What happened on April 15, 1912. A great tragedy that only a few remember. Titanic's collision with an iceberg

100 years ago, on the night of April 15, 1912, after colliding with an iceberg in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean, the Titanic liner sank, carrying more than 2,200 people.

Titanic is the largest passenger ship of the early 20th century, the second of three twin steamships produced by the British company White Star Line.

The length of the Titanic was 260 meters, width - 28 meters, displacement - 52 thousand tons, height from the waterline to the boat deck - 19 meters, distance from the keel to the top of the pipe - 55 meters, maximum speed - 23 knots. Journalists compared it in length to three city blocks, and in height to an 11-story building.

The Titanic had eight steel decks, located one above the other at a distance of 2.5-3.2 meters. To ensure safety, the ship had a double bottom, and its hull was separated by 16 waterproof compartments. Watertight bulkheads rose from the second bottom to the deck. The ship's chief designer, Thomas Andrews, stated that even if four of the 16 compartments were filled with water, the liner would be able to continue its journey.

The interiors of the cabins on decks B and C were designed in 11 styles. Third class passengers on decks E and F were separated from first and second class by gates located in different parts of the ship.

Before the Titanic set out on its first and last voyage, it was especially emphasized that there would be 10 millionaires on board the ship on its first voyage, and in its safes there would be gold and jewelry worth hundreds of millions of dollars. American industrialist, heir to a mining magnate Benjamin Guggenheim, millionaire with his young wife, assistant to US Presidents Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft Major Archibald Willingham Butt, US Congressman Isidore Strauss, actress Dorothy Gibson, wealthy public figure Margaret Brown, British fashion designer Lucy Christiane Duff Gordon and many other famous and wealthy people of that time.

On April 10, 1912, at noon, the Titanic superliner set off on its only journey along the route Southampton (Great Britain) - New York (USA), with stops in Cherbourg (France) and Queenstown (Ireland).

During the four days' journey the weather was clear and the sea was calm.

On April 14, 1912, on the fifth day of the voyage, several ships sent reports of icebergs in the area of the ship's route. The radio was broken for most of the day, and many messages were not noticed by the radio operators, and the captain did not pay due attention to others.

In the evening, the temperature began to drop, reaching zero Celsius by 22:00.

At 23:00, a message was received from the Californian about the presence of ice, but the Titanic's radio operator interrupted the radio exchange before the Californian had time to report the coordinates of the area: the telegraph operator was busy sending personal messages to passengers.

At 23:39, two lookouts noticed an iceberg in front of the liner and reported it by telephone to the bridge. The most senior of the officers, William Murdoch, gave the command to the helmsman: “Rudder to port.”

At 23:40 "Titanic" in the underwater part of the ship. Of the ship's 16 watertight compartments, six were cut through.

At 00:00 on April 15, Titanic designer Thomas Andrews was called to the bridge to assess the severity of the damage. After reporting the incident and inspecting the ship, Andrews informed everyone present that the liner would inevitably sink.

There was a noticeable roll on the bow on the ship. Captain Smith ordered the lifeboats to be uncovered and the crew and passengers to be summoned for evacuation.

By order of the captain, the radio operators began sending distress signals, which they transmitted for two hours, until the captain relieved the telegraph operators of their duties a few minutes before the sinking of the ship.

Distress signals, but they were too far from the Titanic.

At 00:25, the coordinates of the Titanic were accepted by the ship Carpathia, which was located 58 nautical miles from the site of the wreck of the liner, which was 93 kilometers. ordered to immediately head to the site of the Titanic disaster. Rushing to help, the ship was able to reach a record speed of 17.5 knots - with the maximum possible speed for the ship being 14 knots. To do this, Rostron ordered to turn off all appliances that consume electricity and heating.

At 01:30 the operator of the Titanic telegraphed: “We are in small boats.” By order of Captain Smith, his assistant, Charles Lightoller, who led the rescue of people on the left side of the liner, put only women and children in the boats. The men, according to the captain, were supposed to remain on deck until all the women were in the boats. First Mate William Murdoch on the starboard side to the men if there were no women or children in the line of passengers gathering on deck.

At about 02:15, the Titanic's bow dropped sharply, the ship moved forward significantly, and a huge wave rolled across the decks, washing many passengers overboard.

At about 02:20 minutes the Titanic sank.

At about 04:00 in the morning, approximately three and a half hours after receiving the distress signal, the Carpathia arrived at the site of the Titanic's wreck. The ship took on board 712 passengers and crew members of the Titanic, after which it arrived safely in New York. Among those rescued were 189 crew members, 129 male passengers and 394 women and children.

The death toll, according to various sources, ranged from 1,400 to 1,517 people. According to official data, after the disaster, 60% of passengers were in first class cabins, 44% in second class cabins, 25% in third class.

The last surviving passenger of the Titanic, who traveled on board the liner at the age of nine weeks, died on May 31, 2009 at the age of 97. The woman's ashes were scattered over the sea from the pier in the port of Southampton, from where the Titanic set off on its last voyage in 1912.

