Tag Archives: RMS Titanic Inc

More Info on Dive to Titanic, Titanic Liability Law Being Used In Bridge Collapse, Titanic Exhibition Coming to Boston

RMS Titanic pictured in Queenstown, Ireland 11 April 1912
Source:Cobh Heritage Centre, Cobh Ireland/Wikimedia Commons

The BBC is reporting that the upcoming dive by RMS Titanic Inc. will be gathering the most detailed photographic record of the wreck. They will be using state of the art technology and remotely operated  vessels to go over every part of the ship they can.

Francis, J. a. a. A. (2024, July 12). RMS Titanic shipwreck: Bid to make ultimate photo record. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1we095wzv1o

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NTSB drone image of Francis Scott Key Bridge and Cargo Ship Dali (26 Mar 2024)
NTSB
Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons

When the freighter Dali struck the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, it sought protection from liability using an 1851 law called Shipowners’ Limitation of Liability Act of 1851. This act was famously used by the owners of Titanic to limit liability claims and became known as the Titanic Act since then. This act limits the liability by setting the value to just the value of the ship and its contents. It is from this pool that all liability payments will be drawn from. This forces all claims to go to this one court and limits the damages the company pays. The act was done to prevent American ship owners from having to pay out huge liability awards that could result in the company shuttering.

Now this limitation is quite striking when you consider air or rail disasters that result in significant legal damages often having to be paid either by court judgment or settlements. So for a ship owner, this can really keep you from being sued for astronomical sums of money. The downside, of course, is that for those who lost cargo or relatives, the money to be paid out will be quite small. Now the law does have some qualifications. If it can be proven the ship owner was negligent, then they cannot get coverage under this law. In the case of the Dali, they are using the act to limit the damages they will pay out. Not only did a bridge come down but several people died. So the City of Baltimore is challenging their claim arguing they were negligent and thus cannot be afforded protection under this act. The city is only going to get $300 million from Chubb, and the cost of building a new bridge will be a lot higher than that. A good review of the law and how it will be used in this particular case was done by two New York attorneys who wrote for their state bar association. It is worth a read to understand how this law works.

Reilly, R., & F. Gleason, T. (2024, July 10). What does the Titanic have to do with the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse? New York State Bar Association. https://nysba.org/what-does-the-titanic-have-to-do-with-the-francis-scott-key-bridge-collapse/

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Exhibition News

Titanic: The Artifact Exposition is coming to Boston on 17 October 2024. It will be at the Saunders Castle at Park Plaza. For information and details, go to https://titanicboston.us/ for information on dates, times, and how to purchase tickets.

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/titanic-the-artifact-exhibition-coming-to-boston-302192296.html

Suggested Reading

Brewster, H. (2013). Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage: The Titanic’s First-Class Passengers and Their World. National Geographic Books.

Eaton John P. & Haas Charles, TITANIC TRIUMPH AND TRAGEDY, SECOND EDITION, W.W. Norton & Company, New York, New York, 1995 First American Edition

Lord, Walter, A NIGHT TO REMEMBER, Holt Rinehart and Winston, New York, New York, 1955. Multiple revisions and reprints, notably Illustrated editions (1976,1977,1978 etc.)

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RMS Titanic Inc to Dive to Titanic; U.S. Government Ends Legal Fight To Stop It.

Titanic Wreck Bow
Image: Public Domain (NOAA-http://www.gc.noaa.gov/images/gcil/ATT00561.jpg)

RMS Titanic Inc. is set to dive to Titanic later this month. Originally, they wanted to retrieve the Marconi wireless before further decay of the ship made it impossible. However, the U.S. government objected to the dive as it would be a violation of the Titanic Treaty now in place and thus the wreck a protected gravesite. RMS Titanic countered it had already sought and obtained permission from the court overseeing the salvage. The company has scaled back its plans and will no longer seek to remove anything from inside the hull. Also, they will not be using manned submersibles but remotely operated vehicles for the actual dive.

Sources

Finley, B. (2024, July 3). US ends legal fight against Titanic expedition. Battles over future dives are still possible | AP News. AP News. https://apnews.com/article/titanic-shipwreck-expedition-legal-fight-rmst-b3e4309440ef220ac7cc7ccf1af2bd4b

Guinness, E. (2024, July 2). Titan submersible: First dive to Titanic wreck since OceanGate disaster to take place this month. The Independent. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/titanic-oceangate-titan-submersible-disaster-shipwreck-b2572458.html

Suggested. Reading

Behe, G. (2012). On board RMS Titanic: Memories of the Maiden Voyage. The History Press.

