There were a total of 42 days of official investigation. Lord Mersey and the various counsels, assessors and experts in marine law and shipping architecture, questioned White Star Line officials, government officials, surviving passengers and crew, and those who had aided the rescue efforts. Organisations represented by legal counsels included shipping unions and government organisations. Nearly 100 witnesses testified, answering more than 25,000 questions. The questioning resulted in a report that contained a detailed description of the ship, an account of the ship's journey, a description of the damage caused by the iceberg, and an account of the evacuation and rescue.
The sinking of the RMSTitanic, a trans-Atlantic passenger liner operated by White Star Line, occurred in the early hours of 15 April 1912 while the ship was on its maiden voyage from Southampton, UK, to New York, United States. The sinking was caused by a collision with an iceberg in the North Atlantic some 700 nautical miles east of Halifax, Nova Scotia. Over 1500 passengers and crew died, with some 710 survivors in Titanic's lifeboats rescued by RMSCarpathia a few hours later. There was initially some confusion in both the United States and the UK over the extent of the disaster, with some newspapers at first reporting that the ship and the passengers and crew were safe. By the time Carpathia reached New York, it had become clear that Titanic, reputed to be unsinkable, had sunk and many had died. Official inquiries were set up in both countries to investigate the circumstances of the disaster.[1]
Formation
The Attorney General, Sir Rufus Isaacs, presented the inquiry with a list of 26 key questions to be answered
When news of the disaster reached the UK government the responsibility for initiating an inquiry lay with the Board of Trade, the organisation responsible for British maritime regulations and whose inspectors had certified Titanic as seaworthy before her maiden voyage. On 22 April 1912, Sydney Buxton, President of the Board of Trade, asked Lord Loreburn, the Lord Chancellor, to set up a commission of inquiry. The Lord Chancellor appointed Lord Mersey as the inquiry's President.[2]
The resultant hearings took place from 2 May to 3 July 1912, mainly at the London Scottish Drill Hall, on Buckingham Gate.[2] The location was chosen for its large size, as sizeable audiences were expected, but turned out to have terrible acoustics that made it hard to hear what was going on.[3] The last two days were held at Caxton Hall, Westminster[2] due to the Scottish Drill Hall being booked for an examination.[4] To assist the inquiry, Titanic's builders Harland & Wolff provided a 20 feet (6.1m) half-model of the ship showing its starboard side, next to which was mounted a large map showing the North Atlantic shipping lanes and locations of sea ice.[3]
The Attorney General for England and Wales, Sir Rufus Isaacs, gave the commission a list of 26 questions concerning issues such as Titanic's construction, how she had been navigated and the ice warnings received prior to the collision with the iceberg. A further question was added after the inquiry began concerning the role played by SSCalifornian, which had been in the vicinity of Titanic but had not rendered assistance to the sinking ship.[5]
Legal personnel
Those carrying out the questioning and representation included legal counsels, and assessors and experts in marine law and shipping architecture. The five assessors consisted of Rear Admiral Somerset Gough-Calthorpe; Captain A. W. Clarke of Trinity House; Commander Fitzroy Lyon of the Royal Naval Reserve; Professor John Harvard Biles, an expert on naval architecture at the University of Glasgow; and Edward Chaston, an Admiralty senior engineer assessor.[6]
Sir Cosmo Duff-Gordon's testimony was a highlight of the inquiry, attracting many society figures
During 36 days of official investigations (spread over two months), testimony was recorded from nearly 100 witnesses in the form of answers to set questions that the process was designed to answer. These questions, combined with sometimes extensive cross-examination, resulted in over 25,000 questions being recorded in the official court records.[9] With a cost of nearly £20,000 (£1,676,602 at today's prices), it was the longest and most detailed court of inquiry in British history up to that time.[10] Those testifying included surviving passengers and crew members, as well as captains and crew members of other ships in the vicinity, expert witnesses, government officials, and White Star Line officials and ship designers.
