Launched in 1914, two years after the ill-fated voyage of her sister ship, RMS Titanic, the Britannic was intended to be superior to her tragic twin in every way. But war intervened and in 1915 she was requisitioned as a hospital ship. Just one year later, while on her way to collect troops wounded in the Balkans campaign, she fell victim to a mine laid by a German U-boat and tragically sank in the middle of the Aegean Sea. There her wreck lay, at a depth of 400 feet, until it was discovered 59 years later by legendary explorer Jacques Cousteau. In 1996 the wreck was bought by the author of this book, Simon Mills. Exploring the Britannic tells the complete story of this enigmatic ship: her construction, launch and life, her fateful last voyage, and the historical findings resulting from the exploration of the well-preserved wreck over a period of 40 years. With remarkable sonar scans and many never before seen photographs of the wreck, plus the original Harland & Wolff ship plans, not previously published in their entirety, Exploring the Britannic finally details how the mysteries surrounding the 100-year-old enigma were laid to rest, and what the future might also hold for her.

Includes index and bibliography.

Sitting around a dining-room table in 1907, the owners of the White Star Line discussed their competition to the newly-built Cunard liners, Lusitania and Mauretania. From that smoke-filled room came the first designs of three White Star superliners. Olympic and Titanic were to be built at Harland & Wolff's yard in Belfast, while the third ship was to follow after construction had been completed on the first pair of sisters. The only ship to make a return passenger voyage was Olympic and she was always overshadowed by her younger sisters. This is the definitive story of Titanic's sister RMS Olympic. First published in 2004 to critical acclaim, this new edition presents a revised expanded work from one the most successful maritime authors at work in Britain today.

As the third and largest sister of the famous Olympic-class trio, Britannic is often and unjustly overlooked in comparison to Olympic and Titanic. Launched on the eve of war in February 1914, Britannic would never see service on the White Star Line's express service on the North Atlantic mail run for which she was built. After being requisitioned by the Admiralty in November 1915 His Majesty's Hospital Ship Britannic instead became indispensible to the thousands of injured and sick troops that needed transporting back to Britain from the Mediterranean theatre of war. However, as was the fate of many liners during the conflict, her life was cut tragically short when she was suddenly wracked by a mysterious explosion on 21 November 1916 and sank in less than an hour - three times faster than her sister ship Titanic, and yet thanks to the improvements in safety heralded by the tragedy of her sister 1,032 of 1,062 on board survived.Here Simon Mills brings together previously unseen material, including stunning colour images of Britannic's wreck in the Aegean Sea, and this poignant story to tell a tale of heroism in the First World War, of an oftoverlooked but key ship to British maritime history and of the unique future that the wreck might still one day enjoy.

A pictorial celebration of the world-famous sister ships: the Olympic-class liners A maritime expert tells the story of the sister ships using previously unseen pictures, passenger diaries, and deck plans, illustrating Olympic's successful career; the premature ends of her two unfortunate sisters; and the experiences of those onboard. Designed for passenger comfort, they were intended to provide luxurious surroundings and safe, reliable transport rather than record-breaking speed. Ironically, fate decreed that only Olympic would ever complete a single commercial voyage and she went on to serve for a quarter of a century in peace and war. Titanic's name would become infamous after she sank on her maiden voyage. The third sister, Britannic, saw a brief and commendable career as a hospital ship during World War I, sinking in the Aegean Sea in 1916.

Violet Jessop's life is an inspiring story of survival. Born in 1887 in Argentina, the eldest child of Irish immigrants, at the age of 21 she became the breadwinner for her widowed mother and five siblings when she commenced a career as a stewardess and nurse on some of the most famous ocean going vessels of the day. Throughout her 40 year time at sea she survived an unbelievable series of events including the sinking of the TITANIC. “One awful moment of empty, misty blackness enveloped us in its loneliness, then an unforgettable, agonizing cry went up from 1500 despairing throats, a long wail and then silence and our tiny craft tossing about at the mercy of the ice field.” For most people one sinking would be enough. But four years later Violet, now a nurse with the British Red Cross, was on board the World War I hospital ship BRITANNIC when it struck a mine and sank to the bottom of the Aegean. To her, this disaster was even more horrifying-- “Just as life seeming nothing but a whirling, choking ache, I rose to the light of day, my nose barely above the little lapping waves. I opened my eyes on an indescribable scene of slaughter, which made me shut them again to keep it out." By the end of her story we have a met a woman who could handle whatever life threw at her with determination and good humor. She knew that only by her own strength of character would she survive. But Titanic Survivor is much more. A unique autobiography for those who want to know how it really felt, a story that could be told only by a Titanic Survivor.

From the acclaimed and award-winning author of The Hunger comes an eerie, psychological twist on one of the world's most renowned tragedies, the sinking of the Titanic and the ill-fated sail of its sister ship, the Britannic. Someone, or something, is haunting the ship. Between mysterious disappearances and sudden deaths, the guests of the Titanic have found themselves suspended in an eerie, unsettling twilight zone from the moment they set sail. Several of them, including maid Annie Hebley, guest Mark Fletcher, and millionaires Madeleine Astor and Benjamin Guggenheim, are convinced there's something sinister--almost otherwordly--afoot. But before they can locate the source of the danger, as the world knows, disaster strikes. Years later, Annie, having survived that fateful night, has attempted to put her life back together. Working as a nurse on the sixth voyage of the Titanic's sister ship, the Britannic, newly refitted as a hospital ship, she happens across an unconscious Mark, now a soldier fighting in World War I. At first, Annie is thrilled and relieved to learn that he too survived the sinking, but soon, Mark's presence awakens deep-buried feelings and secrets, forcing her to reckon with the demons of her past--as they both discover that the terror may not yet be over. Brilliantly combining the supernatural with the height of historical disaster, The Deep is an exploration of love and destiny, desire and innocence, and, above all, a quest to understand how our choices can lead us inexorably toward our doom.

Highlights the first-hand account of the exploration of the Titanic shipwreck

Explores the controversies surrounding the sinking of the cruise ship in 1915