Content deleted Content added
mNo edit summary |
m →Early career: word fix |
||
| (28 intermediate revisions by 16 users not shown) | |||
Line 18:
* 1934: [[Cunard-White Star Line]]
| Ship registry = [[Port of Liverpool|Liverpool]]
| Ship route =
[[Liverpool]]–[[Cobh]]–[[New York City|New York]] (1907) (1911-1919) (1922-1934) [[Southampton]]-[[Cherbourg]]-[[New York City|New York]] (1907-1911) (1919-1921)
| Ship ordered =
Line 42 ⟶ 43:
| Ship reinstated =
| Ship identification = *UK [[official number]] 1294061
*[[
*{{ICS|Hotel}}{{ICS|Kilo}}{{ICS|November}}{{ICS|Whiskey}}
*[[Maritime call sign|
*{{ICS|Golf}}{{ICS|Lima}}{{ICS|Sierra}}{{ICS|Juliet}}
| Ship motto =
Line 71 ⟶ 72:
| Ship ice class =
| Ship power = 16 000 hp
| Ship propulsion = *2 × [[Marine steam engine#Triple or multiple expansion|
*2 × [[Propeller]]s
| Ship speed = {{convert|
| Ship range = 5000 nmi
| Ship endurance =
Line 89 ⟶ 90:
|}
'''RMS ''Adriatic''''' was a British [[ocean liner]] of the [[White Star Line]]. She was the fourth of a quartet of ships of more than {{GRT|20000}}, dubbed [[Big Four (White Star Line)|The Big Four]]. The
She began her career on the brand new route from [[Southampton]] to [[New York City|New York]] before joining, from 1911, her sister ships on the secondary route from Liverpool. They were in fact slow liners intended to provide a service at moderate prices. When [[World War I]] broke out, the ''Adriatic'' was among the ships that continued their civilian transatlantic service, while carrying many provisions. In 1917, she was requisitioned and served as a troop transport.
Line 98 ⟶ 99:
[[File:Belfast's Harland and Wolff Shipyard (RMS Adriatic), 1907 (crop).jpg|thumb|left|''Adriatic'' just before launching, [[September 1906]]]]
At the end of the 19th century, White Star Line, under the leadership of [[Thomas Henry Ismay]], changed its policy to embark on the construction of ships which no longer sought to dominate in the area of speed, but to transport passengers en masse and regularly on spacious and comfortable liners. This resulted in the commissioning of the [[Big Four (White Star Line)|Big Four]], four large, moderate-speed liners ordered at the start of the new century. The first, the [[RMS Celtic (1901)|''Celtic'']], entered service in 1901, followed by the [[RMS Cedric|''Cedric'']] in 1903 and the [[RMS Baltic (1903)|''Baltic'']] in 1904.<ref>{{harvnb|Anderson|1964|p=89}}</ref> The fourth ship in the series, the ''Adriatic'', was ordered from [[Harland and Wolff]] shipyards in Belfast in December 1903, but she wasn't completed until May 1907, a strangely long delay.<ref name=RA90>{{harvnb|Anderson|1964|p=90}}</ref> This delay could be explained by the fact that the shipyards were building the [[USS America (ID-3006)|''Amerika'']] at the same time, with a similar profile.<ref name=RK127>{{harvnb|de Kerbrech|2009|p=127}}</ref> Harland and Wolff built ''Adriatic'' on [[slipway]] number three of its North Yard in [[Belfast]], [[
To continue to own the largest ships in the world, White Star had asked the shipyards to enlarge the ''Baltic'' during its construction; the ship measured nearly 3,000 tons more than its predecessor, but it was in return slightly slower: its machines not having been modified.<ref>{{harvnb|de Kerbrech|2009|p=122}}</ref> In the case of the ''Adriatic'', it was decided to give her a size similar to the ''Baltic'' (her tonnage nevertheless surpassing that of the ''Baltic'' by a few hundred tons), but she was equipped significantly more powerful machines in order to allow her to maintain a better speed.<ref name=RK127/> Her name, in reference to the [[Adriatic Sea]], was also given to her in reference to a [[SS Adriatic (1871)|previous liner of the same name]] which served the company for almost thirty years at the end of the previous century.<ref>{{harvnb|Haws|1990|p=34}}</ref>
Line 105 ⟶ 106:
==Early career==
[[File:RMS Adriatic postcard.jpg|thumb|A postcard depicting the ''Adriatic'' after her 1911 refit]]
