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25 shipwrecks around the world and the fascinating history behind them

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Perhaps the most famous shipwreck in the world due to the scale of the tragedy and the fact that the ship was considered unsinkable (not to mention to a certain Oscar-winning movie), the Titanic continues to fascinate marine archaeologists and amateur explorers alike.

But there are countless other shipwrecks beneath the ocean and stranded on land around the world.

Here's what 25 different sunken ships look like — and how they got there.

SEE ALSO: 8 underrated U.S. cities perfect for a passport-free vacation

The 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Baron Gautsch, an Austro-Hungarian steamboat that sank in the northern Croatian Adriatic sea, was marked on August 13, 2014.

The ship, originally used to service passenger lines, had been leased by the Austro-Hungarian army following the July 1914 outbreak of World War I to transport troops, only to run into a minefield off the Brijuni islands less than a month later. Estimates say between 240 and 390 people perished in the sinking, making it one of the biggest losses of life in World War I.

Today, the shipwreck lies at a depth of 131 feet (40 meters) off the coast of Rovinj and is said to be the most popular site for divers in the Adriatic.



The SS Maheno went from ocean liner to hospital ship to a rusty wreck on Fraser Island, Australia.

The SS Maheno was an ocean liner until it was repurposed as a hospital ship during World War I. After the war, the ship was sold to a shipbreaker in Osaka, Japan. As it was being towed to its new home in 1935, a cyclone hit and broke the line connecting the two ships. The SS Maheno drifted off to Fraser Island, where it remains today.



The skeletal remains of an unknown French sailor sit in the hull of the wreck of French explorer La Salle's The Belle ship in the Gulf of Mexico.

Discovered on Halloween in 1996, the remains of The Belle had been underwater for 310 years before being discovered by marine archaeologists. The ship lies 15 miles offshore, 125 miles southwest of Houston. A cofferdam allowed archaeologists to expose the sea floor for research.

The Belle was one of four ships belonging to the French explorer La Salle, according to Texas A&M Today. It carried 300 settlers who were supposed to colonize the Gulf Coast area, but incorrect maps led the ships hundreds of miles astray to the coast of Texas. The Belle was abandoned in 1686 after storms caused it to sink in Matagorda Bay.



See the rest of the story at Business Insider

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