Course Learning

The Titanic was a huge ship that set sail on its first voyage in April 1912. It was the biggest and most luxurious ship in the world at the time. People thought it was unsinkable – but sadly, it sank after hitting an iceberg in the Atlantic Ocean.

Let’s find out what happened!

Titanic was built in a graving or dry dock. This is a large enclosed dock with all of the water taken out so that workers can easily move around the outside of a ship. Harland and Wolff had three of them - Hamilton, Alexandra and Thompson. Thompson Dock was the largest and was designed to accommodate Titanic. You can still visit it today.

The architect of Titanic and its sister ships Olympic and Britannic was Alexander Carlisle. The designer was born in Ballymena and is generally thought to have been responsible for much of the internal design of the ships. Having retired in 1910, Thomas Andrews took over from Carlisle and died on board its maiden voyage.

The Titanic was an enormous ship! Here are some amazing facts:

• It was 269 metres long – that’s about the length of three football pitches!
• It had nine decks (floors), with rooms for over 2,000 passengers.
• There was a gym, swimming pool, library, and even a fancy restaurant!
• It was called “The Ship of Dreams” because it was so grand and special.

The Titanic carried different kinds of passengers:

👑 First-class passengers – Rich and famous people, like businessmen and movie stars. They had fancy cabins and amazing food!

🚆 Second-class passengers – Middle-class families, teachers, and tourists. Their rooms were comfortable, but not as fancy as first class.

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Third-class passengers – Poorer families, workers, and people looking for a new life in America. Their rooms were small, but they still had meals and beds.

There were also 900 crew members, including the captain, chefs, waiters, and engineers.

First class on board Titanic was the ultimate in luxury. It included veranda cafes, a smoking room, restaurant, a dining saloon and a reading and writing room. The facilities on Titanic far surpassed those of rival ships of that time.

The first class passengers really dined in style. The dining room was the largest ever seen on a ship and a live orchestra played background music. The furniture and panelling was carved in fine detail in oak, mahogany and sycamore.

The more energetic passengers could play deck games, such as shuffleboard, and use the gym, squash courts and swimming pool on board. Games such as chess and backgammon could be played on the deck.

Titanic had 39 private suites located at the top of the ship. They had 2 large bedrooms, 2 walk-in wardrobes and a bathroom. There was also a spacious living with room for guests. Suites cost up to £870 which is the equivalent of £79,000 today!

Most of the second class accommodation on Titanic consisted of cabins with bunk-beds. Each cabin had either two beds or four and in total there was room for around 550 passengers. These cabins didn’t have private bathrooms, but inside there were sinks and mirrors and the bed linen was changed every day.

Passengers in second class had facilities such as a spacious outdoor promenade, a smoking room, a library and dining room. Afternoon tea and coffee was served in the library.

The dining room could seat almost 2,400 people at one time and a pianist would entertain the diners. All of the furniture was mahogany with crimson red upholstery and pivoted lights to add to the atmosphere.

Third class was much more basic with very few facilities, but passengers still enjoyed a high level of luxury compared to other liners of the day.

The general room was where most passengers gathered, talked and socialised. There was a piano for passengers to make their own music in the evenings. There was also a male-only smoke room which was panelled and furnished in oak with teak furniture.

Third class passengers ate in their own dining room which could seat around 470 passengers in 3 sittings. The food was very simple but plentiful consisting of rice soup, biscuits, roast beef and fruit. On most other ships, third class passengers were expected to bring their own food which was supposed to last for the entire journey.

With over 1000 third class passengers on board, accommodation was basic. Cabins slept up to 10 people and were located at the noisy bottom part of the ship close to the engines. Single men and women were split up at the front and back with families in the middle. There were only two baths for everyone in third class!

🛳 The Titanic set sail from Southampton, England, on 10th April 1912, heading to New York, USA.

❄️ On the night of 14th April, the ship hit a huge iceberg in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.

💧 Water started to flood the lower decks, and the ship began to sink.

🚨 People rushed to the lifeboats, but there were not enough for everyone.

Just a few hours later, in the early morning of 15th April, the Titanic sank beneath the waves.

The Titanic was believed to be unsinkable, but here’s why it sank:

🧊 The iceberg tore a hole in the ship’s side, letting water rush in.

🚢 There were not enough lifeboats, so many people could not escape.

🌙 It was nighttime, and the ship was going fast, so the iceberg wasn’t spotted in time.

🚨 It took over 2 hours to sink, but there was no rescue ship nearby to help quickly.

There were about 2,224 people on board, but sadly, more than 1,500 people lost their lives because of the freezing water.

The lucky survivors were rescued by a ship called the Carpathia and taken safely to America.

The Titanic lay at the bottom of the ocean for over 70 years before being found in 1985!

Now, scientists and divers have explored the wreck and found parts of the ship, furniture, and even passengers’ belongings. Some of these are in museums today!

✔ The Titanic’s real name was RMS Titanic.

✔ The ship’s captain was called Captain Edward Smith.

✔ The richest man on board, John Jacob Astor, was a millionaire!

✔ The Titanic had four funnels (chimneys), but only three worked – the fourth one was just for looks!

✔ A famous movie called Titanic was made about the disaster in 1997!

🖍 Draw a picture of the Titanic sailing on the ocean!

📖 Write a diary entry as if you were a passenger on board!

🔎 Imagine you’re a deep-sea diver – what treasures would you find at the bottom of the ocean?

The story of the Titanic is one of the most famous events in history. It reminds us of the bravery of the passengers and the lessons we learned about ship safety.

We hope you enjoyed learning about the Titanic! 🌊⚓