When the ''Adriatic'' entered service, she was celebrated by the White Star Line as "the largest ship in the world" (although the [[SS Kaiserin Auguste Victoria|''Kaiserin Auguste Victoria'']] overtook her by only 40 tons), and the company organized a departure with great fanfare for her maiden voyage from [[Port of Liverpool|Liverpool]] to [[New York City|New York]] on 8 May 1907, arriving in New York on 16 May 1907 with 2,502 passengers onboard (365 first class, 335 second class and 1,802 third class), completing the crossing in 7 days, 1 hour and 45 minutes at an average speed of 17.02 knots.<ref name=RA100>{{harvnb|Anderson|1964|p=100}}</ref> The liner
After her maiden voyage, she was transferred to the [[Port of Southampton|Southampton]] – New York route, arriving in Southampton to a very warm welcome on the evening of 30 May 1907 after briefly calling at Plymouth and Cherbourg, and inaugurating White Star's Southampton service on 5 June 1907. She was the first White Star liner to use Southampton's newly built dock, named the White Star Dock. (In 1922 it was renamed the Ocean Dock.) This port, hitherto little frequented by British companies, was indeed chosen to serve as the base for the new express service desired by White Star, in view of the arrival of its [[Olympic-class ocean liner|Olympic-class liners]]. It also had the advantage of allowing a French stopover in [[Cherbourg]]. The ''Adriatic'' was thus assigned to this new service alongside the [[RMS Oceanic (1899)|''Oceanic'']], the [[RMS Teutonic|''Teutonic'']] and the [[RMS Majestic (1889)|''Majestic'']]. At the same time, Liverpool becomes a secondary port of departure for services provided by the ''Baltic'', the ''Cedric'', the ''Celtic'', and the [[SS Arabic (1902)|''Arabic'']]. The ''Adriatic'' ran the Southampton route until 1911 when {{RMS|Olympic}} replaced her. ''Adriatic'' then returned to the Liverpool route.<ref name=RA100/>
Line 123 ⟶ 124:
==Later career and demise==
[[File:RMS Adriatic (1907).jpg|thumb|View of ''Adriatic'' from the stern, between {{circa}} 1910-15]]
The ''Adriatic'' returned to service on 3 September 1919, once again on the Southampton-Cherbourg-New York service,
On a westbound voyage at 01:30 on 10 August 1922 near [[Cobh]], the ''Adriatic'' suffered a gas explosion in her number three hold, which she was using as a reserve coal bunker. The explosion killed five crewmen, severely injured another three, tore the hatch off the hold, broke and twisted girders and beams and started a coal fire.<ref>{{harvnb|Eaton|Haas|1989|p=198}}</ref><ref name=NYT-1922-0812>{{cite news |url= https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1922/08/12/98784952.html?pageNumber=1 |title=Adriatic explosion kills 5, injures 4 of crew in midsea |newspaper=The New York Times |pages=1 |url-access=subscription |date=12 August 1922 |access-date=4 December 2020}}</ref> Some of the dead and injured were stokers who had gone into the hold to work coal for her furnaces. One was an electrician, Leslie Ablett, who was rigging a cluster of electric lights by which the stokers were to work. Three were stokers who had been sleeping in the open on the hatch cover because it was a hot summer night. One of the stokers sleeping on the hatch cover was blown overboard<ref name=NYT-1922-0814>{{cite news |url= https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1922/08/14/99055768.html?pageNumber=1 |title=Adriatic safe here; think short circuit made gas explode |newspaper=The New York Times |pages=1, 4 |url-access=subscription |date=14 August 1922 |access-date=4 December 2020}}</ref> Two liners, [[Compagnie Générale Transatlantique|CGT]]'s ''[[SS Mexique|Lafayette]]'' and [[United States Lines]]' ''Reliance'', changed course to come to ''Adriatic''{{'}}s assistance. ''Adriatic''{{'}}s crew fought and extinguished the fire. Her [[Second engineer|Second Engineer]], James Corrigan, entered the burning hold and rescued two injured men. At 03:55 ''Adriatic''{{'}}s wireless operator signalled that there was no further danger, so ''Lafayette'' and ''Reliance'' resumed their normal courses.<ref name=NYT-1922-0814/> The injured were treated in the ship's [[sick bay]]. Two of the ship's stewardesses were trained nurses and helped to tend the injured and dying.