Group - RMS Empress of Britain 1906

RMS Empress of Britain was a transatlantic ocean liner built by Fairfield Shipbuilding at Govan on the Clyde in Scotland in 1905-1906 for Canadian Pacific Steamship (CP). This ship -- the first of three CP vessels to be named Empress of Britain -- regularly traversed the trans-Atlantic route between Canada and Europe until 1922, with the exception of the war years. This Empress was distinguished by the Royal Mail Ship (RMS) prefix in front of her name because the British government and Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) had decades earlier reached agreement on a contract for subsidized mail service between Britain and Hong Kong via Canada. The Empress of Britain was built by Fairfield Shipbuilding in Govan near Glasgow, Scotland. She was launched on 11 November 1905. The 14,189-ton vessel had a length of 458.8 feet, and her beam was 65.7 feet. The ship had two funnels, two masts, twin peopellers and an average speed of 18-knots. The ocean liner provided accommodation for 310 first-class passengers and for 470 second-class passengers. There was also room for 730 third-class passengers.