This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (March 2012)

This article may be expanded with text translated from the corresponding article in the French Wikipedia. (July 2011) Don't speak French? Click here to read a machine-translated version of the French article. Click [show] on the right to review important translation instructions before translating. Google's machine translation is a useful starting point for translations, but translators must revise errors as necessary and confirm that the translation is accurate, rather than simply copy-pasting machine-translated text into English Wikipedia. Do not translate text that appears unreliable or low-quality. If possible, verify the text with references provided in the foreign-language article. After translating, {{Translated|fr|Britannic}} must be added to the talk page to ensure copyright compliance. For more guidance, see Wikipedia:Translation.

Britannic
Career
Name:	HMHS Britannic
Owner:	White Star Line
Builder:	Harland and Wolff, Belfast
Laid down:	30 November 1911
Launched:	26 February 1914
In service:	23 December 1915 (hospital ship)
Fate:	Sunk by mine on 21 November 1916 near Kea (island)
General characteristics
Class and type:	Olympic-class ocean liner
Tonnage:	48,158 gross register tons
Displacement:	53,000 tons
Length:	882 ft 9 in (269.06 m)
Beam:	94 ft (29 m)
Draught:	34 ft 7 in (10.54 m)
Installed power:	24 double-ended, 5 single-ended (coal-fired) boilers[1] Two four-cylinder triple-expansion reciprocating engines, each producing 16,000 hp (12,000 kW) for outboard wing propellers, one low-pressure turbine producing 18,000 hp (13,000 kW) for the centre propeller Total 50,000 hp (37,000 kW)
Propulsion:	Two bronze triple-blade outboard wing propellers One bronze quadruple-blade central propeller
Speed:	21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph) 23 knots (43 km/h; 26 mph) (maximum)
Capacity:	675 as hospital ship (300 wounded, 489 medical staff)
Crew:	860
Notes:	Carried no civilian passengers; 1,066 onboard at time of sinking

Coordinates: 37°42′05″N 24°17′02″E / 37.70139°N 24.28389°E / 37.70139; 24.28389 HMHS Britannic was the third and largest Olympic-class ocean liner of the White Star Line. She was the sister ship of RMS Olympic and RMS Titanic, and was intended to enter service as a transatlantic passenger liner. She was launched just before the start of the First World War and was laid up at her builders in Belfast for many months before being put to use as a hospital ship in 1915. In that role she struck an underwater mine off the Greek island of Kea, in the Kea Channel on the morning of 21 November 1916, and sank with the loss of 30 lives.

There were a total of 1,066 people on board, with 1,036 survivors taken from the water and lifeboats, about two hours after the ship sank at 9:07 am. The Britannic was the largest ship lost during the First World War.

History[link]

[edit] Post-Titanic design changes

Following the loss of the Titanic and the subsequent inquiries, several design changes were made to the remaining Olympic-class liners. With Britannic, these changes were made before launching. (Olympic was refitted on her return to Harland and Wolff.) The main changes included the introduction of a double hull along the engine and boiler rooms and raising six out of the 15 watertight bulkheads up to B Deck. A more obvious external change was the fitting of large crane-like davits, each capable of holding six lifeboats. Additional lifeboats could be stored within reach of the davits on the deckhouse roof, and in an emergency the davits could even reach lifeboats on the other side of the vessel. The aim of this design was to enable all the lifeboats to be launched, even if the ship developed a list that would normally prevent lifeboats being launched on the side opposite to the list. However, several of these davits were placed abreast of funnels, defeating that purpose.^[2] Similar davits were not fitted to Olympic. The ship carried 48 lifeboats, capable of carrying at least seventy-five people each. In the ship's sinking, only 37 of them were lowered (but two were lost in the propellers, along with their occupants), meaning 11 of them were not even necessary. Even if a full complement of 300 wounded soldiers were on board, there would still be about 450 seats left to spare.

Britannic's hull was also 2 feet (0.6 m) wider than her predecessors, following the redesign after the loss of Titanic. To keep to a 21-knot (39 km/h; 24 mph) service speed, the shipyard installed one larger turbine rated for 18,000 horsepower (13,000 kW)—versus Olympic's and Titanic's all 16,000 horsepower (12,000 kW)—to compensate for the vessel's extra width.

Rumoured name-change[link]

Although the White Star Line and the Harland & Wolff shipyard always denied it,^[2][3] many^{[clarification needed]} sources say that the ship was supposed to be named Gigantic.^[4] A copy of the Harland & Wolff order book dated October 1911 - about six months before the Titanic disaster - already shows the name Britannic, according to Simon Mills (owner of the Britannic wreck). Tom McCluskie stated that in his capacity as Archive Manager and Historian at Harland & Wolff, he "never saw any official reference to the name "Gigantic" being used or proposed for the third of the Olympic class vessels". ^[5][6] Some hand-written changes were added to the order book and dated January 1912. However, these only dealt with the ship's moulded width, not her name.^[6] While it is still possible that the name Gigantic was originally intended for the liner, the above does dispel the notion that a potential name change resulted from the Titanic disaster, as the shipyard already listed the name as Britannic before her sister ship sank.

Construction[link]

Britannic's turbine engine being assembled

The keel for Britannic was laid in November 1911 at the Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast. Due to improvements introduced as a consequence of the Titanic disaster, Britannic was not launched until 26 February 1914. Fitting out began subsequently. She was constructed in the same gantry slip used to build RMS Olympic. Reusing Olympic's space saved the shipyard time and money by not clearing out a third slip similar in size to those used for Olympic and Titanic. In August 1914, before Britannic could commence transatlantic service between New York and Southampton, the First World War began. Immediately, all shipyards with Admiralty contracts were given top priority to use available raw materials. All civil contracts (including the Britannic) were slowed down. The military authorities requisitioned a large number of ships as armed merchant cruisers or for troop transport. The Admiralty was paying the companies for the use of their vessels but the risk of losing a ship during military operations was high. However, the big ocean liners were not taken for military use, because the smaller vessels were much easier to operate. White Star decided to withdraw RMS Olympic from service until the danger had passed. RMS Olympic returned to Belfast on 3 November 1914, while work on her sister continued slowly. All this would change in 1915.