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1922/08/18/107068097.html?pageNumber=8 |last=Keane |first=William |title=Nurses on the Adriatic |newspaper=The New York Times |page=8 |url-access=subscription |date=18 August 1922 |access-date=4 December 2020}}</ref> All of the dead and injured were from [[Liverpool]].<ref name=NYT-1922-0814/> Before ''Adriatic'' reached New York, her passengers raised $7,000 to help their families.<ref name=NYT-1922-0812/> ''Adriatic'' reached New York on 13 August. Marine insurance agents came aboard and assessed the damage at less than $1,000. Temporary repairs were made before she began her return voyage to Liverpool<ref>{{cite news |url= https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1922/08/16/99056790.html?pageNumber=8 |title=Adriatic's damage $1,000 |newspaper=The New York Times |page=8 |url-access=subscription |date=16 August 1922 |access-date=4 December 2020}}</ref> on 19 August.<ref>{{cite news |url= https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1922/08/20/112684449.html?pageNumber=19 |title=Big liner delayed by thrifty bluenose |newspaper=The New York Times |page=19 |url-access=subscription |date=20 August 1922 |access-date=4 December 2020}}</ref>
Line 140 ⟶ 141:
Being the last of the Big Four, the ''Adriatic'' displayed similar dimensions to the ''Baltic'' with a 222.2 m length, 23 m width and 16 m draft.<ref name=DH57>{{harvnb|Haws|1990|p=57}}</ref> She was slightly bulkier than her predecessor, with a gross tonnage of 24,541 and a net tonnage of 15,638, making her one of the largest liners in the world when she entered service (the [[RMS Empress of Scotland (1905)|''Kaiserin Auguste Victoria'']] only exceeding her by 40 gross tons).<ref name=RK127/> However, her appearance remained the same as with her three sister ships. The ''Adriatic'' therefore had a black hull with a red base, all topped by a white superstructure. Her funnels were buff-colored crowned with black cuff, and the ship had four masts intended to serve as support for the lookout's nest, as well as for the cables of the wireless telegraphy.<ref>{{harvnb|Haws|1990|p=56}}</ref> She had four continuous decks, as well as an upper deck and several superstructures.<ref name=DH58/> In 1911, she distinguished herself from her sister ships by having the front part of her promenade deck fitted with windows.<ref name=RK127/>
Like the other ships in the series, the ''Adriatic'' was propelled by two propellers operated by [[Marine steam engine#Triple or multiple expansion|quadruple-expansion steam engines]]. Between them the two engines were rated at 1,720 [[Horsepower#Nominal
However, in view of her higher tonnage, the White Star had her fitted with more powerful machines, capable of reaching an average speed of 17 knots, higher than that of her sister ships but still significantly lower than the fastest liners on the route. Normally, she consumed 260 tonnes of coal per day.<ref name=DH58/>
[[File:Carr'sTin.jpg|thumb|left|Cooling-room of the Turkish baths]]The ''Adriatic'' stood out from her sister ships for the luxury of her facilities. In addition to the sumptuous dining room topped with a glass roof, the smoking room adorned with stained glass, the veranda café and the lounges she shared with its sister ships, she was the [http://www.victorianturkishbath.org/_6DIRECTORY/AtoZEstab/Liners/Adriatic/AdriaticEng.htm first liner to be equipped with] [[Victorian Turkish baths|Turkish baths]], as well as an indoor swimming pool.<ref>[https://www.ggarchives.com/OceanTravel/Brochures/WSL-1909-FamousBig4.html ''The Famous Big 4 of the New York - Liverpool Service - White Star Line - 1909 Brochure''], ''GG Archive''</ref> At the start of her career, the ''Adriatic'' could carry 425 first class, 500 second class, and 1,900 third class passengers (all accompanied by 560 crew members).<ref name=RK127/> From 1919, she was redesigned to carry 400 first class, 465 second class and 1,300 third class passengers.<ref name=RK129/> Finally, from 1928, her capacities were transformed to carry 506 cabin class, 560 tourist class, and 404 third class passengers.<ref name=RK130/>
==See also==
| |||