Schwanhild

Schwanhild was an early International 12 Metre yacht built to the International First Rule, placing her among the very first generation of Twelve Metres constructed prior to the First World War.

Design and Construction

Built between 1909 and 1914, Schwanhild was constructed by the Scharstein yard, a small builder of which little is otherwise recorded. Schwanhild is believed to be the only Twelve Metre ever built by this yard, making her a particularly rare and unusual example within the class.

As a First Rule yacht, Schwanhild would have featured the long overhangs, narrow beam, and light displacement characteristic of the earliest Twelve Metres.

Ownership and Registration

By 1919, Schwanhild is recorded as being owned by Dr. Hans Schreiner and sailing under the name Schwanhild, with her home port listed as Pola (modern-day Pula, Croatia). At the time, Pola was a significant naval and maritime center in the Adriatic.

Her post-war registration indicates that the yacht survived the First World War at least into the immediate post-war period.

Disappearance from the Record

At an unknown date following 1919, Schwanhild disappears from Lloyd’s Register. No formal record of scrapping, loss, or re-registration under another name has been identified.

Such gaps in documentation are not uncommon for wooden yachts of this era, particularly those based in regions affected by the political and economic upheavals following World War I.

Fate and Unverified Reports

No definitive documentation exists regarding the ultimate fate of Schwanhild.

  • Some accounts suggest that the yacht was destroyed during the First World War, though this is not supported by surviving post-war ownership records.

  • Other reports speculate that the yacht may still exist, abandoned or forgotten somewhere along the Croatian coast, though this remains unverified.

Historical Significance

Despite her uncertain fate, Schwanhild remains historically notable as:

  • A First Rule International 12 Metre

  • The only known Twelve built by the Scharstein yard

  • A rare example of a 12 Metre based in the Adriatic

  • One of the class’s “lost” yachts, whose final disposition remains unknown