Editing HMHS Britannic (section)

== History ==
=== Conception ===
In 1907, [[J. Bruce Ismay]], director general of the [[White Star Line]], and [[William Pirrie, 1st Viscount Pirrie|Lord Pirrie]], chairman of the [[Harland & Wolff]] shipyard in [[Belfast]] had decided to build a trio of ocean liners of unmatched size to compete with the Cunard Line's {{RMS|Lusitania||2}} and {{RMS|Mauretania|1906|2}} not in terms of speed but in terms of luxury and safety.{{sfn|Chirnside|2011|p=12}} The names of the three vessels were decided at a later date and they showed the intention of the designers regarding their size: ''Olympic'', ''Titanic'' and ''Britannic''.<ref name="Piouffre41">{{harvnb|Piouffre|2009|p=41}}</ref>

Construction of the ''Olympic'' and the ''Titanic'' began in 1908 and 1909 respectively.{{sfn|Chirnside|2011|p=19}} Their sizes were so large that it was necessary to build the [[Arrol Gantry]] to shelter them, wide enough to span the two new building slips and allow two ships to be built at a time.{{sfn|Chirnside|2011|p=14}} The three ships were designed to be 270 metres long and to have a gross tonnage of over 45,000. Their designed speed was approximately 22 knots, well below that of the ''Lusitania'' and ''Mauretania'', but still allowing for a transatlantic crossing of less than one week.{{sfn|Chirnside|2011|p=18}}

=== Rumoured name-change ===
[[File:Britannic under construction.jpg|thumb|The [[Arrol Gantry]] towering above ''Britannic'', circa 1914]]
Although the White Star Line and the [[Harland and Wolff]] shipyard always denied it,<ref name="Bonsall" /><ref name="name_dispute">{{cite web |url=http://www.ocean-liners.com/ships/britannic.asp |title=HMHS Britannic |publisher=ocean-liners.com |access-date=12 February 2006 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051219001335/http://www.ocean-liners.com/ships/britannic.asp |archive-date=19 December 2005 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> some sources claim that ''Britannic'' was to be named ''Gigantic'', but her name was changed so as not to compete with ''Titanic'' or create comparisons.<ref name="britannic_name">{{cite book |last1=Bonner |first1=Kit |last2=Bonner |first2=Carolyn |title=Great Ship Disasters |page=60 |publisher=MBI Publishing Company |year=2003 |isbn=0-7603-1336-9}}</ref>{{sfnp|Lynch|2012|page=161}} One source is a poster of the ship with the name ''Gigantic'' at the top.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.20thcenturyliners.com/wsl_britannic_gallery.htm |title=White Star Line |publisher=20thcenturyliners.com |access-date=14 July 2014 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140624131511/http://www.20thcenturyliners.com/wsl_britannic_gallery.htm |archive-date=24 June 2014 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> Other sources are November 1911 American newspapers stating the White Star order for ''Gigantic'' being placed, as well as other newspapers from around the world both during construction and immediately after the sinking of the ''Titanic''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/89907443?searchTerm=titanic+gigantic |title=24 Apr 1912 – WHITE STAR'S NEXT GREAT LINER. – Trove |publisher=Trove.nla.gov.au |date=1912-04-24 |accessdate=2022-02-27}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/15291918?searchTerm=titanic+gigantic |title=25 Nov 1911 – A MAMMOTH STEAMER. – Trove |publisher=Trove.nla.gov.au |date=1911-11-25 |accessdate=2022-02-27}}</ref><ref>[https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn99062034/1911-11-27/ed-1/seq-1/#date1=1911&sort=relevance&rows=20&words=Titanic&searchType=basic&sequence=0&index=8&state=&date2=1911&proxtext=Titanic&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=4 The Madison Daily Leader] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181005030806/https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn99062034/1911-11-27/ed-1/seq-1/#date1=1911&sort=relevance&rows=20&words=Titanic&searchType=basic&sequence=0&index=8&state=&date2=1911&proxtext=Titanic&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=4 |date=5 October 2018 }} 27 November 1911..Retrieved 4 October 2018</ref><ref>[https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn92070417/1911-11-21/ed-1/seq-5/#date1=1911&sort=relevance&rows=20&words=Titanic&searchType=basic&sequence=0&index=16&state=&date2=1911&proxtext=Titanic&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=3 Las Vegas Optic: "1,000 FOOT SHIP MAY DOCK IN NEW YORK"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181005071825/https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn92070417/1911-11-21/ed-1/seq-5/#date1=1911&sort=relevance&rows=20&words=Titanic&searchType=basic&sequence=0&index=16&state=&date2=1911&proxtext=Titanic&y=0&x=0&dateFilterType=yearRange&page=3 |date=5 October 2018 }}, 21 November 1911..Retrieved 4 October 2018</ref>

