Originally Posted by
mklotz
The story surrounding the naming of the ship has always made me smile. This excerpt from the Wikipedia article on the ship recounts it succinctly...
Legend has it that Cunard intended to name the ship Victoria, in keeping with company tradition of giving its ships names ending in "ia", but when company representatives asked the king's permission to name the ocean liner after Britain's "greatest queen", he said his wife, Mary of Teck, would be delighted. And so, the legend goes, the delegation had of course no other choice but to report that No. 534 would be called Queen Mary.