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{{Infobox Ship|Ship image=|Ship caption=The RMS Titanic leaving Belfast for sea trials, 2 April 1912|Ship ordered=|Ship builder=[Harland and Wolff shipyard, Belfast [1909 [1911 [1912
 sank the next day at 2:20AM. After 73 years the wreck was discovered on September 1, 1985, 12,500 feet beneath the North Atlantic at 41 degrees 43" 32"N, 49 degrees 56' 49"W.]|Ship length=882 foot (length) 9 inches (269 m)]s at 215 Pounds per square inch.
Two four-cylinder Triple-expansion engine reciprocating engines each producing 15,000 horsepower (12 MW) at a speed of 75 rpm for outer two propellers.
One low-pressure (about 7 psi absolute) steam turbine producing 16,000 hp (13.5 MW) for the centre propeller at 165 rpm.
Total 46,000 hp at 75 rpm; 59,000 hp at 83 rpm (37 MW). Page 72. Book's Webpage Two bronze triple-blade side propellers.
One bronze quadruple-blade central propeller]s (40.6 km/h) (24.5 mph)
– top speed: 23  knots (42.6 km/h) (26.5 mph)] Titanic, a British RMS Olympic Ocean Liner, became famous as the largest ocean liner built in her day and also for sinking on her maiden voyage in 1912 with a huge loss of life.The second of a trio of superliner (passenger ship), the Titanic and her sisters were designed to provide a three-ship weekly express service and to dominate the transatlantic travel business for the White Star Line. Read this book on Google Print The Titanic, and her sister ship the Olympic were introduced to the world in a New York Times article on 23 April 1908, almost four years before the sinking. Titanic 1908 See FirstMention.com for actual article

Built at the Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast, Ireland, the Titanic was the largest passenger steamboat in the world at the time of her sinking. During the Titanic's maiden voyage (from Southampton, England to Cherbourg-Octeville, France, then on to Cobh, Ireland and finally New York City), she struck an iceberg at 23:40 (ship's time) on Sunday 14 April 1912, sinking two hours and forty minutes later at 02:20 on Monday 15 April, having broken into two pieces at the aft expansion joint."Titanic" (history), Britannica Concise, 2007, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., webpage: BCE-13853: accessed 2007-01-22.

