page_title: MS Monarch
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: MS Monarch / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Monarch of the Seas anchored infront of Coco Cay
context_page_description: MS Monarch was the second of three Sovereign-class cruise ships owned by Royal Caribbean International. As of April 1, 2013, Monarch is operated by RCCL's Pullmantur Cruises brand. It was built in 1991 at the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyards in Saint-Nazaire, France.
  At 73,941 GT, Monarch was one of the largest cruise ships in the world at time of her completion. She could carry up to 2,744 passengers.
context_section_description: Monarch had an outdoor basketball court, two shuffleboard courts, and a rock climbing wall. There were also two full-sized salt water pools. She was refurbished in May 2003 to add the rock-climbing wall. The fitness center, spa and children's area were also enlarged.  Prior to being retired from the Royal Caribbean International fleet, Monarch of the Seas (as she was then called) sailed to the Bahamas out of Port Canaveral, Florida.
  In 2007, Monarch became the first major cruise ship in the world to be captained by a woman, the Swede Karin Stahre-Janson, who remained the only one until 2010 when the British captain Sarah Breton took charge of MS Artemis of P&O Cruises.
  On 1 April 2013, after serving for Royal Caribbean International for 22 years, Monarch was transferred to Spain's Pullmantur Cruises, joining her sister ship MS Sovereign. Before sailing for Pullmantur, Monarch underwent another refurbishment to some of her cabins, casino and shops. She began sailing year-round in the Southern Caribbean on 27 April 2013.
  In 2020, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Monarch and MS Sovereign were placed into "cold lay-up" and Pullmantur Cruises filed for financial reorganization. According to reports, the interiors of the ships were stripped of "everything of value". Pullmantur Cruises announced that MS Monarch, MS Sovereign and MS Horizon were to be sold to breakers for scrap in Aliağa, Turkey being beached on 22 July 2020.
caption: Monarch of the Seas with Royal Caribbean livery anchored off Coco Cay.
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