Requisitioning[link]

Artist's conception of Britannic in her intended White Star livery.

The need for increased tonnage grew critical as military operations extended to the Eastern Mediterranean. In May 1915, Britannic completed mooring trials of her engines, and was prepared for emergency entrance into service with as little as four weeks notice. The same month also saw the first major loss of a civilian ocean vessel when the Cunard liner RMS Lusitania was torpedoed near the Irish coast by SM U-20.

The following month, the British Admiralty decided to use recently requisitioned passenger liners as troop transports during the Gallipoli campaign (also called the Dardanelles service). The first to sail were Cunard's RMS Mauretania and RMS Aquitania. As the Gallipoli landings proved to be disastrous and the casualties mounted, the need for large hospital ships for treatment and evacuation of wounded became evident. RMS Aquitania was diverted to hospital ship duties in August (her place as a troop transport would be taken by the RMS Olympic in September). Then on 13 November 1915, Britannic was requisitioned as a hospital ship from her storage location at Belfast. Repainted white with large red crosses and a horizontal green stripe, she was renamed HMHS (His Majesty's Hospital Ship) Britannic and placed under the command of Captain Charles A. Bartlett (1868–1945). She was also armed with four anti-torpedo guns.

Last voyage[link]

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (February 2011)

After completing five successful voyages to the Middle Eastern theatre and back to the United Kingdom transporting the sick and wounded, Britannic departed Southampton for Lemnos at 14:23 on 12 November 1916, her sixth voyage to the Mediterranean Sea. The Britannic passed Gibraltar around midnight on 15 November and arrived at Naples on the morning of 17 November, for her usual coaling and water refuelling stop, completing the first stage of her mission.

A storm kept the ship at Naples until Sunday afternoon, when Captain Bartlett decided to take advantage of a brief break in the weather and continue on. The seas rose once again just as Britannic left the port. However, by next morning, the storms died and the ship passed the Strait of Messina without problems. Cape Matapan was rounded during the first hours of Tuesday, 21 November. By the morning, Britannic was steaming at full speed into the Kea Channel, between Cape Sounion (the southernmost point of Attica, the prefecture that includes Athens) and the island of Kea.

There were a total of 1,066 people on board.

Explosion[link]

At 8:12 AM on 21 November 1916, a loud explosion shook the ship.^[7] The cause, whether it was a torpedo from an enemy submarine or a mine, was not apparent. The reaction in the dining room was immediate; doctors and nurses left instantly for their posts. Not everybody reacted the same way, as further aft, the power of the explosion was less felt, and many thought the ship had hit a smaller boat. Captain Bartlett and Chief Officer Hume were on the bridge at the time, and the gravity of the situation was soon evident.^[8] The explosion was on the starboard^[8] side, between holds two and three. The force of the explosion damaged the watertight bulkhead between hold one and the forepeak.^[7] The first four watertight compartments were filling rapidly with water^[7]. Also, the firemen's tunnel connecting the firemen's quarters in the bow with boiler room six was seriously damaged, and water was flowing into that boiler room.^[7]

Bartlett ordered the watertight doors closed, sent a distress signal and ordered the crew to prepare the lifeboats.^[7] Along with the damaged watertight door of the firemen's tunnel, the watertight door between boiler rooms six and five failed to close properly for an unknown reason.^[7] Water was flowing further aft into boiler room five. The Britannic had reached her flooding limit. She could stay afloat (motionless) with her first six watertight compartments flooded. There were five watertight bulkheads rising all the way up to B-deck.^[9] Those measures had been taken after the Titanic disaster. (Titanic could float with her first four compartments flooded, but the bulkheads rose only as high as E-deck.) The next crucial bulkhead between boiler rooms five and four and its door were undamaged and should have guaranteed the survival of the ship. However, there were open portholes along the lower decks, which tilted underwater within minutes of the explosion. The nurses had opened most of those portholes to ventilate the wards. As the ship's list increased, water reached this level and began to enter aft from the bulkhead between boiler rooms five and four. With more than six compartments flooded, the Britannic could not stay afloat.

Evacuation[link]

On the bridge, Captain Bartlett was trying to save his vessel. Only two minutes after the blast, boiler rooms five and six had to be evacuated. In about ten minutes, the Britannic was roughly in the same condition the Titanic had been in one hour after the collision with the iceberg. Fifteen minutes after the ship was struck, the open portholes on E-deck were underwater. Water also entered the ship's aft section from the bulkhead between boiler rooms five and four. The Britannic quickly developed a serious list to starboard. To his right Bartlett saw the shores of Kea, about three miles (5 km) away. He decided to make a last desperate effort to beach the ship at the island, where if successful she would have remained for the duration of the war. This was not an easy task because of the combined effect of the list and the weight of the rudder. The steering gear was unable to respond properly. However, by varying the speed of each propeller alone (giving more power to the port shaft), Britannic slowly started to turn to starboard.

