British journalist Chenan Meloni studied the history of the Titanic for 30 years and came to a "sensational" conclusion: the main cause of the crash was a fire in a fuel storage, which lasted about two weeks. This is interesting, of course, but don't you think that he hasn't told us anything new?
After all, on September 20, 1987, French television told the world "sensational news": the reason for the death of the Titanic, it turns out, was a fire that broke out in the hold of the ill-fated liner, and not at all a collision with an iceberg.
Since 30 years later “sensational” versions emerge again, let us remember all of them as they are. Maybe you will also find something sensational for yourself.
Here they are …
On a cold night from the fourteenth to the fifteenth of April 1912, the most famous maritime disaster in the history of mankind occurred in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. The ship of the "White Star Line" company, bearing the proud name "Titanic", having died in the middle of its maiden voyage and taking with it one thousand five hundred and four human lives, was doomed to become the most famous ship in the world.
Why did the most perfect ship of that era sink - a ship that was considered completely unsinkable? Let's use the blogger prosto_serge to collect all the proposed versions:
The first version. Conspiracy theory
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Few people know that the Titanic had a twin brother - the ship Olympic, an exact copy of it, also owned by the White Star Line. How so, the reader may be surprised, because the Titanic was considered a unique ship, the largest ship of that era, and now it turns out that there was another ship, not inferior in size? No, the Titanic was indeed longer than its twin. Two inches. Just imagine - the length of a matchbox! - but still longer. Another thing is that it was almost impossible to notice these inches with the naked eye (and perhaps armed, too), so a stranger, looking at the twins standing side by side, could not say which of them is who.
Gemini: Titanic (right) and Olympic.
The Olympic was a year older than its brother (so it would be more correct to call the Titanic a copy), and not much luckier. Probably, he should have written something like "from the very beginning, an evil fate hovered over each of the ships," but more on that later: of course, the greatest sea disaster could not but acquire mystical rumors.
Well, rock, not rock, but the fate of Olympic was really full of troubles. His career began when a ship crashed into a dam during launching. After that, minor and major accidents rained down on him one after another, and the ship, it seemed, was not even insured. Rumor has it that after a series of accidents, the owners would be happy to insure their ship, and insurance companies refused to deal with the failed liner. The most serious accident was the collision with the British military cruiser Hawk, which led the White Star Line to tangible financial problems: expensive repairs were needed, and the company's financial situation was very dire. So the Olympic was delivered to the Belfast docks to await a decision on its future fate. And now - attention!Take a look at the photo on the left - this is almost the only existing image showing the Titanic and Olympic standing side by side. It was made just in Belfast.
Final rigging of the Titanic at the Belfast shipyard.
Why not assume, some researchers said, that the White Star Line had decided to pull off a grand scheme. To whip up the old Olympic and … pass it off as the new Titanic! Technically, it would not be difficult at all: to swap the plates with the names of the ships, and even interior items on which the ships' monogram is applied - for example, cutlery (the "Olympic" and the "Titanic" had, of course, some design differences - well, yes who knows about them?). Then the "Olympic" under the guise of a new, prestigious, widely advertised (and, of course, the honor of the insured) "Titanic" will travel across the Atlantic, where it will collide (quite by accident, of course) with an iceberg (fortunately, the lack of them at this time year was not). Of course, no one was going to sink the liner - and no one believed,that some kind of iceberg could send the most reliable ship in the world to the bottom. It was planned to arrange a small collision, after which the ship will slowly reach New York, and its owners will receive a tidy sum insured, which will come in handy for the company.
This version is supported by the strange behavior of the ship's captain, Edward Smith. Why was such a seasoned, experienced sea wolf so careless about the safety of his ship? Why did he stubbornly ignore reports of drifting icebergs coming from other ships, and even himself, it seems, steered the liner along the course on which it is easiest to meet the ice mountain? Why did he do this, if not to carry out the White Star plan? Personally, it seems to me that it was for this, only … the plan was completely different. But more on that later.
John Pierpont Morgan.
It was not easy to refute the conspiracy theory, especially since White Star went out of its way to save its reputation: in every possible way distorted information about the disaster, bribed witnesses, and so on. Actually, convincing arguments were found only after the sunken liner itself was discovered (and this happened only seventy-three years later - the remains of the ship were discovered by the expedition of Robert Ballard in September eighty-fifth). So, the participants of one of the expeditions, descending to the lost ship, took photographs of the propeller, on which the minted serial number of the Titanic is clearly visible - 401 (his older brother had exactly 400). Conspiracy theorists claim, however, that the Olympic damaged its propeller after colliding with the cruiser Hawk.and White Star replaced it with a propeller from the then unfinished Titanic. But number 401 is also found on other parts of the sunken ship, so the charge of planned disaster from the White Star Line can be dropped. The following theory looks much more plausible - we'll talk about it now.
