SS Imperator

SS Imperator

SS Imperator was an ocean liner built for the Hamburg Amerikanische Packetfahrt Actien Gesellschaft (HAPAG) (Hamburg America Line) launched in 1912. She was the first of a trio of successively larger Hamburg America ships that included SS Vaterland and SS Bismarck built by the line for transatlantic passenger service. At the time of her completion in June 1913, she was the largest passenger ship in the world, superseding the RMS Titanic and RMS Olympic.

During World War I, the ship remained in port in Hamburg. After the war, she was briefly commissioned into the United States Navy as USS Imperator (ID-4080) and employed as a transport, returning American troops from Europe. Following her U.S. Navy service, Imperator was handed over to Britain's Cunard Line as part of war reparations, and she sailed as the flagship RMS Berengaria for the final decade of her career.