Photo: Philip Adams
At 08:30 am the ship will pass Tower Bridge, which promises to be a unique sight. It will turn around and go back under Tower Bridge at 09:00, before mooring at Canary Wharf at 10:00 am.
The Götheborg is the world’s largest ocean-going wooden sailing ship, and a replica of an 18th century Swedish East India Company ship that sank outside Gothenburg in 1745. The Götheborg has been to London once before, in 2007.
Tracy Halliwell MBE, Director of Tourism, Conventions and Major Events at London & Partners said: “We’re delighted to welcome the magnificent Götheborg sailing ship to London this summer. It will be a fantastic moment to see the world’s largest ocean-going wooden sailing ship pass under the iconic Tower Bridge. We would highly recommend a visit to see the ship when it docks in Canary Wharf. The opportunity to board The Götheborg adds something extra special to an already existing programme of things to see and do in London this August.”
The ship is on a two-year long expedition, the Asia Expedition 2022/2023. Following in the historic footsteps of the original ship from the 18th century, the purpose of the expedition is to promote trade relations in Europe and Asia. The ship will sail in Europe in 2022, stay in the Mediterranean during the winter, and continue to Asia in March 2023. In September 2023, the ship will reach the expedition’s end destination Shanghai. The Götheborg left Gothenburg 8 June 2022 and has since visited Helsingborg, Helsinki, Stockholm, Copenhagen and Oslo.
“ We are really looking forward to coming to London. It is a very important stopover for both us and our partners. We’re looking forward to welcoming our partners and their network, as well as members of the public on board during our five days in Canary Wharf”, said Kristoffer Bennis, Expedition Director at Götheborg of Sweden.
Götheborg of Sweden will leave London Friday 12 August 14:00.
It is possible to sail along as a deckhand onboard, from Bremerhaven–Lisbon, and the sailing legs after. Anyone can apply to sail along. About 20 persons are professional crew. The other 50 are deckhands, who are members of the public that sail along for the adventure, experience, and opportunity to learn how to sail an 18th century ship.
Asia Expedition 2022/2023
Götheborg departed from Gothenburg 8 June 2022, and will arrive in Shanghai in September 2023. During the expedition, the ship is sailing in the Baltic Sea and Northern Europe before continuing to the Mediterranean. During winter 2022/2023 the ship will remain in the Mediterranean. It will continue to Asia in spring 2023. The mission for the Asia Expedition is to promote trade relations and use the ship as a unique platform for businesses and partners, to create business opportunities.
Greencarrier and Partners
In 2019 the Swedish logistics company Greencarrier acquired SOIC Ship Management, that operates the ship Götheborg, and thereby secured financing of the expedition to Asia. Spring 2020 Greencarrier also acquired the ship. Behind the decision lies a long-term interest in and commitment to the ship Götheborg, and the conviction that the ship is built to sail and therefore should do that.
Partners to the expedition are also EKN (The Swedish Export Credit Agency) and Vinnova (Sweden’s innovation agency), along with a great number of suppliers that support the expedition in different ways.
Short facts: The ship Götheborg – history
The Götheborg is a full-sized replica of an 18th century ship, that was owned by the Swedish East India Company, and that ran aground and sank outside of Gothenburg in 1745. In 1984 marine excavation of the original ship Götheborg was initiated and in 1995 the building of a new Götheborg was started. Eight years later, in 2003, the ship was launched, and between 2005-2007 the ship sailed the historical route to Asia and back. After that several expeditions around Europe were carried out, the latest one in 2015. In 2021 the ship sailed from Gothenburg to Stockholm and back.
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Lars Ringnér
