The Peninsular & Oriental Line: Britain’s Premier Mail and Passenger Service Across the Empire
Explore the extensive history of the Peninsular & Oriental Line (P&O), a pioneering British steamship company that connected the United Kingdom to India, China, Australia, and beyond. Discover passenger lists, contracts, fleet details, and historical insights ideal for historians, genealogists, and maritime enthusiasts.
The story of the P. & O. Company may be divided into two eras—the first reaching from its foundation to the opening of the Suez Canal and the second from that date to the present day. During almost the whole of its career, the company has acted as the agent of the British government in the conveyance of its mail, first to Mediterranean ports and afterward to Egypt, India, and the Far East.
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SS Commonwealth Passage Contract - 18 August 1921
Third Class/Steerage Passengers' Contract Ticket for The Stevens Family of Four sailing on the P. & O. Line SS Commonwealth from the Port of London to Melbourne, Australia dated 18 August 1921.
RMS Strathmore Passenger List - 24 August 1954
First Class Passenger List from the RMS Strathmore of the P & O, Departing 24 August 1954 from London to Sydney via Port Said, Bombay (Mumbai), Colombo, Fremantle, Adelaide, and Melbourne, Commanded by Captain A. G. Jenkins.
History of the P. & O. Line
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The government has occasionally made efforts to procure other means for transmitting its mail, but on every occasion, it has found it advisable to return to the P. & O.
In 1835, Messrs Wiltcox & Anderson, a firm of London merchants, began to run steamers to the principal ports of the Peninsula. Their vessels observed greater regularity than the sailing ships employed to carry the mail, and the first mail contract was entered into on 22 August 1837.
This was awarded to them after another company, which could not fulfill its obligations, had been engaged. Messrs Willcox & Anderson had shortly before, in concert with Captain Bourne, R.N., founded the Peninsular Company.
This contract arranged a monthly service between Falmouth and Vigo, Oporto, Lisbon, and Gibraltar. About two years later, another step was taken. Hitherto, the mails to Egypt and India had been conveyed by the Peninsular Company to Gibraltar, by an admiralty packet from Gibraltar to Malta, by another admiralty vessel from Malta to Alexandria, and from Egypt to Bombay by one of the East India Company's steamers.
It was resolved that a direct carriage system by one line of ships from London to Alexandria would substitute for this unsatisfactory mode of conveyance. The Peninsular Company again secured the contract, which was put up for public competition, and built two steamers of 1600 tons, which was a large tonnage for those days.
The annual subsidy was fixed at £34,000, by which the government saved £10,000 of the amount formerly expended on their inefficient means of transport. By a charter of incorporation dated December 1840, the company then assumed the name by which it has ever since been known—The Peninsular & Oriental Company.
The charter was granted only on the problematic condition that steam communication with India should be established within two years.
The first steamer, the " Hindostan," was despatched to India via the Cape of Good Hope on 26 September 1842. She was one of a small fleet destined to ply between Calcutta, Madras, Ceylon, Aden, and Suez. It was an adventurous undertaking, for the East India Company promised no definite subsidy, only a small premium on a certain number of voyages.
The apparent advantages of a direct mail conveyance between Suez and Bombay by a sufficient regular service were becoming evident. The P. & O. Company offered to effect this at a significant saving on the existing system, but, for some reason or other, the East India Company showed the most considerable reluctance to allow the control of this route to pass out of their hands, which it remained until 1854.
Fortunately for the P. & O. Company, the government established regular monthly steam communication between England and Ceylon, Madras and Calcutta, and eastward from Ceylon to Singapore and Hong Kong.
Only the P. & O. could have contemplated undertaking such a service at that time. In 1844, the contract was signed, and the company was to receive a subvention of £160,000.
The Indian portion of the service opened on 1 January 1845. During that year, the extension to China was effected, and nine new steamers were added to the stocks.
The organization of the overland route was due to the P. & O. Company, which brought it into regular work to convey its passengers from Alexandria to Suez.
It was a picturesque but uncomfortable passage by canal boat and steamer to Cairo and then by two-wheeled omnibus for ninety miles across the desert to Suez.
Even the coal for the boats at Suez had to be transported in this fashion, which was cheaper than sending it by sailing vessel around the Cape. The railway construction across the isthmus in 1859 greatly simplified the transit.
The company had to establish coaling stations between Suez and the Far East and depots of provisions, a business of no less magnitude than that of the steam service itself.
The company began the first mail service in Australia in 1852. The same contract included an arrangement for a fortnightly service to India and China, though a service running once every two months via Singapore and Sydney was thought sufficient for Australia's requirements.
