RMS Titanic Q&A : A recap on the history of the Titanic and its origins in Belfast - the sinking the rescue and inquiry - last survivor and final route - Titanic Centre Belfast and the Ballard connection - Why did ‘unsinkable’ Titanic sink

The sinking of the Royal Mail Steamer (RMS) Titanic

On Sunday 14 April 1912, at 11:40pm, just four days after leaving safe harbour bound for America The RMS Titanic struck an iceberg. Within three hours it was resting on the bottom of the Atlantic. It is estimated that just over 1500 died while 700 souls were saved.

The Cunard Liner Carpathia, Captained by Arthur Rostron and en route from New York to the Adriatic took part in what has been described as one of the greatest rescues in the history of the sea. All of the survivors and the 13 lifeboats launched from the stricken Titanic were picked up by the Carpathia.

Titanic Inquiry

Two inquiries were held into the sinking of the Titanic. One in america and one in the UK led by the then Wreck Commissioner Lord Mersey. The British inquiry concluded 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.” The American inquiry made a number of conclusions including that Titanic's Captain Edward Smith had shown an "indifference to danger was one of the direct and contributing causes of this unnecessary tragedy." It also stated that a lack of emergency preparations had left Titanic's passengers and crew in "a state of absolute unpreparedness", and the evacuation had been chaotic: "No general alarm was given, no ship's officers formally assembled, no orderly routine was attempted or organized system of safety begun."

Who died on the Titanic?

Among the 1500 hundred on board who died were 61 children. one first class child passenger, two second class, and an astonishing fifty-seven third class. Famous names included the wealthiest man on board John Jacob Astor, American businessman Benjamin Guggenheim, Titanic designer, Thomas Andrews, Jr.. The ship’s Captain, Edward Smith also died. His body was never recovered.

The building of the Titanic

Construction started on March 31 1909 when the keel was laid down at Queen's Island, now known as the Titanic Quarter, in Belfast Harbour. and the construction of the Titanic commenced. On May 31 1911, 26 months after the keel was put down the Titanic was launched, into Belfast Lough from a slipway at the Queen’s Yard in the Harland & Wolff shipyard. The honour of launching the ship was given to Robert Falconer Keith, Harland & Wolff,Head Foreman Shipwright. At the time the Belfast shipyard employed 14,000

The Titanic maiden voyage

The Titanic left Belfast on April 2 1912 around 12noon. It’s estimated 100,000 people watched her sail. She was heading for Southampton’s White Star Dock on her maiden voyage to New York. After leaving Southampton on April 10 1912. She stopped in Cherbourg in France and Queenstown in Ireland to pick up passengers, crew and supplies before departing for New York.

Who was the last Titanic survivor

Eliza Gladys Dean (2 February 1912 – 31 May 2009), known as Millvina Dean, was a British civil servant, cartographer, and the last living survivor of the sinking of the RMS Titanic on 15 April 1912. At two months old, she was also the youngest passenger aboard.

Why did ‘unsinkable’ Titanic sink

Shipbuilder Harland and Wolff did not claim she was unsinkable, but a promotional item from the White Star Line stressed the safety of Olympic and Titanic, claiming that "as far as it is possible to do so, these two wonderful vessels are designed to be unsinkable". The immediate cause of RMS Titanic's demise was a collision with an iceberg that caused the ocean liner to sink on April 14–15, 1912. While the ship could reportedly stay afloat if as many as 4 of its 16 compartments were breached, the impact had affected at least 5 compartments. The full reason for the sinking is still unclear

The Belfast connection – The Titanic Centre

The Titanic was built at Harland & Wolff shipyard, Queen’s Island Belfast and took a little over two years to complete. In March 2012 the Titanic Centre opened in Belfast at the head of the historic slipways where Titanic was built and launched. The centre offers the true legend of RMS Titanic, in the city where it all began. The self-guided tour extends over nine interactive galleries where you discover the sights, sounds, smells and stories of the ship, as well as the people and city that made her. On the Discovery Tour you’ll hear why and how the ship was built and what happened in its final hours. You’ll find out fact and fable as you walk in the footsteps of the designers and shipbuilders who brought the dream to life.

The Titan 5-Person Submersible

Titan is a Cyclops-class manned submersible designed to take five people to depths of 4,000 meters (13,123 feet) for site survey and inspection, research and data collection, film and media production, and deep sea testing of hardware and software. The Titan is currently lost near the site of the Titanic wreck

Dr Robert Ballard and the search for Titanic

Dr Robert Ballard, the man who famously discovered the wreck of RMS Titanic, has visited Titanic Center, Belfast a number of times, most recently to the see new gallery, Ballard’s Quest, which was unveiled earlier in his honour as part of the reimagined Titanic Experience. The first serious attempt to salvage Titanic took place in July 1953 by Risdon Beazley Ltd, a Southampton-based salvage company, however this was unsuccessful. Throughout the 1960s and 70s many other proposals were put forward, with most being abandoned for financial reasons.

At 12.48am on Sunday, 1 September 1985 observers sighted debris on the smooth ocean floor and the rest of the team was awakened. Finally, a boiler was sighted - identical to those shown in pictures from 1911, and soon after that the hull was discovered.