The Titanic Conspiracy

CONSPIRACY RATING: 3 (SOME TRUTH)

The Titanic conspiracy puts conventional wisdom on its head, as any good conspiracy theory should.

This conspiracy claims that the tragic sinking of the world’s largest passenger ship, as it sailed through icy North Atlantic waters in 1912, was not an accident! It was deliberately sunk in order to kill wealthy businessmen opposed to the establishment of a central bank in America, the Federal Reserve, which was created one year later in 1913.

Why would someone sink the largest, most expensive, most famous ship of its day, and kill 1,500 people just to enable the creation of a bank? Wouldn’t there be an easier and less costly way to create a central bank? After researching the tumultuous history of central banks in the United States, apparently not. This long-standing struggle over private, central banking in the U.S. is what lends credence to the Titanic conspiracy.

The Battle over Central Banking in the USA

In the United States during the 18th and 19th centuries, the establishment of a private, central bank was fiercely fought over. In the 1780s Alexander Hamilton and his Federalist party advocated for a central, national bank in order to best control and guide the young nation’s economy and establish good credit with European trading partners.

After all, this was the model upon which European banks, controlled by the very wealthy and infamous Rothschild family, were able to amass great wealth and control over the unwashed populations of Europe. Why shouldn’t America follow the European way that produced so much wealth?

But didn’t America fight a war of revolution and break away from England for economic freedom and independence? Yes.

That’s exactly what other early Americans argued, led by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. They understood that central, private banking robbed ordinary people of wealth through methods invisible to everyday people (inflation). Further, central banks mostly benefited wealthy merchants and business owners by providing them with easy access to capital (money for enterprises).

Jefferson and Madison also opposed a central bank that would mint official government monies since the Constitution, in Article I, Section 8, explicitly grants Congress the exclusive authority to issue money. They believed this centralization of power, away from local banks, was dangerous to a sound monetary system. They firmly believed that sound money was the key to wealth creation and a healthy society where wealth is more evenly distributed and people’s freedoms are protected against corrupt governments.

“It is impossible to grasp the meaning of the idea of sound money if one does not realize that it was devised as an instrument for the protection of civil liberties against despotic inroads on the part of governments.” — Ludwig von Mises (1881-1973)

The First and Second Banks of the United States

When the country was founded in 1776, Jefferson and Madison’s ideals of freedom, sound money and self-sovereignty held sway for the new country. But as first Secretary of the Treasury, Hamilton created the First Bank of the USA, a private, central bank, in Philadelphia in 1791 with a 20-year charter.

Twenty percent of the bank would be owned by the U.S. government, paid for with money lent to it by the bank itself (how convenient!), and the other 80% would be owned by private interests domestically and abroad. Its primary goal was to stabilize the economy and centralize individual state debts incurred during the Revolutionary war with England. 

When it came time to renew the charter for the First Bank of the USA in 1811, Congress failed to do so and the sound money movement, led by Jefferson and Madison, was victorious. But the banking interests of Europe were well funded and eventually convinced Congress to issue a second federal bank charter in 1816 for another “private bank with public responsibilities” called the Second Bank of the USA.

This second attempt to establish an American central bank, it was said, was needed to help repay the debts incurred with European Rothschild banks from the war of 1812 with England. This aroused old suspicions of central banks with connections to Europe that could control and stifle the young country.

President Andrew Jackson in 1832 based his re-election campaign against the Second central bank and supported a “hard-money” policy, which could not be created by fiat and manipulated through corruption. He convinced America that rich bankers were dictating financial terms to the U.S. and robbing the country.

“You are a den of vipers [international bankers]! I intend to rout you out, and by the Eternal God I will rout you out. If the people only understood the rank injustice of our money and banking system, there would be a revolution before morning.” — Andrew Jackson

That would be the end of central banking in the United States for almost 80 years…but the European banking cartel never lost sight of the prize that was the U.S. 

“I sincerely believe that banking establishments are more dangerous than standing armies.” — Thomas Jefferson, third president of the U.S.

The Meeting on Jekyll Island

In 1910, seven men met on Jekyll Island just off the coast of Georgia to plan a Third Bank of the USA, this time called the Federal Reserve Bank. Again, it would be privately owned and designed to control the country’s currency and provide liquidity in times of financial duress; all for a fair price, of course.

At the meeting, Nelson Aldrich and Frank Vanderclip represented the Rockefeller oil and financial empire. Henry Davidson, Charles Norton, and Benjamin Strong represented the J.P. Morgan banking and railroad empire. Paul Warburg (American banker and early founder of Wells Fargo bank) represented the Rothschilds (European banking empire) “and the Jesuits who controlled the wealth of the Vatican. 