The White Star line designed Titanic to compete with rival company Cunard Line's RMS Lusitania and RMS Mauretania (1906), luxurious ships and the fastest liners on the Atlantic. Titanic and her Olympic -class sisters, RMS Olympic and the then upcoming one thousand foot HMHS Britannic,. Read this book on Google Printwere intended to be the largest, most luxurious ships ever to operate (the planned name Gigantic was changed to Britannic after the disaster). Titanic was designed by Harland and Wolff chairman William Pirrie, 1st Viscount Pirrie, head of Harland and Wolff's design department Thomas Andrews (shipbuilder), and general manager Alexander Carlisle, with the plans regularly sent to the White Star Line's managing director J. Bruce Ismay for suggestions and approval. Construction of the Titanic, funded by the American J.P. Morgan and his International Mercantile Marine Co., began on 31 March 1909. Titanic No. 401 was launched two years and two months later on 31 May 1911. Titanic's outfitting was completed on [31 March the following year. ''Titanic'' was 882 feet 9 inches (269 m) long and 92 feet 6 inches (28 m) at the beam.{{cite web|title=titanic statistics and dimensions|url=http://www.titanic-titanic.com/titanic_statistics.shtml--> She had a [tonnage of 46,328 [long ton, and a height from the water line to the boat deck of 60 feet (18 m).{{cite web|title=titanic statistics and dimensions|url=http://www.titanic-titanic.com/titanic_statistics.shtml--> Her three [propellers were driven by two four-[cylinder (engine), triple-expansion, inverted [reciprocating engine [steam engines and one low-pressure [steam turbine.{{cite web|title=Technical facts about the Titanic|url=http://www.titanic-whitestarships.com/MGY_Tech_Facts.htm--> Steam was provided by 25 double-ended and 4 single-ended Scotch-type [boilers fired by 159 [coal burning [furnaces that made possible a top speed of 23 [knot (speed)s (43 km/h).{{cite web|title=RMS Titanic Facts & Figures|url=http://www.keyflux.com/titanic/facts.htm--> Only three of the four 63 foot (19 m) tall [Funnel (ship) were functional; the fourth, which served only as a vent, was added to make the ship look more impressive.{{cite web|title=Titanic's funnels|url=http://www.titanic-titanic.com/titanic_funnels.shtml--> ''Titanic'' could carry a total of 3,547 passengers and crew and, because she carried [mail, her name was given the [Ship prefix [Royal Mail Ship (Royal Mail Steamer) as well as SS (Steam Ship). Contemporaries considered the ''Titanic'' the pinnacle of [naval architecture and technological achievement,{{Fact|date=September 2007--> and she was thought by ''The Shipbuilder'' magazine to be "practically unsinkable."{{cite web|title=Titanic - unsinkable|url=http://www.historyonthenet.com/Titanic/unsinkable.htm--> ''Titanic'' had a double-bottom hull, containing 44 tanks for boiler water and ballast to keep the ship safely balanced at sea "TRMA Tech Feature of the Month: Titanic's Double Bottom" (analysis), Titanic Research & Modeling Association, June 2005, webpage: http://titanic-model.com/articles/tech/TechFeatureJune2005.htm TMcom-Jun2005: accessed 2007-01-21]. (later ships also had a double-walled hull). ''Titanic'' exceeded the lifeboat standard, with 20 lifeboats (though not enough for all passengers). ''Titanic'' was divided into 15 compartments. Dividing doors were held up in the open position by [electro-magnetic latches that could be closed by a switch on the ship's bridge and by a float system installed on the door itself.{{cite web|title=Titanic's bulkheads & watertight compartments|url=http://www.titanic-titanic.com/titanic_watertight_compartments.shtml--> ==Fixtures and fittings== ] In her time, ''Titanic'' surpassed all rivals in luxury and opulence. She offered an onboard swimming pool, a gymnasium, a [Turkish bath, libraries for each passenger class, and a [squash (sport) court.{{cite web|title=RMS Titanic facts|url=http://www.titanic-nautical.com/titanic-facts.html--> [First class travel common rooms were adorned with elaborate wood panelling, expensive furniture and other decorations.{{cite web|title=Titanic:A voyage of discovery|url=http://www.euronet.nl/users/keesree/palace.htm--> In addition, the Café Parisien offered superb cuisine for the first-class passengers, with a sunlit veranda fitted with trellis decorations.{{cite web|title=Titanic-construction|url=http://www.titanicinbelfast.com/template.aspx?pid=248&area=1&parent=247--> The ship incorporated technologically advanced features for the period. She had an extensive electrical subsystem with steam-powered generators and ship-wide electrical wiring feeding electric lights. She also boasted two wireless [Spark-gap transmitter sets, including a powerful 1,500-watt radio manned by operators who worked in shifts, allowing constant contact and the transmission of many passenger messages.{{cite web|title=Wireless and the Titanic|url=http://jproc.ca/radiostor/titanic.html--> === Comparisons with the ''Olympic''=== The ''Titanic'' closely resembled her older sister ''RMS Olympic'' but there were a few differences. Two of the most noticeable were that half of the ''Titanic's'' forward promenade A-Deck (below the lifeboat deck) was enclosed against outside weather, and her B-Deck configuration was completely different from the ''Olympic's''. The ''Titanic'' had a specialty restaurant called Café Parisien, a feature that the ''Olympic'' did not have until 1913. Some of the flaws found on the ''Olympic'', such as the creaking of the aft expansion joint, were corrected on the ''Titanic''. The skid lights that provided natural illumination on A-deck were round, while on ''Olympic'' they were oval. The ''Titanic's'' wheelhouse was made narrower and longer than the ''Olympic's''.[http://titanic-model.com/db/db-01/db_09.html These, and other modifications, made the ''Titanic'' 1,004 gross [tonnage larger than the ''Olympic''. ==Passengers and crew== {{main|List of passengers onboard RMS Titanic|List of crew members onboard RMS Titanic--> The first-class passengers for ''Titanic'''s maiden voyage included some of the richest and most prominent people in the world. They included millionaire [John Jacob Astor IV and his pregnant wife [Madeleine Astor;{{cite web|title=Colonel John Jacob Astor |url=http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/biography/11/ |publisher=[Encyclopedia Titanica--> industrialist [Benjamin Guggenheim;{{cite web--> [Macy's department store owner [Isidor Straus{{cite web--> and his wife [Ida Straus;{{cite web|title=Mrs Rosalie Ida Straus|url=http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/biography/289/ | publisher=[Encyclopedia Titanica--> [Denver, Colorado millionaire [Margaret Brown;{{cite web|title=Mrs Margaret "Molly" Brown|url=http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/biography/43/ | publisher=[Encyclopedia Titanica--> Sir [Cosmo Duff Gordon and his wife, couturiere [Lucy, Lady Duff-Gordon;{{cite web|title=Sir Cosmo Edmund Duff Gordan|url=http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/biography/100/ | publisher=[Encyclopedia Titanica--> [streetcar magnate [George Dunton Widener, his wife Eleanor and their 27-year-old son, [Harry Elkins Widener;{{cite web--> [Pennsylvania Railroad executive [John Thayer (cricketer), his wife Marion and their 17-year-old son, [Jack Thayer;{{cite web|title=Mr John Borland Thayer|url=http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/biography/297/ | publisher=[Encyclopedia Titanica--> journalist [William Thomas Stead;{{cite web--> [Charles Melville Hays, president of Canada's [Grand Trunk Railway, with his wife, daughter, her husband, and two employees;Mr Charles Melville Hays the [Noël Leslie, Countess of Rothes;{{cite web|title=Lucy Nöel Martha, Countess of Rothes|url=http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/biography/248/ | publisher=[Encyclopedia Titanica--> United States presidential aide Major [Archibald Butt;{{cite web--> author and socialite [Helen Churchill Candee;{{cite web--> author [Jacques Futrelle, and their friends, [Broadway theatre producers Henry and Rene Harris; writer and painter [Francis Davis Millet;{{cite web--> pioneer aviation entrepreneur Pierre Maréchal Sr.;Maréchal, a director of the Voisin Frères and Louis Paulhan aircraft companies, was travelling to America on Paulhan's behalf, to negotiate the French manufacturing rights to [Glenn Curtiss’s float planes.''Latitude 41'' (publication of Association Française du Titanic) ''No. 23.'' American silent film actress [Dorothy Gibson,{{cite web--> White Star Line's Managing Director [J. Bruce Ismay{{cite web--> (who survived the sinking) and, from the ship's builders, [Thomas Andrews (shipbuilder),{{cite web|title=Mr Thomas Andrews|url=http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/biography/8/ | publisher=[Encyclopedia Titanica--> who was on board to observe any problems and assess the general performance of the new ship. Second-class passengers included [Lawrence Beesley,{{cite web--> a journalist who wrote one of the first-hand accounts of the voyage and the sinking. [Thomas Byles, a Catholic priest, was on his way to America to officiate at his younger brother's wedding.[Encyclopedia Titanica http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/biography/362/ [Michel Navratil, a Frenchman, was kidnapping his two sons, [Michel Marcel Navratil and Edmond, and taking them to America. Sylvia Mae Caldwell, who later married the founder of [State Farm Insurance Companies [George J. Mecherle,{{cite web. Both J. P. Morgan and [Milton S. HersheyHinkle, Marla, "[http://www.taxguru.org/Family/ChocCurtain.htm Behind The Chocolate Curtain." ''The Morning News'', February 8, 2004. had plans to travel on the ''Titanic'' but cancelled their reservations before the voyage. In 2007, scientists using DNA identified the body of an unknown child recovered shortly after the incident as [Sidney Leslie Goodwin, a 19-month-old boy from England. Goodwin, along with his parents and five siblings, boarded in [Southampton, England, as third-class passengers. {{cite news |date=[August 3, [ |accessdate=2007-07-21 --> ==Disaster== {{main|Sinking of the RMS Titanic--> ], by the chief steward of the liner ''Prinz Adelbert''.] On the night of April 14, at 11:40 PM, The Titanic struck an iceberg. Titanic sank, with great loss of life, at 2:20 AM, on [April 15, [.{{cite news |date=16 April [ |accessdate=2007-08-21 --> The United States Senate investigation reported that 1,517 {{cite book | title = "Titanic" Disaster. Report of the Committee on Commerce. United States Senate | location = Washington | publisher = Government Printing Office | url = http://www.titanicinquiry.org/USInq/USReport/AmInqRep03.php#a8 | accessdate = 2007-01-21 -->. See table ''Summary of Passengers and Survivors.'' people perished in the accident, while the British investigation has the number at 1,490. {{cite book | title = Report on the loss of the S.S. Titanic | pages = 69-70 | date = 30 July [ | location = Westminster | url = http://www.titanicinquiry.org/BOTInq/BOTReport/BOTRepFindings.php | accessdate = 2007-01-21 --> The most widely reported loss of life was 1,523. The inquiry was presented with 26 questions by the Board of Trade. Question 21 asked how many were saved (rather than how many were killed). A table in the answer gives "total on board saved" as 711 out of 2,201, implying that 1490 were killed. The answer also explains that 712 were rescued from ''Titanic'''s boats by the crew of ''Carpathia'', but that one person died before ''Carpathia'' arrived at New York, leaving 711 survivors. Regardless, the disaster ranks as one of the worst peacetime maritime [disasters in history, and is by far the best known. The [mass media frenzy about the ''Titanic'''s famous victims, the legends about what happened on board the ship, the resulting changes to [maritime law, Walter Lord's 1955 non-fiction account ''[A Night to Remember'', the discovery of the wreck in 1985 by a team led by [Robert Ballard and [Jean-Louis Michel, and the box office success of the 1997 film ''[Titanic (1997 film)'' (the highest-grossing film in history) have sustained the ''Titanic'''s fame. ===The break-up=== {{Cite-section|date=August 2007--> For 70 years after the disaster, it was widely believed that the Titanic had sunk intact. Although there were several passengers who insisted that the ship had broken in two as it sank (including [Jack Thayer, who even had another passenger draw a set of sketches depicting the sinking for him {{cite web |title=Titanic: Demographics of the Passengers |url=http://www.ithaca.edu/staff/jhenderson/titanic.html-->), the inquiries believed the statements of the ship's officers and first-class passengers that it had sunk in one piece. In 1985, when the wreck was discovered by [Jean-Louis Michel of [IFREMER, [Robert Ballard and his crew, they found that the ship broke in two as it sank. It was theorised that as the ''Titanic'' sank, the [stern rose out of the water. It supposedly rose so high that the unsupported weight caused the ship to break into two pieces, the split starting at the upper deck. This became the commonly accepted theory. In 2005, new evidence suggested that in addition to the expected side damage, the ship also had sustained damage to the bottom of the [Hull (watercraft) ([keel). This new evidence seemed to support a less popular theory that the crack that split the ''Titanic'' in two started at the keel plates. This proposition is supported by Jack Thayer's sketches. ==Long-term implications== The sinking of the RMS ''Titanic'' was a factor that influenced later maritime practices, ship design, and the seafaring culture. Changes included the establishment of the [International Ice Patrol, a requirement for 24-hour radio watchkeeping on foreign-going passenger ships, and new regulations related to lifeboats.{{Fact|date=August 2007--> ===International Ice Patrol=== {{main|International Ice Patrol--> The ''Titanic'' disaster led to the convening of the first International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) in [London, on [12 November [. On 30 January [, a treaty was signed by the conference that resulted in the formation and international funding of the International Ice Patrol, an agency of the [United States Coast Guard that to the present day monitors and reports on the location of North [Atlantic Ocean icebergs that could pose a threat to transatlantic sea lane traffic. It was also agreed in the new regulations that all passenger vessels would have sufficient lifeboats for everyone on board, that appropriate safety drills would be conducted, and that radio communications on passenger ships would be operated 24 hours a day along with a secondary power supply, so as not to miss distress calls. In addition, it was agreed that the firing of red rockets from a ship must be interpreted as a distress signal (red rockets launched from the ''Titanic'' prior to sinking were mistaken by nearby vessels as celebratory fireworks, delaying rescue). This treaty was scheduled to go into effect on [1 July [ but was upstaged by [World War I. ===Ship design changes=== The sinking of ''Titanic'' changed the way passenger ships were designed. Many existing ships, such as the ''[RMS Olympic'', were refitted for increased safety. Besides increasing the number of lifeboats on board, improvements included reinforcing the hull and increasing the height of the watertight bulkheads. The bulkheads on ''Titanic'' extended 10 feet (3 m) above the [waterline; after ''Titanic'' sank, the bulkheads on other ships were extended higher to make compartments fully watertight. While ''Titanic'' had a [double bottom, she did not have a [double hull; after her sinking, new ships were designed with double hulls; also, the double bottoms of other ships (including the ''Olympic'') were extended up the sides of their hulls, above their waterlines, to give them double hulls. {{Fact|date=August 2007--> ===Speed=== The conclusion of the British Inquiry into the sinking was “that the loss of the said ship was due to collision with an iceberg, brought about by the excessive speed at which the ship was being navigated."http://www.titanicinquiry.org/BOTInq/BOTReport/BOTRep01.php Final Report of the British Board of Trade Inquiry At the time of the collision, it is thought that the Titanic was at her normal cruising speed of about 22 knots,http://www.titanicinquiry.org/BOTInq/BOTInq13Boxhall03.php British Inquiry - Testimony of JG Boxhall -Fourth Officer - ss "Titanic", Q15645 which was less than her top speed of around 24 knots. It was then common (but not universal) practice to maintain normal speed in areas where icebergs were expected.http://www.titanicinquiry.org/BOTInq/BOTInq28Affeld01.php British Inquiry – Testimony of G Affeld, Marine Superintendent Red Star Line Q22583 & Q25615/16 It was assumed that any iceberg large enough to damage the ship would be seen in sufficient time to be avoided. After the sinking, the British Board of Trade introduced regulations instructing vessels to moderate their speed if they were expecting to encounter icebergs. It is often alleged that J. Bruce Ismay instructed or encouraged Captain [Edward Smith to increase speed in order to make an early landfall, and is a common feature in popular representations of the disaster. As there is no evidence for this having happened, many disputed the claim.[http://www.titanic1.org/articles/ismay.asp Paul Louden-Brown "The White Star Line; An Illustrated History 1869-1934" ===Lifeboats=== The ''Titanic'' did not carry sufficient lifeboats for all of her passengers and crew. The law at that time stipulated that a minimum of 16 lifeboats and enough places for 962 occupants were required for a ship that weighed more than 10,000 tons. This law was issued in 1894, when the largest emigrant steamer was the ''Lucania'', of 12,952 tons. It had not been updated for 18 years, and ships had increased rapidly in size. Thus, the Titanic was only legally required to carry enough lifeboats for 962 occupants (the ship had room for 3,547 passengers). The White Star Line exceeded the regulations by including four collapsible lifeboats, bringing total lifeboat capacity to 1,178. http://www.titanicinquiry.org/BOTInq/BOTReport/BOTRepBOT.php In the busy North Atlantic sea lanes, it was expected that in the event of a serious accident, help from other vessels would be quickly obtained and that the lifeboats would be used to ferry passengers and crew from the stricken vessel to her rescuers. Full provision of lifeboats was not considered necessary for this. During the design of the ship, it was anticipated that the British Board of Trade might require an increase in the number of lifeboats at some future date. Therefore, lifeboat davits capable of handling up to four boats per pair of davits were designed by Alexander Carlisle and installed to give a total potential capacity of 64 boats. [http://www.titanicinquiry.org/BOTInq/BOTInq20Carlisle01.php Testimony of Alexander Carlisle at British Inquiry The additional boats were never fitted. It is often alleged that J. Bruce Ismay, the president of White Star, vetoed the installation of these additional boats to maximise the passenger promenade area on the boat deck. Harold Sanderson, Vice President of International Mercantile Marine denied this allegation during the British Inquiry.