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Racing to fame -

When skipper Bob Williams and the crew of Sylph VI crossed the line in Hobart on January 3, 2024, after completing the grueling Sydney to Hobart yacht race, it was a cat that well-wishers and the media had specifically come to greet.

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A feline seafarer -

Ten-year-old Oli completed the race after a week at sea, a valued member of the crew who actually earned his sea legs five years previously after joining owner Bob—a retired navy officer—on several voyages, including a trip on the Tasman Sea to New Zealand. The "ordinary little moggie" became an international celebrity, but a ship's cat is nothing new. In fact, a feline seafarer has been a common feature on many trading, exploration, and naval ships dating back to ancient times.

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An ancient tradition -

The ancient Egyptians were probably the first seafarers to realize the true value of having cats as shipmates. Besides offering sailors companionship on long voyages, cats provided protection by ridding ships of vermin. The animals were also used on occasion for hunting. Here, Nebamun is seen standing on a reed boat hunting birds in the papyrus marshes. His cat has grabbed three herons.

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A cat's world -

During the Age of Discovery from the 15th through the 18th centuries, explorers and traders took cats on board their ships to much of the rest of the world.

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Superstitious sailors -

Superstitious sailors considered cats intelligent and lucky animals. They believed them to possess miraculous powers that could protect them and their ships from dangerous weather.

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The ship's cat arrives -

In fact, cats had a reputation as magical animals, and were taken on board as mascots. In time, these "seafurrers" became known as ship's cats.

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Rat-catching skills -

Such was the regard heaped upon a ship's cat as an indispensable pest controller, protecting provisions, cargo, ropes, sails, and woodwork from rats, that having one on board provided the master with insurance.

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Risk prevention -

The shipping rules (II Consolato del Mare) published in Barcelona in 1494 state: "If goods laden on board of a ship are devoured by rats, and the owners consequently suffer considerable damage, the master must repair the injury sustained by the owners, for he is considered in fault. But if the master kept cats on board, he is excused from that liability."

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A welcome mascot -

The tradition that every ship needs a mascot made cats very welcome among sailors and traders. In this image, fur traders descending the Missouri River in 1845 are kept company by a black cat.

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Ship's company -

During the 19th century, cats were regularly included as part of the ship's company on maritime expeditions. In this illustration, some of the crew of HMS Alert—one of two ships taking part in the British Arctic Expedition of 1875–1876—are seen playing musical instruments while a pair of cats play in the foreground.

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Voyages of discovery -

Captain James Fairweather, master of RRS Discovery, is pictured holding the ship's cat flanked by officers. Discovery carried Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton on their first, and highly successful, journey to the Antarctic as part of the British National Antarctic Expedition.

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Mrs. Chippy -

Ernest Shackleton's later, ill-fated Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition of 1914–1917 was a heroic failure. It was also noted for a gentleman named Perce Blackborow, who had snuck aboard Shackleton's ship, Endurance, as a stowaway. Blackborow quickly befriended the ship's cat, a tabby called Mrs. Chippy. The pair are pictured after Blackborow had been discovered on the third day at sea.

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Kiddo -

The celebrated American aviator and photographer Melvin Vaniman ended up being rescued in the Atlantic in October 1910 by the steamship SS Trent in the wake of a failed attempt to cross the ocean in an airship. Besides the rest of his crew, Vaniman's "airship" cat, a tabby called Kiddo, was also among those picked up.

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In the navy -

Ship's cats have traditionally been associated with navy vessels, again brought aboard as mascots and as valued members of the crew. Pictured here during the First World War is the feline mascot of the Australian light cruiser HMAS Encounter, peering from the muzzle of a polished deck gun.

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Cruising with cats -

Post-war, the 1920s saw the dawning of the golden age of ocean liners. These luxury passenger vessels invariably included cats among the ship's company, the furry mascots providing delightful distraction for adults and children alike. The cat in this 1928 image is catching some sun on the deck of British Union-Castle line's Durham Castle.

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The cat's role in wartime -

Among those piped aboard after the USS Macdonough was commissioned in 1934 was the ship's cat, seen here with American sailors before the ship's deployment to its new home—Pearl Harbor. The Macdonough survived the attack on December 7, 1941, and went on the serve in the Pacific Theater.

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Pincher -

The Second World War saw some remarkable ship's cat tales emerge. Pincher (pictured) was the mascot of HMS Exeter. The British warship took part in the Battle of the River Plate in December 1939, which resulted in the sinking of the German battleship Admiral Graf Spee. On their return to port, Exeter's crew—and Pincher—were greeted by Winston Churchill, then the First Lord of the Admiralty.

