On the occasion of 100th Anniversary of RMS Titanic on April 15th, 2012 a 3D version of James Cameron’s feature film Titanic which was released in 1997 is being released. An auction on around 5,000 artifacts related to the giant ship is also being held on this occasion. Some of the notable items available for auction include a diamond ring, telegraph of the ship, staircase’s cherub, binoculars, a rich gold mesh purse etc. So, let us go back in to the history of Titanic and check some details related to this steamer ship.
History of Titanic:
Titanic was a luxurious passenger steamship and probably the largest passenger liner in the world by then, had started to sail first from Southampton City, England to New York City, United States on April 10th, 1912 with its captain as Edward J. Smith and 2,228 passengers on board. It was owned by ‘White Star Line’, an Oceanic Steam Navigation Company and built at a shipyard in Belfast, Ireland named ‘Harland and Wolff’. The construction of the giant ship was started on March 31st, 1909 and its measurements include a length of 269.1 metres, a width of 28 metres and a height of 53.3metres.
The White Star liner was fitted with five single ended and twenty-four double ended Scotch Marine boilers, capable of producing a total of 46, 000 HP with the help of, 1 low pressure turbine (16,000 HP) and 2 four cylinder triple expansion steam engines (each 15,000 HP). The ship was designed in such a way that it stays afloat even after flooding of four compartments. The total passenger and crew capacity of Titanic is 2,453 with three categories of passengers ranging from first class to third class. The weight of the ship is around 46, 000 tons.
The ship was equipped with many exciting features like a barber shop, telephone system and a lending library for all its passengers irrespective of sections of passengers. However, the first class passengers had many features such as a Turkish bath, gymnasium, squash court, swimming pool, a Veranda cafe with trellis decorations, an electric bath and three electrical lifts. A hefty price of $ 1,363 was charged for every individual of first class section to travel in the Titanic.
It was incorporated with twenty lifeboats capable of accommodating nearly 1178 passengers. All the life boats are placed on the deck of the boat to use them immediately in case of emergency. Before its maiden voyage from Southampton on 10th April, the passenger line begin its sea trails on April 2nd, 1912 with some important people on board which were carried out for 6 hours and then started to Southampton to get ready to travel to New York City. So, after finishing the sea trails and its safe journey from Harland & Wolff shipyard to Southampton, all is set for the giant ship to its first ever sail to New York City.
After two days of journey from Southampton i.e., on April 14th, 1912, the temperature dropped very low and from that afternoon the captain have been receiving constant messages and warnings about the threat of colliding an iceberg ahead in the path of the Titanic in the Atlantic Ocean, nearly 375 miles southeast of Halifax in Nova Scotia. But the orders to stop the engine or full reverse of engine were issued in the night at quarter to twelve. The crew of the ship struggled severely to escape from the collision and were only partially successful as the right side part of the ship edged the iceberg, rivets with a length of 90 metres below the waterline were popped out over a span of ten seconds and water flooded through them into six compartments of the ship including 3 forward holds, two boilers rooms and a forward peak tank. The doors of those compartments filled with water are shut down immediately but was too late as the peak level of the water in those compartments was up to 4.3 metres and started to weigh down the ship.
After thorough inspection, the orders to stop the ship completely were issued and it was confirmed that the Titanic would sink and immediately ordered to get down the lifeboats which were placed on the deck of the ship. The life boats were launched and only the women and children were allowed to enter in to the life boats. All the life boats were launched and the Titanic began to tear into two parts with water level reaching the deck and at after 2:00 am on 15th April, 1912, the ship started to collapse and started sinking completely. It took almost two hours and forty minutes for the Titanic to sink after collision. RMS Carpathia which arrived after two hours of the disaster was the first to offer help to the survivors of the White Star Liner. Carpathia picked up all the survivors present in that area and in the life boats and left to New York. Only 710 passengers of the Titanic were survived and saved among 2224 people aboard including the crew. With all the survivors, the RMS Carpathia reached New York on April, 18th 1912 where immediate clothing and transportation and shelter were arranged to the survivors. As the news about the disaster spread slowly which left the world in shock and all that could be done is to pray for the peace of their souls. ‘The Titanic Rescue Ship’ was the honour received by RMS Carpathia for saving the lives of survivors.
