RMS Empress of France was an ocean liner built in 1928 by John Brown at Clydebank, Scotland for the Canadian Pacific Steamships and launched as SS Duchess of Bedford in 1928. She was renamed Empress of France in 1947.[1]
Duchess of Bedford
Duchess of Bedford was one of four 20,000-gross ton Canadian Pacific liners along with sister ships Duchess of York, Duchess of Richmond, and Duchess of Atholl. The quartet were "Mini-Empresses," built to go further up the St. Lawrence River, past Quebec City, to Montreal, hoping to cater to travellers who would then travel by train to Chicago and the American Midwest – a faster journey than it would take going through New York. All were equipped with hot and cold running water in all cabins. The class were known as the "Drunken Duchesses" for their tendency to roll.[2]