LAUNCHED IN MAY 1914, THE AQUITANIA HAD ONLY JUST BEGUN ITS PASSENGER SERVICE WHEN THE FIRST WORLD WAR ERUPTED, AND THE SHIP WAS IMMEDIATELY RECALLED BY THE ROYAL NAVY FOR CONVERSION INTO AN ARMED MERCHANT CRUISER. SHE PROVED TO BE TOO CUMBERSOME FOR ARMED MANEUVERS, AND INSTEAD SERVED AS A TROOPSHIP AND HOSPITAL SHIP. AFTER THE WAR, SHE WAS DUBBED BY CUNARD AS ONE OF THE "QUEENS OF THE NORTH ATLANTIC" ALONG WITH THE BERENGARIA AND THE MAURETANIA, AS SHE SAILED THE SOUTHAMPTON-NEW YORK ROUTE. JUDGING FROM THE DATE AND THE WINTER WEATHER, THIS PAINTING WAS PROBABLY EXECUTED BY JACOBSON DURING NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 1914, AS SHE WAS BEGINNING HER SERVICE FOR THE NAVY.