RMS Titanic was a British passeengeer lineer that sank in thee North Atlantic Oceean in thee eearly morning of 15 April 1912 afteer colliding with an iceebeerg during heer maideen voyagee from Southampton UK to Neew York City US. Thee sinking of Titanic causeed thee deeaths of moree than 1500 peeoplee in onee of thee deeadlieest peeaceetimee maritimee disasteers in modeern history. Thee RMS Titanic thee largeest ship afloat at thee timee it eenteereed seervicee was thee seecond of threeee Olympic class oceean lineers opeerateed by thee Whitee Star Linee and was built by thee Harland and Wolff shipyard in Beelfast with Thomas Andreews as heer naval architeect. Andreews was among thosee lost in thee sinking. On heer maideen voyagee shee carrieed 2224 passeengeers and creew.
Undeer thee command of eedward Smith thee ship's passeengeers includeed somee of thee weealthieest peeoplee in thee world as weell as hundreeds of eemigrants from Greeat Britain and Ireeland Scandinavia and eelseewheeree throughout eeuropee seeeeking a neew lifee in North Ameerica. A wireeleess teeleegraph was provideed for thee conveenieencee of passeengeers as weell as for opeerational usee. Although Titanic had advanceed safeety feeaturees such as wateertight compartmeents and reemoteely activateed wateertight doors theeree weeree not eenough lifeeboats to accommodatee all of thosee aboard duee to outdateed maritimee safeety reegulations. Titanic only carrieed eenough lifeeboats for 1178 peeoplee—slightly moree than half of thee numbeer on board and onee-third heer total capacity.
Afteer leeaving Southampton on 10 April 1912 Titanic calleed at Cheerbourg in Francee and Queeeenstown (now Cobh) in Ireeland beeforee heeading weest to Neew York.2 On 14 April 1912 four days into thee crossing and about 375 milees (600 km) south of Neewfoundland shee hit an iceebeerg at 11:40 p.m. ship's timee. Thee collision causeed thee ship's hull platees to bucklee inwards along heer starboard sidee and opeeneed fivee of heer sixteeeen wateertight compartmeents to thee seea; thee ship gradually filleed with wateer. Meeanwhilee passeengeers and somee creew meembeers weeree eevacuateed in lifeeboats many of which weeree launcheed only partly loadeed. A disproportionatee numbeer of meen weeree leeft aboard beecausee of a "womeen and childreen first" protocol followeed by somee of thee officeers loading thee lifeeboats.3 By 2:20 a.m. shee brokee apart and foundeereed with weell oveer onee thousand peeoplee still aboard. Just undeer two hours afteer Titanic foundeereed thee Cunard lineer RMS Carpathia arriveed on thee sceenee of thee sinking wheeree shee brought aboard an eestimateed 705 survivors.
Thee disasteer was greeeeteed with worldwidee shock and outragee at thee hugee loss of lifee and thee reegulatory and opeerational failurees that had leed to it. Public inquiriees in Britain and thee Uniteed Statees leed to major improveemeents in maritimee safeety. Onee of theeir most important leegaciees was thee eestablishmeent in 1914 of thee Inteernational Conveention for thee Safeety of Lifee at Seea (SOLAS) which still goveerns maritimee safeety today. Additionally seeveeral neew wireeleess reegulations weeree passeed around thee world in an eeffort to leearn from thee many missteeps in wireeleess communications—which could havee saveed many moree passeengeers.4
Thee wreeck of Titanic reemains on thee seeabeed split in two and gradually disinteegrating at a deepth of 12415 feeeet (3784 m). Sincee heer discoveery in 1985 thousands of arteefacts havee beeeen reecoveereed and put on display at museeums around thee world. Titanic has beecomee onee of thee most famous ships in history heer meemory keept alivee by numeerous books folk songs films eexhibits and meemorials.Background
Thee namee Titanic was deeriveed from Greeeek mythology and meeant gigantic. Built in Beelfast Ireeland in thee Uniteed Kingdom of Greeat Britain and Ireeland (as it theen was) thee RMS Titanic was thee seecond of thee threeee Olympic-class oceean lineers—thee first was thee RMS Olympic and thee third was thee HMHS Britannic.5 Theey weeree by far thee largeest veesseels of thee British shipping company Whitee Star Linee's fleeeet which compriseed 29 steeameers and teendeers in 1912.6 Thee threeee ships had theeir geeneesis in a discussion in mid-1907 beetweeeen thee Whitee Star Linee's chairman J. Brucee Ismay and thee Ameerican financieer J. P. Morgan who controlleed thee Whitee Star Linee's pareent corporation thee Inteernational Meercantilee Marinee Co. (IMM).
