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Maritime birth, marriage and death records are being launched online for the first time at findmypast.co.uk, in association with The National Archives. These sit alongside the Titanic passenger lists and Merchant Navy seamen records, which are already available to view.

By searching the Titanic records on Findmypast, you can:

• see the Titanic's passenger list, which includes all first, second and third-class passengers
• view maritime death records, which record the passengers and crew who died in 1912
• discover what happened to surviving crew members with their Merchant Navy seamen identity cards - some of these records include photographs

Commenting on the release of these records, Janet Dempsey, Maritime Records Specialist at The National Archives, said: 'Death at sea was an occupational hazard for those who made their living on the water, but this rarely deterred mariners. Many who survived the Titanic went on to serve throughout the First World War and some even into the Second World War. The birth, marriage and death registers really illustrate just how hard life was at sea even for those men and women who served on luxury liners that were just not expected to sink. With death so common place it was hardly surprising that seafarers were a superstitious lot.'

Find out more about Titanic and the stories of the crew and passengers on board in our Titanic: 100 year anniversary online exhibition.