Statsraad Lehmkuhl

From transporter to training ship

This impressive Tall Ship was built as a freight carrier in 1914 on the Tecklenburgwharf, near Bremerhaven. As Grossherzog Friedrich August she originally served as a schoolship for the German imperial navy. After the First World War the ship was captured by the British in 1919 and sold to Kristofer Lehmkuhl in 1921, then minister (statsraad) of employment in the Norwegian government. The ship was named after him.

During the German occupation of Norway in the Second World War the ship was given another German name: Westwärts. After the war in 1945 she got her current name back! In 1967 it looked like it would be sold outside Norway, but the Norwegian shipping company, Hilmar Reksten, bought the ship and donated it to a foundation in 1978. This foundation keeps the ship under management until today. It is used as a training ship and training ship, both for civilian youth and for the Norwegian Navy. She regularly participates in Sail Manifestations and there are always long queues waiting at the gangway.