Titanic was carrying gold bullion - true or false? < Tim Maltin (2024)

FALSE. This is a myth in the case of the Titanic, although in 1917 the White Star liner Laurentic was sunk off the coast of Northern Ireland carrying 35 tons of gold ingots. These were worth £5 million at the time (about £250 million today) and were destined for the purchase of munitions from America, which at that time had not yet entered the First World War. All but 22 of these ingots were recovered by Royal Navy divers between 1917 and 1924.

The most valuable items aboard the Titanic were the37personal effects of the first class passengers, many of whichwere lost in the sinking. These included a jewelled copy of theRubaiyat of Omar Khayyam; a 35-hp Renault car belonging toFirst Class passenger William Carter Sr; and a 16th-centurysecond edition of essays by Francis Bacon, owned by HarryWidener, a 1907 Harvard graduate whose mother Eleanorsubsequently endowed the Widener Memorial Library at thecollege in his memory. Eleanor herself owned a valuable stringof pearls, but she wore them off the ship, as the Countess ofRothes did with the pearls given to her on her wedding day.

Titanic’s passengers did not always make the obviouschoice that night regarding the items they wanted to save.First Class passenger Major Arthur Peuchen left a box with$300,000 in cash and preferred bonds in his cabin, takinginstead a good luck pin and three oranges. Edith Russell ranback to her cabin to fetch her ‘lucky pig’, a musical box whichshe always took with her when travelling; and Margaret‘Molly’ Brown had an Egyptian figurine in her pocket, whichshe carried as a good luck charm. She later presented this toCaptain Rostron on board the Carpathia.

Following the Titanic disaster, damages claims fromsurvivors totalled $16 million, though a considerable partof this sum was claimed for loss of life, rather than merelypossessions. In the end, partly guided by the principle ofLimited Liability for shipowners, White Star agreed with theclaimants to settle all claims for a payment of only $664,000.The litigation had taken more than four years.

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