I appreciate that his family actually sued James Cameron and Titanic for their portrayal of Murdoch. Thank you for telling a story that did not get shown as it should have in a highly researched historical drama.
I know his great-great nephew and even today this hurts the family. My friend is also an officer at sea, so the family's tradition continues despite all.
One thing that usually annoys me is the modified portrayal as villains or incompetent of actual real people who are dead based on "its a movie its for movie porpouses". Murdoch is one case, Bruce Ismay another and depending on the movie so its Smith and others.. And there is so many examples.. for example in Ford vs Ferrari they made Leo Beebe a villain and basically an asshole who's only role is to annoy Shelby when in reality he was the oposite and was one of the most apreciated Ford execs by the workforce and colaboratos.. but they needed some "villain" and made one of a guy who was real , and its dead so he cant defend himself. Sully nearly fell into this were for Sully himself demanding they changing the NTSB investigator names from real people to fictiocious.. because in the movie they make the NTSB investigators the movie villains trying to bag Sully no matter what.. when in reality it was no were near (they actually acknowledged Sully action as correct from the start and officialiced them in the final report wich made sully feel so much in peace with himself) and they were at first going to use the actual names of the real investigators until Sully himself demanded they change the names to not taint the real people ..
What are you talking about, Sued? Nobody was sued. You can't libel the dead! Cameron merely apologised and made a token donation towards a local memorial.
It's something that always frustrated me - Murdoch did a much better job than Lightoller, actually. And yet Lightoller is hailed as a hero while Murdoch is either forgotten, or considered the bad guy which is completely unjustified.
Officer Murdoch is a true hero. He saved my great grandfather’s(Albert Horswill-crewman)life along with six other crewmen when he ordered them onto a lifeboat that needed to be lowered but only had 5 passengers aboard because at that point many passengers didn’t believe the ship was in danger.
I volunteer at the Museum in Dalbeattie where Murdoch was born and educated. They have a whole display on the Titanic and him. We always inform visitors about how poorly the movie potrayed him. Some even say he was reasonable for the sinking for whatever reasons. Which is unfounded in fact. He was consdiered not at fault by the titanic enquiries. Its great to see a video talk about him and dispell some myths.
I've always respected how Murdoch allowed men (and teenage boys) into lifeboats when there weren't enough women and children around, as opposed to Lightoller who stuck firmly to the "women and children only" code. He saved so many lives that way. Also, I find it a shame that been vilified for possibly committing suicide; even if he did, who can judge him for sparing himself a horrific death in the cold water? I don't think he should be condemned for that.
@@riseabove1168 No one knows for certain but it's thought that the White Star Line eventually took them back from storage in New York, possibly for refitting. Fittings from the lifeboats are in museums and collections today.
If it did happen it's not certain that it was Murdoch. I agree, I think Murdoch interpreted Smith's command better and his lifeboats were fuller earlier than Lightoller's. According to Lightoller Murdoch was swept off deck with a collapsible. But I think someone else has an account of him jumping from the bridge along with Smith. I think we have to take into account that it was very dark, noisy and chaotic and obviously everyone was in a state of extreme stress.....We see mistakes with hearsay evidence all the time.
I just recently watched a documentary put together with all the passengers that filmed the sinking of The Costa Concordia. What a difference. The bridge including the Captain abandoned the ship when thousands of passengers were still on it! Hardly any crew helped people into the lifeboats. It was the kitchen staff that were helping passing. Unbelievable. The Titanic crew didn’t abandon the passengers like the crew of the Concordia. Highly recommended watching it.
Well, the crew of the Titanic didn't abandon their passengers because they were British, that's why, with Anglo Saxon values. And the crew on the Concordia were ????????????????
@@ruthmoreau6419 the crew was made up of many different nationalities. They had to speak English. But the bridge crew was Italian but one was a different nationality. You had to able to speak Italian on the bridge. The Captain was a weak coward. I’m glad he’s got 15 years in prison but it should have been 33 years for each person who died
What's your point? The captain was an Italian, Francesco Schettino, and he is responsible for the ship - the buck stops here. What a contrast to the British captain and crew of the Titanic! Captain Edward Smith went down with the ship, as is the unwritten law of the sea, and from my research his exhortation to others was "Be British," synonymous with courage and sacrifice. Schettino: "Be Italian." Nah, it doesn't sound the same does it.
@@jandedick7519 He got 16, prosecution called for 26. He should be out by 2029, if his time spent on appealing the first court's verdict served anything.
Regardless of weather he committed suicide or not( I think he did) that doesn’t take anything away from his heroism. Unlike his buddy lightoller he put the passengers and their survival first and not his over the top macho sense of chivalry which led to many unnecessary deaths.
@@drewadventurehistory some survivors say he did and it would make sense but lightoller and some of the other surviving crew members insist he didn’t although it’s possible they were trying to defend his reputation and lightoller later says there was an officer who committed suicide but wouldn’t tell who.
@@leerogish7223 if Murdoch possibly didn’t commit suicide that leaves 2 other officers who also died in the sinking Chief Officer Henry Wilde 6th officer James Moody
@@drewadventurehistory moody didnt have a gun which boils things down to Wilde and murdoch and due to the officer switch both were wearing 3 stripes for chief officer. I think murdoch was the more likely candidate because he had to have felt awful knowing the collision happened on his watch.
While I do love Lightoller, the port side's lifeboats lowering was absolutely crazy - in the worst way. Murdoch really has been done dirty by media, thank you for keeping his story alive!
@@221b-l3t Charles Herbert Lightoller RNR was an excellent officer who was very experienced and a very dedicated officer. He followed Captain E.J. Smith's orders to the best of his knowledge after Captain Smith ordered specifically (women and children first, which was the order of the day during shipwrecks). Nobody knows if the Captain meant women and children who are around first, then men, or if he specifically meant that ONLY women and children are to be boarded, but Officer Lightoller took his Captain's orders to heart and loaded only women and children. Some other officers did their best to get everyone who was around into the boats, but most people didn't know that Titanic was actually going to sink until later in the sinking, so many people weren't around until the very end. Even then, most of the stewards in third class didn't realize that Titanic was actually sinking, and they kept the gates closed that divided the classes, so there were many people below decks who never had a chance due to this confusion and lack of communication. This is a conspiracy that has been contested and has been argued for many many years, and even I don't know the truth (because I wasn't born until 1983), but I have been researching Titanic and maritime history in general for the last 36 years and I am speaking on my own personal knowledge of the tragedy. Do I agree with Lightoller's actions that night? Well, given the circumstances and the orders that he was given from his Captain, yes, but you have to understand that the Captain's word is the word of God, only at sea, so yes, I agree with his actions. However, if he was the officer who decided that 12 people should be the only occupants of lifeboat number one, then I would tend to disagree with that decision, but it wasn't. All of the officers should've known that every one of those lifeboats were tested in Belfast Harbor with almost 70 men in them, but with a hastily gathered crew, I doubt it. There was a huge breakdown at every angle among the officers, crew, as well as the Captain Edward John Smith.
I'm a college student and I took a Public Speaking Class. When I was asked to make an Informative speech, I had to do it on the 4 factors that led to an increased loss of life in the Titanic disaster. One of my points was Murdoch vs. Lightoller and I included the misguided information that the '97 movie provided that Murdoch committed suicide. Lightoller was a hero that night and he was the most senior officer to survive the disaster. He got the credit for his heroism, while Murdoch did not. Good job on this video!
I wouldnt stay lightoller was considered a hero by the public and especially not by white star. He never received his own command in the merchant marine as a result of being associated with titanic and left the sea for good in 1920 after realizing he would never be promoted any higher than chief officer on one of the lines older ships.
@@neillp3827I am aware of what Lightoller did in WWII. Does not mean that Murdock should be dragged through the mud the way he has been when there is plenty of evidence that he was a hero as well.
