 RMSOlympic arriving atNew York on her maiden voyage, 21 June 1911 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | RMSOlympic |
| Owner |
|
| Operator |
|
| Port of registry | Liverpool |
| Route | Southampton –Cherbourg –Queenstown –New York City |
| Ordered | 1907 |
| Builder | Harland & Wolff,Belfast |
| Cost | $7.5 million (USD) |
| Yard number | 400 |
| Way number | 347 |
| Laid down | 16 December 1908 |
| Launched | 20 October 1910 |
| Completed | 31 May 1911 |
| Maiden voyage | 14 June 1911 |
| In service | 1911–1935 |
| Out of service | 12 April 1935 |
| Identification |
|
| Nickname(s) | "Old Reliable" |
| Fate | Scrapped 1935–37 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Olympic-classocean liner |
| Type | Passenger ship |
| Tonnage | 45,324gross register tons (1911); 46,358 (1913); 46,439 (1920). 20,894 to 22,350net register tons |
| Displacement | 52,067tons |
| Length | 882 ft 9 in (269.1 m)[1] |
| Beam | 92 ft 9 in (28.3 m) |
| Height | 175 ft (53.4 m) (keel to top of funnels) |
| Draught | 34 ft 7 in (10.5 m) |
| Decks | 9 decks (8 for passengers and 1 for crew) |
| Installed power | 24 double-ended (six furnace) and 5 single-ended (three furnace) Scotch boilers originally coal burning, later converted to oil fired in 1919. Two four-cylinder triple-expansionreciprocating engines each producing 15,000hp for the two outboard wing propellers at 85 revolutions per minute. One low-pressure turbine producing 16,000 hp. Total 46,000 hp,[2] however capable of 59,000 hp at full speed.[3] |
| Propulsion | Two bronze three-bladed wingpropellers. One bronze four-bladed centre propeller. |
| Speed | |
| Capacity | 2,435 passengers |
| Crew | 950 |
RMSOlympic was a Britishocean liner and thelead ship of theWhite Star Line's trio ofOlympic-class liners.Olympic had a career spanning 24 years from 1911 to 1935, in contrast to her short-lived sister ships,RMS Titanic and the Royal Navyhospital shipHMHS Britannic. This included service as atroopship with the nameHMTOlympic during theFirst World War, which gained her the nickname "Old Reliable", and during which she rammed and sank the U-boatU-103. She returned to civilian service after the war and served successfully as an ocean liner throughout the 1920s and into the first half of the 1930s, although increased competition, and the slump in trade during theGreat Depression after 1930, made her operation increasingly unprofitable.Olympic was withdrawn from service on 12 April 1935, and later sold for scrap, which was completed by 1939.
Olympic was thelargest ocean liner in the world for two periods during 1910–13, interrupted only by the brief service life (six-day maiden voyage in April 1912) of the slightly largerTitanic, which had the same dimensions but higher gross register tonnage, before the GermanSS Imperator went into service in June 1913.Olympic also held the title of the largest British-built liner untilRMS Queen Mary was launched in 1934, interrupted only by the short career ofTitanic;Britannic, intended as a liner, instead served as a Royal Navy hospital ship for her 11-month life (December 1915 to November 1916), sinking when she hit amine.[5][6]
Built inBelfast, Ireland,[7]Olympic was the first of the threeOlympic-class ocean liners – the others beingTitanic andBritannic.[8] They were the largest vessels built for the British shipping companyWhite Star Line, which was a fleet of 29 steamers and tenders in 1912.[9] The three ships had their genesis in a discussion in mid-1907 between the White Star Line's chairman,J. Bruce Ismay, and the American financierJ. Pierpont Morgan, who controlled the White Star Line's parent corporation, theInternational Mercantile Marine Co. The White Star Line faced a growing challenge from its main rivalsCunard, which had just launchedLusitania andMauretania – the fastest passenger ships then in service – and the German linesHamburg America andNorddeutscher Lloyd.[10] Ismay preferred to compete on size and economics rather than speed and proposed to commission a new class of liners that would be bigger than anything that had gone before as well as being the last word in comfort and luxury. The company sought an upgrade in their fleet primarily in response to the largest Cunarders but also to replace their largest and now outclassed ships from 1890,RMS Teutonic andRMS Majestic. The former was replaced byOlympic whileMajestic was replaced byTitanic.Majestic would be brought back into her old spot on White Star's New York service afterTitanic's loss.