[http://www.titanicinquiry.org/BOTInq/BOTInq18Sanderson01.php Testimony of Harold Sanderson at British Inquiry - Question #19398 The lack of lifeboats was not the only cause of the tragic loss of lives. After the collision with the iceberg, one hour was taken to evaluate the damage, recognise what was going to happen, inform first-class passengers, and lower the first lifeboat. Afterwards, the crew worked quite efficiently, taking a total of 80 minutes to lower all 16 lifeboats. The crew was divided into two teams, one on each side of the ship, and an average of 10 minutes of work was necessary for a team to fill a lifeboat with passengers and lower it.{{Fact|date=August 2007--> Yet another factor in the high death toll that related to the lifeboats was the reluctance of the passengers to board them. They were, after all, on a ship deemed to be "unsinkable." Because of this, some lifeboats were launched with far less than capacity, the most notable being Lifeboat #1, with a capacity of 40, launched with only 12 people aboard. Included in the first launched were lifeboats 6, 7, and 8, each of which were equipped to hold 65 but evacuated the ship with only 28 on board each boat. Robin Gardener & Dan van der Vat, ''The Riddle of the Titanic'' (London: Orion 1995) p136 The excessive number of casualties has also been blamed{{Fact|date=August 2007--> on the "women and children first" policy for places on the lifeboats. Although the lifeboats had a total capacity of 1,178 - enough for 53% of the 2,224 persons on board - the boats launched only had a capacity of 1,084, and, altogether only 712 people were actually saved - 32% of those originally on board. This is a result when the 1,084-person capacity of the lifeboats actually launched had sufficient room to include all of the 534 women and children on board, plus an additional 550 men (of which there were 1,690 on board). It has been suggested{{Fact|date=August 2007--> based on these figures that allowing one man on board for each woman or child from the start would not only have increased the number of women and children saved but also had the added benefit of saving more lives in total. As it was, the many desperate men had to be held off at gunpoint from boarding the lifeboats, adding to the chaos of the scene, and there were many more casualties - of women, children and men - than otherwise.{{cite web|title=Women and children first|url=http://www.logoi.com/notes/titanic/women_children_first.html--> ===Use of SOS=== The sinking of the ''Titanic'' was not the first time the internationally recognised [Morse code distress signal "[SOS" was used. The SOS signal was first proposed at the International Conference on Wireless Communication at Sea in [Berlin in 1906. It was ratified by the international community in 1908 and had been in widespread use since then. The SOS signal was, however, rarely used by British wireless operators, who preferred the older [CQD code. First Wireless Operator [Jack Phillips began transmitting CQD until Second Wireless Operator [Harold Sydney Bride suggested, half-jokingly, "Send SOS; it's the new call, and this may be your last chance to send it." Phillips, who was to perish in the disaster, then began to intersperse SOS with the traditional CQD call. ===''Titanic'''s turning ability=== ]. The ''Titanic'' had triple-screw engine configuration, with reciprocating steam engines driving the wing propellers, and a steam turbine driving her centre propeller. The reciprocating engines were reversible, while the turbine was not. When Murdoch gave the order to reverse engines to avoid the iceberg, he inadvertently handicapped the turning ability of the ship. Since the centre turbine could not reverse during the "full speed astern" manoeuvre, it simply stopped turning. Furthermore, the centre propeller was positioned forward of the ship's rudder, diminishing the turning effectiveness of the rudder. Had Murdoch reversed the [Port (nautical) engine, and reduced speed while maintaining the forward motion of the other two propellers (as recommended in the training procedures for this type of ship), experts theorise that the ''Titanic'' might have been able to navigate around the berg without a collision.[non-synchronous transmissions However, given the closing distance between the ship and the berg at the time the bridge was notified, this might not have been possible without some sort of impact. Additionally, ''Titanic'' experts have hypothesised that if ''Titanic'' had not altered its course at all but reversed its engines and had run head-on into the iceberg, the damage would only have affected the first or, at most, the first two compartments. The liner [SS Arizona had such a head-on collision with an iceberg in 1879 and, although badly damaged, managed to make it to [St John's, Newfoundland for repairs. Some dispute that ''Titanic'' would have survived such a collision, however, since ''Titanic's'' speed was higher than ''Arizona's'', her hull much larger and mass much greater, and the violence of the collision could have compromised her structural integrity. {{Fact|date=August 2007--> ===Faults in construction=== ] in [Washington, D.C.. Though the topic is seldom discussed, there is some speculation as to whether ''Titanic'' was constructed by methods considered sufficiently robust by the standards of the day. In the documentary series ''[Seconds from Disaster'', this was investigated further. Rumoured faults in the construction included problems with the safety doors and missing or detached bolts in the ship's hull plating. This may have been a major contributing factor to the sinking and that the iceberg, in part with the missing bolts and screws, eventually led to the demise of ''Titanic''. Possibly, if the watertight bulkheads had completely sealed the ship's compartments (they only went 3 m above the waterline), the ship would have stayed afloat. {{Fact|date=August 2007--> ] However, ''Titanic's'' hull was held together by [rivets, which are intended to be a permanent way of attaching metal items together, whereas bolts can be removed and would require periodic tightening unless the nut and bolt are welded after being screwed together. Welding technology in 1912 was in its infancy, so this was not done. While issues with ''Titanic's'' rivets have been identified from samples salvaged from the wreck site, many ships of the era would have been constructed with similar methods and did not sink after becoming involved in collisions. There was a claim that the rivets of the Titanic had not been properly [tempering, leaving them brittle and sensitive to fracture in the infamous collision. ''Seconds from Disaster'', ''Sinking of the Titanic'', documentary, aired on National Geographic Channel Although sealing off the watertight bulkheads with watertight decks would have increased the survivability of a vessel such as ''Titanic'', it would have by no means ensured the survival of a ship with as much underwater damage as ''Titanic'' sustained in her collision with the iceberg; it was a big iceberg. Even if the compartments themselves had remained completely watertight, the weight of the water would still have pulled the bow of the ship down to the point where decks above the watertight deck would have been below the waterline. The ship would then have flooded via the portholes and sunk anyway. It should also be noted that watertight decks would have hampered access to the lower sections of the ship and would have required watertight hatches, all of which would have had to be properly sealed to maintain the barrier between the incoming water and the rest of the ship. As the increased survivability that such watertight decks would have offered is questionable, they are generally considered to this day to be impractical in [merchant ship (though some [warship, which are exposed to much greater risk of flooding by virtue of being targets for enemy mines and torpedoes, do feature such decks). [RMS Olympic, built to almost identical specifications by the same builders as ''Titanic'', was involved in several collisions during the course of her operational lifetime, one of which occurred before ''Titanic'' sank; and ''Olympic's'' hull was modified to protect her from flooding in a fashion similar to her ill-fated sister's. None of these collisions threatened to sink the ship, suggesting that the ''Olympic''-class liners were built to be sufficiently tough and did not suffer from slipshod construction. ==Alternative theories and myths== {{main|Titanic alternative theories--> As with many famous events, many alternative theories about the sinking of ''Titanic'' have appeared over the years. Theories that it was not an iceberg that sank the ship or that a curse caused the disaster have been popular reading in newspapers and books. Most of these theories have been debunked by ''Titanic'' experts, claiming that the evidence on which these theories were based was inaccurate or incomplete. Another theory is that the ''Titanic'' was sacrificed because, once construction had been completed, she was expected to be a potential perpetual financial loss. Supporters of this theory cite the claim that everyone concerned, the company and the officers aboard, had received iceberg warnings and yet the Titanic maintained a northern course instead of sailing to the south of the warning limit. There is a minor school of thought that it was not ''Titanic'' that sank but ''Olympic''. Conspiracy theorists cited evidence in favour, including the ''Hawke'' incident, which seriously damaged ''Olympic''. This supposedly motivated management to scuttle ''Olympic''/''Titanic'' and file an insurance claim. The two ships were dry-docked at the same yard at the same time (making a switch possible), and cosmetic changes were made, presumably to make the two ships more similar. Primary evidence against lies in the surveys made by the British government of ''Olympic'' from shortly after the sinking of ''Titanic'' to shortly before ''Olympic'''s scrapping which show artifacts of her 1911 collision damage. ''Titanic'' also possessed many design features ''Olympic'' did not, such as enlarged B-deck suites. Both vessels, additionally, were underinsured relative to their value and sinking either would cause a substantial loss, far greater than the operating costs of repairing ''Olympic'', to say nothing of the lost revenue resulting from loss of confidence in the company after the loss at sea of their flagship. A similar legend states that the ''Titanic'' was given hull number 390904 (which, when seen in a mirror or written using mirror writing, looks like "NO [pope"). This is a myth.[http://www.snopes.com/history/titanic/nopope.asp ''Titanic's'' yard number was 401; ''Olympic's'' was 400. Another myth states that ''Titanic'' was carrying a cursed Ancient Egypt [mummy, often named Princess of Amen-Ra. The mummy, nicknamed Shipwrecker after changing hands several times and causing many terrible things to happen to each of its owners, exacts its final revenge by sinking the famous ship. There was no mummy on board, only a coffin lid.[http://www.snopes.com/horrors/ghosts/mummy.asp Another myth says that the bottle of champagne used in christening ''Titanic'' did not break on the first try, which in sea lore is said to be bad luck for a ship. In fact, ''Titanic'' was not christened on launching, as it was White Star Line's custom not to do so. http://www.euronet.nl/users/keesree/construc.htm ==Rediscovery== ] submersible. The idea of finding the shipwreck of ''Titanic'' and even raising the ship from the ocean floor had been perpetuated since shortly after the ship sank. No attempts even to locate the ship were successful until [1 September [, when a joint French-American expeditionhttp://www.whoi.edu/page.do?pid=7539 Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution: Discovery of the Titanic , led by Jean-Louis Michel of [IFREMER and Dr [Robert Ballard of the [Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, sailing on the Research Vessel [R/V Knorr, discovered the wreck using the video camera sled [Argo (submersible). It was found at a depth of {{ft to m|12536|-->, south-east of [Newfoundland (island) at {{coor dms|41|43|32|N|49|56|49|W|type:landmark_scale:30000000-->[http://www.titanic-titanic.com/titanic_wreck_location.shtml Titanic Wreck Location, ''Titanic-Titanic.com'', 13 nautical miles (24 km) from where ''Titanic'' was originally thought to rest. The most notable discovery the team made was that the ship had broken in two, the stern section lying 1,970 feet (600 m) from the bow section and both facing in opposite directions. There had been conflicting witness accounts of whether the ship broke apart on the surface or not, and both the American and British inquiries found that the ship sank intact. Up until the discovery of the wreck, it was generally assumed the ship did not break apart. In 2005, a theory was presented that a portion of ''Titanic'''s bottom broke off right before the ship broke in two.{{cite news | title=Scientists ponder Titanic discoveries | date=December 5, 2005 | publisher=CNN | url=http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/science/12/05/titanic.find.ap/index.html--> The theory was conceived after an expedition sponsored by [The History Channel examined the three hull pieces.{{cite news | last=Lindsay | first=Jay | title=Scientists unveil new discoveries from Titanic wreck | date=December 5, 2005 | publisher=Associated Press | url=http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2005/12/05/scientists_unveil_new_discoveries_from_titanic_wreck/--> The bow section had embedded itself more than 60 feet (18 m) into the silt on the ocean floor. Although parts of the hull had buckled, the bow was mostly intact, as the water inside had equalised with the increasing water pressure. The stern section was in much worse condition. As the stern section sank, water pushed out the air inside tearing apart the hull and decks. The speed at which the stern hit the ocean floor caused even more damage. Surrounding the wreck is a large debris field, with pieces of the ship (including a large amount of coal), furniture, dinnerware and personal items scattered over one square mile (2.6 km²). Softer materials, like wood and carpet, were devoured by undersea organisms, as were human remains. Later exploration of the vessel's lower decks, as chronicled in the book ''Ghosts of the Titanic'' by [Charles Pellegrino, showed that much of the wood from ''Titanic's'' staterooms was still intact. A new theory has been put forth that much of the wood from the upper decks was not devoured by undersea organisms but rather broke free of its fixings and floated away. This is supported by some eyewitness testimony from the survivors. ==Ownership and litigation== ], [Northern Ireland. Ballard and his crew did not bring up any artifacts from the wreck. Upon discovery in 1985, a legal debate began over ownership of the wreck and the valuable artifacts inside. On 7 June [, RMS Titanic Inc. was awarded ownership and salvaging rights of the wreckhttp://www.premier-exhibitions-investors.org/titanic_ownership.htm Comprehensive resume of ownership questions by the [United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. (See [Admiralty law){{cite web |title=Corporate Profile |work=RMS Titanic, Inc. |url=http://www.rmstitanic.net/index.php4?page=448 |accessdate=February 1 |accessyear=2006--> RMS Titanic Inc., a subsidiary of Premier Exhibitions Inc., and its predecessors have conducted seven expeditions to the wreck between 1987 and 2004 and salvaged over 5,500 objects. The biggest single recovered artifact was a 17-ton section of the hull, recovered in 1998.{{cite web |title=Expeditions |work=RMS Titanic, Inc. |url=http://www.rmstitanic.net/index.php4?page=471 |accessdate=February 1 |accessyear=2006--> Many of these artifacts are part of travelling museum exhibitions. Beginning in 1987, a joint [United States-French expedition, which included the predecessor of RMS Titanic Inc., began salvage operations and, during 32 dives, recovered approximately 1,800 artifacts which were taken to [France for conservation and restoration. In 1993, a [France administrator in the Office of Maritime Affairs of the Ministry of Equipment, Transportation, and Tourism awarded RMS Titanic Inc's predecessor title to the artifacts recovered in 1987. In a motion filed on 12 February [ RMS Titanic Inc. requested that the District Court enter an order awarding it "title to all the artifacts (including portions of the hull) which are the subject of this action pursuant to the Law of Finds" or, in the alternative, a salvage award in the amount of $225 million. RMS Titanic Inc. excluded from its motion any claim for an award of title to the 1987 artifacts, but it did request that the district court declare that, based on the French administrative action, "the artifacts raised during the 1987 expedition are independently owned by RMST." Following a hearing, the district court entered an order dated 2 July [, in which it refused to grant comity and recognize the 1993 decision of the French administrator, and rejected RMS Titanic Inc's claim that it should be awarded title to the artifacts recovered since 1993 under the Maritime Law of Finds. RMS Titanic Inc. appealed to the United States Court of Appeals. In its decision of [31 January [{{PDFlink]|127 Kibibyte--> the court recognised "explicitly the appropriateness of applying maritime salvage law to historic wrecks such as that of ''Titanic''" and denied the application of the Maritime Law of Finds. The court also ruled that the district court lacked jurisdiction over the "1987 artifacts", and therefore vacated that part of the court's [2 July [ order. In other words, according to this decision, RMS Titanic Inc. has ownership title to the artifacts awarded in the French decision (valued $16.5 million earlier) and continues to be salvor-in-possession of ''Titanic'' wreck. The Court of Appeals remanded the case to the District Court to determine the salvage award ($225 million requested by RMS Titanic Inc.).{{cite web |url=http://www.premier-exhibitions-investors.org/titanic_ownership.htm#excerpts |title=Commented excerpts of the Court of Appeals decision--> ==Condition of the wreck== Many scientists, including Robert Ballard, are concerned that visits by tourists in submersibles and the recovery of artifacts are hastening the [decay of the wreck. Underwater microbes have been [Rusticle at ''Titanic'''s iron since the ship sank, but because of the extra damage visitors have caused, [National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration estimates that "the hull and structure of the ship may collapse to the ocean floor within the next 50 years." Several scientists and conservationists have also complained about the removal of the crow's nest on the mast by a French expedition.

