Publisher's Synopsis
On the night of 14/15 April 1912, a brand-new, supposedly unsinkable ship, the largest vessel in the world at the time, sank on her maiden voyage after ramming an iceberg. Of the 2,223 people on board only 705 were saved. The rest either drowned or froze to death in the icy-cold waters of the North Atlantic. How could this 'unsinkable' vessel sink and how could the authorities allow her to sail with lifeboats for less than 50 per cent of those aboard. The authors bring the tragedy to life, telling the story of the ship's design, construction and her maiden voyage, using rarely-seen accounts of the sinking from passengers of all classes and crew alike. They tell the dramatic stories of lives lost and people saved, of the rescue ship Carpathia and of the aftermath of the sinking. Never again would a large passenger ship sail without lifeboats for all, nor a radio manned 24 hours per day. Despite the tragedy, the sinking of the Titanic indirectly led to many tens of thousands lives being saved due to new regulations that came into force after the tragedy. Profusely illustrated with over 300 images (50 in colour), including many rare and unique views of the ship, this is as accurate a telling of the story of the White Star Line's Titanic and her sinking as you will read anywhere.
