After the First World War a Norwegian company, Skibs A/S Christen Smiths Rederi, developed heavy-lift ships to carry locomotives from Great Britain to Belgium.

With Lichtenfels DDG Hansa began to compete in the heavy-lift market to take fully-assembled locomotives to India.

[4] Lichtenfels was built with a Maierform bow with a convex profile, which was meant to improve both her speed and her handling.

During the East African campaign she stayed here for 18 months with nine other German merchant ships: Bertram Rickmers, Coburg, Crefeld, Frauenfels, Gera, Liebenfels, Oder, Oliva and Wartenfels.

On 4 April 1941 Lichtenfels and other German and Italian merchant ships were scuttled in an attempt to blockade the harbour.