RMS Lusitania: The British "Greyhound" Sunk by U-20

Yes, the RMS Lusitania was British.

Key Facts

• Owner/Operator: Cunard Line (British, founded 1840, Samuel Cunard).
• Built: John Brown & Co., Clydebank, Scotland. Launched June 7, 1906.
• Registry: Liverpool. British flag.
• Role: Blue Riband holder (fastest Atlantic crossing). Royal Mail Ship (RMS) — carried mail under Admiralty contract.
• Subsidy: British government loaned £2.6M for construction on condition she be built to Admiralty specs for potential conversion to Armed Merchant Cruiser (AMC).

The Sinking

• Date: May 7, 1915 (WWI).
• Attacker: U-20 (Kapitänleutnant Walther Schwieger), Imperial German Navy.
• Location: 11 miles off Old Head of Kinsale, Ireland.
• Time to sink: 18 minutes. Single torpedo + massive secondary explosion (coal dust? munitions?).
• Casualties: 1,198 dead (of 1,959 aboard). 128 Americans.
• Wreck: 93m depth. Heavily salvaged; war grave designation disputed.

Strategic Impact

Shocked neutral US. Germany's "unrestricted submarine warfare" became central casus belli. Not the sole cause of US entry (1917), but the pivotal emotional turning point. British propaganda maximized outrage (medals, posters, "Remember the Lusitania").

Controversy

Was she carrying munitions? Yes. Manifest listed 4.2M rifle cartridges, 1,250 cases shrapnel shells, 18 cases fuses. Germany cited this as legitimacy. International law then: munitions = legitimate target; passenger ships = protected. The dual-use nature remains debated.