Ballard's book, Return to Titanic, published by the National Geographic Society, includes photographs showing the deterioration of the promenade deck and damage caused by submersibles landing on the ship. The Mast (sailing) has almost completely deteriorated, and repeated accusations were made that it had been stripped of its bell and brass light by salvagers. Ballard's own original discovery images however, clearly showing that the bell was never actually on the mast - it was recovered from the sea floor. The French submersible Nautile allegedly is responsible for crashing into the crow's nest and causing it to fall from the mast. Even the memorial plaque left by Ballard on his second trip to the wreck was alleged to have been removed; Ballard replaced the plaque in 2004. Recent expeditions, notably by James Cameron, have been diving on the wreck to learn more about the site and explore previously unexplored parts of the ship before Titanic decays completely.

Popular culture (1912). Image from the 1912 German film that dramatised the tragedy.

The sinking of Titanic has been the basis for many novels describing fictionalised events on board the ship. Many reference books about the disaster have also been written since Titanic sank, the first of these appearing within months of the sinking. Several films and TV movies were produced, the first being In Nacht und Eis as early as 1912. The 1997 film Titanic (1997 film), starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet was a critical and commercial hit, winning eleven Academy Awards and holding the record for the highest box office returns of all time.

Living survivors There are two survivors of the Titanic still living although neither has actual memories of the sinking. They are:

Recent survivors' deaths

100th anniversary On 15 April 2012, the 100th anniversary of the sinking of Titanic is planned to be commemorated around the world. By that date the Titanic Quarter, Belfast in Belfast is planned to have been completed. The area will be regenerated and a signature memorial project unveiled to celebrate Titanic and her links with Belfast, the city that built the ship.

