Pete Bouquet
Crewmember Pete Bouquet paints the Rainbow Warrior, 1978
It took Greenpeace eight months to raise enough money for a 10 percent down-payment on the rusting ship in 1978. The balance was due within 60 days. As time ran out, hopes of purchasing the ship waned. But when the Netherlands branch of the World Wildlife Fund agreed to help finance a campaign to save the whales, Greenpeace had acquired its first vessel in Europe.
It was renamed 'Rainbow Warrior' after the Warriors in a North American Cree Indian prophecy: 'When the world is sick and dying, the people will rise up like Warriors of the Rainbow...
Kwakiutl symbol
Kwakiutl symbol of harmony with nature.
Fresh paint, in striking rainbow patterns, was applied to the super-structure and on the bow a dove of peace carrying an olive branch symbolised the vessel's mission.
On the stack of the ship, the crew painted a motif of two whales forming the infinite cycle of nature, which symbolized harmony with the natural world to the sea-faring Kwakiutl people of North America. The symbol had been offered to Greenpeace campaigners during Greenpeace's first campaign to stop nuclear weapons testing in the Aleutian Islands.
Save the whales
Crew of Rainbow Warrior on their way to Iceland in 1978
First voyage
On 29 April 1978, as the Rainbow Warrior steamed proudly from the London docks, the Greenpeace and United Nations flags flew together to reflect not only the international composition of the 24-member crew from 10 countries, but global concern for the plight of the whales. Her first mission was to Iceland, to oppose the commercial whaling programme there.
The entire operation was beset by almost insurmountable problems again and again: lack of money to buy fuel, legal wrangles, shortage of equipment and sheer exhaustion. But despite the odds, the Rainbow Warrior proved to be a truly seaworthy ship.
In the autumn of 1981, the diesel electric propulsion engine system that had been lovingly rebuilt on many occasions had to be replaced. Greenpeace volunteers took out 45 tons of equipment from the engine room and installed new Detroit engines. Ironically, it was discovered during the refit that the hydraulic system had been built to use whale oil, the dominant lubricant for this purpose in 1955.
Wreck of the Rainbow Warrior.
Wreck of the Rainbow Warrior.
Sails
In 1985, the Rainbow Warrior again underwent major conversion to a sail-assist system. The Marconi ketch rig made the Rainbow Warrior the largest yacht fitted with this type of sail rig.
After the bombing of the ship in 1985 in New Zealand, the Rainbow Warrior was towed north from Auckland on 2 December 1987.
Ten days later, a crowd of well-wishers looked on as it was given a traditional Maori burial.
The Rainbow Warrior's final resting place is at Matauri Bay, in New Zealand's Cavalli Islands. It has become a living reef, attracting marine life and recreational divers.
The idea was first proposed by the New Zealand Underwater Association. It seemed a fitting end for a ship that had spent its time protecting the marine environment.
Now home to a complex ecosystem, the Rainbow Warrior has become a popular dive destination.
Sv Rainbow Warrior II
SV RAINBOW WARRIOR in full sail between Majuro and Ebeye in the Marshall Islands.
The ship was sunk: not the Rainbow
The current Rainbow Warrior was built in 1957 in Yorkshire, UK. Originally called the Grampian Fame, it was a steam-powered fishing vessel. Now the ship is classified as a motor-assisted three-masted schooner rig with horizontal gaffs. (A gaff is an unusual rectangular sail.)
It is 55.2 metres long, having been lengthened from 44 metres in 1966. Its sailing speed is 5-7 knots with a maximum speed under engine power being 12 knots. The Rainbow Warrior's maximum range is 30 days. The ship is registered in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, which is why it sails under a Dutch flag.
The Rainbow Warrior has a number of interesting features. A 1.8-metre dolphin, carved from oak, is fixed to the foredeck. It was donated by a local support group in Germany and is affectionately known as "Dave." The ship also features the wheel from the original Rainbow Warrior in front of the bridge, while the original bell hangs in the ship's mess.
The Rainbow Warrior doesn't just campaign for the environment. It is also a showcase of environmentally friendly technologies including solar panels for hot water, a specially designed fuel-saving wind/motor propulsion system, and a recycling system for engine heat.