The British luxury steamship, the Titanic, was 269 meters long, making it the biggest ship of its time. Owing to its famously robust steel construction, the ship was considered unsinkable. On its maiden voyage from Southampton to New York, its fate was sealed. During the night of April 14 1912, about 153 km south of the Grand Banks of Newfoundland, the Titanic collided with an enormous iceberg. The hull of the ship was so badly damaged that tons of water flooded into the compartments. The Titanic finally split apart down the middle and sank.As there were not enough lifeboats for everyone, only about 700 of the 1311 passengers and 897 crew members on board were saved.

To this day, the dramatic sinking of the luxury liner remains one of the most terrible catastrophes in shipping history.