Lusitania
A British steamship, sunken by a German
submarine in May 7,
1915. Eight years earlier the steamer had established new speed
records on her first transatlantic crossing.
The Lusitania had
then been the largest ship afloat. Now there was a different kind of excitement, for Great
Britain was embroiled in war with Germany, and the German government had just issued a
terse warning to Americans that British ships were subject to attack. Out of 1,258 persons
booked for the crossing to Liverpool, England, only one — an American clergyman
— heeded the warning and canceled his passage. With the doomed ship sailed 159
Americans.
Shortly after 2:00 PM the
ship changed course slightly, swinging northward toward the Irish Sea. The coast of
Ireland had already come into view. Many of the passengers were strolling on deck.
Suddenly, from the bridge, came a startled cry, "There is a torpedo coming,
Sir!" The warning was followed by a violent explosion as the deadly missile ripped
into the Lusitania's hull. It was a direct hit, fired from a German submarine some
700 yards away. Mortally stricken, the great ship began to heel. Within 18 minutes only an
oil slick, floating debris, and a few scattered lifeboats indicated where the liner had
gone down.
The captain of the
submarine, Lieut. Comdr. Walter Schweiger, must have been astonished that the Lusitania
had ventured into these waters. Only the day before, he had sunk two other British
steamers in the same area. Watching the stricken Lusitania through his periscope,
Schweiger recorded in his log, "The ship stops immediately and quickly heels to
starboard. Great confusion.... Lifeboats being cleared and lowered to water. Many boats
crowded... immediately fill and sink." Later he wrote, "It would have been
impossible for me to fire a second torpedo into this crowd of people struggling to save
their lives."
If the Lusitania had
not altered her course when she did, thus exposing herself to a direct shot, she could
have outdistanced the submarine. The lives of some 1,200 persons would have been saved,
including more than 120 Americans. The German government contended that the Lusitania was
a warship and that she was carrying Canadian soldiers and munitions. Her sister ship, the
Mauretania, had been converted for military service, and the original plans for
both vessels allowed for 12 six-inch gun emplacements. The disaster aroused deep
resentment in the United States and brought the nation to the brink of war with Germany.
Also, an ancient Roman
province comprising most of modern Portugal and southwestern Spain; name comes from
Lusitani, group of people who held off Roman domination until the death of their leader.
Related videos:
Last Voyage of
the Lusitania.
Secrets of the
Unknown - The Lusitania.
Related books:
Murder on the
Lusitania.
History of
Portugal: From Lusitania to Empire.
The Last Voyage
of the Lusitania.
The Lusitania:
Unravelling the Mysteries.
The
Lusitania: The Life, Loss, and Legacy of an Ocean Legend.
The Lusitania
Controversies - Book One: Atrocity of War and a Wreck-Diving History.
The Lusitania
Controversies - Book Two: Dangerous Descents into Shipwrecks.
Further info:
American Protest
Over the Sinking of the Lusitania.
Lusitania Controversy.
RMS Lusitania.
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