When she was launched in 1907, the Lusitania was the largest ocean liner in the world. She was also the fastest, most luxurious liners ever seen. One of the principal aims in building her was to win back the coveted Blue Riband of the Atlantic, which German Liners had held for more than ten years. The Lusitania took the record on her second westward passage.The subsequent sinking by a German U-boat in 1915, en route from New York to Liverpool, caused the loss of some 1,200 lives, and was one of the principal factors in bringing the United States into World War I.