The material was prepared based on information from RIA Novosti and open sources

On April 14, 1912, a disaster occurred in the Atlantic Ocean - the largest ship, the Titanic, sank. Its construction began in 1909 and took four years in Ireland. The shipbuilding company Harland and Wolf assured everyone that this was an unsinkable ship, since it was entirely made of iron. But, unfortunately, this turned out not to be the case. For the first time, on April 10, 1912, the Titanic set off on its long voyage and never returned. Remained forever at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. The disaster occurred at night in the waters of the North Atlantic. The ship collided with an iceberg.

This happened at 2 hours 20 minutes. An iceberg was spotted directly ahead. They believed that by changing the direction of the direction, they would be able to bypass it. But the iceberg turned out to be too big. One of the sides of the liner hit an iceberg. There were approximately 2,000 people on the ship at the time. The captains immediately began to solve this problem, still hoping that they could somehow save it. But the main projector of this ship said, “This ship will sink in 2 hours and we will not be able to help, it is doomed to death.” The captains gave distress signals and launched missiles. The holds began to quickly fill with water, and then the cabins.

People were put into boats, some fell into the water themselves, because they knew that they could not be saved, others remained in their cabins and refused to get into the boats. Women and children of first and second grade were imprisoned first. Most of them were not saved because there were not enough boats for everyone. And besides, very few people were put on the boat. Those people who fell straight into the water died instantly, since the water temperature was two degrees. No matter how much you wanted, it was impossible to save all the people. When the water had already reached the level, a crack formed in the middle of the ship, it began to split in half and slowly sink to the bottom.

The Titanic sank two hours and forty minutes later. After his death, the boats were connected and tied, some were transferred from one to another in order to save more people. But it was too late; only six people were saved. And with the top of those 729 people who were rescued, the ship "Carpathia" was picked up. On the ship, the data of the victims was already recorded, they were warmed up, and they were given warm clothes. But even on this ship, some died. The exact number of victims is not known. Because some remained in the cold waters of the ocean, some in cabins. Of course, more men and children died. And especially many third class people died. This disaster shocked the whole world.

Latitude: 55.75, Longitude: 37.62 Time zone: Europe/Moscow (UTC+02:30) Moon phase calculation for 04/1/1912 (12:00) To calculate the phase of the moon for your city, register or log in.

Characteristics of the Moon on April 15, 1912

On the date 15.04.1912 V 12:00 The moon is in phase "Waning moon". This 28 lunar day in the lunar calendar. Moon in zodiac sign Pisces ♓. Illumination percentage Moon makes up 5%. Sunrise Moon at 04:39, and sunset at 16:32.

Chronology of lunar days

27th lunar day from 04:33 04/14/1912 to 04:39 04/15/1912
28 lunar day from 04:39 04/15/1912 until the next day

Moon influence April 15, 1912

Moon in the zodiac sign Pisces (±)

Moon in a sign Fish. The ability for mental concentration is somewhat weakened, the imagination every now and then strives to captivate our consciousness into the world of illusions, so any business that requires specifics has difficulty finding its embodiment in reality.

It is better to spend this time on active recreation, an exciting trip, or devote yourself to art. True, legal issues or matters related to investing money proceed without any particular complications.

28 lunar day (+)

April 15, 1912 at 12:00 - 28 lunar day. A favorable day for any “earthly” affairs: from purchasing a new car to renovating an apartment. There may be some (not particularly important) problems associated with poor health. It is useful to listen to the advice of your partners - this will be beneficial and will allow you to avoid troubles.

Waning Moon (+)

The moon is in phase Waning moon. The fourth lunar phase is the last phase of the lunar month. The period of the fourth quarter, which ends with the new moon. This period is characterized by slowness, softness, and a certain lethargy. This time is quite passive.

Strength and energy are rapidly declining at this time. As a result, in the fourth lunar phase it is recommended to finish things and manage current ones. Fresh thoughts and ideas should be pushed back to the beginning of the next lunar month. The optimal time for summing up.

In the fourth lunar phase, overall activity decreases. During this period, it is advisable to reduce physical and mental stress. It is recommended to avoid conflicts, both in business matters and in personal relationships. Typically, there is an increase in the likelihood of quarrels and separations.

People during this period are extremely sensitive, impressionable, and highly prone to offense. This condition is reflected in the business sphere. Therefore, in the business sphere, it is advisable to suspend significant meetings until the next phase of the lunar month.

Day of week influence (±)

Day of the week - Monday, this day is ruled by the “night Sun” - the Moon. It is called a hard day not at all because it immediately follows a relaxing weekend. On this day we are overwhelmed with emotions. Therefore, successes alternate with failures, successes with defeats. Everything becomes unreliable, relative. To the point that true friends can let you down, and enemies... help.

On Monday, astrologers advise relying only on your intuition in everything, since the arguments of reason do not work on this day. Business agreements concluded on this day, as well as heartfelt victories, may turn into shaky uncertainty tomorrow.