The ships were built in Belfast byHarland & Wolff, who had a long-established relationship with the White Star Line dating back to 1867.[11] Harland and Wolff were given a great deal of latitude in designing ships for the White Star Line; the usual approach was for the latter to sketch out a general concept which the former would take away and turn into a ship design. Cost considerations were relatively low on the agenda and Harland and Wolff was authorised to spend what it needed on the ships, plus a five per cent profit margin.[12] In the case of theOlympic-class ships, a cost of £3 million for the first two ships was agreed plus "extras to contract" and the usual five per cent fee.[13]
Harland and Wolff put their designers to work designing theOlympic-class vessels. It was overseen byLord Pirrie, a director of both Harland and Wolff and the White Star Line;naval architectThomas Andrews, the managing director of Harland and Wolff's design department; Edward Wilding, Andrews' deputy and responsible for calculating the ship's design, stability and trim; andAlexander Carlisle, the shipyard's chief draughtsman and general manager.[14] Carlisle's responsibilities included the decorations, equipment and all general arrangements, including the implementation of an efficientlifeboatdavit design.[15][16]
On 29 July 1908, Harland and Wolff presented the drawings to Bruce Ismay and other White Star Line executives. Ismay approved the design and signed three "letters of agreement" two days later authorising the start of construction.[17] At this point the lead ship – which was later to becomeOlympic – had no name, but was referred to simply as "Number 400", as it was Harland and Wolff's four hundredth hull.Titanic was based on a revised version of the same design and was given the number 401.[18] Bruce Ismay's fatherThomas Henry Ismay had previously planned to build a ship namedOlympic as a sister ship toOceanic. The senior Ismay died in 1899 and the order for the ship was cancelled.[19]
Construction ofOlympic began three months beforeTitanic to ease pressures on the shipyard. Several years would pass beforeBritannic would be launched. To accommodate the construction of the class, Harland and Wolff upgraded their facility in Belfast; the most dramatic change was the combining of three slipways into two larger ones.Olympic andTitanic were constructed side by side.[16]Olympic'skeel was laid on 16 December 1908 and she was launched on 20 October 1910, without having been christened beforehand.[8] By tradition, the White Star Line never christened any of their vessels and for the launch the hull was painted in a light grey colour for photographic purposes; a common practice of the day for the first ship in a new class, as it made the lines of the ship clearer in the black-and-white photographs.[20] The launch was filmed both in black and white and inKinemacolor, with only the black and white footage surviving.[21][22] The launches ofTitanic andBritannic were also filmed, though onlyBritannic's survived.[23] Her hull was repainted black following the launch.[6]
On 1 April 1911,Olympic was pulled intoThompson Graving Dock as part of its opening ceremony.[24] Here, her hull was cleaned and painted. It was also the place where she received her propellers.[25]
Olympic was driven by three propellers. The two three-bladed wing propellers were driven by two triple-expansion engines, while the four-bladed central propeller was driven by a turbine that used recovered steam escaping from the triple-expansion engines.[26] The use of escaped steam was tested on theSS Laurentic two years earlier.[27]
Olympic's lifeboat arrangement in 1911–12 was identical toTitanic's – fourteen regulation boats, two emergency cutters and the White Star complement of four collapsible boats.[28] Two collapsibles were stored (collapsible C and D) broken down under the lead boats on the port and starboard sides. The final two collapsibles were stored on the top of the officers' quarters on either side of the number one funnel. Collapsible lifeboat B was stored on the port side roof of the officers quarters and collapsible lifeboat A was on the starboard side on the roof of the officers quarters.[citation needed]
After Olympic's 1913 refit, she carried 68 lifeboats, enough for all aboard.[29]
.jpg)
Olympic was designed as a luxury ship;Titanic's passenger facilities, fittings, deck plans and technical facilities were largely identical toOlympic, although with some small variations.[30] The finestfirst-class staterooms were located on B deck and C deck, including four parlour suites and many staterooms equipped with private bathrooms.[31] First-class passengers could have meals in the Jacobean-style main dining saloon or in the more intimate A La Carte Restaurant, completed in the style of the Louis XVI period.[32] Meals in the Restaurant were at an additional cost, but passengers who elected to take all their meals in the Restaurant were given a rebate on their fare.[33] The first-class accommodations were connected by twoGrand Staircases, which became distinctive features of theOlympic-class ships.[34] The forward Grand Staircase ran from the Boat Deck to F deck, including three lifts which ran behind the staircase from A deck to E deck.[35] The slightly simpler aft Grand Staircase connected A to C deck.[35] The first-class public rooms included aGeorgian-style smoking room, a veranda café and palm court,[36] a swimming pool,Victorian Turkish bath, indoor squash and racquet court,[37] gymnasium,[38] and Adam-style reading and writing Room. In additional to the main lounge on A deck,Olympic also featured a large Jacobean-style reception room adjoining the main dining saloon.[32]
The second-class facilities included a smoking room, a library, a spacious dining room, and a lift.[6][39]
Finally, the third-class passengers enjoyed reasonable accommodation compared to other ships. Instead of large dormitories offered by most ships of the time, the third-class passengers ofOlympic travelled in cabins containing two to ten bunks. Facilities for the third class included a smoking room, a general room, an enclosed common area, and a dining room.[6][39]
Olympic had a cleaner, sleeker look than other ships of the day: rather than fitting her with bulky exterior air vents, Harland and Wolff used smaller air vents with electric fans, with a "dummy" fourth funnel used for additional ventilation. For the power plant Harland and Wolff employed a combination ofreciprocating engines with a centre low-pressureturbine, as opposed to the steam turbines used on Cunard'sLusitania andMauretania.[40] White Star had successfully tested this engine configuration on the earlier linerSS Laurentic, where it was found to be more economical than expansion engines or turbines alone.Olympic consumed 650 tons of coal per 24 hours with an average speed of 21.7 knots on her maiden voyage, compared to 1,000 tons of coal per 24 hours for bothLusitania andMauretania.[41]
TheOlympic andTitanic were nearly identical, and were based on the same core design. A few alterations were made toTitanic and later onBritannic which were based on experience gained fromOlympic's first year in service. The most noticeable of these was that the forward half ofTitanic's A Deck promenade was enclosed by a steel screen with sliding windows, whereasOlympic's promenade deck remained open along its whole length. The additional enclosed volume was a major contributor toTitanic's increasedgross register tonnage of 46,328 tons overOlympic's 45,324 tons, which allowedTitanic to claim the title of largest ship in the world.[42]
Additionally, the B-Deck First-Class promenade decks installed onOlympic had proven to be scarcely used because of the already ample promenade space on A-Deck. Accordingly,Thomas Andrews eliminated this feature onTitanic and built additional, enlarged staterooms with en-suite bathrooms. It also allowed a Café Parisien in the style of a French sidewalk café to be added as an annexe to the À la Carte Restaurant, and for the Restaurant itself to be expanded to the Port-side of the ship. One drawback of this was that the Second-Class promenade space on B-Deck was reduced aboardTitanic.