When I watched Titanic at a young, and before I knew any of the history of it, Murdoch became a favorite “character”. The actor really did well in presenting Murdoch as someone who was trying to do their best in a situation that was unexpected and chaotic. Even the situation with Cal it didn’t take away from Murdoch, for me at least. You did a fantastic job in presenting a timeline for Murdoch. It confirms even more how much of a hero he was. He really did his best until the end.
Same brother. I love the actor playing Murdoch and i didnt condemn him one bit of accepting the money. His quick actions in movie is still my most favorite part of the movie.
Thank you for the video First Officer William Murdoch deserved. It's also worth mentioning that 15 and 17 evacuated passengers from 3 different decks, which says a lot about Murdoch's clear thinking ability to maintain control in a time of crisis.
@@PelsckoPolesko You're right, I meant 13 and 15. 01:40 No. 13 loaded with about 55 of its 65 seats taken. 01:41 No. 15 loaded with 68 of its 65 seats taken.
@@user-mf9wg6jq5f he also must have known even if he did survive his career at sea would effectively be over. No shipping company would ever let him sail on any ship that carried a single paying passenger again.
I have the pleasure of training to become an officer with Murdoch's great great nephew whose following in his footsteps at sea. Cameron's lies really hurt that family and ruined a great selfless hero's name.
It’s too bad that a movie loosely based on an actual event, sullied this man’s legacy when in fact he acted with integrity, and did everything he could to save as many passengers as possible!
You worked so hard on the series, Sam! Murdoch's story should be retold. Hope you have a Happy Holidays and Happy New Year. Also, have a Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year everyone! 😃
I hate myself for believing so many years that officer Murdoch committed suicide, thank you for clearing this up. I like the series you make and I look forward to your next videos!
I think he did for two reasons. He must have felt awful knowing over 1000 in his charge will die because of the decisions he made or didn’t make. Furthermore even if he did survive his career and reputation would be irreparably damaged. No way would white star or any shipping company for that matter ever allow him to sail on a ship carrying a single paying passenger let alone ever give him his own command which he was so close to getting prior to titanic.
@@leerogish7223 or just a preferred death than being swallowed up by that massive ship? He was going to die anyway as he wasn't going to put himself in a lifeboat.
@@emmabauer1906 I don't think he knew at that point that he was going to die. It is possible that he didn't know that the rescue ships wouldn't get there in time to save those from the water and even so a few people from the water survived.
Is it suicide though? Death is inevitable at that point, might as well go out on your own terms. It’s like the people jumping out of the Twin Towers, I don’t consider that suicide either.
It's not even about how Cameron portayed him commiting suicide. Who are we to even dare judging? If I was to chose while standing on a ship that dramatically floods with ice cold water and gets his stern up in the air... heck I'd take the bullet any day. What is so shameful about Camerons portrayal is showing Murdoch killing that side character in accident before he kills himself. That Man who tryed to safe as many lifes as possible taking a life through gunshot is what makes this scene so disrespectful and unsensitive. I am into the Titanic since I was 5/6 years old. And thank to the movie I grew up thinking Murdoch was a corruptible guy who shot someone instead of the hero he actually is. Thanks for helping to restore that mans honor. He does not deserve the rumors
Ewan Stewart, the guy who played William Murdoch in Titanic, starred in 'Only fools and horse's' in an episode where Derek del boy Trotter was admitted to hospital. Ewan played Doctor Robbie Meadows
I was in Dalbeattie yesterday and saw the memorial on the wall of the town hall , which Cameron was forced to pay for after his depiction of William Murdoch caused outrage and a lot of negative publicity for him . It is almost certain that Murdoch was the single person ON Titanic most esponsible for saving the most lives , although many other acts of heroism and selflessness doubtless took place . It could also be argued that the person responsible for saving the most lives FROM Titanic was Captain Arthur Rostron of Carpathia , thanks to his prompt and cool headed actions in getting his ship to the scene as quickly as possible and having everything ready to receive and care for survivors .
I love your channel. Thank you for sharing 1st Officer Murdoch's story. Your research is top-notch. He sure served on many ships. Such an interesting life. To me all the Officers aboard the Titanic were heroes. May they all RIP.🌻❤️
I've been rewatching a lot of titanic videos, Yours are one of the best I have seen. It is so sad that a lot of little mistakes by themselves wouldn't have necessary sunk the ship, but together, they had such deadly consequences. Thanks for all that you do.
I played William Murdoch in Titanic: The Musical a few years back. I did a ton of research but this would’ve been a great additions for character development. Also, has anyone ever calculated what speed Titanic would’ve needed to be going to actually clear the berg successfully with the port around maneuver?
As far as I'm aware no. And there's an argument to say had he not slowed down he might have steered tighter. By pushing water over the rudder the turning ability is actually better, so much so a couple seconds of acceleration can help a ship turn tighter. Now as the propellers were not in line with the rudder I'm not sure that would have been the case there but today you do not slow down if you intend to are trying to swing away
This is allso a debate that if Murdoch stopped the engines or reversed them... No one from the engine room survived this night and all we know about last manouvers is based on fact that Murdoch tried to port around the iceberg and based on words of stoker Barrett who saw orders for boiler ruums not for engine room telegraphs... If question is about what is the most efficient action to make ship to turn rapidly then in case of Titanic reversing the port side engine might have helped to make thist turn sharper... Only problem with massive steam engines is that it takes a little bit time to stop them and then reverse and on my opinion they simply didn't have enough time to do it so I don't know if it would have helped in this case... I personally think that I would have tried to make a similar manouver what Will tried to pull off...
I looked more closely on what he did to save Olympic before he was on Titanic; I give him the benefit of the doubt that he knew what he was doing and did absolutely everything correctly. If there is any blame to really be had, the Californian is more villainous than Ismay.
Got your video from youtube recommendation ever since the titan implosion incident and i must confess ever since then i have binge watching all your videos on the titanic incident.Quite educative i must confess.
The procedure for lowering collapsible A and B was to first get them down to the boat deck and positioned next to the davits, using block and tackles attached to the guy wires of the first funnel. Once in position, the davits could be swung inwards and ropes attached to the lifeboat, which would then be swung outward and lowered slightly so that the top of the lifeboat was level with the boat deck. Then it would be loaded and finally lowered. Obviously a long procedure and so when they realised they didn’t have time they just pushed them off the roof.
If he did commit suicide it certainly wasn't from shooting a passenger and regretting it. I could see the suicide as "my duty is done and I don't want to drown or freeze to death", but certainly not from humiliation. I think Murdock should have been proud that he did his duty to the end. If Cameron left the passenger shooting out and the infamous "Bastardo!" and simply had him turn to his fellow officers and saluted after seeing the Collapsible float off and then shooting, it could have been seen as more heroic or honorable in an old fashioned navy way.
You have a way of explaining things, I can't help but listening attentively 🤗When Camerons Titanic movie came out every girl had a crush on Jack, but my crush was Murdoch. That's why I would like to thank you for telling his story in such a detailed way ❤
I will say however, that according to Ismay's own testimony, it didn't happen like you want to think it did in this video. Ismay did jump into the boat post launch. He recounts in the official inquiry that the boat had already begun lowering when he looked around seeing nobody left on deck, he quickly got in and nobody questioned it.
I'm really curious where his valet & secretary were? They got separated from all that? They were young men with families who accompanied him on the Titanic & didn't make it.
I remember seeing Murdoch’s death from 1997 titanic and didn’t think he was a murdering coward but as someone who was under pressure and made a bad act and thought that if you couldn’t be saved then he shouldn’t either. Murdoch is one of my favorite people from titanic and he will also be a hero in my eyes
Hi Sam. Great video! I can't tell you how many times I have watched Titanic films and all the Titanic books I have read, but it's alot. I can't remember anyone who pointed out the important fact of Murdoch's role in saving so many lives. I have never bought into Cameron's depiction that Murdoch committed suicide. Thank you for setting the facts straight.
Most people were afraid to get into the life boats as they were dangerous to be in and most people thought that rescue ships would arrive before the ship went down. That was the thinking at the time and it proved fatal.
More like they didn't really believe the ship was going to go down, and that includes many members of staff! It was only once the listing was blantantly obvious that the realisation sank in (pardon the pun).
