The legendary first flight of the Titanic was supposed to be the main solemn event of 1912, but instead it became the most tragic in history. An absurd collision with an iceberg, an unorganized evacuation of people, almost one and a half thousand dead - this was the only voyage of the liner.
History of the ship
Banal rivalry served as an incentive to begin the construction of the Titanic. The idea of creating a liner is better than that of a competitor, it occurred to the owner of the British shipping company White Star Line Bruce Ismey. This happened after their main rival, Kunard Line, launched the largest ship at that time, the Lusitania, in 1906.
The construction of the liner began in 1909. About three thousand specialists worked on its creation; more than seven million dollars were spent. Recent work was completed in 1911, and at the same time the long-awaited launch of the liner took place.
Many people, both rich and poor, sought to get the coveted ticket for this flight, but no one suspected that only a few days after departure, the world community would discuss only one thing - how many people died on the Titanic.
Despite the fact that the company “White Star Line” managed to surpass the competitor in shipbuilding, the subsequent
death of “Titanic” dealt a
strong blow to the reputation of the company. In 1934, she was completely absorbed by Kunard Line.
The first voyage of the "unsinkable"
The grand sailing of the luxury ship was the most anticipated event of 1912. It was very difficult to get tickets, and they were sold out long before the scheduled flight. But as it turned out later, those who exchanged or resold their tickets were lucky, and they did not regret that they were not on the ship when they learned how many people died on the Titanic.
The first and last flight of the White Star Line's largest airliner was scheduled for April 10, 1912. The departure of the ship took place at 12 o'clock local time, and only 4 days later, on April 14, 1912, a tragedy occurred - the ill-fated collision with an iceberg.
The tragic foresight of the death of the Titanic
The fictional story of a ship wreck in the Atlantic Ocean, which later turned out to be prophetic, was written by British journalist William Thomas Stead in 1886. By publishing, the author wanted to draw public attention to the need to revise the navigation rules, namely, he demanded that the number of seats in the ship's boats be consistent with the number of passengers.
A few years later, Stead again returned to a similar topic in a new story about a ship crash in the Atlantic Ocean that occurred as a result of a collision with an iceberg. The death of people on the liner occurred due to the lack of the required number of boats.
This work of the author was prophetic. A major shipwreck occurred exactly 20 years after its writing. The journalist himself, who was at that moment on the Titanic, was unable to escape.
How many people died on the Titanic: the composition of the drowned and the survivors
More than 100 years have passed since the most discussed shipwreck of the 20th century, but each time during regular trials new circumstances of the tragedy are clarified and updated lists of those who died and survived as a result of the liner’s death appear.
The wreck of the ship "Titanic". Fatalities and survivors: gender composition| Affiliation | Total amount | Died | % dead | Saved | % saved |
| Men | 1670 | 1332 | 80 | 338 | 20 |
| Women | 422 | 106 | 25 | 316 | 75 |
| Children | 109 | 52 | 48 | 57 | 52 |
| Total | 2201 | 1490 | 67.7 | 711 | 32.3 |
This table gives us comprehensive information. The ratio of how many women and children died on the Titanic is the most telling of the disorganization of the evacuation. The percentage of surviving women is even higher than the number of surviving children. As a result of the shipwreck, 80% of men died, most of them simply did not have enough space in lifeboats. High death toll among children. These were mainly representatives of the lower class, who were unable to get on deck on time for evacuation.
How to save people from high society? Class Discrimination on the Titanic
As soon as it became clear that the ship did not stay on the water for long, the captain of the Titanic, Edward John Smith, ordered the women and children to be put into lifeboats. At the same time, access to the deck for class III passengers was limited. Thus, the advantage in salvation was given to representatives of high society.
The death of the Titanic. The composition of the dead and survivors by class| Affiliation | Total amount | Died | % dead | Saved | % saved |
| I class | 325 | 122 | 38 | 203 | 62 |
| II class | 285 | 167 | 59 | 118 | 41 |
| III class | 706 | 528 | 75 | 178 | 25 |
| Command | 885 | 673 | 76 | 212 | 24 |
| Total | 2201 | 1490 | 67.7 | 711 | 32.3 |
A large number of dead people became the reason that for the past 100 years, investigations and litigation have not stopped. All experts note that on board during evacuation there was discrimination based on gender and class. At the same time, the number of surviving crew members was greater than representatives of class III. Instead of helping passengers board the boats, they escaped first.
How did people evacuate from the Titanic?
Unorganized properly evacuation of people is still considered the main cause of mass deaths. The fact that how many people died during the crash of the Titanic testifies to the complete absence of any control over this process. In 20 lifeboats could accommodate at least 1178 people. But at the beginning of the evacuation they were launched into the water half full, and not only by women and children, but also by entire families, and even with tame dogs. As a result, the boat occupancy rate was only 60%.
The total number of passengers on the ship with the exception of the crew members was 1316 people, that is, the captain had the opportunity to save 90% of the passengers. Class III people were able to get on deck only at the end of the evacuation, and therefore, even the crew members eventually escaped more. Numerous clarifications of the causes and facts of the shipwreck confirm that the responsibility for how many people died on the Titanic rests entirely with the captain of the liner.
Memories of eyewitnesses of the tragedy
All those who pulled a lucky ticket from a sinking ship into a lifeboat received unforgettable impressions of the first and last flight of the Titanic liner. The facts, the number of deaths, the causes of the disaster were obtained thanks to their testimony. The memories of some surviving passengers have been published and will forever remain in history.
In 2009, Millvin Dean, the last woman from the Titanic passengers who survived, passed away. At the time of the shipwreck, she was only two and a half months old. Her father died on a sinking liner, and her mother and brother escaped with her. And although the woman had no memories of that terrible night, the disaster made such a deep impression on her that she forever refused to visit the shipwreck and never watched feature films and documentaries about the Titanic.
In 2006, at an English auction where about 300 exhibits from the Titanic were presented, Ellen Churchill Candy's memoirs, which was one of the passengers of the ill-fated flight, were sold for 47 thousand pounds.
The published memories of yet another Englishwoman, Elizabeth Shutts, helped in compiling the real picture of the disaster. She was a governess in one of the first-class passengers. In her memoirs, Elizabeth indicated that there were only 36 people in the lifeboat to which she was evacuated, that is, only half of the total number of available seats.
Indirect causes of the ship wreck
In all sources of information about the Titanic, the main cause of his death is a collision with an iceberg. But as it turned out later, this event was accompanied by several indirect circumstances.
In the course of studying the causes of the disaster, part of the ship's skin was raised to the surface from the ocean floor. A piece of steel was tested, and scientists proved that the metal of which the liner body was made was of poor quality. This was another circumstance of the crash and the reason how many people died on the Titanic.
The perfectly smooth surface of the water did not allow to detect the iceberg in time. Even a small wind would be enough for the waves breaking on the ice to detect it before the collision occurred.
The unsatisfactory work of radio operators who did not inform the captain in time about the ice drifting in the ocean, too high a speed of movement, which did not allow to quickly change the course of the ship — all these factors together led to the tragic events on the Titanic.
The death of the Titanic - a terrible shipwreck of the twentieth century
A fairy tale turned into pain and horror - this is how one can characterize the first and last voyage of the Titanic liner. The true history of the disaster, even after a hundred years, is the subject of debate and investigation. The deaths of almost one and a half thousand people with empty lifeboats still remain inexplicable. Every year, new causes of the shipwreck are called, but not one of them is able to return the lost human lives.