A reception area for the restaurant was added in the foyer of the B-Deck aft Grand Staircase onTitanic, which did not exist onOlympic, and the main reception room on D-Deck was also slightly enlarged. 50-foot (15 m) private promenade decks were added to the two luxury parlour suites on B-Deck onTitanic, as well as additional First-Class gangway entrances on B-Deck. Cosmetic differences also existed between the two ships, most noticeably concerning the wider use ofAxminster carpeting inTitanic's public rooms, as opposed to the more durablelinoleum flooring onOlympic.
Most of these shortcomings onOlympic would be addressed in her 1913 refit, which altered the configuration ofOlympic's First-Class sections to be more like those ofTitanic. Although the A-Deck Promenade remained open for the entirety ofOlympic's career, the B-Deck promenade was vetoed and staterooms added like those onTitanic, as well as a Café Parisien and enlarged restaurant. The 1913 refit also included modifications for greater safety after the loss of theTitanic, including the addition of extra lifeboats and the addition of an inner watertight skin in the hull along about half the length of the ship. An extra watertight compartment was added bringing the total of watertight compartments to 17. Five watertight bulkheads were raised to B deck. Along with these improvements there were many others included in the 1913 refit.[43]
Following completion,Olympic started hersea trials on 29 May 1911 during which her manoeuvrability, compass, and wireless telegraphy were tested. No speed test was carried out.[44] She completed her sea trial successfully.Olympic then left Belfast bound forLiverpool, her port ofregistration, on 31 May 1911. As apublicity stunt the White Star Line timed the start of this first voyage to coincide with thelaunch ofTitanic. After spending a day in Liverpool, open to the public,Olympic sailed toSouthampton, where she arrived on 3 June, to be made ready for her maiden voyage.[45][46][47] Her arrival generated enthusiasm from her crew and newspapers.[48] The deep-water dock at Southampton, then known as the "White Star Dock" had been specially constructed to accommodate the newOlympic-class liners, and had opened in 1911.[49]
Her maiden voyage commenced on 14 June 1911 from Southampton, calling atCherbourg andQueenstown, and reaching New York City on 21 June, with 1,313 passengers on board (489 first class, 263 second class and 561 third class).[50] The maiden voyage was captained byEdward Smith.[51] DesignerThomas Andrews was present for the passage to New York and return, along with a number of engineers with Bruce Ismay and Harland and Wolff's "Guarantee Group" who were also aboard for them to spot any problems or areas for improvement.[52] Smith and Andrews would also be onboard forTitanic's ill-fated maiden voyage the following year where both men chose to go down with the ship.[53]
As the largest ship in the world, and the first in a new class ofsuperliners,Olympic's maiden voyage attracted considerable worldwide attention from the press and public. Following her arrival in New York,Olympic was opened up to the public and received over 8,000 visitors. More than 10,000 spectators watched her depart from New York harbour, for her first return trip. There were 2,301 passengers on board for the return voyage (731 first class, 495 second class and 1,075 third class).[54] During her third crossing,Leonard Peskett, senior naval architect forCunard Line was on board, in search of ideas for their new ship then under construction, theAquitania.[55]
Olympic's first major mishap occurred on her fifth voyage on 20 September 1911, when she collided with the BritishcruiserHMS Hawke.[56] The collision took place asOlympic andHawke were running parallel to each other through theSolent. AsOlympic turned to starboard, the wide radius of her turn took the commander ofHawke by surprise, and he was unable to take sufficient avoiding action.[57]Hawke's bow, which had been designed to sink ships byramming them, collided withOlympic's starboard side near the stern,[58] tearing two large holes inOlympic's hull, above and below the waterline, resulting in the flooding of two of her watertightcompartments and a twisted propeller shaft.Olympic settled slightly by the stern,[59] but in spite of the damage was able to return to Southampton under her own power; no one was killed or seriously injured. HMSHawke suffered severe damage to her bow and nearly capsized;[30][60] Hawke was repaired, but sunk by the GermanU-boatSM U-9 in October 1914.
