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All Aboard! The Page Dedicated To The Great Ocean Liners Of The Past
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The Journey Begins!
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The Turn of the Century was a time of great technological advances in the industry of travel and trade. To capture their share of the profits, ocean liner companies had to build bigger, faster, more luxurious ships. Cunard Lines and White Star Lines were two of the fiercest competitors. Besides rivaling each other, both fleets sought to out do Germany's great liners. Resulting from this competition were some of the grandest liners afloat...as well as some of the most tragic events in maritime history.
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Cunard Lines
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Begun by Lord Inverclyde in the 1840's,Cunard Lines quickly rose to the top of the competition. In 1907 the RMS Lusitania was launched, and quickly became a sensation with her grace, speed, and luxurious accomodations. The Lusitania could cross the Atlantic in just 4 1/2 days. Her twin sister, the RMS Mauretania boasted the same. Launched in 1909, the Mauretania captured the coveted Blue Riband on numerous occasions. Later, in 1914, The Aquitania, the third of the sisters, and even more elaborately appointed, was launched. Like the Titanic, the Aquitania had a seawater swimming bath!
The frenzy these great ships generated caused White Star Lines to join the competition.
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White Star Lines
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White Star Lines, owned by Lord Pirrie, and J.P. Morgan, and presided over by J.Bruce Ismay, hatched a plan to conquer the success of Cunard Line's Lusitania and Mauretania. They knew that it would be tough to rival the Cunarder's speed. They opted for luxury instead. With this in mind, the RMS Olympic, RMS Titanic, and RMS Gigantic (later renamed the Britannic) were conceived. White Star contracted with Harland and Wolfe Shipbuilders, of Belfast Ireland. Pirrie's nephew, Thomas Andrews, was head of engineering for Harland and Wolfe. Andrews oversaw every aspect of the three ship's design and construction.
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