Just this past Tuesday evening, Feadship officially welcomed the Dutch Royal yacht Piet Hein into its Heritage Fleet in a formal ceremony which united representatives from Feadship, Stichting Piet Hein, the National Maritime Museum, SAIL, and members of the FHF board. She was represented by Vice-Chairman Mr Post and Secretary Mr Kodde of her namesake foundation, while Chairman Mr Woltering, Treasurer Mr Parmet, board member Mr Stunnenberg, and Adjutant Mr Soetendaal were in attendance as representatives of SAIL.
With the preservation of heritage models as important on the water as it is to the vast classic car realm, the Feadship Heritage Fleet is an association of owners dedicated to preserving classic Feadships thirty years of age & older, sharing knowledge related to them, and organising joint activities that keep them sailing.
Built at the Amsterdamsche Scheepswerf G. de Vries Lentsch Jr. shipyard & launched on 14th August 1937, the 31-meter Piet Hein motor yacht was gifted to Princess Juliana and Prince Bernhard by the Dutch people on the occasion of their wedding that year. Its stately design was the work of renowned naval architect Henri W. de Voogt, whose creative vision and design language went on to greatly influence Dutch yacht building’s evolution. With De Voogt widely regarded as a key figure in Feadship’s early history, this yacht certainly has a special place indeed within the Dutch shipbuilder’s rich maritime heritage.
Having been seized by occupying forces during the Second World War & brought to Emden, she was returned to the Netherlands in 1945 and subsequently restored to her former glory. Since 1980 when Princess Juliana & Prince Bernhard had their final cruise aboard her, Piet Hein has been under the care of the Stichting Piet Hein (Piet Hein Foundation) established by the royal couple in 1979 to safeguard her future, keeping her operational & maintained meticulously by a dedicated group of volunteers.
Her membership was officiated in a ceremony involving the signing of a certificate, and the Feadship Heritage Fleet insignia’s placement aboard; this distinguishing feature is sure to be of interest to future guests who can still charter her for private day trips from the Foundation. Underlining her historical significance and symbolic importance to the mission of preserving Dutch sailing heritage for future generations, Piet Hein was also named as the Feadship Heritage Fleet’s flagship, going on to lead 35 of the Fleet’s yachts right into Amsterdam during the Sail-in organized by SAIL.
