The origins of the tradition "Women and children first" was the loss of the Troopship Birkenhead in February 1852 off the coast of South Africa. There being insufficient lifeboats to accommodate all, some boats having been destroyed when the ship struck the rocks, the senior officer Lt-Col Seton ordered that the women and children be placed into the boats with a handling crew of seamen, while the contingent of soldiers onboard were ordered into ranks on deck as the ship sank.