Teutonic and her sister Majestic were White Star's answer to the fast Inman liners of the late 1880s. Built by Harland & Wolff in Belfast, she entered service in 1889 and relied entirely on her twin screws instead of sails. Even before her maiden voyage she made history: armed with guns, she took part in the 1889 Spithead naval review as an auxiliary cruiser. Kaiser Wilhelm II toured the ship and was deeply impressed – an experience said to have inspired Germany's own fast liners.
In 1891 Teutonic crossed the Atlantic at an average of more than 20 knots and won the Blue Riband – the last time a White Star ship held the record. After a decade as one of the company's flagships she was overtaken by larger ships, served again as an armed merchant cruiser during the First World War and was finally broken up in Emden in 1921, after 32 years of service.
