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KD milestones

1826 to 2026

KD excursion boat MS Stolzenfels in front of Katz Castle
Rhenish-Westphalian Economic Archive Foundation in Cologne

October 3, 1825

The Preußisch-Rheinische Dampfschiffahrts-Gesellschaft (PRDG) was formed in Cologne.

1825

It was one of the two predecessors of today's company Köln-Düsseldorfer Deutsche Rheinschiffahrt GmbH. The other was the Dampfschiffahrts-Gesellschaft für den Nieder- und Mittelrhein, founded in Düsseldorf in 1836.

June 11, 1826

The Prussian Minister of the Interior, Friedrich von Schuckmann, approves the statutes of the Cologne Society.

1826

This date is the official founding date of the Preußisch-Rheinische Dampfschiffahrts-Gesellschaft in Cologne.

The businessman and politician Peter Heinrich Merkens becomes the first President of the company. The lawyer and entrepreneur Bernhard Boisserée becomes the first director.

May 1, 1827

The wooden side-wheel steamer "Concordia" started regular services between Cologne and Mainz. In the same year, the company bought a second ship, which was named "Friedrich Wilhelm" after the Prussian king.

1827

May 13, 1836

The Dampfschiffahrts-Gesellschaft für den Nieder- und Mittelrhein (DGNM) is founded in Düsseldorf.

1836

The Dampfschiffahrts-Gesellschaft für den Nieder- und Mittelrhein is founded in Düsseldorf under the leadership of Düsseldorf Chamber of Commerce President Gerhard Baum and Kommerzienrat Karl Luckemeyer (DGNM). The company is approved on September 22, 1836. Six wooden ships were ordered from the Dutch shipyard Fop Smit.

1837

The steamship "Herzog von Nassau" and its sister ship "Erbgrossherzogin von Hessen" were the first ships owned by the new company, which were launched in 1837.

1837

In this year, the company set up its own wine cellar in Düsseldorf. This was not available in Cologne until 1845.

1838

The Gutehoffnungshütte shipyard in Ruhrort created the first Rhine steamer built entirely of iron for the Preußisch-Rheinische Dampfschiffahrts-Gesellschaft, the "Graf von Paris".

1838

The company had eleven ships at the end of the 1830s.

In the years that followed, there was fierce competition between the two companies and a Dutch shipping company, the Nederlandsche Stoomboot Maatschappij. In addition to price reductions and races to win customers, there were also reports of mutual ship ramming in the 1840s.

June 9, 1853

The PRDG and the DGNM founded the Kölnische und Düsseldorfer Gesellschaft für Rhein-Dampfschiffahrt joint venture. The contract term was set at six years.

1853

In 1859, renegotiations took place and the contract was extended indefinitely.

Both companies remained independent and decided, among other things, to no longer operate the route from Mannheim to Strasbourg, as this could no longer be operated economically, especially for freight traffic, due to the construction of a railroad line.

1860

In 1860, a total of 1.2 million passengers were transported and the two shipping companies each owned 14 steamships.

1860

Under the influence of competition from the much faster railroad, passenger numbers stagnated at an annual average of around one million from 1861 to 1899, while freight transport steadily lost importance. As industrialization progressed, the demand for recreational trips on the Rhine increased, so that in 1867 the two first pure passenger ships, the high-speed steamers Humboldt and Friede, were put into service.

1913

The steamer Goethe, which is still in service today, was the last newbuild for the combined freight and passenger service of the Preußisch-Rheinische Dampfschiffahrts-Gesellschaft.

1913

The ship was launched in 1913 as a replacement for the decommissioned "Ernst Moritz Arndt" and was built in Cologne-Deutz at the Gebrüder Sachsenberg shipyard.

At that time, the KD carried around 2 million passengers on 32 ships.

1914 - 1918

During the First World War, the company's ships were also used to transport the army and the wounded, as they had been during the German War (Prussia against Austria) and the Franco-Prussian War (1870/71).

1914 - 1918

Passenger traffic was maintained.

From 1914

Conversion of ships into hospital ships.

From 1914

This includes, for example, the steamer "Cecilie" with 500 beds, four doctors and 20 paramedics.

1925

PRDG and DGNM found Köln-Düsseldorfer Rheindampfschiffahrt GmbH in the Düsseldorf commercial register to manage both shipping companies.