See also

Notes References

External links

{{Infobox Ship|Ship image=|Ship caption=The RMS Titanic leaving Belfast for sea trials, 2 April 1912|Ship ordered=|Ship builder=[Harland and Wolff shipyard, Belfast [1909 [1911 [1912
 sank the next day at 2:20AM. After 73 years the wreck was discovered on September 1, 1985, 12,500 feet beneath the North Atlantic at 41 degrees 43" 32"N, 49 degrees 56' 49"W.]|Ship length=882 foot (length) 9 inches (269 m)]s at 215 Pounds per square inch.
Two four-cylinder Triple-expansion engine reciprocating engines each producing 15,000 horsepower (12 MW) at a speed of 75 rpm for outer two propellers.
One low-pressure (about 7 psi absolute) steam turbine producing 16,000 hp (13.5 MW) for the centre propeller at 165 rpm.
Total 46,000 hp at 75 rpm; 59,000 hp at 83 rpm (37 MW). Page 72. Book's Webpage Two bronze triple-blade side propellers.
One bronze quadruple-blade central propeller]s (40.6 km/h) (24.5 mph)
– top speed: 23  knots (42.6 km/h) (26.5 mph)] Titanic, a British RMS Olympic Ocean Liner, became famous as the largest ocean liner built in her day and also for sinking on her maiden voyage in 1912 with a huge loss of life.The second of a trio of superliner (passenger ship), the Titanic and her sisters were designed to provide a three-ship weekly express service and to dominate the transatlantic travel business for the White Star Line. Read this book on Google Print The Titanic, and her sister ship the Olympic were introduced to the world in a New York Times article on 23 April 1908, almost four years before the sinking. Titanic 1908 See FirstMention.com for actual article

Built at the Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast, Ireland, the Titanic was the largest passenger steamboat in the world at the time of her sinking. During the Titanic's maiden voyage (from Southampton, England to Cherbourg-Octeville, France, then on to Cobh, Ireland and finally New York City), she struck an iceberg at 23:40 (ship's time) on Sunday 14 April 1912, sinking two hours and forty minutes later at 02:20 on Monday 15 April, having broken into two pieces at the aft expansion joint."Titanic" (history), Britannica Concise, 2007, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., webpage: BCE-13853: accessed 2007-01-22.

