Greek ironclad Hydra

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For other ships with the same name, see Greek ship Hydra.
Hydra early in her career
History
Greece
Namesake
Hydra Island
Ordered1885
Builder
St. Nazaire
Launched1889
Decommissioned1918
FateScrapped in 1929
General characteristics
Class and typeHydra-class ironclad
Displacement4,808 long tons (4,885 t)
Length334 feet 8 inches (102.01 m)
Beam51 ft 10 in (15.80 m)
Draft18 ft (5.5 m)
Installed power
Propulsion
Speed17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph)
Crew400
Armament
  • 3 × 10.8 in (270 mm) guns
  • 5 × 5.9 in (150 mm) guns
  • 4 × 3.4 in (86 mm) guns
  • 4 × 3-pounder guns
  • 4 × 1-pounder guns
  • 6 × 1-pounder
    Hotchkiss revolver cannon
  • 3 × 14 in (356 mm) torpedo tubes
Armor

Hydra (

her class of ironclads
, she was ordered in 1885 in response to a crisis in the Balkans and Ottoman naval expansion. The ship was launched in 1889 and delivered to Greece by 1892. She was armed with a main battery of three 10.8 in (270 mm) guns and five 5.9 in (150 mm) guns, and had a top speed of 17 kn (31 km/h; 20 mph).

Hydra and her sisters saw heavy service with the Greek Navy. They participated in the

Naval Battle of Lemnos, but was too slow to actively engage the Ottoman forces. She did not see action during World War I, and was reduced to a gunnery training ship
after the end of the war. She was ultimately broken up for scrap in 1929.

Design

General arrangement drawing of a Hydra class ship
Main article: Hydra-class ironclad

Hydra was 334 feet 8 inches (102.01 m) long between perpendiculars and had a beam of 51 ft 10 in (15.80 m) and a mean draft of 18 ft (5.5 m). She displaced 4,808 long tons (4,885 t) as built. She was powered by a pair of marine steam engines of unknown type with steam provided by four coal-fired fire-tube boilers; they were rated at 6,700 indicated horsepower (5,000 kW) and provided a top speed of 17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph). Coal storage amounted to 500 long tons (510 t).[1]

Hydra's

Hotchkiss revolver cannons. The ship was also armed with three 14-inch (356 mm) torpedo tubes, one on each broadside and one in the bow.[1]

The ship was armored with a mix of Creusot and compound steel. The main belt was 12 inches (305 mm) thick in the central section and was reduced to 4 inches (102 mm) at either end of the vessel. The main battery barbettes were protected by up to 14 inches of armor.[1] Hydra was fitted with an armor deck that was 1.9 inches (48 mm) thick.[2]

Service history

In 1885, Greece ordered three new ironclads of the

Psara were delivered to the Greek fleet.[4][1][5]

The ship saw limited action in the Greco–Turkish War in 1897, as the Royal Hellenic Navy was unable to make use of its superiority over the Ottoman Navy. The Ottoman Navy had remained in port during the conflict, but a major naval intervention of the Great Powers prevented the Greeks from capitalizing on their superiority.[3] In 1897–1900, Hydra and her sister-ships were partially rearmed; Hydra was modified at the La Seyne shipyard. Their small-caliber guns were replaced with one 3.9 in (99 mm) gun forward, eight 65 mm (2.6 in) guns, four 3-pounders, and ten 1-pounder revolver cannon. One of the 14-inch torpedo tubes was replaced with a 15 in (380 mm) weapon.[1][6] In 1908–1910, the old 5.9 in guns were replaced with new, longer L/45 models.[7]

The

Naval Battle of Elli, the Ottoman ships opened fire first, at 9:50, from a range of about 15,000 yards; the Greeks returned fire ten minutes later, by which time the range had decreased significantly to 8,500 yards. At 10:04, the Ottoman ships completed a 16-point turn, which reversed their course, and steamed for the safety of the straits in a disorganized withdrawal.[10] Within an hour, the routed Ottoman ships had withdrawn into the Dardanelles.[9]

The

Naval Battle of Lemnos resulted from an Ottoman plan to lure the faster Georgios Averof away from the Dardanelles. The protected cruiser Hamidiye evaded the Greek blockade and broke out into the Aegean sea; the assumption was that the Greeks would dispatch Georgios Averof to hunt down Hamidiye. Despite the threat to Greek lines of communication posed by the cruiser, the Greek commander refused to detach Georgios Averof from her position. Georgios Averof appeared approximately 12 miles from Lemnos; when the powerful Greek ship was spotted, the Ottomans turned to retreat with Georgios Averof in pursuit. She scored several hits on the fleeing Ottoman ships before breaking off the chase. Hydra and her sisters were too slow to keep up with Georgios Averof, and played no part in the engagement.[10]

By 1914, Hydra had been withdrawn from active duty to serve as a gunnery

naval register the next year. She was to be sold for scrapping in 1921, but instead returned to her role as a naval artillery school from 1922 until 1929 when she was broken up for scrap.[7][13]

See also

Footnotes

  1. ^ a b c d e Gardiner, p. 387
  2. ^ Laughton, p. 348
  3. ^ a b Gardiner & Gray, p. 382
  4. ^ Brassey, p. 25
  5. ^ The Chinese Times, p. 488
  6. ^ Mason, p. 293
  7. ^ a b c d Gardiner & Gray, p. 383
  8. ^ Hall, p. 24
  9. ^ a b Hall, pp. 64–65
  10. ^ a b Fotakis, p. 50
  11. ^ Fotakis, p. 78
  12. ^ Fotakis, p. 131
  13. ^ Paizis-Paradellis, p. 78

References

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