One of the arguments in favor of the conspiracy theory was the fact that industrialist John Morgan, one of the owners of the Titanic, was supposed to sail aboard his ship, but canceled the ticket a day before the ship left port.
A piece of the Titanic's skin raised from the bottom.
And they also say (that mysticism began) that the magnate was dissuaded from going by the foresighted Nikola Tesla, whose development was financed by Morgan.
Second version. Chasing the Blue Ribbon
It all began a long time ago, when a regular sea service was established between England and America, and, therefore, competition between shipowners began to flare up. The faster the ship crossed the Atlantic, the more popular it became. In 1840, the Cunard Company created a prize for the ships that set the speed record: now the ship crossing the Atlantic Ocean faster than any of its predecessors received the Atlantic Blue Ribbon award.
Actually, there was no material prize. The winner did not receive a cash prize, the captain was not awarded a commemorative cup, which can be placed in a prominent place in the wardroom. But the ship acquired something more - priceless prestige, which cannot be obtained by other means. In addition to honor in maritime circles (and, therefore, fame and popularity), the winner of the award received a contract for the transportation of mail (including diplomatic) between America and Europe, and this is a very profitable item of shipping. And in general - see for yourself: if you are a wealthy businessman, maybe even a millionaire, on which ship would you prefer to travel? Isn't it the most prestigious and fastest?
At the time the Titanic left Southampton, the Blue Ribbon was owned by Mauritania, a ship owned by White Star's main competitor. Naturally, it was impossible to put up with this, and White Star decided to bet on their favorite. The conquest of the Blue Ribbon by the Titanic would be a triumph for this corporation, making it possible to correct its shaky position: the Knight of the All-Atlantic Ribbon usually had four times more passengers than other similar ships.
Due to the threat of collision with floating ice, the prescribed route of the Titanic (and any other vessel following the same course) did not run in a straight line, but made a small detour, skirting the dangerous ocean area where most of the icebergs drift. Of course, this maneuver lengthens the road. That is why it may seem that Captain Smith was leading his ship right into the flock of icebergs - he just had to take a shortcut and get the Blue Ribbon at all costs. That is why the "Titanic" went at full steam and did not reduce speed even after receiving several radio messages warning about ice danger from other ships. Let the other ships be worried - and the Titanic has nothing to fear. In the "crow's nest" - a special observation platform on the front mast - there are two lookouts,who, in case of danger, will be able to report it to the captain's bridge by telephone in the blink of an eye: the Titanic is equipped with the latest technology. And if a collision does happen, well, it only means that the record will be set another time. Icebergs do not pose any danger to the ship - after all, it is known that the Titanic is completely unsinkable. Its hold is divided into sixteen watertight compartments, so if suddenly it gets a hole (which, of course, cannot be), only one of the compartments will be filled with water, and the ship will calmly continue its journey. That one - the liner will not sink, even if four compartments are filled! And the ship can receive such damage only in war.well, it only means that the record will be set another time. Icebergs do not pose any danger to the ship - after all, it is known that the Titanic is completely unsinkable. Its hold is divided into sixteen watertight compartments, so if suddenly it gets a hole (which, of course, cannot be), only one of the compartments will be filled with water, and the ship will calmly continue its journey. That one - the liner will not sink, even if four compartments are filled! And the ship can receive such damage only in war.well, it only means that the record will be set another time. Icebergs do not pose any danger to the ship - after all, it is known that the Titanic is completely unsinkable. Its hold is divided into sixteen watertight compartments, so if suddenly it gets a hole (which, of course, cannot be), only one of the compartments will be filled with water, and the ship will calmly continue its journey. That one - the liner will not sink, even if four compartments are filled! And the ship can receive such damage only in war.then only one of the compartments will be filled with water, and the ship will calmly continue its journey. That one - the liner will not sink, even if four compartments are filled! And the ship can receive such damage only in war.then only one of the compartments will be filled with water, and the ship will calmly continue its journey. That one - the liner will not sink, even if four compartments are filled! And the ship can receive such damage only in war.
Well, it's not for nothing that pride is one of the deadly sins. She played a cruel joke with the Titanic: the iceberg damaged five compartments - one more than was allowed.
