How many people died on the Titanic? The Genuine History of the Catastrophe

The legendary first flight of the Titanic was to become the main solemn event of 1912, but instead it became the most tragic in history. The absurd collision with the iceberg, the unorganized evacuation of people, almost one and a half thousand dead - this was the only cruise of the liner.

History of the ship

Banal competition served as an incentive for the construction of the Titanic. The idea of creating a liner is better than that of a competitor company, the owner of the British shipping company "White Star Line" Bruce Ismay came to mind. This happened after their main rival, "Cunard Line" in 1906, sailed its largest at that time ship called "Lusitania".

The construction of the liner began in 1909. About three thousand specialists worked on its creation, over seven million dollars were spent. The last works were completed in 1911, and at the same time the long-awaited descent of the liner took place.

Many people, rich and poor, tried to get a coveted ticket for this flight, but no one suspected that only a few days after sailing the world community would discuss only one thing - how many people died on the Titanic.

Despite the fact that the company "White Star Line" was able to surpass the competitor in shipbuilding, the subsequent death of "Titanic" dealt a heavy blow to the company's reputation. In 1934, it was completely absorbed by Cunard Line.

The first voyage of the "unsinkable"

The solemn departure of the luxurious ship became the most anticipated event of 1912. Tickets to get it was very difficult, and they were sold out long before the planned flight. But as it turned out later, those who exchanged or resold their tickets were very lucky, and they did not regret not being on the ship when they learned how many people died on the Titanic.

The first and last flight of the largest liner of the company "White Star Line" was appointed on April 10, 1912. Departure of the ship took place at 12 o'clock local time, and after 4 days, April 14, 1912, a tragedy occurred - an ill-fated collision with an iceberg.

Tragic prediction of the death of the "Titanic"

A fictional story about the crash of a ship in the Atlantic Ocean, which later turned out to be prophetic, was written by British journalist William Thomas Stead in 1886. The author wanted to draw attention of the public to the necessity of revision of navigation rules by his publication, namely, he demanded to provide the number of places in the ship's boats, corresponding to the number of passengers.

A few years later, Stead again returned to a similar topic in a new story about the crash of a ship in the Atlantic Ocean, which occurred as a result of a collision with an iceberg. The death of people on the liner was due to the lack of the required number of boats.

This work of the author proved to be prophetic. A major shipwreck happened exactly 20 years after it was written. The journalist, who is at that moment on the Titanic, could not be saved.

How many people died on the Titanic: the composition of the drowned and survivors

More than 100 years have passed since the most discussed shipwreck of the 20th century, but each time in the course of the next trial, new circumstances of the tragedy are clarified and updated lists of those killed and survived as a result of the death of the liner appear.

This table gives us exhaustive information. The ratio of how many died on the "Titanic" women and children, most speaks of the disorganization of evacuation. The percentage of survivors of the fairer sex exceeds even the number of surviving children. As a result of the shipwreck, 80% of the men died, most of them simply did not have enough space in the lifeboats. A high percentage of deaths among children. They were mostly representatives of the lower class, who could not get on time on the deck for evacuation.

How did they save people from high society? Class discrimination on the "Titanic"

As soon as it became clear that keeping the ship on the water did not last long, the captain of the Titanic Edward John Smith ordered to put women and children in lifeboats. At the same time, access to the deck for third-class passengers was limited. Thus, the advantage of salvation was given to representatives of high society.

A large number of dead people became the reason for the fact that for 100 years investigations and litigations have not stopped. All experts note that on board during the evacuation there was discrimination based on gender and class. At the same time, the number of crew members who survived was greater than representatives of the third class. Instead of helping passengers to board the boats, they were the first to flee.

How was the evacuation of people from the Titanic?

Disorganized properly evacuation of people is still considered the main cause of mass deaths. The fact of 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-filled, not only by women and children, but also by whole families, and even with tame dogs. As a result, the influx of boats was only 60%.

The total number of passengers of the ship except for the crew was 1316 people, that is, the captain had the opportunity to save 90% of passengers. People of the III class were able to make their way to the deck only at the end of the evacuation, and therefore even the crew members in the end were saved more. Numerous explanations of the causes and facts of the shipwreck confirm that the responsibility for how much the man died on the Titanic is entirely the captain of the liner.

Memories of eyewitnesses to the tragedy

All those who pulled out a lucky ticket from a sinking ship to a lifeboat received unforgettable impressions from the first and last flight of the Titanic liner. Facts, the number of deaths, the causes of the disaster were obtained due to their testimony. The memories of some surviving passengers were published and will forever remain in history.

In 2009, died from the life of Millvina Dean - the last woman of survivors of the "Titanic". At the time of the shipwreck, she was only two and a half months. Her father died on a sinking ship, and his mother and brother escaped with her. And although the memories of that terrible night the woman did not survive in memory, the catastrophe made such a deep impression on her that she forever refused to visit the crash site of the ship and never watched the feature films and documentaries about the Titanic.

In 2006, at the English auction, which featured about 300 exhibits from the Titanic, for 47 thousand pounds were realized memoirs of Ellen Churchill Candy, who was one of the passengers of the ill-fated flight.

The published memoirs of another Englishwoman, Elizabeth Schuts, helped in drawing up a real picture of the catastrophe that occurred. She was the governess of one of the passengers of the first class. 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 seats available.

Indirect causes of shipwreck

In all sources of information about the Titanic, the main cause of his death is the collision with the iceberg. But as it turned out later, this event was accompanied by several indirect circumstances.

In the course of studying the causes of the catastrophe, a part of the ship's shell was raised from the ocean floor. A piece of steel was tested, and scientists proved that the metal from which the liner was made was of poor quality. This served as another circumstance of the crash and the reason for how many people died on the Titanic.

The ideally smooth surface of the water did not allow the iceberg to be found in time. Even a small wind would be enough to make waves that beat on the ice, to detect it before the collision occurred.

The unsatisfactory work of the radio operators, who did not inform the captain in time about the ice drifting in the ocean, too great a speed of movement, which did not allow a quick change in the course of the ship, all these factors together led to tragic events on the Titanic.

The death of the "Titanic" - the terrible shipwreck of the twentieth century

The tale that turned into pain and horror - so you can characterize the first and last voyage of the Titanic liner. The true story of the disaster even after a hundred years is the subject of controversy and investigation. The death of almost one and a half thousand people with unfilled lifeboats is still inexplicable. Every year, all the new causes of shipwreck are called, but none of them is able to return the lost human lives.