Royal Mobian Line

The Royal Mobian Line (RML) is a Mobian cruise line based at Melbourne House at Mobotropolis, Mobius, owned and operated by Fischer Holdings.

Originally a shipping company founded in the late 17th Century as the Acorn Navigation Shippings by Guillaume Sourzac, the line is considered one of the oldest lines in the world, providing passenger and cargo services between the various colonial powers of the world. The independence of the United States wound up disrupting much of the line's trade, forcing its owners to reorganize the firm into the White Ball Line of Plymouth Packets in 1804 to raise capital. The firm would eventually focus on the Mobius-Australia trade with big success in the early 19th Century before focusing on routes between Europe and North America. The loss in profits in the 1840s lead to the firm merging with two smaller lines, the Blue Star Line and the Hawk Line, in 1858 to form the Mergiston, Melbourne, Oriental and Occidental Steam Navigation Company Limited. However, due to increased competition from British shipping firms such as the British and North American Royal Mail Steam-Packet Company, this merger did not prosper and with the failure of the Royal Bank of Mergiston in 1865, the line was forced into bankruptcy due to an incredible amount of debt.

The house flag, trade name and goodwill of the bankrupt company was purchased by Voxian entrepreneur Ruprecht Fischer on 23 February 1866, and re-established the company as the Oriental & Occidental Steam Navigation Company, soon reorganized into the White Ball Line in 1869 to raise capital. The revitalized company proved to be a great success, becoming one of the most prominent shipping lines in the world. Fischer's son Albrecht would then rename the company to the Royal Mobian Line Ltd in 1909 after receiving substantial loans and subsidies from the governments of Acorn, Albion, Voxia, and Frankonia to give the archipelago a competitive edge in the transatlantic market. In the late 1920s, new competition emerged from the Germans, French, and Italians which was soon met by the construction of the superliners Sainte Jeanne d'Arc, Notre Dame, Sainte Marie-Madeleine, and Sainte Véronique by 1940.

Upon the end of the Second World War, RML emerged as one of the largest Atlantic passenger lines, operating 12 ships to the United States and Canada in 1957. With the rise of jet airliners in 1958, RML entered into the airliner market via the Royal Mobian Airlines. Under the leadership of Arnold Fischer, RML began to concentrate on cruising and summer transatlantic voyages for holiday makers. The Saints were replaced by Queen Emma, which was designed for the dual role. RML received international attention in 1979 after the purchase of France which served under the RML until her retirement in 2008. In 2004, Queen Emma was replaced on transatlantic runs by Queen Alicia. The line also operates other cruise liners, most notably Queen Marie, and Queen Dorothea. As of 2022, RML is one of the only two shipping companies to operate a scheduled passenger service between Europe and North America.

Oriental & Occidental Steam Navigation Company: 1866-1870
On 23 February 1866, Ruprecht Fischer, director of the Voxia Line, purchased the house flag, trade name and goodwill of the bankrupt company for 1,000R, with the intention of operating large steamships on the North Atlantic services between Western Europe and New York. Fischer established the company's headquarters at Melbourne House, Mobotropolis. Fischer was soon approached by Henri Guillaume Lemieux, one of the wealthiest merchants in the Kingdom of Acorn at the time, and his brother, the shipbuilder Jean Richard Lemieux, during a game of billiards. The older Lemieux offered to finance the new line if Fischer had his ships built by his brother's company, Lemieux & Sons. Fischer agreed, and a partnership with Lemieux & Sons was established. The firm soon received their first orders on 13 May 1867. The agreement was that Lemieux & Sons would build the ships at cost plus a fixed percentage and would not build any vessels for White Ball's rivals. In 1869, Walter Saumers joined the managing company.

As the first ship was being commissioned, Fischer formed the White Ball Line, with a capital of 400,000R, divided into shares of 500R. The company was managed by a new firm: Fischer, Saumers & Company. Despite this complex organization, the shipping company was known publicly throughout its existence as the White Ball Line. A debate reigned as to which route Fischer expected to dominate when the company was launched. By 1870, four companies were firmly established on the transatlantic route to New York: the Cunard Line, the Guion Line, the Inman Line and the more modest National Line. The characteristics of the ships ordered from Lemieux & Sons, however, tended to prove that Fischer aimed at the North Atlantic from the outset.