HMS Hotspur (1870)
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| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Builder | Robert Napier and Sons, Govan, Scotland |
| Laid down | 2 October 1868 |
| Launched | 19 March 1870 |
| Commissioned | 17 November 1871 |
| Fate | Scrapped 1904 |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement | 4,331 tons |
| Length | 235 ft (72 m) |
| Beam | 50 ft (15 m) |
| Draught | 19 ft (5.8 m) light, 20 ft 8 in (6.30 m) deep load |
| Propulsion | Two-shaft Napier reciprocating, I.H.P.= 3,500 |
| Speed | 12.65 knots (23.43 km/h; 14.56 mph) |
| Complement | 209 officers and men |
| Armament |
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| Armour |
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HMS Hotspur was a Victorian
Background
It had been recognised since the time of the
The battle which most influenced the exaggerated faith in the ram as a weapon was the battle of Lissa between Austria-Hungary and Italy in 1866. The Austrian Ferdinand Max rammed the (stationary) Italian Re d'Italia, which immediately heeled over and sank. This resulted in all ironclad battleships designed for the next forty years being built to carry a ram; a weapon which, while causing the loss of a number of ships accidentally, never sank another major enemy warship of any nationality.
Design
Hotspur was designed to work with the Fleet, to bring into action her main weapon, her ram. This projected some ten feet (3 m) ahead of her bow perpendicular, and was reinforced by an extension of the armoured belt.
It was assumed that the bearings upon which a usual turret turned would not survive the shock of the impact consequent upon the use of the ram against an enemy ship. Her single 12-inch (305 mm) gun was therefore positioned in a fixed cupola perforated by four firing-ports through which the gun could be discharged. None of these ports allowed the gun to be fired straight ahead, where a potential ramming target would be situated. It was therefore only possible to engage these targets with the gun if the ramming attack missed.
As the maximum speed of Hotspur was less than virtually all of her potential targets, it quickly became apparent that ramming attacks on ships under way were almost guaranteed to miss, and she quickly descended from being a ship held to be of great military value to be the most useless member of the battle-fleet.
She was reconstructed by Laird & Sons Co., and was given a revolving turret containing two 12-inch guns, new boilers and additional armour.
Service history
Hotspur was commissioned at Devonport in 1871.[citation needed] On 26 January, she collided with the steamship Lady Woodhouse off Plymouth. Both vessels were severely damaged. Hotspur was taken in to Plymouth for repairs.[1]
Her 12-inch 25-ton gun was fired on the Glatton during a live trial in 1873.
She remained in reserve until 1876. She served with
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Citations
- ^ "Marine Intelligence". Newcastle Courant. No. 10284. Newcastle upon Tyne. 2 February 1872.
References
- ISBN 0-87021-924-3.)
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link - Oscar Parkes. British Battleships ISBN 0-85052-604-3
- Chesneau, Roger & Kolesnik, Eugene M., eds. (1979). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. Greenwich: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-8317-0302-4.
External links
Media related to HMS Hotspur (1870) at Wikimedia Commons
