Top5 Secret Facts Of Lusitania Ship That Expose Its Reality

Whenever we open the pages of history, we come across some such incidents which even today make our heart tremble. Lusitania incidentis one of those incidents hidden in the pages of history which happened on 7 May 1915. When the giant ship Lusitania of its time, which had the title of being the second largest ship after Titanic, was going from New York to Liverpool. There were 1962 people on board. From families to small children, everyone was sitting on this giant ship. But little did they know that this journey was going to be the last journey of their life.

Lusitania was moving ahead on its journey peacefully. Then suddenly there is a loud explosion in the front part of the ship. The sound of which echoes the sea. Due to this explosion, the people sitting on the ship get a strong shock. No one could understand what happened suddenly on the ship. People were trying to find out the reason for this explosion when suddenly another explosion occurred on the ship and this second explosion was many times stronger than the first one. This second explosion created a very big hole in the ship and now the ship started sinking rapidly in the sea.

There was chaos among all the people present on the ship. Everyone was trying to make their place in the life boats to save their lives. But Lusitania was sinking so fast in the water that it was not possible for so many people to sit in the life boats together. In this atmosphere of chaos, restless mothers were trying to make their place in the life boats somehow holding their children in their hands. But that cold water of the Atlantic Ocean did not show mercy to anyone.

Among those who drowned in the water, there was also a 3-year-old girl. Whose mother was holding her tightly. But in the chaos, it was not known when and where her little daughter disappeared. That day, so many mothers lost their children. The cold water of the sea was engulfing everyone and in no time, about 1200 people merged in that cold water of the sea. In just 18 minutes, this giant Lusitania ship sank in the lap of the sea.

What was the reason that handed over a giant ship like Lusitania to the sea? Is there any such secret of this ship which is being hidden from the pages of history? We will unveil all those secrets related to this ship in today’s article. So Let’s Began.

5) Agreement

There was a race going on in the beginning of the 20th century. Almost all the European shipping companies had it in mind that we should completely dominate the trans-Atlantic travel. They all wanted to build the world’s fastest, largest and most luxurious ocean liner ships and in this race the German company was far ahead. A British company Cunard was also involved in this race for the fastest ships. But it was getting overshadowed by Germany’s ocean liners. This was the time when trans-Atlantic travel was very important not only for speed but also for national pride and economy.

In front of the big giants, Cunard was now the only company left that was forced to go to the British Government to save itself. At that time the British Government did not see a struggling company. Rather, they saw an opportunity. By using which it could perhaps see its benefit in the future. In the year 1903, the British Government made an agreement with the Cunard Company and gave it 2.6 million Euros. The British Government asked the Cunard Company to build two big ships. But they also had a condition in this.

The British Government said that those two ships should be designed in such a way that if in future the British Government goes to war with any other country, then both those ships can be converted into War Ships immediately. After this agreement, the two ships that Cunard built became one of the most famous icons of history. The names of these two ships were RMS Lusitania and RMS Mauretania. You can say that due to that agreement of the British Government, the fate of the Lusitania ship was written even before it was built. If that agreement with the British Government had not been there, then perhaps that accident would not have happened with Lusitania.

4) Structure

These two ships were built between the years 1904 to 1906. Lusitania itself was a mixture of modern engineering and design. The length of the Lusitania ship was about 787 feet. In which about 2200 passengers and 850 crew members could travel comfortably. Its hull was made of high tensile steel. Which gave more strength to the ship. Everything from luxurious saloon class cabins to functional third class passenger seats were available on the Lusitania ship.

You can say that the Lusitania ship was a moving luxurious hotel of its time. In which every kind of facilities were available. Due to its comfort and speed, the Lusitania ship had become a favorite in trans-Atlantic travel. This ship was such a grand ship of its time that when it was launched, about 2 lakh people gathered at the port to see its launch.

