Remembering White Star's Olympic-Class Ships

White Star Line was the British shipping company that constructed some of the largest passenger ships of their day. These were the Olympic-class ships that were constructed before World War I, and were the largest ships in the world. Although not always the fastest, they could transport thousands of passengers. There were three Olympic-class ships: the Olympic, Britannic, and the Titanic.

The Titanic

The Titanic is probably the most famous of these ships. This ship was first constructed at the Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast. By 1912, the ship was complete and was approximately 46,000 tons. As such, it was the largest of its time and could carry almost 2,500 passengers.

The Titanic had an iron hull, which was approximately 882 feet long. The ship's beam was more like 92 feet. At the rear of the hull were the Titanic's bronze triple-blade wing propellers, which were fuelled by steam engines and Scotch boilers for a speed of 23 knots.

This ship set sail from Southampton in 1912 and would not return. During its maiden voyage, it sailed into icy Atlantic waters, which included large icebergs. The Titanic maintained speed and collided with an iceberg, which was enough to penetrate five of its watertight compartments. This ship might have remained afloat with four of its watertight compartments flooded, but the loss of the fifth compartment ensured the sinking of the ship.

The Titanic did not have enough lifeboats. The ship had only 20 lifeboats; it required double that number. At the time, this was considered a satisfactory number, but it was evidently not enough to evacuate the whole ship. Only hundreds made it back to New York, as other 'nearby' ships could not reach the Titanic soon enough, as it went down within two hours. The ship's architect and captain were both lost, but White Star director Mr Ismay did survive and conceded that he had encouraged the captain to go for a new speed record during the voyage.

The Olympic

Of the three Olympic-class ships, the Olympic was the only one that did not sink. Although a little smaller than the Titanic, this was the lead ship of the Olympic class liners, and after the Titanic went down, it was the largest ocean liner in the world. It remained at sea until 1935 before White Star sold it.

In terms of tonnage, the Olympic was marginally lighter than the Titanic. However, its dimensions were pretty much the same. The Olympic was 882 feet long, with a beam of 92 feet. Its speed was also very similar, in a range of 21 to 23 knots.

The ship's maiden voyage was in 1911. During World War One, the Olympic was converted to a troop transport ship and was fitted out with guns for wartime service. During this war, the Olympic transported hundreds of thousands of troops before it returned to Belfast in 1919. After the war, it was the only remaining Olympic-class ship.

Britannic

The Britannic was the largest of the Olympic class liners, which was approximately 48,000 tons. It was 882 ft long and had a beam of 94 ft. The ship's construction was complete in 1914, and the Britannic began its first voyages in that year.

However, as there was a war on the Britannic was also requisitioned for the military. During a voyage in the Mediterranean in 1916, the Britannic exploded. This might have been down to a torpedo, as with the Lusitania in 1915, or it may have been a mine. Either way, this was enough to sink the ship in the Aegean Sea. A majority of the ship's passengers were evacuated from the ship thanks to the Britannic's 58 lifeboats.

These were the three White Star Olympic-class ships that sailed between 1911 and 1935. Three great British ships were renowned for their size, scale, and extravagant interior decor that outmatched most others. They remain among the most famous ships to have been constructed.