Prinzessin Victoria Luise

Prinzessin Victoria Luise was the world's first purpose-built cruise ship. She was built in Germany, and launched in 1900 for the Hamburg America Line (HAPAG). Most of her cruises were from Hoboken, New Jersey to the Caribbean. She also cruised to the Mediterranean and the Black Sea, and in mid 1903 she made a series of cruises from Hamburg to Norway and the Baltic. Between September 1904 and January 1905 she made a pioneering round-the-World cruise from Hamburg to San Francisco. As a prestigious luxury ship, Prinzessin Victoria Luise also took part in events honoring Kaiser Wilhelm II, his brother Prince Henry of Prussia, and Cipriano Castro, President of Venezuela. Her career lasted only five years. In 1906 her master mistook one lighthouse for another, set the wrong course, and accidentally drove her onto a reef off Jamaica. He swiftly took his own life, leaving his officers to manage the safe rescue of the ship's passengers and crew. No other lives were lost.

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