Have you seen the famous Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet movie called the ‘Titanic,’ based on a real-life shipwreck that 1,500 people died?The world-famous maritime accident took place in the North-Atlantic Ocean on April 15, 1912, when one of the largest ships in the world at that time called Titanic, also known as ‘The Unsinkable,’ sank into the ocean after hitting a giant iceberg. Around 2,224 passengers and crew members were on board, out of which 1,500 died and the remainder survived by escaping the sinking ship through lifeboats.The United Kingdom’s most senior and reliable sea captain, Captain Edward John Smith, was asked to pilot the Titanic early in 1912. Titanic Captain Edward Smith had no earlier record of any incidents, let alone fatal accidents at sea in his 40 years of career. As the ship unexpectedly began to sink after hitting the iceberg, Captain Edward Smith tried to get all women and children to the lifeboats first.It is said that during the latter half of the ship’s two-hour-long sinking process, the captain was so frozen by the enormity of the disaster and guilt that Titanic Captain Edward Smith went into the wheelhouse of the ship instead of going towards a lifeboat and decided to go down with the ship. As the crew saw the captain walk on the bridge, he said, ‘Well boys, you’ve done your duty and done it well; I ask no more of you’ are believed to be his last words, as he relieved his crew members of their duty.His body was never recovered from the Atlantic Ocean, nor could anyone identify him among the dead bodies of the victims. Find out how such an impeccable career ended in a grave disaster that sank the Titanic by reading more Captain Edward John Smith facts. After reading about his tenor as a senior captain and first officer of the British Navy. Afterward, also check out Andrew Jackson facts and Charles Cornwallis facts.Life History Of Captain Edward John SmithBorn on January 27, 1850, Titanic captain Edward John Smith shared his name with his father, Edward Smith, a potter. Smith’s mother’s name was Catherine Hancock. Titanic Captain Edward Smith was born in England, on Well Street in Hanley, Staffordshire.Edward J. Smith dropped out of his local school, the Etruria British School, at the young age of thirteen. Titanic Captain Edward Smith began operating a steam hammer at a nearby steam-powered mill. At seventeen years of age, he followed Joseph Hancock, his half-brother, into Liverpool – one of the most popular port cities in the late 19th and early 20th Century. Joseph Hancock was a captain on a sailing ship. In 1867, under Joseph’s guidance, Edward Smith took the first steps towards his sailing career, working as an apprentice on Senator Weber, a ship built in Boston and owned by a company named A. Gibson & Co. in Liverpool. Titanic Captain Edward Smith was passionate about ships and sailing and was a quick learner.Within 13 years of moving to Liverpool, Titanic Captain Edward Smith joined a British shipping company known as White Star Line in March 1880 as the Fourth Officer of a ship called the SS Celtic. Titanic Captain Edward Smith was aboard the White Star Line company’s ocean liners to New York and Australia, where he gained positions quickly. Titanic Captain Edward Smith was first handed the ship’s command at White Star Line in 1887. Captain Smith’s first commanded ship was called the Republic.Captain Edward Smith married his wife, Sarah Eleanor Smith, in Lancashire, England, in the same year. A year later, in 1898, their daughter Helen Melville Smith was born in Liverpool.After receiving his Extra Mater’s Certificate, Captain Edward John Smith joined the Royal Naval Reserve, a part of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom, in 1888. Titanic Captain Edward Smith got the position of Lieutenant, which meant that he could be called to duty anytime during a state of war and was entitled to add ‘RNR’ to his name. Captain Smith retired as Commander from the RNR merchant navy in 1905. While most British merchant vessels used the United Kingdom’s Red Ensign on their ships, Captain Edward Smith’s ship flew the distinguished Blue Ensign.By that time, Titanic Captain Edward Smith was regarded as one of England’s most experienced sea captains and was subsequently handed the command of the Olympic - the world’s largest ship at that time - and its sister ship, the Titanic. During the ship’s maiden voyage in 1912 Titanic captain, Edward Smith lost his life in one of the biggest maritime disasters of the 20th Century. He was 62 years old at the time of his death.Along with a statue, a plaque was placed in Hanley Town Hall in 1913 in his memory, which was later moved to Etruria Middle School, near Captain Smith’s hometown.Captain Edward John Smith: Known ForToday Captain Edward John Smith is known as the captain of the RMS Titanic, the largest ship that sank in the North Atlantic Ocean in the 20th Century. But back in the 1900s, Titanic Captain Edward Smith was known as the Millionaires’ Captain.Due to over 40 years of experience at sea, being a retired member of the United Kingdom Royal Navy, and safely commanding some