Lord Nelson class

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HMS Agamemnon
White Ensign, British war flag
Builder: Palmers Shipbuilding and Iron Company , Jarrow
William Beardmore and Company , Dalmuir
Ships planned: 2
Ships built: 2
Building-costs: Lord Nelson : £ 1,651,339
Agamemnon : £ 1,652,347
Period of service: 1908-1919
Displacement : Draft: 15,358 ts
Lord Nelson :
Construction: 16,090 ts
Use: 17,820 ts
Agamemnon :
Construction: 15,925 ts
Use: 17,683 ts
Length between perpendiculars:
length over all:
L pp : 124.97 m
L overall approx : 135.18 m
Width: 24.2 m
Draft: 8.0 m
Drive: 2 four-cylinder, triple
composite steam engines, 15 coal-fired water-tube boilers with additional oil firing,
2 screws
Speed: 18 kn construction
Range: 5,390 nm (9,980 km) at 10 kn (19 km / h) with only coal firing;
9,180 nm (17,000 km) at 10 kn (19 km / h) with additional oil firing;
Bunker amount: Lord Nelson : 900 tons of coal normal, 2,170 tons of coal maximum; 1,090 tons of oil maximum;
Agamemnon : 900 tons of coal normal, 2,193 tons of coal maximum; 1,048 tons of oil maximum
Crew: Peace: 750
Stake: 800
Armament: Guns:

Torpedo tubes:

  • 5 × 18 inch (450 mm) (under water)
Armor:
  • Belt (side): 203 - 305 mm
  • Belt (top): 203 mm
  • Bulkheads: 203 mm
  • Citadel: 203 mm
  • Barbettes: 305 mm
  • Armored domes intermediate caliber: 178 - 203 mm
  • Armored domes main caliber: 305 mm
  • Command tower 305 mm
  • Deck: 25 - 102 mm

The Lord Nelson class was a class of two battleships in the Royal Navy . The ships, built between 1905 and 1908, were the last British pre-dreadnought battleships .

history

The Lord Nelson class battleships were designed and built at a time when the direction of future battleship construction was controversial. On the one hand, the experience of the Russo-Japanese War suggested that the combat distances would in future grow so much that the intermediate and secondary armament would become less important and ultimately ineffective. The smaller calibers would then be useless in a battle between larger ships. On the other hand, the slow rate of fire of the main calibers raised the question of the expediency of building standard caliber ships . It was feared that in combat at medium distances, for example in fog , bad weather or at night, they would have nothing to counter the higher rate of fire of the intermediate calibers. Ultimately, the superiority of the standard caliber ship was confirmed by the first ship of this type, the HMS Dreadnought . At the time the construction of the Lord Nelson class began in 1904 or when the keel was laid in 1905, this was not yet clearly evident.

construction

Side elevation and deck plan of the HMS Agamemnon

The Lord Nelson class ships were the first battleships for which Sir Philip Watts was responsible. Although they followed the pattern of pre-dreadnought battleships established with the Royal Sovereign class , they represented a major leap forward. They would have ushered in a new era in pre-dreadought design if the HMS Dreadnought would not have made this line of development obsolete. Like all pre-dreadnought battleships since the Majestic class , they carried the main 12 inch (305 mm) armament in two twin turrets. To increase the firepower, as it was already evident in foreign battleships of similar displacement, an additional 9.2 inch (234 mm) caliber battery was introduced as an intermediate caliber in the previous King Edward VII class . In the King Edward VII class, this intermediate caliber was used in addition to the 6 inch (152 mm) secondary armament that had been common for a long time; in the Lord Nelson class, this original secondary armament was dropped in favor of a larger number of intermediate caliber cannons. Since the HMS Inflexible , which entered service in 1881, they were the first British battleships to dispense with the 6 inch caliber. (The Trafalgar-Class and the Centurion-Class had a 4.7 "(120 mm) secondary armament when they were commissioned, but were later converted to 6".) The 9.2-inch cannons in one opposite the King Edward -VII-class improved version were set up in four twin and two single towers on the upper deck. The relocation of the secondary armament from the intermediate deck or the casemates to the upper deck eliminated the problem of the use of the secondary armament in rough seas, with many British battleships the secondary armament was flooded even in relatively calm seas and could not be used.

