📖 Majestic at Sea: The Ultimate Expression of Transatlantic Luxury in the 1920s

📜 Discover the grandeur of the RMS Majestic, the world's largest ship in 1922, through a stunning White Star Line brochure. This historical document showcases first-class luxury, elegant public spaces, and the evolution of transatlantic travel. Essential reading for maritime historians, genealogists, and ocean travel enthusiasts.

Front Cover of 1922 Brochure Majestic - The World's Largest Ship from the White Star Line. GGA Image ID # 11dcb226ec

🌊 Majestic - The World's Largest Ship - White Star Line (1922) 🚢✨

📖 "Majestic at Sea: The Ultimate Expression of Transatlantic Luxury in the 1920s"

The 1922 White Star Line brochure on the RMS Majestic presents an extraordinary visual and descriptive record of first-class ocean travel in the early 20th century. It emphasizes the ship’s sheer scale, elegance, and luxury, positioning it as the pinnacle of transatlantic travel.

This historically significant document is an essential resource for teachers, students, genealogists, and historians studying:

✅ The Golden Age of Ocean Liners (1920s transatlantic crossings).

✅ Immigrant & Elite Passenger Experiences.

✅ The White Star Line’s Competition with Cunard.

✅ The Evolution of Maritime Architecture & Design.

✅ Luxury vs. Second-Class Travel on Steamships.

One of the most exceptional brochures issued by the New York Office of the White Star Line covers the first-class accommodations with a visual record of the grand luxury of the public areas, dining saloon, lounges, and more.

Majestic: An Ocean-Borne Palace

MAJESTIC, the world's largest ship, heads The Magnificent Trio, carrying out the schedule of weekly sailings of the New York-Cherbourg-Southampton service of the White Star Line. The two other members of this splendid group are the world-famous Olympic and the beautiful Homeric.

As the world's largest ship, the Majestic has a claim to distinction apart even from that of her celebrated associates, while the proportions and elegance of her passenger accommodations are in consonance with her size and dignity.

Majestic is 956 feet long, zoo feet broad and 102 feet deep, with nine decks, 1,245 staterooms and capacity for 4,100 passengers. As at present measured, she is 56,551 gross tons register. Her displacement (weight) is approximately 64,000 tons. She has turbine engines of 100,000 maximum horsepower, with quadruple screws.

She has crossed between New York and Cherbourg in 5 days, 5 hours and 21 minutes, and to Southampton in 5 days, ii hours and 3o minutes. All her regular crossings are made in less than six days. The impressive size and superlative luxury characterize her public apartments, while her staterooms represent the highest standard of excellence in equipment and facilities for service.

The RMS Majestic Crosses Between New York, Cherbourg, and Southampton in Under Six Days. GGA Image ID # 11dd2fe06c

Entrance to the Lounge Showing Oak Paneling. GGA Image ID # 11dd98d6a1

Lounge Ceiling of Carved Wood and Crystal. GGA Image ID # 11ddb1af63

Elegant à la Carte Restaurant. GGA Image ID # 11de246492

Palm Court Showing Approach to Restaurant. GGA Image ID # 11de26b9a7

Foyer and Entrance to First Class Lounge. GGA Image ID # 11de98b86e

Spacious Reading and Writing Room. GGA Image ID # 11df21d54a

Lofty Central Hall of First-Class Dining Saloon. GGA Image ID # 11df70188a

One Side of the First-Class Dining Saloon. GGA Image ID # 11dfb39f9e

Splendid Pompeian Swimming Bath. GGA Image ID # 11dfdefadc

Old-World Hall Style Smoking Room. GGA Image ID # 11dffb4056

View Through Sun Verandah in a Regal Suite. GGA Image ID # 11e01718e5

Sun Verandah with Window Flower Garden. GGA Image ID # 11e03f4f26

Drawing Room in One of the Many Suites. GGA Image ID # 11e0480d9d

Regal Suite Bedroom with Inlaid Walls. GGA Image ID # 11e04ae780

Two-Bed Stateroom with Connecting Bath. GGA Image ID # 11e07b69b1

Typical Single-Bed Stateroom. GGA Image ID # 11e0887830

Passengers Exercising in the Gymnasium Using Varied Equipment. GGA Image ID # 11e0bb0a39

An Attractive Second-Class Lounge. GGA Image ID # 11e0d4c196

View of the Second-Class Smoking Room. GGA Image ID # 11e0d58e3d

Second Class Dining Saloon - Light and Airy. GGA Image ID # 11e1244ea4

Second Class Stateroom with Outside Light. GGA Image ID # 11e146fbb0

Principal Offices and Agencies of the White Star Line. GGA Image ID # 11e1ada5f8

Brochure Information

• Date of Publication: Undated but believed to be 1922 - the year White Star Line took over the former Hamburg America Line SS Bismarck
• Published by: White Star Line, New York
• Publication Number: H-1085
• Dimensions: 20.2 x 12.5 cm

🌟 RMS Majestic: A Titanic Successor & Floating Palace

📌 At 956 feet in length and 56,551 gross tons, the Majestic was the world’s largest ship in 1922.

