RMS Titanic

VeNT · 18 Jul 2006 at 21:05

my grandad worked on the Titanic (iirc).

GlasgowTitan · 18 Jul 2006 at 21:59

For me the SS Great Britain was far more impressive than the Titanic. Possibly I think it was a bigger leap forwards than the Titanic was. First major ship to use a propeller (I think?). Also the size of that was more impressive compared to other ships of its time than the Titanic was, imo. Just such a pity she ended up as a glorified barge for the last few decades of life before being salvaged and restored into a museum piece.

ElectroBlaster · 18 Jul 2006 at 22:14

I saw some docu about the USS Monitor and how they salvaged the gun turret, that was pretty good.

The Britannic is another interesting wreck worth noting

Joe42 · 18 Jul 2006 at 22:18

R B CUSTOMS said:
i just think its funny how many people willa rgue with you about it being called RMS, not HMS

Why?
I just think its funny how in every gd thread someone has to pop up and make a pointless critical comment about someones post.

Mp4 · 18 Jul 2006 at 22:20

i love the Titanic, I went to the exhibition in 1993 or after cant remember much as i was a young lad then

but have a huge book and CD's coming out my eyeballs and also a dycast model of the Titanic an amazing ship just a shame it sank... I wonder what it would be now if it didn’t ?

A pub?
Museum

Energize · 18 Jul 2006 at 22:29

Mp4 said:
I wonder what it would be now if it didn’t ?

A pub?
Museum

Scrapped just like its sister ship.

Hades · 18 Jul 2006 at 22:39

Yewen said:
I prefer warships really, much more interesting for me personally.

Anything from M. Rose up I am interested in really, Hood is interesting just for how people over rated it for almost a decade, flagship that was ten years out of date as our flagship, cost a lot of people their lives because of a ship that was a nations favourite.

Explains the extra ordinary hunt of the Bismarck after Hoods sinking, Battle Cruiser that was the nations favourite and a icon of the Empire, sunk in combat by a battleship (as it would be) so we had to get the Bismarck then and then for national pride.

In one go in that combat it secured the death of the large warship as the frontline of combat, Arc Royal launching swordfish resulting in the disabling of the multi million mark Bismarck, first ever fully combat ready capital ship to be beaten by air power.

Italians got a trouncing by air on their navy too, and the Japanese super battleships got taken out aswell by air, seiling the death on big ships.

Hood was a case of a nations love affair with it though, no way should a Battle Cruiser should have been in that situation in a straight out firefight with a ship like Bismarck, HMS Belfast for example was a far superior ship of war than Hood, yet was smaller. Think it had a hand in the destruction of the other big German warship of the time; Scharnhorst.

I know it is slightly off topic, but ships in general and the world wars were mentioned with Olympic afterall. I think I have gotten all the info right, is 2:00am afterall!

It's funny I should read this kind of thread tonight. Only this afternoon I was sitting outside a pub on the Thames (in sight of the HMS Belfast) and an elderly gentleman sat next to us. He turned out ot be 93 years old (didn't look it!) and had served on the HMS London in WW2. It was fascinating to talk to him. I bought him a beer of course

EDIT: Just looked up HMS London and apparently it was also involved in the pursuit of the Bismark.

aardvark · 18 Jul 2006 at 22:45

InwardSinging said:
I was quite into the Titanic and its sister ships a good few years ago, its quite a facinating subject.

Theres even some good conspiracy theories that it wasnt the Titanic that sunk in 1912, that there was problems on its sea trials, so they switched ships, switched the Olympic with the Titanic, indeed many pictures of the titanic are actually pictures of the Olympic. There is also conspiracy theories that the ship was actually sunk on purpose, that it wasnt sea worthy and the insurance policy more than made up for it, theres evidence to suggest its true, the owner of the white star line who went on all maiden journies, backed out at the last minute, a few other high profile white star line employees wouldnt travel on it either.

If i remember correctly the Britannic was a hospital ship in the second world war, the Olympic was taken back to liverpool after also working in the war and broke down for scrap, which is a bit of a shame.

its actually one of the most convincing conspiracy theories i've seen 9still not sure i believe it though) - but the olympic hit, or was hit by a naval vessel (submarine or warship - can't remember) but because it was a military ship the insurance wasn't valid and so White star got no money from the MoD for the damage and non from the insurance either - the theory goes that they brought the titanic into dock (at the same time as the olympic) and switched them (they looked very similar) - and then sank the titanic to get the insurance
the tv programme i saw made a good case, but no conclusive evidense.

fanger · 18 Jul 2006 at 22:49

My 2 fav pictures of the graceful lady...

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Gee, I love that boat, the story, the myths...

leaskovski · 18 Jul 2006 at 22:53

aardvark said:
its actually one of the most convincing conspiracy theories i've seen 9still not sure i believe it though) - but the olympic hit, or was hit by a naval vessel (submarine or warship - can't remember) but because it was a military ship the insurance wasn't valid and so White star got no money from the MoD for the damage and non from the insurance either - the theory goes that they brought the titanic into dock (at the same time as the olympic) and switched them (they looked very similar) - and then sank the titanic to get the insurance
the tv programme i saw made a good case, but no conclusive evidense.

I think i saw this. Didn't they look at the size of the seperations between some of the panels. Turns out they were different for the two ships and thus in the end came to the conclusion that no switch had been made?