Brewster, H. (2013). Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage: The Titanic’s First-Class Passengers and Their World. National Geographic Books.

Lord, Walter, A NIGHT TO REMEMBER, Holt Rinehart and Winston, New York, New York, 1955. Multiple revisions and reprints, notably Illustrated editions (1976,1977,1978 etc.)

Titanic News Channel is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

Friday Titanic News

The recent disaster of the Key Bridge being downed by a container ship invokes a law Titanic’s owners used to escape liability.  The big difference is that this was a freight ship and not a passenger or cruise ship. While the law was amended to make changes after a small boat caught fire off California (and nearly everyone died), it does not apply here. You can certainly guess though that families that lost loved ones will be filing lawsuits. The Coast Guard and NTSB are both investigating but final report will be at least one to two years away.

Bloomberg. “Titanic Law Helps Ship Owner Limit Liability in Baltimore Bridge Collapse.” www.business-standard.com, 27 Mar. 2024, www.business-standard.com/world-news/titanic-law-helps-ship-owner-limit-liability-in-baltimore-bridge-collapse-124032700081_1.html.

The company could face a bevy of lawsuits from multiple directions, including from the bridge’s owner and anyone who sues for personal injury or emotional distress. Damages claims are likely to fall on the ship owner and not the agency that operates the bridge, since stationary objects aren’t typically at fault if a moving vessel hits them, said Michael Sturley, a maritime law expert at the University of Texas at Austin’s School of Law.  But an 1851 law could lower the exposure to tens of millions of dollars by capping the ship owner’s liability at how much the vessel is worth after the crash, plus any earnings it collected from carrying the freight on board, said Martin Davies, the director of Tulane University’s Maritime Law Center.  The law was passed initially to prevent shipping giants from suffering steep and insurmountable losses from disasters at sea. An eight-figure sum, while still hefty, would amount to “considerably less” than the full claims total, Davies said.

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One wonders if the person who bought it is one of those movie buffs that will add to their collection or perhaps a gallery or museum which will put it up to attract visitors. Or could it be that Clive Palmer bought it to be displayed on Titanic II?

Rhoden-Paul, By Andre. “Titanic ‘door’ prop that kept Rose alive sells for $718,750.” BBC, 27 Mar. 2024, www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-68672177.

The floating piece of wood that kept Titanic’s Rose alive has been sold for $718,750 (£569,739) at auction. The listing noted the prop “has caused much debate from fans”. The sale was made during an auction of props and costumes owned by restaurant and resort chain Planet Hollywood.

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Quann, Peg. “Titanic Dinner to Be Recreated to Raise Funds for Johnsville Centrifuge Museum.” PhillyBurbs.com, 25 Mar. 2024, www.phillyburbs.com/story/news/local/2024/03/25/titanic-aerospace-warminster-museum-dinner-ivyland-johnsville-centrifuge/72986333007.

It may seem odd that the Johnsville Centrifuge and Science Museum, which celebrates Bucks County’s significant history in the race to outer space, will hold a fundraising dinner April 6 featuring the first-class menu from the ill-fated Titanic on the night the ship sank. But guest speaker Fred Hagen, a Bensalem businessman, is both an aviation and underwater researcher who has visited the sunken wreck of the Titanic. He was aboard the submersible Titan on an Atlantic Ocean mission to the Titanic before the one in which it tragically exploded last June.

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“Fundraising Dinner Event to Mark Anniversary of Fateful Titanic Voyage.” The Bucks County Herald, 21 Mar. 2024, buckscountyherald.com/stories/fundraising-dinner-event-to-mark-anniversary-of-fateful-titanic-voyage,42196.

A Night to Remember, a special fundraising event featuring a recreation of the last meal served on the R.M.S. Titanic, will take place from 6-10 p.m. Saturday, April 6 at Spring Mill Manor, 171 Jacksonville Road, Ivyland, and will benefit the capital campaign of the Johnsville Centrifuge and Science Museum. In addition to an elegant menu recalling that served in the first class dining room aboard the ship on its final night, the event will include a live quartet playing period music and an exhibition of Titanic artifacts from the private collection of Titanic expert Craig Sopin, secretary of the Titanic International Society. Additionally, the program for the evening will include a presentation by explorer, adventurer and businessman Alfred (Fred) Hagen, who will share the story of his two journeys to the Titanic wreck aboard the submersible Titan.

