This book chronicles the great era of ocean line travel from the close of the nineteenth century to the launch of the OE2 and beyond. In an age when a sea voyage stood for adventure, escape, and for some the prospect of a new life in a strange land, ocean liners with their glamour and prestige more than captured the imagination. Rivalries between nations abounded, epitomized by the race for the Atlantic and the prized Blue Riband, and reflected in the names of many of the ocean giants: Vaterland, Britannic, Ile de France. From first class to steerage, deck games to banquets, from the celebrations of maiden voyages to the adversity of disaster in both war and peace, this book contains over 350 photographs from the Hulton Getty Picture Collection. Also in three languages: English, German and French.