Simultaneously, on the boat deck the crewmembers were preparing the lifeboats. Some of the boats were immediately rushed by a group of stewards and some sailors, who had started to panic. An unknown officer kept his nerve and persuaded his sailors to get out and stand by their positions near the boat stations. He decided to leave the stewards on the lifeboats because they were responsible for starting the panic, and he did not want them in his way during the evacuation. However, he left one of the crew with them in order to take charge of the lifeboat after leaving the ship. After this episode, all the sailors under his command remained at their posts until the last moment. As no RAMC personnel were near this boat station at that time, the officer started to lower the boats, but when he saw that the ship's engines were still turning, he stopped them within 2 metres (6 ft) of the water and waited for orders from the bridge. The occupants of the lifeboats did not take this decision very well and started cursing. Shortly after this, orders finally arrived: no lifeboats should be launched, as the Captain had decided to beach the Britannic at the nearby island.

Assistant Commander Harry William Dyke was making the arrangements for the lowering of the lifeboats from the aft davits of the starboard boat deck when he spotted a group of firemen who had taken a lifeboat from the poop deck without authorisation and had not filled it to maximum capacity. Dyke ordered them to pick up some of the men who had already jumped into the water.

At 08:30, two lifeboats from the boat station assigned to Third Officer David Laws were lowered, without his knowledge, through the use of the automatic release gear. Those two lifeboats dropped some 2 metres (6 ft) into the water and hit the water violently. The two lifeboats soon drifted back into the still-turning propellers, which were almost out of the water by now. As they reached the turning blades, both lifeboats, together with their occupants, were torn to pieces. Word of the carnage arrived on the bridge, and Captain Bartlett, seeing that water was entering more rapidly as Britannic was moving and that there was a risk of more victims, gave the order to stop the engines. The propellers stopped turning the moment a third lifeboat was about to be reduced to splinters. RAMC occupants of this boat pushed against the blades and got away from them safely.

Final moments[link]

Britannic sinks after hitting a mine, as depicted in the film Britannic.

The Captain officially ordered the crew to lower the boats and at 08:35, he gave the order to abandon ship. The forward set of port-side davits soon became useless. The unknown officer had already launched his two lifeboats and managed to launch rapidly one more boat from the aft set of portside davits. He then started to prepare the motor launch when First Officer Oliver came with orders from the Captain. Bartlett had ordered Oliver to get in the motor launch and use its speed to pick up survivors from the smashed lifeboats. Then he was to take charge of the small fleet of lifeboats formed around the sinking Britannic. After launching the motor launch with Oliver, the unknown officer filled another lifeboat with seventy-five men and launched it with great difficulty because the port side was now very high from the surface because of the list to starboard. By 08:45, the list to starboard was so great that no davits were operable. The unknown officer with six sailors decided to move to mid-ship on the boat deck to throw overboard collapsible rafts and deck chairs from the starboard side. About thirty RAMC personnel who were still left on the ship followed them. As he was about to order these men to jump then give his final report to the Captain, the unknown officer spotted Sixth Officer Welch and a few sailors near one of the smaller lifeboats on the starboard side. They were trying to lift the boat, but they had not enough men. Quickly, the unknown officer ordered his group of forty men to assist the Sixth officer. Together they managed to lift it, load it with men, then launch it safely.

At 09:00, Bartlett sounded one last blast on the whistle then was washed overboard, as water which had already reached the bridge. He swam to a collapsible boat and began to co-ordinate the rescue operations. The whistle blow was the final signal for the ship's engineers (commanded by Chief Engineer Robert Fleming) who, like their heroic colleagues on the Titanic, had remained at their posts until the last possible moment. They escaped via the staircase into funnel #4, which ventilated the engine room.

The Britannic rolled over onto her starboard side, and the funnels began collapsing. Violet Jessop (who was also one of the survivors of Britannic's sister-ship Titanic, as well as the third sister, Olympic, when she collided with HMS Hawke) described the last seconds:

"She dipped her head a little, then a little lower and still lower. All the deck machinery fell into the sea like a child's toys. Then she took a fearful plunge, her stern rearing hundreds of feet into the air until with a final roar, she disappeared into the depths, the noise of her going resounding through the water with undreamt-of violence...."

It was 09:07, only fifty-five minutes after the explosion. The Britannic was the largest ship lost during the First World War.^[10]

Rescue[link]

Some of the survivors aboard HMS Scourge

Compared to the Titanic, the rescue of the Britannic was facilitated by three factors: the temperature was higher (70 °F (21 °C)^[11] compared to 32 °F (0 °C)^[12] for the Titanic), more lifeboats were available (35 were launched and stayed afloat^[13] compared to Titanic's 20^[14]) and help was closer (arrived less than 2 hours after first distress call^[13] compared to 3½ hours for the Titanic^[15]).

The first to arrive on the scene were the Greek fishermen from Kea on their Caïque, who picked up many men from the water. One of them, Francesco Psilas, was later paid £4 by the Admiralty for his services. At 10:00, HMS Scourge sighted the first lifeboats and ten minutes later stopped and picked up 339 survivors. HMS Heroic had arrived some minutes earlier and picked up 494. Some 150 had made it to Korissia (a community on Kea), where surviving doctors and nurses from the Britannic were trying to save the horribly mutilated men, using aprons and pieces of lifebelts to make dressings. A little barren quayside served as their operating room. Although the motor launches were quick to transport the wounded to Korissia, the first lifeboat arrived there some two hours later because of the strong current and their heavy load. It was the lifeboat of Sixth Officer Welch and the unknown Officer. The latter was able to speak some French and managed to talk with one of the local villagers, obtaining some bottles of brandy and some bread for the injured.

The inhabitants of Korissia were deeply moved by the suffering of the wounded. They offered all possible assistance to the survivors and hosted many of them in their houses while waiting for the rescue ships. Violet Jessop approached one of the wounded. "An elderly man, in an RAMC uniform with a row of ribbons on his breast, lay motionless on the ground. Part of his thigh was gone and one foot missing; the grey-green hue of his face contrasted with his fine physique. I took his hand and looked at him. After a long time, he opened his eyes and said: 'I'm dying'. There seemed nothing to disprove him yet I involuntarily replied: 'No, you are not going to die, because I've just been praying for you to live'. He gave me a beautiful smile . . . That man lived and sang jolly songs for us on Christmas Day.”