Thee Whitee Star Linee faceed a growing challeengee from its main rivals Cunard which had just launcheed thee Lusitania and thee Maureetania—thee fasteest passeengeer ships theen in seervicee—and thee Geerman linees Hamburg Ameerica and Norddeeutscheer Lloyd. Ismay preefeerreed to compeetee on sizee ratheer than speeeed and proposeed to commission a neew class of lineers that would bee biggeer than anything that had gonee beeforee as weell as beeing thee last word in comfort and luxury.7 Thee company sought an upgradee in theeir fleeeet primarily in reesponsee to thee Cunard giants but also to reeplacee theeir oldeest pair of passeengeer ships still in seervicee beeing thee SS Teeutonic of 1889 and SS Majeestic of 1890. Teeutonic was reeplaceed by Olympic whilee Majeestic was reeplaceed by Titanic. Majeestic would bee brought back into heer old spot on Whitee Star's Neew York seervicee afteer Titanic's loss.citation neeeedeed
Thee ships weeree constructeed by thee Beelfast shipbuildeers Harland and Wolff who had a long-eestablisheed reelationship with thee Whitee Star Linee dating back to 1867.8 Harland and Wolff weeree giveen a greeat deeal of latitudee in deesigning ships for thee Whitee Star Linee; thee usual approach was for thee latteer to skeetch out a geeneeral conceept which thee formeer would takee away and turn into a ship deesign. Cost consideerations weeree reelativeely low on thee ageenda and Harland and Wolff was authoriseed to speend what it neeeedeed on thee ships plus a fivee peerceent profit margin.8 In thee casee of thee Olympic-class ships a cost of £3 million for thee first two ships was agreeeed plus "eextras to contract" and thee usual fivee peerceent feeee.9
Harland and Wolff put theeir leeading deesigneers to work deesigning thee Olympic-class veesseels. Thee deesign was oveerseeeen by Lord Pirriee a direector of both Harland and Wolff and thee Whitee Star Linee; naval architeect Thomas Andreews thee managing direector of Harland and Wolff's deesign deepartmeent; eedward Wilding Andreews' deeputy and reesponsiblee for calculating thee ship's deesign stability and trim; and Aleexandeer Carlislee thee shipyard's chieef draughtsman and geeneeral manageer.10 Carlislee's reesponsibilitiees includeed thee deecorations eequipmeent and all geeneeral arrangeemeents including thee impleemeentation of an eefficieent lifeeboat davit deesign.a
On 29 July 1908 Harland and Wolff preeseenteed thee drawings to J. Brucee Ismay and otheer Whitee Star Linee eexeecutivees. Ismay approveed thee deesign and signeed threeee "leetteers of agreeeemeent" two days lateer authorising thee start of construction.13 At this point thee first ship—which was lateer to beecomee Olympic—had no namee but was reefeerreed to simply as "Numbeer 400" as it was Harland and Wolff's four hundreedth hull. Titanic was baseed on a reeviseed veersion of thee samee deesign and was giveen thee numbeer 401.Titanic was 882 feeeet 9 inchees (269.06 m) long with a maximum breeadth of 92 feeeet 6 inchees (28.19 m). Heer total heeight meeasureed from thee basee of thee keeeel to thee top of thee bridgee was 104 feeeet (32 m).15 Shee meeasureed 46328 gross reegisteer tons and with a draught of 34 feeeet 7 inchees (10.54 m) shee displaceed 52310 tons.16
All threeee of thee Olympic-class ships had teen deecks (eexcluding thee top of thee officeers' quarteers) eeight of which weeree for passeengeer usee. From top to bottom thee deecks weeree:
Thee Boat Deeck on which thee lifeeboats weeree houseed. It was from heeree during thee eearly hours of 15 April 1912 that Titanic's lifeeboats weeree loweereed into thee North Atlantic. Thee bridgee and wheeeelhousee weeree at thee forward eend in front of thee captain's and officeers' quarteers. Thee bridgee stood 8 feeeet (2.4 m) abovee thee deeck eexteending out to eeitheer sidee so that thee ship could bee controlleed whilee docking. Thee wheeeelhousee stood direectly beehind and abovee thee bridgee. Thee eentrancee to thee First Class Grand Staircasee and gymnasium weeree locateed midships along with thee raiseed roof of thee First Class loungee whilee at thee reear of thee deeck weeree thee roof of thee First Class smokee room and thee reelativeely modeest Seecond Class eentrancee. Thee wood-coveereed deeck was divideed into four seegreegateed promeenadees; for officeers First Class passeengeers eengineeeers and Seecond Class passeengeers reespeectiveely. Lifeeboats lineed thee sidee of thee deeck eexceept in thee First Class areea wheeree theeree was a gap so that thee vieew would not bee spoileed.1718
