HMS Leviathan (1901): Difference between revisions
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''Leviathan'', named after the [[Leviathan|Biblical sea monster]],<ref>Silverstone, p. 248</ref> was [[Keel|laid down]] by [[John Brown and Company]] at their shipyard in [[Clydebank]] on 30 November 1899. She was [[Ship naming and launching|launched]] on 3 July 1901 when she was christened by Lady Inverclyde, wife of [[George Burns, 2nd Baron Inverclyde]], chairman of the [[Cunard Steamship Company]].<ref>{{Cite newspaper The Times |articlename=Naval & Military Intelligence |day_of_week=Thursday |date=4 July 1901 |page_number=10 |issue=36498| }}</ref> The ship was completed on 16 June 1903 and was initially assigned to the China Station. Transferred to the Mediterranean Fleet in 1905, she was assigned to the 5th Cruiser Squadron after a refit when she returned home at the end of 1906. She was placed in reserve in 1908, but was recommissioned in 1909 for service with the 4th Cruiser Squadron. ''Leviathan'' was again placed in reserve in 1913.<ref name=gg2>Gardiner & Gray, p. 12</ref> |
''Leviathan'', named after the [[Leviathan|Biblical sea monster]],<ref>Silverstone, p. 248</ref> was [[Keel|laid down]] by [[John Brown and Company]] at their shipyard in [[Clydebank]] on 30 November 1899. She was [[Ship naming and launching|launched]] on 3 July 1901 when she was christened by Lady Inverclyde, wife of [[George Burns, 2nd Baron Inverclyde]], chairman of the [[Cunard Steamship Company]].<ref>{{Cite newspaper The Times |articlename=Naval & Military Intelligence |day_of_week=Thursday |date=4 July 1901 |page_number=10 |issue=36498| }}</ref> The ship was completed on 16 June 1903 and was initially assigned to the China Station. Transferred to the Mediterranean Fleet in 1905, she was assigned to the 5th Cruiser Squadron after a refit when she returned home at the end of 1906. She was placed in reserve in 1908, but was recommissioned in 1909 for service with the 4th Cruiser Squadron. ''Leviathan'' was again placed in reserve in 1913.<ref name=gg2>Gardiner & Gray, p. 12</ref> |
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On 15 July 1914 she was recommissioned and assigned to the 6th Cruiser Squadron the following day; she participated in the [[Fleet review (Commonwealth realms)|Fleet Review]] held on 18–20 July at [[Spithead]].<ref name=tr>Transcript</ref> The ship was tasked to hunt down German commerce raiders and was sent to the [[Azores]] in early August on a false report of German ships operating there.<ref>Corbett, Vol. I, pp. 40, 264–65</ref> |
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She was sold for breaking up on 3 March 1920 to Hughes Bolckow of Blyth. |
She was sold for breaking up on 3 March 1920 to Hughes Bolckow of Blyth. |
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Revision as of 18:01, 1 March 2014
 HMS Leviathan at anchor
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| History | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Name | HMS Leviathan |
| Namesake | Leviathan |
| Builder | John Brown & Company, Clydebank |
| Laid down | 30 November 1899 |
| Launched | 3 July 1901 |
| Christened | Lady Inverclyde |
| Completed | 16 June 1903 |
| Fate | Sold for scrap, 3 March 1920 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Template:Sclass- armoured cruiser |
| Displacement | 14,150 long tons (14,380 t) (normal) |
| Length | 533 ft 6 in (162.6 m) (o/a) |
| Beam | 71 ft 4 in (21.7 m) |
| Draught | 26 ft (7.9 m) |
| Installed power | list error: <br /> list (help) 30,000 ihp (22,000 kW) 43 Belleville boilers |
| Propulsion | list error: <br /> list (help) 2 × shafts 2 × 4-cylinder triple-expansion steam engines |
| Speed | 23 knots (43 km/h; 26 mph) |
| Complement | 900 |
| Armament | list error: mixed text and list (help)
|
| Armour | list error: mixed text and list (help) |
HMS Leviathan was one of four Drake-class armoured cruisers built for the Royal Navy around 1900. She was assigned to the China Station upon completion and then served in the Mediterranean Fleet in 1905–06. She was assigned to the 7th Cruiser Squadron in 1907 before she was briefly reduced to reserve. Leviathan was commissioned in 1909 for service with the 4th Cruiser Squadron before she was placed in reserve in 1913.
Recommissioned in mid-1914, she was assigned to the 6th Cruiser Squadron of the Grand Fleet at the beginning of World War I.
