Thomas Byles in ministry and his final hours on board the RMS Titanic. Thomas Byles Thomas Roussel Davids Byles (26 February 1870 – 15 April 1912) was an English Catholic priest who was a passenger aboard the "RMS Titanic" on its maiden voyage when it sank after striking an iceberg during the night of 15 April 1912. He was reported as being amidst the throng of trapped passengers on the ship's rear deck in its final moments of descent, audibly praying. Thomas Byles was born Roussel Davids Byles in Leeds, Yorkshire, the eldest of seven children of the Reverend Alfred Holden Byles,
RMS Titanic century. The sinking brought tremendous grief and was a blow to the city's pride. But its shipyard was also a place many Catholics regarded as hostile. In the latter half of the century, during a 30-year sectarian conflict "Titanic" was a reminder of the lack of civil rights that in part contributed towards the Troubles. While the fate of Titanic remained a well-known story within local households throughout the 20th century, commercial investment around RMS "Titanic" legacy was modest because of these issues. After the Troubles and Good Friday Agreement, the number of overseas tourists visiting Northern Ireland dramatically increased