lusitania (steamship)

"When a German submarine sank passenger liner RMS Lusitania on May, 1915, it redefined the laws of conflict. The loss of the boat and 1,198 lives shocked the world. But was the U-boat's torpedo the only thing that sank the Lusitania? Or was a second reported explosion caused by an illegal cargo of weapons? Dark Secrets of the Lusitania plunges below the waves on a new expedition to venture into the wreck in a bid to get to the bottom of this century-old war crime"--Container.

Looks at the German side of the sinking of the Lusitania. "Drawing on a range of German source... provides a comprehensive reappraisal of the sinking and its aftermath, focusingon the German reaction and psyche."--Dust jacket.

"Douglas Carl Peifer compares the ways in which different presidential administrations have responded when American lives were lost at sea. He examines in depth three cases: the Maine incident (1898), which led to war in the short term; the Lusitania crisis (1915), which set the trajectory for intervention; and the Panay incident (1937), which was settled diplomatically"--Provided by publisher.

Describes the sinking of the Lusitania.

On May 7, 1915, the Lusitania was struck by a torpedo fired from a German submarine. It sank within twenty minutes, taking the lives of 1,198 people, including 128 children. The uproar following the sinking contributed to the entry of the United States into World War I. This book asserts that the Lusitania regularly carried sumuggled munitions from the United States to England, using innocent passengers as human shields. Moreover, the disaster could have been avoided had Britain sent ships to escort the liner as it entered the waters patrolled by German submarines. The controversy over what cargo the Lusitania carried, as well as the protection it should have received, has been debated by historians since its sinking.

George Porter Dillman agreed to work as an undercover investigator on the Lusitania thinking he would only be working with petty thieves and drunken fist fights, but when the ship's blueprints are stolen and a passenger is killed, George's peaceful voyage becomes a life or death mission.