Titanic 100 years

So it was one hundred years ago yesterday, or if you take into account the time difference about one hundred years ago now since the great liner Titanic side swiped an iceberg and sank, killing thousands of passengers and crew.  It is a disaster that has captivated many over the years, and to be honest I wonder why?  Of course it was a terrible disaster, but there have been far worse disasters and even far worse shipping disasters. What sticks in the mind of so many to make this particular terrible disaster more morbidly enticing?

I suppose there has always been a mystique about Titanic, from its name to the idea it was unsinkable and it sank.  Of course it was on its maiden voyage, it was the most prestigious vessel on water, and it could not be found for over seventy years.

I remember even as a child Titanic was held as something special, different from the norm, the myth created around the unsinkable ship that sank, I suppose for some is very intoxicating.  I’ll be honest is saying the battle between the two great battleships, Bismarck and Hood at the beginning of WWII, fascinated me as a boy more than Titanic.

Of course in recent times there has been James Cameron and his obsession with the great liner, his documentaries and his incredibly successful film.

Now I think further Titanic is the beginning of a succession of centennial disasters to befall the world. In two years we have the beginning of WWI, and all the dreadful battles that ensued.  Then we have the Wall Street Crash, Hitler’s rise to power, WWII, it never really stops does it.

Changing the subject slightly, but let’s be honest here in saying the last century will not go down as one of our best, will it? We grew exponentially; we became so engrossed in what was in the far distance we never noticed what was just around the corner; which in a strange way is a bit like Titanic.