RMS Carpathia

The Carpathia is remembered today because she rescued the survivors of Titanic.  Rescue operations are notable occasions in the life of any liner but the scope of this disaster has special merit.  

RMS Carpathia 1:1250 model by Carlo Marquardt.

Her captain, Arthur Rostron, was knighted for his service and promoted in the ranks of Cunard, assuming command of the line’s flagships.  Rostron took every action possible to ready his ship for the rescue and managed to rattle the vessel at 17 knots to reach Titanic some four hours away.  Expecting to find the stricken vessel, Carpathia only found a fleet of lifeboats with 705 survivors (of some 1500 aboard).  The heroism and dedication of the crew was lauded on both sides of the Atlantic.  The passengers bound for Liverpool on that voyage, including James and Mabel Fenwick, bound for a three month honeymoon in Europe, found themselves with a ringside seat of history. They took many of the now famous photographs of the rescue and survivors.

Carpathia in New York.  This photo was taken after the Titanic survivors disembarked.  She was provisioned and departed on her voyage to Liverpool.

In April of 1912, Carpathia was in her ninth year of service. She was built on the Tyne at Swan Hunter.  Designed for the “secondary” services to Boston, she catered to emigrant traffic but also had large cargo capacity.  On this run she sailed at modest speeds for a nine-day crossing.  Passenger accommodation was pleasant for first class passengers, but austere in third. In the winter, Carpathia made voyages from New York to Mediterranean ports.

The classic gear: three sets of superstructure, one funnel, and four masts with booms over the hatches.

She was a classic steamship. The four masts supported cargo booms for handling the crates and pallets but also the aesthetic function of balancing the profile.  Four masts also evoked the romantic image of sailing vessels.  She was fitted with a single funnel that was comparatively high, though not as high as her similarly designed fleetmates Saxonia and Ivernia.  

Saxonia and Ivernia had similar profiles but were slightly larger vessels.

Of the three, only Saxonia survived the Great War.  Ivernia was sunk in 1917 with a loss of 36 lives.  Among the survivors was Captain William Turner, who was master of Lusitania when she was torpedoed in 1915.  Carpathia was sighted by U-55 and struck by three torpedoes off Bishop Rock in 1918 with a loss of five crewmen.

R.M.S. Carpathia (1903-1918).  Built for Cunard Line by Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson, Newcastle, England.  13,603 Gross tons.  558 feet long, 64 feet wide.  Steam quadruple expansion engines geared to twin screw.  Service speed 14 knots.  1,704 total passengers (204 First Class, 1,500 Third Class).