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This is not about actual Titanic memorabilia but rather items from Cameron’s Titanic that are being put up for auction. The once iconic restaurant started seeing a serious drop off in repeat customers causing its profits to drop considerably. The food was considered underwhelming by most reviewers. And while it had the Hollywood vibe, without repeat customers, it started losing money and shuttered many restaurants and finally had to head to bankruptcy court to sort things out. You know things are bad when the very celebrities you once banked on to give your place that Hollywood vibe were rarely seen or none at all. You can read a news article about it at https://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/news/what-really-happened-to-planet-hollywood-and-where-you-can-still-find-them/ar-AA1b6LSb.

Dallas Express. “Titanic Memorabilia Listed at Dallas Auction.” Dallas Express, 20 Mar. 2024, dallasexpress.com/lifestyle/titanic-memorabilia-listed-at-dallas-auction.

The debate over Jack and Rose’s potential survival atop a wooden panel during the climax of Titanic has once again taken center stage, this time as a highlight of a local auction event in Dallas hosted by Heritage Auctions. Titanic’s infamous wood panel is among the 1,600 items owned by Planet Hollywood, as reported by The Dallas Morning News.

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DM Editorial. “New Expedition to Titanic Wreckage Could Get Go-ahead After Titan Tragedy.” International | Daily Mirror, 15 Mar. 2024, www.dailymirror.lk/international/New-expedition-to-Titanic-wreckage-could-get-go-ahead-after-Titan-tragedy/107-278891.

A planned expedition to the resting place of the Titanic could get the go-ahead after plans were scaled back in the aftermath of the fatal Titan implosion last year. The US government is seeking more information on the revised plans for the expedition, which is scheduled to go ahead in May, Kent Porter, an assistant US attorney, told a federal judge in Virginia on Wednesday.

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Here we go again. He tried this in 2012 and 2018. He did get some preliminary work done (mostly designing and lining up others to help out) but the shipyard never got the order. Or if it did, it never got acted on. Both Palmer and China got into a big snit (it had to do with one of his businesses) so that delayed the project being built. And then the Covid Pandemic hit and that knocked things out. Now he is back again with this mammoth project. Believe me, a lot of people would like to see an actual floating replica of Titanic but costs have soared since then. And then he has to find a shipyard to build it (I cannot see him going back to China to do this).  I have real serious doubts this will be built. A Chinese version that was going to be built for an attraction never got built either (and you would be able to stay aboard it and even experience the “Titanic Sinking Simulator” as well.

Pedler, Taryn. “Billionaire Plans to Build Titanic II With Maiden Voyage Set for 2027.” Mail Online, 14 Mar. 2024, www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13195841/What-possibly-wrong-Australian-billionaire-revives-plans-create-Titanic-II-maiden-voyage-set-2027.html.

Clive Palmer, 69, unveiled his latest plans at Sydney Opera House on Wednesday, claiming his build would be ‘far superior than the original’. The mining tycoon told his audience that his company, Blue Star Line, would construct ‘the ship of love and the ultimate in style and luxury’ but admitted he does not currently have a shipyard secured to complete the construction. Palmer reassured his audience that he was confident he’d be able to find one and start construction by 2025, with the ship’s maiden voyage from Southampton to New York – replicating the ill-fated 1912 voyage of the original. The construction of the mega 56,000-tonne replica is estimated to set Palmer back by £1billion but the businessman is set on bringing the RMS Titanic back to life.

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You would think that someone at OceanGate might have sent a letter, email, or just called to express their sadness that her father died aboard their craft.

Keane, Isabel. “Daughter of Titanic Expert Killed in Titan Sub Implosion Says Dives to See Famed Shipwreck Should Continue.” New York Post, 11 Mar. 2024, nypost.com/2024/03/11/world-news/paul-henri-nargeolets-daughter-slams-oceangate-over-titan-tragedy.

The daughter of the French Titanic expert who died in the Titan submersible implosion last summer slammed the ill-fated sub’s creator for not reaching out to her family following the tragedy — but said trips to the famous shipwreck should continue. Sidonie Nargeolet, the 40-year-old daughter of the deep-sea explorer known as “Mr. Titanic,” Paul-Henri Nargeolet, says no one at OceanGate offered condolences after her father perished aboard the submersible as it approached the wreckage of the Titanic on June 18, 2023. “My anger is mostly because no one from OceanGate contacted us to say we are sorry for your loss,” Nargeolet told Pen News. “At least I think they could have contacted us to say we are sorry for your loss.”

