RMS Titanic

RMS Titanic (also SS Titanic) was the second of a trio of superliners intended to dominate the transatlantic travel business.{{ref|trio_ref}} Owned by the White Star Line and built at the Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast, Ireland, the Titanic was the largest passenger steamship in the world at the time of its launching. During Titanic's maiden voyage, it struck an iceberg at 11:40 PM (ship's time) on Sunday evening April 14, 1912, and sank two hours and forty minutes later at 2:20 AM Monday morning.

Construction

The Titanic was a White Star Line ocean liner built at the Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast, Ireland, and was designed to compete with rival company Cunard Line's Lusitania and Mauretania. The Titanic, along with its Olympic-class sisters, the Olympic and the soon to be built Britannic (originally named Gigantic {{ref|Britannic_name}}), were intended to be the largest, most luxurious ships ever to operate. The Titanic was designed by Harland and Wolff chairman Lord Pirrie, head of Harland and Wolff's design department Thomas Andrews and general manager Alexander Carlisle, with the plans regularly sent to White Star Line's managing director J. Bruce Ismay for suggestions and approval. Construction of the RMS Titanic, funded by the American J.P. Morgan and his International Mercantile Marine Co., began on March 31, 1909. Titanic's hull was launched two years and two months months later on May 31, 1911, the same day that the Olympic would begin its maiden voyage. Titanic's outfitting was completed March 31 the following year. Titanic was 882 ft 9 in (269 m) long and 92 ft 6 in (28 m) at its beam, it had a gross tonnage of 46,328 tons, and a height from the water line to the boat deck of 60 ft (18 m). Although it enclosed more space and therefore had a larger gross tonnage, the hull was exactly the same length as Titanic's sister ship Olympic. Titanic contained two reciprocating four-cylinder, triple expansion, inverted steam engines and one low pressure Parsons turbine which powered three propellers. There were 29 boilers fired by 159 coal burning furnaces that made possible a top speed of 23 knots (43 km/h). Only three of the four 63 feet (19 m) tall funnels were functional; the fourth funnel, which only served as a vent, was added to make the ship look more impressive. The ship could hold a total of 3,547 passengers and crew and, because it carried mail, its name was given the prefix RMS (Royal Mail Steamer) as well as SS (Steam Ship).

Related Topics:
White Star Line - Harland and Wolff - Belfast - Ireland - Cunard Line's - Lusitania - Mauretania - Olympic - Britannic - Lord Pirrie - Thomas Andrews - J. Bruce Ismay - J.P. Morgan - International Mercantile Marine Co. - March 31 - 1909 - Hull - May 31 - 1911 - Tonnage - Reciprocating - Cylinder - Steam engine - Parsons turbine - Propeller - Boiler - Coal - Furnace - Knot - Funnels - Mail - RMS

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For its time, the ship was unsurpassed in its luxury and opulence. The ship offered an onboard swimming pool, gymnasium, a Turkish bath, library and squash court. First-class common rooms were ornately decorated with elaborate wood panelling, expensive furniture and other elegant decorations. The ship offered three lifts for use of first-class passengers and, as an innovation, offered one lift for second-class passengers.

Related Topics:
Swimming pool - Gymnasium - Turkish bath - Library - Squash court - First-class - Lift

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Titanic was considered a pinnacle of naval architecture and technological achievement. It was thought by The Shipbuilder magazine to be "practically unsinkable." Titanic was divided into 16 watertight compartments with doors that were held by a magnetic latch and would fall by moving a switch on the bridge; however, the bulkheads did not traverse the entire height of the decks (only going as far as E-Deck). The Titanic could stay afloat with any two of the middle compartments flooded or the first four compartments flooded; any more and the ship would sink.

Related Topics:
Naval architecture - Magnetic - Bulkhead - Decks

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