Named for the Roman province of Spain, the British liner Lusitania is one of the
most famous ships in history because her sinking by a German sub started America
in the direction of entering World War I against Germany. Many Americans were
among the 1,195 people on the Lusitania when she went down off Old Head of
Kinsale in 1915. Most historians believe the tragedy was the fault of both a
brutal submarine commander and the pig-headed skipper of the Lusitania, who
refused to stay away from dangerous waters or even to speed through them.