The Ship’s Log 08 May 2024
The impressive three-masted sailing ship named “Belem“, which was assigned to transport the Olympic Flame from the port of Piraeus to Marseille, is the last remaining three-masted sailing ship of the great French merchant sailing ships of the 19th century still sailing, with most similar sailboats now retired or destroyed.
Belem is 128 years old and has an extremely interesting history, which among other things includes transporting beans for the famous Menier chocolate factory, traveling around the world and surviving the eruption of a volcano.
Extremely interesting semantically is the fact that his ‘birth’, in 1896, coincides with the year that the modern Olympic Games were revived in Athens. It is not at all surprising, therefore, that the organizers of the 2024 Olympic Games chose it to transport the Olympic Flame from Piraeus to Marseille, by sea. In this way, they added another symbolism to the journey of the flame, as Greece and Marseille have been united since antiquity by waterways.
It is noted that the Olympic Flame was lit on April 16th in Ancient Olympia, and after completing its journey throughout Greece, which lasted 10 days, it was handed over to the French organizers on April 26, during a special ceremony at the Panathenaic Stadium. The Flame was then transported to Piraeus to board the majestic Belem, bound for the port of Marseille. The sailboat departed Piraeus port on April 27th, for a 12-day voyage to Marseille.
In Marseille, 150,000 people are expected to welcome the flame, during which 1,024 boats will accompany the three-masted ship to Marseille’s Old Port.
One of them will be the “Pytheas“, the Greek sailing ship that departed on Saturday, April 20th, 2024 from Piraeus, under the Greek flag and the flag of Piraeus, and with George Kesses as its sole crew. It is noted that the municipalities of the two ports of Piraeus and Marseille have been twinned since 1984, symbolizing the strong bonds of friendship between the two port cities of the Mediterranean.
Belem’s many ‘lives’
Belem was built in the port of Nantes, Brittany, in 1896. It is a three-line barque 58 meters long and 8.8 meters wide and carries 22 sails. Its main mast is 34 meters above sea level, while its maximum speed is 9.2 knots or 17 km/h. A sleek, fast yet robust vessel, which can carry up to 675 tons of cargo.
It was named after the first port where it dropped its anchor, Belém, Brazil.
From 1896 to 1914 she made 33 transatlantic voyages as a merchant ship, first transporting cocoa beans from Brazil for the famous Menier chocolate factory, and then transporting rum and sugar cane from French Guiana and the West Indies back to French ports.
In 1902 it seems to miraculously survive the eruption of Mount Pelée, which destroyed the port of Saint-Pierre in Martinique.
At the dawn of the World War Ι, which caused the destruction of countless merchant sailing ships, Belem’s commercial career was interrupted. But in 1914, the sailboat was bought by the Duke of Westminster, who first fitted her with engines and transformed her into a luxury yacht for his leisure.
Then, in 1921, Belem was acquired by Irish brewer Sir Arthur Ernest Guinness, vice-president of breweries and great lover of sailing, who made with it around the world in 1923-1924.
In 1951, after World War II, the ship was acquired by the Cini Foundation in Venice, which renamed her Giorgio Cini and for about two decades used her to train students of Italian naval academies.
In 1979, the French bank Caisse d’Epargne gave the money requested by Kinney’s descendants and the three-masted ship was renamed “Belém” again. The ship returned to her home port of Brittany in August 1979.
Since 1980 the ship has been managed by the non-profit Belém Foundation, which takes care of its restoration, maintenance and utilization. In 1984, Belém was restored to its original condition and officially designated as a national monument of France.