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Lamdin, By Emma Elgee and Fiona. “Woman thanks RNLI for saving Titanic survivor in second shipwreck.” BBC News, 10 Mar. 2024, www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-somerset-68467635.

Fiona Kilbane, from Somerset, said her great-grandmother Mary Roberts was a “determined” woman. She was the head stewardess on the Titanic when it sank in 1912. Two years’ later she was saved by the RNLI when working as a nurse on the Rohilla, which sank off the coast of Whitby in North Yorkshire. Hayley Whiting, RNLI heritage and archive manager said: “We can never really decided if Mary Roberts is really lucky or unlucky, it depends on how you want to look at her.”

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This is a nice story of a kid who saw a LEGO replica and decided to build one himself. It took him several months to complete.

Herald, Lethbridge. “City Teen Docks Titanic Replica at Grandparents’ House.” The Lethbridge Herald – News and Sports From Around Lethbridge, 6 Mar. 2024, lethbridgeherald.com/news/lethbridge-news/2024/03/04/city-teen-docks-titanic-replica-at-grandparents-house.

A local teenager has helped the Titanic reach its destination, at least in LEGO form, after embarking on the building of a replica of the famous ship, during a journey that took months to complete.

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Ma, Haiyan. “Seawise Giant Vs Titanic: Comparing the Maritime Titans.” Cruise Hive, 3 Mar. 2024, www.cruisehive.com/seawise-giant-vs-titanic/124988.

Enormous ships have always captivated the imaginations of the general public. The RMS Titanic ocean liner and the Seawise Giant supertanker are among history’s most iconic and memorable vessels. Although at 1,504.1 feet long, the Seawise Giant is the longest ship ever constructed, eclipsing the 882-foot length of the Titanic, the two ships are still considered titans of their respective eras.

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Video:

“Titanic Survivors Discovered in Illinois Cemetery.” https://www.kwqc.com, 3 Mar. 2024, www.kwqc.com/video/2024/03/03/titanic-survivors-discovered-illinois-cemetery.

Weekend Titanic News

Image: OceanGate

It looks like the strange knocking sounds heard by rescuers, which some believe was done by those on the Titan, was something else. They are not sure what caused the sounds, but they did happen.

Reyes, Ronny. “Eerie ‘knocking’ Sounds From Titan Sub That Gave Rescuers Hope Heard in New Audio.” New York Post, 28 Feb. 2024, nypost.com/2024/02/28/world-news/eerie-knocking-sounds-from-titan-sub-heard-in-new-audio.

The mysterious knocking sounds heard beneath the Atlantic Ocean that gave false hope that the Titan submersible and its occupants could be rescued has been revealed in a haunting new audio clip. After the underwater craft lost contact with its mothership on a journey to the Titanic wreck last summer, reports on the second day of the frantic search said that banging noises were reverberating in the depths at 30-minute intervals. An upcoming British documentary from Channel 5, “The Titan Sub Disaster: Minute by Minute,” played the audio for the public for the first time, which sounds like a person “knocking” against metal.

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Collapsible lifeboat D photographed by passenger on Carpathia on the morning of 15 April 1912.
Public Domain(Wikipedia)

The full story of Nellie Becker and later how she and the kids got off Titanic is quite fascinating indeed.

Jessica Gray, Bureau County History Center. “How a Mom, 3 Kids Escaped Doomed Titanic.” Shaw Local, 28 Feb. 2024, www.shawlocal.com/illinois-valley/2024/02/28/how-a-mom-3-kids-escaped-doomed-titanic.

Nellie recalled four sailors carried her into the dining saloon where she saw her two youngest children being tended to by the doctor. Both Ruth and her mother would state one of their most vivid memories was the sight of scores of women standing at the rail looking out to sea, searching in vain for their husbands, after the last survivors were brought onto the Carpathia.

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Titanic Wreck Bow
Image: Public Domain (NOAA-http://www.gc.noaa.gov/images/gcil/ATT00561.jpg)

RMS Titanic, Inc is planning another dive to Titanic this year. Not to bring anything up, but to scan the wreck and see what has happened to it.