The year 1854 saw the abolition of the East India Company's service to Bombay, the P. & O. taking its place. This arrangement saved the country £80,000 per annum.
The Crimean War made high demands on the company's resources for transporting troops, and the Australian service was temporarily interrupted. By 1859, the company had all the lines of steam communication between England and the East.
In 1864, the service to Australia was increased to one sailing a month, and in 1868, the Bombay Mail was left weekly. About the same time, the fourth India and China contract was entered into, and at the end of 1869, the opening of the Suez Canal led to a severe crisis in the company's affairs and, after these difficulties had been surmounted, to a complete revolution in its methods.
The canal's opening led to a prolonged controversy with the post office, which, in a moment of fundamental official perversity, refused to allow the company to use the channel to convey its mail.
The company's revenue seriously fell off as the competition of the canal steamers killed its trade. At length, in 1874, a new arrangement was made by which the mail was to be carried through the canal, the subsidy granted to the company being reduced at the same time.
Under these conditions, however, it could now construct vessels capable of competing successfully with its rivals. A prolonged dispute "between Victoria and New South Wales for a long time prevented the Australian service from being as efficient as it might have been. Sydney insisted on adopting the Pacific route.
In consequence of this controversy, the company's Australian headquarters were for some time fixed at Melbourne, and it was not until 1888 that a general contract was entered into with the post-master-general, acting at last for all the Australian colonies and the Imperial government.
This stipulated an accelerated service—India, China, and Australian mail were all worked from Aden in connection with the steamer conveying them from Brindis'u. For a long time, there was a service between Venice, Brindisi, and Egypt and a mail contract with the Italian government, but this ended in March 1900.
The company's first ship, the " William Fawcett," built in 1820, had a gross tonnage of 206 and 60 h.p. Down to 1851, the vessels of the fleet were all constructed with paddles; after that date, the screw took their place, though for the Marseilles to Malta express service particular famous fast paddle- steamers were subsequently built.
A later exciting development was the abandonment of Brindisi as a port of call for the ocean mail steamers, which reverted to Marseilles, from where they ran directly to Port Said.
The mails leaving London every Friday night are despatched from Brindisi in specially designed twin-screw vessels, which land them at Port Said little more than 06 hours after their despatch from London.
On this service, the "Osiris" and "Isis" are employed, and they are the only vessels in the mercantile marine that cross the seas with mail and passengers only.
The company is under contract with the British government to convey mail to India, China, and Australia. Its services are as follows: India: Brindisi to Bombay, weekly.
China; Brindisi to Shanghai, fortnightly; Australia-Brindisi to Sydney, fortnightly. Apart from mail services, the company runs independent lines in Malta. Colombo and Calcutta; also between Bombay, Colombo, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Shanghai; and between Hong Kong, Nagasaki, Hyogo, and Yokohama.
There is likewise a direct fortnightly service of through steamers to China and Japan at special rates. The mails are despatched weekly to Bombay, going one week by direct mail steamer and the next by the fortnightly Australian liner as far as Aden.
A fast twin-screw vessel—the "Salsette" — built after the idea of the "Isis" but of thrice her tonnage—takes the Bombay mails from Aden on the weeks when there is no steamer.
A new type of liner known as the "M" class has been provided for the Indian and Australian mail services. There are already no less than ten such vessels, all twin-screws of similar design, commencing with the"Moldavia," built in 1903, of 9500 tons and 14,000 i.h.p. and running up to 12,500 tons and 15,000 i.h.p. in the " Maloja " and " Medina."
1910, a new service was acquired, and Mr. Wilhelm Lund's Blue Anchor fleet was purchased. This gave the company an entry into the South African trade. The Blue Anchor steamers called at Cape Town and Durban on their way to Australia, and new and larger vessels are being provided for this branch of the company's activities as well.
"Steamship Lines: Pacific Steam Navigation Company," in The Encyclopaedia Britannica, Eleventh Edition: A Dictionary of Arts, Sciences, Literature, and General Information, Volume XXV Shuválov to Subliminal Self, New York: The Encyclopaedia Britannica Company, 1911, p. 857-858.
Review and Summary of the Peninsular & Oriental Line Archival Collection
Introduction: A Legacy of British Maritime Power
The Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation Company (P&O) was one of the most influential maritime enterprises in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Initially established in 1837 as a mail carrier, P&O expanded to dominate global trade and passenger travel, connecting Britain to the Mediterranean, India, the Far East, and Australia.
This archival collection is an invaluable resource for maritime historians, genealogists tracing ancestors who emigrated via P&O, and educators examining British imperial transport networks. It contains passenger lists, contracts, fleet records, and historical accounts of the company’s operations from its early days to the mid-20th century.
