Top 10 Most Famous Shipwrecks
The United Nations estimates that there are at least three million shipwrecks on the ocean floors.
Here we take a look at history's top 10 of most famous shipwrecks:
RMS Titanic
Everyone knows about Titanic and its fate. The supposedly "unsinkable" ocean liner set sail on its maiden voyage on 10 April 1912 only to hit an iceberg just before midnight on 14 April and sank in less than three hours. Claiming 1514 lives, it is often remembered as one of the most famous and tragic shipwrecks in history. It wasn't until 1985 that a Franco-American expedition was able to reach the shipwreck, and discovered that it had been split in half with each half lying within about a one third of a mile apart from one another.
The stern section was found to be almost completely crumbled, but the bow is in much better condition with some of the interiors incredibly intact. Hundreds of artifacts have been excavated from the shipwreck and can be viewed in various exhibitions around the world.
The Black Swan
The Black Swan or The Black Swan Project is believed to be the greatest recovery of gold treasure in history. The treasure was found on the remains of the Spanish warship Nuestra Senora de las Mercedes which sank off Portugal in 1804. In 2007 the American company Odyssey Marine Exploration announced that it had uncovered gold worth an estimated $500 million.
However, the Spanish government declared that they rightfully owned the gold, and the case went all the way to the US Supreme Court, only for the gold to be returned to Spanish authorities in 2012, where it is now displayed in various exhibitions across the country.
Vasa
Vasa a Swedish warship, believed to have been built between 1626 and 1628. The ship sank in twenty minutes of its maiden voyage on 10 August 1628 after being hit by strong winds and flooding. Sinking less than a mile into its journey, it was regarded as a great embarrassment for the King of Sweden, and there were several salvage attempts, but none were successful.
It was not until 1961 that the shipwreck was successfully recovered, including thousands of artifacts. The hull of the ship was found to be remarkably good condition and with the help of some restoration, the ship is now a popular Swedish tourist attraction, with over 22 million visitors to date.
USS Arizona
The USS Arizona was an American battleship built for the US Navy launched in 1915. The ship served many purposes, from escorting President Woodrow Wilson to the Paris Peace Conference to being sent to Turkey during the Greco-Turkish War, and was sent from California to Pearl Harbour, Hawaii in 1940 in response to the threat of Japanese Imperialism. On 7 December, 1941 USS Arizona was bombed by the Japanese, 1177 crew members and officers were killed.
The shipwreck was declared a National Historic Landmark on 5 May 1989.
MS World Discoverer
The MS World Discoverer was a Danish cruise ship built in 1974. While carrying passengers on a cruise in 2000 it struck a rock at the Solomon Islands. A distress signal was quickly dispatched and all crew and passengers were escorted safely to another passenger ferry.
There have been several attempts to salvage the shipwreck, but none have been successful, partly due to the fact that much of the ship has been looted and damaged during the Solomon Islands Civil War. The ship has remained at Roderick Bay ever since, and is now a popular local tourist attraction.
The Queen Anne's Revenge
Queen Anne's Revenge was an 18th century warship mostly known for being the ship of legendary pirate Blackbeard. First serving in the British Navy, the ship was later captured by the French and then by pirates from 1717 onwards. In 1718 Blackbeard grounded the ship and abandoned it, escaping capture by the British by boarding a smaller nearby ship.
In 1996 the remains of Queen Anne's Revenage were discovered, about one mile ashore from Atlantic Beach, North Carolina. So far thirty one canons have been discovered and more than a quarter of a million artifacts have been recovered. As one of the few pirate ships to be discovered, it is now listed on the US National Register of Historic Places.
RMS Republic
The RMS Republic was built in 1903 and operated as a steam-powered ocean liner. It wasn't until 23 January 1909 at 5:30 a.m. that disaster struck, colliding with the Lloyd Italiano liner SS Florida just off Nantucket, Massachusetts and sinking the next day at about 8.40 p.m. A total of six lives were lost, and the evacuation process was praised as flawless at the time. Since the sinking, there have been many rumours and legends surrounding the treasure that supposedly went down with the ship. Ranging from $250,000 to $3,000,000 in estimates of the value of the sunken treasure, if excavated today it could be worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
The Mary Rose
The Mary Rose was a Tudor warship commissioned and run during the reign of Henry VIII. Launched in 1511, it served in many battles against France, Brittany and Scotland, and in 1545 it sank during a battle against the French. Sinking in the Solent, close to the Isle of Wight, it was not rediscovered until 1971, and was salvaged in 1982. The remains of the shipwreck are now viewable in a museum in Portsmouth, and has become one of the most expensive and expansive projects in maritime archeology history.
Over 26,000 artifacts have been recovered, many of which are now on public display. The remains of about half of the deceased crew members have also been recovered, and bone analysis has revealed that many suffered from health conditions such as arthritis, rickets and scurvy.
MV Doña Paz
The sinking of the MV Doña Paz is remembered in history as the deadliest of all peacetime maritime disasters. It was a Philippine registered ferry and while carrying over 4,000 passengers, collided with an oil tanker MT Vector on December 20, 1987. A fire and explosion ensued, killing a predicted 4,386 passengers and there were only 24 survivors.
Due to the fire much of the ship was destroyed, and it is now remembered as "Asia's Titanic."
RMS Lusitania
RMS Lusitania was a British ocean liner launched in 1906, and made of 202 trans-Atlantic crossings before it was torpedoed and sunk by a German U-boat on 7 May 1915. Of the 1,962 passengers and crew aboard, 1,191 lost their lives. Causing outrage and shock across the world, some believe it was a major factor in encouraging the US to enter World War II as an ally.
As it had been operating for seven years prior to sinking, it is in much worse condition compared to The Titanic and much destroyed upon the initial blast of the torpedo. It lies 11 miles south of the lighthouse at Kinsale, Ireland. There have been various salvage attempts of the Lusitania, with many of the remaining ship's items being recovered, some of which are privately owned while others are on displays in museums around the world.