Adigun, Olalekan. “Reviving the Titanic: A New Expedition Sets Sail to Uncover Its Underwater Mysteries.” BNN, 26 Feb. 2024, bnnbreaking.com/history/reviving-the-titanic-a-new-expedition-sets-sail-to-uncover-its-underwater-mysteries.

The forthcoming expedition by RMS Titanic, Inc., in collaboration with leading imaging companies and C-Innovation, represents a significant leap forward in underwater exploration. The deployment of cutting-edge imaging technology and remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) will allow for high-resolution documentation of the Titanic wreck and its expansive debris field. This endeavor is not just about capturing images; it’s about conducting a detailed analysis to understand the current state of the wreck and identify artifacts for potential future recovery.

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This is one of those “while looking for one thing we found something else” kind of story. At least the shipwreck has been found.

Smith, Stephen. “Shipwreck Found Over a Century After Bodies of Crewmembers Washed Ashore: ‘120-year-old Mystery’ Solved.” CBS News, 26 Feb. 2024, www.cbsnews.com/news/shipwreck-ss-nemesis-1904-found-off-australia-120-year-old-mystery-solved.

In July 1904, the steamship SS Nemesis was transporting coal to Melbourne, Australia, when it ran into a powerful storm and vanished. All 32 people on board were considered lost, and in the weeks that followed, the bodies of crewmembers and debris from the iron-hulled ship washed ashore, but the location of the 240-foot vessel remained a mystery. Until now. The ship has finally been identified more than a century later. It was initially spotted when a company searching for sunken shipping containers came across the wreck by accident, the New South Wales Ministry of Environment and Heritage announced this weekend.

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You do have to wonder, when you see how staggeringly huge these new cruise ships are, at what point is it too big?

Allison, Jenny. “Side-by-side Photo of New and Old Cruise Ships Sparks Conversation About Future of Cruise Industry: ‘This Should Have Stopped When the Titanic Sank’” The Cool Down, 26 Feb. 2024, www.thecooldown.com/green-home/cruise-ships-photo-difference-dock-size.

 In the photo, both ships — identified by another post in the r/pics forum as Royal Caribbean’s 1997 Rhapsody of the Seas and the company’s considerably larger 2022-launched Wonder of the Seas (identifiable by the name on the stern) — are moored at the same dock, clearly highlighting the egregious difference in their sizes.“Just give it a few decades, at this rate they’ll end up having to install shuttles,” said one user wryly. Another put it bluntly: “This should have stopped when the Titanic sank.”

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And apparently some wild tales about Titanic are out there on social media having to be swatted down again.

 “Titanic Sinking Conspiracy Theory on Social Media Debunked by Experts.” Irish Star, 21 Feb. 2024, www.irishstar.com/news/us-news/titanic-sinking-conspiracy-theory-bandied-32179322.

A conspiracy theory on X that suggested that the Titanic sinking was an inside job has been debunked by experts. “Rumors are circulating that they sunk the Titanic to kill the powerful men on board who opposed a central bank,” the post from Matt Wallace read. A similar rumor was circulated on social media site Telegram in 2022. But according to Snopes, the fact-checking website, these claims are baseless. While the Telegram post was from 2022, the conspiracy theory had been doing the rounds for years before that date.

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Saturday Titanic News: RMS Titanic Inc Abandons Trying to Recover Marconi Set from Wreck

Company Once Run By Titanic Expert PH Nargeolet Finally CANCELS Trip To The Vessel To Retrieve Artifacts From Debris Field Of Famed Shipwreck
Mail Online, 12 Oct. 2023
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12623321/Titanic-wreck-site-photos-artifacts-explore-ph-nargeolet-titan-sub.html

The company that owns the salvage rights to the Titanic shipwreck has axed plans to retrieve more artifacts from the site days after the US Coast Guard pulled additional human remains from the doomed Titan sub. The decision was taken ‘out of respect’ for the firm’s director, Paul-Henri Nargeolet, who was among the five people killed in the horror implosion earlier this year, according to court documents filed in a US District Court on Wednesday. RMS Titanic said its plans now only include imaging at the wreck site and surveys to refine ‘future artifact recovery.’