Captain Edward Smith was in command ofOlympic at the time of the incident. Two crew members, stewardessViolet Jessop and stokerArthur John Priest,[61] survived not only the collision withHawke but also the later sinking ofTitanic and the 1916 sinking ofBritannic, the third ship of the class.[62][63]
At the subsequent inquiry theRoyal Navy blamedOlympic for the incident, alleging that her large displacement generated a suction that pulledHawke into her side.[64][65] TheHawke incident was a financial disaster forOlympic's operator. A legal argument ensued which decided that the blame for the incident lay withOlympic and, although the ship was technically under the control of theharbour pilot, the White Star Line was faced with large legal bills and the cost of repairing the ship, and keeping her out of revenue service made matters worse.[57][66][67] However, the fact thatOlympic endured such a serious collision and stayed afloat appeared to vindicate the design of theOlympic-class liners, and reinforced their "unsinkable" reputation.[57]
It took two weeks for the damage toOlympic to be patched up sufficiently to allow her to return to Belfast for permanent repairs, which took just over six weeks to complete.[68] To expedite repairs, Harland and Wolff was obliged to replaceOlympic's damaged propeller shaft with one fromTitanic, delaying the latter's completion.[69] By 20 November 1911Olympic was back in service.
On 24 February 1912,Olympic suffered another setback when she lost a propeller blade on an eastbound voyage from New York. At the time, the extension of Southampton'sTrafalgar Graving Dock was not yet completed.Olympic therefore had to return toThompson Graving Dock at Belfast for repairs. To return her to service as soon as possible, Harland & Wolff again had to pull resources fromTitanic, delaying her maiden voyage by three weeks, from 20 March to 10 April 1912.[68][70]
On 14 April 1912,Olympic, now under the command ofHerbert James Haddock, was on a return trip from New York.Wireless operator Ernest James Moore[71] received the distress call fromTitanic, when she was approximately 505 mileswest by south ofTitanic's location.[72] Haddock calculated a new course, ordered the ship's engines to be set to full power and headed to assist in the rescue.[73]
WhenOlympic was about 100 nautical miles (190 km; 120 mi) away fromTitanic's last known position, she received a message fromCaptain Rostron of Cunard'sRMS Carpathia, which had arrived at the scene. Rostron explained thatOlympic continuing on course toTitanic would gain nothing, as "All boats accounted for. About 675 souls saved [...] Titanic foundered about 2:20 am."[72] Rostron requested that the message be forwarded to White Star and Cunard. He said that he was returning to harbour in New York.[72] Subsequently, the wireless room aboardOlympic operated as a clearing room for radio messages.[72]
WhenOlympic offered to take on the survivors, she was turned down by Rostron under order from Ismay,[74] who was concerned that asking the survivors to board a virtual mirror-image ofTitanic would cause them distress.[75]Olympic then resumed her voyage to Southampton, with all concerts cancelled as a mark of respect, arriving on 21 April with her flags at half-mast.[6][76]
Over the next few months,Olympic assisted with both theAmerican andBritish inquiries into the disaster. Deputations from both inquiries inspectedOlympic's lifeboats, watertight doors and bulkheads and other equipment which were identical to those onTitanic.[77] Sea tests were performed for the British enquiry in May, to establish how quickly the ship could turn two points at various speeds, to approximate how long it would have takenTitanic to turn after the iceberg was sighted.[78][79]
Olympic, likeTitanic, did not carry enough lifeboats for everyone on board, and so was hurriedly equipped with additional, second-hand collapsible lifeboats following her return to Britain.[76] Towards the end of April 1912, as she was about to sail from Southampton to New York, 284 of the ship'sfiremen went on strike, for fear that the ship's new collapsible lifeboats were not seaworthy.[80][81] 100 non-union crew were hastily hired from Southampton as replacements, with more being hired from Liverpool.[82]
The 40 collapsible lifeboats were transferred from troopships and put onOlympic, and many were rotten and would not open. The crewmen, instead, sent a request to the Southampton manager of the White Star Line that the collapsible boats be replaced by wooden lifeboats; the manager replied that this was impossible and that the collapsible boats had been passed as seaworthy by aBoard of Trade inspector. The men were not satisfied and ceased work in protest.[81]
On 25 April, a deputation of strikers witnessed a test of four of the collapsible boats. One was unseaworthy and the deputation said that it was prepared to recommend the men return to work if the boats were replaced. However, the strikers now objected to the non-unionstrikebreaker crew which had come on board, and demanded that they be dismissed, which the White Star Line refused. Fifty-four sailors then left the ship, objecting to the non-union crew who they claimed were unqualified and therefore dangerous, and refused to sail with them. This led to the scheduled sailing being cancelled.[82][83]
