Nearly a century after the Titanic sank on its ill-fated maiden journey in 1912, a new theory about the cause of the iceberg collision has been brought forth. Novelist Louise Patten, granddaughter of Charles Lightoller, who served as the Titanic’s Second Officer, blames an error committed by the steersman. In an interview with The Independent, Patten explains that sailing ships and steam ships used different steering systems during that era. Each system was the complete opposite of the other. “So a command to turn ‘hard a-starboard’ meant turn the wheel right under one system and left under the other…The steersman panicked and the real reason why Titanic hit the iceberg, which has never come to light before, is because he turned the wheel the wrong way.” In another interview published by Reuters, Patten also blames J. Bruce Ismay, chairman of White Star Line, the company that owned the Titanic, for pushing the captain to continue sailing, causing the ship to sink hours faster than if it had stood still.

Lightoller was not on duty during the collision, but claimed to have learned about the mistakes at a meeting of the ship’s officers shortly before the Titanic sank. In two separate inquiries after the disaster, the officer kept quiet about the errors out of concern that the revelations would bankrupt White Star Line, and put numerous people out of work. Lightoller died before granddaughter Patten was born, but had confided his story to his wife, who then discussed it in detail with Patten. The family had previously kept silent about their knowledge, fearing Lightoller’s reputation would become sullied. After the Titanic tragedy, the seaman went on to become a war hero, captaining a small ship that rescued British soldiers on the shore of Dunkirk. Now, with the upcoming release of her new novel, Good as Gold (Quercus Publishing Plc, 320pgs), which incorporates elements of her grandfather’s account into the story line, Patten has made the information public.