However, all the pitfalls and obstacles of Monday can be avoided by those who “feel in their hearts” what needs to be done. Those who trust their intuition, as a rule, achieve success on this day.

And those who put off some important things until Monday are forced to redo everything later, since the mind has no power over Monday.

The ship sank in 2 hours 40 minutes. At the time of the disaster, there were 1,316 passengers and 891 crew members on board, for a total of 2,207 people. Of these, 705 people were saved, 1,502 died. The sinking of the Titanic caused widespread public outcry, becoming the largest maritime disaster of its time in terms of the number of victims. Currently, it is one of the five largest peacetime maritime disaster victims of all time.

April 14, 1912

23:00 The Californian warns of the presence of ice, but the Titanic's radio operator Jack Phillips interrupts radio communication before the Californian can report the coordinates of the area.

23:39 From the crow's nest on the Titanic's mast, lookout Frederick Fleet notices an iceberg just ¼ mile (663 meters) ahead of the ship. Flit immediately rings the bell three times and shouts into the phone: “The iceberg is straight ahead!” First Officer William Murdoch immediately gives the commands “Right to board!” (in the original “Hard a” starboard” - according to the command system used at that time, it corresponded to moving the tiller to the right; the rudder and therefore the bow of the ship turned to the left) and “Stop!”, and then “Full back!”, counting go around the iceberg on the left.

The Titanic does not have time to complete the maneuver and crashes into the underwater part of the iceberg with a glancing blow. At a depth of one to six meters below the waterline, the iceberg damages the hull of the liner for about 90 meters. As studies of the remains of the ship resting at the bottom have shown, the Titanic received several narrow but long holes.

The hull of the Titanic stood at an angle of 19 degrees and sank into the water up to the third chimney. The second chimney broke off underwater. Everyone who did not manage to catch on to the davit ropes or deck superstructures rolled into the water, knocked down by the chairs and sun loungers that flew down. Some did not try to climb back to the stern, but jumped down themselves.

The stern of the Titanic already rose 60 meters above the water, and passengers fell from the decks into the water.

The last SOS signal from the Titanic was recorded. On the Titanic, electrical equipment fails and the lights go out.

At an angle of 23 degrees, the ship's hull began to break between the second and third pipes. After the stern finally broke off, the third and fourth pipes fell into the water.

2 hours and 40 minutes after the collision with the iceberg, the stern of the Titanic stood almost vertically (at an angle of 70 degrees), tilted to the left side and began to quickly go under water. The last of those remaining on deck, seeing that there was no chance of salvation, jumped down themselves. Ocean waters broke through into the quickly sinking ship, breaking doors and bulkheads with their pressure. Just half a minute later, the water had already closed over the Titanic’s stern flagpole.

Victims of the collapsible lifeboat "D"

At a speed of about 13 miles per hour, the bow of the Titanic crashes into the ocean floor at a depth of 3,750 meters, burrowing into the sedimentary rocks of the bottom [ unreputable source?] .

The stern of the Titanic sinks to the ocean floor, rotating in a spiral, at a speed of about 4 miles per hour.

After the sinking of the Titanic, only one lifeboat returned to the sinking site to rescue survivors. Lifeboat 4 did not return, but was close and picked up 8 crew members, two of whom later died. Lifeboat 14 rescued 4 people, one of whom, William Haught, later died.

“Carpathia” gets to the scene of the disaster and picks up boat number 2.

Notes

Literature

Captain L. Marmaduke Collins. THE SINKING OF THE TITANIC. An Ice-Pilot's Perspective. - Breakwater Books, Limited, 2002. - 198 p. - ISBN 1-55081-173-8 Text for reference
Jay Henry Mowbray. The Sinking of the Titanic: Eyewitness Accounts. - Dover Pubns, 1998. - ISBN 0-486-40298-3 Text for reference
Robert Gannon. What Really Sank the Titanic? - Popular Science, vol. 246, no. 2 (February 1995). - P. 49-55, 83-84.(One of the chronology options)

Titanic (April 15, 1912)

The English liner sank 2 hours 20 minutes after hitting the iceberg. 1522 people died, 705 people were saved. The most famous disaster of the 20th century.

Summer evening 1907 Bruce Ismay , Executive Director " White Star", and his wife Florence dined at the Lord's London residence James Pirrie , partner of the Belfast shipbuilding firm " Garland and Wolf", which built all the ships for " White Star" New liner " Lusitania", owned by competitors from the company " Cunard line" was on the lips of the whole city. Before its maiden voyage, it was expected that the speed record for crossing Atlantic and this fact will consolidate leadership " Kunarl line"in the superliner race. Ships " White star"did not compare with" Lysitania».

Pirri And Icemay developed a plan that would " White Star» win the championship. They decided that they would not enter into a speed competition, but would build a pair of floating palaces, the likes of which the world had never seen. A week after that historic dinner, an army of engineers and mechanics began creating drawings and specifications, from massive, four-tier-tall engines to first-class dining room seating.