After everything got settled, a number of memorials to titanic were established some of them being in Cobh of Ireland, another one at Southampton in England for the engineers, a Memorial to the Engine Room Heroes of Titanic in Liverpool City etc. Many movies were filmed on the Titanic since the disaster happened and of all those, the most popular, highest grosser and eleven Academy Awards winner film was ‘Titanic’ released in 1997. Directed by James Cameron, the film featured Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet in the leads.
After 100 years of launch of the Titanic i.e., on 31st May, 2011, a large crowd was assembled at Harland and Wolff Shipyard where a flare was flashed in to the air after which all the boats blew their horns in memory of the launch of the ship. People who gathered there cheered and applauded for 62 seconds which was the exact time taken originally by the White Star liner in 1911 to roll down the slipway.
Why did the Titanic sink?
There were many reasons for this disaster taking place. First of all there were many warnings and messages received through wireless regarding the iceberg in the path of the Titanic which were not taken that much care of and as a result did not reduce the speed of the ship. If the speed of the ship is reduced then the disaster would not have happened. They also wanted to prove that they can cross the Atlantic in six days and in order to get on with this challenge the Titanic was not slowed in spite of receiving warnings about the iceberg. Everyone was in a strong thought that the passenger liner is unsinkable with its strong construction and accommodation of 16 watertight compartments capable of suspending water from entering into them but failed as they were not fitted to correct height. The 3 million rivets made of sub-standard iron used to join different sections of the liner have been broken after hitting the iceberg and could not save the ship from being torn apart. Usage of good quality iron might have saved the ship from being torn into parts. The last warning regarding the iceberg was sent by Captain Stanley Lord of Californian at 11:15 pm after which the radio operator is turned off and went off to bed. The crew of Californian noticed that rockets are being fired in the midnight and thought that they were having a party because of which they could not take any action. Soon after the iceberg got spotted an order to turn the ship and stop the engines is issued which also might have been tougher to turn the ship in the opposite direction of the iceberg.
How did the Titanic sink?
Soon after the right side of the Titanic, hit the iceberg and rivets under the water line were popped out over a length of 90 metres, the water flooded into all the compartments slowly which even the watertight doors couldn’t stop and the height of water filled in each compartment was filled up to a height of 14 feet. The ship started to become heavy and the stern and bow parts of the ship started to tear apart where the stern rose upwards vertically and both the parts began to sink and slowly settled down deep under the water.
In which year did the Titanic sink?
Titanic which started its first voyage from Southampton sunk in the year 1912.
At what time did the Titanic sink?
Titanic sank at 02:20 am in the morning of April 15th, 1912.
On which day did the Titanic sink?
Titanic was sunk on Monday i.e., on 15th of April, 1912.
Where exactly did the Titanic Sink?
Titanic exactly sunk at 400 miles away from Cape Race, South of Newfoundland.
How Much Did the Titanic Cost to Build?
The amount invested for building the Titanic is $ 7.5 million equivalent to $ 400 million in present days.
What Port Did the Titanic Leave from?
Titanic left for its first voyage from port of Southampton in Southern England.
When Did the Titanic Set Sail?
Titanic started sailing from Southampton, England on April 10th, 1912 at 12:15 pm.
What Date Did the Titanic Sink?
The Titanic which started its voyage on 10th April, 1912 sunk in the early hours of 15th April, 1912.
Why Was the Titanic Built?
Titanic is the biggest steam liner ship at that time which was built in order to transfer general cargo, frozen meat and British and United States mails. It also provides passenger facility in three different categories starting from First class to third class.
Who built the Titanic?
Titanic was built by Thomas Andrews in Harland and Wolff shipyard at Belfast of Ireland and owned by White Star Line.
How Many People Died on the Titanic?
Nearly 1,157 people died in the Titanic disaster that took place in the year 1912.
Titanic Artifact Exhibition:
Titanic items on sale at auction:
Titanic Items to Be Sold 100 Years After Sinking:
Original Titanic Video Footage:
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