RMS Lusitania
RMS Lusitania was a British passenger liner sunk by a German U-boat (submarine) in World War I with heavy loss of life. The terrorist attack on unarmed civilians was a major atrocity that outraged Americans and ruined Germany's reputation as an honorable nation. The episode helped push the U.S. into war against Germany in 1917.
| R.M.S. Lusitania | |
|---|---|
| |
| Career | |
| Flag |  |
| Owner | Cunard |
| Home port | Liverpool, England |
| Shipyard | John Brown & Co. Ltd, Clydebank, Scotland |
| Type | Ocean liner |
| Launched | June 7, 1906 |
| Status | Sunk, May 7, 1915 |
| Characteristics | |
| Displacement | 44,060 long tons |
| Length | 787 ft. |
| Beam | 87 ft 6 in |
| Speed | cruising:25 knots max:26.7 knots |
| Crew | 850 |
| Passengers | 2,198 total First-class: 552 Second-class: 460 Third-class: 1,186 |
History
Lusitania was first conceived as a way of returing the Blue Riband Trophy to Britain, and ensuring British dominance of steamship passenger service across the Atlantic. In 1902, while the trophy was still in German hands (since 1897, by the Nordeutscher Lloyd ship Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse), negotiations began between members of the government and Cunard with the purpose of building several liners capable of up to 25 knots; Cunard would retain all rights to use the ships, but in exchange for a government loan of £2,600,000 the vessels would be turned over to the government during a national emergency for use as troop transports or hospital ships. The ships would be named Lusitania and Mauritania.
To meet the speed requirements the ships were fitted with new Parsons steam turbine engines powering four three-bladed propellers; their hulls were designed around a "nine-to-one" ratio of length versus beam, ensuring their power would push them easily to meet the projected speed requirements, and after tank testing in the Admiralty, the length of each was fixed at 787 feet.
Lusitania's keel was laid in May, 1905, and when she was launced in June, 1906, she was the largest vessel afloat. Passenger accomodations rivaled the finest hotels in Europe; even third-class accomdations, changed from standard open-berthing to four-to-six berth cabins, were palatial when compared to other ships. In her sea trials her engines performed as expected, generating 68,000 horsepower while driving the ship forward at 25 knots.
Thinking of her possible wartime service in the future, Lusitania was designed with her coal bunkers placed along side her boiler rooms, the theory being that a hit by a torpedo or ramming would be absorbed by these compartments and not affect her vital machinery.
Her first voyage on September 7, 1907 did not result in regaining the Blue Riband, but on her second voyage she did, completing the crossing in 4 days, 19 hours, and 52 minutes. Lusitania would break her own speed records several times, even as the Blue Riband passed to her sister ship, the slightly-faster Mauritania.
World War I
With British entry in World War I, many available liners were requisitioned for use by the government: Olympic and Britannic, once sisters to the ill-fated Titanic, were taken from rival White Star Line and used as a troop transport and hospital ship, respectively. Mauritania as well as Cunard's third entry, Aquitania, were also taken and used. Lusitania remained under Cunard control, as passenger service was still expected and needed; a possible clandestine use as a deliverer of military arms was not overlooked.
Last voyage
On April 30th, 1915, Lusitania was being loaded in New York with supplies. Over on the other side of the Atlantic in Germany, Kapitänleutnant Walter Schwieger was ordered to take his U-20 German submarine on patrol. Lusitania started its trip to Britain on May 1st, 1915, carrying 1257 passengers and 702 crew members under the command of Captain William Turner.
On May 7th, Lusitania and the German submarine both entered the Irish Channel.
Running low on fuel Kapitänleutnant Schwieger was onm his way back to Germany when he crossed paths with the Lusitania. He immediately recognized the huge ship as an unarmed passenger liner. He fired one torpedo. The torpedo was spotted, but nothing was able to be done about it. Right after it hit, it triggered a secondary, larger explosion within the ship. Due to the list of the ship, it was impossible to launch half of her lifeboats. A distress signal was sent out and picked up at Queenstown (now called Cobh), Ireland. The Lusitania sank 18 minutes after the torpedo hit.
Queenstown sent out several boats to see what they could do. They arrived at the scene two hours after the sinking, and were able to rescue 761 people from the wreckage. The total number of deaths was 1,198.
Aftermath
The sinking of Lusitania was a terrorist attack against a civilian target and a dramatic violation of the standards of civilized warfare, though the Germans celebrated their triumph. 128 Americans lost their lives. President Woodrow Wilson, demanded promises that Germany would never again sink unarmed passenger liners.
Further reading
- Bailey, Thomas. "The Sinking of the Lusitania." American Historical Review, Vol. 41, No. 1 (Oct., 1935), pp. 54-73 in JSTOR