This page is part of © FOTW Flags Of The World website

Rickmers (German Shipping Company)

Last modified: 2019-08-12 by klaus-michael schneider
Keywords: rickmers | rickmers(erk) |
Links: FOTW homepage | search | disclaimer and copyright | write us | mirrors



[Rickmers houseflag] image by Jorge Candeias, 5 Dec 2004 See also:

Rickmers Reederei

I found this German shipping company: Rickmers Linie GmbH & Cie. KG, Hamburg, with this company website.
Its flag is a horizontal tricolour flag (dark green - red - white) with the white big letter "R" in the middle of the green and red stripe.
Source: Flaggenbuch 1905, part V, p.17, image no.333
J. Patrick Fischer, 14 Feb 2003

One can see the Rickmers flag on the fourth painting from top down (and click to enlarge) here.
Accompanying text, slightly edited:
"Portrait of the Ship R.C. Rickmers under full sail in the Chinese Sea, ca. 1870, The German full rigged ship (Rickmers Line, Bremerhaven) at sea with local shipping and an unidentified Chinese coastline beyond - unsigned - Oil on canvas, relined - 45 x 60 cm (17 3/4 x 23 5/8 in.) Private collection, Germany.
Note: A typical example of this type of paintings with a profile view of the vessel. The ship's name is written on the bow and on the main mast we notice the house flag of Rickmers. Click on the image to see a larger illustration."

Information from the obsolete company website: http://www.rickmers.de/indexmit.html
In choosing his house flag, the firm's founder was obviously inspired by that of his native island, Heligoland. Wharf founded 1834 at Bremerhaven, first completely owned ship 1842.
Flag-bearing subsidiary firms are certainly:
- MCC MARINE Consulting & Contracting GmbH: an 'MCC' version of the company flag.
- ESSE or Expert Shipping Service GmbH & Co. KG: tiny blue and white flag on this obsolete page: http://www.rickmers.de/pages/set_firmstrukt.html
Jan Mertens, 26 Aug 2004

Rickmers Reiswerke

[Rickmers Reiswerke] image by Klaus-Michael Schneider, 12 July 2019

Even the Rickmers Reismühle GmbH is still existing. It is no longer a part of the Rickmers shipping acitvities.
Jörg M. Karaschewski, 27 Aug 2004

The company was based in Bremen. The flag was a an 11-stripes Bremen flag, the arms however were replaced by a green serifed initial "R".
Source: Flaggenbuch 1905, part V, p.14, image no.176
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 12 July 2019

Bertram Rickmers

[Bertram Rickmers] image by Jarig Bakker, 30 Sep 2005

Reederei Bertram Rickmers, G.m.b.H., Hamburg - horizontal triband VRW; over green and red white "BR".
Image after Brown's Flags and Funnels Shipping Companies of the World, compiled by J.L. Loughran, Glasgow, 1995 [lgr95]
Jarig Bakker, 30 Sep 2005

E.R. Schiffahrt (Erk Rickmers)

[E.R. Schiffahrt)] image by Santiago Dotor, 11 Nov 2003

Erk Rickmers is a descendant of the well known shipowner family Rickmers, (the Rickmers dockyard had been established by Rickmer Clasen Rickmers 1834 in Bremerhaven). Erk Rickmers made an apprenticeship at Ernst Russ shipping company. Later on he worked as a shipbroker in London and founded Nordcapital in 1992 in Hamburg, being the only head since 1996. He founded E.R. Schiffahrt, one of the biggest container shipping companies worldwide, in 1998. He retired in 2010.
Klaus-Michael Schneider, 3 Apr 2012

Dov Gutterman spotted the company link of E.R. Schiffahrt: flag: horizontal white - blue - white, proportions 1:4:1; on center of blue white "E.R."
Santiago Dotor, 11 Nov 2003

back to R-companies main page click here