William M. Murdoch
William McMaster Murdoch (born February 28, 1873 in Dalbeattie , Dumfries and Galloway , Scotland , † April 15, 1912 in the North Atlantic when the Titanic sank ) was the first officer of the Titanic and was killed when it sank.
Career
William Murdoch was the fourth son of Samual Murdoch and Jane "Jeannie" Muirhead. He came from a family with a long seafaring tradition and also pursued this career path. After initially serving on some sailing ships, Murdoch joined the White Star Line in 1900 and served on the Medic and the Runic , among others , which operated in Australian waters. In 1903 he met the teacher Ada Florence Banks from New Zealand on one of his trips and married her in 1907. By this time he had already been transferred to the Atlantic steamers. These included the ships Arabic , Celtic , Germanic , Oceanic , Cedric , Adriatic , Olympic and finally the Titanic .
On the Titanic , Murdoch was initially the chief officer and thus the highest-ranking officer on board after the captain. Shortly before the ship's maiden voyage, however , Captain Edward John Smith appointed Henry T. Wilde , who had previously served with Smith on the Olympic , as his chief officer. As a result, Murdoch had to give way to the rank of first officer.
Sinking of the Titanic
On the evening of April 14, 1912 , Murdoch had taken over the bridge watch from second officer Charles Lightoller at 10:00 p.m. So he was on duty when the Titanic was on a collision course with an iceberg at 23:40. After the sixth officer James P. Moody from the crow's nest received the message "Iceberg directly ahead!" And immediately forwarded it to Murdoch, Murdoch reacted immediately. He threw the machine telegraph and let the machines run back full power. At the same time he instructed the helmsman Robert Hichens with the steering command “hard to starboard” to turn to port. Then he pulled the lever to close the bulkheads of the watertight compartments in the ship's belly. However, the collision could no longer be prevented. The extent to which this version of the attempted evasive maneuver corresponds to the actual events, however, cannot be proven with certainty, as some of the statements made by some people contradict each other. In particular, contrary to the alleged machine command "Full aft", the telegraphs in the engine room and boiler rooms are said to have been on "Stop". See also: First Officer Murdoch and the evasive maneuver
Murdoch later supervised the evacuation of the ship on the starboard side on the instructions of the master. Murdoch did not interpret the command " women and children first " as strictly as z. B. Lightoller. As a result, men had fewer problems with him getting into a lifeboat . According to Jack Thayer's statements, however, he shot two passengers who had not followed his instructions. Shortly afterwards, he is said to have shot himself in the head. However, this is still controversial today and is presented differently by several sources. There are, among other things, several statements by people, including Charles Lightoller, who claimed to have seen Murdoch on folding boat A when he was washed into the sea by the rising water. One of the survivors, radio operator Harold Bride , later said that he last saw Murdoch near the keel of the floating folding boat B and that Murdoch died in the water. His body was never found.
A memorial stone was erected in his hometown of Dalbeattie in memory of William M. Murdoch . Furthermore, a prize named after him is given for charitable purposes.
media
In the 1997 film adaptation of the Titanic , Murdoch was played by Ewan Stewart . Since the shootings, which were considered unsafe, and the unsubstantiated suicide were shown, the filmmakers reacted to the criticism that emerged with regard to this depiction with an apology.
literature
- Robert D. Ballard: The Secret of the Titanic. 8th edition. Ullstein Verlag, Berlin / Frankfurt am Main, ISBN 3-550-07653-3 .
Web links
- William M. Murdoch in the Encyclopedia Titanica (English)
- William M. Murdoch on the Titanic Wiki (English)
- Private information website about William M. Murdoch (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Titanic makers say sorry BBC News, 1998
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Murdoch, William M. |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Murdoch, William McMaster (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Titanic's first officer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | February 28, 1873 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Dalbeattie , Dumfries and Galloway , Scotland |
| DATE OF DEATH | April 15, 1912 |
| Place of death | North Atlantic when the Titanic sank |