Energize · 18 Jul 2006 at 22:53

aardvark said:
its actually one of the most convincing conspiracy theories i've seen 9still not sure i believe it though) - but the olympic hit, or was hit by a naval vessel (submarine or warship - can't remember) but because it was a military ship the insurance wasn't valid and so White star got no money from the MoD for the damage and non from the insurance either - the theory goes that they brought the titanic into dock (at the same time as the olympic) and switched them (they looked very similar) - and then sank the titanic to get the insurance
the tv programme i saw made a good case, but no conclusive evidense.

The front of the bridge on the Olympic was curved and the Titanics was flat, the wreck has a flat bridge so it has to be the titanic as the Olympic never had its bridge changed.

Yewen · 18 Jul 2006 at 22:59

Hades said:
It's funny I should read this kind of thread tonight. Only this afternoon I was sitting outside a pub on the Thames (in sight of the HMS Belfast) and an elderly gentleman sat next to us. He turned out ot be 93 years old (didn't look it!) and had served on the HMS London in WW2. It was fascinating to talk to him. I bought him a beer of course

EDIT: Just looked up HMS London and apparently it was also involved in the pursuit of the Bismark.

Really is fascinating talking to people who were actually part of it, living history.

Only so much you can get from text and films, but the real emotion and magnitude of the events in our history are best explained by the people who were there.

Edinho · 20 Aug 2006 at 09:53

Yewen said:
Really is fascinating talking to people who were actually part of it, living history.

Only so much you can get from text and films, but the real emotion and magnitude of the events in our history are best explained by the people who were there.

Sorry for digging this thread back up, was interesting reading it. I have been fascinated by WWI/II since my late teens. I find it completely the opposite, ive tried may times to get stories and information out of people that were there and they just dont want to talk about it. Most of them have died now but having got older I can understand better, most of them saw horrible things, I think its hard for people who have never been in a war zone to understand. Maybe been on a ship is different as your detached and are unlikely to see your best mates head been blown off.

As for the Titanic, it was a great ship made even greater by the fact it sunk on it maiden voyage. As for the Bismark, ive seen pictures of it, and it just looks amazing the size of those guns :eek:

sidthesexist · 20 Aug 2006 at 11:58

there were two sister ships one was the britanic (sp) and the other was the olympic, cant remember which it was but one was used in ww1 as a hospital ship and was either hit by a torpedo or hit a mine ( i believe they aren't sure even now) and the other was hit by a navy ship before the building of the titanic had been completed. there has been a book released in recent years claiming that the sinking of the titanic was an insurance scam and that it wasnt the titanic that sank but the sister ship that was hit by the navy ship, this book went on to claim that when the titanic was found they found some serial numbers on the propelers that related to the sister ship and not the titanic along with an image that claimed to show some structural changes that should not have been on the titanic but would have been on the earlier ship.

Oxbow · 20 Aug 2006 at 12:51

Probably some conspiracy theorists around somewhere you think it was sunk by Al Quedia or something!

It was a truely tragic event. A recent trip to Ireland saw me a really rare original photograph of the Titanics REAL fisrt trip from Belfast (where it was built) to Southampton. A truely strange experience looking at the photo of all the people waving it off.

Burnsy2023 · 20 Aug 2006 at 13:20

I noticed that none of the Olympic class cruise ships were christened.... :eek:

Burnsy

Scarfacé · 20 Aug 2006 at 13:56

So at the time it was built/launched... the Titanic wasn't the biggest ship ever built? I always thought it was? :confused:

Pointless comparing it to new ships as it was 94 years ago.

MrMatteh · 20 Aug 2006 at 14:09

I remember seeing that conspiracy program on sky 1.

about the only conspiracy i believe with some nice pieces of information.

It doesnt seem far fetched either... pulling an insurance job

not as if the asessors could take a look at the ship is it?

Ex-RoNiN · 20 Aug 2006 at 14:45

Edinho said:
As for the Bismark, ive seen pictures of it, and it just looks amazing the size of those guns

Bismarck's main guns were 15" guns and she had 8 of them.

Yamato had 18.1" guns, and 9 of them! Each shell weighted a ton and a half :eek:

http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/images/h63000/h63433.jpg
Compare barrel to humans and that little shack :eek:

I noticed that none of the Olympic class cruise ships were christened....

There are some things you just don't do on the sea, one of which is tempting fate.

Scania · 20 Aug 2006 at 15:02

Wren said:
I goofed on the RMS, it stands for Royal Mail Service. I confused it with Her Majesty. Didn't the Olympic get torpedoed? I seem to remember hearing something like that.

Royal Mail Steamer.

A rare treat for any "Olympic class ship" fans such as I would be a trip to the White Swan Hotel Alnwick, Northumberland.

This 300-year-old coaching inn, located right in the heart of Alnwick retains many features from days gone by but still much appreciated by today’s travellers.
In particular, experience the splendour of the historic Olympic Suite with its original oak panelling; mirrors, ceiling and stained glass windows salvaged from the SS Olympic - an exact mirror image of its sister ship - The Titanic.

What was once a revolving door into the Olympics First Class "Smoking room".

Olympics internal windows. - Dunno who the numpty is!

Olympics wood panneling.
I've seen this and the wood work is awesome!

Incidentally, the Olympic was stripped of salvageable parts in 1935 on the river Tyne @ Jarrow, not Liverpool, Finally dismantled @ Inverkeithing, Scotland in 1937

I'm a complete & utter Titanic freak, anything you wish to know, just ask.