The Royal Hospital Ship, the British Nickel, belonged to White Star Line. It was one of the Olympic-class ocean liners operated by White Star Line, and a sister ship to the Olympic and Titanic.

      The Britannic was launched before the start of World War I and then sat idle for several months in the Belfast shipyard until 1915 when it was used as a hospital ship to transport wounded soldiers and replenish supplies. At 8:00 AM on November 21, 1916, it was spotted by the German submarine U-73 in the waters off the Greek island of Kya. It was subsequently attacked by torpedoes, but due to damage control errors and chaotic personnel management, a lifeboat that had been lowered was sucked into the Britannic's propeller, damaging it and causing it to run aground and sink. Of the thirty people who died in this sinking, only five drowned.