GRT Empress of Japan, 1929-1966

The Empress of Japan was built in 1929 for Canadian Pacific Steamships. Operating as a passenger liner between Vancouver, China and Japan, in 1940 following the outbreak of war it was refitted as a troopship for wartime service. It transported the Second Echelon of the 2nd New Zealand Expeditionary Force, departing from Wellington on 2 May 1940, and was also one of the ships to evacuate civilians from Singapore at the end of 1941 / early 1942. Later that year she was renamed the Empress of Scotland.

After the war it served on the trans-Atlantic passenger service, being refitted between 1948 and 1950 to ensure it could operate on this colder route. The Empress would carry passengers across the Atlantic until 1957, when it was laid up. The following year the ship was sold to the Hamburg Amerika Line, renamed the Hanseatic and had a further refit, including the rear funnel being removed. It continued passenger service between Hamburg and New York until 26 September 1966 where the ship caught fire. It was towed to  Hamburg where inspections deemed it beyond economic repair, so was scrapped soon after. 

While the Empress of Japan belonged to Canadian Pacific rather than the Union Steam Ship Company, the plans held look to relate to the fitout and use as a troopship during the World War Two.