Surviving crew members who testified included the most senior surviving officer Charles Lightoller (Second Officer on Titanic),[11] the lookout who sounded the alarm Frederick Fleet,[12] the surviving wireless operator Harold Bride,[13] and the ship's baker Charles Joughin.[14] Those from other ships who gave evidence at the hearings included Harold Cottam (wireless operator on Carpathia),[15]Stanley Lord (Captain of Californian),[16]Arthur Rostron (Captain of Carpathia),[17] and J. B. Ranson (Captain of RMSBaltic).[18] Expert witnesses included Guglielmo Marconi (Chairman of the Marconi Company),[19] and explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton.[20] Others called to give testimony included Harold Arthur Sanderson, UK Vice President of International Mercantile Marine Co., the shipping consortium headed by J. P. Morgan that controlled White Star Line.[21] White Star Line officials that testified included J. Bruce Ismay (Chairman and Managing Director)[22] and Charles Alfred Bartlett (Marine Superintendent).[23] From Harland and Wolff, evidence was given by Alexander Carlisle (Naval Architect).[24] Carlisle was the brother-in-law of the shipyard's chairman Lord Pirrie, and together with Pirrie was initially responsible for the design of the Olympic-class liners (including Titanic). Carlisle had retired in 1910, and like Pirrie had not travelled on the maiden voyage of Titanic. The lead designer on board had been Thomas Andrews, Pirrie's nephew, who went down with the ship. The only passengers to testify, other than Ismay, were Sir Cosmo Duff-Gordon and his wife Lucy, Lady Duff-Gordon.[25]
Q: In view of the fact that this vessel had been sending up rockets, and in view of the fact that you said it looks queer, did not you think at the time that that ship was in distress?
A: No.
Q: Are you sure?
A: I did not think the ship was in distress at the time.
Q: It never occurred to you?
A: It did not occur to me because if there had been any grounds for supposing the ship would have been in distress the Captain would have expressed it to me.
Herbert Stone (Second Officer of the Californian),British Wreck Commissioner's Inquiry.[26]
The questioning of the Californian's crew and the Duff-Gordons were seen as highlights of the inquiry. The failure of Californian to go to the rescue of the sinking Titanic, which had been disclosed by the American inquiry, was already controversial and became even more so with the testimony of Captain Lord and his officers. Lord's claims and explanations were contradicted by his officers and he was portrayed by them as an intimidating and somewhat tyrannical figure.[10] Although Lord appeared only as a witness and was not accused of wrongdoing,[5] as one historian of the Titanic disaster has put it, "the image created in the mind of the public ever since has been of the Californian's officers standing idly on the bridge, so thoroughly intimidated by their captain that they would rather watch another ship sink than run the risk of facing his wrath."[10] The testimony of the Duff Gordons, who had been accused of misconduct for their actions in leaving Titanic aboard a lifeboat with 40 seats but only 12 passengers, attracted the largest crowds of the inquiry. Many notable society figures attended, including Margot Asquith, the wife of Prime Minister H. H. Asquith; the Russian Ambassador to London, Count Alexander von Beckendorf; several Members of Parliament, and various aristocrats.[27]
Testimony was given relating to the fire which had begun in Titanic's coal stores approximately 10 days prior to the ship's departure, and continued to burn for several days into its maiden voyage out of Southampton. Little note was taken of it.[28] It has been theorised by a modern-day historian (2016) that the fire damaged the structural integrity of two bulkheads and the hull; this combined with the speed of the vessel have been given as contributing reasons for the disaster.[29][30][31]
Report and conclusions
The final report was published on 30 July 1912. The lines of questioning at the inquiry had resulted in a detailed description of the ship, an account of the ship's journey, a description of the damage caused by the iceberg, an account of the evacuation and rescue. There was also a special section devoted to the circumstances of Californian.[32]
The report found that Titanic's sinking was solely the result of colliding with the iceberg, not due to any inherent flaws with the ship, and that the collision had been brought about by a dangerously fast speed in icy waters:
The Court, having carefully inquired into the circumstances of the above mentioned shipping casualty, finds, for the reasons appearing in the annex hereto, 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.[32]
It also found that the lookout being kept was inadequate given the navigational hazards Titanic faced, and that the ship's officers had been complacent. There were too few lifeboats available and they had not been properly filled or manned with trained seamen, though they had been lowered correctly. The inquiry concluded that Californian "could have pushed through the ice to the open water without any serious risk and so have come to the assistance of the Titanic. Had she done so she might have saved many if not all of the lives that were lost."[33] The Board of Trade's representative suggested to Lord Mersey that a formal inquiry should be held into Captain Lord's "competency to continue as Master of a British ship" but no action was taken against him due to legal technicalities. The Board of Trade was criticised for its inadequate regulations, notably the failure to ensure that enough lifeboats were provided and that crews were given proper training in their use. The Duff-Gordons were cleared of wrongdoing but it was made clear that they should have acted more tactfully.[34]
