People Still Believe These 4 Myths About the Titanic

By: Stephen Thompson | Last updated: Oct 31, 2023

Arguably, the most well-known water disaster was the sinking of the Titanic. The tale has been passed down through generations, being featured as the subject of books, movies, and TV shows.

However, the stories became more diluted as they were told and retold, so fact and fiction have been thoroughly mixed. Let’s verify some of the most prominent myths about the Titanic.

An “Unsinkable” Ship

One of the most common tales we’ve heard about the Titanic is that the ship was unsinkable. This myth supposedly originated in 1913, when White Star Line Vice President, Phillip Franklin, boasted that no danger could cause the ship to sink.

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“The boat is unsinkable, and the passengers will suffer nothing but inconvenience,” he allegedly said. Well, this myth does not happen to have any evidence. Researchers did not find any official White Star employee that made those claims.

The Famous Captain Smith

Surprisingly, Captain Edward Smith was made a hero even though he disregarded the warnings about the iceberg and when he did not slow the ship down when an iceberg was in its path. He was portrayed as a hero because he went down with the ship, but a closer look at his actions before the vessel sank would threaten his hero status.

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“The Captain didn’t say anything to make sure people went on the lifeboats, and as a result, many lifeboats were left half filled,” said Titanic Historical Society member Paul Louden-Brown.

A Cursed Egyptian Mummy Was the Cause of Its Demise

Another incomprehensible myth surrounding the Titanic is that an Egyptian mummy cursed the ship. A man who was intrigued by spiritualism and things beyond the natural realm, William Stead, told fellow passengers a disturbing story.

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He told them a cursed mummy that caused havoc at the British Museum was smuggled onto the ship. However, the tale was far from the truth—the cursed mummy he spoke of never left the museum where it was held.

The Worst Shipwreck Ever

Although out of the 2,240 people that boarded the ship, 1517 lost their lives, the Titanic disaster is not the most fatal shipwreck ever.

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Rather, the SS Sultana catastrophe takes first place. The vessel exploded April 27, 1865 on the Mississippi River, killing about 1,800 passengers. The worst disaster is the more-recent Doña Paz ferry incident. The ship collided with an oil tanker in 1987, killing more than 4,350 people.