Beautiful brochure of the MS Willem Ruys, the ship of the Koninklijke Rotterdamsche Lloyd.

On the East Indies route

As Willem Ruys, the ship began her maiden voyage on 5 December 1947. Together with her main competitor and running mate, the MS Oranje of the Netherland Line, she became a popular fixture on the Dutch East Indies route. However, when the East Indies gained independence from The Netherlands in 1949, passengers' numbers decreased.

The former Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew, had travelled aboard Willem Ruys as a fresh graduate upon completing his studies in the United Kingdom.