But how did the ice break through the steel of the ship's skin? In the mid-nineties, a piece of the Titanic's skin was raised to the surface and subjected to a brittleness test: a sheet of metal clamped in clamps had to withstand the impact of a thirty-kilogram pendulum. A piece of steel used in shipbuilding today was also tested for comparison. Before the experiment, both samples were placed in an alcohol bath with a temperature of just over a degree - just like the ocean water that fateful night. Modern metal came out of the test with honor: under the blow of the hammer, it caved, but remained intact. Raised from the bottom, it split into two parts. Maybe he became so fragile after spending eighty years at the bottom of the ocean? Researchers managed to get at the Belfast shipyard, where the Titanic was built, a sample of steel of those years. He passed the strength test no better than his brother.
One of the Titanic's watertight bulkheads.
The experts concluded that the steel used in the construction of the Titanic was of very poor quality, with a large admixture of sulfur, which made it brittle at low temperatures. Alas, at the beginning of the twentieth century, the level of development of metallurgy was far from today's. If the liner was made of high-quality steel, the body would simply bend inward from the impact, and the tragedy would have been avoided.
Third version. Fire in the hold
On September 20, 1987, French television told the world sensational news: it turns out that the reason for the death of the Titanic was a fire that broke out in the hold of the ill-fated liner, and not a collision with an iceberg. Apparently, the supporters of the new hypothesis assured that in one of the ship's coal storages spontaneous combustion of coal occurred (well, this is indeed possible), the fire spread to the entire hold, reached the steam boilers, which exploded from this, which made the ship go to the bottom. As for the iceberg, it just happened to be nearby, so it was accused of the liner crash.
Yes, indeed, there was a fire on the Titanic - and this is no longer a guess, but an established fact. However, could he have caused the disaster? Oh, hardly. How do you imagine a fire in a coal bunker? Roaring flames throwing ominous crimson reflections on the metal paneling of the walls, rushing sailors with a naked torso, someone pumping a pump, and a stream of water disappears into a raging wall of fire? I must disappoint you - in fact, everything is much more prosaic. In general, a fire in the coal bunker of steamers of that time is a fairly common thing. In such a fire, coal does not burn, does not burn, but smolders quietly, sometimes for several days. They fought such fires in the simplest way - out of turn they burned smoldering coal in steamboat furnaces. So a fire in a coal hold is, of course, an unpleasant phenomenon, but, as a rule, it does not promise any serious troubles for the ship. And certainly not under any circumstances capable of producing such monstrous destruction, which are attributed to him by supporters of the version of the sinking of the Titanic from the flames. Moreover, the fire on the ship was extinguished even before its last voyage. The bunker was emptied and examined by specialists from the shipyard where the Titanic was stationed. It seems that the most serious consequence of the fire was a slight deformation of one of the watertight bulkheads, which could in no way affect the fate of the liner. The most serious consequence of the fire was a slight deformation of one of the watertight bulkheads, which could in no way affect the fate of the liner. The most serious consequence of the fire was a slight deformation of one of the watertight bulkheads, which could in no way affect the fate of the liner.
But Chenan Meloni, nevertheless, believes that the iceberg is only one of the factors that ruined the ship. In the process of scrupulous examination of photographs taken ten days before the Titanic left Southampton, the journalist discovered traces of soot on the inside of the paneling. Exactly in the place that was subsequently damaged in the collision. The fire in the fuel storage, experts say, began during high-speed tests at a dock in Belfast.
The ship's owners knew that a fire was raging in the bowels of the Titanic, but they were so greedy that they decided not to cancel the voyage. So that the passengers did not suspect anything, in the port of Southampton, the ship was turned on a different side. The officers were ordered to keep their mouths shut.
The liner set sail, but a team of 12 people could not cope with the fire. Gradually, the cladding heated up to a thousand degrees Celsius. Metallurgical experts with whom Meloni consulted stated that steel at this temperature becomes brittle, losing up to 75% of its strength. For this reason, when hitting an iceberg in the bow compartments of the ship, six holes with a total length of about 90 meters were formed at once. The ship's unsinkability system did not cope with such serious damage.
So Ray Boston, who studied the documents of this disaster for many years, found evidence. According to him, fireman Dilly, who survived the disaster, testified about the fire, who said: “We could not put out the fire, and there were rumors that as soon as we disembark passengers in the port of New York and unload the coal bunkers, we would immediately call fire boats for help. for extinguishing fire.
The iceberg ripped through the liner skin just under the bunker number six, where the largest hole was formed, and no one had to put out the fire. And the commission investigating the loss of the liner, for some unknown reason, did not pay attention to the stoker's statement.
