The Captain of the ill-fated RMS Titanic was of course, Captain Smith.
Edward John Smith (27 January 1850 – 15 April 1912) was a British naval officer. He served as master of numerous White Star Line vessels. He was the captain of the RMS Titanic, and perished when the ship sank on its maiden voyage.
Raised in a working environment, he left school early to join the merchant navy and the Royal Naval Reserve. After earning his master’s ticket, he entered the service of the White Star Line, a prestigious British company. He quickly rose through the ranks and graduated in 1887. His first command was the SS Celtic. He served as commanding officer of numerous White Star Line vessels, including the Majestic (which he commanded for nine years) and attracted a strong and loyal following amongst passengers.
In 1904, Smith became the commodore of the White Star Line, and was responsible for controlling its flagships. He successfully commanded the Baltic, Adriatic and the Olympic. In 1912, he was the captain of the maiden voyage of the RMS Titanic, which struck an iceberg and sank on 15 April 1912; over 1,500 perished in the sinking, including Smith, who went down with the ship. For his stoicism and fortitude in the face of adversity, Smith became an icon of British “stiff upper lip” spirit and discipline.
Captain of the Titanic II
A Captain for the Titanic II has of course not been selected as yet. At the time of writing, the ship is still in it’s design phase. Construction has not yet began.
Now all Captains of passenger ships are of course appropriately qualified and experienced. They will be familiar with the Titanic II’s many modern prolusion and navigation systems. However I would suggest that we need a Captain with charisma, for this unique ship, maybe ‘gravitas’ is a better word.
In the golden age of ocean liners the Captains were often well know by the public, they were superstars in their day. Even today, part of the role of a cruise ship “Master” is guest relations.
The regular daily announcement, over the PA, from the Captain is still an important tradition on-board ships.
The captain will normally host a Cocktail party at the start of the cruise. He may also host a ‘farewell’ one at the end of the cruise. Witty speeches are always required. (You will note that I said “he”. There were no Female Captains of ocean liners. Today female cruise ship Captains do exist, but are very rare.)
The Captain always has a central table in every ships dining room. The Captain will often host a dinner, with passengers attending the Captain’s table as guests. It is a great honour to be invited.
In fact, I recall reading that the Captain of the original ‘Queen Mary’ (1936) said that choosing the guest list for his weekly dinner, was his most challenging job of the week.
The Captain will often walk around the ship and meet passengers. Today, he may even hold a ‘Question & Answer’ in the Theatre, for passengers. Such is the interest in his role.
I know it sounds very sexist and ageist of me, but I’d suggest appointing a middle age man, as Captain of the Titanic II, preferably with a full grey beard. This would fulfil historical tradition. (Clive, are you allowed to put that in the job description?)
The Cunard line, even in recent decades, have had some very charismatic Captains, who often really looked and acted the part. They fitted the stereotypical image of what an Ocean Liners Captain SHOULD look like. One example was Commodore Warwrick.
Commodore Warwrick
Commodore Warwick commenced his sea-going career at the age of 15. By 1968 he had obtained his Master’s Ticket. A few years later, in 1970, he joined the Cunard Line and was appointed to the Carmania as a junior officer. Since then he has served in various ranks on the Queen Elizabeth 2 and other Cunard ships. His first command was of the Cunard Princess when she was sailing in Alaskan waters in 1986.
He was Navigator on the first world cruise of the QE2 in 1975 and Chief Officer for a number of years.
Captain Warwick was first appointed to the command of the Queen Elizabeth 2 in July 1990. At this point in his career he made Cunard Line history by sailing in command of the same ship as his father, the late Commodore William E Warwick who was the first Master of the QE2 before he retired in 1972.
In 26 December 2003 Captain Warwick was made Commodore Warwick.
Commodore Warwick took the new ‘Queen Mary 2’ out on her maiden voyage on 12 January 2004, just as his father (Commodore Bill Warwick) did with QE2 on 2 May 1969.
The Commodore retired in July 2006 after spending over 48 years at sea of which 36 years were in the service of Cunard Line.
In Conclusion
We are probably at least a few years away yet from knowing who Titanic II’s Captain and Senior Officers will be. We will have to remain patient.
Maybe Clive Palmer, the Titanic II’s financier, can train to become a “Master”? He certainly got all the chat and looks good in the uniform!
Malcolm
(Some info taken from Wikipedia)
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