What Is the Biggest Cruise Ship to Sink?

By Robert Palmer

On April 14, 1912, the RMS Titanic, the largest cruise ship of its time, sunk to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean after colliding with an iceberg. The loss of life was immense and the tragedy shocked the world.

At 882 feet long, 46,328 tons and boasting a capacity of 3,547 passengers and crew, the Titanic was considered “unsinkable” due to its revolutionary design which incorporated 16 watertight compartments. Despite this precautionary measure, after the iceberg collision five of these compartments flooded and caused the ship to become unstable and sink.

The sinking of Titanic is one of the most infamous maritime disasters in history and stands as a testament to man’s hubris in believing that modern technology can conquer anything. Since then various other large ships have sunk including SS Eastland in 1915 which capsized at a Chicago dock killing 844 passengers; MS Wilhelm Gustloff in 1945 which was sunk by a Soviet submarine killing over 9,000 people; and MS Estonia in 1994 which sank during a storm off Finland killing 852 passengers.

Today there are many large cruise ships that sail around the world accommodating thousands of passengers at any given time. Despite their size however none can compare to what was once thought to be “unsinkable” – The RMS Titanic. With its tragic demise it still remains as one of history’s biggest cruise ship sinkings and serves as an important reminder not to overestimate man’s capabilities against nature’s power.

Conclusion:
The sinking of RMS Titanic is one of history’s most infamous cruise ship disasters due to its large size and revolutionary design that made it seem “unsinkable”. Even though other large cruise ships have sunk since then none can compare to this tragedy that still serves as an important reminder not to underestimate nature’s power against man’s capabilities.