The Greundiek was laid down in 1949 as the "Hermann-Hans" at the Rickmers shipyard in Bremerhaven and launched on January 21, 1950. It was built according to the shipyard's designs under the restrictions imposed by the Allied Control Council after the Second World War, which allowed the construction of coasters up to a certain size from 1948 onwards. The ship was one of the first ships built in Germany after the Second World War and one of the very first civilian ships of all-welded construction. The ship was commissioned by the shipowner Hermann Behrens, who named the ship after his two sons who died in the war. On August 23, 1951, the Hermann-Hans sank off the south coast of Öland after a collision with the Swedish freighter Mjörn. The ship was raised in the same year and subsequently repaired at the Beckmann shipyard in Cuxhaven. In the process, the ship was also lengthened from 33.79 meters to 46.55 meters before being put back into service in 1952.
In 1965, the "Hermann-Hans" was sold to Henry Dölling, who renamed the ship "Rita Dölling" after his wife.
In 1986, the district of Stade bought the ship for the Grünendeich Maritime School, which held practical and theoretical lessons on board for the C-Naut engineer training course. The ship, which was now renamed "Greundiek" in Low German, was given a berth in the mouth of the Lühe above the Lühesperrwerk. When mechanical engineering training was transferred from the nautical college to the Hamburg University of Applied Sciences, the ship was no longer needed for practical training.
In 1994, the Alter Hafen Stade e. V. association bought the Greundiek from the district of Stade. After initial repair work in the dock of the Hamburg Norderwerft shipyard, the ship was moored in the port of Stade on April 22nd of that year. There it was restored until the year 2000 and made ready to sail again.
The ship, which is largely preserved in its original condition, is registered as a technical cultural monument in the list of movable cultural monuments in Lower Saxony. At the end of January 2003, the Alter Hafen Stade e.V. association was awarded the Lower Saxony Savings Bank Foundation's State Prize for Monument Preservation for the restoration of the ship.
The Alter Hafen Stade e.V. association has been maintaining and operating this unique museum ship with its volunteer members since 1994. The ship is licensed for coastal navigation. Today, the MS Greundiek is used for events of all kinds and for public cruises on the Elbe and in the Baltic Sea region. One of the highlights of the season every year is the trip to the Hamburg Harbour Birthday.
Concert on board: the band Elbsand
Time travel of blues and rock music
The band Elbsand is passionate about music! Their enthusiasm for music has accompanied each of the band members throughout their lives. Influences from different musical genres and a broad understanding of music make their style unique. Whether rock classics, modern pop or rhythm & blues, they are open to everything and like to incorporate new elements.
July 10, 2021
