When
Lusitania was built, her construction and operating expenses were subsidised by the British government, with the proviso that she could be converted to an
Armed Merchant Cruiser if need be. A secret compartment was designed in for the purpose of carrying arms and ammunition.
[39] When war was declared the
Lusitania was requisitioned by the British
Admiralty as an armed merchant cruiser, and she was put on the official list of AMCs.
Lusitania remained on the official AMC list and was listed as an auxiliary cruiser in the 1914 edition of
Jane's All the World's Fighting Ships, along with
Mauretania.
[4][40][41][42]
The Declaration of Paris codified the rules for naval engagements involving civilian vessels. The so-called
Cruiser Rules required that the crew and passengers of civilian ships be safeguarded in the event that the ship is to be confiscated or sunk. These rules also placed some onus on the ship itself, in that the merchant ship had to be flying its own flag, and not pretending to be of a different nationality. Also, it had to stop when confronted and allow itself to be boarded and searched, and it was not allowed to be armed or to take any hostile or evasive actions.
[43] However when war was declared, British merchant ships were given orders to ram submarines that surfaced to implement warnings as per the Cruiser Rules.
[4][5][6][7][8]
) 