RMS OLYMPIC, THE LEAD SHIP OF THE WHITE STAR LINE

Today, The Grandma has been reading about the RMS Olympic, the British ocean liner that was launched on a day like today in 1910.

RMS Olympic was a British ocean liner and the lead ship of the White Star Line's trio of Olympic-class liners. 

Olympic had a career spanning 24 years from 1911 to 1935, in contrast to her short-lived sister ships, RMS Titanic and the Royal Navy hospital ship HMHS Britannic. This included service as a troopship with the name HMT Olympic during the First World War, which gained her the nickname Old Reliable, and during which she rammed and sank the U-boat U-103.

She returned to civilian service after the war and served successfully as an ocean liner throughout the 1920s and into the first half of the 1930s, although increased competition, and the slump in trade during the Great Depression after 1930, made her operation increasingly unprofitable. Olympic was withdrawn from service on 12 April 1935, and later sold for scrap, which was completed by 1939.

Olympic was the largest ocean liner in the world for two periods during 1910-13, interrupted only by the brief service life (six-day maiden voyage in April 1912) of the slightly larger Titanic, which had the same dimensions but higher gross register tonnage, before the German SS Imperator went into service in June 1913. Olympic also held the title of the largest British-built liner until RMS Queen Mary was launched in 1934, interrupted only by the short career of Titanic; Britannic, intended as a liner, instead served as a Royal Navy hospital ship for her 11-month life (December 1915 to November 1916), sinking when she hit a mine.

Built in Belfast, Ireland, Olympic was the first of the three Olympic-class ocean liners –the others being Titanic and Britannic. They were the largest vessels built for the British shipping company White Star Line, which was a fleet of 29 steamers and tenders in 1912.

The ships were built in Belfast by Harland & Wolff, who had a long-established relationship with the White Star Line dating back to 1867.

On 1 April 1911, Olympic was pulled into Thompson Graving Dock as part of its opening ceremony. Here, her hull was cleaned and painted. It was also the place where she received her propellers.

Olympic was driven by three propellers. The two three-bladed wing propellers were driven by two triple-expansion engines, while the four-bladed central propeller was driven by a turbine that used recovered steam escaping from the triple-expansion engines. The use of escaped steam was tested on the SS Laurentic two years earlier.

Olympic was designed as a luxury ship; Titanic's passenger facilities, fittings, deck plans and technical facilities were largely identical to Olympic, although with some small variations.

The first-class passengers enjoyed luxurious cabins, and some were equipped with private bathrooms. First-class passengers could have meals in the ship's large and luxurious dining saloon or in the more intimate A La Carte Restaurant. There was a lavish Grand Staircase, built only for the Olympic-class ships, along with three lifts that ran behind the staircase down to E deck, a Georgian-style smoking room, a Veranda Café decorated with palm trees, a swimming pool, Victorian Turkish bath, gymnasium, and several other places for meals and entertainment.

The second-class facilities included a smoking room, a library, a spacious dining room, and a lift.

Finally, the third-class passengers enjoyed reasonable accommodation compared to other ships. Instead of large dormitories offered by most ships of the time, the third-class passengers of Olympic travelled in cabins containing two to ten bunks. Facilities for the third class included a smoking room, a common area, and a dining room.

Following completion, Olympic started her sea trials on 29 May 1911 during which her manoeuvrability, compass, and wireless telegraphy were tested. No speed test was carried out. She completed her sea trial successfully. Olympic then left Belfast bound for Liverpool, her port of registration, on 31 May 1911. As a publicity stunt the White Star Line timed the start of this first voyage to coincide with the launch of Titanic. After spending a day in Liverpool, open to the public, Olympic sailed to Southampton, where she arrived on 3 June, to be made ready for her maiden voyage. Her arrival generated enthusiasm from her crew and newspapers. The deep-water dock at Southampton, then known as the White Star Dock had been specially constructed to accommodate the new Olympic-class liners, and had opened in 1911.

In 1934, the White Star Line merged with the Cunard Line at the instigation of the British government, to form Cunard White Star. This merger allowed funds to be granted for the completion of the future Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth. When completed, these two new ships would handle Cunard White Star's express service; so their fleet of older liners became redundant and were gradually retired.

By the time of her retirement, Olympic had completed 257 round trips across the Atlantic, transporting 430,000 passengers on her commercial voyages, travelling 1.8 million miles.

More information: Titanic and Co.

 If you want to build a ship, 
don't drum up people to collect wood 
and don't assign them tasks and work, 
but rather teach them to long 
for the endless immensity of the sea.

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry