Customer Reviews

Titanic: The Official Inquiry

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This is a handsome facsimile of an invaluable document--the British investigation (hearing) into the loss of the "Titanic," held in London from May to July of 1912. There were only two such studies--this one and that conducted a few weeks earlier by a U.S. Senate committee in Washington (also available in facsimile form). This is the better and more complete of the two as the British investigators knew what they were doing and also knew about ships--as several of the American senators sadly did not. This British volume also contains far more information---it ran over a longer period of time and questioned more people. The volume begins with the report--which has often been reprinted--followed by the nearly thousand-page "minutes of evidence" which include virtually every word spoken. Invaluable is the long and detailed index, making it easy to find out who said what. The blue cloth-bound volume with gilt titles comes in a matching slipcase with similar titles. In all, a handsome quality production--and very important to the overall story.

For the serious Titanic researcher or enthusiast, this book is an absolutely essential primary source as it's a part of the official record. It comes complete with the final report that was issued at the conclusion of the investigation, as well as the sworn testimony of the people who were actually there or in some way involved with the construction, outfitting, and/or operation of the ship. While some of the conclusions reached were not correct,(The ship did indeed break up as she went down.) one must bear in mind that they were made with the best evidence and knowledge available at the time.