It happen all the time. Every time the firr alarm sound on my office everyone stand there like idiots waiting for instruccions. Dude. The alarm is the instruction.
@ot4kon And in Titanic's case, most people had just gone to bed in their warm cabins when the ship struck the iceberg. Many were still wearing their nightgowns and pyjamas under an overcoat, and it was absolutely freezing cold outside. I, too, would have found the inside of the ship much more inviting in that situation. At least initially, when it still wasn't obvious that it was going to sink and all the staff - blissfully unaware of the imminent danger - were telling passengers that the loading of the boats was just typical procedure to comply with their safety rules but that they'd be able to return once the ship has been repaired.
Also, for those that don't know, the New York that Titanic almost collided with, was the former SS City of New York, built in 1888. Most have never heard of her, but y'all should really see some color paintings of her in her heyday. She was beautiful with her large bowsprit. She won the Blue Riband for the Inman Line setting an Eastbound record across the Atlantic from August 1892 to May 1893 at 20.11 knots. That's a fast ship for the time. She was 560 feet long, with a 63 foot beam, and she came in at a gross registered tonnage of 10,508. She could carry 1,740 passengers and 362 crew. Quite a feat for such a small ship.
After Titanic sank White Star modified the water tight compartments on the Olympic. Could you check the changes they made and make a video on what would have happened if the Titanic also had those upgrades when colliding with the iceberg?
Yeah it so sad how many people because of the movie who see Murdoch as this guy who took bribes, shot 3rd class people trying to get on boats, and ultimately killed himself. Just because he didn't live to tell his story. Yet Lightoller thou in real life was the that was stopped people from getting on lifeboats. But he's the big hero in all these stories and movies about Titanic. I mean it's his testimony that was the cause of people believing the ship sunk as a whole without the break.
The confrontation between Ismay and Lowe was likely because Ismay was getting a bit frantic in getting as many people off the ship as possible, and he was getting overly pushy. It's wasn't because he was an asshole lol. I've seen this happen a few times where people panic a bit and get tunnel vision trying to do the most they can, the fastest they can.
I actually feel bad for Ismay.. His bad descisions were done not with malice or wreckless disregard for life, but to build the best ship in the world.. The fact that the Olympic did not sink when it collided with a ship designed with a bow designed to sink ships , only reinforced the idea that the olympic and titanic were the safest ships afloat.. I couldnt imagine what was going thru his mind when he realised his lifes work and most of its passangers were heading to the sea floor..because of his descisions. 🚬🐕
Yeah, unfortunately the more you learn about different historical figures, inventions etc., the more you understand how heavily and often different media distort facts, showing us only one side of the story.
Ismay was actually very heroic during the sinking trying to help with the evacuation. He left in one of the last boats only because nobody else wanted the seat.
@@221b-l3t olympic was the only one of the trio himself and lord Pierre created that was a sucess. Plus by that point white star was being slowly bought out by Cunard and all but it’s most modern, efficient and profitable ships sent to the scrapyard.
@@221b-l3t even so the olympic was outdated and with the depression most of the people who could afford transatlantic travel preferred newer more modern ships with features such as air conditioning and private bathrooms. The old Edwardian 4 stackers had outlived their usefulness. Cunard knew it had to condense its fleet to the queen mary/Elizabeth and a few smaller more efficient ships like Georgic and brittanic ll to survive.
I totally agree one of the biggest hero's. I have always been a titanic fan, but there are little things I am learning from you that I never knew. I find your stories fascinating, thank you for also showing how much you care about all of these people on this very tragic night.
I have a theory on why Murdoch behaved differently from Lightoller in filling the lifeboats to maximum capacity. Lightoller, as is evident in several incidents, worked by the law, irrespective of what was morally the correct thing to do in the given circumstances. Remember how Lightoller stayed at his cabin even after being aware that the ship had struck "something"? He didn't move out of his cabin for a good 30 minutes after the collision, and he did so only when he was called for by Captain Smith through Officer Boxhall. It seems incredulous that a senior officer would not report to the bridge (given he was staying right next door) just because it was not his assigned duty hour. This was a crucial delay, during which time damage to the ship had been determined by Captain Smith, Thomas Andrews, Carpenter Hutchinson, Joseph Bell, and other crew members reporting from below deck. It seems whether the ship will float or sink was known only to Andrews, Ismay, and Captain Smith, all of whom became proactive from 12:15 onwards. Murdoch, who was present all along on the bridge (it was still his watch), may also have been aware of the seriousness of the situation through consultation with Captain Smith and Andrews on the bridge (As officer on the watch when the iceberg struck, Murdoch was surely anxious to know the consequences and would certainly have consulted Andrews regarding the ultimate fate of the ship. Because both Murdoch and Andrews dies in the sinking, we will never know for certain, but it is highly likely that Murdoch had consulted Andrews directly). This was not the case with Lightoller, because he came very late to report and never went to the bridge, instead going straight for launching the boats. I dont think Lightoller really understood the gravity of the situation, believing that men can wait till all women and children have been evacuated. Why I believe this happened is because Boxhall, who was given charge of firing the rockets, enquired from Captain Smith as late as 1:15 am if the boat was seriously damaged (as mentioned in A Night to Remember by Walter Lord) and Titanic was indeed going to sink. In brief, Murdoch, Andrews, Ismay, and Smith knew for certain that the Titanic would sink in an hour, whereas Lightoller, Boxhall, (and maybe Lowe) believed the ship was only badly damaged and would hold up till a rescue ship arrived.
Lightoller did a quick visual inspection from the deck after the collision, not going below, saw no particular damage, and returned to his cabin. He thought showing up on the bridge uninvited would be intrusive, and not welcome, and if needed they would look for him in his cabin. Even when lifeboats were first loaded he did not know how seriously the ship had been damaged, that it would sink. Reading his book, and his testimony, I think he admits if he had known he would have done things differently. As far as boats not being full, he was concerned they were hard to launch safely if full, and he was telling crew members to row in the direction of the lights of the "rescue ship," and he also ordered a bosun and crew members below to open a gangway to offload passengers into partly filled boats there. He never heard from those crew members again.
Absolutely love this channel! Could you possibly make a video about titanics scheduled return voyage from New York back to Southampton? Like how many people were booked on it, how long the turnaround time was supposed to be in New York. Would be interesting to hear. Keep up the great work
Sam, your presentation of the facts/story was excellent. One of the many reasons I've subscribed awhile back, as that quality is prevalent in all your video topics. One thing I'd like to see is a real time sinking video (I have several stored on my playlists) with a twist: all the current videos focus on external shots of the ship, the angle of the bow & the list - what I'd like to see is a real time sinking done from an internal perspective: take me into the holds & mail room & show me flooding. Then take me around the ship internally showing what people are doing & the various passenger areas flooding. No external visuals, all internal. Not sure if something like that exists & if it doesn't, you may be the first to do one - if you'd like to take on that project 😊 excellent work!
I was born in Dumfries which is a pebble stone through away from Dalbeattie where Murdoch was born. In school i did him for one of my history projects aswell as Jock Hume a Violnist who came from Dumfries aswell.
A lot of men owe their lives to Murdoch letting them board the lifeboats on the starboard side. He was able to adapt to the situation unlike Lightoller
5:52 and right about here is when the ridiculously dumb conspiracy of the "switch" comes into play. Great video, though, and you've now enlightened me on a huge amount I didn't know about Mr. Murdoch. A hero, indeed.
At the Titanic disaster inquest, Off.Lightoller said he went to look for Capt.Smith to help oversee with the lowering of the lifeboats. When he found the Captain, Off.Lightoller said that Capt.Smith had withdrawn to a quiet part of another deck of the ship, and seemed to be having a nervous breakdown. After which Off.Lightoller went back alone to the duty of lowering the lifeboats. To be fair to Ismay, although he instead that the Titanic sailed with only 20 lifeboats, that was still more than the minimum that regulations allowed for a ship of Titanic’s size.