Tom McCluskie stated that in his capacity as archive manager and historian at Harland and Wolff, he "never saw any official reference to the name ''Gigantic'' being used or proposed for the third of the ''Olympic''-class vessels".<ref name="Milford">[http://www.jmilford-titanic.com/2013/10/what-happened-to-gigantic.html Joshua Milford: ''What happened to Gigantic?''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305141359/http://www.jmilford-titanic.com/2013/10/what-happened-to-gigantic.html |date=5 March 2016 }} Website viewed 9 June 2014</ref><ref name="Chirnside">[http://www.markchirnside.co.uk/Gigantic_Dossier.html Mark Chirnside: ''Gigantic Dossier''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303204908/http://www.markchirnside.co.uk/Gigantic_Dossier.html |date=3 March 2016 }} Website viewed 1 May 2012</ref> Some hand-written changes were added to the order book and dated January 1912. These only dealt with the ship's moulded width, not her name.<ref name="Chirnside" />

=== Construction ===
[[File:Britannic Funnel in transport.jpg|thumb|One of ''Britannic''{{'s}} funnels being transported to Harland & Wolff shipyards]]
[[File:Britannic & Olympic Sisters Together in Belfast Shipyard.jpg|thumb|''Britannic'' (right) during fitting out in Belfast alongside ''Olympic'']]
''Britannic''{{'}}s keel was laid on 30 November 1911 at the [[Harland and Wolff]] shipyard in Belfast, on the gantry slip previously occupied by {{RMS|Olympic|3=2}}, 13 months after the [[Ceremonial ship launching|launch]] of that ship, and {{RMS|Arlanza|1911|2}}, launched seven days before.<ref name=Piouffre307 /> The acquisition of the ship was planned to be at the beginning of 1914.<ref>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=216}}.</ref> Due to improvements introduced as a consequence of the ''Titanic''{{'}}s disaster, ''Britannic'' was not launched until 26 February 1914,<ref name=MC242>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=242}}.</ref> which was filmed along with the fitting of a funnel.<ref>[http://www.britishpathe.com/video/ss-britannic-aka-ss-Britannic Launch footage] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140511204700/http://www.britishpathe.com/video/ss-britannic-aka-ss-brittanic |date=11 May 2014 }} and [http://www.britishpathe.com/video/britannic "Funnel fitting".] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130621061217/http://www.britishpathe.com/video/britannic |date=21 June 2013 }} British Pathé. Retrieved 18 February 2013</ref> Several speeches were given in front of the press, and a dinner was organised by [[White Star Line|White Star]] in honour of the launching.<ref>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=238}}.</ref> Fitting out began subsequently. The ship entered dry dock in September and her propellers were installed.<ref>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=239}}.</ref>

Reusing ''Olympic''{{'}}s space saved the shipyard time and money by not clearing out a third slip similar in size to those used for the two previous vessels. In August 1914, before ''Britannic'' could commence transatlantic service between [[New York City|New York]] and [[Southampton]], the [[World War I|First World War]] began. Immediately, all [[shipyard]]s with [[British Admiralty|Admiralty]] contracts were given priority to use available raw materials. All civil contracts including ''Britannic'' were slowed.<ref name=MC240>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=240}}.</ref>

The naval authorities requisitioned a large number of ships as [[armed merchant cruiser]]s or for troop transport. The Admiralty paid the companies for the use of their ships but the risk of losing a ship in naval operations was high. The larger ocean liners were not initially taken for naval use, because smaller ships were easier to operate. ''Olympic'' returned to Belfast on 3 November 1914, while work on ''Britannic'' continued slowly.<ref name=MC240/>