📌 Designed for speed & elegance, it completed New York to Cherbourg crossings in just over 5 days.

📌 Competed directly with Cunard’s Mauretania and Berengaria for elite passengers.

📌 The White Star Line’s “Magnificent Trio”:

• Majestic – The flagship of the fleet.
• Olympic – Sister to Titanic, continuing the White Star legacy.
• Homeric – Another luxury liner for the transatlantic route.
  

📌 Unique Features of the Majestic:

✅ Turbine engines with quadruple screws, capable of 100,000 horsepower.

✅ Capacity for 4,100 passengers across three classes.

✅ Nine decks, 1,245 staterooms, and a variety of grand public spaces.

🏛️ First-Class Accommodations: The Height of Luxury

The brochure vividly showcases the ship’s opulent public spaces and private suites, making it a benchmark of early 20th-century ocean travel luxury.

🚪 Lavish Interiors & Noteworthy Public Spaces

📌 Foyer & First-Class Lounge 🏛️

🔹 A grand entrance with oak paneling and elegant chandeliers.

🔹 Carved wood & crystal ceiling in the lounge added to the ship’s regal ambiance.

🔹 A reading & writing room designed for elite passengers.

📌 Dining & Social Spaces 🍽️

🔹 An á la carte restaurant offered gourmet meals in a lavish setting.

🔹 A Palm Court leading to the restaurant provided a refined social space.

🔹 A vast first-class dining saloon with high ceilings & ornate decor.

🔹 A smoking room styled after an Old-World English hall, exuding sophistication.

📌 Recreational Spaces 🏊‍♂️

🔹 A Pompeian swimming pool that set a new standard for shipboard luxury.

🔹 A gymnasium with cutting-edge exercise equipment for the health-conscious traveler.

🔹 A sun verandah with a flower garden, offering panoramic ocean views

📌 First-Class Suites & Staterooms 🛏️

🔹 Regal Suites with inlaid wood walls, sun verandahs, and private drawing rooms.

🔹 Two-bed staterooms with en-suite baths, rare for 1920s ships.

🔹 Single-bed staterooms for affluent solo travelers.

📌 Impact on Ocean Travel:

✅ Set a new standard for transatlantic luxury, rivaling land-based grand hotels.

✅ Appealed to the elite social classes, including royalty, celebrities, and industrialists.

✅ Demonstrated the growing importance of leisure travel over mere transportation.

🌊 Second-Class Accommodations: More Than Just Passage

📌 While not as extravagant as first-class, second-class passengers still enjoyed:

🔹 An elegant second-class lounge & smoking room.

🔹 A light and airy dining saloon, a significant improvement over earlier liners.

🔹 Well-appointed staterooms with outside windows, a luxury not found in third class.

📌 Impact on Mid-Level Travelers:

✅ Designed for professionals, skilled laborers, and upper-middle-class travelers.

✅ A comfortable and stylish way to travel without the high first-class fares.

📷 Noteworthy Images & Their Significance

📖 "Front Cover of the 1922 Brochure"

👉 Significance: A highly collectible maritime document, showing Majestic’s prominence in White Star Line marketing.

📷 "RMS Majestic Crossing the Atlantic"

👉 Significance: Emphasizes the speed and reliability of transatlantic travel, crucial for business and leisure travelers.

📷 "Elegant À La Carte Restaurant"

👉 Significance: Visual proof of ocean liners becoming floating luxury hotels.

📷 "Pompeian Swimming Pool"

👉 Significance: One of the earliest onboard swimming pools, influencing later cruise ship designs.

📷 "Regal Suite Bedroom with Inlaid Walls"

👉 Significance: Illustrates the sophistication of first-class accommodations, resembling high-end European hotels.

📷 "Passengers Exercising in the Gymnasium"

👉 Significance: Demonstrates early 20th-century luxury travelers’ interest in fitness.

🛳️ Why This Document Matters for Educators, Historians & Genealogists

📖 For Teachers & Students

✅ A case study in transatlantic travel evolution.

✅ Compares early ocean liners to modern cruise ships.

✅ Explores social class differences in maritime history.

📜 For Genealogists

✅ Vital for tracking ancestors who sailed with White Star Line.

✅ Offers insights into shipboard life and travel records.

🏛️ For Historians

✅ Analyzes the competition between White Star & Cunard Lines.

✅ Connects to Titanic’s legacy and maritime safety improvements.

✅ Shows the shift from immigrant transport to luxury leisure travel.

🚢 Final Thoughts: The Majestic’s Place in Maritime History

📌 The RMS Majestic was more than just a ship—it was a floating palace and a testament to the pinnacle of transatlantic luxury travel. It helped define the 1920s as an era of glamour, speed, and elegance on the high seas.

📌 The White Star Line’s marketing of the Majestic as the world’s largest ship capitalized on the public’s fascination with ocean liners, ensuring its place as a legend of maritime history.

📌 For anyone interested in ocean travel, the evolution of luxury liners, or early 20th-century transatlantic voyages, this 1922 White Star Line brochure is an invaluable window into the past. 🚢✨