"J.P. Morgan
Jr. and his legendary business tycoon father, J. Pierpont Morgan,
owned four yachts christened Corsair.
Like any great man of wealth and power each yacht be
bigger, faster and even more luxurious than the previous one. Because
of this, the family created massive media attention each time a
new yacht was launched and when the last ship was launched a rather
famous quote became a byword for many in the world of the rich. For
when asked “Sir how much will it cost to operate a boat of this size”
Mr. Morgan’s response was, “Sir, if you have to ask that question, you
can’t afford it.”
"The Yacht Corsair was built in 1890 for J.P. Morgan,
the internationally famous financier. J.P. Morgan was the head of
the International Mercantile Marine Co., that had in its large Atlantic
shipping fleet, the White Star Line and, of course, Titanic. Expensive
yachts were the corporate jets of the late 19th century.
"Corsair had a celebrated career both as the personal yacht of
the philanthropist and as a commissioned ship in the U.S. Navy. During
Morgan's tenure as commodore of the New York Yacht Club in 1897-98,
Corsair served as flagship of that distinguished fleet. It is interesting
to note that despite her great size (218,' or 241' ?), she was by no
means the largest yacht in the club. That same year, there were four
vessels longer than 300 feet: W. K. Vanderbilt's Valiant (332 feet), Ogden
Goulet's Mayflower (320 feet) and Nahma (306 feet), and Eugene Higgins's
Varuna (304 feet).
After the destruction of the USS Maine in the Havana
Harbor and the likelihood of war, the US Navy began scurrying about
for a navy. Looking for fast yachts that could be armed and serve
as gunboats, the Corsair was one of the Navy's first choices.
Morgan tried to stave off the Navy by promising to build another yacht
for them but the Navy was adamant. In 1898, she was armed with 3 and
6-pounder guns, two machine guns, and renamed the USS Gloucester.
She joined the Blockading Squadron of the North Atlantic
Fleet. At the Battle of Santiago Bay on July 3, she helped sink
the Spanish torpedo boats Pluton and Furor. She was later credited
with the single-handed capture of Guanica, Puerto Rico, ... ...
and aided in the capture of Arroyo. "
In 1898 Morgan had launched his new Corsair, this one
302 feet in length.
"SS Corsair IV (launched in 1930) served the Morgan family
faithfully for the ten years, sailing along the East Coast of the
USA as well in the Caribbean and she took part for trans-Atlantic record-breaking
crossings. However in 1940 the Corsair IV was handed over to British
Admiralty to be used for the war effort. After the war was over she
was laid up as the Morgan’s had no further plans for her." Corsair IV
was ranked #16, in 2010, in SuperYachtWorld magazines's gallery
of the all-time 50 most beautiful superyachts.
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