The Bizarre Life and Personal Turmoil of the Father of the Modern Cruise

The mass-market passenger cruise industry can trace its origins back to the 19^th century and Albert Ballin – the shipping magnate and brilliant innovator. In 1891, a 34-year-old Ballin laid the foundations for the pleasure cruise when steerage class travel was not proving profitable enough for Hapag – the shipping company of which he was a board member.

Born in a poor section of Hamburg, Germany in 1857; Ballin grew into an enterprising and respected man – offering advice and guidance to the Kaiser. He got his first chance to flex his mental strength when he took over the business, a ship passenger booking service, at the age of 17 following the death of his father.

Prior to his father’s death the business, Morris & Co, was struggling but Ballin manage to turn it around and create a thriving enterprise. This attracted the attention of the major shipping companies who were having plenty of troubles of their own.

At the time, passenger ships were used almost exclusively to ferry people to a new life across the Atlantic – but as competition grew fierce, ticket prices fell and shipping company profits were falling dramatically.

Hapag approached Ballin in 1886 following a shareholder revolt and major shake-up – employing the man, still in his 20s, as head of the company’s passenger division. Two years later he was elected to the board of directors and started upon his mission to bring luxury travel to the seas.

Many of Hapag’s competitors were targeting the coveted Blue Riband for the fastest Atlantic crossing, but Ballin recognised that luxury rather than speed would attract the wealthier guests and increase the company’s profitability.

Setting sail on 22 January 1891, the Augusta Viktoria from Hapag undertook the first ever pleasure cruise. Ballin and his wife were amongst the 241 passengers who enjoyed a 57-night cruise around the Mediterranean. Calling at more than a dozen ports and offering first class cabins and cuisine – the cruise was a huge success and Ballin realised it had the potential to become a whole new industry.

Following the world’s first ever pleasure cruise Ballin set about creating another world first – a ship built exclusively for pleasure cruising. Named after Kaiser Wilhelm’s daughter, the Prinzessin Viktoria Luise was eventually launched on 29 June 1900.

Influenced by stays in Paris and London, Ballin wanted to recreate the sense of luxury hotels aboard his pleasure cruises. The upper decks of Ballin-pioneered ships were designed to rival palatial homes and five star hotels. He had radically altered the entire cruise industry forever – shaping cruise holidays for the next century.

Unfortunately, not soon after this his personal life began to unravel. As a Jewish man born into a Germany beginning to distrust members of the religion; Ballin was disliked in some circles. When WWI broke out in 1914, Ballin publicly voiced his opposition – and his close (and helpful) friendship with the Kaiser began to falter.

His stance on the war destroyed his reputation, and his relationship with the king and the government. Furthermore, the war had effectively ruined Hapag (it would take years for the company to recover) due to ruined maritime paths and relationships and a downturned economy.

Tragically as the war came to a close, Ballin took his own life. Now considered a pacifist traitor, Ballin took an overdose of sleeping pills on 9 November 1918 (two days before the armistice between the Allies and Germany) and never awoke.

Despite this, his legend and legacy live on as the pleasure cruise industry continues to go from strength to strength with millions of people enjoying luxury holidays on the sea every year – as testified by Cruise1st.

Images sourced via Flickr Creative Commons. Credit: James Morley