King Edward VII-class battleship
HMS King Edward VII, lead ship of the King Edward VII class.
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Class overview | |
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Name | King Edward VII class |
Builders | Portsmouth Dockyard, Vickers |
Operators | Royal Navy |
Preceded by | Duncan class |
Succeeded by | Swiftsure class |
Built | 1902–1906 |
In service | 1905–1921 |
Completed | 8 |
Lost | 2 |
Retired | 6 |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Pre-dreadnought battleship |
Displacement |
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Length | 453 ft 9 in (138.3 m) (loa) |
Beam | 75 ft (22.9 m) |
Draught | 25 ft 8 in (7.82 m) |
Installed power |
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Propulsion |
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Speed | 18.5 knots (34.3 km/h; 21.3 mph) |
Complement | 777 |
Armament |
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Armour |
The King Edward VII class was a
The ships served with the Atlantic Fleet from 1905 to 1907, when they were transferred to the Channel Fleet, though this service lasted only until 1908–1909, when they were reassigned to the Home Fleet. During this period, King Edward VII served as fleet flagship as a result of a request from her namesake that she always serve as such. Africa and Hibernia were involved with experiments with seaplanes in 1912, and that year all members of the class were assigned to the 3rd Battle Squadron of the Home Fleet and were later sent to the Mediterranean Sea to respond to the First Balkan War.
By the outbreak of the
Design
Design work on what would become the King Edward VII class began in 1901; the Royal Navy had observed that foreign battleships, such as the Italian Regina Margherita class and the American Virginia class, had begun to carry a heavy secondary battery of 8-inch (203 mm) guns. The design staff, operating without the direction of the Director of Naval Construction, William Henry White, who was ill at the time, began a series of studies for a battleship based on the preceding London class armed with a secondary battery of 7.5 in (191 mm) or 9.2 in (234 mm) guns. The Assistant DNC, J. H. Narbeth, initially had a great deal of trouble arranging the guns such that the secondary turrets did not interfere with the main battery guns. After examining the directly superimposed turrets used in the Virginias, Narbeth concluded that it was not a workable solution, and so adopted an arrangement with four secondary turrets, one at each corner of the superstructure.[1]
The
Despite the problems with their secondary armament, the ships were significantly more powerful than earlier British battleships and they compared well with foreign contemporaries. They nevertheless suffered the same fate as all late
The King Edward VII class was the culmination of battleship design under the direction of White that had begun with the Royal Sovereign class in the late 1880s. The follow-on class, the two Lord Nelsons, were a major departure from previous designs and marked a transitional stage between pre-dreadnought and dreadnought-type battleships.[4]
General characteristics
The ships of the King Edward VII class were 425 feet (130 m)
King Edward VII and her
The King Edward VIIs were the first British battleships with balanced rudders since the 1870s and were very manoeuvrable, with a tactical diameter of 340 yards (310 m) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph). However, they were difficult to keep on a straight course, and this characteristic led to them being nicknamed "the Wobbly Eight" during their 1914–1916 service in the Grand Fleet. They had a slightly faster roll than previous British battleship classes, but were good gun platforms, although very wet in bad weather.[5]
Machinery
The King Edward VII-class ships were powered by a pair of 4-cylinder
The King Edward VII-class ships had a top speed of 18.5 knots (34.3 km/h; 21.3 mph) from 18,000 indicated horsepower (13,000 kW), though some of the ships exceeded 19 knots (35 km/h; 22 mph) on speed trials, including Dominion and Hindustan. Using only coal, the ships had a cruising radius of about 5,100 nmi (9,400 km; 5,900 mi) at an economical speed of 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph), and with the supplemental fuel oil, their range increased to 6,700 nmi (12,400 km; 7,700 mi).[5][9]
Armament