In December 1908, the first keel plate was laid into the foundation of vessel No. 400, later named " Olympic" Vessel No. 401, named " Titanic", was laid down on March 31, 1909.

Day May 31, 1911 Belfast came out bright and clean. A southerly breeze wrinkled the surface of Belfast Lough and ruffled the flags on the cranes. More than 100 thousand onlookers wanted to see the launch of vessel No. 401. According to the tradition of companies " White star" And " Garland and Wolf“There was no prayer service for the glory of the newborn.

At 12.05 two rockets were launched, at 12.10 - a third. At 12.13 the hull of 26,000 tons slid down the guides, pulled by its own weight. " Titanic"developed a speed of 12 knots (about 22 km/h) before six anchors and two thick anchor chains, each weighing 80 tons, stopped it. The entire process took 62 seconds. Tugboats then brought her to the bay, where she was to be equipped with equipment and passenger cabins for ten months.

After the vessel was launched, work began on the construction of passenger seats, installation of engineering equipment and navigation systems. Everything that has been done before can be compared to building the foundation of a building. Now carpenters, electricians, steam engine adjusters, carpet installers and metalworkers had a wide range of work to do.

It was truly a unique structure. Its gross tonnage is 46,328 tons, length - 270 meters, beam - 28, height from the waterline to the boat deck - 18.5 meters, height from the keel to the end of the pipes - 53 meters. In fact, it is an eleven-story building in height! Engines: 2 piston, 4 cylinder, 30 thousand horsepower; one Parson low-pressure turbine with a capacity of 18 thousand horsepower. The maximum speed is 21-23 knots (approximately 37-41.4 meters per second). Twenty lifeboats were designed for 1,178 people.

Specifications « Titanic"very much like the specifications" Olympic" Some changes were made that resulted in 1000 tons of weight and more luxury. One of them was the installation of additional protection around the promenade deck. In addition, passengers Olympic» complained of salty seawater spraying from the bow of the ship while sailing through the North Atlantic seas. These changes became the most visible difference between the two courts.

Finally, on February 3, 1912, " Titanic"was put into dry dock, where it was equipped with three propellers, and the interior was given the final shine. A huge chandelier arrived and was hung in the main saloon. Kitchen utensils and porcelain were placed in appropriate storage. A wireless communications system was installed and tested capable of transmitting messages over a distance of 500 miles ( about 310 kilometers). Maps and navigation equipment were sent to the captain's bridge. All the little things necessary for the operation of a large ocean liner and a large hotel arrived on board, were installed, checked, placed in storage and recorded. The construction of the great ship is almost completed.

From April 2 " Titanic"began to sail the seas. Passing deeper into the bay and leaving the tugs behind, he made several quick raids to check the engines.

The ship was set on a direct course at a speed of 20.5 knots. The steering wheel was sharply turned 360 degrees. Leaning slightly, " Titanic" turned around, describing a circle with a diameter of 3850 feet ( more than one kilometer). No one could have imagined that the ship would repeat this maneuver in less than two weeks, but under tragic circumstances.

After completing the test and receiving approval from the Chamber of Commerce, " White star line"was declared the rightful owner of the royal mail steamer" Titanic", the largest and most luxurious object ever created by human hands.

Saturday, April 6. Port Southampton, county Hampshire, south England. Hiring day for most of the crew. The bulk of the cargo has arrived. The entire cargo weighed 560 tons and consisted of 11,524 individual items.

Halls of the company office " White Star line“Were completely packed with people. Hundreds of sailors Southampton, unemployed as a result of the miners' strike that had just passed, crowded around in anticipation of a lucky break, although they were no doubt anxious about the impending maiden voyage. Many were from the very Southampton, but some of the sailors came from Liverpool, London And Belfast.

Applications from those arriving from the continent were not accepted, since at the insistence of the ship's captain Edward J. Smith it was necessary to form real British crew for a real British ship" By the end of the day, most of the crew had been hired.

The main cargo was supplemented by 5,800 tons of coal from a nearby coal pier. Crazy deal! It took 24 hours to load such a large liner with enough coal, after which the ship's storekeeper carefully sealed the coal storage with glued canvas soaked in red paint. By the end of this grueling day, all passages, decks, staircases and passenger spaces were thoroughly cleared of the pervasive coal dust.

The water surface was clear and all the work on board " Titanic” paused that Easter Sunday. No smoke or steam was visible from its pipes. The sounds of the ship's bell echoed across the bay, marking the last hours of the stay, and the blue English jack fluttered on the flagpole. " Titanic" remained moored to Pier No. 44, which was specially deepened forty feet for such giants as " Titanic" And " Olympic».

Fresh food products brought to the port by train were loaded on board the ship. About 34 tons of fresh meat and about 5 tons of fish were placed in huge refrigerators and storage facilities located on deck " G».