=== Requisition ===
[[File:Britannic during WWI.jpg|thumb|''Britannic'' seen after her conversion to an operative hospital ship, {{circa}} January 1916]]
The need for increased tonnage grew critical as naval operations extended to the [[Eastern Mediterranean]]. In May 1915, ''Britannic'' completed mooring trials of her engines and was prepared for emergency entrance into service with as little as four weeks' notice. The same month also saw the first major loss of a civilian ocean liner when Cunard's {{RMS|Lusitania}} was torpedoed near the Irish coast by {{SMU|U-20|Germany|6}}.<ref>{{harvnb|Le Goff|1998|p=50}}</ref>

The following month, the Admiralty decided to use recently requisitioned passenger liners as [[Troopship|troop transports]] in the [[Gallipoli Campaign]] (also called the [[Dardanelles]] service). The first to sail were Cunard's {{RMS|Mauretania|1906|6}} and {{RMS|Aquitania}}. As the Gallipoli landings proved to be disastrous and the casualties mounted, the need for large hospital ships for treatment and evacuation of wounded became evident. ''Aquitania'' was diverted to hospital ship duties in August (her place as a troop transport would be taken by ''Olympic'' in September). Then on 13 November 1915, ''Britannic'' was requisitioned as a hospital ship from her storage location at Belfast.{{citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

Repainted white with large red crosses and a horizontal green stripe, she was renamed HMHS (His Majesty's Hospital Ship) ''Britannic''<ref name="MC240" /> and placed under the command of [[Captain (naval)|Captain]] [[Charles Alfred Bartlett]].<ref name=MC241>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=241}}.</ref> In the interior, 3,309 beds and several operating rooms were installed. The common areas of the upper decks were transformed into rooms for the wounded. The cabins of B Deck were used to house doctors. The first-class dining room and the first-class reception room on D Deck were transformed into operating rooms. The lower bridge was used to accommodate the lightly wounded.<ref name=MC241 /> The medical equipment was installed on 12 December 1915.<ref name=MC240 />

=== First service ===
[[File:HMHS Galeka and the HMHS Britannic.jpg|thumb|''Britannic'' with {{HMHS|Galeka}}, taking on board the wounded at [[Mudros]]]]
When declared fit for service on 12 December 1915 at Liverpool, ''Britannic'' was assigned a medical team consisting of 101 nurses, 336 non-commissioned officers and 52 commissioned officers as well as a crew of 675 people.<ref name=MC241 /> On 23 December, she left Liverpool to join the port of [[Mudros]] on the island of [[Lemnos]] on the [[Aegean Sea]] to bring back sick and wounded soldiers.<ref name=MC243>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=243}}.</ref> She joined with several ships on the same route, including ''Mauretania'', ''Aquitania'',<ref>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=92}}.</ref> and her sister ship ''Olympic''.<ref>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=94}}.</ref> The four ships were joined a little later by {{SS|Statendam|1914|2}}.<ref>{{usurped|1=[http://archive.wikiwix.com/cache/20120414091511/http://www.webtitanic.net/frameBritannica.html « HMHS ''Britannic'' »]}}, ''WebTitanic''. Accessed 5 April 2011.</ref> She made a stopover at [[Naples]] before continuing to Mudros, in order for her stock of coal to be replenished. After she returned, she spent four weeks as a floating hospital off the [[Isle of Wight]].<ref>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=244}}.</ref>

The third voyage was from 20 March 1916 to 4 April. The Dardanelles was evacuated in January.<ref>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=245}}.</ref> At the end of her military service on 6 June 1916, ''Britannic'' returned to Belfast to undergo the necessary modifications for transforming her into a transatlantic passenger liner. The British government paid the White Star Line £75,000 to compensate for the conversion. The transformation took place for several months before being interrupted by a recall of the ship back into military service.<ref>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=246}}.</ref>

=== Recalled ===
The Admiralty recalled ''Britannic'' back into service as a hospital ship on 26 August 1916, and the ship returned to the Mediterranean Sea for a fourth voyage on 24 September of that year.<ref>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=247}}.</ref> On 29 September on her way to Naples, she encountered a violent storm from which she emerged unscathed.<ref>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=249}}.</ref> She left on 9 October for Southampton. Then, she made a fifth trip, which was marked by a quarantining of the crew when the ship arrived at [[Moudros|Mudros (now Moudros)]] because of food-borne illness.<ref>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=250}}.</ref>

