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Besides passengers the Lusitania was also officially carrying hundreds of tons of rifle ammunition and more than a thousand cases of artillery shells. Some hav

Besides passengers the Lusitania was also officially carrying hundreds of tons of rifle ammunition and more than a thousand cases of artillery shells. Some have asserted it had even more than that, undeclared/unofficially. From wikipedia: > Furthermore, there was a large consignment of fur, sent from Dupont de Nemours, an explosives manufacturer, and 90 tons of butter and lard destined for the Royal Navy Weapons Testing Establishment in Essex. Although it was May, this lard and butter was not refrigerated; it was insured by the special government rate but the insurance was never claimed.[111] That may not excuse Germany for sinking it, but even so I think operating in that capacity is a far cry from being a hospital ship.

stormdennis 6y ago
I know someone who's grandfather saw the Lusitania being torpedoed. It was not unexpected, there was known to be a u-boat in the area and people watched from onshore
- marcusverus 6y ago
  That and the Germans basically announced that it would happen. From Wikipedia: > The [German] embassy decided to warn passengers before her next crossing not to sail aboard Lusitania, and on 22 April placed a warning advertisement in 50 American newspapers, including those in New York: NOTICE! TRAVELLERS intending to embark on the Atlantic voyage are reminded that a state of war exists between Germany and her allies and Great Britain and her allies; that the zone of war includes the waters adjacent to the British Isles; that, in accordance with formal notice given by the Imperial German Government, vessels flying the flag of Great Britain, or any of her allies, are liable to destruction in those waters and that travellers sailing in the war zone on the ships of Great Britain or her allies do so at their own risk. IMPERIAL GERMAN EMBASSY Washington, D.C. 22 April 1915 https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinking_of_the_RMS_Lusitania https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinking_of_the_RMS_Lusitania

stormdennis 6y ago

I know someone who's grandfather saw the Lusitania being torpedoed. It was not unexpected, there was known to be a u-boat in the area and people watched from onshore

marcusverus 6y ago
That and the Germans basically announced that it would happen. From Wikipedia: > The [German] embassy decided to warn passengers before her next crossing not to sail aboard Lusitania, and on 22 April placed a warning advertisement in 50 American newspapers, including those in New York: NOTICE! TRAVELLERS intending to embark on the Atlantic voyage are reminded that a state of war exists between Germany and her allies and Great Britain and her allies; that the zone of war includes the waters adjacent to the British Isles; that, in accordance with formal notice given by the Imperial German Government, vessels flying the flag of Great Britain, or any of her allies, are liable to destruction in those waters and that travellers sailing in the war zone on the ships of Great Britain or her allies do so at their own risk. IMPERIAL GERMAN EMBASSY Washington, D.C. 22 April 1915 https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinking_of_the_RMS_Lusitania https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinking_of_the_RMS_Lusitania