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Message: [QUOTE="Bob Godfrey, post: 150387, member: 136612"] Right. Pause for breath, and... HMS is the designation for ships of the Royal Navy. SS was standard for merchant vessels, and is short for steamship. RMS (Royal Mail Steamer) is appropriate for any vessel with a contract to carry mail, and most large, fast and reliable liners did have such contracts. But, depending on context, these ships could also be referred to as SS - you may have noticed, for instance, that the lifeboats carried the name SS Titanic. Titanic had nothing printed on its life rings, but Olympic later had 'SS Olympic' and 'White Star Line' on its rings. Harland & Wolff is still in existence, but sadly its days as a shipbuilder are over. Phew! Hope that answers your questions, Mary. I'm really more into people and life onboard than ships as such, but it's amazing what you pick up when you hang around here long enough! [/QUOTE]