Life aboard the ship followed a routine. At six o'clock, the patients were awakened and the premises were cleaned up. Breakfast was served at 6:30 AM, then the captain toured the ship for an inspection. Lunch was served at 12:30 PM and tea at 4:30 PM. Patients were treated between meals and those who wished to go for a walk could do so. At 8:30 PM, the patients went to bed and the captain made another inspection tour.<ref name="MC243" /> There were medical classes available for training the nurses.<ref name=MC254>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=254}}.</ref>

=== Last voyage and sinking ===
{{ multiple image |total_width=500

| image1=2011 Dimos Keas.png | caption1=The location of [[Kea (island)|Kea]] in the [[Cyclades]] [[archipelago]] in the [[Aegean Sea]]

| image2=ISS009-E-15405-Kea-Makronisos-N-at-top.jpg | caption2= The channel between [[Makronisos]] (near top) and [[Kea (island)|Kea]] (bottom); ''Britannic'' sank closer to Kea
}}
After completing five successful voyages to the [[Middle Eastern theatre of World War I|Middle Eastern theatre]] and back to the United Kingdom transporting the sick and wounded, ''Britannic'' departed Southampton for [[Lemnos]] at 14:23 on 12 November 1916, her sixth voyage to the [[Mediterranean Sea]].<ref name=MC241 /> The ship passed [[Gibraltar]] around midnight on 15 November and arrived at [[Naples]] on the morning of 17 November, for her usual [[Coaling (ships)|coaling]] and water-refuelling stop, completing the first stage of her mission.<ref name=MC253>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=253}}.</ref>

A storm kept the ship at Naples until Sunday afternoon when Captain Bartlett decided to take advantage of a brief break in the weather and continue. The seas rose once again as ''Britannic'' left the port. By the next morning, the storms died, and the ship passed the [[Strait of Messina]] without problems. [[Cape Matapan]] was rounded in the first hours of 21 November. By morning, ''Britannic'' was steaming at full speed into the [[Kea Channel]], between [[Sounion|Cape Sounion]] (the southernmost point of [[Attica]], the prefecture that includes [[Athens]]) and the island of [[Kea (island)|Kea]].<ref name=MC253 />

There were 1,066 people on board: 673 crew, 315 [[Royal Army Medical Corps]] (RAMC), 77 nurses, and the captain.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://hmhsbritannic.weebly.com/sinking.html|title=Sinking|work=Hospital Ship HMHS Britannic|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150810003608/http://hmhsbritannic.weebly.com/sinking.html|archive-date=10 August 2015|df=dmy-all}}</ref>

==== Explosion ====
[[File:19161123 Hospital Ship Brittanic Sunk - The New York Times.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2| Some newspapers printed reports that the sinking was caused by one of two torpedoes launched by respective German submarines whose commanders would have known the ship, being northbound, did not carry combatants.<ref name=NYTimes_19161123/> The report stated that after the explosion there was "perfect order" and "not the slightest panic", and that "the women, of course, were saved first".<ref name=NYTimes_19161123>{{cite news |title=Hospital Ship Britannic Sunk; 50 Lives Lost |url=https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:19161123_Hospital_Ship_Brittanic_Sunk_-_The_New_York_Times.jpg |work=The New York Times |date=November 23, 1916 |page=1 }}</ref>]]
At 08:12 am European Eastern Time ''Britannic'' was rocked by an explosion after hitting a mine.{{sfn|Chirnside|2011|p=260}} The mines had been planted in the Kea Channel on 21 October 1916 by {{ship|SM|U-73}} under the command of {{ill|Gustav Sieß|de}}.