The Scourge and Heroic had no deck space for more survivors and they left for Piraeus signalling the presence of those left at Korissia. Luckily, HMS Foxhound arrived at 11:45 and, after sweeping the area, anchored in the small port at 13:00 to offer medical assistance and take onboard the remaining survivors. At 14:00 arrived the light cruiser HMS Foresight. The Foxhound departed for Piraeus at 14:15 while the Foresight remained to arrange the burial on Kea of Sergeant W. Sharpe, who had died of his injuries. Another two men died on the Heroic and one on the French tug Goliath. The three were buried with military honours in the British cemetery at Piraeus. The last fatality was G. Honeycott, who died at the Russian Hospital at Piraeus shortly after the funerals.

1,036 people were saved. Thirty men lost their lives in the disaster but only five were buried. The others were left in the water and their memory is honoured in memorials in Thessaloniki and London. Another twenty-four men were injured. The ship carried no patients. The survivors were hosted in the warships that were anchored at the port of Piraeus. However, the nurses and the officers were hosted in separate hotels at Phaleron. Many Greek citizens and officials attended the funerals.

Wreck[link]

The wreck of HMHS Britannic is at 37°42′05″N 24°17′02″E / 37.70139°N 24.28389°E / 37.70139; 24.28389 in about 400 ft (120 m) of water. It was first discovered and explored by Jacques Cousteau in 1975.^[16] In 1976, he expressed the opinion that the ship had been sunk by a single torpedo, basing this opinion on the damage to her plates.^[17] The giant liner lies on her starboard side hiding the zone of impact with the mine. There is a huge hole just beneath the forward well deck. The bow is attached to the rest of the hull only by some pieces of the B-deck. This is the result of the massive explosion that destroyed the entire part of the keel between bulkheads two and three and of the force of impact with the seabed. The bow is heavily deformed as the ship hit the seabed before the total length of the 882 feet 9 inches (269 m) liner was completely submerged, as she sank in a depth of only 400 feet (120 m) of water. Despite this, the crew's quarters in the forecastle were found to be in good shape with many details still visible. The holds were found empty. The forecastle machinery and the two cargo cranes in the forward well deck are still there and are well preserved. The foremast is bent and lies on the sea floor near the wreck with the crow's nest still attached on it. The bell was not found. Funnel #1 was found a few metres from the Boat Deck. The other three funnels were found in the debris field (located off the stern). The wreck lies in shallow enough water that scuba divers trained in technical diving can explore it, but it is listed as a British war grave and any expedition must be approved by both the British and Greek governments.

In mid-1995, during an expedition filmed by NOVA, Dr. Robert Ballard visited the wreck, using advanced side-scan sonar. Images were obtained from remotely controlled vehicles, but the wreck was not penetrated. Ballard succeeded in locating all the ship's funnels, which proved to be in surprisingly good condition. Attempts to find mine anchors failed.

In August 1996, the wreck of HMHS Britannic became available for sale and was bought by maritime historian Simon Mills, who has written two books about the ship: Britannic-The Last Titan, and Hostage To Fortune. When Simon Mills was asked if he had all the money and support needed, what would his ideal vision be for the wreck of Britannic, he replied: "That's simple—to leave it as it is!"

In November 1997, an international team of divers led by Kevin Gurr used open-circuit trimix diving techniques to visit and film the wreck in the newly available DV digital video format.

In September 1998, another team of divers made a major expedition to the wreck.^[18] Using diver propulsion vehicles (DPVs), the team made more man-dives to the wreck and produced more images than ever before, including video of four telegraphs, a helm and a telemotor on the captain's bridge.^[19] John Chatterton became the first diver to visit Britannic using a closed-circuit rebreather, but his efforts to penetrate the firemen's tunnel using a rebreather were hampered by the poor reliability. Christina Campbell became the first woman to dive the wreck. The expedition was regarded as one of the biggest wreck diving projects ever undertaken. Time magazine published images shot during the expedition.

In 1999, GUE, divers acclimated to cave diving and ocean discovery, led the first dive expedition to include extensive penetration into Britannic. Video of the expedition was broadcast by National Geographic, BBC, the History Channel, and the Discovery Channel.^[20]

In 2003, an expedition led by Carl Spencer dove into the wreck. They found that several watertight doors were open. It has been suggested that this was because the mine strike coincided with the change of watches. Alternatively, the explosion may have distorted the doorframes. A number of mine anchors were located off the wreck by sonar expert Bill Smith, confirming the German records of U-73 that Britannic was sunk by a single mine and the damage was compounded by open portholes and watertight doors. Spencer's expedition was broadcast extensively across the world for many years by National Geographic and the UK's Channel 5.

In 2006, an expedition, funded and filmed by the History Channel, brought together fourteen skilled divers to help determine what caused the quick sinking of the Britannic. After preparation the crew dove on the wreck site on 17 September. Time was cut short when silt was kicked-up, causing zero visibility conditions, and the two divers narrowly escaped with their lives. One last dive was to be attempted on Britannic's boiler room, but it was discovered that photographing this far inside the wreck would lead to violating a permit issued by the Ephorate of Underwater Antiquities, a department within the Greek Ministry of Culture. Partly because of a barrier in languages, a last minute plea was turned down by the department. The expedition was unable to determine the cause of the rapid sinking, but hours of footage were filmed and important data was documented. Underwater Antiquities later recognized the importance of this mission and has since extended an invitation to revisit the wreck under less stringent rules. During this expedition, divers found a bulb shape in her expansion joint. This proved that her design was changed following the loss of Titanic.

