Titanic Heritage
After almost 100 years, public interest in Titanic remains at an all-time high. Around the world, the legend of Titanic, bolstered by books and films, has grown hugely over the decades. Today there are hundreds of museums and attractions dedicated to Titanic but only in Belfast can you find the true birthplace of the world’s most famous ship.
Find out more with our Titanic Factsheet
9 April 1861
English engineer Edward Harland and German-born Gustav Wolff form new shipbuilding company Harland and Wolff. As the yard expanded it became like a small city on Queens Island, employing thousands of men in many different roles, from riveter to master craftsmen
1870
H&W launch the Oceanic, the first of more than 70 great ships built by H&W for the White Star Line.
1907
The Chairman of H&W, William Pirrie, invites Bruce Ismay of the White Star Line to a dinner party to discuss the construction of two new luxurious ocean liners to rival Cunard’s Mauretania and Lusitania
July 1908
White Star Line and H&W agree the design for the Olympic-class liners: Olympic and Titanic will be built, followed by a third ship, the Britannic, at a later date. H&W agree to build new slipways to accommodate them, as well as the famous Arrol Gantry
16 Dec 1908
Olympic’s keel is laid in Belfast. At the time, it was the world’s largest vessel
31 March 1909
Titanic’s keel is laid. The ship is simply known as No. 401
1 April 1911
Thompson Dry Dock is completed
May 1911
RMS (Royal Mail Steamship) Titanic is launched in front of over 100,000 people in Belfast
June 1911
Olympic departs Southampton on her maiden voyage
Oct 1911
The White Star Line announce the date of Titanic’s maiden voyage (10th April 1912)
3 Feb 1912
Titanic is docked at the Thompson Dry Dock
25 March 1912
Titanic’s lifeboats are tested
April 1912
2nd: Titanic undergoes her delayed sea trials in Belfast Lough
3rd: Titanic arrives in Southampton
6th: Last day of recruitment for positions on the ship’s crew. Coal and cargo are loaded
8th: All fresh food required for the maiden voyage are loaded
10th: Titanic’s maiden voyage begins as 12noon. She sails to Cherbourg, France to pick up more passengers
11th: Titanic arrives in Queenstown (now Cobh), Ireland before beginning the journey across the Atlantic to New York
14th: Titanic hits an iceberg on her starboard side around 11.40pm
15th: Titanic sinks in the early hours of the morning. The tragedy has left a sprawling legacy: as a result of the sinking and the subsequent British and American inquiries, major changes were made to maritime safety regulations that are still in place today.