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Unsinkable Sam -

Previously named Oscar, Unsinkable Sam was the ship's cat of the German battleship Bismarck. Having survived the sinking of Bismarck, the feline was picked up by HMS Cossack. A few months later, Cossack was torpedoed and sunk. Oscar was, again, rescued. Incredibly, his third posting, to HMS Ark Royal, also ended in near-disaster when that vessel was attacked and sunk. By now known as Unsinkable Sam after having survived three ship sinkings, Oscar was retired to dry land in November 1941, where he lived out the rest of his six lives.

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Blackie -

Pictured: Winston Churchill restrains Blackie, the ship's cat of HMS Prince of Wales, from boarding USS McDougal during a 1941 ceremonial visit to the United States.

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Shore leave -

A ship cat's life wasn't always lived on the high seas. Felines were allowed shore time, just like any other crew. Here, a sailor from HMS Vernon holds the vessel's feline mascot, Minnie, during a stay at Portsmouth, England.

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Convoy -

Convoy, the ship's cat of HMS Hermione, was so named because of the number of times he accompanied the ship on duty patrols. On June 16, 1942, Hermione was torpedoed by a German U-boat. Eight officers and 80 ratings were lost, including Convoy. He's pictured in happier days enjoying a snooze in a specially made hammock.

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Peebles -

Lieutenant Commander R H Palmer plays with Peebles, the ship's cat, who leaps through his clasped arms on board HMS Western Isles at Tobermory, Isle of Mull, in 1942. By all accounts, Peebles was very clever and would shake the hands of strangers when they entered the ship's wardroom.

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Stripey -

In this delightful portrait, the keeper of HMS Warspite, a ship used by Britain in both world wars, and the ship's cat Stripey were photographed for posterity before both were transferred to another ship in 1947, after the Warspite was scrapped.

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Simon -

Arguably history's most famous ship's cat, Simon was on board HMS Amethyst during the notorious Yangtze incident, which took place from April 20 to July 30, 1949, on the Yangtze River in China.

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Beyond the call of duty -

HMS Amethyst (pictured) together with HMS Consort, HMS London, and HMS Black Swan, were caught up in the Chinese Civil War. Amethyst was attacked, during which 25 crew members were killed, and Simon wounded. Despite his injuries, the cat resumed killing rats—vital in preserving rations and preventing disease—and keeping up the crew's morale.

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Simon awarded the Dickin Medal -

For services beyond the call of duty, Simon was awarded the Dickin Medal, the animal equivalent of the Victoria Cross. Simon, who later died from complications resulting from his injuries, is so far the only feline to receive such an accolade.

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Maintaining a tradition -

The British Royal Navy maintained the tradition of the ship's cat after the Second World War. In this 1963 snapshot, Captain Lieutenant-Commander Alan L. Cawston, on board the minesweeper support ship HMS Manxman, gets to grips with a tailless Manx cat named, appropriately, Manx!

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End of an era -

The Royal Navy, however, eventually banned cats and other pet animals from all ships on the ocean in 1975 on hygiene grounds. This is Tiddles at his station aboard HMS Victorious.

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Around the world -

Cats were and still are common on many private ships. Holding his ginger cat, Avanga, is Robin Lee Graham aboard the Dove. As a teenager in the summer of 1965, Graham sailed around the world alone, save for three cats who accompanied him throughout the voyage.

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A feat of endurance -

On November 5, 1970, after 161 days at sea aboard La Balsa, a raft made of balsa logs, four ragged looking adventurers—La Balsa's Spanish captain Vital Alsar, Marcel Modena, Gabriel Salas, and Norman Tetreault—were towed into the Mooloolah River in South East Queensland. They had just completed an epic 8,699-mi (14,000-km) Pacific Ocean voyage from Ecuador to Australia. With them was Minet, the ship's cat.

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Captain Flinders and Trim -

An Australia features in another wonderful ship's cat story, that of Trim. He was a ship's cat who accompanied Captain Matthew Flinders on his voyages to circumnavigate and map the coastline of Australia in 1801–1803. Pictured in 2014 is the then Duke of Cambridge unveiling a statute in honor of Captain Flinders and his furry friend at Australia House in London.

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The ship's cat today -

Today, the ship's cat remains a personal friend and an extra pair of paws to mariners around the world. Here, rescue cats look for fish on board a longtail boat on the Tapi River in Surat Thani, Thailand. Local fisherman often employ the skills of felines in pursuit of a decent catch.

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Pampered and purring -

And for cat lovers who can't possibly entertain the thought of visiting a ship without a cat, the Royal Albatross, a luxury tall ship that hosts sailing and dining experiences around the waters of Singapore, welcomes cat owners and their charges. Purrfect! 

Sources: (Sea History) (Scott Polar Research Institute) (HistoryNet) (Time) (Sunshine Coast Heritage)

See also: Amazing cat facts that will leave you in a flap!

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