In contrast to the American inquiry, the Mersey report did not condemn the failures of the Board of Trade, the White Star Line or Titanic's captain, Edward Smith. The report found that although Smith was at fault for not changing course or slowing down, he had not been negligent because he had followed long-standing practice which had not previously been shown to be unsafe[35] (the inquiry noted that British ships alone had carried 3.5 million passengers over the previous decade with the loss of just 10 lives[36]). It concluded that Smith had merely done "only that which other skilled men would have done in the same position."[citation needed] However, the practice itself was faulty and "it is to be hoped that the last has been heard of this practice. What was a mistake in the case of the Titanic would without doubt be negligence in any similar case in the future."[35]
The report was well received by the British press. The Daily Telegraph commented that although "technically speaking, the report is not the last word, but in practice it would probably be treated as if it were."[36] The Daily Mail opined that it was "difficult to suppose that any court which had to inquire into the responsibility of the owners of the ship would disregard the expression of opinion of Lord Mersey and those who sat with him ... The report having, in effect, acquitted them of all blame, it is not likely that any attempt will be made hereafter to establish the contrary."[37]
Others were more critical. In his memoirs, Charles Lightoller pointed out the inquiry's conflict of interest: "A washing of dirty linen would help no one. The Board of Trade had passed that ship as in all respects fit for the sea ... Now the Board of Trade was holding an inquiry into the loss of that ship – hence the whitewash brush."[37]Titanic historian Donald Lynch notes the consequences: "Apart from protecting itself, the [Board of Trade] had no interest in seeing the White Star Line found negligent. Any damage to White Star's reputation or balance sheet would be bad for British shipping – and there was considerable potential for both. Negligence on the part of the shipping company might pave the way for millions of dollars in damage claims and lawsuits that would tie up the courts for years, possibly break the White Star Line, and result in the loss of much of Britain's lucrative shipping traffic to the Germans and the French."[38]
Stephanie Barczewski notes the contrast between the approaches taken by the American and British inquiries. The British inquiry was much more technical, "the more learned and erudite of the two", while the American inquiry's report was a reflection of a comparatively poorly managed inquiry that had frequently allowed itself to get sidetracked. However, the American report took a much more robust stance on the failures that had led to the disaster. As Barczewski puts it, it "bristles with criticisms of established seafaring traditions and of the conduct of the Titanic's builders, owners, officers and crew", and conveys "righteous indignation" and a "passion to right the wrongs" done to the victims of the disaster and to prevent any recurrence. The authors of the two reports took markedly different interpretations of how the disaster had come about. The American report castigated the arrogance and complacency that had led to the disaster and held Captain Smith, the shipping industry and the Board of Trade culpable for their failures. The British report emphasized that "the importance of this Enquiry has to do with the future. No Enquiry can repair the past."[39]
↑ Several of the unions were later consolidated and merged. Two (the Imperial Merchant Service Guild and the Marine Engineers' Association) form part of the history of Nautilus UK: "Nautilus International: About Us: History". Nautilus International. Archived from the original on 20 July 2012. Retrieved 15 April 2012.
Notes on Life and Letters by Joseph Conrad includes an essay ("Certain Aspects of the Admirable Inquiry into the Loss of the Titanic") on the inquiries (Wikisource)
External links
SOS Titanic, details of a TV dramatisation of the inquiry (BBC)
Stanley Phillip Lord was captain of the SS Californian, the nearest ship to the Titanic on the night she sank on 15 April 1912, and, depending on which sources are believed, likely the only ship to see the Titanic, or at least her rockets, during the sinking.
SS Californian was a British Leyland Line steamship. She is thought to be the only ship in sight of the Titanic, or at least her rockets, during that ship's sinking. The crew took no action to assist. The United States Senate inquiry and British Wreck Commissioner's inquiry into the sinking both concluded that the Californian could have saved many or all of the lives that were lost, had a prompt response been mounted to the Titanic's distress rockets. The U.S. Senate inquiry was particularly critical of the vessel's captain, Stanley Lord, calling his inaction during the disaster "reprehensible".
Harold Sydney Bride was a British merchant seaman and the junior wireless officer on the ocean liner RMS Titanic during her ill-fated maiden voyage.
Edward John Smith was a British sea captain and naval officer. In 1880, he joined the White Star Line as an officer, beginning a long career in the British Merchant Navy. Smith went on to serve as the master of numerous White Star Line vessels. During the Second Boer War, he served in the Royal Naval Reserve, transporting British Imperial troops to the Cape Colony. Smith served as captain of the ocean liner Titanic, and went down with the ship when she sank on her maiden voyage.
William McMaster Murdoch, RNR was a Scottish sailor, who served as a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy Reserve and was the first officer on the RMS Titanic. He was the officer in charge on the bridge when the Titanic collided with an iceberg, and was amongst the 1,500 people who died when the ship sank. The circumstances of his death have been the subject of controversy.
Joseph Bruce Ismay was an English businessman who served as chairman and managing director of the White Star Line. In 1912, he came to international attention as the highest-ranking White Star official to survive the sinking of the company's new flagship RMS Titanic, for which he was subject to severe criticism.
Frederick Fleet was a British sailor, crewman and a survivor of the sinking of the RMS Titanic. Fleet, along with fellow lookout Reginald Lee, was on duty when the ship struck the iceberg; Fleet first sighted the iceberg, ringing the bridge to proclaim: "Iceberg, right ahead!" Both Fleet and Lee survived the sinking, Fleet was the last surviving lookout, out of six in total, on the Titanic.