1925

The two founding companies continued to exist. In the same year, construction of the first ships was resumed after the war and the subsequent period of occupation.

1926

The launching of the double-deck saloon steamer "Vaterland" takes place at the Sachsenberg brothers' shipyard in Cologne-Deutz in April. It is the anniversary ship for the 100th anniversary of the Preußisch-Rheinische Dampfschiffahrts-Gesellschaft.

1926

The economic upswing in the "Golden Twenties" increased the demand for luxuriously equipped passenger-only ships. The "Rheinland" and the "Vaterland" were the first two newbuilds after the First World War.

1927

MS "Freiherr vom Stein" and MS "Beethoven" were the first motor ships powered by diesel engines to go into service.

1927

They were also the two largest motor passenger ships on the Rhine.

1929

The double-deck saloon steamer "Mainz" was the last paddle steamer built for the KD .

1929

It was also the 1000th new ship built by the Christof Ruthof shipyard in Mainz-Kastel.

At the time, the steamer was the fastest ship on the Rhine with an average speed of 22.2 km/h against the current.

From 1933

As a result of the global economic crisis, passenger numbers fell by more than 20 % and freight transportation dropped by 50 %.

From 1933

During the National Socialist era, KD ships were also used for excursions by the German Labour Front's "Strength through Joy" organization.

1938

The "Köln" was the first large motor ship of Köln-Düsseldorfer and at the same time the last ship built for KD before the beginning of the Second World War (1939).

1938

1939 - 1945

During the Second World War, passenger service on the KD ships was severely restricted. The white ships were painted in blue-grey camouflage.

1939 - 1945

Some ships were used as hospital ships. At the end of the war, the pre-war fleet of 22 ships was almost completely destroyed. A number of ships had been severely damaged by bombing, sunk, burned out, looted or devastated. Only a handful of ships were partially operational or could be quickly repaired.

May 19, 1946

On May 19, the "Hindenburg", renamed "Frieden", resumed service between Cologne and Bad Honnef in the Siebengebirge.

1946

1951

KD once again transports more than 2 million passengers a year.

1951

By 1953, 18 ships had been repaired.

1953

100 years of the merger of PRDG and DGNM to form Köln-Düsseldorfer Rheindampfschiffahrt.

1953

1959

The passenger ship "Berlin" was built to replace the decommissioned steamer "Kaiser Wilhelm".

1959

At the time, it was the largest passenger ship on West German inland waterways. The three-deck ship could accommodate up to 3,000 passengers.

1960

The "Europa" was the first cabin ship built for KD .

1960

The motor vessel had four decks with 75 double cabins and was used for the voyage from Basel to Rotterdam.

The KD was a true pioneer and has since been regarded as the founder of river cruises.

1967

The Cologne and Düsseldorf companies, which previously worked together as a joint venture, are merging.

1967

The Cologne-based company took over the Düsseldorf company and continued as Köln-Düsseldorfer Deutsche Rheinschiffahrt AG.

1971/1972

The "Rheinpfeil" hydrofoil of the "Raketa" type was ordered from the Russian shipyard Feodosia.

1971/1972

The boat had a top speed of 65 km/h. At a speed of 35 km/h, the boat lifted off the water and glided across the water on its runners.

August 26, 1996

On August 26, the paddle steamer GOETHE, built in 1913, was put back into service as an exclusive excursion and charter ship after being restored to its original condition.

1996

The ship still sails for KD in the Middle Rhine Valley between Koblenz and Rüdesheim.

2000

In 2000, KD 's previously successful river cruise division, including 9 hotel ships, was sold to Viking River Cruises.

2000

June 17, 2004

On June 17, KD christened MS "RheinEnergie", now MS "RheinMagie", the largest event catamaran in Europe.

2004

It was the first KD ship to be built as a catamaran and is approved for up to 1,650 people. KD thus ushered in a new era for events on the water.

On the occasion of World Youth Day 2005 in Cologne, the then Pope Benedict XVI used the ship for a pilgrimage on the Rhine.

october 2016

In October, today's UNITED WATERWAYS from Basel took over Köln-Düsseldorfer Deutsche Rheinschiffahrt AG.

2016

Since then, KD has been part of this largest European provider of modular white-label ship management services on all waters.

2022

The event ship "RheinGalaxie" is KD's latest newbuilding, approved for up to 1,000 guests.

2022

2026

KD celebrates its 200th anniversary.

2026