The fourth version. German torpedo
1912 year. There are two years left before the First World War, and the prospect of an armed conflict between Germany and Great Britain is becoming more and more likely. Germany owns several dozen submarines, which during the war will launch a ruthless hunt for enemy ships trying to cross the ocean. For example, the reason for America's entry into the war would be that the U-20 submarine would sink the Lusitania in 1915, the twin of the same Mauritania that set the speed record and won the Atlantic Blue Ribbon.
Based on these facts, some Western publications offered their version of the sinking of the Titanic in the mid-nineties: a torpedo attack by a German submarine secretly escorting the liner. The purpose of the attack was to discredit the British fleet, famous for its power throughout the world. In accordance with this theory, the Titanic either did not collide with an iceberg at all, or received very minor damage in the collision and would have remained afloat if the Germans had not finished off the ship with a torpedo.
What speaks in favor of this version? To be honest, nothing.
First, there was a collision with an iceberg - there is no doubt about it. The deck of the ship was even covered with snow and ice crumbs. The cheerful passengers started to play football with ice - that the ship is doomed, it will become clear later. The collision itself passed surprisingly quietly - almost no one among the passengers felt it. The torpedo, you see, could hardly have exploded completely silently (especially since some claim that the submarine fired as many as six torpedoes at the ship!). Proponents of the theory of the German attack claim, however, that the people in the boats heard a terrible roar just before the sinking of the Titanic - well, that was two and a half hours later, when only the stern lifted up into the sky remained above the water and the death of the ship did not cause any doubts. It is unlikely that the Germans would have fired a torpedo at an almost sunken ship, right? And the crashwhich the survivors heard, was explained by the fact that the feed of the Titanic rose almost vertically and huge steam boilers fell from their places. Also, do not forget that at about the same minutes the Titanic broke in half - the keel could not bear the weight of the lifted stern (however, they learn about this only after finding the liner at the bottom: the break occurred below the water level), and this, too, hardly happened silently … And why would the Germans suddenly start sinking a passenger liner two years before the start of the war? This seems, to put it mildly, doubtful. And to put it bluntly - absurd.learn about this only after the discovery of the liner at the bottom: the fault occurred below the water level), and this, too, hardly happened silently. And why would the Germans suddenly start sinking a passenger liner two years before the start of the war? This seems, to put it mildly, doubtful. And to put it bluntly - absurd.learn about this only after the discovery of the liner at the bottom: the fault occurred below the water level), and this, too, hardly happened silently. And why would the Germans suddenly start sinking a passenger liner two years before the start of the war? This seems, to put it mildly, doubtful. And to put it bluntly - absurd.
Fifth version. The curse of the Egyptian mummy
In the eighties of the nineteenth century near Cairo, a perfectly preserved mummy of the times of Amenhotep IV was discovered, named either Amen-Otu, or Amen-Ra, or Amenophis (lovers of mysticism, as you know, do not bother with such trifles. Mummy and mummy). During her lifetime, the mummy worked as a famous soothsayer, and therefore, after death, she was awarded a magnificent burial: with jewelry, figurines of gods, and, of course, magic amulets. Among them was an image of Osiris, decorated with the inscription: "Wake up from your swoon, and your gaze will crush everyone who gets in your way." Others, however, insisted that it was written "Rise from the dust, and only the gaze of your eyes will triumph over any intrigues against you," but what, in essence, is the difference? That's when others timidly suggested that nothing of the kind was written on the mummy,it was certainly clear that this was nonsense.
The very first horror movie about a mummy.
The mummy was acquired by some collector, then by another, by a third, and all previous owners, of course, perished under the most mysterious and mysterious circumstances. That is, maybe, in fact, each of them lived to be ninety-nine years old and rested in the arms of a young beauty, but who will check this? The owners of mummies, as everyone knows, are supposed to die, and, preferably, a terrible death. By the way, look at how the tomb of Tutankhamun was opened.
Ticket to the Titanic.
Finally, our mummy was acquired from a British museum by an American millionaire and sent to his American residence aboard a ship. Well, guess which liner was chosen for this purpose?
An ordinary box, either glass or wooden (not tin, in any case, exactly) served as a sarcophagus on the way, and it was kept just near the captain's bridge. Mystics of all stripes avidly assure that Captain Edward Smith, of course, could not resist the temptation and looked into this box with the mummy: their eyes met and … no, they did not love each other; quite the opposite: a monstrous curse came true. Otherwise, judge for yourself, how to explain that the captain's head went cloudy, and with his own fearless hand he directed the Titanic straight to certain death?
And, in fact, why is it believed that the captain's head was clouded, and with his own hand he directed the Titanic to certain death? Well, how could he not get cloudy in his head if he met the mummy's eyes? As you can see, there is nothing to object.
