Hey Hounders,
Abby
here. Boy am I tired from all of the research I've been doing about
RMS Titanic for the centennial observation of her sinking. It certainly
is a sad story and it's unfortunate that so many misconceptions and
falsehoods have persisted through the century since the ship went down.
Movies often tend to take poetic license with the facts in order to
enhance the story for film audiences. Tabloid newspapers and gossip
columns make for profitable readership. Time should provide us with a
chance to reflect on known facts and not the sensationalized chronicles
of the time. In the case of J. Bruce Ismay, he is often depicted as
"escaping" from the sinking ship disguised as a woman when that is not a
documented fact. There are undoubtedly a great many similar follies
that have arisen from hearsay to become perceived as facts.
ABBY (TBH+K)
ALLEGATIONS OF COWARDICE
Joseph Bruce Ismay, chairman and managing director of the White Star Line from 1899 until 1913. |
ALLEGATIONS OF COWARDICE
Joseph Bruce Ismay, chairman and managing director of the White Star Line from 1899 until 1913. |
J Bruce Ismay, chairman and managing director of the White Star Line, was a passenger on the Titanic. At the age of 39 he was also president of the International Mercantile Marine Company, a giant combine and owner-operator of several transatlantic business, at the head of which was White Star. The myths surrounding Ismay are many but almost all center on allegations of his cowardice in escaping the sinking ship whilst fellow passengers, notably women and children, were left to fend for themselves. The claims made at the time and repeated today were that he 'saved his own skin' whilst others died.
Ismay's fault was that he survived...
In reality Ismay helped with loading and lowering several
lifeboats and acquitted himself better than many of the crew and
passengers. He only entered a lifeboat when it was actually being
lowered and no other passengers were in the vicinity. Some witnesses
stated he was ordered into the lifeboat but, whatever happened, Lord
Mersey said at the British inquiry into the loss of Titanic, 'Had he not
jumped in he would simply have added one more life, namely his own, to
the number of those lost'.
Ismay's fault was that he survived and as a consequence laid
himself open to the high and somewhat dubious moral code of the US
press. Almost universally condemned in America, when he finally arrived
home he was cheered and applauded as he descended the gangway at
Liverpool. The British press had treated the whole episode in a far less
judgmental way.
In a second, more serious allegation, it was claimed he ordered
Captain Edward J Smith, Titanic's commander, to 'make a record crossing'
thus indirectly causing the collision with the iceberg. It is unlikely
that an experienced shipmaster like Smith, on his last voyage before
retirement and the highest paid commander in the mercantile marine,
would defer to Ismay on matters of navigation. No firm evidence has ever
come to light to suggest that Ismay in any way interfered with the
navigation of Titanic and, other than talking with the various heads of
departments on the ship, conducted himself like many other passengers.
Yet the opposite image of him exists today.
All of the negative stereotypes can be tracked back to the American press...
But where did all these stories come from? All of the negative
stereotypes can be tracked back to the American press and in particular
to those newspapers owned by William Randolph Hearst, one of the most
powerful and influential men in America. Hearst and Ismay had met years
before in New York when Ismay was an agent for his company. The shy and
private Ismay disliked press attention and the two men fell out as a
consequence of his refusal to cooperate.
Hearst never forgot, and in April 1912 his syndicated press
prosecuted a vicious campaign against Ismay, who was defenseless in the
eye of the hurricane. Stories were invented and witnesses, wishing to
strengthen exorbitant insurance claims for lost baggage against the
company, declared he had in fact ordered Smith to make a record
crossing.
2 comments:
Abby ,
You did a wonderful job with all your information, we have learned so much and makes us really want to research more information.
Hamish & Sophie
Your blog is amazing! Thanks you so much for your creative inspirations and thank you for sharing.
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