Lord Nelson during sea trials, 1908

The 12-inch (305-mm) cannons were a new, more powerful type with a length of 45 calibers. They and the armored turrets were identical to those used on the HMS Dreadnought . The completion of the Lord Nelson and Agamemnon was delayed because the main weapons and mounts were diverted to the completion of the dreadnought .

Ultimately, the equipment with main and intermediate calibers proved to be less than successful in practice. The fire control officers could not distinguish between the impacts of the 12-inch and 9.2-inch guns, which made fire control practically impossible. This problem eventually led all fleets to switch to the standard caliber ship. In fact, a change to the standard caliber for the Lord Nelson class was considered in 1905, but the design was already too advanced.

To repel torpedo boats , the ships received a battery of 12 pounder cannons. These were set up amidships on a deck above the secondary armament. This innovative setup enabled good fire control. However, this list was also criticized. The guns were a good target and could damage the 9.2-inch towers below them by falling debris. In addition, some officers were of the opinion that the caliber of the 12-pounder was insufficient for the fight against more modern, larger torpedo boats.

The larger calibers, which were increasingly used on foreign warships, resulted in better protection in the ships of the class. They were more heavily armored than any other British pre-dreadnought and more heavily armored in terms of size and thickness of armor than the dreadnoughts up to the Orion class in 1909. They were the first British battleships with permanent watertight bulkheads that had no doors or piping found. This was to prevent flooding of adjacent departments. The departments were accessed via elevators. This design was unpopular in use because it made it difficult for the crew to access the individual compartments and was no longer used in the early British dreadnoughts, although the Russian experience in the Russo-Japanese War had shown that it was quite useful in preventing sinking would be.

As a further protection, each department had its own ventilation and pumping system, eliminating the need for a common bilge system as in previous British battleships. Such a system was seen as a possible weakness in the event of water ingress. The ships' underwater protection was never seriously tested in battle, but it can be assumed that it would have performed better than other British pre-dreadoughts that sank after just one torpedo or mine hit.

Both ships were designed as very short ships. The responsible design department wanted to ensure that they could use the same dry docks as the earlier battleship classes. They were shorter than the ships of the King Edward VII class, and the space available was very cramped in use. The design specifications also resulted in flat side walls and a flat floor. Together with the installation of the heavy 9.2-inch cannons and their turrets, this had the pleasant side effect that the ships hardly rolled, had good seaworthiness and made a good weapon platform. However, the design also forced compromises in the 9.2-inch battery. Instead of being erected in six twin towers, four twin and two single towers had to be erected because of the specified width. The restrictions on the size of these turrets resulted in very cramped conditions, which affected the rate of fire of the guns.

The ships were the last British battleships with piston steam engines and with two propellers, all future classes had steam turbines and four propellers. In addition, they were the last to have screws turning inward. This construction allowed higher drive power and led to slightly higher speeds and lower fuel consumption, but was unpopular in use. The ships were less manoeuvrable at low speeds or when reversing.

The use of mixed boilers in one ship was dispensed with, both ships were each equipped with standard water tube boilers , 15 from Babcock & Wilcox on the Lord Nelson and 15 from Yarrow on the Agamemnon . Although they were primarily coal-fired, they were the first British battleships to have additional oil firing from the start, and older battleships were converted to this additional firing.

The Lord Nelson had six oil atomizers and the Agamemnon had five. The use of additional oil firing increased the range considerably. The construction of the boiler has proven itself in use. Both ships reached their design speed of 18 knots, in tests the Lord Nelson reached 18.7 knots (34.6 km / h) and the Agamemnon 18.5 knots (34.25 km / h).

The ships were the last British battleships to have an armored ram .

Construction costs were over £ 1,600,000 per unit, which was £ 110,000,000 after adjusting for inflation. The completed ships looked simple but intimidating. They were more reminiscent of French battleships than the previous British pre-dreadnoughts. Like all pre-dreadnoughts, the two ships were outdated with the commissioning of the HMS Dreadnought . The Dreadnought entered service when the two Lord Nelson class ships were still under construction, the first ship of this class did not enter service until 1908.