The King Edward VIIs had four 12-inch 40-calibre Mk IX guns mounted in twin-gun turrets fore and aft. The guns were carried in BVIIS-type mountings, which had a range of elevation from -5 degrees to of 13.5 degrees, and required the guns to return to 4.5 degrees to be loaded. The guns had a muzzle velocity of 2,610 feet per second (800 m/s), and they were capable of penetrating 12 inches of Krupp armour at a range of 4,800 yards (4,400 m). At their maximum elevation, the guns had a range of 15,300 yards (14,000 m). Commonwealth and Zealandia later had their mounts modified to allow elevation to 30 degrees, which extended their maximum range significantly, to 26,514 yd (24,244 m).[10] These were supported by a heavy secondary battery of four 9.2 in (234 mm) guns in four single turrets, two on each broadside. The guns were carried in Mk VS mounts, which had a range of elevation from -7 to +15 degrees, allowing for a maximum range of 15,500 yd (14,200 m). Muzzle velocity was 2,735 to 2,751 ft/s (834 to 839 m/s).[11]
The first five ships also mounted ten
Armour
Most of the heavy armour of the King Edward VII class consisted of
The armoured deck was 2 in of
Modifications
The ships of the King Edward VII class underwent a series of modifications over the courses of their careers. In 1907, King Edward VII had some of her 12-pounder guns temporarily relocated to the main battery turret roofs, but this was found to be unsatisfactory and they reverted to their original locations that same year. Between 1907 and 1908, she and Commonwealth, Dominion, Hindustan, and New Zealand had their bridge-mounted 3-pounders removed. They also received
After the start of the First World War in August 1914, Zealandia (ex-New Zealand) gave one of her 12-pounders to arm a Q-ship, receiving a pair of 3-pounders in its place. During a refit in that period, Dominion's bridge was enlarged. The 6-inch battery was removed from all of the ships of the class between 1916 and April 1917, with each ship having four of the guns re-mounted a deck higher in open pivot mounts in place of the 12-pounder guns that had been located there, where they were less affected by heavy seas, and thus, were more usable weapons. Additional search lights were installed during this period as well.[18]
In 1918, Zealandia and Commonwealth were heavily modernised for use as gunnery
Ships
King Edward VII, the first battleship laid down after the beginning of
Name | Builder[5] | Laid down[5]
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Launched[5] | Completed[5] |
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King Edward VII | Devonport Dockyard | 8 March 1902 | 23 July 1903 | February 1905 |
Commonwealth | Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company | 17 June 1902 | 13 May 1903 | March 1905 |
Dominion | Vickers | 23 May 1902 | 25 August 1903 | July 1905 |
Hindustan | John Brown & Company | 25 October 1902 | 19 December 1903 | July 1905 |
Britannia | Portsmouth Dockyard
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4 February 1904 | 10 December 1904 | September 1906 |
New Zealand | Portsmouth Dockyard | 9 February 1903 | 4 February 1904 | July 1905 |
Africa | Chatham Dockyard | 27 January 1904 | 20 May 1905 | November 1906 |
Hibernia | Devonport Dockyard | 6 January 1904 | 17 June 1905 | January 1907 |
Service history
As the members of the King Edward VII class entered service beginning in 1905, they joined the Atlantic Fleet, where King Edward VII served as the fleet flagship, per her namesake's request that the ship always be used as a flagship. In 1907, the members of the class were transferred to the Channel Fleet, with King Edward VII again the fleet flagship. King Edward VII and Africa were transferred to the Home Fleet in 1908, and the rest of the class followed them there the next year. New Zealand was renamed Zealandia in 1911 to allow her original name to be used for the battlecruiser New Zealand. Beginning in 1912, the ships were reorganised as the 3rd Battle Squadron, a component of the Home Fleet.[20]
In mid-1912, Africa and Hibernia were involved in tests with the
After Britain entered the First World War on 5 August 1914, the 3rd Battle Squadron was assigned to the Grand Fleet, the main British fleet during the war.
In 1916, the squadron was detached to the
That year, Commonwealth and Zealandia were heavily modernised, with the former being used briefly on the Northern Patrol in 1918 before serving as a gunnery training ship. Zealandia was never actually used as a training ship, but she was involved in fire control experiments and was later used as a barracks ship. Dominion and Hindustan served as depot ships to support the Zeebrugge Raid in 1918. Britannia was torpedoed by the German U-boat UB-50 off Cape Trafalgar on 9 November, just two days before the Armistice with Germany that ended the fighting; she was one of the last British warships to be lost during the war. The torpedo started a serious fire in one of her 9.2-inch magazines, but like King Edward VII, she remained afloat long enough for her crew to be taken off, though some fifty men were killed in the torpedoing and subsequent fire. The six surviving members of the class were sold to ship breakers between 1920 and 1923 and were subsequently broken up for scrap.[20][31]
Notes
- ^ Burt, pp. 264–265, 278.