You’re right about the music box. She played it to children to calm them down. She met one of the baby’s when he grew up. Only one of the children she met in her life. She mentioned he was a tall man. Towering 6ft tall. There’s a video about her telling her account. I forgot the name. But if you look up titanic real survivors on here. You’ll find it eventually.
I've always been confused about how Lightoller and Murdock interpreted the women and children first rule. Captain Smith should have seen what Lightoller was doing and told him to let men on if there was space.
Launching the lifeboat number 5 - "When Mrs Beckwith reached the second boat she asked Mr Ismay if the men could get in too. 'Certainly, Madam,' answered Mr Ismay. Then we stepped into the boat. After we were in I heard Mr Ismay calling out, 'Are there any more to get into this boat? None appeared. Mr Ismay was calm and cool and giving orders without any indication of fear. We waited three minutes, and when no one else appeared he directed that the boat be lowered."
I like how some of this footage is actually from roblox games and in the video about Edward smiths story. In some footage of the staircases flooding it had a health bar and everything.
Ironically Lightoller being himself a man survived the night, even though he pretty much doomed hundreds of men to their deaths... needlessly as he sent so many lifeboats half empty.
Ismay had a lot on his plate from the time he found out that Titanic would sink. It was his brand new and most expensive ship that was doomed, he knew that not everyone would survive unless help came in time. He was clearly in shock and that probably triggered his panic attack. He simply took a seat in one of the last boats only after there were no more takers for seats in the lifeboat and decided to take this chance. This was after he actively did all he could to evacuate as many passengers as possible. Someone later on said in his defense that had Ismay not gotten into the boat, he would have been one more victim of the disaster. Remember that he didn't take any seat away from a woman, child or male passenger. I believe most reasonable people would act as he did in the like situation.
There was very little appreciation that the Titanic was sinking for at least two reasons in addition to it being early in the sinking. 1) The ship was truly believed to be unsinkable. Their faith in modern technology was not easily shaken until reality finally hit them. 2) The ship was also thought to BE A LIFEBOAT. The actual lifeboats needed were believed to be half as much because the ship was to be the lifeboat until help arrived to ferry the passengers back to port. This changed drastically after Titanic thank God. COMENT 1. We will see if there is anything else lol. THANKS for the program. I am enjoying it very much.
I believe it is possible that Murdoch could have shot himself because he was in charge when the ship hit the berg. Being all but the collapsible were left his mind could have changed to the fact that many were still left on the ship with out a life boat to save them. There were some people who did testify to it. So its a toss up.
Great video. One nitpick. You mentioned that Cpt. Smith wanted Wilde as Chief Officer - in Sea of Glass, it is said that Wilde was supposed to get his own command, but because of the coal miner strike, that ship would not sail, so WSL put him on Titanic.
You did a fantastic job on the complete story of First Officer William Murdoch. Can you do the complete story of Second Officer Charles Lightoller and his role in the sinking of the Titanic?
The most iconic and accurate depiction of the titanic is 1958 a night to remember There's also a 1953 film on the titanic as well aside from the Hollywood 1997 film
There was an easier way to get the collapsibles off the officer's roof. However, all the tools needed were kept in another room that was already underwater at this stage. Because the officers were unprepared and didn't have sufficient training, they were unaware of where all the tools were at the time. They had no idea of the weight capacities and where all the provisions were kept. They weren't kept with the lifeboats because the designers were afraid of theft when the lifeboats weren't in use so stored everything needed elsewhere.
Been subscribing you a couple years and just wanna say you are looking good looks like you lost a little weight and looking good! Was gonna ask have you ever been to any titanic artifact museums? I went ti the traveling one it was awesome hope to go to the 1 in Vegas. Anyway, Take care!
There were never any bad guys or good guys. Just people. Any suicides that took place were self preservation mode kicking in and is respectable, taking ownership of ones destiny in the face of tragedy. Anyone who thinks the characters in the film expressed the real life personalities and mannerisms of these men.....they don't understand how movies work! Having a panic attack on a sinking ship is what every officer was trained for. When the officer said that, he had training on how to handle passengers who were panicking. Again, WSL crew WENT ABOVE AND BEYOND for every life on board.
I saw a Reddit thread on the inquiries into the disaster. Apparently it was standard practice at the time for ships to speed through ice fields, but the one captain with a lot of experience navigating ice (he was an arctic explorer) said the Titanic’s captain should have slowed down.
As much as I adore Titanic, I hate the portrayal of Murdoch and Captain Smith. Murdoch by making him accept bribe and then committing suicide, and Captain Smith as hopeless and basically giving up and locking himself in the cabin, when in real life both of them were helping passangers til both of them ended in water themselves. They did not deserve it and I wish James kept their actions historically accurate as well.
52:32 and the reason for that sinking rate increase was probably due to d deck doors left open. The amount of water that could pour directly into d deck and below was more than the whole damage down below. Without these doors open the water had to pour through the decks and smaller openings. These doors left open caused probably also the listing back to port. I wonder if there is a simulation with these doors shut just to see if the listing also occurs.
I did some research and found some information about what happened to First Officer William Murdoch after the huge wave swept Murdoch away from Collapsible Lifeboat A, he was last seen clinging to a broken deck chair in the water already dead from hypothermia.
I appreciate that his family actually sued James Cameron and Titanic for their portrayal of Murdoch. Thank you for telling a story that did not get shown as it should have in a highly researched historical drama.
I know his great-great nephew and even today this hurts the family.
My friend is also an officer at sea, so the family's tradition continues despite all.
So sorry that happened. 😢
I love the movie but yes that is unfortunate that the truth wasn't told about Murdoch as part of it.
One thing that usually annoys me is the modified portrayal as villains or incompetent of actual real people who are dead based on "its a movie its for movie porpouses".
Murdoch is one case, Bruce Ismay another and depending on the movie so its Smith and others..
And there is so many examples.. for example in Ford vs Ferrari they made Leo Beebe a villain and basically an asshole who's only role is to annoy Shelby when in reality he was the oposite and was one of the most apreciated Ford execs by the workforce and colaboratos.. but they needed some "villain" and made one of a guy who was real , and its dead so he cant defend himself.
Sully nearly fell into this were for Sully himself demanding they changing the NTSB investigator names from real people to fictiocious.. because in the movie they make the NTSB investigators the movie villains trying to bag Sully no matter what.. when in reality it was no were near (they actually acknowledged Sully action as correct from the start and officialiced them in the final report wich made sully feel so much in peace with himself) and they were at first going to use the actual names of the real investigators until Sully himself demanded they change the names to not taint the real people ..
What are you talking about, Sued? Nobody was sued. You can't libel the dead!
Cameron merely apologised and made a token donation towards a local memorial.
It's something that always frustrated me - Murdoch did a much better job than Lightoller, actually. And yet Lightoller is hailed as a hero while Murdoch is either forgotten, or considered the bad guy which is completely unjustified.
Can we just say they were both hero’s. They both deserve to be remember as men who saved people.
Officer Murdoch is a true hero. He saved my great grandfather’s(Albert Horswill-crewman)life along with six other crewmen when he ordered them onto a lifeboat that needed to be lowered but only had 5 passengers aboard because at that point many passengers didn’t believe the ship was in danger.
I’m
Oo
Wow, he is a true hero
H e I s
I volunteer at the Museum in Dalbeattie where Murdoch was born and educated. They have a whole display on the Titanic and him. We always inform visitors about how poorly the movie potrayed him. Some even say he was reasonable for the sinking for whatever reasons. Which is unfounded in fact. He was consdiered not at fault by the titanic enquiries. Its great to see a video talk about him and dispell some myths.
I've always respected how Murdoch allowed men (and teenage boys) into lifeboats when there weren't enough women and children around, as opposed to Lightoller who stuck firmly to the "women and children only" code. He saved so many lives that way. Also, I find it a shame that been vilified for possibly committing suicide; even if he did, who can judge him for sparing himself a horrific death in the cold water? I don't think he should be condemned for that.
Where are lifeboats now!?
