2 Events beyond living memory
The sinking of the Titanic
In 30 seconds...
The Titanic was the largest and most luxurious passenger ship built at the time. It
made its maiden voyage in 1912 from Southampton, bound for New York. There was
a range of passengers on the ship, from the very wealthy travelling in first class, right
down to those holed up in third class looking to start a new life in America. But
tragedy struck four days after setting sail when, on the night of 14 April 1912, the
Titanic struck an iceberg and sank off the coast of Newfoundland, in the North
Atlantic. Of the 2,2241 passengers and crew on board when the ship struck the
iceberg, more than 1500 died, including many famous names from the time.
What do I need to know?
A race to be the best
In the early 1900s there were two main shipping companies, the Cunard Line and the
White Star Line, which tried to outdo each other with their magnificent steamships.
Cunard had built two huge vessels, the Mauretania and the Lusitania. The
Mauretania had at this time set the fastest speed for crossing the Atlantic, but the
Lusitania was sunk in 1915 by a German submarine, killing over 1,200 people, which
contributed to America entering the First World War. The Titanic was built in Belfast
for the Whit Star Line by shipbuilding company Harland & Wolff, and took two years
to complete, being finished in 1911. Measuring 882 feet (269 metres) long, 92 feet
(28 metres) wide and weighing 46,328 tonnes, the Titanic was the largest ship in the
world. Deemed unsinkable by experts, the Olympic liner Titanic set sail from
Southampton on 10 April, and was due to arrive in New York one week later.
Who was on board?
There were many rich and famous people on board the Titanic on her maiden
voyage: American businessman John Jacob Astor IV was the richest person on
board, amongst many other prominent businessmen and industrialists. The owner of
the Titanic, J.P. Morgan, was due to travel but cancelled at the last moment;
however, its designer, Thomas Andrews, was on board. There were three types of
ticket on the Titanic: first class, second class and third class, with the last set of
passengers making up the bulk of those who travelled.
The fateful night
There had been reports of ice in the area by other ships, but the Titanic ploughed on
ahead. Ice was not thought to have been a danger to such huge ships, with the
captain, Edward Smith, remarking a few years earlier in 1909, “I cannot imagine any
condition which would cause a ship to flounder. I cannot conceive of any vital
disaster happening to this vessel. Modern shipbuilding has gone beyond that…” The
member of crew on lookout on duty that night, Frederick Fleet, scanned the dark sea;
when he spotted the iceberg, a bell was rung and the bridge was alerted. The
engines were put into reverse and the Titanic turned, but the iceberg cut a 300 foot
(90 metre) jagged hole in her side, below the level of the water. The Titanic was
slowly sinking.
1
Exact numbers are difficult to clarify as many people had tickets but did not board the Titanic, but most sources
state 2,223 or 2,224 people on board.
Evacuating the ship
With the bow of the ship down, the order was given to evacuate. However, there
were only enough lifeboats for about half the people on board, and many of these
were set adrift far from full. The call went out to save the women and children first,
although many of them perished before they could even get near the lifeboats. There
were many tales of bravery and sacrifice, as men said their goodbyes to loved ones,
knowing that they would not escape the sinking ship. Other couples stayed together,
refusing to be parted at the end. The Titanic took almost three hours to sink. With
lights blazing and the ship now almost vertical, the Titanic plunged down into the
depths at about 2.20am on 15 April.
Survivors
The Cunard ship the Carpathia was the first on the scene after receiving the Titanic’s
distress call, and risked colliding with ice as she charged full steam towards the
distressed liner. When the Carpathia reached the spot where the Titanic had been,
she rounded up the survivors and took them onboard. There were only 7062 left.
Key words
White Star Line: The firm that owned the Titanic.
Cunard: Another shipping company; a rival to the White Star Line.
Bow: The front of a ship.
Stern: The back of a ship.
Important dates
10 April 1912: The Titanic sets sail from Southampton.
14 April 1912: The Titanic hits an iceberg.
15 April 1912: The Titanic finally sinks.
Important people
J. Bruce Ismay: Chairman and Managing Director of the White Star Line.
Edward Smith: Captain of the Titanic.
Frederick Fleet: Lookout on the Titanic.