The White Star line designed Titanic to compete with rival company Cunard Line's RMS Lusitania and RMS Mauretania (1906), luxurious ships and the fastest liners on the Atlantic. Titanic and her Olympic -class sisters, RMS Olympic and the then upcoming one thousand foot HMHS Britannic,. Read this book on Google Printwere intended to be the largest, most luxurious ships ever to operate (the planned name Gigantic was changed to Britannic after the disaster). Titanic was designed by Harland and Wolff chairman William Pirrie, 1st Viscount Pirrie, head of Harland and Wolff's design department Thomas Andrews (shipbuilder), and general manager Alexander Carlisle, with the plans regularly sent to the White Star Line's managing director J. Bruce Ismay for suggestions and approval. Construction of the Titanic, funded by the American J.P. Morgan and his International Mercantile Marine Co., began on 31 March 1909. Titanic No. 401 was launched two years and two months later on 31 May 1911. Titanic's outfitting was completed on [31 March the following year. ''Titanic'' was 882 feet 9 inches (269 m) long and 92 feet 6 inches (28 m) at the beam.{{cite web|title=titanic statistics and dimensions|url=http://www.titanic-titanic.com/titanic_statistics.shtml--> She had a [tonnage of 46,328 [long ton, and a height from the water line to the boat deck of 60 feet (18 m).{{cite web|title=titanic statistics and dimensions|url=http://www.titanic-titanic.com/titanic_statistics.shtml--> Her three [propellers were driven by two four-[cylinder (engine), triple-expansion, inverted [reciprocating engine [steam engines and one low-pressure [steam turbine.{{cite web|title=Technical facts about the Titanic|url=http://www.titanic-whitestarships.com/MGY_Tech_Facts.htm--> Steam was provided by 25 double-ended and 4 single-ended Scotch-type [boilers fired by 159 [coal burning [furnaces that made possible a top speed of 23 [knot (speed)s (43 km/h).{{cite web|title=RMS Titanic Facts & Figures|url=http://www.keyflux.com/titanic/facts.htm--> Only three of the four 63 foot (19 m) tall [Funnel (ship) were functional; the fourth, which served only as a vent, was added to make the ship look more impressive.{{cite web|title=Titanic's funnels|url=http://www.titanic-titanic.com/titanic_funnels.shtml--> ''Titanic'' could carry a total of 3,547 passengers and crew and, because she carried [mail, her name was given the [Ship prefix [Royal Mail Ship (Royal Mail Steamer) as well as SS (Steam Ship). Contemporaries considered the ''Titanic'' the pinnacle of [naval architecture and technological achievement,{{Fact|date=September 2007--> and she was thought by ''The Shipbuilder'' magazine to be "practically unsinkable."{{cite web|title=Titanic - unsinkable|url=http://www.historyonthenet.com/Titanic/unsinkable.htm--> ''Titanic'' had a double-bottom hull, containing 44 tanks for boiler water and ballast to keep the ship safely balanced at sea "TRMA Tech Feature of the Month: Titanic's Double Bottom" (analysis), Titanic Research & Modeling Association, June 2005, webpage: http://titanic-model.com/articles/tech/TechFeatureJune2005.htm TMcom-Jun2005: accessed 2007-01-21]. (later ships also had a double-walled hull). ''Titanic'' exceeded the lifeboat standard, with 20 lifeboats (though not enough for all passengers). ''Titanic'' was divided into 15 compartments. Dividing doors were held up in the open position by [electro-magnetic latches that could be closed by a switch on the ship's bridge and by a float system installed on the door itself.{{cite web|title=Titanic's bulkheads & watertight compartments|url=http://www.titanic-titanic.com/titanic_watertight_compartments.shtml--> ==Fixtures and fittings== ] In her time, ''Titanic'' surpassed all rivals in luxury and opulence. She offered an onboard swimming pool, a gymnasium, a [Turkish bath, libraries for each passenger class, and a [squash (sport) court.{{cite web|title=RMS Titanic facts|url=http://www.titanic-nautical.com/titanic-facts.html--> [First class travel common rooms were adorned with elaborate wood panelling, expensive furniture and other decorations.{{cite web|title=Titanic:A voyage of discovery|url=http://www.euronet.nl/users/keesree/palace.htm--> In addition, the Café Parisien offered superb cuisine for the first-class passengers, with a sunlit veranda fitted with trellis decorations.{{cite web|title=Titanic-construction|url=http://www.titanicinbelfast.com/template.aspx?pid=248&area=1&parent=247--> The ship incorporated technologically advanced features for the period. She had an extensive electrical subsystem with steam-powered generators and ship-wide electrical wiring feeding electric lights. She also boasted two wireless [Spark-gap transmitter sets, including a powerful 1,500-watt radio manned by operators who worked in shifts, allowing constant contact and the transmission of many passenger messages.{{cite web|title=Wireless and the Titanic|url=http://jproc.ca/radiostor/titanic.html--> === Comparisons with the ''Olympic''=== The ''Titanic'' closely resembled her older sister ''RMS Olympic'' but there were a few differences. Two of the most noticeable were that half of the ''Titanic's'' forward promenade A-Deck (below the lifeboat deck) was enclosed against outside weather, and her B-Deck configuration was completely different from the ''Olympic's''. The ''Titanic'' had a specialty restaurant called Café Parisien, a feature that the ''Olympic'' did not have until 1913. Some of the flaws found on the ''Olympic'', such as the creaking of the aft expansion joint, were corrected on the ''Titanic''. The skid lights that provided natural illumination on A-deck were round, while on ''Olympic'' they were oval. The ''Titanic's'' wheelhouse was made narrower and longer than the ''Olympic's''.[http://titanic-model.com/db/db-01/db_09.html These, and other modifications, made the ''Titanic'' 1,004 gross [tonnage larger than the ''Olympic''. ==Passengers and crew== {{main|List of passengers onboard RMS Titanic|List of crew members onboard RMS Titanic--> The first-class passengers for ''Titanic'''s maiden voyage included some of the richest and most prominent people in the world. They included millionaire [John Jacob Astor IV and his pregnant wife [Madeleine Astor;{{cite web|title=Colonel John Jacob Astor |url=http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/biography/11/ |publisher=[Encyclopedia Titanica--> industrialist [Benjamin Guggenheim;{{cite web--> [Macy's department store owner [Isidor Straus{{cite web--> and his wife [Ida Straus;{{cite web|title=Mrs Rosalie Ida Straus|url=http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/biography/289/ | publisher=[Encyclopedia Titanica--> [Denver, Colorado millionaire [Margaret Brown;{{cite web|title=Mrs Margaret "Molly" Brown|url=http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/biography/43/ | publisher=[Encyclopedia Titanica--> Sir [Cosmo Duff Gordon and his wife, couturiere [Lucy, Lady Duff-Gordon;{{cite web|title=Sir Cosmo Edmund Duff Gordan|url=http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/biography/100/ | publisher=[Encyclopedia Titanica--> [streetcar magnate [George Dunton Widener, his wife Eleanor and their 27-year-old son, [Harry Elkins Widener;{{cite web--> [Pennsylvania Railroad executive [John Thayer (cricketer), his wife Marion and their 17-year-old son, [Jack Thayer;{{cite web|title=Mr John Borland Thayer|url=http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/biography/297/ | publisher=[Encyclopedia Titanica--> journalist [William Thomas Stead;{{cite web--> [Charles Melville Hays, president of Canada's [Grand Trunk Railway, with his wife, daughter, her husband, and two employees;Mr Charles Melville Hays the [Noël Leslie, Countess of Rothes;{{cite web|title=Lucy Nöel Martha, Countess of Rothes|url=http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/biography/248/ | publisher=[Encyclopedia Titanica--> United States presidential aide Major [Archibald Butt;{{cite web--> author and socialite [Helen Churchill Candee;{{cite web--> author [Jacques Futrelle, and their friends, [Broadway theatre producers Henry and Rene Harris; writer and painter [Francis Davis Millet;{{cite web--> pioneer aviation entrepreneur Pierre Maréchal Sr.;Maréchal, a director of the Voisin Frères and Louis Paulhan aircraft companies, was travelling to America on Paulhan's behalf, to negotiate the French manufacturing rights to [Glenn Curtiss’s float planes.''Latitude 41'' (publication of Association Française du Titanic) ''No. 23.'' American silent film actress [Dorothy Gibson,{{cite web--> White Star Line's Managing Director [J. Bruce Ismay{{cite web--> (who survived the sinking) and, from the ship's builders, [Thomas Andrews (shipbuilder),{{cite web|title=Mr Thomas Andrews|url=http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/biography/8/ | publisher=[Encyclopedia Titanica--> who was on board to observe any problems and assess the general performance of the new ship. Second-class passengers included [Lawrence Beesley,{{cite web--> a journalist who wrote one of the first-hand accounts of the voyage and the sinking. [Thomas Byles, a Catholic priest, was on his way to America to officiate at his younger brother's wedding.[Encyclopedia Titanica http://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/biography/362/ [Michel Navratil, a Frenchman, was kidnapping his two sons, [Michel Marcel Navratil and Edmond, and taking them to America. Sylvia Mae Caldwell, who later married the founder of [State Farm Insurance Companies [George J. Mecherle,{{cite web. Both J. P. Morgan and [Milton S. HersheyHinkle, Marla, "[http://www.taxguru.org/Family/ChocCurtain.htm Behind The Chocolate Curtain." ''The Morning News'', February 8, 2004. had plans to travel on the ''Titanic'' but cancelled their reservations before the voyage. In 2007, scientists using DNA identified the body of an unknown child recovered shortly after the incident as [Sidney Leslie Goodwin, a 19-month-old boy from England. Goodwin, along with his parents and five siblings, boarded in [Southampton, England, as third-class passengers. {{cite news |date=[August 3, [ |accessdate=2007-07-21 --> ==Disaster== {{main|Sinking of the RMS Titanic--> ], by the chief steward of the liner ''Prinz Adelbert''.] On the night of April 14, at 11:40 PM, The Titanic struck an iceberg. Titanic sank, with great loss of life, at 2:20 AM, on [April 15, [.{{cite news |date=16 April [ |accessdate=2007-08-21 --> The United States Senate investigation reported that 1,517 {{cite book | title = "Titanic" Disaster. Report of the Committee on Commerce. United States Senate | location = Washington | publisher = Government Printing Office | url = http://www.titanicinquiry.org/USInq/USReport/AmInqRep03.php#a8 | accessdate = 2007-01-21 -->. See table ''Summary of Passengers and Survivors.'' people perished in the accident, while the British investigation has the number at 1,490. {{cite book | title = Report on the loss of the S.S. Titanic | pages = 69-70 | date = 30 July [ | location = Westminster | url = http://www.titanicinquiry.org/BOTInq/BOTReport/BOTRepFindings.php | accessdate = 2007-01-21 --> The most widely reported loss of life was 1,523. The inquiry was presented with 26 questions by the Board of Trade. Question 21 asked how many were saved (rather than how many were killed). A table in the answer gives "total on board saved" as 711 out of 2,201, implying that 1490 were killed. The answer also explains that 712 were rescued from ''Titanic'''s boats by the crew of ''Carpathia'', but that one person died before ''Carpathia'' arrived at New York, leaving 711 survivors. Regardless, the disaster ranks as one of the worst peacetime maritime [disasters in history, and is by far the best known. The [mass media frenzy about the ''Titanic'''s famous victims, the legends about what happened on board the ship, the resulting changes to [maritime law, Walter Lord's 1955 non-fiction account ''[A Night to Remember'', the discovery of the wreck in 1985 by a team led by [Robert Ballard and [Jean-Louis Michel, and the box office success of the 1997 film ''[Titanic (1997 film)'' (the highest-grossing film in history) have sustained the ''Titanic'''s fame. ===The break-up=== {{Cite-section|date=August 2007--> For 70 years after the disaster, it was widely believed that the Titanic had sunk intact. Although there were several passengers who insisted that the ship had broken in two as it sank (including [Jack Thayer, who even had another passenger draw a set of sketches depicting the sinking for him {{cite web |title=Titanic: Demographics of the Passengers |url=http://www.ithaca.edu/staff/jhenderson/titanic.html-->), the inquiries believed the statements of the ship's officers and first-class passengers that it had sunk in one piece. In 1985, when the wreck was discovered by [Jean-Louis Michel of [IFREMER, [Robert Ballard and his crew, they found that the ship broke in two as it sank. It was theorised that as the ''Titanic'' sank, the [stern rose out of the water. It supposedly rose so high that the unsupported weight caused the ship to break into two pieces, the split starting at the upper deck. This became the commonly accepted theory. In 2005, new evidence suggested that in addition to the expected side damage, the ship also had sustained damage to the bottom of the [Hull (watercraft) ([keel). This new evidence seemed to support a less popular theory that the crack that split the ''Titanic'' in two started at the keel plates. This proposition is supported by Jack Thayer's sketches. ==Long-term implications== The sinking of the RMS ''Titanic'' was a factor that influenced later maritime practices, ship design, and the seafaring culture. Changes included the establishment of the [International Ice Patrol, a requirement for 24-hour radio watchkeeping on foreign-going passenger ships, and new regulations related to lifeboats.{{Fact|date=August 2007--> ===International Ice Patrol=== {{main|International Ice Patrol--> The ''Titanic'' disaster led to the convening of the first International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) in [London, on [12 November [. On 30 January [, a treaty was signed by the conference that resulted in the formation and international funding of the International Ice Patrol, an agency of the [United States Coast Guard that to the present day monitors and reports on the location of North [Atlantic Ocean icebergs that could pose a threat to transatlantic sea lane traffic. It was also agreed in the new regulations that all passenger vessels would have sufficient lifeboats for everyone on board, that appropriate safety drills would be conducted, and that radio communications on passenger ships would be operated 24 hours a day along with a secondary power supply, so as not to miss distress calls. In addition, it was agreed that the firing of red rockets from a ship must be interpreted as a distress signal (red rockets launched from the ''Titanic'' prior to sinking were mistaken by nearby vessels as celebratory fireworks, delaying rescue). This treaty was scheduled to go into effect on [1 July [ but was upstaged by [World War I. ===Ship design changes=== The sinking of ''Titanic'' changed the way passenger ships were designed. Many existing ships, such as the ''[RMS Olympic'', were refitted for increased safety. Besides increasing the number of lifeboats on board, improvements included reinforcing the hull and increasing the height of the watertight bulkheads. The bulkheads on ''Titanic'' extended 10 feet (3 m) above the [waterline; after ''Titanic'' sank, the bulkheads on other ships were extended higher to make compartments fully watertight. While ''Titanic'' had a [double bottom, she did not have a [double hull; after her sinking, new ships were designed with double hulls; also, the double bottoms of other ships (including the ''Olympic'') were extended up the sides of their hulls, above their waterlines, to give them double hulls. {{Fact|date=August 2007--> ===Speed=== The conclusion of the British Inquiry into the sinking was “that the loss of the said ship was due to collision with an iceberg, brought about by the excessive speed at which the ship was being navigated."http://www.titanicinquiry.org/BOTInq/BOTReport/BOTRep01.php Final Report of the British Board of Trade Inquiry At the time of the collision, it is thought that the Titanic was at her normal cruising speed of about 22 knots,http://www.titanicinquiry.org/BOTInq/BOTInq13Boxhall03.php British Inquiry - Testimony of JG Boxhall -Fourth Officer - ss "Titanic", Q15645 which was less than her top speed of around 24 knots. It was then common (but not universal) practice to maintain normal speed in areas where icebergs were expected.http://www.titanicinquiry.org/BOTInq/BOTInq28Affeld01.php British Inquiry – Testimony of G Affeld, Marine Superintendent Red Star Line Q22583 & Q25615/16 It was assumed that any iceberg large enough to damage the ship would be seen in sufficient time to be avoided. After the sinking, the British Board of Trade introduced regulations instructing vessels to moderate their speed if they were expecting to encounter icebergs. It is often alleged that J. Bruce Ismay instructed or encouraged Captain [Edward Smith to increase speed in order to make an early landfall, and is a common feature in popular representations of the disaster. As there is no evidence for this having happened, many disputed the claim.[http://www.titanic1.org/articles/ismay.asp Paul Louden-Brown "The White Star Line; An Illustrated History 1869-1934" ===Lifeboats=== The ''Titanic'' did not carry sufficient lifeboats for all of her passengers and crew. The law at that time stipulated that a minimum of 16 lifeboats and enough places for 962 occupants were required for a ship that weighed more than 10,000 tons. This law was issued in 1894, when the largest emigrant steamer was the ''Lucania'', of 12,952 tons. It had not been updated for 18 years, and ships had increased rapidly in size. Thus, the Titanic was only legally required to carry enough lifeboats for 962 occupants (the ship had room for 3,547 passengers). The White Star Line exceeded the regulations by including four collapsible lifeboats, bringing total lifeboat capacity to 1,178. http://www.titanicinquiry.org/BOTInq/BOTReport/BOTRepBOT.php In the busy North Atlantic sea lanes, it was expected that in the event of a serious accident, help from other vessels would be quickly obtained and that the lifeboats would be used to ferry passengers and crew from the stricken vessel to her rescuers. Full provision of lifeboats was not considered necessary for this. During the design of the ship, it was anticipated that the British Board of Trade might require an increase in the number of lifeboats at some future date. Therefore, lifeboat davits capable of handling up to four boats per pair of davits were designed by Alexander Carlisle and installed to give a total potential capacity of 64 boats. [http://www.titanicinquiry.org/BOTInq/BOTInq20Carlisle01.php Testimony of Alexander Carlisle at British Inquiry The additional boats were never fitted. It is often alleged that J. Bruce Ismay, the president of White Star, vetoed the installation of these additional boats to maximise the passenger promenade area on the boat deck. Harold Sanderson, Vice President of International Mercantile Marine denied this allegation during the British Inquiry.