@@riseabove1168 No one knows for certain but it's thought that the White Star Line eventually took them back from storage in New York, possibly for refitting. Fittings from the lifeboats are in museums and collections today.
If it did happen it's not certain that it was Murdoch. I agree, I think Murdoch interpreted Smith's command better and his lifeboats were fuller earlier than Lightoller's. According to Lightoller Murdoch was swept off deck with a collapsible. But I think someone else has an account of him jumping from the bridge along with Smith. I think we have to take into account that it was very dark, noisy and chaotic and obviously everyone was in a state of extreme stress.....We see mistakes with hearsay evidence all the time.
@@StirlingsaysI think Murdoch interpreted women and children FIRST while Lightoller interpreted women and children ONLY
@@smokesletsgo2374 Yes, though I think Lightoller let men on at the latter stage, but I'd need that confirmed.
William Murdoch is my favorite Titanic crew member.
I just recently watched a documentary put together with all the passengers that filmed the sinking of The Costa Concordia. What a difference. The bridge including the Captain abandoned the ship when thousands of passengers were still on it! Hardly any crew helped people into the lifeboats. It was the kitchen staff that were helping passing. Unbelievable. The Titanic crew didn’t abandon the passengers like the crew of the Concordia. Highly recommended watching it.
Not to mention the Sewol
Well, the crew of the Titanic didn't abandon their passengers because they were British, that's why, with Anglo Saxon values. And the crew on the Concordia were ????????????????
@@ruthmoreau6419 the crew was made up of many different nationalities. They had to speak English. But the bridge crew was Italian but one was a different nationality. You had to able to speak Italian on the bridge. The Captain was a weak coward. I’m glad he’s got 15 years in prison but it should have been 33 years for each person who died
What's your point? The captain was an Italian, Francesco Schettino, and he is responsible for the ship - the buck stops here. What a contrast to the British captain and crew of the Titanic! Captain Edward Smith went down with the ship, as is the unwritten law of the sea, and from my research his exhortation to others was "Be British," synonymous with courage and sacrifice. Schettino: "Be Italian." Nah, it doesn't sound the same does it.
@@jandedick7519 He got 16, prosecution called for 26. He should be out by 2029, if his time spent on appealing the first court's verdict served anything.
James Cameron has absolutely ruined the young mans reputation. Respect to Murdoch and his family
Regardless of weather he committed suicide or not( I think he did) that doesn’t take anything away from his heroism. Unlike his buddy lightoller he put the passengers and their survival first and not his over the top macho sense of chivalry which led to many unnecessary deaths.
He didn’t ruined Murdoch’s reputation maybe he didn’t know that officer Murdoch committed suicide or not
@@drewadventurehistory some survivors say he did and it would make sense but lightoller and some of the other surviving crew members insist he didn’t although it’s possible they were trying to defend his reputation and lightoller later says there was an officer who committed suicide but wouldn’t tell who.
@@leerogish7223 if Murdoch possibly didn’t commit suicide that leaves 2 other officers who also died in the sinking
Chief Officer Henry Wilde
6th officer James Moody
@@drewadventurehistory moody didnt have a gun which boils things down to Wilde and murdoch and due to the officer switch both were wearing 3 stripes for chief officer. I think murdoch was the more likely candidate because he had to have felt awful knowing the collision happened on his watch.
While I do love Lightoller, the port side's lifeboats lowering was absolutely crazy - in the worst way. Murdoch really has been done dirty by media, thank you for keeping his story alive!
@@221b-l3t Charles Herbert Lightoller RNR was an excellent officer who was very experienced and a very dedicated officer. He followed Captain E.J. Smith's orders to the best of his knowledge after Captain Smith ordered specifically (women and children first, which was the order of the day during shipwrecks). Nobody knows if the Captain meant women and children who are around first, then men, or if he specifically meant that ONLY women and children are to be boarded, but Officer Lightoller took his Captain's orders to heart and loaded only women and children. Some other officers did their best to get everyone who was around into the boats, but most people didn't know that Titanic was actually going to sink until later in the sinking, so many people weren't around until the very end. Even then, most of the stewards in third class didn't realize that Titanic was actually sinking, and they kept the gates closed that divided the classes, so there were many people below decks who never had a chance due to this confusion and lack of communication. This is a conspiracy that has been contested and has been argued for many many years, and even I don't know the truth (because I wasn't born until 1983), but I have been researching Titanic and maritime history in general for the last 36 years and I am speaking on my own personal knowledge of the tragedy. Do I agree with Lightoller's actions that night? Well, given the circumstances and the orders that he was given from his Captain, yes, but you have to understand that the Captain's word is the word of God, only at sea, so yes, I agree with his actions. However, if he was the officer who decided that 12 people should be the only occupants of lifeboat number one, then I would tend to disagree with that decision, but it wasn't. All of the officers should've known that every one of those lifeboats were tested in Belfast Harbor with almost 70 men in them, but with a hastily gathered crew, I doubt it. There was a huge breakdown at every angle among the officers, crew, as well as the Captain Edward John Smith.
Yes, I have ADHD, so I always speak my mind, so I apologize for the novel.
Why you say he was done dirty, the ship crashed under his watch and a thousand plus lost their life.
@@haroldalston3349 It wasn't his fault
What's there to "love" about Lightoller?
I'm a college student and I took a Public Speaking Class. When I was asked to make an Informative speech, I had to do it on the 4 factors that led to an increased loss of life in the Titanic disaster. One of my points was Murdoch vs. Lightoller and I included the misguided information that the '97 movie provided that Murdoch committed suicide. Lightoller was a hero that night and he was the most senior officer to survive the disaster. He got the credit for his heroism, while Murdoch did not. Good job on this video!
I wouldnt stay lightoller was considered a hero by the public and especially not by white star. He never received his own command in the merchant marine as a result of being associated with titanic and left the sea for good in 1920 after realizing he would never be promoted any higher than chief officer on one of the lines older ships.
@@leerogish7223 He is always described as the hero of World War II though.
@@hollywalker3726 history may remeber him as one but at the time he wasn’t considered one by the public and especially white star.
@@hollywalker3726because he rescued mem from beaches of Dunkirk
@@neillp3827I am aware of what Lightoller did in WWII. Does not mean that Murdock should be dragged through the mud the way he has been when there is plenty of evidence that he was a hero as well.
When I watched Titanic at a young, and before I knew any of the history of it, Murdoch became a favorite “character”. The actor really did well in presenting Murdoch as someone who was trying to do their best in a situation that was unexpected and chaotic. Even the situation with Cal it didn’t take away from Murdoch, for me at least.
You did a fantastic job in presenting a timeline for Murdoch. It confirms even more how much of a hero he was. He really did his best until the end.
Same brother. I love the actor playing Murdoch and i didnt condemn him one bit of accepting the money. His quick actions in movie is still my most favorite part of the movie.
Thank you for the video First Officer William Murdoch deserved. It's also worth mentioning that 15 and 17 evacuated passengers from 3 different decks, which says a lot about Murdoch's clear thinking ability to maintain control in a time of crisis.
You mean 13 and 15?
@@PelsckoPolesko You're right, I meant 13 and 15.
01:40 No. 13 loaded with about 55 of its 65 seats taken.
01:41 No. 15 loaded with 68 of its 65 seats taken.
He did great during the evacuation considering he must have felt tremendous guilt being the officer in charge of the bridge during the collision.
@@leerogish7223 probably why he didn’t try to save himself.
@@user-mf9wg6jq5f he also must have known even if he did survive his career at sea would effectively be over. No shipping company would ever let him sail on any ship that carried a single paying passenger again.
Sometimes heros don't wear capes, sometimes they wear sails, Murdoch was one of them❤
I have the pleasure of training to become an officer with Murdoch's great great nephew whose following in his footsteps at sea. Cameron's lies really hurt that family and ruined a great selfless hero's name.
Wow that has to be quite an honour! It’s neat to see how there are still seafarers in the family!
my respects to a brave man.
*e*
Thanks for shining the light on Mr. Murdoch.