All 54 sailors were arrested on a charge of mutiny when they went ashore. On 4 May 1912, Portsmouth magistrates found the charges against themutineers were proven, but discharged them without imprisonment or fine, due to the special circumstances of the case.[84] Fearing that public opinion would be on the side of the strikers, the White Star Line let them return to work andOlympic sailed on 15 May.[78]
On 9 October 1912, White Star withdrewOlympic from service and returned her to her builders at Belfast to have modifications added to incorporate lessons learned from theTitanic disaster six months prior, and improve safety.[85] The number of lifeboats carried byOlympic was increased from twenty to sixty-eight, and extradavits were installed along the boat deck to accommodate them. An inner watertight skin was also constructed in the boiler and engine rooms, which created adouble hull.[86] Five of the watertightbulkheads were extended up to B-Deck, extending to the entire height of the hull. This corrected a flaw in the original design, in which the bulkheads only rose up as far as E or D-Deck, a short distance above the waterline.[87] This flaw had been exposed duringTitanic's sinking, where water spilled over the top of the bulkheads as the ship sank and flooded subsequent compartments. In addition, an extra bulkhead was added to subdivide the electrical dynamo room, bringing the total number ofwatertight compartments to seventeen. Improvements were also made to the ship's pumping apparatus. These modifications meant thatOlympic could survive a collision similar to that ofTitanic, in that her first six compartments could be breached and the ship could remain afloat.[88][89]
At the same time,Olympic's B Deck underwent a refit, which included extra cabins in place of the covered promenade, more private bathing facilities, an enlargedÁ La Carte restaurant, and aCafé Parisien (another addition that had proved popular onTitanic) was added, offering another dining option to first class passengers. With these changes (and a second refit in 1919 after the war),Olympic's gross register tonnage rose to 46,439 tons, 111 tons more thanTitanic's.[90][91]
In March 1913,Olympic returned to service and briefly regained the title of largest ocean liner in the world, until the German linerSS Imperator entered passenger service in June. Following her refit,Olympic was marketed as the "new"Olympic and her improved safety features were featured prominently in advertisements.[92][6] The ship experienced a short period of tranquility, although while she was in the mid-Atlantic during a storm on 7 February 1914 arogue wave struck her which shattered eight first class portholes, swamped the dining saloon during lunch, and injured the ship'spurser and several passengers.[93][94]
On 4 August 1914, Britain entered theFirst World War.Olympic initially remained in commercial service under Captain Herbert James Haddock. As a wartime measure,Olympic was painted in a grey colour scheme, portholes were blocked, and lights on deck were turned off to make the ship less visible. The schedule was hastily altered to terminate atLiverpool rather than Southampton, and this was later altered again toGlasgow.[6][95]
The first few wartime voyages were packed with Americans trapped in Europe, eager to return home; the eastbound journeys carried few passengers. By mid-October, bookings had fallen sharply as the threat from German U-boats became increasingly serious, and White Star Line decided to withdrawOlympic from commercial service. On 21 October 1914, she left New York for Glasgow on her last commercial voyage of the war, though carrying only 153 passengers.[96][95]
On the sixth day of her voyage, 27 October, asOlympic passed nearLough Swilly off the north coast of Ireland, she received distress signals from thebattleshipHMS Audacious, which had struck a mine offTory Island and was taking on water.[97] HMSLiverpool was in the company ofAudacious.
Olympic took off 250 ofAudacious's crew, then thedestroyerHMS Fury managed to attach a tow cable betweenAudacious andOlympic and they headed west for Lough Swilly. However, the cable parted afterAudacious's steering gear failed. A second attempt was made to tow the warship, but the cable became tangled inHMS Liverpool's propellers and was severed. A third attempt was tried but also failed when the cable gave way. By 17:00 theAudacious's quarterdeck was awash and it was decided to evacuate the remaining crew members toOlympic andLiverpool, and at 20:55 there was an explosion aboardAudacious and she sank.[98]
Admiral SirJohn Jellicoe, Commander of the Home Fleet, was anxious to suppress the news of the sinking ofAudacious, for fear of the demoralising effect it could have on the British public, so he orderedOlympic to be held in custody at Lough Swilly. No communications were permitted and passengers were not allowed to leave the ship. The only people departing her were the crew ofAudacious and Chief Surgeon John Beaumont, who was transferring toRMS Celtic. Steel tycoonCharles M. Schwab, who was travelling aboard the liner, sent word to Jellicoe that he had urgent business in London with the Admiralty, and Jellicoe agreed to release Schwab if he remained silent about the fate ofAudacious. Finally, on 2 November,Olympic was allowed to go to Belfast where the passengers disembarked.[99]