The reaction in the dining room was immediate; doctors and nurses left instantly for their posts but not everybody reacted the same way, as further [[aft]], the power of the explosion was less felt, and many thought the ship had hit a smaller boat. Captain Bartlett and Chief Officer Hume were on the [[Bridge (nautical)|bridge]] at the time and the gravity of the situation was soon evident.{{sfn|Chirnside|2011|p=259}} The explosion was on the [[starboard]]{{sfn|Chirnside|2011|p=259}} side, between holds two and three. The force of the explosion damaged the watertight [[Bulkhead (partition)|bulkhead]] between hold one and the [[forecastle|forepeak]].{{sfn|Chirnside|2011|p=260}} The first four watertight compartments were filling rapidly with water,{{sfn|Chirnside|2011|p=260}} the [[boiler-man]]'s tunnel connecting the firemen's quarters in the bow with boiler room six was seriously damaged, and water was flowing into that boiler room.{{sfn|Chirnside|2011|p=260}}

Bartlett ordered the watertight doors closed, sent a [[distress signal]], and ordered the crew to prepare the lifeboats.{{sfn|Chirnside|2011|p=260}} An SOS signal was immediately sent out and was received by several other ships in the area, among them {{HMS|Scourge|1910|6}} and {{HMS|Heroic}}, but ''Britannic'' heard nothing in reply. Unknown to either Bartlett or the ship's wireless operator, the force of the first explosion had caused the antenna wires slung between the ship's masts to snap. This meant that although the ship could still send out transmissions by radio, she could no longer receive them.<ref name=MC256>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=256}}.</ref>

Along with the damaged watertight door of the firemen's tunnel, the watertight door between boiler rooms six and five failed to close properly.{{sfn|Chirnside|2011|p=260}} Water was flowing further aft into boiler room five. ''Britannic'' had reached her flooding limit. She could stay afloat (motionless) with her first six watertight compartments flooded. There were five watertight bulkheads rising all the way up to B Deck.{{sfn|Chirnside|2011|p=261}} Those measures had been taken after the ''Titanic'' disaster (''Titanic'' could float with only her first four compartments flooded).<ref name=hublots>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=258}}.</ref>

The next crucial bulkhead between boiler rooms five and four and its door were undamaged and should have guaranteed the ship's survival. However, there were open [[porthole]]s along the front lower decks, which tilted underwater within minutes of the explosion. The nurses had opened most of those portholes to ventilate the wards, against standing orders. As the ship's [[angle of list]] increased, water reached this level and began entering aft from the bulkhead between boiler rooms five and four. With more than six compartments flooded, ''Britannic'' could not stay afloat.<ref name=hublots/>

==== Evacuation ====
On the bridge, Captain Bartlett was already considering efforts to save the ship. Only two minutes after the blast, boiler rooms five and six had to be evacuated. In about ten minutes, ''Britannic'' was roughly in the same condition ''Titanic'' had been in one hour after the [[Iceberg that sank the Titanic|collision with the iceberg]]. Fifteen minutes after the ship was struck, the open portholes on E Deck were underwater. With water also entering her aft section from the bulkhead between boiler rooms four and five, ''Britannic'' quickly developed a serious list to starboard.<ref name=MC257>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=257}}.</ref>

Bartlett gave the order to turn starboard towards the island of [[Kea (island)|Kea]] in an attempt to beach her. The effect of ''Britannic's'' starboard list and the weight of the [[rudder]] made attempts to navigate the ship under her own power difficult, and the steering gear had been knocked out by the explosion, which eliminated steering by the rudder. The captain ordered the port shaft driven at a higher speed than the starboard side, which helped the ship move towards Kea.<ref name=MC257/>

At the same time, the hospital staff prepared to evacuate. Bartlett had given the order to prepare the lifeboats, but he did not allow them to be lowered into the water. Everyone took their most valuable belongings with them before they evacuated. The chaplain of the ship recovered his Bible. The few patients and nurses on board were assembled. Major Harold Priestley gathered his detachments from the Royal Army Medical Corps to the back of the A deck and inspected the cabins to ensure no one was left behind.<ref name=MC257 />

While Bartlett continued his desperate manoeuvre, ''Britannic's'' list steadily increased. Fearing that the list would become too large to launch, some crew decided to launch lifeboats without waiting for the order to do so.<ref name=MC257 /> Two lifeboats were put onto the water on the port side without permission by Third Officer Francis Laws. These boats were drawn towards the still-turning, partly surfaced propellers. Bartlett ordered the engines to stop but before this could take effect, the two boats were drawn into the propellers, completely destroying both and killing 30 people.<ref name=hublots /> Bartlett was able to stop the engines before any more boats were lost.<ref name=MC259>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=259}}.</ref>