It’s too bad that a movie loosely based on an actual event, sullied this man’s legacy when in fact he acted with integrity, and did everything he could to save as many passengers as possible!
The best analysis of the heroic William Murdoch... Loved it
I love learning about these souls. God bless you Officer Murdoch. 🙏
You worked so hard on the series, Sam! Murdoch's story should be retold. Hope you have a Happy Holidays and Happy New Year. Also, have a Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year everyone! 😃
Yeah Sam you worked super hard on all the series like the Olympic complete series and britanic,Lusitania and Titanic merry Christmas Sam😀😀
Murdoch saw the entire Titanic disaster and took it to his grave 😭
Didn't 1500 other people, too?
He was dead before the sinking
I hate myself for believing so many years that officer Murdoch committed suicide, thank you for clearing this up. I like the series you make and I look forward to your next videos!
I think he did for two reasons. He must have felt awful knowing over 1000 in his charge will die because of the decisions he made or didn’t make. Furthermore even if he did survive his career and reputation would be irreparably damaged. No way would white star or any shipping company for that matter ever allow him to sail on a ship carrying a single paying passenger let alone ever give him his own command which he was so close to getting prior to titanic.
@@leerogish7223 or just a preferred death than being swallowed up by that massive ship? He was going to die anyway as he wasn't going to put himself in a lifeboat.
@@emmabauer1906 I don't think he knew at that point that he was going to die. It is possible that he didn't know that the rescue ships wouldn't get there in time to save those from the water and even so a few people from the water survived.
In a way he did, since he stayed with Collapsible A and tried to save it instead of simply going to the much safer backside of the ship.b
Is it suicide though? Death is inevitable at that point, might as well go out on your own terms. It’s like the people jumping out of the Twin Towers, I don’t consider that suicide either.
It's not even about how Cameron portayed him commiting suicide. Who are we to even dare judging? If I was to chose while standing on a ship that dramatically floods with ice cold water and gets his stern up in the air... heck I'd take the bullet any day.
What is so shameful about Camerons portrayal is showing Murdoch killing that side character in accident before he kills himself. That Man who tryed to safe as many lifes as possible taking a life through gunshot is what makes this scene so disrespectful and unsensitive.
I am into the Titanic since I was 5/6 years old. And thank to the movie I grew up thinking Murdoch was a corruptible guy who shot someone instead of the hero he actually is.
Thanks for helping to restore that mans honor. He does not deserve the rumors
Ewan Stewart, the guy who played William Murdoch in Titanic, starred in 'Only fools and horse's' in an episode where Derek del boy Trotter was admitted to hospital. Ewan played Doctor Robbie Meadows
That's a fascinating detail and I remember that episode well without looking it up. He's a really good actor
I was in Dalbeattie yesterday and saw the memorial on the wall of the town hall , which Cameron was forced to pay for after his depiction of William Murdoch caused outrage and a lot of negative publicity for him .
It is almost certain that Murdoch was the single person ON Titanic most esponsible for saving the most lives , although many other acts of heroism and selflessness doubtless took place .
It could also be argued that the person responsible for saving the most lives FROM Titanic was Captain Arthur Rostron of Carpathia , thanks to his prompt and cool headed actions in getting his ship to the scene as quickly as possible and having everything ready to receive and care for survivors .
I love your channel. Thank you for sharing 1st Officer Murdoch's story. Your research is top-notch. He sure served on many ships. Such an interesting life. To me all the Officers aboard the Titanic were heroes. May they all RIP.🌻❤️
Even in the movie where he was portrayed negatively he was a hero. He was still helping people into the boats right
I've been rewatching a lot of titanic videos, Yours are one of the best I have seen. It is so sad that a lot of little mistakes by themselves wouldn't have necessary sunk the ship, but together, they had such deadly consequences. Thanks for all that you do.
I just discovered your channel recently and I am HOOKED! I loved how excited you got talking about Murdoch's affiliations with other ships.
I played William Murdoch in Titanic: The Musical a few years back. I did a ton of research but this would’ve been a great additions for character development.
Also, has anyone ever calculated what speed Titanic would’ve needed to be going to actually clear the berg successfully with the port around maneuver?
As far as I'm aware no. And there's an argument to say had he not slowed down he might have steered tighter. By pushing water over the rudder the turning ability is actually better, so much so a couple seconds of acceleration can help a ship turn tighter. Now as the propellers were not in line with the rudder I'm not sure that would have been the case there but today you do not slow down if you intend to are trying to swing away
This is allso a debate that if Murdoch stopped the engines or reversed them... No one from the engine room survived this night and all we know about last manouvers is based on fact that Murdoch tried to port around the iceberg and based on words of stoker Barrett who saw orders for boiler ruums not for engine room telegraphs...
If question is about what is the most efficient action to make ship to turn rapidly then in case of Titanic reversing the port side engine might have helped to make thist turn sharper... Only problem with massive steam engines is that it takes a little bit time to stop them and then reverse and on my opinion they simply didn't have enough time to do it so I don't know if it would have helped in this case... I personally think that I would have tried to make a similar manouver what Will tried to pull off...
I looked more closely on what he did to save Olympic before he was on Titanic; I give him the benefit of the doubt that he knew what he was doing and did absolutely everything correctly. If there is any blame to really be had, the Californian is more villainous than Ismay.
@kaylahall1219 How so? If they didn't know, they didn't know.
Got your video from youtube recommendation ever since the titan implosion incident and i must confess ever since then i have binge watching all your videos on the titanic incident.Quite educative i must confess.
me preparing to watch Sam's another 50 min video: 🍿🍿(Your vids are brilliant)
*Ea* sports.
Delighted you covered the story of William Murdoch and helped restore his name.
The procedure for lowering collapsible A and B was to first get them down to the boat deck and positioned next to the davits, using block and tackles attached to the guy wires of the first funnel.
Once in position, the davits could be swung inwards and ropes attached to the lifeboat, which would then be swung outward and lowered slightly so that the top of the lifeboat was level with the boat deck. Then it would be loaded and finally lowered.
Obviously a long procedure and so when they realised they didn’t have time they just pushed them off the roof.
If he did commit suicide it certainly wasn't from shooting a passenger and regretting it. I could see the suicide as "my duty is done and I don't want to drown or freeze to death", but certainly not from humiliation. I think Murdock should have been proud that he did his duty to the end. If Cameron left the passenger shooting out and the infamous "Bastardo!" and simply had him turn to his fellow officers and saluted after seeing the Collapsible float off and then shooting, it could have been seen as more heroic or honorable in an old fashioned navy way.
Murdoch not murdock.
You have a way of explaining things, I can't help but listening attentively 🤗When Camerons Titanic movie came out every girl had a crush on Jack, but my crush was Murdoch. That's why I would like to thank you for telling his story in such a detailed way ❤
I will say however, that according to Ismay's own testimony, it didn't happen like you want to think it did in this video. Ismay did jump into the boat post launch. He recounts in the official inquiry that the boat had already begun lowering when he looked around seeing nobody left on deck, he quickly got in and nobody questioned it.
I'm really curious where his valet & secretary were? They got separated from all that? They were young men with families who accompanied him on the Titanic & didn't make it.
I remember seeing Murdoch’s death from 1997 titanic and didn’t think he was a murdering coward but as someone who was under pressure and made a bad act and thought that if you couldn’t be saved then he shouldn’t either. Murdoch is one of my favorite people from titanic and he will also be a hero in my eyes
Hi Sam. Great video! I can't tell you how many times I have watched Titanic films and all the Titanic books I have read, but it's alot. I can't remember anyone who pointed out the important fact of Murdoch's role in saving so many lives. I have never bought into Cameron's depiction that Murdoch committed suicide. Thank you for setting the facts straight.
This man is actually one of my distant relatives. Crazy to believe but it's true.
Not so hard to believe. He’s a distant relative of mine as well through our Scottish ancestry.
Same here. He’s a distant relative of mine as well from Nordic ancestry.
Most people were afraid to get into the life boats as they were dangerous to be in and most people thought that rescue ships would arrive before the ship went down. That was the thinking at the time and it proved fatal.
