The OOSTERSCHELDE is the first seagoing ship that is built on shipyard H. Appelo & Sons. A Rotterdam shipping company named H.A.A.S. buys the ship.
1921
The economic recovery is only short term, and shipping company H.A.A.S. has financial problems. The OOSTERSCHELDE is laid up at the Boompjes in Rotterdam and sold to captain Warnder Kramer from Groningen.
1939
Denmark is neutral in World War II, and FUGLEN II is very profitable for her owners.
1943
FUGLEN II sails on a magnetic sea mine and the ship is barely able to stay afloat. She is towed to the harbor. By the time she reaches the port, her decks are already flooded.
1962
The Swedish owner Sam Petterson decides to refit the SYLVAN to a modern coaster.
1988
The OOSTERSCHELDE stops sailing cargo after more than 70 years of service and returns to The Netherlands.
1992
On August 26, Her Royal Highness Princess Margriet puts the ship into service.
1997
The OOSTERSCHELDE visits Japan and Antarctica during her trip around the world. She is the first Dutch merchant sailing ship since 1911 that rounds Cape Horn.
2017
In the Leuvehaven in Rotterdam, the OOSTERSCHELDE celebrates her 100th birthday.
1917
In 1917 SHIPYARD H. APPELO & ZN RECEIVES THE ASSIGNMENT TO BUILD THE THREEMAST TOPSAILSCHOONER OOSTERSCHELDE.
The first world war brings along huge risks, but also opportunities, and a spectacular time arises for the Dutch maritime industry. Many ships are lost at sea. To limit the risks, shipping companies invested in smaller ships. The fuel costs are rising, and the last sailing cargo ships are built. The OOSTERSCHELDE is one of the 500 threemasted schooners that were built in this period in The Netherlands.
1939
DE OOSTERSCHELDE IS SOLD AND FLAGGED OUT. IN HER DANISH AND SWEDISH YEARS, SHE IS MAINLY SAILING IN THE BALTIC SEA.
The Danish owners on the island Aerø rename the ship FUGLEN II. There is a lot of cargo, and the ship makes a good profit for them. But despite her new engine, the ship is getting out of date and she is sold to a Swedish owner in 1954. In her new homeport Skarhamn she is remodeled to a modern coaster. Under the name SYLVAN, she keeps on sailing cargo until 1988.
1988
DICK VAN ANDEL BUYS THE OOSTERSCHELDE. THE FOUNDATION IS ESTABLISHED TO RAISE FUNDS AND DICK WILL BE IN CHARGE OF THE SHIPPING COMPANY AND THE RESTORATION OF THE SHIP.
With financial support of companies and organizations and many funds and support from individuals, the restoration becomes a huge success. Never before in The Netherlands, such a large ship is restored. The OOSTERSCHELDE is recommissioned in 1992 and is the first Dutch tall ship that is allowed to sail worldwide with guests. Ever since, the OOSTERSCHELDE is used as a sailing ambassador of Rotterdam and The Netherlands. On her voyages, she visited over 50 countries on 5 continents and sailed around the world several times. Nowadays, the OOSTERSCHELDE is recognized as a monument.