[http://www.titanicinquiry.org/BOTInq/BOTInq18Sanderson01.php Testimony of Harold Sanderson at British Inquiry - Question #19398 The lack of lifeboats was not the only cause of the tragic loss of lives. After the collision with the iceberg, one hour was taken to evaluate the damage, recognise what was going to happen, inform first-class passengers, and lower the first lifeboat. Afterwards, the crew worked quite efficiently, taking a total of 80 minutes to lower all 16 lifeboats. The crew was divided into two teams, one on each side of the ship, and an average of 10 minutes of work was necessary for a team to fill a lifeboat with passengers and lower it.{{Fact|date=August 2007--> Yet another factor in the high death toll that related to the lifeboats was the reluctance of the passengers to board them. They were, after all, on a ship deemed to be "unsinkable." Because of this, some lifeboats were launched with far less than capacity, the most notable being Lifeboat #1, with a capacity of 40, launched with only 12 people aboard. Included in the first launched were lifeboats 6, 7, and 8, each of which were equipped to hold 65 but evacuated the ship with only 28 on board each boat. Robin Gardener & Dan van der Vat, ''The Riddle of the Titanic'' (London: Orion 1995) p136 The excessive number of casualties has also been blamed{{Fact|date=August 2007--> on the "women and children first" policy for places on the lifeboats. Although the lifeboats had a total capacity of 1,178 - enough for 53% of the 2,224 persons on board - the boats launched only had a capacity of 1,084, and, altogether only 712 people were actually saved - 32% of those originally on board. This is a result when the 1,084-person capacity of the lifeboats actually launched had sufficient room to include all of the 534 women and children on board, plus an additional 550 men (of which there were 1,690 on board). It has been suggested{{Fact|date=August 2007--> based on these figures that allowing one man on board for each woman or child from the start would not only have increased the number of women and children saved but also had the added benefit of saving more lives in total. As it was, the many desperate men had to be held off at gunpoint from boarding the lifeboats, adding to the chaos of the scene, and there were many more casualties - of women, children and men - than otherwise.{{cite web|title=Women and children first|url=http://www.logoi.com/notes/titanic/women_children_first.html--> ===Use of SOS=== The sinking of the ''Titanic'' was not the first time the internationally recognised [Morse code distress signal "[SOS" was used. The SOS signal was first proposed at the International Conference on Wireless Communication at Sea in [Berlin in 1906. It was ratified by the international community in 1908 and had been in widespread use since then. The SOS signal was, however, rarely used by British wireless operators, who preferred the older [CQD code. First Wireless Operator [Jack Phillips began transmitting CQD until Second Wireless Operator [Harold Sydney Bride suggested, half-jokingly, "Send SOS; it's the new call, and this may be your last chance to send it." Phillips, who was to perish in the disaster, then began to intersperse SOS with the traditional CQD call. ===''Titanic'''s turning ability=== ]. The ''Titanic'' had triple-screw engine configuration, with reciprocating steam engines driving the wing propellers, and a steam turbine driving her centre propeller. The reciprocating engines were reversible, while the turbine was not. When Murdoch gave the order to reverse engines to avoid the iceberg, he inadvertently handicapped the turning ability of the ship. Since the centre turbine could not reverse during the "full speed astern" manoeuvre, it simply stopped turning. Furthermore, the centre propeller was positioned forward of the ship's rudder, diminishing the turning effectiveness of the rudder. Had Murdoch reversed the [Port (nautical) engine, and reduced speed while maintaining the forward motion of the other two propellers (as recommended in the training procedures for this type of ship), experts theorise that the ''Titanic'' might have been able to navigate around the berg without a collision.[non-synchronous transmissions However, given the closing distance between the ship and the berg at the time the bridge was notified, this might not have been possible without some sort of impact. Additionally, ''Titanic'' experts have hypothesised that if ''Titanic'' had not altered its course at all but reversed its engines and had run head-on into the iceberg, the damage would only have affected the first or, at most, the first two compartments. The liner [SS Arizona had such a head-on collision with an iceberg in 1879 and, although badly damaged, managed to make it to [St John's, Newfoundland for repairs. Some dispute that ''Titanic'' would have survived such a collision, however, since ''Titanic's'' speed was higher than ''Arizona's'', her hull much larger and mass much greater, and the violence of the collision could have compromised her structural integrity. {{Fact|date=August 2007--> ===Faults in construction=== ] in [Washington, D.C.. Though the topic is seldom discussed, there is some speculation as to whether ''Titanic'' was constructed by methods considered sufficiently robust by the standards of the day. In the documentary series ''[Seconds from Disaster'', this was investigated further. Rumoured faults in the construction included problems with the safety doors and missing or detached bolts in the ship's hull plating. This may have been a major contributing factor to the sinking and that the iceberg, in part with the missing bolts and screws, eventually led to the demise of ''Titanic''. Possibly, if the watertight bulkheads had completely sealed the ship's compartments (they only went 3 m above the waterline), the ship would have stayed afloat. {{Fact|date=August 2007--> ] However, ''Titanic's'' hull was held together by [rivets, which are intended to be a permanent way of attaching metal items together, whereas bolts can be removed and would require periodic tightening unless the nut and bolt are welded after being screwed together. Welding technology in 1912 was in its infancy, so this was not done. While issues with ''Titanic's'' rivets have been identified from samples salvaged from the wreck site, many ships of the era would have been constructed with similar methods and did not sink after becoming involved in collisions. There was a claim that the rivets of the Titanic had not been properly [tempering, leaving them brittle and sensitive to fracture in the infamous collision. ''Seconds from Disaster'', ''Sinking of the Titanic'', documentary, aired on National Geographic Channel Although sealing off the watertight bulkheads with watertight decks would have increased the survivability of a vessel such as ''Titanic'', it would have by no means ensured the survival of a ship with as much underwater damage as ''Titanic'' sustained in her collision with the iceberg; it was a big iceberg. Even if the compartments themselves had remained completely watertight, the weight of the water would still have pulled the bow of the ship down to the point where decks above the watertight deck would have been below the waterline. The ship would then have flooded via the portholes and sunk anyway. It should also be noted that watertight decks would have hampered access to the lower sections of the ship and would have required watertight hatches, all of which would have had to be properly sealed to maintain the barrier between the incoming water and the rest of the ship. As the increased survivability that such watertight decks would have offered is questionable, they are generally considered to this day to be impractical in [merchant ship (though some [warship, which are exposed to much greater risk of flooding by virtue of being targets for enemy mines and torpedoes, do feature such decks). [RMS Olympic, built to almost identical specifications by the same builders as ''Titanic'', was involved in several collisions during the course of her operational lifetime, one of which occurred before ''Titanic'' sank; and ''Olympic's'' hull was modified to protect her from flooding in a fashion similar to her ill-fated sister's. None of these collisions threatened to sink the ship, suggesting that the ''Olympic''-class liners were built to be sufficiently tough and did not suffer from slipshod construction. ==Alternative theories and myths== {{main|Titanic alternative theories--> As with many famous events, many alternative theories about the sinking of ''Titanic'' have appeared over the years. Theories that it was not an iceberg that sank the ship or that a curse caused the disaster have been popular reading in newspapers and books. Most of these theories have been debunked by ''Titanic'' experts, claiming that the evidence on which these theories were based was inaccurate or incomplete. Another theory is that the ''Titanic'' was sacrificed because, once construction had been completed, she was expected to be a potential perpetual financial loss. Supporters of this theory cite the claim that everyone concerned, the company and the officers aboard, had received iceberg warnings and yet the Titanic maintained a northern course instead of sailing to the south of the warning limit. There is a minor school of thought that it was not ''Titanic'' that sank but ''Olympic''. Conspiracy theorists cited evidence in favour, including the ''Hawke'' incident, which seriously damaged ''Olympic''. This supposedly motivated management to scuttle ''Olympic''/''Titanic'' and file an insurance claim. The two ships were dry-docked at the same yard at the same time (making a switch possible), and cosmetic changes were made, presumably to make the two ships more similar. Primary evidence against lies in the surveys made by the British government of ''Olympic'' from shortly after the sinking of ''Titanic'' to shortly before ''Olympic'''s scrapping which show artifacts of her 1911 collision damage. ''Titanic'' also possessed many design features ''Olympic'' did not, such as enlarged B-deck suites. Both vessels, additionally, were underinsured relative to their value and sinking either would cause a substantial loss, far greater than the operating costs of repairing ''Olympic'', to say nothing of the lost revenue resulting from loss of confidence in the company after the loss at sea of their flagship. A similar legend states that the ''Titanic'' was given hull number 390904 (which, when seen in a mirror or written using mirror writing, looks like "NO [pope"). This is a myth.[http://www.snopes.com/history/titanic/nopope.asp ''Titanic's'' yard number was 401; ''Olympic's'' was 400. Another myth states that ''Titanic'' was carrying a cursed Ancient Egypt [mummy, often named Princess of Amen-Ra. The mummy, nicknamed Shipwrecker after changing hands several times and causing many terrible things to happen to each of its owners, exacts its final revenge by sinking the famous ship. There was no mummy on board, only a coffin lid.[http://www.snopes.com/horrors/ghosts/mummy.asp Another myth says that the bottle of champagne used in christening ''Titanic'' did not break on the first try, which in sea lore is said to be bad luck for a ship. In fact, ''Titanic'' was not christened on launching, as it was White Star Line's custom not to do so. http://www.euronet.nl/users/keesree/construc.htm ==Rediscovery== ] submersible. The idea of finding the shipwreck of ''Titanic'' and even raising the ship from the ocean floor had been perpetuated since shortly after the ship sank. No attempts even to locate the ship were successful until [1 September [, when a joint French-American expeditionhttp://www.whoi.edu/page.do?pid=7539 Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution: Discovery of the Titanic , led by Jean-Louis Michel of [IFREMER and Dr [Robert Ballard of the [Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, sailing on the Research Vessel [R/V Knorr, discovered the wreck using the video camera sled [Argo (submersible). It was found at a depth of {{ft to m|12536|-->, south-east of [Newfoundland (island) at {{coor dms|41|43|32|N|49|56|49|W|type:landmark_scale:30000000-->[http://www.titanic-titanic.com/titanic_wreck_location.shtml Titanic Wreck Location, ''Titanic-Titanic.com'', 13 nautical miles (24 km) from where ''Titanic'' was originally thought to rest. The most notable discovery the team made was that the ship had broken in two, the stern section lying 1,970 feet (600 m) from the bow section and both facing in opposite directions. There had been conflicting witness accounts of whether the ship broke apart on the surface or not, and both the American and British inquiries found that the ship sank intact. Up until the discovery of the wreck, it was generally assumed the ship did not break apart. In 2005, a theory was presented that a portion of ''Titanic'''s bottom broke off right before the ship broke in two.{{cite news | title=Scientists ponder Titanic discoveries | date=December 5, 2005 | publisher=CNN | url=http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/science/12/05/titanic.find.ap/index.html--> The theory was conceived after an expedition sponsored by [The History Channel examined the three hull pieces.{{cite news | last=Lindsay | first=Jay | title=Scientists unveil new discoveries from Titanic wreck | date=December 5, 2005 | publisher=Associated Press | url=http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2005/12/05/scientists_unveil_new_discoveries_from_titanic_wreck/--> The bow section had embedded itself more than 60 feet (18 m) into the silt on the ocean floor. Although parts of the hull had buckled, the bow was mostly intact, as the water inside had equalised with the increasing water pressure. The stern section was in much worse condition. As the stern section sank, water pushed out the air inside tearing apart the hull and decks. The speed at which the stern hit the ocean floor caused even more damage. Surrounding the wreck is a large debris field, with pieces of the ship (including a large amount of coal), furniture, dinnerware and personal items scattered over one square mile (2.6 km²). Softer materials, like wood and carpet, were devoured by undersea organisms, as were human remains. Later exploration of the vessel's lower decks, as chronicled in the book ''Ghosts of the Titanic'' by [Charles Pellegrino, showed that much of the wood from ''Titanic's'' staterooms was still intact. A new theory has been put forth that much of the wood from the upper decks was not devoured by undersea organisms but rather broke free of its fixings and floated away. This is supported by some eyewitness testimony from the survivors. ==Ownership and litigation== ], [Northern Ireland. Ballard and his crew did not bring up any artifacts from the wreck. Upon discovery in 1985, a legal debate began over ownership of the wreck and the valuable artifacts inside. On 7 June [, RMS Titanic Inc. was awarded ownership and salvaging rights of the wreckhttp://www.premier-exhibitions-investors.org/titanic_ownership.htm Comprehensive resume of ownership questions by the [United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. (See [Admiralty law){{cite web |title=Corporate Profile |work=RMS Titanic, Inc. |url=http://www.rmstitanic.net/index.php4?page=448 |accessdate=February 1 |accessyear=2006--> RMS Titanic Inc., a subsidiary of Premier Exhibitions Inc., and its predecessors have conducted seven expeditions to the wreck between 1987 and 2004 and salvaged over 5,500 objects. The biggest single recovered artifact was a 17-ton section of the hull, recovered in 1998.{{cite web |title=Expeditions |work=RMS Titanic, Inc. |url=http://www.rmstitanic.net/index.php4?page=471 |accessdate=February 1 |accessyear=2006--> Many of these artifacts are part of travelling museum exhibitions. Beginning in 1987, a joint [United States-French expedition, which included the predecessor of RMS Titanic Inc., began salvage operations and, during 32 dives, recovered approximately 1,800 artifacts which were taken to [France for conservation and restoration. In 1993, a [France administrator in the Office of Maritime Affairs of the Ministry of Equipment, Transportation, and Tourism awarded RMS Titanic Inc's predecessor title to the artifacts recovered in 1987. In a motion filed on 12 February [ RMS Titanic Inc. requested that the District Court enter an order awarding it "title to all the artifacts (including portions of the hull) which are the subject of this action pursuant to the Law of Finds" or, in the alternative, a salvage award in the amount of $225 million. RMS Titanic Inc. excluded from its motion any claim for an award of title to the 1987 artifacts, but it did request that the district court declare that, based on the French administrative action, "the artifacts raised during the 1987 expedition are independently owned by RMST." Following a hearing, the district court entered an order dated 2 July [, in which it refused to grant comity and recognize the 1993 decision of the French administrator, and rejected RMS Titanic Inc's claim that it should be awarded title to the artifacts recovered since 1993 under the Maritime Law of Finds. RMS Titanic Inc. appealed to the United States Court of Appeals. In its decision of [31 January [{{PDFlink]|127 Kibibyte--> the court recognised "explicitly the appropriateness of applying maritime salvage law to historic wrecks such as that of ''Titanic''" and denied the application of the Maritime Law of Finds. The court also ruled that the district court lacked jurisdiction over the "1987 artifacts", and therefore vacated that part of the court's [2 July [ order. In other words, according to this decision, RMS Titanic Inc. has ownership title to the artifacts awarded in the French decision (valued $16.5 million earlier) and continues to be salvor-in-possession of ''Titanic'' wreck. The Court of Appeals remanded the case to the District Court to determine the salvage award ($225 million requested by RMS Titanic Inc.).{{cite web |url=http://www.premier-exhibitions-investors.org/titanic_ownership.htm#excerpts |title=Commented excerpts of the Court of Appeals decision--> ==Condition of the wreck== Many scientists, including Robert Ballard, are concerned that visits by tourists in submersibles and the recovery of artifacts are hastening the [decay of the wreck. Underwater microbes have been [Rusticle at ''Titanic'''s iron since the ship sank, but because of the extra damage visitors have caused, [National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration estimates that "the hull and structure of the ship may collapse to the ocean floor within the next 50 years." Several scientists and conservationists have also complained about the removal of the crow's nest on the mast by a French expedition.