There was very little time left before departure. All final preparations were carried out under the supervision of the vessel designer Thomas Andrew . That evening Andrew remained on board until half past seven, and then returned to the office." Garland and Wolf" to write letters and resolve business issues.

Food and goods continued to be loaded on board. Captain Clark , an observer from the Chamber of Commerce, was on board until late in the evening, checking every nook and cranny of the ship. Second Mate Charles Lightholler at Senate hearings on the cause of death " Titanic"said about Clarke : « He completed his task and I repeat with confidence that he did it thoroughly" Captain Smith , commander " Titanic", conducted his own inspection. All officers except Smith , spent the night on board.

Captain Smith climbed aboard " Titanic"at 7.30 am and received from the first mate Henry Wilde report. The sound of a siren Titanic"notified for miles around that the day of his departure had arrived. Between 9.30 and 11.30 am, three sea trams approached the ship with passengers of first, second and third classes.

Exactly at noon" Titanic" gave up, the boats towed it from the pier, and the giant colossus began its movement along the 24-mile English Channel in the direction France.

At 5.30 pm " Titanic"appeared in the port of a French city Cherbourg. Passengers loaded onto tenders ahead of time and waited for departure to " Titanic" In the evening at 8.30 the anchor was raised, and “ Titanic"with the illumination lit, headed for Ireland around the south coast of England.

Passengers were exploring the huge liner. Thomas Andrew and the warranty group from the shipyard " Harland & Wolff"helped the engineers" Titanic» maintain the necessary systems. A general alarm was rehearsed, and the volume of the emergency bells was significantly reduced by watertight doors.

At 11.30 am " Titanic» dropped anchor in the bay queenstown at a distance of two miles from the shore and prepared to take on board new passengers and mail. At 1.30 pm the main anchor was raised for the last time, and " Titanic"left on his first transatlantic voyage to the shores America. Captain Smith received a report that there were 2,227 passengers and crew members on board.

By mid-afternoon" Titanic" was somewhere in the middle Atlantic, traveling at a speed of 21 knots. From 11 to 12 April he covered a distance of 386 miles in calm, calm and clear weather. With each new day of travel, the general admiration for the vessel grew - its behavior during maneuvers, the complete absence of vibration, and its stability as speed increased. Henry Wild noted that the air was very cold, cold enough to prevent writing or reading on deck, so many spent most of their time in the library.

During the day " Titanic“received many radio congratulations and wishes for a safe journey, including a congratulation from the British Queen. In almost every radiogram received from ships in the waters Atlantic, warned of massive blocks of ice, which was quite unusual for April. Late evening radio" Titanic" has been temporarily disabled to allow Phillips And Bride carry out preventative maintenance on the devices in the very early morning hours.

The ship found itself surrounded by ice that appeared throughout the North Atlantic Sea Route. From Friday noon to Saturday noon " Titanic» covered 519 miles.

At 10.30 am captain Smith began the day's inspection of the vessel. Deep below, in the fireplaces, " black shifts", naked to the waist, continued to satisfy the appetites of the forges in the hot air filled with coal dust. In this terrible stuffiness it was difficult to imagine that it was almost freezing above.

Beautiful weather, smooth water surface and moderate south-east wind created a wonderful mood. Many passengers walked slowly along the boat deck.

Still early in the morning " Titanic"received a radiogram from " Caronia", warning about ice floes ahead, and then - from the Danish liner " Nordam", notifying about " huge accumulation of ice" Just after noon" Baltika" reported a large number of ice fields ahead of " Titanic» at a distance of 250 miles. All these radiograms Smith passed on Ismeyu . After some time, the German ship " America" warned about " big iceberg", but this message was not sent to the captain's bridge.

Around 6.30 pm Smith turned the ship slightly southwest from its usual direction, probably wanting to get around the ice, about which so many ships had been warned. However, no order was given to reduce speed. Moreover, the speed of the ship increased and increased.

At 7.30 pm three more warning messages were received from " California" about big icebergs ahead. According to them, the ice floes were no more than 50 miles away. Radiograms received that day indicated the presence of a huge ice field 78 miles long directly ahead of " Titanic" Having refused dinner, Smith went up to the captain's bridge, where he exchanged views about the unusually clear and good weather with the second mate Lightholler .

Around 9.20 pm Smith went to bed, giving the usual order to wake him, " if something bad happens" Then Lightholler warned that lookouts should carefully watch the ice floes until the morning.

At 10.00 pm Lightholler replaced by the first officer Murdosh .

At 10.55 at night at a distance of 10-19 miles from " Titanic"ship" California" was stopped by ice and sent warnings to all ships in the area. Bride interrupted " California" the now famous answer: " Stop it! Shut up! You're jamming my signal. I'm on the Cape Race frequency", and the radio operator " California“turned off my device for the night. ( Cape Race is a city in the south of the island of Newfoundland.) By this time, fire was maintained in 24 of the 29 boiler rooms, and “ Titanic"was traveling at a speed of 22 knots, the highest he had ever achieved.

