The SS 'Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse' and Captain Otto Cuppers, c1905. Passenger liner of the North German Lloyd (Norddeutscher Lloyd) shipping line, 14,349 tons, 627 feet long, 66 feet wide, twin-screw and could steam 22 1/2 knots. The Kaiser Wilhelm was named after the German Emperor, Kaiser Wilhelm I, and launched in 1897. A fire on board killed 100 crew while she was in port at Hoboken, New Jersey, USA, in 1900. She was converted into an auxiliary cruiser and exploded after an encounter with a British ship during the First World War. Postcard.