HMS Bristol (1910)

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For other ships with the same name, see HMS Bristol.

Bristol underway
History
United Kingdom
NameBristol
NamesakeBristol
BuilderJohn Brown & Company, Clydebank
Laid down23 March 1909
Launched23 February 1910
CommissionedDecember 1910
Decommissioned30 May 1919
FateSold for scrap, 9 May 1921
General characteristics (as built)
Class and typeTown-class light cruiser
Displacement4,800 long tons (4,877 t)
Length
  • 430 ft (131.1 m) p/p
  • 453 ft (138.1 m) o/a
Beam47 ft (14.3 m)
Draught15 ft 3 in (4.65 m) (mean)
Installed power
Propulsion2 × shafts; 2 × Brown-Curtis steam turbines
Speed25 kn (46 km/h; 29 mph)
Range5,830 nautical miles (10,800 km; 6,710 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)
Complement410
Armament
Armour

HMS Bristol was a

4th Cruiser Squadron (4th CS) of the North America and West Indies Station in mid-1914. Bristol was briefly deployed to Mexico during the Mexican Revolution
to protect British interests there.

The ship was tasked to protect Allied shipping off the coasts of North and South America from German

commerce raiders after World War I began in August 1914. She briefly encountered a German light cruiser in the West Indies a few days after the war began, but the battle was inconclusive. A few months later, Bristol played a minor role in the Battle of the Falkland Islands in December by sinking some of the colliers belonging to the German East Asia Squadron. After a lengthy refit in mid-1915, the ship was transferred to the Adriatic Force, where she participated in the Battle of the Strait of Otranto in 1917. Bristol returned to her former task of patrolling off the east coast of South America, after a brief time escorting convoys off West Africa in early 1918, and continued to do so after the end of the war. She was placed in reserve in mid-1919, listed for sale in 1920 and was sold for scrap
in 1921.

Design and description

The Bristol sub-class

propeller shafts, that were rated at 22,000 shaft horsepower (16,000 kW) for a design speed of 25 knots (46 km/h; 29 mph).[2] The ship reached 27 knots (50 km/h; 31 mph) during her sea trials from 28,711 shp (21,410 kW). The ship's experimental two-shaft layout was very successful, giving greater efficiency, especially at lower speeds, than the four-shaft arrangement of her sister ships.[3] The boilers used both fuel oil and coal, with 1,353 long tons (1,375 t) of coal and 256 long tons (260 t) tons of oil carried, which gave a range of 5,830 nautical miles (10,800 km; 6,710 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph).[4] In 1912 Bristol became the first warship to run on superheated steam from her twelve boilers, enabling even greater speeds as well as fuel economies.[5]

The main armament of the Bristol class was two

saluting guns were fitted, while two submerged 18-inch (450 mm) torpedo tubes were fitted.[6] This armament was considered rather too light for ships of this size,[7] while the waist guns were subject to immersion in a high sea, making them difficult to work.[8]

The Bristols were considered protected cruisers, with an armoured deck providing protection for the ships' vitals. The armoured deck was 2 inches (51 mm) thick over the magazines and machinery, 1 inch (25 mm) over the steering gear and 3⁄4 inch (19 mm) elsewhere. The conning tower was protected by 6 inches (152 mm) of armour, with the gun shields having 3 inches (76 mm) armour, as did the ammunition hoists.[9] As the protective deck was at waterline, the ships were given a large metacentric height so that they would remain stable in the event of flooding above the armoured deck. This, however, resulted in the ships rolling badly making them poor gun platforms.[8] One problem with the armour of the Bristols which was shared with the other Town-class ships was the sizeable gap between the bottom of the gun shields and the deck, which allowed shell splinters to pass through the gap, giving large numbers of leg injuries in the ships' gun crews.[10]

Construction and career

Bristol, the fifth ship of her name to serve in the Royal Navy,

2nd Light Cruiser Squadron of the Second Fleet. Almost six months later, some of her crewmen helped to put out a fire in Portsmouth Dockyard on 20 December; two men were killed fighting the fire.[14]

On 18 May 1914, the ship was reassigned to the 4th CS

Christopher Craddock, the squadron commander, inspected the ship and her crew on 1 July. The ship departed for Puerto México (present day Coatzacoalcos) on the 15th and served as temporary refuge for members of the family of ex-president Victoriano Huerta for a few days as they were fleeing the country at the time of the United States occupation of Veracruz. Bristol sailed for Jamaica on the 31st as tensions with Germany rose.[14]

World War I

Cruiser HMS Bristol

The 4th Cruiser Squadron (formerly the North America and West Indies Station), with its main base the Royal Naval Dockyard at Bermuda, was tasked to protect Allied merchant shipping from commerce raiders in the Caribbean and along the East Coast of North America and Craddock dispersed his ships shortly before the war began on 4 August 1914 in a futile search for the two German warships known to be in the area. In the early evening of 6 August, Bristol spotted the German light cruiser Karlsruhe, but failed to inflict any significant damage before engine problems allowed the German ship to disengage behind her own smoke. Later in the month, Bristol began patrolling off the northern coast of Brazil in an unsuccessful attempt to find the German ships. The ship was detached to continue to patrol the Brazilian coast and did not join Craddock's ships as they searched for the East Asia Squadron off the Chilean coast in October.[16]

In mid-October, Bristol, together with the

Vice-Admiral Doveton Sturdee. The ships then proceeded to the Falkland Islands where they arrived on 7 December.[18]