==== Final moments ====
By 08:50, most of those on board had escaped in the 35 successfully launched lifeboats. At this point, Bartlett concluded that the rate at which ''Britannic'' was sinking had slowed so he called a halt to the evacuation and ordered the engines restarted in the hope that he might still be able to beach the ship.<ref name=MC260>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=260}}.</ref> At 09:00, Bartlett was informed that the rate of flooding had increased due to the ship's forward motion and that the flooding had reached D-deck. Realising that there was now no hope of reaching land in time, Bartlett gave the final order to stop the engines and sounded two final long blasts of the whistle, the signal to abandon ship.<ref name=MC261>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=261}}.</ref> As water reached the bridge, he and Assistant Commander Dyke walked off onto the deck and entered the water, swimming to a collapsible boat from which they continued to coordinate the rescue operations.<ref>[http://www.titanic-titanic.com/britannic.shtml « ''Britannic'' »] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090806070941/http://www.titanic-titanic.com/britannic.shtml|date=6 August 2009}}, ''Titanic-titanic.com''. Accessed 12 July 2009.</ref>

''Britannic'' gradually capsized to starboard, and the funnels collapsed one after the other as the ship rapidly sank. By the time the stern was out of the water, the bow had already slammed into the seabed. As ''Britannic'''s length was greater than the depth of the water, the impact caused major structural damage to the bow before she slipped completely beneath the waves at 09:07, 55 minutes after the explosion.<ref name=MC261 /> [[Violet Jessop]] (who was one of the survivors of the ''Titanic'', and had also been on board when the ''Olympic'' collided with {{HMS|Hawke|1891|6}}) described the last seconds:<ref>Gleick, Elizabeth; Carassava, Anthee (26 October 1998). "Deep Secrets". ''[[Time International]] (South Pacific Edition)''. No. 43. p. 72.</ref>

<blockquote>She dipped her head a little, then a little lower and still lower. All the deck machinery fell into the sea like a child's toys. Then she took a fearful plunge, her stern rearing hundreds of feet into the air until with a final roar, she disappeared into the depths, the noise of her going resounding through the water with undreamt-of violence....</blockquote>

When the ''Britannic'' came to rest, she became the largest ship lost in the First World War.<ref name="largest">{{cite web
 |url          = https://www.pbs.org/lostliners/britannic.html
 |title        = PBS Online – Lost Liners – Britannic
 |access-date  = 9 November 2008
 |publisher    = PBS
 |url-status   = live
 |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20081014140615/http://www.pbs.org/lostliners/britannic.html
 |archive-date = 14 October 2008
 |df           = dmy-all
}}</ref>

==== Rescue ====
[[File:Britannic's survivors.jpg|thumb|Survivors of ''Britannic'' on board {{HMS|Scourge|1910|6}}]]
[[File:Dr. John Cropper.JPG|thumb|Captain John Cropper of the RAMC, who died in the sinking<ref>{{cite web|title=CWGC record for John Cropper|url=http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/1647786/CROPPER,%20JOHN|access-date=28 July 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170728135415/http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/1647786/CROPPER,%20JOHN|archive-date=28 July 2017|df=dmy-all}}</ref>|alt=]]
Compared to ''Titanic'', the rescue of ''Britannic'' was facilitated by three factors: The water temperature was higher ({{convert|20|C|F|abbr=}}{{sfn|Chirnside|2011|p=262}} compared to {{convert |-2|C|F}}{{sfn|Lord|2005|p=149}} for ''Titanic''), more lifeboats were available (35 were successfully launched and stayed afloat{{sfn|Chirnside|2011|p=266}} compared to ''Titanic''{{'}}s 20{{sfn|Lord|2005|p=103}}), and help was closer (it arrived less than two hours after first distress call{{sfn|Chirnside|2011|p=266}} compared to three and a half hours for ''Titanic''{{sfn|Brewster|Coulter|1998|pp=45 and 62}}).

