Titanic's Lifeboats

Titanic’s lifeboat capacity was governed by the British Board of Trade’s rules, which were drafted in 1894. By Titanic’s maiden voyage in 1912, these lifeboat regulations were badly out of date. Titanic was four times larger than the largest legal classification considered under the British Board of Trade’s rules. By law, Titanic was not required to carry more than sixteen lifeboats, regardless of the actual number of people onboard.

In this age, it’s difficult to grasp why a magnificent vessel like the RMS Titanic ever had a shortage of lifeboats. At that time, society had a much more casual attitude about what was safe. Child labor laws were new and not terribly strict. Upton Sinclair had recently written The Jungle, a novel detailing the miserable conditions of the American meat packing industry, which came out just six years before Titanic sailed.  People weren’t concerned with warnings, seatbelts, or helmets. Britain’s regulatory bodies were, for the most part, more established than America’s were, but both countries were industrializing. Technology was too young to govern because people didn’t understand the problems that would arise.

With Titanic, the world would learn a difficult lesson.

Industry insiders understood that the lifeboat regulations would change because of the major advances in shipbuilding at the turn of the century.  In fact, Titanic was designed to hold enough lifeboats to carry each passenger on board. The White Star Line, however, felt like holding off on the implementation in policy change until the law actually went through.  Deck space was at a premium, especially on the first- and second-class decks where the boats were to be housed. On top of that, the lifeboats themselves were expensive and bulky.

The shipbuilders were also concerned with public perception: if they had built a ship that was practically unsinkable, what would people think if they saw her lined with lifeboats?

Read more about Titanic on our Stories From The Titanic blog...