The Titanic set sail from the port at Southampton, England.

One hundred years ago, the RMS Titanic set sail on its maiden voyage. On April 10, 1912, the huge ship left Southampton, England, with more than 2,200 passengers. It was headed for New York City. The Titanic was one of the largest ships in the world, and some claimed it was unsinkable. Tragically, they were wrong.

Near midnight on April 14, the Titanic hit an iceberg in the North Atlantic Ocean about 400 miles southeast of Newfoundland, Canada. The iceberg tore a 300-foot-long hole into the side of the ship. Freezing cold water rushed in. Just two hours and forty minutes later, in the early morning of April 15, the Titanic sank to the bottom of the ocean. About 1,500 people lost their lives, many of them poor immigrants. Also among those who died were well-known American businesspeople John Jacob Astor and Madeleine Astor, as well as Isidor and Ida Straus.

At 3:30 A.M., more than an hour after the Titanic sunk, a ship called the Carpathia arrived. It picked up the survivors, who were waiting in lifeboats. On April 18, the Carpathia reached New York City, where crowds waited to greet the survivors. One of the survivors was American actress Margaret Tobin Brown, who inspired the legend of “The Unsinkable Molly Brown.” A stage musical and a film were made about her in the 1960s.

Many people today remain fascinated by the story of the Titanic. To mark the 100th anniversary of the Titanic’s voyage, a new museum called Titanic Belfast opened in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Belfast is the city where the Titanic was built. The museum is hosting plays, tours, exhibits, and talks about the Titanic. Several museums in the United States and Canada are also hosting special Titanic exhibits. The popular Titanic movie from 1997 has been re-released in 3-D to mark the anniversary.

On April 10, a ceremony was held in Southampton to remember those who died on the Titanic. Descendants of some of the Titanic’s victims threw wreaths from the dock where the ship began its voyage, and a moment of silence was observed throughout the city.

Image credit: ©Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images

Related Links

• Titanic: A Special Exhibit from Encyclopedia Britannica
  Learn more about the story of the Titanic from articles, photographs, and interactive features.
• Titanic Belfast
  Find out more about the new museum that recreates the entire Titanic story.