More like they didn't really believe the ship was going to go down, and that includes many members of staff! It was only once the listing was blantantly obvious that the realisation sank in (pardon the pun).
It happen all the time. Every time the firr alarm sound on my office everyone stand there like idiots waiting for instruccions. Dude. The alarm is the instruction.
@ot4kon And in Titanic's case, most people had just gone to bed in their warm cabins when the ship struck the iceberg. Many were still wearing their nightgowns and pyjamas under an overcoat, and it was absolutely freezing cold outside. I, too, would have found the inside of the ship much more inviting in that situation.
At least initially, when it still wasn't obvious that it was going to sink and all the staff - blissfully unaware of the imminent danger - were telling passengers that the loading of the boats was just typical procedure to comply with their safety rules but that they'd be able to return once the ship has been repaired.
I love all your videos on the Titanic officers, thanks for all your hard work!
Also, for those that don't know, the New York that Titanic almost collided with, was the former SS City of New York, built in 1888. Most have never heard of her, but y'all should really see some color paintings of her in her heyday. She was beautiful with her large bowsprit. She won the Blue Riband for the Inman Line setting an Eastbound record across the Atlantic from August 1892 to May 1893 at 20.11 knots. That's a fast ship for the time. She was 560 feet long, with a 63 foot beam, and she came in at a gross registered tonnage of 10,508. She could carry 1,740 passengers and 362 crew. Quite a feat for such a small ship.
hey Chest... hows Brock?
After Titanic sank White Star modified the water tight compartments on the Olympic. Could you check the changes they made and make a video on what would have happened if the Titanic also had those upgrades when colliding with the iceberg?
@@221b-l3t thank you for your reply. Wish Sam made a video about this. Or has he already?
Murdoch was a great man. My heart aches for everything that happened to him.
Murdoch has a very impressive resume!
The actor who plays him in *A Night to Remember* looks far more like the real William Murdoch than the one who played him in *Titanic.*
Least he was Scottish though
Your content is absolutely superb! Thank you for sharing your passion with us
I Was Very Intrested In Sir Murdoch, This Video Helps Me Learn Him
Yeah it so sad how many people because of the movie who see Murdoch as this guy who took bribes, shot 3rd class people trying to get on boats, and ultimately killed himself. Just because he didn't live to tell his story. Yet Lightoller thou in real life was the that was stopped people from getting on lifeboats. But he's the big hero in all these stories and movies about Titanic. I mean it's his testimony that was the cause of people believing the ship sunk as a whole without the break.
The confrontation between Ismay and Lowe was likely because Ismay was getting a bit frantic in getting as many people off the ship as possible, and he was getting overly pushy. It's wasn't because he was an asshole lol. I've seen this happen a few times where people panic a bit and get tunnel vision trying to do the most they can, the fastest they can.
very cool channel man, im obsessed with these stories. Keep it up!
I actually feel bad for Ismay..
His bad descisions were done not with malice or wreckless disregard for life, but to build the best ship in the world.. The fact that the Olympic did not sink when it collided with a ship designed with a bow designed to sink ships , only reinforced the idea that the olympic and titanic were the safest ships afloat..
I couldnt imagine what was going thru his mind when he realised his lifes work and most of its passangers were heading to the sea floor..because of his descisions.
🚬🐕
Yeah, unfortunately the more you learn about different historical figures, inventions etc., the more you understand how heavily and often different media distort facts, showing us only one side of the story.
It was ismay fault. The ships designers knew they needed 60 some life boats.
Ismay was actually very heroic during the sinking trying to help with the evacuation. He left in one of the last boats only because nobody else wanted the seat.
@@221b-l3t olympic was the only one of the trio himself and lord Pierre created that was a sucess. Plus by that point white star was being slowly bought out by Cunard and all but it’s most modern, efficient and profitable ships sent to the scrapyard.
@@221b-l3t even so the olympic was outdated and with the depression most of the people who could afford transatlantic travel preferred newer more modern ships with features such as air conditioning and private bathrooms. The old Edwardian 4 stackers had outlived their usefulness. Cunard knew it had to condense its fleet to the queen mary/Elizabeth and a few smaller more efficient ships like Georgic and brittanic ll to survive.
I totally agree one of the biggest hero's. I have always been a titanic fan, but there are little things I am learning from you that I never knew. I find your stories fascinating, thank you for also showing how much you care about all of these people on this very tragic night.
The violin can be seen at the Belfast Titanic exhibition, what an amazing Experience ❤
The White Star Line certainly loved naming ships with names that ended in "ic".
I have a theory on why Murdoch behaved differently from Lightoller in filling the lifeboats to maximum capacity. Lightoller, as is evident in several incidents, worked by the law, irrespective of what was morally the correct thing to do in the given circumstances. Remember how Lightoller stayed at his cabin even after being aware that the ship had struck "something"? He didn't move out of his cabin for a good 30 minutes after the collision, and he did so only when he was called for by Captain Smith through Officer Boxhall. It seems incredulous that a senior officer would not report to the bridge (given he was staying right next door) just because it was not his assigned duty hour. This was a crucial delay, during which time damage to the ship had been determined by Captain Smith, Thomas Andrews, Carpenter Hutchinson, Joseph Bell, and other crew members reporting from below deck. It seems whether the ship will float or sink was known only to Andrews, Ismay, and Captain Smith, all of whom became proactive from 12:15 onwards. Murdoch, who was present all along on the bridge (it was still his watch), may also have been aware of the seriousness of the situation through consultation with Captain Smith and Andrews on the bridge (As officer on the watch when the iceberg struck, Murdoch was surely anxious to know the consequences and would certainly have consulted Andrews regarding the ultimate fate of the ship. Because both Murdoch and Andrews dies in the sinking, we will never know for certain, but it is highly likely that Murdoch had consulted Andrews directly). This was not the case with Lightoller, because he came very late to report and never went to the bridge, instead going straight for launching the boats. I dont think Lightoller really understood the gravity of the situation, believing that men can wait till all women and children have been evacuated. Why I believe this happened is because Boxhall, who was given charge of firing the rockets, enquired from Captain Smith as late as 1:15 am if the boat was seriously damaged (as mentioned in A Night to Remember by Walter Lord) and Titanic was indeed going to sink. In brief, Murdoch, Andrews, Ismay, and Smith knew for certain that the Titanic would sink in an hour, whereas Lightoller, Boxhall, (and maybe Lowe) believed the ship was only badly damaged and would hold up till a rescue ship arrived.
Lightoller did a quick visual inspection from the deck after the collision, not going below, saw no particular damage, and returned to his cabin. He thought showing up on the bridge uninvited would be intrusive, and not welcome, and if needed they would look for him in his cabin. Even when lifeboats were first loaded he did not know how seriously the ship had been damaged, that it would sink. Reading his book, and his testimony, I think he admits if he had known he would have done things differently. As far as boats not being full, he was concerned they were hard to launch safely if full, and he was telling crew members to row in the direction of the lights of the "rescue ship," and he also ordered a bosun and crew members below to open a gangway to offload passengers into partly filled boats there. He never heard from those crew members again.
Absolutely love this channel! Could you possibly make a video about titanics scheduled return voyage from New York back to Southampton? Like how many people were booked on it, how long the turnaround time was supposed to be in New York. Would be interesting to hear. Keep up the great work
Sam, your presentation of the facts/story was excellent. One of the many reasons I've subscribed awhile back, as that quality is prevalent in all your video topics. One thing I'd like to see is a real time sinking video (I have several stored on my playlists) with a twist: all the current videos focus on external shots of the ship, the angle of the bow & the list - what I'd like to see is a real time sinking done from an internal perspective: take me into the holds & mail room & show me flooding. Then take me around the ship internally showing what people are doing & the various passenger areas flooding. No external visuals, all internal. Not sure if something like that exists & if it doesn't, you may be the first to do one - if you'd like to take on that project 😊 excellent work!
I was born in Dumfries which is a pebble stone through away from Dalbeattie where Murdoch was born. In school i did him for one of my history projects aswell as Jock Hume a Violnist who came from Dumfries aswell.
