She was the largest sailing ship in the world from 1907 (sinking of Thomas W. Lawson) to 1911 (launching of France II) and the second German five-masted barque.