Titanic captain had failed his first navigation test
22 Sep 2012 12:26 AM GMT
The captain of the doomed liner Titanic which sank in the Atlantic after colliding with an iceberg in 1912 is believed to have originally failed his navigation test, it has emerged.
Edward John Smith, who famously went down with the ship, was eventually given the all clear and he received his Masters Certificate in February 1888, the Telegraph reported.
He is among the well-known seamen to appear in The Great Britain, Masters and Mates Certificates 1850-1927, which were published on the family history web site Ancestry.co.uk.
‘It is believed that Captain Smith, who was eventually the man in charge of the Titanic when it sank, failed his exams the first time round because he did not have sufficient navigating skills,’ actor Tony Robinson, of TV’s Time Team, said while launching the newly accessible records in London.
Captain Smith was born in 1850 and worked at a forge before joining the White Star Line in 1880 as the Fourth Officer of the SS Celtic, before becoming Captain of the Republic in 1887.
Edward John Smith, who famously went down with the ship, was eventually given the all clear and he received his Masters Certificate in February 1888, the Telegraph reported.
He is among the well-known seamen to appear in The Great Britain, Masters and Mates Certificates 1850-1927, which were published on the family history web site Ancestry.co.uk.
‘It is believed that Captain Smith, who was eventually the man in charge of the Titanic when it sank, failed his exams the first time round because he did not have sufficient navigating skills,’ actor Tony Robinson, of TV’s Time Team, said while launching the newly accessible records in London.
Captain Smith was born in 1850 and worked at a forge before joining the White Star Line in 1880 as the Fourth Officer of the SS Celtic, before becoming Captain of the Republic in 1887.
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