It's a shame that the mummy died a thousand years before the birth of Aristotle, so she had difficulty with logic. Otherwise, she would have realized that the direct consequence of the fact that the ship would ram the iceberg would be the death of her, mummy, precious body - in the ocean water it is unlikely to survive for more than a few days. And the destruction of the body is the worst thing that can happen to a mummy: her soul will have nowhere to return. So if the mummy really had magical powers, it would be in her best interest to protect the Titanic as the apple of her magical eye. Or maybe she, too, bought into the advertising rhetoric about the unsinkable ship and did not pay attention to the dangerous icebergs?
Whatever it was, but the mummy died in the ocean abyss, disappeared without a trace, and cannot stand up for its honest name; This is shamelessly used by the tabloid press, which regularly publishes accusations against it under monotonous headlines: “Sensation! "Titanic" was destroyed by the curse of the pharaohs! " Let's leave it on the conscience of the journalists.
The mummy, by the way, was not the only historical relic that perished aboard the Titanic. Much more tragic for art is the death in the Atlantic Ocean of the original manuscript of Omar Khayyam "Rubayat" - a relic that truly had no price.
Sixth version. Steering error and human error
The recently released book by the granddaughter of the second mate of the Titanic Ch. Lightoller Lady Patten "Worth its weight in gold" about the tragic fate of the Titanic, reveals new sensational aspects of the disaster. It turns out that the Titanic team discovered the iceberg in advance, which made it possible to avoid a collision. The cause of the collision was the panic of the helmsman, who performed the wrong maneuver.
The revelation, which was hidden for about 100 years by the family of one of the Titanic officers, is published in a new book. Second officer Charles Lightoller, who escaped the disaster, concealed the mistake from commissions on both sides of the Atlantic, due to fears of bankruptcy of shipowners and the loss of work for his colleagues. And even after his death, for fear of damaging his reputation, his relatives hid the truth.
But now his granddaughter, the writer Patten, has opened the curtain of secrecy in her new novel. When First Mate Ulyam Murdoch spotted the iceberg 2 miles away, his order to starboard was misinterpreted in the wheelhouse by Robert Hitchins. He first turned the ship to the right, and although he immediately corrected the course, but due to the high speed of the Titanic, its starboard was ripped open by an iceberg.
At first glance, it looks amazing that anyone - especially the person who stood at the helm on the maiden voyage of the world's most expensive ocean liner - could have made such a schoolboy mistake. However, Patten explains, this seemingly improbable error had a very specific technical reason.
The Titanic was launched at a time when the world was moving from sailing to steam ships. Her grandfather, like the rest of the senior officers on the Titanic, started out on sailing ships. On the sailboats, the commands were sent to the tiller. If it is necessary to turn the ship in one direction, then the tiller is turned in the other (for example, if the ship needs to be turned to the left, then the tiller is turned to the right). Now it looks unnatural, but at one time it was customary to give commands that way. The steering commands used on steam ships are like driving a car - the boat is steered in the direction it should turn. The situation was further confused by the fact that although the Titanic was a steamer, tiller commands were used in the North Atlantic at that time. Accordingly, Murdoch gave the command "to the tiller",but the panicked Hitchins mechanically obeyed the steering command as he had been taught. They only had four minutes to change course, and when Murdoch noticed Hitchins' mistake and tried to fix it, it was too late.
Patten's grandfather, who later set up his own dockyard in Richmond-on-Thames (where his small shipyard was now, has a plaque), shared another, potentially even more deadly, secret with his wife, Sylvia. If helmsman Hitchins was simply wrong, then Bruce Ismay, also the survivor of the White Star Line, which owned the Titanic, issued a disastrous order.
“The iceberg hit the Titanic in the most vulnerable place,” Patten continues, “but, as my grandfather believed, the liner could stay afloat for a long time. However, Ismay came to the bridge. He did not want the vessel, in which huge funds were invested, to either sink slowly in the middle of the Atlantic, or be towed to port. Too bad advertising! Therefore, he told the captain to give the small one in advance. The Titanic was considered unsinkable!"
Captain of the Titanic Edward Smith.
To this we can add that shortly before this sad anniversary, a letter from a Titanic passenger who managed to survive was put up for auction in one of the auction houses in Great Britain. Previously, this letter did not appear anywhere. The passenger writes in her letter that on the day the Titanic crashed, she saw the captain of the ship drunk.
According to the woman, she also saw how the captain of the Titanic, having transferred control to someone from the crew, sat in a bar and consumed whiskey. Thus, it may turn out that the "Titanic" sank not because of a fatal coincidence, but because of banal criminal negligence.
What versions have we missed besides the official one? And which version do you adhere to?