Lusitania, << `loo` sih TAY nee uh, >> was a British passenger ship that sank off the southern coast of Ireland after the German submarine U-20 torpedoed it on May 7, 1915, during World War I. A total of 1,201 people died, including 128 Americans. Rescuers saved 761 others.
The Lusitania sank rapidly after two explosions. The British claimed the Germans had fired two torpedoes. The Germans denied this, claiming that ammunition in the ship caused the second explosion. Evidence suggests that only one torpedo struck the ship. Coal dust in the fuel hold may have caused the second explosion.
The Lusitania sinking turned many against Germany, and United States President Woodrow Wilson urged Germany to limit its submarine attacks. Germany stopped attacking neutral or passenger ships until 1917.
