Titanic Commemoration - a week in review

Well what a week! It's almost four weeks since the Titanic Week and it was Titanic in many ways. Firstly, for all of us at the Commodore Hotel, its taken weeks to recover; we were just flat out for the week...and this blogger was just burnt out (that's why there hasn't been a post for some time). The volume of people in the hotel and in the town in general was just phenomenal....and this was sustained for 7 days flat! It had to be seen to be believed. Many of the older staff likened it to the Tall Ships event in 1991, but even that was only over 2 days. The Titanic 100 event co-ordinators reported that over 58,000 people had passed through the marquee on the Deep Water Quay alone. The Tourist Office reported that they had 10,000 enquiries during the week, equivalent to their entire traffic for one year. They also estimate that approximately 5% of tourists to the town visit them. On that basis, estimates of the numbers visiting the town range from 100,000 to 200,000 people. It certainly felt like it!!!

All this activity didn't escape the media attention either. Tv Stations, Radio Stations, and Newspapers were very much in evidence all week. Many of the throngs of people were interviewed by Sky News, BBC, ITV, RTE, TV3, TnaG and many others. Coverage of the week appeared right around the globe. One ex-Navy Officer reported that his brother had watched reports on the activities on TV in Singapore. Other similar reports came in from Portugal, Sweden, Australia, the UK, etc.,.... For one week Cobh was the centre of the World's attention. Wow!!!

....and while Cobh was under so much scrutiny and attention the event co-ordinators and local officials did us proud. Well done to Marc Anderson and his crew at Titanic 100!!! They did a great job! What a great programme of events they put together for the week...and it was all done in great taste and befitting the commemorative nature of the occasion. Well done!!!

Our local Mayor, Jim Quinlan, also did a superb job. What a great orator! Jim's speeches were full of passion, vigour and commanding. In fact, he stole the limelight on the day of the President's visit and even outshone the President himself. In fairness, Jim has great presence and we're all proud of his contribution during the week. It was great to be from Cobh that week and everyone from Cobh felt very proud to be from Cobh. What a great job the town did in general!!!

The whole week kicked off earlier than expected. The official start was on the Wednesday 11th April, the 100th anniversary of Titanic's visit to Queenstown. However, on Easter Bank Holiday Monday crowds appeared in Cobh. 'Appeared' might be the wrong term, 'swamped' might be more like it. Curiosity must have been a big factor; people were just curious to see what was going on in Cobh. In fairness, this was fuelled by such things as the stage constructed for the 'An Irish Connection' series of concerts which was complete then and looked awesome....so awesome, in fact, that even U2 would have been proud of it! The arrival of the cruise liner 'Balmoral' was another factor. The Balmoral was retracing the voyage of the Titanic, but had to arrive in Cobh two days earlier than the Titanic if it was to make it in time to the site of Titanic's sinking on the exact 100th anniversary of Titanic striking the iceberg. Isn't it amazing to think that a ship 100 years ago would be much faster than a ship of today. Of course today's liners are geared more towards leisurely cruises; ocean going liners of yesteryear were the main modes of transatlantic passage, where speed was of the essence.

On Tuesday evening many got a taste of what to expect with the upcoming commemorative concerts. A full dress rehearsal took place and international artists Cara O'Sullivan, Cathy Jordan and Paul Byrom went through their paces. It was awesome! An enthusiastic crowd of several hundred onlookers were blown away. It was then we knew we were in for something special!!!

It just got better and better. On Wednesday the President was due to inaugurate the commemorative series of events. The crowds were out in their thousands. Just prior to his arrival, we at the Commodore Hotel conducted our own commemoration to those who had perished. At 1.55pm, the exact time that Titanic left Queenstown 100 years before, we released 123 white balloons to signify the 123 passengers who boarded at Queenstown. As we did so the Commodore choir sang 'Nearer my God to thee' from the steps of the hotel. It was a very moving and poignant moment. We were just in time, for minutes later, President Michael D. Higgins arrived. He proceeded down to Casement Square where he inspected a Naval Guard of Honour. There wasn't room to move there. The crowds of onlookers must have numbered in their thousands, if not 'tens' of thousands. From there he moved onto the main stage in the promenade and again here there were thousands in the audience. It was here that the President gave a moving and poignant National Tribute to all those who perished onboard Titanic and to those who survived but were marked by the tragedy for the rest of their lives. He was followed by our own Major, Jim Quinlan, who also gave a magnificent and befitting speech. This was followed by a ceremony launching four special commemorative stamps which will be available this year....and after that the President was whisked off to conduct a Fleet Review. This was historic in its own right. A full Naval Fleet Review has only been conducted on rare occasions. Five ships took part, including one from the Royal Navy, HMS Mersey. The President boarded the L.E. Niamh at the Deep Water Quay, and this took him down the line of naval ships anchored parallel to the shore on Cobh and back up again. As the L.E. Niamh neared the final ship in the line, the weather, that had been so kind all day, finally broke....and, ironically, there was a tremendous hailstone shower. How symbolic...and what a way to end proceedings. As one smart observer quipped '.....you even organised the ice!'