At 11.30 lookouts Fleet And Lee noticed a slight haze straight ahead.

At 11.40 at night Fleet spotted a large iceberg ahead and sent an urgent message to the bridge. Sixth Mate Moody received the signal and sent a message Murdoshu , who instinctively commanded: “ Stop the car!", telegraphed a command to the engine compartment to stop all engines, and then - " Full back!» He also ordered all watertight doors to be closed. " Titanic" began to slowly turn around, but the underwater part of the iceberg floating past was already scratching and hitting the starboard side of the ship, completely exposing the five forward bulkheads to sea water.

At 11.55 at night, 15 minutes after the collision, the mail on deck was completely flooded." G", as well as a coal bunker in the engine room. After a quick inspection of the damage done Wild , Boxhall And Andrews , Smith I realized that the worst had happened. The worst. " Titanic was sinking and more than 2,200 people on board were in mortal danger. With a heavy heart Smith personally identified the location " Titanic"and transmitted the coordinates to the fourth assistant Boxhall to the radio room. Transferred Phillips the package contained an order to send distress signals. Phillips the distress signal sounded.

Monday, April 15th. Shortly after midnight, the squash court, 32 feet above the keel, was flooded. Most of the boiler rooms were not working, and huge clouds of steam were escaping from the freed pipes. Smith ordered the lifeboats to be uncovered and passengers and crew members placed on them. There was enough space for 1,178 people, and that was only on condition that each of the boats was completely filled. And there were 2227 people on board.

Between 00.10 and 1.50 a.m., several members of the ship's crew " California“We saw something similar to the lights of a steamship. The missiles were also visible, but were not taken into account. Many ships heard the distress signal " Titanic"and many of them rushed to help, including the liner" Carpathia"under the command of Rostron, located 58 miles southeast of " Titanic».

At 00.15 Willas Hartley and his band began to play upbeat ragtime in the first class salon on deck." A" They played until the very end. All the orchestra members died.

At 00.25 Smith ordered that women and children be put into lifeboats.

By 00.45 lifeboat No. 7 on the starboard side was launched with 28 people on board instead of the possible 65. At the same time, the quartermaster George Rowe at the direction Boxhall The first signal flare was launched. It rose 800 feet and disintegrated into twelve brilliant white stars. Suddenly right on course Boxhall saw an approaching ship, which after a few minutes disappeared from sight, despite attempts to contact it with a lamp Morse.

At 1.15 the water rose to the inscription “ Titanic"on board, and the ship gave a sharp list to the left side. By this time, 7 boats had been launched into the water with even fewer passengers in each. As the deck became steeper, the number of passengers on the boats increased. Boat No. 9 with 56 people on board was lowered from the starboard side.

At 1.30 the panic began. In boat No. 14, 60 people were lowered on the port side, including the fifth mate Leva . Levu I had to fire five warning shots towards the ship, right at the maddened crowd, to stop the uncontrollable people who were ready to jump into the almost full boat.

Radiograms sent Phillips , reported that " the ship is sinking quickly" And " can't hold out much longer...» Perfume tycoon Ben Geigenheim and his servant Victor Gilio returned to their cabins and changed into evening clothes. They returned to the deck with the words: “ We put on our best suits and prepared to die like true gentlemen.».

By 1.40 most of the bow boats had sailed, and the remaining passengers on board began to move towards the stern. J. Bruce Ismay left the ship last on an inflatable boat lowered from the starboard side with 39 passengers. The bow deck of the ship was already under water.

At 2:00 the ocean surface was only 10 feet away from the promenade deck ( 3 meters). Around this time Hartley chose the last song for his orchestra - “ Near, My God, to Three" He always said that this was the hymn he would choose for his funeral. When there are more than 1,500 passengers left on board and only 47 seats on the inflatable boat " D», Lightholler gave the order to the crew to load their weapons and surround the boat, allowing only women and children into it.

The sea was walking on the bow of the deck." A" Roll " Titanic"was getting stronger. At that time Smith went down to the radio room and freed Phillips And Bride , informing them that " they have already fulfilled their duties" On the way back to the captain's bridge Smith told several crew members: " Now it's every man for himself" His last thoughts were most likely about his beloved wife Eleanor and little daughter Elena .

As soon as all the boats departed, an amazing calm reigned on the " Titanic" The excitement and stampede ended, and the hundreds who remained stood quietly on the upper decks. They seemed to be crowded into the middle, trying to stay as far away from the railings as possible. The propeller began to emerge from the water, and the passengers moved closer and closer to the stern.

At about 2.17 the hull began to rapidly plunge into the abyss, while hundreds of second and third class passengers, gathered at the end of the stern of the boat deck, listened to their father’s prayers Thomas Bull.

At 2.18 a crash was heard: all the loose objects were inside " Titanic" began to fall towards the plunging bow. The light flickered and went out, leaving the ship a visible silhouette in the starry sky. Many claimed that the ship's hull broke in two between the third and fourth funnels. The ship stood almost perpendicular and remained motionless for several minutes.