However, their aging is often overstated. While they were clearly inferior to a battleship or battle cruiser at a combat range of over 10,000 yards (9100 m), they had advantages below that range, for example at night, in fog or in bad weather. They were better armored than the early dreadnoughts or battlecruisers, and the 9.2-inch battery of the secondary armament allowed for powerful broadsides with a higher rate of fire than the standard caliber ships. Despite the commissioning of the dreadnought in 1906, the Royal Navy planned to build two more ships of the class in 1908 so that the four ships could then be used in a closed formation. However, the plan was dropped because of the success of the dreadnought and the basic demand for a stronger artillery armament with a longer range. Thanks to their excellent armor and powerful secondary battery, the Lord Nelson class ships remained in active frontline service until the end of World War I, in contrast to the other British pre-Dreadnoughts or even the HMS Dreadnought itself.

commitment

Both ships entered service in 1908 and served in the Home Fleet until the outbreak of World War I in August 1914. After they had been used at the start of the war with the Channel Fleet, they spent the remainder of the war in the Mediterranean , where they participated in the attacks Turkish coastal fortifications and support for the landing operation in the Dardanelles . They later blocked the German battle cruiser SMS Goeben in front of the Dardanelles, but were too far away when it erupted on January 20, 1918 and therefore could not prevent the breakthrough. In November 1918, both ships were part of the first British squadron to pass the Dardanelles after the armistice.

Ships of the class

HMS Lord Nelson

HMS Lord Nelson was laid down at the Palmers Shipbuilding and Iron Company at Jarrow in 1905, launched in 1906 and commissioned in 1908. In the same year she was assigned to the reserve as the last pre-dreadnought battleship, only to be used in the Home Fleet until 1914. During World War I she served in the Channel Fleet (1914-1915), in the Dardanelles Campaign (1915-1916), in the Eastern Mediterranean Squadron (1916-1917) and in the Aegean Squadron (1917-1919). It went into the reserve in 1919 and was sold for scrapping in 1920.

HMS Agamemnon

HMS Agamemnon was laid down at William Beardmore and Company at Dalmuir in 1905 , launched in 1906 and commissioned in 1908. She served in the Home Fleet from 1908 to 1914. During World War I she served in the Channel Fleet (1914-1915), in the Dardanelles Campaign (1915-1916), in the Eastern Mediterranean Squadron (1916-1917) and in the Aegean Squadron (1917-1919). She went into reserve in 1919, served as a radio controlled target ship from 1921 to 1926, and was sold for scrapping in 1927 as the last British pre-dreadnought battleship.

Remarks

  1. L pp = length between perpendiculars or length between perpendiculars: distance between the axis of the rudder stock and the trailing edge of the leading edge in the construction waterline.

Individual evidence

  1. a b c Burt, p. 282
  2. a b c d Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships, 1860-1905 , p. 40
  3. Burt, pp. 277-287.
  4. Burt, pp. 229-238, 281-288.
  5. a b c Burt, pp. 284-288.
  6. Burt, p. 289.
  7. Burt, pp. 293-294.
  8. a b Burt, pp. 282, 295–298-
  9. Some sources give a period of service from 1923 to 1926, but Burt states on p. 295 that the conversion took place in 1921 and gives some examples of her service as a target ship in the same year. According to Burt, p. 298, she was overtaken during her service as a target ship in 1922–1923, so the confusion may arise.

literature

  • Brown, DK Warrior to Dreadnought . Chatham Publishers, 1998.
  • Burt, RA British Battleships 1889-1904 . Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1988. ISBN 0-87021-061-0 .
  • Chesneau, Roger, and Eugene M. Kolesnik, eds. Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships, 1860-1905 . New York: Mayflower Books, Inc., 1979. ISBN 0-8317-0302-4 .
  • Gibbons, Tony. 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., 1983.
  • McBride, K. " Lord Nelson and Agamemnon ". Conway's: Warship , 2005.

Web links

Commons : Lord Nelson class  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files