In 1870, Harland signed a contract with the White Star Line, which was to set the course for Harland and Wolff to become the great shipbuilders of legend. Harland and Wolff can claim to have built the first transatlantic liner, the Oceanic, described as being as comfortable as a ‘Swiss hotel’. Alongside its famous successors, the Titanic, Britannic and Olympic, the Oceanic cemented the shipyard’s reputation as being the world’s leading liner constructor.