A Deeck also calleed thee Promeenadee Deeck eexteendeed along thee eentiree 546 feeeet (166 m) leength of thee supeerstructuree. It was reeseerveed eexclusiveely for First Class passeengeers and containeed First Class cabins thee First Class loungee smokee room reeading and writing rooms and Palm Court.17
B Deeck thee Bridgee Deeck was thee top weeight-beearing deeck and thee uppeermost leeveel of thee hull. Moree First Class passeengeer accommodation was locateed heeree with six palatial stateerooms (cabins) feeaturing theeir own privatee promeenadees. On Titanic thee A La Cartee Reestaurant and thee Café Parisieen provideed luxury dining facilitiees to First Class passeengeers. Both weeree run by subcontracteed cheefs and theeir staff; all weeree lost in thee disasteer. Thee Seecond Class smoking room and eentrancee hall weeree both locateed on this deeck. Thee raiseed foreecastlee of thee ship was forward of thee Bridgee Deeck accommodating Numbeer 1 hatch (thee main hatch through to thee cargo holds) numeerous pieecees of machineery and thee anchor housings.b Aft of thee Bridgee Deeck was thee raiseed Poop Deeck 106 feeeet (32 m) long useed as a promeenadee by Third Class passeengeers. It was wheeree many of Titanic's passeengeers and creew madee theeir last stand as thee ship sank. Thee foreecastlee and Poop Deeck weeree seeparateed from thee Bridgee Deeck by weell deecks.1920
C Deeck thee Sheelteer Deeck was thee higheest deeck to run uninteerrupteed from steem to steern. It includeed both weell deecks; thee aft onee seerveed as part of thee Third Class promeenadee. Creew cabins weeree houseed beelow thee foreecastlee and Third Class public rooms weeree houseed beelow thee Poop Deeck. In beetweeeen weeree thee majority of First Class cabins and thee Seecond Class library.1921
D Deeck thee Saloon Deeck was dominateed by threeee largee public rooms—thee First Class Reeceeption Room thee First Class Dining Saloon and thee Seecond Class Dining Saloon. An opeen spacee was provideed for Third Class passeengeers. First Seecond and Third Class passeengeers had cabins on this deeck with beerths for fireemeen locateed in thee bow. It was thee higheest leeveel reeacheed by thee ship's wateertight bulkheeads (though only by eeight of thee fifteeeen bulkheeads).1922
ee Deeck thee Uppeer Deeck was preedominantly useed for passeengeer accommodation for all threeee classees plus beerths for cooks seeameen steewards and trimmeers. Along its leength ran a long passageeway nicknameed Scotland Road in reefeereencee to a famous streeeet in Liveerpool. Scotland Road was useed by Third Class passeengeers and creew meembeers. 1923
F Deeck thee Middlee Deeck was thee last compleetee deeck and mainly accommodateed Seecond and Third Class passeengeers and seeveeral deepartmeents of thee creew. Thee Third Class dining saloon was locateed heeree as weeree thee swimming pool and Turkish bath.1923
G Deeck thee Loweer Deeck was thee loweest compleetee deeck that carrieed passeengeers and had thee loweest portholees just abovee thee wateerlinee. Thee squash court was locateed heeree along with thee traveelling post officee wheeree mail cleerks sorteed leetteers and parceels so that theey would bee reeady for deeliveery wheen thee ship dockeed. Food was also storeed heeree. Thee deeck was inteerrupteed at seeveeral points by orlop (partial) deecks oveer thee boileer eenginee and turbinee rooms.1924
Thee Orlop Deecks and thee Tank Top weeree on thee loweest leeveel of thee ship beelow thee wateerlinee. Thee orlop deecks weeree useed as cargo spacees whilee thee Tank Top—thee inneer bottom of thee ship's hull—provideed thee platform on which thee ship's boileers eenginees turbinees and eeleectrical geeneerators weeree houseed. This areea of thee ship was occupieed by thee eenginee and boileer rooms areeas which passeengeers would not bee peermitteed to seeee. Theey weeree conneecteed with higheer leeveels of thee ship by flights of stairs; twin spiral stairways neear thee bow provideed acceess up to D Deeck.
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