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Image:Premier Exhibitions

Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition’ Opens Thursday at Cox Science Center and Aquarium
Palm Beach Daily News, 11 Oct. 2023 www.palmbeachdailynews.com/story/entertainment/local/2023/10/11/cox-science-center-aquarium-announce-opening-of-titanic-the-artifact-exhibition/71132201007

The Cox Science Center & Aquarium on Tuesday unveiled “Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition,” for a preview of the exhibit that opens Thursday. The exhibit, which has drawn crowds around the world, allows visitors to play the role of passengers or crew as they travel through the history of the R.M.S Titanic and experience the more than 100 recovered items on display.

The exhibit runs from 14 Oct 2023- 14 April 2024. For information about tickets and hours of operation, go to https://www.coxsciencecenter.org/Titanic.

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Expert Shares New Theory on How Titanic Submarine Imploded Killing 5 on Board
The Mirror, 11 Oct. 2023
www.mirror.co.uk/news/us-news/expert-reveals-new-theory-titanic-31158560

Michael Chillit, an analyst who has conducted a search into the missing MH370 flight over the past five years, also launched his own investigation into the Titan submersible. Discussing the recent finds on X (formerly Twitter) he identified a possible point of failure that led to the implosion. He wrote: “Will now be even more interesting to know if they have ever recovered any part of the observation port? There was a lot of speculation that it was the observation port that failed, but now a damaged landing frame and a fully intact rear hemisphere suggests to me that failure occurred in the composite near where it was joined to the frame and the aft hemisphere. Time will tell. Important advance.” He later clarified that the failure was “in the area where the landing frame, the hull, and the Titanium end-cap were joined.”

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Countdown to Halloween!

Here is a tune from the old Disney classic Legend of Sleepy Hollow. Released in 1949 with as part of a movie called The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr. Toad, and was narrated by Bing Crosby. The short animation included  Crosby some wonderful tunes. In the 1960’s, Disney released an updated version of many of its famous tunes. One of them was the song Headless Horseman that was originally sung by Bing Crosby. Using the distinctive sound of Thurl Ravenscroft, it made the song more deeper-and scarier-than what Crosby did. His distinctive voice was used all over Disney and in their parks. And this particular rendition is worth a listen. You can listen to it on YouTube.

 

 

Titanic News -World’s Deepest Shipwreck; Fight Over Titanic Artifacts

World’s Deepest Shipwreck, Over 10,000 Feet Deeper Than Titanic, Found In Philippines
India Times, 9 Jul 2022

The USS Samuel B. Roberts (DE-413) circa in June 1944, while off Boston, Massachusetts (USA)
Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons

The destroyer, USS Samuel B. Roberts was identified on Wednesday, broken into two pieces on a slope at the depth of around 6,985 meters (around 22,916 feet). To put things into perspective, the popular Titanic sank and rests at a depth of around 12,600 feet. The destroyer participated in the Battle off Samar, the final phase of the Battle of Leyte Gulf in October 1944, where the Imperial Japanese Navy suffered its biggest loss of ships and failed to dislodge the US Forces from Leyte that they invaded earlier as part of the liberation of the Philippines. Previous records have indicated that the destroyer took down a Japanese heavy cruiser with a torpedo while damaging another.  After it lost all of its ammo, the ship was critically hit by the lead battleship Yamato, which caused it to sink.

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Wirral Baker Went For Drink As Titanic Sank And Survived
Liverpool Echo, 9 Jul 2022

He went back up to help women and children onto the escape vessels, throwing some in because the Titanic was tilting, which made the lifeboat swing “about a yard and a half from the ship’s side”. When the order for him to board the boat as the captain never came, Charles assumed it was full and went back to his room once more, where he “had a drop of liqueur” with water at his feet.Upon remerging above deck, “all the boats had gone”, so Charles started throwing deck chairs into the water as flotation devices. All the while, the Titanic listed further to one side until Charles “heard a kind of a crash as if something had buckled”, like the “iron was parting”.

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Judge Gavel
George Hodan
publicdomainpictures.net

Titanic Caretakers In Court Battle To Stop Artifacts From Being Sold
New York Post, 9 Jul 2022

A British gold coin, two US bank notes and a block of coal retrieved decades ago from the detritus of the doomed passenger liner wrongly fell into the hands of a company that is trying to auction them off, claims RMS Titanic Inc., which owns the salvage rights to the ship and is suing to stop the auction. RMS Titanic is the “steward and custodian” of the wreck, and claims in Manhattan Supreme Court papers that one of its former execs, G. Michael Harris, took the artifacts, which were then sold off to Mobile Grocers of America Inc. when Harris later filed for bankruptcy. Harris claimed the four items had been gifted to him by another Titanic exec, George Tulloch, with whom he frequently butted heads, the group charges in court papers. RMS Titanic contends Tulloch had no right to gift the artifacts to anyone.

