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Titanic Musicians' Memorial

Titanic Musicians' Memorial is a commemorative monument in Southampton, United Kingdom, erected in memory of the musicians who died in the sinking of the RMS Titanic on 15 April 1912. The original monument was unveiled on 19 April 1913 by Southampton mayor H. Bowyer and stood in the old Southampton library, which was destroyed in World War II bombing. A copy was erected in 1990. The memorial includes the opening lines of the Christian hymn Nearer, My God, to Thee by Sarah Flower Adams, a carving showing a mourning woman and an iceberg, and an inscription naming the Titanic musicians, including bandleader Wallace Hartley.

Titanic Musicians\' Memorial plaque with a central mourning figure and engraved names on a brick wall.
The Titanic Musicians\' Memorial in Southampton, showing the marble plaque with its carved mourning figure and commemorative inscriptions.
May 2011 © · CC BY-SA 3.0
Titanic Musicians\' Memorial stone plaque mounted on a brick wall with inscriptions and a central relief carving.
The Titanic Musicians\' Memorial features an inscribed stone plaque with a relief carving mounted on a brick wall.
July 2005 © · CC BY-SA 2.0
Titanic Musicians\' Memorial plaque set in a red brick archway with carved inscriptions and a relief of a musician playing an instrument.
The Titanic Musicians\' Memorial in Southampton, shown as a stone plaque with inscriptions and a central carved relief.
· CC BY-SA 3.0
Detail of the Titanic Musicians\' Memorial showing a white marble relief of a kneeling figure reaching toward a listing ship, with musical notation below.
Central relief detail from the Titanic Musicians\' Memorial in Southampton, showing a kneeling figure, a listing ship, and carved musical notation.
March 2012 © · CC BY-SA 3.0

Identification

TitleTitanic Musicians' Memorial
Typememorial plaque / commemorative relief

Historical context

Subjectthe musicians who died in the Titanic disaster
Event commemoratedthe sinking of the RMS Titanic on 15 April 1912
Music contextafter the Titanic hit an iceberg, the band gathered in the first-class lounge, then moved to the forward boat deck and continued playing while lifeboats were loaded; many survivors said they played until the end
Final songunclear; 'Nearer, My God, to Thee' is the popular identification, but 'O God, Our Help in Ages Past' was also claimed as a possible song

Creator

Replacement makerW. Cornish of Woolston

Discovery and provenance

Replacement date1990
Replacement unveiled byTitanic survivors Edith Haisman, Millvina Dean, Bertram Dean, and Eva Hart
Replacement unveiled date7 March 1990
Replacement locationon the same site, on the side of the offices of Paris Smith solicitors at the corner of Cumberland Place and London Road, Southampton
Original fatedestroyed in the Luftwaffe bombing of 1940, together with the old Southampton Library
Original unveiled byH. Bowyer, Mayor of Southampton
Original unveiling date19 April 1913
Original locationnext to the old Southampton Library, Southampton

Physical characteristics

Formplaque with a carved relief
Decorative elementsa carved grieving woman, an iceberg, and the names of the dead on both sides of the relief

Materials

Inscription sourcethe Christian hymn 'Nearer, My God, to Thee' by Sarah Flower Adams

Appearance

Inscription textthe opening verses of 'Nearer, My God, to Thee'
Additional inscriptionthe names of the Titanic musicians, including bandleader Wallace Hartley

Iconography and meaning

Significance of inscription'Nearer, My God, to Thee' became associated with the Titanic because one passenger reported that the ship's band played it as the ship sank
DedicateesWallace Hartley, Roger Marie Bricoux, Theodore Ronald Brailey, John Wesley Woodward, John Frederick Preston Clarke, John Law Hume, Percy Cornelius Taylor, and Georges Alexandré Krins
Dedicatees' rolesHartley: bandmaster and violin; Bricoux: cello; Brailey: piano; Woodward: cello; Clarke: string bass and viola; Hume: violin; Taylor: piano; Krins: violin
Dedicatees' fateall died in the Titanic disaster

Location and ownership

Current locationSouthampton, United Kingdom