Britannic was a single-screw passenger steamship equipped with sails built for the White Star Line's North Atlantic run.

Together with her sister Germanic, Britannic sailed for nearly thirty years, primarily carrying immigrant passengers on the highly trafficked Liverpool to New York City route.

She was powered by two compound reciprocating engines, which could produce 4,970 ihp, and could propel the ship via a single screw to a maximum speed of 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph).

[3] As built the Britannic incorporated an experimental system which allowed the single propeller to be raised and lowered while still connected to its shaft and without stopping the engine.

In bad weather the stern could rise enough to lift the propeller partially out of the water, reducing thrust and causing unpleasant vibration.

In shallow water the shaft could be raised to the horizontal or slightly upwards to reduce the ship's draught and prevent a blade striking the seabed.

It also reduced the efficiency of the propeller in calm weather unless the angle was adjusted to be perfectly parallel to the line of the hull, making Britannic slower than her conventionally-built sistership, the Germanic.

Britannic and Germanic's saloon accommodations, consisting of a number of two- and four-berth cabins were located in the centre of the upper of these decks.

An innovative feature of Britannic and Germanic was a ventilation system driven by a large steam powered fan, which could propel hot or cold air to every portion of the ship.

Later that year on 4 July 1881 Britannic had another mishap, when she ran aground in fog off Kilmore, County Wexford, Ireland, en-route to Liverpool and remained stuck for several days.

On 9 July Britannic left for Liverpool under tow of tugs, but soon sprang another leak in her engine room which flooded within the hour, and she was hastily beached at Wexford Bay.

[8] On 19 May 1887, at about 5:25pm, the White Star liner SS Celtic collided with Britannic in thick fog about 350 miles (560 km) east of Sandy Hook, New Jersey.

Britannic's captain, Hugh Hamilton Perry, pistol in hand, was able to restore some semblance of order, and the boats were filled with women and children, although a few men forced their way on board.

[9][5] Two-and-a-half-year-old Eleanor Roosevelt was on board the Britannic at the time of the collision, with her father Elliott, mother Anna and aunt Tissie.

[12] In November 1900 Britannic sailed to Australia with a Guard of Honour to represent Great Britain at the inauguration of the Australian Commonwealth.

[1][5][3] Following the end of the war in October 1902, Britannic was released from government service and returned to White Star who sent her to her builders in Belfast for a survey, with the intention that she might be refurbished and modernised for further use.

The builders report in 1903 concluded that the expenditure required to bring the 29 year old ship up to modern standards would not be cost effective, instead, Britannic was sold for scrap for £11,500, and on 11 August 1903 she left Belfast under tow to Hamburg, Germany, where she was broken up.