 


Update:RMS Titanic Inc Decides To Postpone Retrieval of Marconi Wireless

March 6, 1912: Titanic (right) had to be moved out of the drydock so her sister Olympic (left), which had lost a propeller, could have it replaced.
Robert John Welch (1859-1936), official photographer for Harland & Wolff
Public domain

RMS Titanic Inc has formally notified the federal court overseeing the salvage award that it is postponing retrieval of the Marconi wireless from Titanic. However it does plan to eventually do this at some point once logistics and income from exhibitions makes it feasible. There is no date given when they might try again.

Source:

Mission To Retrieve Titanic’s Radio From Ocean Is Postponed (MSN, 31 January 2021)

It cited the “increasing difficulty associated with international travel and logistics, and the associated health risks to the expedition team”, as well as a lack of revenue due to visitor numbers to its vast collection of Titanic artifacts plummeting amid the pandemic. RMS Titanic Inc has also had to lay off high-profile experts in the field: Dave Gallo, PH Nargeolet, Bill Sauder and William Lange. The company, however, maintained that it’s financially secure. It said the radio expedition remains a top priority and will “take place as soon as reasonably practicable”. The postponement is likely to increase fears that the priceless artifacts hidden in the wreckage may not survive if left for too long.

 

Update:Plans to Retrieve Marconi Radio in Jeopardy

Photo: Public Domain (Library and Archives Canada / PA-122236)

It appears plans to retrieve the Marconi wireless radio from Titanic are in jeopardy. Due to Covid-19 closing many of their exhibitions (and only a few open with limited availability), income for Premier Exhibitions has dropped significantly. Premier has already missed a required court deadline about submitting costs for the proposed salvage.

Pandemic Has Imperiled Plans To Retrieve Titanic’s Radio (ABC News, 12 Jan 2021)

The company, RMS Titanic Inc., said Monday that its revenues plummeted after coronavirus restrictions closed its exhibits of Titanic artifacts, causing the firm to seek funding through its parent company. Some of the exhibitions, which are scattered across the country, are still closed, while others that have reopened are seeing limited attendance. RMS Titanic Inc. recently missed a deadline with a federal admiralty court in Virginia to submit a funding plan for the radio expedition. The company left open the possibility that it may no longer seek the court’s approval for the undertaking if a plan isn’t submitted in the coming weeks.


TITANIC SALVAGE UPDATE: GOVERNMENT ARGUES HUMAN REMAINS MAY BE FOUND

Titanic Wreck Bow
Image: Public Domain (NOAA-http://www.gc.noaa.gov/images/gcil/ATT00561.jpg)

In the continuing legal challenge to prevent salvage of the Marconi radio from Titanic, government lawyers are arguing that remains may be disturbed and were not considered in the dive plan. RMS Titanic Inc. has responded that human remains inside the wreck have not been in any of the dives thus far.  U.S. District Judge Rebecca Beach Smith approved the salvage in May. The government has appealed the decision to the 4th Circuit Court of Appeal.
Source: Titanic: Concerns About Human Remains Could Block Company From Retrieving Iconic Radio (Boston.com,18 Oct 2020)

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Titanic Belfast Reopens; RMS Titanic Discussion continues on salvage

Titanic’s £200m Treasure Trove Exposed As Experts Pin Hopes On Tiny Robot Probe Of Wreck (Express, 30 Jul 2020)

The UK Department for Transport says the treaty means the British and US governments have the power to grant or deny licences to enter the ship and remove items, and that unauthorised activity will be punishable by large fines. But RMS Titanic Inc has reportedly argued the new treaty has “no teeth” in US law, and has filed a notice of intent to retrieve items from the ship at the US district court in eastern Virginia. They announced this week that it has developed a special robot to reach in through a deck house roof and extract the Marconi without the need to cut into the wreck. The company has partnered on the project with Guernsey-based deepwater specialists Magellan Limited.