R.I.P Officer Murdoch. Thanks for your hard work. Respect from Stockholm.
A lot of men owe their lives to Murdoch letting them board the lifeboats on the starboard side. He was able to adapt to the situation unlike Lightoller
5:52 and right about here is when the ridiculously dumb conspiracy of the "switch" comes into play.
Great video, though, and you've now enlightened me on a huge amount I didn't know about Mr. Murdoch. A hero, indeed.
The thing is we have the opportunity to see the boats lower away from the side, while they just have to look down and try to see what’s going on.
Great job at explaining! Thank you!
At the Titanic disaster inquest, Off.Lightoller said he went to look for Capt.Smith to help oversee with the lowering of the lifeboats. When he found the Captain, Off.Lightoller said that Capt.Smith had withdrawn to a quiet part of another deck of the ship, and seemed to be having a nervous breakdown. After which Off.Lightoller went back alone to the duty of lowering the lifeboats.
To be fair to Ismay, although he instead that the Titanic sailed with only 20 lifeboats, that was still more than the minimum that regulations allowed for a ship of Titanic’s size.
Just found your channel and subscribed. Well done video with research and using the model to show where things were.
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Thank you.. hes my favorite officer❤️
You’re right about the music box. She played it to children to calm them down. She met one of the baby’s when he grew up. Only one of the children she met in her life. She mentioned he was a tall man. Towering 6ft tall.
There’s a video about her telling her account. I forgot the name. But if you look up titanic real survivors on here. You’ll find it eventually.
I've always been confused about how Lightoller and Murdock interpreted the women and children first rule. Captain Smith should have seen what Lightoller was doing and told him to let men on if there was space.
Launching the lifeboat number 5 - "When Mrs Beckwith reached the second boat she asked Mr Ismay if the men could get in too. 'Certainly, Madam,' answered Mr Ismay. Then we stepped into the boat. After we were in I heard Mr Ismay calling out, 'Are there any more to get into this boat? None appeared. Mr Ismay was calm and cool and giving orders without any indication of fear. We waited three minutes, and when no one else appeared he directed that the boat be lowered."
Thanks for the video!
I like how some of this footage is actually from roblox games and in the video about Edward smiths story. In some footage of the staircases flooding it had a health bar and everything.
Ironically Lightoller being himself a man survived the night, even though he pretty much doomed hundreds of men to their deaths... needlessly as he sent so many lifeboats half empty.
Ismay had a lot on his plate from the time he found out that Titanic would sink. It was his brand new and most expensive ship that was doomed, he knew that not everyone would survive unless help came in time. He was clearly in shock and that probably triggered his panic attack.
He simply took a seat in one of the last boats only after there were no more takers for seats in the lifeboat and decided to take this chance. This was after he actively did all he could to evacuate as many passengers as possible.
Someone later on said in his defense that had Ismay not gotten into the boat, he would have been one more victim of the disaster. Remember that he didn't take any seat away from a woman, child or male passenger.
I believe most reasonable people would act as he did in the like situation.
This is so captivating thank you for all the info! Love your channel!
I agree about Ismay, I mean, I would try to save myself too, they're lucky that there wasn't more panic or none of the lifeboats would've got lowered.
Cameron did such a good job making this part frantic and exciting. I imagine we all felt the way they did when it happened watching them react to it.
The descendants of Murdoch were quite upset about his portrayal in the movie. So much so, Cameron had to write an apology to them.
@@BHuang92 I’m not referring to the suicide, just the reactions and follow through.
There was very little appreciation that the Titanic was sinking for at least two reasons in addition to it being early in the sinking. 1) The ship was truly believed to be unsinkable. Their faith in modern technology was not easily shaken until reality finally hit them. 2) The ship was also thought to BE A LIFEBOAT. The actual lifeboats needed were believed to be half as much because the ship was to be the lifeboat until help arrived to ferry the passengers back to port. This changed drastically after Titanic thank God. COMENT 1. We will see if there is anything else lol. THANKS for the program. I am enjoying it very much.
You are VERY knowledgable about all these details.
I believe it is possible that Murdoch could have shot himself because he was in charge when the ship hit the berg. Being all but the collapsible were left his mind could have changed to the fact that many were still left on the ship with out a life boat to save them. There were some people who did testify to it. So its a toss up.
Great video. One nitpick. You mentioned that Cpt. Smith wanted Wilde as Chief Officer - in Sea of Glass, it is said that Wilde was supposed to get his own command, but because of the coal miner strike, that ship would not sail, so WSL put him on Titanic.
R.I.P. Salute to officer Murdoch.
You did a fantastic job on the complete story of First Officer William Murdoch. Can you do the complete story of Second Officer Charles Lightoller and his role in the sinking of the Titanic?
The most iconic and accurate depiction of the titanic is 1958 a night to remember
There's also a 1953 film on the titanic as well aside from the Hollywood 1997 film
Great Videos Sam. Merry Christmas
There was an easier way to get the collapsibles off the officer's roof. However, all the tools needed were kept in another room that was already underwater at this stage. Because the officers were unprepared and didn't have sufficient training, they were unaware of where all the tools were at the time. They had no idea of the weight capacities and where all the provisions were kept. They weren't kept with the lifeboats because the designers were afraid of theft when the lifeboats weren't in use so stored everything needed elsewhere.
This is correct
What’s funny was Bruce Ismay jump into that last life boats and was like I’m out this ship sinking bye lol!😂
Whoever did comit suicide didn't do it because they felt bad about themselves, they did it because its better than drowning
I like how in the titanic made him a villian the look on his face when he realize the people are first when Andrews was explaining the situation
Thanks for the videos and knowledge Sam!
Been subscribing you a couple years and just wanna say you are looking good looks like you lost a little weight and looking good! Was gonna ask have you ever been to any titanic artifact museums? I went ti the traveling one it was awesome hope to go to the 1 in Vegas. Anyway, Take care!
Neat, Murdock and I share the same birthday.
If you haven't already, you should make a Story line of the captain.
There were never any bad guys or good guys. Just people. Any suicides that took place were self preservation mode kicking in and is respectable, taking ownership of ones destiny in the face of tragedy.
Anyone who thinks the characters in the film expressed the real life personalities and mannerisms of these men.....they don't understand how movies work!
Having a panic attack on a sinking ship is what every officer was trained for. When the officer said that, he had training on how to handle passengers who were panicking.
Again, WSL crew WENT ABOVE AND BEYOND for every life on board.
I saw a Reddit thread on the inquiries into the disaster. Apparently it was standard practice at the time for ships to speed through ice fields, but the one captain with a lot of experience navigating ice (he was an arctic explorer) said the Titanic’s captain should have slowed down.
They didn’t know they were sailing into an ice field
As much as I adore Titanic, I hate the portrayal of Murdoch and Captain Smith. Murdoch by making him accept bribe and then committing suicide, and Captain Smith as hopeless and basically giving up and locking himself in the cabin, when in real life both of them were helping passangers til both of them ended in water themselves. They did not deserve it and I wish James kept their actions historically accurate as well.
Some survivors actually mentioned that smith was hopeless
52:32 and the reason for that sinking rate increase was probably due to d deck doors left open. The amount of water that could pour directly into d deck and below was more than the whole damage down below. Without these doors open the water had to pour through the decks and smaller openings. These doors left open caused probably also the listing back to port. I wonder if there is a simulation with these doors shut just to see if the listing also occurs.
Murdoch is a true hero and a legend he saved the most people on the rms titanic
Uploaded 35 seconds ago! Nice!!
maritime I have a question, were you just refreshing my channel til the video popped up so you could be first?
Maybe...
I did some research and found some information about what happened to First Officer William Murdoch after the huge wave swept Murdoch away from Collapsible Lifeboat A, he was last seen clinging to a broken deck chair in the water already dead from hypothermia.
Where you get this. This sounds like the guy with the whistle from the James Cameron film.
I've heard this story hundreds of times, hoping that in the next narration the Titanic makes it safely.