The City of Dublin Steam Packet Company began in
Dublin in 1822 as Charles Wye Williams & Company; Williams is one of the unrecognised pioneers of steam navigation. His company initially operated steam ships between Dublin and
Liverpool. In 1826, the line added service to
London and
Belfast. Later, service was also provided between
Glasgow and Belfast. Transatlantic service to
New York started with the
Royal William departing Liverpool on 5 July 1838, becoming the first steamer to depart for an
Atlantic crossing from the
River Mersey. In January, 1839, they were awarded a contract to provide a night mail service from
Holyhead; their ships docked at the Admiralty Pier in Holyhead. In 1843, the company took over the routes of the
St. George Steam Packet Company, extending service to
Wales. The Company also operated smaller steamers on the
River Shannon. Up until 1850, the British Admiralty carried the Royal Mail, but in that year, contracts were awarded for the first time to private companies. Ships carrying mail on these contracts were authorized to use the designation RMS or
Royal Mail Ship. The most valuable route, with the highest volume, was between
Kingstown (now Dún Laoghaire), in
Ireland, and
Holyhead in Wales. The line won the contract and purchased RMS
Saint Columba and RMS
Llwywllyn from the Admiralty. In 1859, the line ordered four additional steamers, named for four provinces of Ireland, the RMS
Connaught, RMS
Leinster, RMS
Munster and RMS
Ulster; these four were commonly referred to as "The Provinces". In 1897, the line was awarded an additional 21 years for their contract with the Post Office, the CofDSPCo ordered four identical ships from Cammell Lairds of
Birkenhead to replace "The Provinces"; these carried the same names as the former ships. These were twin-propeller vessels powered by an eight-cylinder steam engine, capable of 24 knots. During
World War I, the company lost two steamers sunk by the Germans, the worst of which was the second
Leinster which was lost with over 500 lives in 30 metres of water just North East of the
Kish Light, the greatest single-incident loss of life in the Irish Sea. (The official death toll was 501. Research by Roy Stokes, author of
Death in the Irish Sea: The Sinking of RMS Leinster and Philip Lecane, author of
Torpedoed! The RMS Leinster Disaster suggest that the number lost was somewhat higher.) The Company was not able to financially recover from this loss. Afterwards, the remaining fleet were taken over by the
British & Irish Steam Packet Company. The City of Dublin Steam Packet Company was finally liquidated in 1924. ==Ships operated by the line==