Snippet from Wikipedia: RMS Lusitania

RMS Lusitania was a British ocean liner launched by the Cunard Line in 1906. A Royal Mail Ship, Lusitania was the world's largest passenger ship until the completion of her sister Mauretania three months later. In 1907 she regained for Britain the Blue Riband appellation for the fastest Atlantic crossing, which had been held by German ships for a decade.

During World War I, Lusitania was listed as an armed merchant cruiser (AMC) and carried both British munitions and US citizens. On 7 May 1915 at 14:10, 11 miles (18 km) off the Old Head of Kinsale, Ireland, the German submarine U-20 hit her with a torpedo, leading to her sinking about 18 minutes later. Only 6 of several dozen lifeboats and rafts were successfully lowered, and of 1,960 persons on board, 767 survived and 1,193 perished.

The sinking, which killed over 100 US citizens, significantly increased American domestic public support for entering the war which occurred two years later in 1917 with the United States declaration of war on Germany.

Overview

German shipping lines were Cunard's main competitors for the custom of transatlantic passengers in the early 20th century, and Cunard responded by building two new 'ocean greyhounds': Lusitania and RMS Mauretania. Cunard used assistance from the British Admiralty to build both new ships, on the understanding that the ship would be available for military duty in time of war. During construction gun mounts for deck cannons were installed but no guns were ever fitted.

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