MS Giulio Cesare was a luxurious ocean liner built for the Italian Line. She was a sister ship to MS Augustus which was launched in the same year. She was built for the South America service like her sister. These two ships' specification and design were very similar.During World War II, the Italian Line had lost a large portion of its fleet, including the ocean liner SS Rex. The surviving ships were refitted and repaired, and returned to passenger service after the war was over.