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| The ship in Bristol. This 1844 photograph is believed to be the oldest surviving photo of any ship |
The SS Great Britain was by far the largest ship in the world when completed in 1843. Designed by the legendary Isambard Kingdom Brunel, she was also considered the most advanced ship of her time, largely due to her feature of both an iron hull and a huge propeller powered by the largest steam engine on the seas at the time.
At 322ft (98m) long, she is 3.7 times shorter than the MS Oasis of the Seas and at 3,675 tons, she is 61 times lighter than the largest passenger ship presently. To be fair though, comparing the Great Britain to the Oasis of the Seas is a little like comparing the Wright Flier to the Airbus A380 – completely unrealistic.
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| The first class dining room, in characteristic Victorian style |
The Great Britain is currently a well-preserved museum ship in a Bristol dry dock. Visitors can explore the interior and exterior (even the giant propeller is visible under glass).
With a capacity of 360 (later increased to 730) passengers and 130 crew, her total initial capacity was 490 people, 6.7 times less than that of Titanic, launched 69 years later.
3rd Class accommodation consisted of little more than rows of berths in terribly claustrophobic conditions. 1st Class was better off with amenities such as fresh water available in all cabins. By modern standards, it would still be an uncomfortable way to make a 14-day transatlantic crossing though.
Livestock was kept on deck so that there would be a constant supply of fresh meat, eggs and poultry. The ship had no refrigeration which called for the need of fresh supplies for its passengers and crew.
Despite her luxury, she was a financial disappointment. Considerably delayed and 1.7 times more expensive than planned, she was sold in 1852 and refitted with an extra upper deck to suitably transport emigrants from the UK to Australia.
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| Aboard her deck |
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