Design and description
Leviathan was designed to displace 14,150 long tons (14,380 t). The ship had an overall length of 553 feet 6 inches (168.7 m), a beam of 71 feet 4 inches (21.7 m) and a deep draught of 26 feet 9 inches (8.2 m). She was powered by two 4-cylinder triple-expansion steam engines, each driving one shaft, which produced a total of 30,000 indicated horsepower (22,000 kW) and gave a maximum speed of 23 knots (43 km/h; 26 mph). The engines were powered by 43 Belleville boilers. On her sea trials Drake reached a speed of 24.11 knots (44.65 km/h; 27.75 mph).[1] She carried a maximum of 2,500 long tons (2,500 t) of coal and her complement consisted of 900 officers and enlisted men.[2]
Her main armament consisted of two breech-loading (BL) 9.2-inch (234 mm) Mk X guns in single gun turrets, one each fore and aft of the superstructure.[2] They fired 380-pound (170 kg) shells to a range of 15,500 yards (14,200 m).[3] Her secondary armament of sixteen BL 6-inch Mk VII guns was arranged in casemates amidships. Eight of these were mounted on the main deck and were only usable in calm weather.[4] They had a maximum range of approximately 12,200 yards (11,200 m) with their 100-pound (45 kg) shells.[5] A dozen quick-firing (QF) 12-pounder 12 cwt guns were fitted for defence against torpedo boats. Two additional 12-pounder 8 cwt guns could be dismounted for service ashore.[6] Leviathan also carried three 3-pounder Hotchkiss guns and two submerged 17.72-inch (450 mm) torpedo tubes.[1]
At some point during the way, the ship probably had all of the lower casemates for her six-inch guns plated over and six of them remounted on the upper deck so they could be used in heavy weather. Several twelve-pounders were removed to make room for the six-inch guns.[7]
The ship's waterline armour belt had a maximum thickness of 6 inches (152 mm) and was closed off by 5-inch (127 mm) transverse bulkheads. The armour of the gun turrets and their barbettes was 6 inches thick while the casemate armour was 5 inches thick. The protective deck armour ranged in thickness from 1–2.5 inches (25–64 mm) and the conning tower was protected by 12 inches (305 mm) of armour.[1]
Construction and service
Leviathan, named after the Biblical sea monster,[8] was laid down by John Brown and Company at their shipyard in Clydebank on 30 November 1899. She was launched on 3 July 1901 when she was christened by Lady Inverclyde, wife of George Burns, 2nd Baron Inverclyde, chairman of the Cunard Steamship Company.[9] The ship was completed on 16 June 1903 and was initially assigned to the China Station. Transferred to the Mediterranean Fleet in 1905, she was assigned to the 5th Cruiser Squadron after a refit when she returned home at the end of 1906. She was placed in reserve in 1908, but was recommissioned in 1909 for service with the 4th Cruiser Squadron. Leviathan was again placed in reserve in 1913.[10]
On 15 July 1914 she was recommissioned and assigned to the 6th Cruiser Squadron the following day; she participated in the Fleet Review held on 18–20 July at Spithead.[11] The ship was tasked to hunt down German commerce raiders and was sent to the Azores in early August on a false report of German ships operating there.[12]
She was sold for breaking up on 3 March 1920 to Hughes Bolckow of Blyth.
Notes
- ^ "Cwt" is the abbreviation for hundredweight, 12 cwt referring to the weight of the gun.
Footnotes
- ^ a b c Chesneau & Kolesnik, p. 69
- ^ a b Friedman 2012, p. 336
- ^ Friedman 2011, pp. 71–72
- ^ Friedman 2012, pp. 243, 260–61
- ^ Friedman 2011, pp. 80–81
- ^ Friedman 2012, pp. 250, 336
- ^ Friedman 2012, p. 247
- ^ Silverstone, p. 248
- ^ "Naval & Military Intelligence". The Times. No. 36498. London. 4 July 1901. p. 10. template uses deprecated parameter(s) (help)
- ^ Gardiner & Gray, p. 12
- ^ Transcript
- ^ Corbett, Vol. I, pp. 40, 264–65
Bibliography
- 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.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|lastauthoramp=ignored (|name-list-style=suggested) (help) - Corbett, Julian (1997). Naval Operations. History of the Great War: Based on Official Documents. Vol. II (reprint of the 1929 second ed.). London and Nashille, Tennessee: Imperial War Museum in association with the Battery Press. ISBN 1-870423-74-7.
- Corbett, Julian (1997). Naval Operations. History of the Great War: Based on Official Documents. Vol. III (reprint of the 1940 second ed.). London and Nashille, Tennesee: Imperial War Museum in association with the Battery Press. ISBN 1-870423-50-X.
- Friedman, Norman (2012). British Cruisers of the Victorian Era. Barnsley, South Yorkshire, UK: Seaforth. ISBN 978-1-59114-068-9.
- Friedman, Norman (2011). Naval Weapons of World War One. Barnsley, South Yorkshire, UK: Seaforth. ISBN 978-1-84832-100-7.
- Goldrick, James (1984). The King's Ships Were at Sea: The War in the North Sea August 1914–February 1915. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-334-2.
- Newbolt, Henry (1996). Naval Operations. History of the Great War Based on Official Documents. Vol. IV (reprint of the 1928 ed.). Nashville, Tennessee: Battery Press. ISBN 0-89839-253-5.
- Newbolt, Henry (1996). Naval Operations. History of the Great War Based on Official Documents. Vol. V (reprint of the 1931 ed.). Nashville, Tennessee: Battery Press. ISBN 0-89839-255-1.
- Silverstone, Paul H. (1984). Directory of the World's Capital Ships. New York: Hippocrene Books. ISBN 0-88254-979-0.
- "Transcript: HMS LEVIATHAN - July 1914 to December 1916, 6th, then 1st Cruiser Squadrons (Grand Fleet), North America & West Indies Station (Part 1 of 2)". Royal Navy Log Books of the World War 1 Era. Naval-History.net. Retrieved 28 February 2014.
External links