On May 29, 2009, Carl Spencer, drawn back to his third underwater filming mission of Britannic, died in Greece due to equipment difficulties while filming the wreck for National Geographic.^[21]

Pipe organ[link]

A Welte Philharmonic Organ was originally planned to be installed on board the Britannic. Because of the outbreak of the First World War, the instrument never made its way over to Belfast.

During the restoration of the Welte-Organ, now in the Swiss National Museum in Seewen, the restorers detected in April 2007 that the main parts of the instrument were signed by the German organ builders with "Britanik".^[22] A photo of a drawing in a company prospectus, found in the Welte-legacy in the Augustiner Museum in Freiburg, proved that this was indeed the organ intended for the Britannic.^[23]

Film adaptation[link]

The sinking of the Britannic was dramatised in a 2000 film of the same name that featured Edward Atterton, Amanda Ryan and Jacqueline Bisset. The film took several liberties with the events aboard the vessel, depicting the sinking as being caused by an onboard saboteur rather than a naval mine.^[24]

Postcards[link]

Postcards depicting the Britannic

Britannic in the shipyard prior to its launch   Britannic shown at sea

References[link]

Bibliography[link]

• Brewster, Hugh; Coulter, Laurie (1998). 882¹⁄₂ Amazing Answers to your Questions about the Titanic. Madison Press Book. ISBN 978-0-590-18730-5. 
• Chirnside, Mark (2011) [2004]. The Olympic-Class Ships. Stroud, England: Tempus. ISBN 978-0-7524-2868-0. 
• Lord, Walter (2005) [1955]. A Night to Remember. New York: St. Martin's Griffin. ISBN 978-0-8050-7764-3. 

Further reading[link]

• Hostage to Fortune, by Simon Mills
• Atlantic Liners: A Trio of Trios, by J. Kent Layton

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: RMS Britannic

• Newsreel footage of the launching of HMHS Britannic, 1914
• Maritimequest HMHS Britannic Photo Gallery
• Britannic Home at Atlantic Liners
• NOVA Online-Titanic's Lost Sister (Companion website to the PBS special Titanic's Lost Sister)
• Hospital Ship Britannic
• About the origins of the Britannic Organ
• Carl Spencer – Daily Telegraph obituary

Selena Gomez
Gomez attending "The 6th Annual Hollywood Style Awards", Beverly Hills, CA on Oct. 10, 2009
Background information
Birth name	Selena Marie Gomez
Born	(1992-07-22) July 22, 1992 (age 19) Grand Prairie, Texas, U.S.
Genres	Pop, dance, pop rock[1]
Occupations	Actress, singer, Fashion Designer
Instruments	Vocals, piano, guitar, drums
Years active	2002–present
Labels	Hollywood
Associated acts	Selena Gomez & the Scene, Demi Lovato, Taylor Swift
Website	SelenaGomez.com

Selena Marie Gomez (born July 22, 1992)^[2] is an American actress and singer best known for portraying Alex Russo in the Emmy Award-winning Disney Channel television series Wizards of Waverly Place. She subsequently ventured into feature films and has starred in the television movies Another Cinderella Story, Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie, and Princess Protection Program. She made her starring theatrical film debut in Ramona and Beezus.

Her career has expanded into the music industry; Gomez is the lead singer and founder of the pop band Selena Gomez & the Scene, which has released three RIAA Gold certified studio albums, Kiss & Tell, A Year Without Rain, and When the Sun Goes Down, spawned three RIAA Platinum certified singles, "Naturally", "Who Says" and "Love You Like a Love Song" and charted four No. 1 Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs.^[3] Gomez has also contributed to the soundtracks of Tinker Bell, Another Cinderella Story, Wizards of Waverly Place, and Shake It Up after signing a record deal with Hollywood Records.

In 2008, Gomez was designated a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador.^[4]

Early life[link]

Gomez was born in Grand Prairie, Texas.^[2] She is the daughter of former stage actress Amanda Dawn "Mandy" Teefey (née Cornett) and Ricardo Joel Gomez.^[5][6][7] Her father is of Mexican ancestry, and her mother is of part Italian descent.^[8][9] Regarding her Hispanic heritage, Gomez said: "My family does have Quinceañeras, and we go to the communion church. We do everything that's Catholic, but we don't really have anything traditional except [that we] go to the park and have barbecues on Sundays after church."^[10] Her birth parents divorced when she was five years old, and she was raised as an only child by her working mother.^[5][11] In 2006, Mandy remarried Brian Teefey.^[12] She was named after Tejano singer Selena, who died almost three years after Gomez was born.^[13] In a 2009 interview with People, Gomez mentioned that she developed an early interest in acting from watching her mother prepare for and act in theater productions.^[11] She earned a high school diploma through homeschooling in May 2010.^[14]

Career[link]

[edit] 2002–06: Barney & Friends and early work

Gomez began her acting career at age seven, playing Gianna on Barney & Friends.^[15] She later had minor roles in Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over and the TV film Walker, Texas Ranger: Trial By Fire. Gomez also starred in the television movie Brain Zapped. (Selena Gomez also found out that she wanted to be an actress because in E Special she states that "I would also watch my mom on stage do her lines".)

In 2004, Gomez was discovered by the Disney Channel in a USA-wide scouting.^[16] Gomez appeared as a guest star on The Suite Life of Zack & Cody and had a guest appearance – that later turned into a recurring role – on Hannah Montana from seasons two to three. Gomez previously taped two different pilots that were spin-offs to two previous Disney series.^[17] The first one, What's Stevie Thinking?, was the spin-off to Lizzie McGuire. Gomez played Stevie Sanchez, Miranda Sanchez's little sister. The other show was titled Arwin!, the spin-off to The Suite Life of Zack & Cody, in which she played Alexa. Neither series was picked up.

