White Star Liners

Did you know that the Royal Mail Ships (RMS) Britannic and Olympic, both sister ships of the Titanic, served in the First World War?

RMS Olympic near Gallipoli

RMS Olympic near Gallipoli © IWM (Q 13632)

The famous White Star cruise line built three ships in the same class. These were the RMS Olympic the Titanic, and the Britannic.

The trio of ships had a checkered service history. The Titanic infamously struck an iceberg and sank in 1912. The Olympic had the longest lifespan but was also involved in a collision with the British warship HMS Hawke near the Isle of Wight in 1911.

The Olympic was converted into a Troop Ship during the war and served in the Gallipoli campaign before being armed and redecorated in dazzle camouflage for transporting Canadian soldiers across the Atlantic.

Violet Jessop

Violet Jessop

The Britannic was converted into a hospital ship to support the Gallipoli campaign in November 1915, shortly after she had completed her sea trials. However, on 21 November 1916 the Britannic struck a mine in the Aegean Sea and sank in less than an hour to loss of 30 lives.

In a strange twist a stewardess called Violet Jessop was aboard the Britannic when it sank. She had also been working on the Titanic when it sank, and had been on the Olympic when it struck the HMS Hawke. She is the only known person to have served upon all three of the sister ships when they experienced their maritime disasters.