At the time of her entry into service on 2 April 1912, Royal Mail Steamer (RMS) "Titanic" was the second of three , and was the largest ship in the world. She and the earlier, , were almost one and a half times the gross register tonnage of Cunard's and , the previous record holders, and were nearly longer. "Titanic" could carry 3,547 people in speed and comfort, and was built on an unprecedented scale. Her reciprocating engines were the largest that had ever been built, standing high and with cylinders in diameter requiring the burning of of coal per day.