The second RMS Laconia was a Cunard ocean liner built by Swan, Hunter & Wigham Richardson as a successor to the Laconia of 1911 to 1917. Like her predecessor, sunk during the First World War, this Laconia would also be destroyed by a German U-boat, whose commander Werner Hartenstein then staged a dramatic rescue effort for its passengers and crew, which involved additional German U-boats sent for assistance. It became known as the Laconia incident. The new ship was launched on 9 April 1921, and made her maiden voyage on 25 May 1922 from Southampton to New York.