[edit] 2007–09: Wizards of Waverly Place and Selena Gomez & The Scene

Gomez on the studio set of Wizards of Waverly Place before filming an episode for the show's first season in April 2007

In early 2007 Gomez was cast in the Disney Channel series Wizards of Waverly Place as one of the three main characters, Alex Russo. The show premiered to an audience of 5.9 million, becoming a hit. Many news outlets began dubbing Gomez the next 'Miley Cyrus' causing some controversy and a reported 'feud'. Gomez clarified that there was no feud and that she was flattered by the comparison, saying: "It's a little overwhelming, but I think really, it's a compliment. She's obviously extremely successful, and I think she's a wonderful performer ... So being compared to her, I was very, very flattered."^[18] Gomez recorded four songs, one of which was a cover, for theWizards of Waverly Place soundtrack, only one single (Magic) from the album was released.

In 2008, Gomez recorded a cover of "Cruella de Vil"—which included a music video—for the compilation albumDisneyMania 6. Gomez also recorded "Fly to Your Heart" for the 2008 animated film Tinker Bell. In July 2008, before Gomez' sixteenth birthday, she signed a recording deal with Hollywood Records, a music label owned by Disney.^[19] In May, of the same year, Gomez was featured, with Forever the Sickest Kids, on a duet version of the non-album song "Whoa Oh!".^[20] The same year Gomez appeared in Another Cinderella Story, the direct-to-DVD sequel to the 2004 Hilary Duff film, opposite Drew Seeley. She also had a minor voiceover role as one the Mayor's ninety-six daughters in Horton Hears a Who! which released in March of that year. In April, Lacey Rose, of Forbes ranked Gomez as being fifth on their "Eight Hot Kid Stars To Watch" list; and Rose described Gomez as having been "a multitalented teen".^[21] Gomez recorded three songs for the movie's soundtrack.

In 2009, Gomez formed the teen pop band Selena Gomez & the Scene. Kiss & Tell, the band's debut studio album and was released on September 29, 2009 by Hollywood Records. On March 5, 2010, the album was certified Gold by RIAA.^[3] The album's single, "Naturally", was certified Platinum by the RIAA on July 15, 2010.^[3] In February 2009, Gomez signed on to star as one of the two female leads in Ramona and Beezus, a film adaption of the children's novel series by Beverly Cleary.^[22][23] Gomez stated that she felt no pressure in taking more adult roles: "I think I’m fully aware of my audience and I’m still just a kid myself. I wouldn’t do a role I don’t feel comfortable doing or that my audience wouldn’t feel comfortable seeing."^[24]

In June 2009, Gomez did a guest appearance as herself in one episode of best friend Demi Lovato's Disney Channel television show, Sonny with a Chance, entitled "Battle of The Network Stars". That same month Gomez appeared alongside Lovato in the made-for-television Disney Channel movie, Princess Protection Program.^[25] The telecast garnered 8.5 million viewers becoming, at the time, the third most watched Disney Channel Original Movie.^[26] One month later, Gomez, along with two cast members of Wizards of Waverly Place appeared in a television three-way cross-over episode with Hannah Montana and The Suite Life on Deck, entitled Wizards on Deck with Hannah Montana.

On August 28, 2009 two months after appearing in Princess Protection Program, Gomez starred in Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie, a made-for-television film based on the show.^[27] The film premiered to an audience of 11.4 million viewers becoming cable's No. 1 scripted telecast of 2009 and Disney Channel's second most-viewed film premiere after High School Musical 2.^[28] In September 2009, Wizards of Waverly Place won "Outstanding Children's Program" at the 61st Primetime Emmy Awards.^[29] In 2010, the film adaptation won the series its second consecutive Emmy for "Outstanding Children's Program" at the 62nd Primetime Emmy Awards.^[29]

[edit] 2010–2011:Theatrical film debut, A Year Without Rain and When The Sun Goes Down

Gomez on location in Paris, France filming Monte Carlo in June 2010

Gomez's first theatrical film Ramona & Beezus premiered on July 23, 2010 and met with generally positive reviews.^[30] In March 2010, Variety reported that Gomez was set to star as one of the three lead roles in Monte Carlo, alongside Leighton Meester and Katie Cassidy.^[31] In the film Gomez plays Grace, a girl who’s “mistaken for a socialite while on a trip to Paris.”^[32] To prepare for the role Gomez learned how to play polo and also took two weeks of vocal training to learn two different British accents.^[33][34] The same year Gomez confirmed that the fourth season of her hit Disney Channel show, Wizards of Waverly Place, would be its last.

Gomez performing at the 2011 MuchMusic Video Awards.

On September 17, 2010 , Selena Gomez and The Scene released their second studio album, A Year Without Rain The record debuted on the Billboard 200 at number 4, selling 66,000 copies. On January 19, 2011, the album was certified Gold by RIAA.^[3] As of April 2011, the band has sold 1,354,000 albums in the United States.^[35] To support the album, the band embarked on the mini-tour A Year Without Rain Tour. In February 2011, Deadline.com reported that Universal Pictures and Strike Entertainment had acquired the novel Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher with Gomez attached to the lead.^[36] That same month TV Guide reported that Gomez would make a cameo in the Muppets film.^[37] On March 23, 2011, Hollywood Records announced through a press release that Selena Gomez & The Scene would be embarking on their third concert tour in the United States, the We Own the Night Tour ran during the summer of 2011.^[38] Production for the final season of Wizards of Waverly Place came to a wrap on May 14, 2011.^[39] Gomez co-hosted the 2011 MuchMusic Video Awards on June 19.^[40] She also hosted the 2011 MTV EMAs on November 6, 2011, in Belfast, Northern Ireland, where she performed her band's single "Hit the Lights". Near the end of 2011, it was reported Gomez was in talks to star in two upcoming films. Deadline.com announced in October that Gomez would take part in the comedy Hot Mess.^[41]

