{"id":13184,"date":"2022-04-11T08:05:00","date_gmt":"2022-04-11T06:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.historyextra.com\/?p=87166"},"modified":"2022-04-11T08:25:25","modified_gmt":"2022-04-11T06:25:25","slug":"your-history-guide-to-rms-titanic-plus-12-fascinating-facts-about-the-disaster","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbchistory\/rss_feed\/your-history-guide-to-rms-titanic-plus-12-fascinating-facts-about-the-disaster\/","title":{"rendered":"Your history guide to RMS Titanic, plus 12 fascinating facts about the disaster"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Emma Mason\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Monday, 11 April 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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The story of Titanic<\/em>, from drawing board to disaster, and the individual factors that each contributed to the ship\u2019s sinking \u2013 from freak weather conditions to errors of judgment \u2013 weave an intriguing tale. As do the often heartbreaking stories of the myriad people on board: families emigrating to the US hoping to grab a slice of the American dream, through to some of the world\u2019s wealthiest individuals.<\/p>\n

RMS Titanic<\/em> \u2013 at the time, the world\u2019s largest man-made moving object at 269 metres in length and widely considered to be \u2018unsinkable\u2019 \u2013 struck an iceberg at 11.40pm on 14 April 1912. Despite several warnings, Titanic<\/em> was racing through dangerous waters almost at its top speed of 23 knots. The berg was spotted only 30 seconds before impact, thanks in part to the fact that lookouts were not equipped with binoculars.<\/p>\n

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An advertising poster c1911 shows passengers on the first-class deck of Titanic. (Photo by Roger Viollet via Getty Images)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

The iceberg caused a crack of over 200ft along Titanic<\/em>\u2019s starboard side. The size of the rupture meant five of the forward compartments flooded, with the ship\u2019s design allowing for four to flood safely. It is widely believed that if the collision was head on, Titanic<\/em> would have survived.<\/p>\n

It took just two-and-a-half hours for the colossal vessel to sink, sending survivors into the freezing waters. Overall, the maritime disaster claimed over 1,500 lives. There were 705 survivors. It\u2019s a\u00a0story that still fascinates to this day, helped in no small part by the numerous film and television adaptations of the tragedy<\/a>. At its launch, the ship was the largest man-made moving object in existence and was hailed as the most luxurious way to travel across the Atlantic Ocean, yet its lasting legacy was one of immense trauma and loss.<\/p>\n

Read on for answers to the key questions about Titanic,<\/em>\u00a0plus 12 important facts about the ship and disaster<\/strong><\/p>\n

How big was Titanic<\/em>?<\/h2>\n

Titanic was 269 metres long and 28.2 metres wide, with a maximum speed of 23 knots.<\/p>\n

How many people died in the Titanic<\/em> disaster?<\/h2>\n

The disaster claimed over 1,500 lives. With the Atlantic Ocean\u2019s temperature below zero, many people died within minutes of entering the water. A mere 330 bodies were recovered out of the approximately 1,500 people who lost their lives \u2013 the exact number of fatalities is disputed.<\/p>\n

The ship\u2019s baker, Charles Joughin, however, survived for two hours, claiming he could not feel the cold as he was blind-drunk on whisky. Alongside the 705 survivors were two of the nine dogs brought aboard: a Pekinese and a Pomeranian.<\/p>\n

A day later, on 16 April, the Daily Mail <\/em>reported on the disaster. The headline read, \u201cTitanic<\/em> sunk. No lives lost\u201d. The true nature of the tragedy would not become known for several days.<\/p>\n

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A 1912 front page of The New York Times newspaper announces the sinking of Titanic. (Photo by Blank Archives\/Getty Images)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

\u201cThe real tragedy of Titanic<\/em> was that it was a completely avoidable catastrophe,\u201d says historian WB Bartlett. \u201cIt\u2019s a well-known fact that there were only enough lifeboats onboard the ship to accommodate 1,178 of her circa 2,200 passengers and crew, but other factors also contributed, such as the angle at which the ship struck the iceberg, the speed at which she was travelling and the reactions of those onboard, and elsewhere, to events. The terrible loss of life, played out in slow motion over a few hours, was a chain reaction of events, each individually compounding the problem.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat the disaster did succeed in doing was to substantially reduce the level of complacency in the shipping industry and to introduce a rapid change in regulation \u2013 such as 24-hour radio coverage, compulsory lifeboat drills and boats for all \u2013 still seen a century later.\u201d<\/p>\n

How many lifeboats were on board Titanic<\/em>?<\/h2>\n

Originally designed for 64 lifeboats, Titanic<\/em> only had 20 \u2013 not enough for the 2,200 passengers and crew on board. Many of the launched boats were not filled to capacity, with one carrying 24 people, even though it could fit 65. A lifeboat drill was planned for the day it hit the iceberg, but it was cancelled.<\/p>\n

The mighty ocean liner set sail with too few lifeboats to hold everyone on board, a decision based on the assumption that \u2013 in the unlikely event she ran into trouble \u2013 other ships would come to the rescue. They didn\u2019t, but why?<\/p>\n

There were two reasons. First, a miners\u2019 strike caused a shortage of high-grade steam coal in Britain, which meant that far fewer ships than usual were at sea in the North Atlantic.<\/p>\n

Under normal circumstances the Titanic<\/em> might have expected to be in sight of two or three ships at all times \u2013 but those ships were simply not there. The second reason was that not all ships had radios, and those that did have them did not man their radios 24 hours a day.<\/p>\n

At least two ships, the SS Californian<\/em> and SS Parisian<\/em>, could have reached Titanic<\/em> in time to rescue everyone on board had they received the distress call \u2013 but the radio sets on both ships were switched off that night.<\/p>\n

On the podcast | Titanic <\/em>expert Tim Maltin responds to popular search queries and listener questions about the 1912 maritime disaster:<\/strong><\/p>\n