Course South America

In its 150-year history, the Hamburg Süd shipping company has had to start from scratch more than once. In the meantime, the flagship is no longer in German hands.

Founded in 1871 by Hamburg merchants, the Hamburg Süd shipping company has been an institution in Hamburg and on the South American trade for 150 years. Although it has since been sold to the Danish Maersk Group, the company's name has been preserved as a highly valued trademark, as has its Hamburg location. On the one hand, this is certainly due to the name, but it is more likely to have been due to the fact that this made it easier to maintain the economic connections that had developed. But you could also call it tradition.

Photo: Hamburg Süd

It all began in Hamburg in the middle of the 19th century, still rather tentatively and indecisively. The first impetus for the establishment of a regular shipping service came from Brazil's declaration of independence from Portugal in 1822, but it was not until 1871 that the Hamburg Südamerikanische Dampfschifffahrts-Gesellschaft was founded. Over the years, this became the simpler name Hamburg Süd. The purpose of the company was to "establish a regular shipping connection between Hamburg and Brazil and the La Plata states".