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The largest steamship in the world in the second half of the 19th century. Launched in 1858, it was unsurpassed in length until the launching of the Oceania in 1899 and in displacement until the launching of the Lusitania in 1906. The Great Eastern was constructed for the Eastern Steam Navigation Co., a British corporation formed in 1852 to maintain an ocean steam route from Great Britain to Australia around the Cape of Good Hope. In 1853 the directors concluded that, because of the cost of maintaining coaling stations on the way, such a route would not pay unless the carrier could carry enough coal for the voyage out and home, besides a large number of passengers and a sizable cargo. The result was the Great Eastern, designed by the British engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel. The ship took five years to build, had a displacement of 22,500 tons, a length of 211 m (693 ft), a width of 37 m (120 ft), and a depth of hull of 18 m (58 ft). The iron hull had both screw and paddle-wheel propulsion, with auxiliary power from 5435 sq m (6500 sq yd) of sail on six masts. The ship had five funnels, each 30 m (100 ft) high and 2 m (6 ft) in diameter. The paddle wheels were 18 m (58 ft) in diameter, the propeller 7 m (24 ft). Despite the elaborate planning for the Great Eastern and the renown it gained because of its size, it was a financial failure. It is best remembered as the ship that laid the first successful Atlantic cable and several other cables. It was scrapped in 1889. |
was the greatest artist ever to work in iron. He was remarkably thorough, and the Great Eastern reflected that care. It was to be a passenger liner, and no cost was spared in making it safe. It had a double hull. It was honeycombed with bulkheads that created almost 50 water-tight compartments.
The Great Eastern was actually overdesigned and inefficient, |
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