Key Highlights from the Collection
1. P&O’s Role in British Mail and Passenger Transport
From its founding, P&O played a vital role in carrying British mail across the empire, making it a critical component of British communication and commerce.
Key Developments:
- 1837: P&O secures its first government contract for mail service to Spain and Portugal.
- 1840: The company is officially incorporated as the Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation Company.
- 1852: Expands mail services to Australia, India, and China.
- 1859: Helps organize the overland mail route through Egypt, reducing delivery time.
- 1869: The opening of the Suez Canal revolutionizes P&O’s operations, allowing direct steamship travel between Europe and Asia.
- 1874: P&O negotiates new contracts, officially adopting the Suez Canal route.
🔹 Why This Matters:
- Historians can study how P&O helped Britain maintain control over its empire through efficient mail and transport services.
- Genealogists can trace family members who traveled between Britain, India, Australia, and the Far East.
2. Passenger Lists and Immigration Records
The P&O Line was instrumental in British immigration and colonial expansion, facilitating mass migration to Australia and India.
Notable Passenger Records:
- 1921: SS Commonwealth Steerage Passage Contract – Documents a family of four emigrating from London to Melbourne, illustrating the large-scale British migration to Australia.
- 1954: RMS Strathmore First-Class Passenger List – Details passengers traveling from London to Sydney, reflecting mid-20th-century luxury travel.
🔹 Why This Matters:
- Genealogists can use these records to track British emigrants.
- Researchers can study migration patterns and British colonial settlement.
3. P&O’s Connection to the Suez Canal and Imperial Trade
The Suez Canal’s opening in 1869 transformed P&O into Britain’s dominant commercial and passenger carrier between Europe and Asia.
Challenges and Benefits:
- Before 1869, British ships had to sail around Africa’s Cape of Good Hope, making voyages long and costly.
- The Suez Canal shortened voyages, allowing quicker transport of goods, mail, and passengers.
- Early opposition from the British Post Office delayed P&O’s use of the canal, leading to heated negotiations and contract renegotiations in 1874.
🔹 Why This Matters:
- Economic historians can analyze how the Suez Canal influenced global trade and geopolitics.
- Maritime researchers can study how P&O adapted to technological and infrastructural changes.
4. Fleet Development: From Paddles to Screw Steamers
P&O’s fleet evolved significantly over the decades, adopting new steamship technologies to maintain its dominance.
Fleet Evolution:
- 1820s-1850s: Paddle steamers like the William Fawcett dominated early routes.
- 1851 Onward: Transition to screw steamers increased speed and efficiency.
- 1870s-1880s: P&O introduced steel-hulled twin-screw liners, making longer voyages more practical.
- 1900s-1910s: The company expanded with the "M-Class" liners, including Moldavia, Maloja, and Medina, which provided modernized services to India and Australia.
- 1920s-1950s: The Strath-class liners like RMS Strathmore modernized luxury travel.
🔹 Why This Matters:
- Naval historians can explore ship engineering advancements.
- Collectors and enthusiasts can examine detailed ship specifications and historical advertisements.
5. Military and Wartime Contributions
Throughout its history, P&O played a crucial role in British military operations, particularly during:
- The Crimean War (1854-1856): Transporting British troops and supplies to battle zones.
- World War I (1914-1918): Many P&O ships were requisitioned as troop transports and hospital ships.
- World War II (1939-1945): The fleet played a key role in supporting British operations in North Africa and the Pacific.
🔹 Why This Matters:
- Military historians can analyze how civilian shipping companies contributed to wartime logistics.
- Families of veterans can trace relatives who may have traveled on P&O ships during wartime.
Final Thoughts: Why This Collection is Essential
The Peninsular & Oriental Line (P&O) Archival Collection is a rich historical resource covering maritime trade, passenger travel, imperial communication, and military transport.
✅ Documents British mail and passenger services across the empire.
✅ Preserves vital immigration records for genealogical research.
✅ Highlights the impact of the Suez Canal on global shipping.
✅ Provides insight into wartime contributions and naval innovation.
🔹 Who Should Explore This Collection?
- Genealogists researching British ancestors who emigrated via P&O.
- Historians studying the role of commercial shipping in empire-building.
- Educators teaching the significance of the Suez Canal in maritime history.
- Maritime enthusiasts exploring steamship fleet evolution.
From early mail contracts to luxurious ocean liners, P&O’s legacy is deeply entwined with Britain’s maritime dominance—and this collection offers a rare glimpse into that history.