Wednesday night was the first night of the concerts, and what superb concerts they turned out to be. What a setting the promenade had been transformed into with a magnificent stage and seating capacity for 1000 people....but its the concerts themselves that left an abiding memory with all who attended. If you were one of the lucky ones who attended over the four nights you'll know what I mean. The concerts were very well put together, extremely moving, poignant and befitting the commemorative nature of the entire occasion. The artists were superb! The orchestra were superb! The MC was superb! Many remarked that it is the one memory of the Titanic week that they will probably remember for the rest of their life and they were extremely glad they made the choice to attend. I know I was!

On Thursday the cruise liner Marco Polo arrived into Cobh on its Titanic Memorial Cruise. As with the Balmoral on Monday, many of the passengers alighted in period costume. As the ship was overnighting in Cobh the passengers had plenty of time to soak up the atmosphere in the town and take in the many activities.



Many took time to visit the stands and stalls of local artisans that were housed in the marquee on the Deep Water Quay. Indeed, this proved to be a very popular attraction with all visitors to the town, all week. 

What proved very popular with Marco Polo passengers was the giant mural of Titanic painted on the main retaining wall on the Low Road. This could be seen from the ship and many ventured down the quay, made their way to the first bridge, crossed over the railway lines and had their picture taken with the mural in the background. This fabulous painting was only completed the weekend before and was the work of local artist, Jack Hickey. He did a superb job and the detail in the painting was exact! This was one of the main projects undertaken by Cobh Tidy Towns to ready the town for the Titanic commemorations, and is one that will last for many years to come.

....and the pace of activities continued unabated until by Saturday it became almost information overload! One of the main events on Saturday was a search and rescue display by the Irish Coast Guard. This involved the Ballycotton lifeboat, the RNLI, coastguard helicopters, etc.,... One of the key displays was of equipment used in rescues at the time of the Titanic. This was compared to modern day techniques to highlight the difference. This proved very popular with families, who thronged all the viewing points in the promenade for the best vantage point. Luckily, it was a fairly sunny and warm afternoon!


Saturday afternoon also saw the final of the best dressed lady in the vintage dress competition. This event was a great success and was well supported. Many local ladies, and a few from further afield, went to great lengths to dress up in period costume, and it wasn't just on Saturday but on every day during the week. As they strolled through the town they certainly added to the atmosphere and sense of occasion. In fact, one couple from the Balmoral when interviewed on BBC News remarked that they were so taken by the costumes on arrival to Cobh and by the sense of occasion that they returned to the ship and donned their own period dress. Much credit is due to local Cobh Tourism director, Claire Cullinane, whose brainchild this project was and whose enthusiasm for the concept was infectious. Claire hopes to keep it going and has encouraged our participating ladies to don their period costume for all the liner visits for the remainder of the year. The winner of the event was from Dublin and was on her holidays with her family in West Cork but who was so taken by the event she travelled up every day to Cobh to participate. Well done!

Also, adding to the sense of occasion was the vintage car rally organised by Cobh Classic Car Club. Many of the cars on display along the full stretch of Westbourne Place were cars from the Titanic era. What a magnificent sight! They certainly proved very popular with the throngs of visitors. This was the inaugural Cobh Classical Car Show and it is hoped to maintain this as an annual event from here on in.

That night the Irish Titanic Historical Society hosted a commemorative dinner in the Commodore Hotel to mark the final dinner in the Titanic. The menu on the night was based entirely on menus used on the Titanic. At exactly 11.40pm, a bell was rung throughout the Hotel to mark the exact moment that the Titanic struck the iceberg 100 years ago and, despite the fact that being a Saturday night the Hotel was extremely busy, a minutes silence was respectively observed throughout (including in the Nightclub)!

Sunday was probably the most symbolic day. It started off early with a wreath laying ceremony on-board the L.E. Eithne at the exact site that the Titanic anchored at the mouth of the Harbour. Members of the public, the Irish Titanic Historical Society, local councillors, etc.,... were ferried to the spot by the naval vessel where wreaths were laid and a short service took place.

This was followed by an ecumenical church service at the Cathedral and following this the congregation gathered in a procession from the Cathedral to the closing ecumenical service in the promenade. By the time it had reached there several thousand people numbered in the crowd. After the formalities and service were complete from the stage members of the public were invited to throw 1500 white flowers from the promenade seafront into the sea to symbolise all those who perished in Titanic. This was probably the most symbolic act all week. As each of the audience stepped forward and threw their flower into the sea a steady procession of white flowers drifted down stream in the ebbing tide towards the Harbour mouth. How fitting an end to a most extraordinary week!

Well now that its all over what can we say. Well done to the crew of Titanic 100! Well done to Cobh! Well done to the people of Cobh! It was a very special week; a week that may never be repeated (although, we certainly hope it will), but a week that will always remain in the memories of those who were there. It was a week that will be remembered in a 100 years time and for that alone it served as a fitting tribute and commemoration of that terrible tragedy 100 years ago. On that count alone one would have to be very proud of Cobh; indeed, I for one was very proud to be from Cobh! Well done to all!!!