Warrior class armoured cruisers (1905)

HMS Duke of Edinburgh, Black Prince, Warrior, Achilles, Cochrane, Natal (1905)

A brand new scale for cruisers

Duke of Edinburgh class (Reminder)

The Duke of Edinburgh (DuE) and the Black Prince authorized for the 1902 program were the first designed by Philips Watts. At the same time tonnage restrictions were dropped, and these vessels reached figures well above the previous Devonshire.

They also returned to a secondary artillery battery central at the lower bridge in barbettes. The 6 pieces of 234 mm returned in single turrets, in a configuration allowing a line of 4 pieces in line, 3 in hunting and 3 in retreat. They were criticized later for the low level of their battery, which was suffering from a bad aim in heavy weather. When the 47 mm pieces were judged too weak and fast against light units.
The Warrior class that followed also included the Achilles, Cochrane, and Natal. These ships were virtually identical to the first ones in terms of machines, size and displacement, as well as the armament, although its distribution is different: Thus the pieces of 152 gave way to 192 mm in four simple turrets. The problem of their accuracy in heavy weather disappeared.

These operational ships in 1907 with some minor modifications of armor. Because of their rearrangements, they had a lowered metacentric point and a much better stability.
There is a full article of the Duke of Edinburgh class, check it out !

The black Prince and DuE in action

In 1914, Black Prince was stationed in the Mediterranean. He captured a German freighter in the Red Sea, then opera from Gibraltar. In December, she returned to join the Grand Fleet. She fought at Jutland and was sunk by the fire of the German battleships during the night action of May 31, losing all hands.

The HMS Duke of Edinburgh was also based in the Mediterranean in 1914. He captured freighters in the Red Sea and operated in the Persian Gulf before joining the Grand Fleet in December. Like the Black Prince, he was modified in his armament and his arrangements.
She took part in the Battle of Jutland, survived, and was assigned to escort the convoys of the Atlantic. In 1918, he was posted to the East India and North America Station, and sent to Imingham in 1919 before being disarmed.

The Warrior class


HMS Achilles served in Portsmouth in 1914. A gun explosion sent her in repairs until June 1916: She missed the battle of Jutland. After that she was posted to the Atlantic. She chased the Raider Leopard in the North Sea on March 16, 1917. She remained on escort missions until the armistice, and then became a training ship for trimmers.


HMS Cochrane was based at Scapa Flow and fought in Jutland. She was then based in the East Indies, then escorted convoys to Arkhangelsk. She struck a reef in November 1918 and was scrapped.


HMS Natal was based at Scapa Flow, and was modified at Cromarty in 1915. She suffered an accidental dramatic explosion due to decomposed powder charge on December 31, 1915, killing 505 and was declared later a total structural loss.

HMS warrior Served in the Adriatic in 1914. She blocked the passage from Goeben to Pola. She defended the Suez Canal. She was then posted to Gibraltar, Sierra Leone, and then returned to the Grand Fleet. She fought in Jutland and was badly hit. Although towed by the Engadine, she capsized and sank en route.

Links

The Warrior class on wikipedia
The Duke of Edinburgh class on wikipedia
Specs Conway’s all the world fighting ships 1921-1947.

Warrior class specifications

Dimensions 154,03 x 22,40 x 7,62 m
Displacement 12 200 t, 13 550 T FL
Crew 712
Propulsion 2 shafts TE-4 cyl. 25 boilers 23 000 hp.
Speed 23 knots (45 km/h)
Range 6,680 nautical miles (12,370 km) at 10 knots (19 km/h)
Armament 6 x 254, 4 x 190, 23 x 47, 3 x 457 mm TTs
Armor Blockhaus 254, battery 152, belt 152, citadel 100, decks 20 mm.

Gallery


Author’s profile of the Duke of Edinburgh class in 1914.

Author: dreadnaughtz

Naval Encyclopedia webmaster. Find more on the "about" page.

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