Charles Lightoller

Charles Herbert Lightoller was the second officer on board the RMS Titanic and a decorated Royal Navy officer. He was the most senior member of the crew to survive the Titanic disaster.

As an officer in charge of loading passengers into lifeboats, Lightoller not only enforced with utmost strictness the "women and children first" protocol; he also effectively extended it to mean "women and children only". In pursuance of this principle, Lightoller lowered lifeboats with empty seats if there were no women or children waiting to board. Indeed, Lightoller is known to have permitted exactly one adult male passenger to board a lifeboat, namely Arthur Godfrey Peuchen, who was permitted to board a lifeboat (no.6) that was otherwise full of women, because he had sailing experience and could help navigate the boat. Lightoller stayed until the last, was sucked against a grate and held until he was under water, but then was blown from the grate from a rush of warm air as a boiler exploded. He clung to a capsized collapsible boat with 30 others until their rescue.

Lightoller served as an officer of the Royal Navy during the First World War and while commanding HMS Garry, rammed and sank the German U-Boat UB-110, for which Lightoller was decorated for gallantry.

Later, in retirement, he further distinguished himself in the Second World War by providing and sailing as a volunteer on one of the "little ships". His personal yacht had been requisitioned by the Admiralty for wartime service, and during the Dunkirk evacuation he sailed it there and back personally.