Lusitania

Lusitania by Jamie

· The Lusitania was a British boat which sank during World War One. · The Lusitania could go about 25 knots; and it won the blue ribbon for the fastest Atlantic crossing. · The Lusitania started its trip from New York on its way to Liverpool. · The captain of the RMS Lusitania was Captain Turner. · When it was first sent out it was sent back because of the vibrations when the boat traveled at high speeds. · The Lusitania was finally ready to be sent out in 1907. · The Lusitania started its trip from New York on its way to Liverpool. · On its journey it was joined by Mauretania and there was a friendly rivalry between them and the Lusitania. They fought over the Blue Riband and the Mauretania won after 2 years. · In 1914 the Aquitania joined the Lusitania and the Mauretania for the trip across the Atlantic. · In 1915 it was ready to travel under war like conditions but a warning was sent out regarding the dangers of traveling aboard it, the passengers weren’t scared, and Captain Turner thought he could out run any submarine that came close to their boat. · They didn’t know that a few days earlier a U-Boat U-20 was sent out from Germany and was ordered to sink any British merchant ship they found, and now they were in a lot of danger. · Captain Turner received orders to change his course but instead he told them to spend less time on deck throwing out life boats, and to blacken the portholes and windows. They kept traveling in the same route ignoring the warning. · There was heavy fog which made it hard to see but when it cleared Turner ordered them to go to the coast so he could figure out where he was, but he didn’t know that the U-20 had been following them for about an hour. · Kapitänleutnant Walther Schweiger ordered a torpedo to be launched. The Lusitania deckhand saw it and was about to warn everyone aboard, it was too late the torpedo hit just below the bridge and less than a minute later another torpedo hit and the ship and they were sinking fast. · It wasn’t proven but many people believed that the second explosion was due to the ammunition hid in the cargo. · Once they were hit they tried to steer the boat to shore hoping to make it there so they wouldn’t sink. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> However, the torpedo caused them not to have any control. So they abandoned the boat. · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">The Lusitania sunk in only eighteen minutes. · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Most people died from the freezing waters not the torpedo attack itself. Within hours tug boats and fishing vessels were there to rescue the survivors. · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">About 1,195 men, women and children died when the Lusitania sank. · <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">President Wilson protested to the Germans and they agreed that passenger ships would only be sunk with previous warning and appropriate safeguards for passengers. **<span style="color: #5f497a; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> __Websites__ **
 * __The Lusitania's journey__**

<span style="color: #5f497a; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">[] [] [] <span style="color: #5f497a; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Picture: __http://neithercorp.us/npress/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/lusitania-sinking.jpg__