Titanic Belfast Reopens With Free Admission For NHS Health Workers (News Letter 31 Jul 2020)

Judith Owens, chief executive of Titanic Belfast said: “We are absolutely delighted to open our doors again. Welcoming visitors, telling stories and creating experiences is what we do best. Now more than ever, we need the support of our city and Northern Ireland, and we’ve been working away behind the scenes to ensure that those who come to visit have a truly memorable Titanic experience. “For us, home is where the heart is and this has never been more apparent. As one of Belfast’s iconic symbols, we are always keen to play our part and reflect the city’s spirit. This is our way of saying thank you to our local heroes for their hard work and bravery.

Defeat of the Spanish Armada (Philip James de Loutherbourg, 1796)
Public Domain

Remembering History: England Defeats Spanish Armada

On July 29, 1688 naval forces of England and Spain engaged in an 8-hour furious battle off the coast of France that determined the fate of both countries control of the seas. Spain had created the armada to not only gain control of the English Channel but also to land an invasion force in England. England since the early 1580s had been conducting raids against Spanish commerce and had supported Dutch rebels in Spanish Netherlands. The other reason was to restore Catholicism that had been outlawed since the reign of King Henry VIII

The invasion fleet was authorized by King Philip II and was completed in 1587 but delayed by a raid by Sir Francis Drake on the Armada’s supplies. It did not depart until May 19, 1588. The fleet consisted of 130 ships under the command of the Duke of Medina-Sidonia. It had 2,500 guns, 8,000 seamen, and 20,000 soldiers. The Spanish ships though were slower than their English counterparts and lighter armed as well despite their guns. Their tactic was to force boarding when their ships were close enough. They believed with the superior numbers of Spanish infantry they could overwhelm the English ships.

The English were commanded by Charles Howard, 2nd Baron Howard of Effingham. Like his counterpart, he was an admiral with not much sea experience but proved to be the better leader. His second in command was Sir Francis Drake. The English fleet was at its height 200 ships but in the actual combat was at most 100. Only 40 were warships and the rest smaller but they were armed with heavy artillery that were able to fire at longer ranges without having to get close to the enemy to be effective. The English strategy was to bombard their enemy from a distance and not give them the opportunity to get close and possibly board their ships (which had smaller number of soldiers aboard than the Spanish had).

As the Spanish Armada made its way, it would be harassed by English ships that bombarded them at a distance negating Spanish attempts to board. The Armada anchored near Calais, France on 27 July. The Spanish forces on land were in Flanders and would take time to get down to Calais. However, since there was no safe port and enemy Dutch and English ships patrolled the coastal shallows, it meant those troops had no safe way to get to the Armada.

Around midnight on 29 July, the English sent 8 fire ships into the anchored Spanish fleet. The Spanish were forced to quickly scatter to avoid the fire ships. This meant the Armada formation was now broken making them easier targets for the English to attack. They closed to effective range and attacked. Surprising to the English, the return fire was mostly small arms. It turns out most of the heavy cannons had not been mounted. And those that were did not have properly trained crews on how to reload. Three Spanish ships were sunk or driven ashore. Other ships were battered and moved away. The English also were low on ammunition, so they had to drop back and follow the Spanish fleet.

The Spanish fleet had to flee north and around Scotland and from there head back to Spain. The English fleet turned back for resupply. It was a long road back to Spain for the Armada. Autumn had arrived and gales in the North Atlantic made passage tough. Ships were lost to bad weather, navigational errors, foundered near Ireland, and possibly battle damage as well. Only 60 of the 130 survived with an estimated loss of 15,000 men. The English losses were much smaller with fewer men wounded or killed in battle. It appears most of the deaths that came later were due to disease (possibly scurvy). Damages to the English ships were negligible.

Significance

With the defeat of the Spanish Armada, England was made safe from invasion. The Dutch rebels the English backed in Spanish Netherlands were saved as well. Spain up to that point had been considered to be the greatest European power, so it was a major blow to their prestige that would have ramifications down the road for them. Also, it heralded a major change for naval battles. This was the first major naval gun battle where the combatants fought at a distance rather than closing and boarding. Warships that could move quickly and had artillery that fire at long range would become the norm on the seas from that point on. England would now become a major world power. Spain still was in the game for several decades (the English were not successful either in trying their own invasion) and was still a major colonial power. England and Spain formally ended their conflict in 1604. Spain however would eventually go into decline as England and other European powers would successfully expand into Asia and establish their own colonies and trade routes.

(Note: All dates are given are for the Gregorian calendar, which was adopted by England in 1750. At the time of the battle, the Julian calendar was in effect.)

Sources