Interesting fact 1
Much is made of the bulkheads aboard the Titanic that could be sealed and
sectioned off, thus confining the water. However, the nature of these bulkheads
meant that when they were full, water could in fact leak into neighbouring
compartments.
Interesting fact 2
There were only enough lifeboats on board for 1,178 out of 2,240 people on board
the Titanic. Although this seems criminally inadequate by today’s standards, the
ratio was within the safety regulations of the day.
Useful links
www.history.com/topics/titanic Excellent site with lots of multimedia activities.
www.titanic-lore.info/Capt-Smith.htm Detailed information about the captain of the
Titanic.
www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/titanic.htm Survivor Elizabeth Shutes describes
what happened.
2
Sources state between 705-713 survivors; most state 706 or 705.
Lesson 1 How did it sink?
Starter
• Show pupils some artefacts from the Titanic, but do not tell them where they are
from. Use them to stimulate discussion and exchange ideas on where they may
have come from. (Don’t make them too obvious at first).
Main activities
• Explain that they are all from the Titanic. What do pupils know about the Titanic?
• Ask pupils if the disaster could have been avoided. What kind of actions could
have been taken?
• Issue words to help if needed: speed, design, over-confidence, unsinkable,
lifeboats, rescue.
Plenary
• In groups, pupils discuss and decide on the most important reason that it sank.
Was it due to a number of reasons, or one in particular?
Lesson 2 Trip of a lifetime
Starter
• Pupils discuss what their dream trip would be – the trip of a lifetime!
Main activities
• Explain that getting on the Titanic was a trip of a lifetime for those on board.
How might they have been feeling as they got on board? Note ideas on the
board.
• Pupils write a short fact-file on the three classes of passenger on the Titanic.
• Pupils imagine they are a first-, second- or third-class passenger and write why
they are going on the Titanic and how they are feeling as the ship sets sail.
Plenary
• In groups, pupils pretend they are passengers on the Titanic and explain who
they are to the rest of the group. They can be as rich or poor as they like!
Lesson 3 Lessons learnt
Starter
• Ask pupils if they have ever learnt anything from a mistake they have made.
They discuss in groups and feed back to the class.
Main activities
• Show pupils statistics to do with the lifeboats on the Titanic. Do they notice that
there were not enough lifeboats? Why was this? (Options: different safety
regulations; didn’t think it would sink.)
• If they were the captain, how would they decide who would get on the lifeboats
first? (Richer people, women or children?)
• Look at stories of those who stayed on board. Why did they do that?
• If they could change one thing about the Titanic, what would it be? Write and
illustrate the idea.
Plenary
• In groups, pupils debate the most important thing learnt from the Titanic and
feed back to class.
Further activities for pupils
• Investigate artefacts from the Titanic. What stories or secrets do they hold?
• Watch a short documentary on the Titanic.
• Research the discovery of the Titanic.
• Research some of the famous people on board the Titanic.
Further research for pupils
The Oscar-laden epic by James Cameron has a ‘12’ certificate, so younger children
should check out A Night to Remember, or SOS Titanic (both PG).
For an illustrated factual book, have a look at Story of the Titanic (DK History)
illustrated by Steve Noon. For a story-based read, try Titanic (Young Reading series
3) by Anna Claybourne and Katie Daynes.
There are loads of apps all about the Titanic. Flappy Titanic is likely to appeal!
Cross-curricular links
Art and design: Make a paper maché model of the Titanic. Create a treasure chest
of artefacts found on the Titanic.
English: Write an account of a survivor of the Titanic.
Computing: Design a fact-file poster about the Titanic.
Geography: Trace the route of the Titanic on a map and fill in where the other ships
were in the vicinity.
Science: Explore the discovery of the Titanic in 1985.
Drama: Dramatise the scene from the moment that the iceberg is spotted to the
sinking of the Titanic. Compose a radio/TV show about the sinking of the Titanic; use
reporters, interview the captain and passengers and use updates to report on the
disaster.
Progression
1. Pupils know how the Titanic sank.
2. Pupils can identify different classes of people on board the Titanic.
3. Pupils can explain the route of the Titanic and where it sank.
4. Pupils can identify key features of the Titanic.
5. Pupils can explain why the disaster was so bad.
6. Pupils can analyse and identify objects found from the wreck of the Titanic.