Since 1832, when Andrew Jackson kicked out the banksters, the U.S. was a free and sovereign country monetarily — free from the influence and corruptions inherent in central banking. The conspiracy claims that the Jesuits wished to finally get the free and independent U.S. back under control through central banking.

Whether central banks are bad or are a conspiracy, is a subject of another article and is up for debate. What is not in question is the substantial resistance that had built up in 19th century America against central banks.

“History records that the money changers have used every form of abuse, intrigue, deceit, and violent means possible to maintain their control over governments by controlling money and its issuance.” — James Madison

The Titanic Conspiracy to Eliminate Opposition to Central Banking

Three men were lured to the Titanic’s maiden voyage in the spring of 1912 and murdered, along with 1,500 other people:

1. John J. Astor (who may have been the richest man in America at the time with a net worth of $2.21 billion)
2. Benjamin Guggenheim (heir to the Guggenheim mining empire)
3. Isa Strauss (founder of Macy’s department store in New York)

All of them supposedly opposed the formation of the Federal Reserve (a.k.a., the Third Bank of the U.S.).

With the main opposition now dead, the Federal Reserve was created by an act of Congress in December 1913.

The Culprit who Eliminated the Competition

Who would do such a thing? The Titanic conspiracy fingers one of the richest and most powerful man in America as the culprit: J.P. Morgan.

In police detective terms, Morgan had the motive, the means, and the opportunity to carry out such a crime:

Motive: Morgan supported the formation of a Central bank that would be owned by private banks that he owned (now named Chase and Morgan Stanley). Morgan, along with others, would be in control of the nation’s money supply and would have the ability to create and give money to almost whomever he pleased.

Means: Morgan owned both the company that manufactured the Titanic (International Mercantile Marine Co.) and the company that owned the Titanic (White Star Line). So, there was means to sabotage or intentionally destroy the “the ship that could never sink.”

Opportunity: Morgan controlled the manufacture of the Titanic and supposedly insisted on strange features such as the first electrical lock to seal closed all lower decks (so people could not escape?). He was also able to convince Astor, Guggenheim and Strauss to buy tickets on the Titanic since it was the most luxurious, most impressive ship ever built.

The maiden launch of the Titanic was a major world event that captured the imaginations of people around the world. To be on this maiden voyage was seen as highly prestigious and exclusive. Of course, Morgan himself was booked to sail on the ship, too. But at the last minute, Morgan cancelled, citing the need to spend more time in Europe for shopping.

And is it just a coincidence that, 15 days before the Titanic sank, an insurance policy for $5 million was taken out for the “total loss” of the ship?

“I care not what puppet is placed upon the throne of England to rule the Empire on which the sun never sets. The man that controls Britain’s money supply controls the British Empire, and I control the British money supply.” — Baron Nathan Mayer de Rothschild, 1840-1915

What About the Iceberg?

But an iceberg — not a man — sank the Titanic, so we are told. What we’re not told are the circumstances leading up to the crash with the fatal iceberg.

The captain of the Titanic was Captain Edward Smith, supposedly a Jesuit tempore co-adjutor. Assuming the Titanic conspiracy was orchestrated by the Jesuits to take control of America through a central banking system designed to enslave the populace, Smith would be the key accomplice.

Smith, a master navigator of the Atlantic with 26 years’ experience sailing the North Atlantic waters, allegedly sailed directly into iceberg territory at FULL SPEED, failing to heed the numerous warnings given by other ships that night to decrease speed and tread carefully.

Basically, he was ordered to destroy the ship:

“Edward Smith was given an order to sink the Titanic and that is exactly what he did. By the command of God, [the Jesuit General] it is lawful to murder the innocent, to rob, to commit all lewdness, because he [the Pope] is Lord of life, and death, and of all things; and thus to fulfill his mandate is our duty.” — W.C. Brownlee, Secret Instructions of the Jesuits, American and Foreign Christian Union, p. 143

Problems with the Titanic Conspiracy

First, while the deaths of the wealthy and powerful aboard the Titanic are very suspicious, we could not find any evidence that the three men (Astor, Guggenheim, and Strauss) directly opposed the creation of a new central bank (Federal Reserve). Please comment below if you have evidence to the contrary!

Second, while the creation of a new central bank in America was a huge prize for private bankers, would they actually kill 1,500 people to achieve it? That would be a very evil conspiracy, analogous to this century’s murders of thousands in New York City on September 11, 2001.

Last, while it is highly implausible that a master sailor with Smith’s extensive expertise in North Atlantic waters would be such a reckless and irresponsible Captain of the Titanic, a suicide mission is always hard to believe.

Without more proof, we cannot give the Titanic conspiracy better than a 3 rating — “Some Truth.” Please let us know what we’re missing and we’ll be happy to update this article and the rating appropriately.