Ballard's book, Return to Titanic, published by the National Geographic Society, includes photographs showing the deterioration of the promenade deck and damage caused by submersibles landing on the ship. The Mast (sailing) has almost completely deteriorated, and repeated accusations were made that it had been stripped of its bell and brass light by salvagers. Ballard's own original discovery images however, clearly showing that the bell was never actually on the mast - it was recovered from the sea floor. The French submersible Nautile allegedly is responsible for crashing into the crow's nest and causing it to fall from the mast. Even the memorial plaque left by Ballard on his second trip to the wreck was alleged to have been removed; Ballard replaced the plaque in 2004. Recent expeditions, notably by James Cameron, have been diving on the wreck to learn more about the site and explore previously unexplored parts of the ship before Titanic decays completely.

Popular culture (1912). Image from the 1912 German film that dramatised the tragedy.

The sinking of Titanic has been the basis for many novels describing fictionalised events on board the ship. Many reference books about the disaster have also been written since Titanic sank, the first of these appearing within months of the sinking. Several films and TV movies were produced, the first being In Nacht und Eis as early as 1912. The 1997 film Titanic (1997 film), starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet was a critical and commercial hit, winning eleven Academy Awards and holding the record for the highest box office returns of all time.

Living survivors There are two survivors of the Titanic still living although neither has actual memories of the sinking. They are:

Recent survivors' deaths

100th anniversary On 15 April 2012, the 100th anniversary of the sinking of Titanic is planned to be commemorated around the world. By that date the Titanic Quarter, Belfast in Belfast is planned to have been completed. The area will be regenerated and a signature memorial project unveiled to celebrate Titanic and her links with Belfast, the city that built the ship.

See also

Notes References

External links



RMS TITANIC, INC
Owns the salvor-in-possession rights to the wreck of the Titanic and runs expeditions and exhibitions. Includes details of the history, science, exhibitions schedule, photos ...

Titanic
This innovative museum website is dedicated to Titanic and her birth in Belfast. The most famous ship in history is pictured and interpreted through our unique and internationally ...

RMS Titanic - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
RMS Titanic was an Olympic-class passenger liner owned by the White Star Line and built at the Harland and Wolff shipyard. On the night of 14 April 1912, during her maiden voyage ...

RMS Titanic
RMS Titanic. Titanic was over 880ft long and 92 feet 6 inches (28 m) at the beam (6 inches longer than twin ship RMS Olympic). She had a Gross Register Tonnage of 46,328 tons ...

RMS Titanic - Wikimedia Commons
Photo of the iceberg which was probably rammed by the RMS Titanic; photographed five days after the disaster by Bohemian seaman Stephan Rehorek

Titanic Passenger and Crew Biography and Titanic History ...
RMS Titanic passenger and crew biography, Titanic history, research and discussions

RMS TITANIC, INC
RMS Titanic, Inc. corporate information and the official Titanic archive. ... No. 1: Why was the Titanic built? Although the Titanic is best known for carrying the rich and famous ...

Titanic-Titanic.com • View forum - RMS Titanic
Topics Replies Views Last post; some more questions about the Titanic 1, 2, 3, 4 by peter stephen richard howcroft on Mon Feb 04, 2008 4:42 am 75 Replies

Encyclopedia Titanica for the latest Titanic research
Encyclopedia Titanica features the very latest Titanic research includes over 2000 passenger and crew biographies.

RMS Titanic - Hutchinson encyclopedia article about RMS Titanic
British passenger liner, supposedly unsinkable, that struck an iceberg and sank off the Grand Banks of Newfoundland on its first voyage on 14-15 April 1912; estimates of the number ...

 

Rms Titanic



 
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