FollowingOlympic's return to Britain, the White Star Line intended to lay her up in Belfast until the war was over, but in May 1915 she was requisitioned by theAdmiralty, to be used as a troop transport, along with the Cunard linersMauretania andAquitania. The Admiralty had initially been reluctant to use large ocean liners astroop transports because of their vulnerability to enemy attack; however, a shortage of ships gave them little choice. At the same time,Olympic's other sister shipBritannic, which had not yet been completed, was requisitioned as ahospital ship. Operating in that role she would strike aGerman naval mine and sink in theAegean Sea on 21 November 1916.[100]
Stripped of her peacetime fittings and now armed with 12-pounders and 4.7-inch guns,Olympic was converted to a troopship, with the capacity to transport up to 6,000 troops. On 24 September 1915, the newly designated HMT (Hired Military Transport) 2810,[101][102] now under the command ofBertram Fox Hayes, left Liverpool carrying 6,000 soldiers toMoudros, Greece for theGallipoli Campaign. On 1 October, lifeboats from the French shipProvincia which had been sunk by a U-boat that morning offCape Matapan were sighted and 34 survivors rescued byOlympic. Hayes was criticised for this action by the British Admiralty, who accused him of putting the ship in danger by stopping her in waters where enemy U-boats were active. The ship's speed was considered to be her best defence against U-boat attack, and such a large ship stopped would have made an unmissable target. However, the French Vice-AdmiralLouis Dartige du Fournet took a different view, and awarded Hayes with theGold Medal of Honour.Olympic made several more trooping journeys to theMediterranean until early 1916, when the Gallipoli Campaign was abandoned.[103][a]
In 1916, considerations were made to useOlympic to transport troops toIndia via theCape of Good Hope. However, on investigation it was decided that the ship was unsuitable for this role, because the coal bunkers, which had been designed for transatlantic runs, lacked the capacity for such a long journey at a reasonable speed.[104] Instead, from 1916 to 1917,Olympic was chartered by theCanadian government to transport troops fromHalifax, Nova Scotia, to Britain.[105] In 1917, she gained 6-inch guns and was painted with adazzle camouflage scheme to make it more difficult for observers to estimate her speed and heading. Her dazzle colours were brown, dark blue, light blue, and white. Her many visits toHalifax Harbour carrying Canadian troops safely overseas, and back home after the war atPier 2, made her a favourite symbol in the city of Halifax. NotedGroup of Seven artistArthur Lismer made several paintings ofOlympic in Halifax. A large dance hall, the "Olympic Gardens", was also named in her honour.
After the United States declared war on Germany,Olympic transported thousands of American troops to Britain.[106]
In the early hours of 12 May 1918, while en route for France in theEnglish Channel with U.S. troops under the command of Captain Hayes,Olympic sighted a surfaced U-boat 500 m (1,600 ft) ahead.[107]Olympic's gunners opened fire at once, and the ship turned to ram the submarine, which immediately crash dived to 30 m (98 ft) and turned to a parallel course. Almost immediately afterwardsOlympic struck the submarine just aft of her conning tower with her port propeller slicing throughU-103's pressure hull. The crew ofU-103 blew her ballast tanks, scuttled and abandoned the submarine.Olympic did not stop to pick up survivors, but continued on to Cherbourg. Meanwhile,USS Davis had sighted a distress flare and picked up 31 survivors fromU-103.Olympic returned to Southampton with at least two hull plates dented and her prow twisted to one side, but not breached.[108]
It was subsequently discovered thatU-103 had been preparing to torpedoOlympic when she was sighted, but the crew were not able to flood the two stern torpedo tubes.[109] For his service, Captain Hayes was awarded theDSO.[110] Some American soldiers on board paid for aplaque to be placed in one ofOlympic's lounges to commemorate the event, it read:
This tablet presented by the59th Regiment United States Infantry commemorates the sinking of the German submarine U103 byOlympic on May 12th 1918 in latitude 49 degrees 16 minutes north longitude 4 degrees 51 minutes west on the voyage from New York to Southampton with American troops...[111]
During the war,Olympic is reported to have carried up to 201,000 troops and other personnel, burning 347,000 tons of coal and travelling about 184,000 miles (296,000 km).[112]Olympic's war service earned her the nicknameOld Reliable.[113] Her captain was knighted in 1919 for "valuable services in connection with the transport of troops".[114]
Olympic holds the distinction of being the only passenger liner to ram – and sink – a German U-Boat during the First World War.