3) World War 1

Everything was going well. But then in the year 1914, World War 1 started and everything changed. When World War 1 started, transatlantic travel came under a great threat. The British government declared that large ocean liners should be immediately converted into military ships. Do you remember what agreement was made between the Cunard company and the British government? Actually, due to that agreement, Lusitania was also to be converted into a war ship.

At that time, the demand for passenger travel was so high that the British government felt that it would not be right to convert Lusitania into a war ship. So the British government gave Lusitania a civilian status and refused to use it in any war practice. But its reputation of having this civilian status was also quite complicated. Because officially it was built in such a way that it could be converted into a war ship anytime without any problem. Let me tell you that a secret room was also built in Lusitania in which ammunition could also be kept.

By the year 1915, the danger on Lusitania increased even more. Actually Germany declared that the sea area around Britain and Ireland has turned into a war zone and any ship seen there will be sunk without any warning. But Lusitania continued its journey taking risks and ignored these warnings. Lusitania set out on its journey from New York to Liverpool on 1 May 1915.

2) Attack

At that time also many warnings were given which could have perhaps prevented the incident that was to happen. The British Embassy in the United States had issued this warning through the newspaper and informed everyone not to travel inside the war zone by traveling on the ship. Otherwise a terrible accident can happen. But ignoring these warnings, about 1264 passengers and 700 crew members set out to travel on Lusitania. In the afternoon of May 7, Lusitania was moving towards its destination, floating peacefully on the water. It had just crossed the Irish coast a short while ago. But none of the passengers sitting on the ship knew that danger was lurking just below them inside the water.

Actually a German U20 submarine was moving inside the water. The crew of the U20 submarine could see the Lusitania ship floating fast on the water. From a distance, this ship looked very huge and dangerous. The captain of U20 gave orders to the crew and a torpedo missile was launched on the ship. Actually a torpedo missile is like a silent killer. Which attacks its enemy by going fast and calmly inside the water. Slowly that missile was moving towards Lusitania. No one on the Lusitania ship had any idea that death was approaching them.

This fast-moving missile hit the starboard side of the ship and a loud explosion occurred. Due to this explosion, the ship started shaking badly. People started running here and there on the ship when suddenly a second explosion occurred on the ship. Let me tell you that the U20 submarine had fired only one missile. But this second explosion occurred from within the Lusitania ship itself. It seemed as if the Lusitania ship was trying to destroy itself.

1) Sink

Everyone was running towards the life boats. But only a few life boats could save so many people. The cold water of the Atlantic Ocean was filling up inside the ship rapidly and no one knew when the sounds of people screaming turned into the sound of drowning. It took only 18 minutes for a huge ship like Lusitania to sink in the ocean. In this accident, about 1200 people lost their lives. Among them, 128 Americans were also included. Lusitania had become a victim of a painful accident.

Now only one question was echoing in the minds of the people that how did that second explosion happen on Lusitania. Some people said that the second explosion happened due to the ammunition hidden inside the ship. At the same time, some people raised questions on the structural design of the ship. The British Government denied that any kind of ammunition was hidden on the ship. This incident created a stir in the whole world. Germany kept saying that Lusitania was a war ship which was transferring ammunition.

The news of the sinking of Lusitania started spreading rapidly and anti-Germany slogans started being raised everywhere. The citizens of America were also raising anti-Germany slogans. Now the then President of America, Wilson, was facing a huge challenge. America had said that it would remain neutral in this war and would not support any country. But now the public started pressuring him to declare war on Germany. Initially, Wilson asked Germany to apologize and taken it to promise that such an incident would not happen again.

Due to Germany’s other crimes and its starting of submarine warfare in 1917, America was also forced to enter the war. After this incident, many theories were born. Many people said that the British government had deliberately put the lives of civilians in danger. So that it could also involve America in the war with it. But why and how did that second explosion happen on Lusitania. No one has been able to know the answer to this till date. Today the wreck of the Lusitania ship lies submerged in the waters off the Irish coast.