At 2.20 it tipped back a little and began to sink into the arms of the northern Atlantic to a depth of 13 thousand feet. Almost immediately the night was pierced by the cries of the dying, gradually becoming more desperate, until, according to Lightoller , they didn't turn into " long drawn out howl" This howl continued for some time until everyone died of hypothermia or drowned. " Heart-stopping, unforgettable sounds"made an indelible impression on Lightoller who heard them from the inflatable dinghy" A" He later claimed that he never allowed his thoughts to return to those bloodcurdling screams.

At 3.30 flares " Carpathia"were seen in the lifeboats, and at 4.10 the first lifeboat was raised from the icy depths. Three hours later, at 5.30 am, when the last boat, No. 12, was picked up " Carpathia», « California", notified of death Titanic", arrived at the scene of the disaster.

At 8.50 am " Carpathia"left other ships looking for survivors and headed for NY. She had 705 survivors on board. 1,522 people remained at the bottom of the ocean.

J. Bruce Ismay The first thing I did was get to the radio room and send him to the office “ White star line" V New York telegram with the following content: “ It is with deep regret that I inform you that the Titanic sank this morning after striking an iceberg. Large human losses. All details later»...

Dark, cold and rainy night in New York. The rain poured straight down, which was usual for April. Occasional flashes and headlights illuminated the faces of the crowd that had gathered in anticipation of the arrival of an important ship. The first spectators arrived at 6.00 pm, and within two hours their number had grown to 30 thousand. Another 10 thousand people strolled along the gardens " Battery" and around " Aquarium"to see the ship approach Hudson. It came along 11th Avenue, which runs parallel to the docks, passed the block from 12th to 16th Avenues and approached the pier, where it anchored.

It was " Carpathia", and she moored with the most expensive cargo on board. This was all that remained of the world's greatest liner." Titanic", - 705 survivors and 13 lifeboats " Titanic».

After " Carpathia"slowed down, an army of tugboats surrounded the ship on all sides. Boats with people making hysterical signs, asking about lost loved ones, reporters shouting questions and offering money to the crew to board the ship for an exclusive interview...

Captain " Carpathia» William Henry Rostron refused to allow anyone to board until the ship docked. One correspondent attempted to enter without permission, but was immediately placed under house arrest.

The maddened crowd on the pier began to scream. Cold rain, smoky air and the smell of magnesium from photo flashes. It was a surreal night filled with madness and despair.

« Carpathia"did not have good radio contact, and her only radio operator was tired. Even with the help of the surviving radio operator " Titanic» Harold Bride he was able to convey to NY This is by no means a complete list of survivors. Both radio operators remained at the post after the shift, but they did not have the strength and ability to do more. Harold Bride , whose feet were severely frostbitten, continued to print lists of survivors and send messages to their families.

« Carpathia" stopped again to unload 13 lifeboats " Titanic"at berth No. 13" White star line" It seemed that the unloading would never end. The crowd continued to go wild. Finally, at 9.37 pm " Carpathia» berthed at berth No. 54.

As soon as the shore ladder was lowered, doctors, nurses and other medical personnel began to lift stretchers and wheelchairs onto the ship for the victims. Those who could prove that they were being met were allowed to leave the ship on their own.

Along the ladder " Carpathia“People began to descend in groups. Those meeting on the pier could no longer contain their emotions. There were about 500 women in the crowd, dressed in mourning. Also, cries of joy and gratitude to God were heard from everywhere. But as survivors left the ship, the number of people mourning the dead increased. Men and women did not hide their feelings. Grief and suffering gripped the crowd.

Many of the survivors cried. Disembarkation at New York was their last hope - the hope that their loved ones had been rescued by another ship and were waiting for them here.

The crowd waited for an explanation. Why are there so many dead? Why " Titanic"sank so quickly? After all, he was unsinkable! How could this happen?!

From Michigan senator arrived William Alden Smith and spoke with Joseph Bruce Ismay , managing " White star line"who was still on board" Carpathia" Many of the survivors and grieving family members, aware of the senator's presence, begged him to send cruisers to the site of the disaster. In their madness, they claimed that their loved ones were still floating alive in the northern Atlantic, that perhaps they were caught in debris or driven by waves in some of the watertight compartments. Many years later, Senator Smith with tears in his eyes he recalled this spectacle: “ Grief and despair overwhelmed everything around so much that it became difficult to distinguish light from shadow».

Death " Titanic“and continues to remain a mystery today. However, thanks to the dedicated efforts of truth seekers, we have several explanations for what happened in the 37 seconds from the moment the iceberg was spotted until it hit the ship. For economic reasons, airliners of the era " Titanic" were operated on the open sea at cruising speed. This usually meant that the engines pushing the ship were operating at " full speed ahead", the turbine worked the same way.