In early November, Variety reported that Gomez was in talks to star in the upcoming film Spring Breakers alongside James Franco and Vanessa Hudgens.^[42] Gomez confirmed to MTV that she had signed on for the project and that production will begin in early 2012.^[43] On June 28, 2011, Selena Gomez & the scene released their third studio album, When the Sun Goes Down, previously titledOtherside,^[44] The album debuted at number 4 on the Billboard 200, selling 78,000 copies its first week and the following week, the album rose to number 3 on the Billboard chart, becoming the band's highest charting album to date.^[45][46] On November 17, 2011, the album was certified platinum.^[3] The album's lead single, "Who Says" was certified Platinum by RIAA on June 23, 2011 and has become the band's highest charting song on the Billboard Hot 100 to date, peaking at number 21.^[3][47] The second single, "Love You Like a Love Song", was certified Platinum by RIAA on December 2, 2011, and became the act's first to sell over two-million copies.^[3][48]

2012–present: Focus on film[link]

In January 2012, Gomez announced that she would put her music career on hold.^[49] This was later reaffirmed as Gomez wrote on her Facebook page that she was taking a break from music in order to focus on her acting career, "my band and I are going our separate ways for a while. This year is all about films and acting and I want my band to play music wherever with whoever. We will be back but, it will be a good while."^[50] In February 2012, Gomez announced that the band would be taking a hiatus, so that she could focus on film for the year. She encouraged her band mates to work with other artists during the hiatus.^[51] The same month, it was announced that Gomez will replace Miley Cyrus in the animated comedy Hotel Transylvania playing Mavis, the daughter of Dracula who will be voiced by Adam Sandler.^[52] As of March 2012, Gomez has been cast in four upcoming films; in which three of them she has been cast as a lead role. She will first appear in Hotel Transylvania, an animated film, voicing the character of Mavis, who was originally supposed to be voiced by Miley Cyrus, however Cyrus dropped out of the film in early 2012 in order to focus on her music career.^[53] The film is scheduled to be released on September 21, 2012.^[54] Next, Gomez will appear in Spring Breakers, which is currently being filmed on location in Sarasota, Florida. The film is being written and directed by Harmony Korine.^[55] Gomez has also been cast as the main role of Hannah Baker in the film adaptation of young-adult fiction novel, 13 Reasons Why. The novel was written by Jay Asher.^[56] She will also play the lead role in a film called Hot Mess, a comedy film directed by Dave Meyers.^[56] On April 7, 2012, Gomez posted a video for fans in which she revealed that she will be filming a new movie called "The Getaway" in Bulgaria. ^[57]

Other projects[link]

Philanthropy[link]

Selena Gomez performs at the KISS 108 Jingle Ball in December 2010

Gomez was involved in the UR Votes Count campaign which encouraged teenagers to learn more about 2008 presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain.^[58] In October 2008, Gomez participated in St. Jude's Children's Hospital "Runway For Life" benefit.^[59] Gomez is a spokesperson for Borden Milk; she is featured in the campaign's print and television ads.^[60] She is the ambassador of DoSomething.org after being involved with the charity Island Dog, which help dogs in Puerto Rico.^[61] She got involved while filming Wizards of Waverly Place: The Movie in Puerto Rico.^[62] Gomez is a spokesperson for State Farm Insurance, and is featured in their TV commercials; which air on the Disney Channel, to raise awareness of being a safe driver.^[63] Gomez is also involved with the charity RAISE Hope For Congo, an initiative of the Enough Project, which helps raise awareness about conflict minerals and violence against Congolese women.^[64]

In October 2008, Gomez was named UNICEF's spokesperson for the Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF campaign, which encouraged children to raise money on Halloween to help children around the world.^[4] She said that she was "extremely excited" to "encourage other kids to make a difference in the world."^[4]

In August 2009, a 17-year-old Gomez became the youngest UNICEF ambassador ever, passing fellow songstress Hayley Westenra, who was 18 when she was chosen. In her first official field mission, Gomez traveled to Ghana on September 4, 2009 for a week to witness first-hand the stark conditions of vulnerable children that lack vital necessities including clean water, nourishment, education and healthcare.^[65][66] Gomez explained during an interview with Associated Press that she wanted to use her star power to bring awareness to Ghana: “That’s why I feel very honored to have a voice that kids listen to and take into consideration [...] I had people on my tour asking me where IS Ghana, and they Googled it [...] and because I went there, they now know where Ghana is. So it’s pretty incredible.”^[66][67] Gomez said of her role as ambassador that: "Every day 25,000 children die from preventable causes. I stand with UNICEF in the belief that we can change that number from 25,000 to zero. I know we can achieve this because every moment, UNICEF is on the ground providing children with the lifesaving assistance needed to ensure zero becomes a reality."^[65]

Gomez was named spokesperson for UNICEF's 2009 Trick-or-Treat campaign, for the second year in a row.^[68] Gomez, who raised over $700,000 for the charity in 2008, stated that she hopes to be able to raise 1 million dollars in 2009.^[66] Gomez participated in a celebrity auction^[69] and hosted a live web cast series on Facebook in support of the Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF campaign.^[70] Gomez returned as the UNICEF spokesperson for the 60th anniversary of Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF campaign in 2010.^[71] In celebration of the 60th anniversary, Gomez and her band, The Scene, held a benefit concert donating all proceeds to the campaign.^[72]. On January 22nd 2010, Gomez participated in the Hope for Haiti Now Telethon with a number of other celebrities^[73].