.jpg)
In August 1919,Olympic returned to Belfast for restoration to civilian service. The interiors were modernised and the boilers were converted to oil firing rather than coal burning. This modification would reduce the refuelling time from days to 5 or 6 hours; it also gave a steadier engine R.P.M. and allowed the engine room personnel to be reduced from 350 to 60 people.[115] During the conversion work and drydocking, a dent with a crack at the centre was discovered below her waterline which was later concluded to have been caused by a torpedo that had failed to detonate.[116][117] The historian Mark Chirnside concluded that the faulty torpedo had been fired by the U-boatSMU-53 on 4 September 1918, whileOlympic was in the English Channel.[118]
Olympic emerged from refit with an increased tonnage of 46,439, allowing her to retain her claim to the title of largest British-built liner afloat, although the Cunard Line'sAquitania was slightly longer. On 25 June 1920 she returned to passenger service, on one voyage that year carrying 2,249 passengers, and carried more than 28,000 passengers throughout the second half of 1920.[119]Olympic transported a record 38,000 passengers during 1921, which proved to be the peak year of her career. With the loss of theTitanic andBritannic,Olympic initially lacked any suitable running mates for the express service; however, in 1922 White Star obtained two former German liners,Majestic andHomeric, which had been given to Britain aswar reparations. These joinedOlympic as running mates, operating successfully until theGreat Depression reduced demand after 1930.[120]
During the 1920s,Olympic remained a popular and fashionable liner, and often attracted the rich and famous of the day;Marie Curie, SirArthur Conan Doyle,Charlie Chaplin,Mary Pickford andDouglas Fairbanks, andPrince Edward, thenPrince of Wales, were among the celebrities that she carried.[121] Prince Edward and Captain Howarth were filmed on the bridge ofOlympic forPathé News.[122] According to his autobiography,[123] and confirmed by US Immigration records,Cary Grant, then 16-year-old Archibald Leach, first set sail to New York onOlympic on 21 July 1920 on the same voyage on which Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford were celebrating their honeymoon. One of the attractions ofOlympic was that she was nearly identical toTitanic, and many passengers sailed onOlympic as a way of vicariously experiencing the voyage of her sister ship.[124]On 22 March 1924,Olympic was involved in another collision with a ship, this time at New York. AsOlympic was reversing from her berth at New York harbour, her stern collided with the smaller linerFort St George, which had crossed into her path. The collision caused extensive damage to the smaller ship. At first it appeared thatOlympic had sustained only minor damage, but it was later revealed that hersternpost had been fractured, necessitating the replacement of her entire stern frame.[125]
On 7 June, Lord Pirrie died on a business trip aboardRMS Ebro in theCaribbean offCuba. On 13 JuneEbro reached New York; UK ships in the port of New York lowered their flags tohalf-mast; and Pirrie's body was transferred toOlympic to be repatriated to the UK.[126][127]
Changes in immigration laws in the United States in the 1920s greatly restricted the number of immigrants allowed to enter. The law limited the number of immigrants to about 160,000 per year in 1924.[128] This led to a major reduction in the immigrant trade for the shipping lines, forcing them to cater to the tourist trade to survive.[6] At the turn of 1927–28,Olympic was converted to carry tourist third cabin passengers as well as first, second and third class.[129] Tourist third cabin was an attempt to attract travellers who desired comfort without the accompanying high ticket price. New public rooms were constructed for this class, although tourist third cabin and second class would merge to become 'tourist' by late 1931.
A year later,Olympic's first-class cabins were again improved by adding more bathrooms, a dance floor was fitted in the enlarged first-class dining saloon, and a number of new suites with private facilities were installed forward on B deck.[130] More improvements would follow in a later refit, but 1929 sawOlympic's best average passenger lists since 1925.
On 18 November 1929, asOlympic was travelling westbound near toTitanic's last known position, the ship suddenly started to vibrate violently, and the vibrations continued for two minutes. It was later determined that this had been caused by the1929 Grand Banks earthquake.[131]
The shipping trade was badly affected by the Great Depression. Until 1930 there had generally been around one million passengers a year on the transatlantic route, but by 1934 this had dropped by more than half. Furthermore, by the early 1930s, increased competition emerged, in the form of a new generation of larger and faster liners such as Germany'sSS Bremen andSS Europa, Italy'sSS Rex and France'sSS Île de France, and the remaining passengers tended to prefer the more up-to-date ships.Olympic had averaged around 1,000 passengers per journey until 1930, but this declined by more than half by 1932.[132]
Olympic's running mateHomeric was withdrawn from the transatlantic route as early as 1932, leaving onlyOlympic andMajestic maintaining White Star Line's Southampton-New York service, although this was occasionally augmented during the summer months by eitherMV Britannic orMV Georgic.[133] During slack periods in the summer,Olympic and fleet mateMajestic were employed in summer recreational cruises from New York toPier 21 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.[134]
At the end of 1932, with passenger traffic in decline,Olympic went for an overhaul and refit that took four months. She returned to service on 5 March 1933 described by her owners as "looking like new." Her engines were performing at their best and she repeatedly recorded speeds in excess of 23 kn (43 km/h; 26 mph), despite averaging less than that in regular transatlantic service. Passenger capacities were given as 618 first class, 447 tourist class and only 382 third class after the decline of the immigrant trade.[135]
Despite this, during 1933 and 1934,Olympic ran at a net operating loss for the first time.Olympic’s Grand Staircase was painted avocado green along with pathways and pillars and the yellow line at the hull was lowered to look more similar toMajestic andHomeric during a 1933 refit. 1933 wasOlympic's worst year of business – carrying just over 9,000 passengers in total.[136] Passenger numbers rose slightly in 1934, but many crossings still lost money.[133]
In 1934,Olympic again struck another ship. The approaches to New York were marked bylightships andOlympic, like other liners, had been known to pass close by these vessels. On 15 May 1934 (11:06 am),Olympic, inbound in heavy fog, was homing in on the radio beacon ofNantucket LightshipLV-117.[137] Now under the command of Captain John W. Binks, the ship failed to turn in time and sliced through the smaller vessel, which broke apart and sank.[138] Four of the lightship's crew went down with the vessel and seven were rescued, of whom three died of their injuries, seven fatalities out of a crew of 11.[139] The lightship's surviving crew andOlympic's captain were interviewed soon after reaching shore. One crewman said it all happened so quickly that they did not know how it happened.Olympic reacted quickly lowering boats to rescue the crew, which was confirmed by an injured crewman.[140]
In 1934, theWhite Star Line merged with theCunard Line at the instigation of the British government, to formCunard White Star.[141] This merger allowed funds to be granted for the completion of the futureQueen Mary andQueen Elizabeth. When completed, these two new ships would handle Cunard White Star's express service; so their fleet of older liners became redundant and were gradually retired.