Sir Arthur Henry Rostron, KBE, RD was a British merchant seaman and a seagoing officer for the Cunard Line. He is best known as the captain of the ocean liner RMS Carpathia, when it rescued the survivors from the RMS Titanic after the ship sank in 1912 in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean.
Sir Cosmo Edmund Duff-Gordon, 5th Baronet, DL was a prominent Englishman and sportsman who owned land in Scotland, best known for the controversy surrounding his escape from the sinking of the RMS Titanic.
Harold Thomas Cottam was a British wireless operator on the RMS Carpathia who fortuitously happened to receive the distress call from the sinking RMS Titanic on 15 April 1912. Cottam's decision to awaken Captain Arthur Henry Rostron and relay Titanic's message in spite of the scepticism of the officer on watch allowed Carpathia to arrive at the scene hours before any other ship and is "credited with saving hundreds of lives." He was a personal friend of the Titanic's wireless operators Harold Bride and Jack Phillips.
RMS Titanic sank on 15 April 1912 in the North Atlantic Ocean. The largest ocean liner in service at the time, Titanic was four days into her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York City, with an estimated 2,224 people on board when she struck an iceberg at 23:40 on 14 April. Her sinking two hours and forty minutes later at 02:20 ship's time on 15 April resulted in the deaths of more than 1,500 people, making it one of the deadliest peacetime maritime disasters in history.
Charles John Joughin was a British-American chef, known as being the chief baker aboard the RMS Titanic. He survived the ship's sinking, and became notable for having survived in the frigid water for an exceptionally long time before being pulled onto the overturned Collapsible B lifeboat with virtually no ill effects.
RMS Carpathia was a Cunard Line transatlantic passenger steamship built by Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson in their shipyard in Wallsend, England.
RMS Titanic was a British ocean liner that sank on 15 April 1912 as a result of striking an iceberg on her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, United States. Of the estimated 2,224 passengers and crew aboard, approximately 1,500 died, making the incident one of the deadliest peacetime sinkings of a single ship. Titanic, operated by the White Star Line, carried some of the wealthiest people in the world, as well as hundreds of emigrants from the British Isles, Scandinavia, and elsewhere in Europe who were seeking a new life in the United States and Canada. The disaster drew public attention, spurred major changes in maritime safety regulations, and inspired a lasting legacy in popular culture.
There have been several legends and myths surrounding the RMS Titanic and its destruction after colliding with an iceberg in the Atlantic Ocean. These have ranged from stories involving the myth about the ship having been described as "unsinkable" to the myth concerning the final song played by the ship's musicians.
Titanic Lifeboat No. 1 was a lifeboat from the steamship Titanic. It was the fifth boat launched to sea, over an hour after the liner collided with an iceberg and began sinking on 14 April 1912. With a capacity of 40 people, it was launched with only 12 aboard, the fewest to escape in any one boat that night.
Lifeboats played a crucial role during the sinking of the Titanic on 14–15 April 1912. The ship had 20 lifeboats that, in total, could accommodate 1,178 people, a little over half of the 2,209 on board the night it sank.
Memorials and monuments to victims of the sinking of the RMS Titanic exist in a number of places around the world associated with Titanic, notably in Belfast, Liverpool and Southampton in the United Kingdom; Halifax, Nova Scotia in Canada; and New York City and Washington, D.C. in the United States. The largest single contingent of victims came from Southampton, the home of most of the crew, which consequently has the greatest number of memorials. Titanic was built in Belfast, Northern Ireland, and had a "guarantee party" of engineers from shipbuilders Harland and Wolff aboard all of whom were lost in the disaster and are commemorated by a prominent memorial in the city. Other contingents of engineers aboard the ship came from the maritime cities of Liverpool in England and Glasgow in Scotland, which erected their own memorials. Several prominent victims, such as Titanic's captain, were commemorated individually. Elsewhere, in the United States and Australia, public memorials were erected to commemorate all the victims.
The sinking of the RMS Titanic on April 14–15, 1912 resulted in an inquiry by a subcommittee of the Commerce Committee of the United States Senate, chaired by Senator William Alden Smith. The hearings began in New York on April 19, 1912, later moving to Washington, D.C., concluding on May 25, 1912 with a return visit to New York.
George Thomas Macdonald Symons was a British sailor who worked as a lookout on board the ill-fated RMS Titanic. Symons, who was 24 at the time of the sinking of the ship, was put in charge of one of the first lifeboats to be launched, lifeboat #1. The boat was an emergency cutter which was launched with only 12 people on board, including seven crew members, and had gained notoriety after the disaster.
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