Titanic Quiz
Questions: 16 · 10 minutes
1. What was Titanic’s intended final destination on its maiden voyage?
Boston
New York City
Halifax
Philadelphia
2. Who commanded Titanic on its maiden voyage?
Charles Lightoller
Thomas Andrews
J. Bruce Ismay
Captain Edward John Smith
3. On what date did Titanic strike the iceberg?
April 10, 1912
April 12, 1912
April 14, 1912
April 15, 1912
4. Titanic had watertight compartments, yet progressive flooding still occurred. Which explanation best accounts for this?
Coal-loading doors above the waterline were left open throughout the crossing
As the bow sank lower, water spilled over the tops of bulkheads into additional compartments
The pumps created enough pressure to rupture every compartment wall
The iceberg made one large opening directly through the ship’s keel
5. Which team located Titanic’s wreck in 1985?
Ernest Shackleton’s British Antarctic expedition
Jacques Cousteau’s Calypso expedition
The Franco-American team associated with Robert Ballard and Jean-Louis Michel
A Royal Navy team led by Charles Lightoller
6. Why did the SS Californian become a major subject of inquiry after the disaster?
It had supplied Titanic with defective lifeboats before the voyage
It collided with Titanic shortly before the iceberg strike
It carried survivors away before Carpathia arrived
Investigators examined whether its crew could have responded sooner after observing rockets nearby
7. Surviving wireless records refer to both “CQD” and “SOS.” What is the best interpretation?
Titanic’s operators transmitted both recognized distress signals while requesting help
CQD was sent before the collision and SOS after the collision
CQD identified Titanic, while SOS identified Carpathia
SOS was a passenger warning, while CQD was reserved for the engine room
8. Which sequence correctly orders key events of Titanic’s maiden voyage?
Queenstown departure → Southampton departure → Cherbourg stop → iceberg collision
Cherbourg stop → Southampton departure → iceberg collision → Queenstown stop
Southampton departure → Cherbourg stop → Queenstown stop → iceberg collision
Southampton departure → Queenstown stop → Cherbourg stop → iceberg collision
9. Many people who entered the North Atlantic survived only briefly despite having life belts. What was the primary immediate danger?
The life belts became too heavy after absorbing seawater
Salt water immediately stopped the life belts from providing buoyancy
Rapid heat loss in the near-freezing water led to hypothermia
Strong tropical currents carried everyone far from the sinking site
10. An inquiry concludes that existing lifeboat rules were based too heavily on a ship’s tonnage. Which reform most directly addresses the failure revealed by Titanic?
Require every passenger ship to travel alongside a naval escort
Ban passenger ships from using wireless equipment at night
Replace steel hulls with wooden hulls on Atlantic routes
Require enough lifeboat capacity for everyone aboard
11. A passenger records leaving Southampton and then stopping at a French port before continuing to Ireland. Which port was that first stop?
Queenstown
Cherbourg
Plymouth
Belfast
12. Which ship responded to Titanic’s distress calls and took its surviving passengers aboard?
Carpathia
Californian
Britannic
Olympic
13. A lookout reported an unusually dark horizon and little breaking water around the iceberg. Which documented condition best explains why the obstacle was difficult to detect?
The night was moonless, and the sea was exceptionally calm
Bright moonlight reflected directly into the lookouts’ eyes
Heavy rain obscured the entire horizon
Dense smoke from Titanic’s funnels covered the sea ahead
14. Which vessel was one of Titanic’s two Olympic-class sister ships?
Lusitania
Olympic
Mauretania
Imperator
15. Which Belfast shipbuilding company constructed RMS Titanic?
Harland and Wolff
John Brown and Company
Swan Hunter
Vickers Limited
16. Records show that Titanic carried lifeboat capacity for about 1,178 people while more than 2,200 people were aboard. What follows directly from those figures?
Every person could have boarded if each boat had been filled completely
The boats had enough total capacity for all passengers but not the crew
Most lifeboat spaces were unavailable because the boats were designed only for cargo
The total lifeboat capacity was sufficient for only about half of those aboard