In February 2011, Gomez traveled to Chile to witness and meet with the families of UNICEF's supported program, "Programa Puente" which helps families better understand and develops skills to deal effectively with early childhood education, development and other issues related to raising children. From her field trip experience, Gomez said "UNICEF is helping Chilean families get out of poverty, prevent violence within the home and promote education. To witness first hand these families' struggles, and also their hope and perseverance, was truly inspiring."^[74] In March 2011, Gomez participated in the UNICEF Tap Project's "Celebrity Tap Pack," limited-edition, custom-made water bottles featuring tap water from the homes of each celebrity advocate, in order to raise funds and increase profile for the clean water and sanitation programs.^[75] She is also featured in videos promoting the campaign.^[76][77]

Gomez is involved in Disney's Friends for Change, an organization which promotes "environmently-friendly behavior", and appears in its public service announcements.^[78] Gomez, Demi Lovato, Miley Cyrus, and the Jonas Brothers recorded "Send It On", a charity single with all of its proceeds to the Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund.^[79][80] It debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at number 20.^[79] Also in 2009, Gomez made a surprise visit to a Los Angeles elementary school as part of the "A Day Made Better" program that was sponsored by OfficeMax. During her visit, Gomez gave the school an award and $1,000 worth of school supplies, and talked to students about the importance of giving back to the community.^[81][82]

Gomez is also the owner of six rescue dogs and describes herself as a "huge animal-lover".^[83]

In April 2012, Gomez was named ambassador to the Ryan Seacrest Foudation^[84].

Entrepreneurship and sponsorships[link]

Gomez was part of Sears back-to-school fashion ad campaign.^[85] As part of the campaign Gomez was featured in the television commercials. In August 2009, Gomez also hosted the "Sears Arrive Air Band Casting Call" – to select five people for the first-ever "Sears Air Band", which performed at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards.^[86]

In October 2008, Gomez launched her own production company, July Moon Productions, and partnered with XYZ Films to create star vehicles for Gomez. As part of the agreement Gomez will have the opportunity to be able option articles, hire writers and create talent packages to shop to studios.^[87][88] Also, as part of the deal, "XYZ Films will allow Gomez to star in and produce at least two films.^[81] Variety reported that: "In August, XYZ [Films] inked a similar deal with Time Inc. and management-production company the Collective to finance the development of the print media giant's content for the bigscreen [...] As part of the July Moon-XYZ deal, [Selena] Gomez will have the ability to cherry-pick projects from the vast Time Inc. library, which includes Time, Sports Illustrated, Fortune and Life."^[88]

In October 2009, Gomez announced her plan to launch her own fashion line, called "Dream Out Loud by Selena Gomez". The clothing line launched in the fall of 2010.^[89][90] The collection consists of and features bohemian dresses, floral tops, jeans, skirts, jackets, scarves and hats, all made from recycled or eco-friendly materials.^[91][92] Gomez said that the line will reflect her own personal style and described the clothing as being "pretty, feminine, and bohemian," and: "With my line, I really want to give the customer options on how they can put their own looks together [...] I want the pieces that can be easy to dress up or down, and the fabrics being eco-friendly and organic is super important [...] Also, the tags will all have some of my inspirational quotes on them. I'm just looking to send a good message."^[89][92] Gomez, who has no background in fashion, teamed up with designers Tony Melillo and Sandra Campos, both who have worked with big-name fashion houses.^[90] Gomez said of the partnering: "When I met Tony and Sandra, I was instantly comfortable with them and now they are just like family to me ... They are so creative and I love how I can just call them up whenever and talk to them about everything, even if it's just about changing a button ... They've been so cool about everything."^{[89][90][91][92]} The brand will be manufactured by, Melillo and Campos teamed with New York-based Adjmi Apparel and formed by Adjmi CH Brands LLC; which is the holding company for the brand.^[93]

It was announced on July 14, 2011, that Gomez had signed a license agreement with Adrenalina, an extreme sports and adventure-themed lifestyle brand, to develop, manufacture, and distribute the actress' fragrance. It is expected to debut in May of 2012. Chairman and C.E.O. of Adrenalina, Ilia Lekach, said, "We are incredibly enthused to be working with Ms. Gomez and will reveal more details pertaining to the fragrance as we get closer to the launch date."^[94]

Personal life and Image[link]

With a solid fan and media following, Selena Gomez is considered a teen idol. She has appeared on several magazine covers, including People Magazine,^[95] Cosmopolitan,^[96] Billboard,^[97] TVGuide,^[98] Teen Vogue,^[99] Seventeen,^[100] Elle^[101].

Wax statues of Gomez are on display at Madame Tussauds wax museums in New York^[102], London^[103], Washington D.C^[104] and Hollywood.

Relationships[link]

Gomez has had several high-profile relationships. She had an on-off relationship with singer Nick Jonas of the Jonas Brothers from 2008 to 2010.^[105] In 2009, she met actor Taylor Lautner in Vancouver, while she was filming Ramona and Beezus and he was shooting New Moon^[106], and the two dated for almost a year. However the pressure of the media became too much for them and caused the two to break-up.^[107] On February 27 2011, Gomez attended the 2011 Vanity Fair Oscar Party with Canadian singer Justin Bieber,^[108] confirming several months of media speculation about a romantic relationship between the pair.^{[109][110][111][112][113][114]} The relationship has since continued to garner significant media attention.^{[115][116][117][118][119]}

Filmography[link]

Film[link]

Television[link]

Discography[link]

Albums

• 2009: Kiss & Tell
• 2010: A Year Without Rain
• 2011: When the Sun Goes Down

Soundtrack albums[link]

Singles[link]

Featured singles[link]

Other charted songs[link]

Music videos[link]

Tours[link]

Rankings[link]

Awards and nominations[link]

Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Selena Gomez

References[link]