of the biggest ships in the world like the Baltic, Adriatic, and the Olympic across the Atlantic Ocean. Most of the regular passengers in these ships were wealthy people who developed a deep respect for the captain’s silent flamboyance and the safety of his voyages. Some of them would only sail across the Atlantic if Captain Edward J. Smith captained the ship.For his courage to face the sinking of the Titanic without showing too strong emotions to frenzy the passengers further, Captain Edward Smith is also known as an icon in the stiff upper lip British discipline.Did Captain Smith sink the Titanic?The RMS Titanic was one of the biggest ships in the world in the 20th Century, and Captain Edward John Smith was in its command. Titanic Captain Edward Smith was regarded as one of the most experienced and safe sea captains in the world, despite which such a fatal maritime disaster occurred, in which about 1,500 people were killed.Did you know in an episode of ‘Rendezvous with yesterday’ in 1979, Titanic Captain Edward Smith was fictionalized as Captain Malcolm Smith!The RMS Titanic left Southampton, the United Kingdom, for the New York Harbour on April 10, 1912, with around 2,224 passengers on board. But on April 14, 1912, the Titanic radio operators received six messages from other ships warning them of ice in their route. But all North-Atlantic bound ships prioritized timely completion of the voyage and usually took the warnings as mere suggestions. They mainly depended on the view from the crow’s nest of the ship to avoid any nearby collisions. Also, too much faith had been put into modern shipbuilding. Engineers and captains noticed that large metal ships like the Olympian could sustain sea injuries to their exterior with much damage. But in the Titanic’s case, the iceberg was mostly submerged underwater to be considered a threat from the crow’s nest of the ship, but it was also not clearly visible to the crew from a distance because of the weather. Thus, undermining the iceberg’s size and overly trusting the ship’s build, the crew did not reduce the ship’s speed despite the warning so that they could reach New York in time.The blame cannot entirely be put on Captain Smith’s shoulders, for he merely followed the traditional protocol all captains followed during that period of ship travel. But, had Edward J Smithtaken the radio advisories seriously and slowed down the speed of the ship to inspect the icy situation that lay ahead, it might have been possible to avoid the mighty collision and death of over a thousand people.How many years was Edward John Smith a captain?Captain Smith had sea experience of more than 40 years. Captain Smith’s age before the Titanic sank was 62 years, which means that he spent more than 60% of his life as a seaman. Out of his 40 years at sea, he was in command for 27 years as a captain.In 1867, at 17 years old, Captain Smith started his sailing apprenticeship in Liverpool on Senator Weber, a ship owned by A. Gibson & Co. By March 1880, he had joined a British shipping company known as White Star Line as the Fourth Officer of the SS Celtic. Titanic Captain Edward Smith was on the White Star Line company’s liners to New York and Australia. He first commanded a ship in 1887 at White Star Line company. Captain Edward Smith’s first commanded ship was called the Republic. After receiving his Extra Master’s Certificate, Captain Edward John Smith joined a part of the Royal Navy called the Royal Naval Reserve in 1888. He was entitled to add ‘RNR’ to his name, as he attained the position of a Lieutenant, which meant that he could be called to duty anytime during a state of war Captain Smith retired as Commander from the RNR merchant navy in 1905.After retiring from the Royal Navy, Captain Edward Smith commanded some of the biggest ships in the world as a senior and experienced captain. Starting from 1899, he was the captain of the ship Majestic for nine years. During this period, he made two trips from the United Kingdom to South Africa for which he received the Transport Medal from King Edward VII. The Baltic and Adriatic were also some of the big ships, the maiden voyages he completed without any incidents. He was called to take the first command of a new type of ocean liners called the Olympic, the biggest ships of that time, along with other junior captains like William M. Murdoch, Joseph Evans, David Alexander. He lost his life during the sinking of the Titanic, a cousin ship of the HMS Olympic, on April 15, 1912, which is marked as his final voyage.There is a plaque at Hanley’s Town Hall celebrating the life of Titanic Captain Edward J Smith.Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created many interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for Captain Edward John Smith facts: here’s what you need to know! then why not take a look at amazing aboriginal history facts that everyone should definitely know! or Paleolithic houses: were they nomads, where did they live, and more.
Have you seen the famous Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet movie called the ‘Titanic,’ based on a real-life shipwreck that 1,500 people died?
