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128 innocent Americans lost their lives. Coming on the heels of German atrocities against civilians in Belgium, the episode permanently ruined Germany's reputation and alienated American public opinion. President [[Woodrow Wilson]], saying America was too proud to fight, demanded promises that Germany would never again sink unarmed passenger liners. Germany so promised but a few weeks later sank another passenger ship, the [[Arabic attack|''Arabic'']] with more innocent Americans killed. Finally the Germans backed away from attacks on civilian ships. When they resumed unrestricted submarine warfare in early 1917 their goal was to defeat Britain quickly, knowing full well that Americans would go to war when American ships started going down, as happened in April 1917.
128 innocent Americans lost their lives. Coming on the heels of German atrocities against civilians in Belgium, the episode permanently ruined Germany's reputation and alienated American public opinion. President [[Woodrow Wilson]], saying America was too proud to fight, demanded promises that Germany would never again sink unarmed passenger liners. Germany so promised but a few weeks later sank another passenger ship, the [[Arabic attack|''Arabic'']] with more innocent Americans killed. Finally the Germans backed away from attacks on civilian ships. When they resumed unrestricted submarine warfare in early 1917 their goal was to defeat Britain quickly, knowing full well that Americans would go to war when American ships started going down, as happened in April 1917.
==Investigation into Sinking==
For many years, there was speculation as to the exact reason why the Lusitania sank so quickly. The reports of an explosion led many to suspect that the Lusitania was secretly carrying explosives. Examination of the shipping documents in London archives revealed that the Lusitania was carrying ammunition. However, this did not explain the position of the blast or have the ability to cause an explosion of the magnitude necessary to sink the liner.
The most likely cause was not revealed until Robert Ballard and his crew explored the wreck site in the late 1980s. After several possible causes were ruled out by visual inspection, they hypothesized that the torpedo struck a coal bunker. As the Lusitania was nearing the end of its journey, the bunkers would have been almost depleted. There would still be a significant quantity of coal dust, a highly volatile substance. When the torpedo hit the bunker, it ignited the coal dust and caused an explosion that led to severe structural failure.
==Further reading==
==Further reading==
* Bailey, Thomas. "The Sinking of the Lusitania." ''American Historical Review,'' Vol. 41, No. 1 (Oct., 1935), pp. 54-73 [http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0002-8762%28193510%2941%3A1%3C54%3ATSOTL%3E2.0.CO%3B2-K in JSTOR]
* Bailey, Thomas. "The Sinking of the Lusitania." ''American Historical Review,'' Vol. 41, No. 1 (Oct., 1935), pp. 54-73 [http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0002-8762%28193510%2941%3A1%3C54%3ATSOTL%3E2.0.CO%3B2-K in JSTOR]