HMS Trafalgar (1887)
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| Career |  |
|---|---|
| Builder: | Royal Dockyard Portsmouth |
| Laid down: | 18 January 1886 |
| Launched: | 27 March 1887 at Portsmouth, England |
| Commissioned: | 2 April 1890 |
| Fate: | Sold for scrapping 9 April 1911 |
| Specification | |
| Displacement: | 12,590 tons |
| Length: | 345 ft |
| Beam: | 73 ft |
| Draught: | 28 ft 6 inches |
| Engine: | Two-shaft Humphries triple expansion
I.H.P.= 7,500 natural, 12,500 forced draught |
| Speed: | 15.1 knots normal, 17.2 knots forced draft |
| Complement: | 577 |
| Armament: | Four 13.5 inch 67 ton guns
Six 4.7 inch quick firing guns Eight 6 pounders Nine 3 pounders Six torpedo tubes |
| Armour: | Belt 20 inches amidships, 14 inches at ends
Lower belt 8 inches amidships, 6 inches at ends For'ard bulkhead 16 inches Aft bulkhead 14 inches Citadel 18 inches to 16 inches Turrets 18 inches Conning tower 14 inches Battery protection 5 inches to 4 inches Deck 3 inches |
HMS Trafalgar was one of two Trafalgar class battleships, the other being HMS Nile. They were designed to be improved versions of the Admiral and Victoria classes, having a greater displacement to allow for improved protection. However they sacrificed a full armoured belt for greater thickness amidships in a partial belt.
As originally designed, 'Trafalgar' was to have displaced 11,940 tons, and carried a secondary armament of ten guns of 5 inches calibre, disposed in the broadside battery. Changes made during construction however, led to an increase in displacement to 12,590 tons; this led to the ships draught being increased by 12 inches from the initial design, and 18 inches with full bunkers. This in turn led to the main belt being immersed to a deeper level than had been intended, with a potential decrease in defensive effect in combat.
In October 1896 the secondary battery of 4.7 inch guns was replaced by a more powerful battery of six 6 inch quick firers.
The main artillery, while situated at a militarily effective height of 14 feet above sea level, were only 42 inches above the deck. It was thought possible that firing along the keel line might cause structural damage; tests requested by the Chief Constructor, however, showed the potential damage to be minimal.
As compared to HMS Sans Pareil the under-water hull form was finer, with a larger rudder. together with the reduced freeboard as compared to earlier ships this had a significantly adverse effect on her handling; as she spent her active service in relatively calm water in the Mediterranean, this defect was of minimal importance.
[edit] Service History
She was completed, except for her main armament, in only three years and three months. The delay in the production of her guns meant that she was not commissioned, as second flagship Mediterranean Fleet until April 2, 1890. She served in this position until October 1897, when she paid off at Portsmouth, and where she remained as guardship until August 1902. She remained thereafter in reserve until 1907, when she went to Sheerness to serve as a drill ship for crews of turrets and of submerged torpdo tubes. In April 1909 she reverted to active service with the fourth division of the Home Fleet, based at the Nore. She was sold on March 9, 1911.
See HMS Trafalgar for other ships of this name.
[edit] External link
[edit] References
- K. McBride, Nile and Trafalgar, The Last British Ironclads, in Warship 2000-2001, Conways Maritime Press
- D. K. Brown, Warrior to Dreadnought, Warship Development 1860-1906, ISBN 1-84067-529-2
- Oscar Parkes, British Battleships ISBN 0-85052-604-3
- Conway, All the World's Fighting Ships ISBM 0-85177-133-5
| Trafalgar-class battleship |
| Trafalgar | Nile |
List of battleships of the Royal Navy |