The first to arrive on the scene were fishermen from Kea on their [[caïque]], who picked many survivors from the water.<ref>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|pp=261–262}}.</ref> At 10:00, {{HMS|Scourge|1910|6}} sighted the first lifeboats and 10 minutes later stopped and picked up 339 survivors. [[Armed boarding steamer]] HMS ''Heroic'' had arrived some minutes earlier and picked up 494.<ref name=MC262>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=262}}.</ref> Some 150 had made it to [[Korissia, Kea]], where surviving doctors and nurses from ''Britannic'' were trying to save the injured, using aprons and pieces of [[Lifebuoy|lifebelts]] to make dressings. A little barren quayside served as their operating room.{{citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

''Scourge'' and ''Heroic'' had no deck space for more survivors, and they left for [[Piraeus]] signalling the presence of those remaining at Korissia. {{HMS|Foxhound|1909|6}} arrived at 11:45 and, after sweeping the area, anchored in the small port at 13:00 to offer medical assistance and take on board the remaining survivors.<ref name=MC262 /> At 14:00 the light cruiser {{HMS|Foresight|1904|6}} arrived. ''Foxhound'' departed for Piraeus at 14:15 while ''Foresight'' remained to arrange the burial on Kea of RAMC Sergeant William Sharpe, who had died of his injuries. Another two survivors died on the ''Heroic'' and one on the French [[tugboat|tug]] ''Goliath''. The three were buried with military honours in the Piraeus Naval and Consular Cemetery.<ref>{{cite web|title=Cemetery Details {{!}} CWGC|url=https://www.cwgc.org/visit-us/find-cemeteries-memorials/cemetery-details/36007/PIRAEUS%20NAVAL%20AND%20CONSULAR%20CEMETERY/|access-date=2021-09-26|website=www.cwgc.org|language=en}}</ref> The last fatality was G. Honeycott, who died at the Russian Hospital at Piraeus shortly after the funerals.{{citation_needed|date=August 2019}}

In total, out of the 1,066 people on board, 1,036 people survived the sinking. Thirty people lost their lives in the disaster<ref>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|pp=325–327}}.</ref> but only five were buried; others were not recovered and are honoured on memorials in [[Thessaloniki]] (the [[Mikra British Cemetery|Mikra Memorial]]) and London. Another 38 were injured (18 crew, 20 RAMC).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://hmhsbritannic.weebly.com/crew-lists.html|title=Crew Lists|work=Hospital Ship HMHS Britannic|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150815084538/http://hmhsbritannic.weebly.com/crew-lists.html|archive-date=15 August 2015|df=dmy-all}}</ref> Survivors were accommodated in the warships that were anchored at the port of Piraeus while nurses and officers were hosted in separate hotels at [[Phaleron]]. Many Greek citizens and officials attended the funerals. Survivors were sent home, and few arrived in the United Kingdom before Christmas.<ref>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2011|p=264}}.</ref>

In November 2006, ''Britannic'' researcher Michail Michailakis discovered that one of the 45 unidentified graves in the New British Cemetery in the town of [[Hermoupolis]] on the island of [[Syros]] contained the remains of a soldier collected from the church of Ag. Trias at Livadi (the former name of Korissia). Maritime historian Simon Mills contacted the [[Commonwealth War Graves Commission]]. Further research established that this soldier was a ''Britannic'' casualty, and his remains had been registered in October 1919 as belonging to a certain "Corporal Stevens".<ref name="Mills, Simon 2009">{{cite journal|title=The Odyssey of Sergeant William Sharpe|author= Mills, Simon|journal= Titanic Commutator |volume=33|number=186|date=2009|publisher= Titanic Historical Society}}</ref>

When the remains were moved to the new cemetery at Syros in June 1921, it was found that there was no record relating this name with the loss of the ship, and the grave was registered as unidentified. Mills provided evidence that this man could be Sergeant Sharpe and the case was considered by the [[Service Personnel and Veterans Agency]].<ref name="Mills, Simon 2009"/> A new headstone for Sharpe was erected and the CWGC has updated its database.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/1648073/SHARPE,%20WILLIAM |website=CWGC |title=CWGC Record for Sharpe |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402142516/http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/1648073/SHARPE,%20WILLIAM |archive-date=2 April 2015 |df=dmy-all }}</ref>