.jpg)
Olympic was withdrawn from the transatlantic service, and left New York for the last time on 5 April 1935, returning to Britain to be laid up in Southampton. The new company considered using her for summer cruises for a short while, but this idea was abandoned and she was put up for sale. Among the potential buyers was a syndicate who proposed to turn her into a floating hotel off the south coast of France, but this came to nothing.[142]
After being laid up for five months alongside her former rivalMauretania, she was sold toSir John Jarvis – Member of Parliament – for £97,500, to be partially demolished atJarrow to provide work for the depressed region.[143] On 11 October 1935,Olympic left Southampton for the last time and arrived in Jarrow two days later. The scrapping began after the ship's fittings were auctioned off. Between 1935 and 1937,Olympic's superstructure and upper hull were demolished, and then on 19 September 1937, the remaining hulk was towed toThos. W. Ward's yard atInverkeithing for final demolition, which was most likely finished by late 1938 or early 1939. TheOlympic was removed from theShipping Registry on 4 February 1939.[144] At that time, the ship's chief engineer commented, "I could understand the necessity if the 'Old Lady' had lost her efficiency, but the engines are as sound as they ever were".[43]
By the time of her retirement,Olympic had completed 257 round trips across the Atlantic, transporting 430,000 passengers on her commercial voyages, travelling 1.8 million miles.[142][145]
Olympic's fittings were auctioned off before the scrapping commenced.[146]
The fittings of the first-class lounge and part of the aft grand staircase can be found in theWhite Swan Hotel, inAlnwick, Northumberland, England. A variety of panelling, light fixtures, flooring, doors, and windows fromOlympic were installed in a paint factory inHaltwhistle, Northumberland, until they were auctioned in 2004.[147] One suite at Sparth House Hotel,Clayton-le-Moors, Lancashire has the furniture from one of the staterooms, including light fitting, sink, wardrobes and fireplace. The crystal andormoluelectrolier from the lounge is installed in theCutlers' Hall inSheffield.[148] Some of the timber panelling was used in the extension (completed in 1937) of St John the Baptist's Catholic Church inPadiham, Lancashire.[149]
In 2000,Celebrity Cruises purchased some ofOlympic's original wooden panels to create the "RMSOlympic Restaurant" on board their new cruise ship,Celebrity Millennium. According to the cruise line, this panelling had linedOlympic's À la Carte restaurant.[146]
Olympic's bridge bell is on display at theTitanic Historical Society inIndian Orchard, Springfield, Massachusetts.[150][151]
The clock depicting "Honour and Glory Crowning Time" fromOlympic's grand staircase is on display at Southampton'sSeaCity Museum.[152][153]
In 1912, aSteinway Vertegrand upright piano No. 157550 with a quartered walnut case left theSteinway Hamburg factory unfinished and was sent to its London branch. In 1913, it was decorated by Harland & Wolff's interior decoration company Aldam Heaton & Co with carvings and gold accents. The piano was first placed in the aft starboard corner in the first-class reception room.[154]
In 2017, the old billiard hall at 44 Priestpopple, Hexham, Northumberland, was demolished. It had opened in 1936. During an archaeological excavation on the demolition site by AAG Archaeology, one of theOlympic's chairs was recovered. The fittings fromOlympic were auctioned off over ten days in November 1935 at the Palmers Works in Jarrow.[155]
Olympic's UKofficial number was 131346. Official numbers were issued by individual flag states; they should not be confused withIMO numbers.
Until 1933Olympic'scode letters were HSRP[156] and herwireless telegraphycall sign was MKC.[157] In 1930 new four-letter call signs superseded three-letter ones, and in 1934 they also superseded code letters.Olympic's new call sign was GLSQ.[158]
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
| Sinking | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Officers |
| ||||||||||||||
| Crew members |
| ||||||||||||||
| Musicians | |||||||||||||||
| Passengers |
| ||||||||||||||
| Monuments and memorials |
| ||||||||||||||
| Popular culture (cultural legacy) |
| ||||||||||||||
| Museums and exhibitions | |||||||||||||||
| Places | |||||||||||||||
| Related |
| ||||||||||||||
