Key Information
RMS Empress of Ireland
| Type | Empress of Britain-class ocean liner |
| Ordered | 1904 |
| Laid Down (Construction Started) | 10 April 1905 |
| Launched | 27 April 1906 |
| Maiden Voyage | 29 June 1906 |
| Sank | 29 May 1914 |
| Capacity | Passengers: 1,542, crew: 373. Total: 1,915 |
| Lifeboats | 42 (sufficient for 1,686 people) |
| Sinking | 29 May 1914 – 465 survived, 1,012 lost |
| Displacement | 14,191 tons |
| Dimensions | Length: 570 ft; Beam: 65.7 ft; Depth: 36.7 ft |
Learning Point
- One of the worst civilian disasters in the Atlantic, the sinking of the RMS Empress of Ireland may have been forgotten because of the start of the First World War the following month in 1914. Though many changes had been made after the RMS Titanic sank, some of the changes couldn’t have helped prevent the loss of life because of how the Empress sank.
Project
- Draw the RMS Empress of Ireland sailing along the St Lawrence River.
- Overview
- SS_Storstad
- Infographic
Media
Location
| Location | Near Rimouski in the St Lawrence River |
Fun Facts
- The blame for the sinking has been placed at different times on the actions of both captains, though in more recent times the blame has fallen on Captain Kendall.
- Captain Kendall ordered the ship to move to starboard, not to port as was tradition at the time.
- The Empress had been fitted with over 40 life boats, more than enough for the amount of people onboard.
- The SS Storstad hit the ship in the worse possible place making it almost impossible to save everybody onboard.
Past Lessons
| 107 | January 4, 2024 | (North America) |