- ^ Burt, pp. 275, 278.
- ^ Burt, pp. 275, 278–279.
- ^ Burt, pp. 312–314.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Lyon & Roberts, p. 38.
- ^ Burt, pp. 266–267.
- ^ Burt, pp. 280, 283.
- ^ Burt, pp. 266, 282–283.
- ^ Burt, pp. 282–283.
- ^ Friedman, pp. 57–58.
- ^ Friedman, pp. 71–72.
- ^ Friedman, pp. 79–81.
- ^ McBride 2001, pp. 66–67, 69.
- ^ Burt, p. 267.
- ^ Burt, pp. 279–281.
- ^ Burt, pp. 280–281.
- ^ Burt, pp. 283–285.
- ^ a b Burt, p. 285.
- ^ Manning & Walker, pp. 36, 72, 117, 143, 168, 231–232.
- ^ a b c Burt, pp. 287–293.
- ^ Thetford, p. 454.
- ^ Burt, pp. 283, 287–293.
- ^ Vego, pp. 151–152.
- ^ Corbett 1920, pp. 39–40.
- ^ Corbett 1921, pp. 9–10.
- ^ Jellicoe, pp. 91–99, 174–185, 206, 210–234.
- ^ Burt, pp. 287–288.
- ^ Corbett 1923, p. 266.
- ^ Corbett 1923, pp. 248–252, 260.
- ^ "HMS AFRICA – September 1916 to November 1918, Mediterranean, Central and South Atlantic convoys (9th Cruiser Squadron)". naval-history.net. Retrieved 27 December 2018.
- ^ Preston, p. 9.
References
- Burt, R. A. (2013) [1988]. British Battleships 1889–1904. Barnsley: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-173-1.
- OCLC 174823980.
- Corbett, Julian Stafford (1921). Naval Operations: From The Battle of the Falklands to the Entry of Italy Into the War in May 1915. Vol. II. London: Longmans, Green & Co. OCLC 924170059.
- Corbett, Julian Stafford (1923). Naval Operations: The Dardanelles Campaign. Vol. III. London: Longmans, Green & Co. OCLC 174824081.
- Friedman, Norman (2011). Naval Weapons of World War One: Guns, Torpedoes, Mines and ASW Weapons of All Nations; An Illustrated Directory. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-84832-100-7.
- OCLC 162593478.
- Lyon, David & Roberts, John (1979). "Great Britain and Empire Forces". In Chesneau, Roger & Kolesnik, Eugene M. (eds.). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. Greenwich: Conway Maritime Press. pp. 1–113. ISBN 978-0-85177-133-5.
- Manning, Thomas Davys & Walker, Charles Frederick (1959). British Warship Names. London: Putnam. OCLC 561921929.
- McBride, Keith (2001). "'The Wobbly Eight': The King Edward VII Class Battleships, 1897–1922". In Preston, Antony (ed.). Warship 2001–2002. London: Conway Maritime Press. pp. 63–69. ISBN 0-85177-901-8.
- Preston, Antony (1985). "Great Britain and Empire Forces". In Gardiner, Robert & Gray, Randal (eds.). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. pp. 1–104. ISBN 978-0-87021-907-8.
- Thetford, Owen (1991). British Naval Aircraft Since 1912. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-55750-076-2.
- Vego, Milan N. (1996). Austro-Hungarian Naval Policy, 1904–14. Abingdon: Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-0-7146-4209-3.
Further reading
- ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8.
- Dittmar, F. J. & Colledge, J. J. (1972). British Warships 1914–1919. London: Ian Allan. ISBN 978-0-7110-0380-4.
- Gibbons, Tony (1983). The Complete Encyclopedia of Battleships and Battlecruisers: A Technical Directory of All the World's Capital Ships From 1860 to the Present Day. London: Salamander Books Ltd. ISBN 978-0-86101-142-1.
- Parkes, Oscar (1990) [1957]. British Battleships. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-55750-075-5.
- Pears, Randolph (1979). British Battleships 1892–1957: The Great Days of the Fleets. London: G. Cave Associates. ISBN 978-0-906223-14-7.