This story is about Violet Constance Jessop - an Irish woman who survived not one or even two, but as many as 3 major ship disasters of the 20th century.
Having recovered from tuberculosis as a child, the lucky girl (pictured) in 1911 was not the ship Olympic, which collided with the cruiser Hawk; in 1916, she was among the survivors of the mine-blown Britannica. Oh yeah, we almost forgot! In 1912, she was on the Titanic, and she was saved again!
Death waits for no one, but it waited for Violet
Violet Jessop was born in Argentina in 1887 to Irish immigrants and was the oldest of 9 children. Three of them died in childhood. The first meeting with the icy hand of death occurred at a young age, when the girl fell ill with tuberculosis. It would seem that there is no chance, and the Jessop family will lose one more child … But fate had other plans for her.
First disaster
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At the age of 23, Violette decides to follow in the footsteps of her deceased mother and gets a job as a flight attendant in a large British shipping company White Star Line. On June 14, 1911, Jessop boarded the transatlantic liner Olympic.
It would seem that everything went smoothly until, due to unsuccessful maneuvering, the liner collided with the cruiser Hawk. Fortunately, everything worked out. Both ships, despite the damage, remained afloat and were able to return each to its port.
Now tell me, what normal person, after such a large-scale incident at that time, would want to be on board the ship again? There are hardly any volunteers who would dare to try their luck again and play Russian roulette with death. But our Violette came back on board a few years later.
Second disaster
When the girl learned that the most unsinkable ship in the world, the Titanic, required a stewardess, she gladly accepted this offer. Perhaps she was sure that nothing would happen to this liner.
Thanks to the film of the same name, children of the 90s and subsequent generations learned that on April 14, 1912, one of the most terrible disasters in the world occurred: the twin brother Olympic collided with an iceberg and plunged into the icy depths of the Atlantic Ocean. Later, in her memoirs, Violette will tell that shortly before the voyage she had a premonition and she did not want to board the Titanic. The girl was persuaded by her friends, saying that this job would be an excellent recommendation for her career.
Thanks to the unspoken rule, "Women and Children First," Jessop found herself in lifeboat number 16. As she boarded it, one of the officers handed her a small child. Later, already on the "Carpathia", a certain woman snatched the baby from her and, without saying a word, ran away. Violet thought it was his mom.
Third disaster
Having survived the collision of one liner and the complete wreck of the second, the fearless and very lucky Violet gets a job at the Britannic. Almost every friend of the girl had a bad feeling, but Jossep did not attach any importance to this.
The Britannic was owned by White Star and was converted into a hospital during World War I. The ship stayed afloat for exactly 55 minutes, until it was blown up by a mine left by a German submarine. The explosion fell on the starboard side. However, the ship remained afloat. Therefore, the team decided not to lower the boats and wait for the vessel to come to a complete stop. Unfortunately, 2 boats had already been launched and were tightened by the propeller rotating at that time. 21 people died.
By the way, our heroine was in one of these boats, but managed to jump out in time, thereby saving her life. However, when she was under water, the current skidded Violet under the bottom, and the girl severely hurt her head. She later reveals that she was probably saved by a thick head of hair that softened the blow. Nevertheless, a few years after the incident, Jossep had to see a doctor due to frequent headaches. As it turned out, the girl had a crack in her skull.
Fortunately, there were no more shipwrecks in Violet's life. Having appeared for the first time on board the ship at the age of 23, Jossep has survived 3 of the world's largest disasters in 6 years and survived! Even the crash of the Britannica could not change her plans. Violet continued to work aboard large ships for another 34 years, until she retired at 63. By the way, she twice made a round-the-world cruise on the "Belgenland".
Jessop died in 1971 of heart failure. The woman who cheated death three times ended up meeting her at age 83.
Was Violet the luckiest ship stewardess in the world or, conversely, the most unlucky? The world will never know about it. But we know one thing: if you ever find yourself on a ship with a woman named Violet Constance Jessop (that is, with the full namesake of our heroine), keep a life jacket near you. So, just in case.
Mukaddas Baratova