The procedure for changing speed when approaching an object or maneuvering in a port included several stages of switching the steam supply from the turbine; time was also needed to change the operating conditions of the reciprocating engines. Under normal conditions, the engine compartment was notified 3 minutes before the maneuver. 15 minutes were needed for the bridge to be able to move the engines to neutral.

As soon as the iceberg was spotted, the bridge reacted instinctively. The drivers did not have time to prepare the ship for the sharp maneuver that they tried to undertake." Titanic" In general, no one expected any changes in the teams at night in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. It took several minutes to go from cruising speed to maneuvering speed, and it is unlikely that the ship slowed down any noticeably before hitting the iceberg.

Since not a single engineer who ensured the operation of the turbine and engines " Titanic“, did not survive, no one knows exactly how it all happened. But there is evidence that the drivers were not in the control cabin, and the first commands for the engines were received and executed by two oilers. However, many researchers agree that the supply of steam to the turbines was eventually stopped. But since this did not affect the situation, we can say with confidence that “ Titanic"rushed towards his death at full speed.

Several sources claim that the helm " Titanic", like ships similar to it, was very small, so it was also not possible to significantly change the course of the ship before the collision. Tests carried out by a British commission showed that the iceberg could not have been further than 1,500 feet ( about 457 meters) ahead at the time he was spotted. Therefore, a ship that was 880 feet long and sailed at a speed of 22 knots ( about 40 km/h), had to jump forward at least a distance equal to two of its lengths before reacting to the movement of the steering wheel. All of the above allows us to draw only one conclusion: under the circumstances that developed according to God’s will, it was impossible to avoid the tragedy.

According to the testimony of the surviving first and second class passengers and information leaked to the press, on board “ Titanic“There were a lot of treasures. According to the calculations of the managing director of the shipyard Andrews, on which the giant steamship was built, " price The cost of the liner's passengers, among whom were collectors, millionaires and very wealthy people, was about $250 million. These passengers carried with them expensive antique paintings, things, diamonds and gold.

Of course, paintings, like a priceless manuscript Omar Khayyam « Rubaiyat", a rare, excellently preserved mummy of an Egyptian soothsayer from the times of the pharaoh Amenhotep I (belonged to the archaeologist and Lord Canterville), - all this was irretrievably lost in the abyss, but gold bars, diamonds and gold jewelry undoubtedly remained in the safes in the cabins " Titanic».

All attempts to establish the exact location and discover the remains of the ship for a long time ended in nothing. And only on September 1, 1985, a joint French-American expedition led by Dr. Robert Ballard was able not only to find " Titanic", but also for the first time to photograph it on the ocean floor using robots controlled under water.

The next step was taken by the Russian Institute of Oceanology named after P. Shirshova. In 1991, Russian submersibles descended to a depth of almost 4 kilometers and made the first video recording, and also took samples of the hull lining. After this expedition, official representatives of the Institute. P. Shirshova made a statement that previous expeditions had handled objects and ship mechanisms that could be moved underwater so carelessly that it was no longer possible to restore a complete and accurate picture of the shipwreck.

In 1996 Robert Ballard made an unprecedented attempt to lift a 10-ton piece of the hull, but the safety ropes broke. After in 1989 Atlantic, at a depth of 3750 meters, by a famous submariner R. Ballard was discovered " Titanic", several expeditions visited the place of death - including American-French and one Russian. The main purpose of these dives was to examine the place of death and the nature of the destruction of the hull. As it turned out, the hull of the airliner broke. The stern part of it, where there was no hole and where a giant air cushion formed, broke off and sank a little later, separately from the bow.

American underwater mini-robot " Jason"cautiously entered the interior" Titanic" and took several hundred pictures. Crystal and gilded chandeliers under the ceiling have been preserved there; columns once sheathed with expensive trees; staircase of the main salon; first class cabins with English porcelain baths; bottles of champagne, Chinese sets with the emblem of the famous steamship line " White star"with a star inside a red triangle is the object of desire of many collectors. An ancient Greek bronze sculpture was found Diana, apparently belonged to Margaret Brown , millionaire from Denver, transporting rare items purchased in different countries. Taking command of one of the lifeboats, she at the last moment ordered to throw it all overboard.

However, a second French underwater expedition received permission to retrieve items from the cabins and bring them to the surface. Apparently, some interesting arguments from the French played a role, convincing lawyers to extract both scientific data and objects of legal significance from the bottom of the ocean. For example, during the investigation and trial, which examined the circumstances of the death, “ Titanic", some passengers argued that while " Titanic"sank, individual crew members robbed personal safes in the cabins. This was a serious allegation that had to be investigated.

Really, " Jason“We were able to examine some of the service premises and passenger cabins, including the one that, according to an eyewitness, was robbed. Operator " Jason“I managed to use the manipulator to turn the handle of the safe, partly this indicated that the lock of the safe was indeed open, but the massive steel door, covered with a thick layer of rust, did not budge!

About the safes located in the service areas and the captain's cabin Smith, nothing was reported to the press. It is only known that the French raised 1,412 objects to the surface.

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