Battle of the Falklands

Main article:
Battle of the Falklands

Upon arrival at

predreadnought battleship Canopus when they came within range around 09:20. This gave time for Bristol to reassemble her engines and raise steam. As the ship was leaving harbour around 10:45, she received reports of German ships about 30 miles (48 km) south and Sturdee ordered her to intercept and destroy them, together with the armed merchant cruiser SS Macedonia. The British ships were able to capture two of the three German colliers and sank them after taking off their crews.[19]

The light cruiser

Puntas Arenas, Chile, after the ship was reported coaling there on 13 December. She arrived there the next day, but Dresden had left the night before.[20] Bristol spent the next several months hunting for the German cruiser along the Argentinian and Chilean coasts and in the innumerable bays and inlets of Tierra del Fuego. During this time, she struck a shoal and seriously damaged her rudder on 22 February 1915. In late April, the ship began patrolling off the Brazilian coast. Bristol began a major refit at Gibraltar on 27 May that lasted until 5 August. Upon its completion, she was transferred to the British Adriatic Force to help contain the Austro-Hungarian Fleet and defend the Otranto Barrage. She then spent most of the next several months patrolling the lower reaches of the Adriatic Sea and the Strait of Otranto. On 3 October, her crew was inspected by Rear-Admiral Cecil Thursby. On 26 November, Bristol sailed for Gibraltar en route to a refit at William Beardmore and Company's shipyard in Dalmuir that began on 17 December.[14]

Battle of the Strait of Otranto

Main article: Battle of the Strait of Otranto (1917)

On the early morning of 15 May 1917, the Austro-Hungarians made their most serious attack of the war on the

line abreast with Aquila leading them and the destroyers guarding the flanks. Bristol's bottom was foul, however, and limited the group to a speed of 24 knots (44 km/h; 28 mph).[21]

Five minutes later, the Allied ships spotted clouds of smoke on the horizon and Acton ordered the Italian ships to attack shortly afterwards while the two British cruisers turned to cut off the two Austrian destroyers. Aquila opened fire at 08:15 at long range, but inflicted no damage before she was immobilised by a hit at 08:32 that detonated inside her central boiler room and severed her main steam pipe. The Austrian ships managed to disengage before the cruisers could close the distance.[22]

The main Austro-Hungarian force of three light cruisers trailed the leading destroyers by a considerable distance and Commander Miklós Horthy spotted the Allied force around 09:05. Acton spotted them about five minutes later and manoeuvred his ships to cover the disabled Aquila rather than crossing the Austrians' T. The British ships opened fire about 09:30, although Horthy's ships quickly laid a smoke screen and turned away through it. Both sides settled on parallel courses to the north-northwest and Bristol gradually began to fall behind and could eventually only use her bow gun at very long range before ceasing fire at 10:15. The British fire was moderately effective, but the Austrian ships concentrated their fire on Dartmouth which was hit three times, although not significantly damaged. Acton reduced his speed around 10:45 to allow Bristol to catch up. At 10:58 he ordered speed to be increased and turned two minutes later in an unsuccessful attempt to cut off the trailing Austrian cruiser. At 11:04, the British cruisers ceased fire and turned away on Acton's order, presumably to avoid encountering Austro-Hungarian reinforcements which Acton knew were en route. During the battle the British cruisers were repeatedly attacked by Austro-Hungarian aircraft, but they inflicted no significant damage or casualties.[23]

Subsequent operations

On 1 January 1918, Bristol was briefly based at the port of

died from influenza. A few days later, she departed for the UK and arrived at Portsmouth on the 21st. Bristol was paid off on 30 May and reduced to reserve the same day.[14] The ship was listed for disposal in May 1920[12] and was sold for scrap on 9 May 1921 to Thos. W. Ward of Hayle.[25]

Notes

  1. ^ Sometimes known as the Glasgow class.[1]

Footnotes

  1. ^ Lyon, Part 1, p. 56
  2. ^ a b c Gardiner & Gray 1985, p. 51
  3. ^ Lyon, Part 2, pp. 59–60
  4. ^ Friedman, p. 383
  5. ^ "Ships and Boats: 1840–1950". Historic England. 2016. Retrieved 9 June 2022.
  6. ^ Lyon, Part 2, pp. 55–57
  7. ^ Lyon, Part 1, p. 53
  8. ^ a b Brown, p. 63
  9. ^ Lyon, Part 2, p. 59
  10. ^ Lyon, Part 2, p. 57
  11. ^ Colledge, p. 49
  12. ^ a b Friedman, p. 411
  13. His Majesty's Stationery Office
    . March 1913. p. 269b. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
  14. ^ a b c d e Transcript
  15. His Majesty's Stationery Office
    . June 1914. p. 269. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
  16. ^ Corbett, I, pp. 44–49, 261–62, 309, 324
  17. ^ Corbett, I, p. 327
  18. ^ Massie, pp. 244, 249–50
  19. ^ Massie, pp. 251, 257–259, 263–264
  20. ^ Massie, pp. 279–280
  21. ^ Halpern, pp. 68–73
  22. ^ Halpern, pp. 77–79
  23. ^ Halpern, pp. 81–83, 86–92
  24. ^ "Supplement to the Monthly Navy List Showing the Organisation of the Fleet, Flag Officer's Commands, &c". National Library of Scotland. Admiralty. May 1918. p. 21. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
  25. ^ Lyon, Part 3, p. 51

Bibliography

External links

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