HMS Agincourt (1913)
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| Career |  |
|---|---|
| Ordered: | War Purchase |
| Laid down: | September 14, 1911 |
| Launched: | January 22, 1913 |
| Commissioned: | August 7, 1914 |
| Decommissioned: | April 1921 |
| Fate: | Scrapped 1924 |
| Struck: | |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 27,500 tons normal 30,250 tons full load |
| Length: | 671 ft 6 in (205 m) |
| Beam: | 89 ft (27.1 m) |
| Draught: | 27 ft (8.2 m) |
| Propulsion: | Parsons 4-shaft steam turbines, 22 Babcock boilers, 40270 hp (30 MW) |
| Speed: | 22.4 knots (41 km/h) |
| Range: | 7,000 nautical miles at 10 kt |
| Complement: | 1267 |
| Armament: | 14 × 12 in (305 mm) guns (7 twin turrets) 20 × 6 in (152 mm) guns 10 × 3 in (76 mm) guns 2 × 3 in (76 mm) anti-aircraft guns 3 × 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes |
| Armour: | 9 inch (229 mm) main belt, 6 inch (152 mm) upper belt, 8-12 inch (203-305 mm) over turrets |
| Aircraft: | 0 |
HMS Agincourt was a World War I Dreadnought battleship of the Royal Navy.
She was a unique vessel, laid down by Armstrongs at Newcastle upon Tyne as the Brazilian Rio de Janeiro in September 1911. The chief designer of Armstrongs, Eustace Tennyson d'Eyncourt, produced her outline design in his hotel bedroom in Brazil during the negotiations. As a result of a collapse in the rubber trade, Brazil cancelled the order in 1912, and sold the vessel on to the Turkish navy for £2,750,000 in January 1914. Renamed the Sultan Osman I, she underwent trials in July 1914 and was completed in August, just as the First World War began. She was among the first British battleships with completely centreline distributed superfiring turrets (a necessity given the number carried), nearly five years after such a layout had been shown on the USS South Carolina.
The war broke out before delivery during the trials. Even though the Turkish crew had arrived to collect her, the British Government took over the vessel for incorporation into the Royal Navy. At the same time the British also took over a second Turkish battleship, also being built by Armstrongs - The Reshadieh which was renamed HMS Erin. Such an action was allowed for in the contracts but it had consequences. The takeover caused considerable ill-feeling in Turkey, where public subscriptions had partially funded the ships. This proved an important factor in turning Turkish public opinion against Britain, especially as the Turkish Navy had been pro-Britain - the Army having been pro-German. It helped put Turkey (and its Ottoman Empire) into the war on the side of Germany and the Austro-Hungarian Empire against the Triple Entente of Britain, France and Russia (29 October 1914). As an act of generosity to secure their allies, Germany made a gift to Turkey of the battlecruiser SMS Goeben and of the light cruiser SMS Breslau.
Agincourt was unusual in having seven main turrets, which were named after the days of the week (unlike the usual A, B, Q, etc), and popular belief at the time held that firing a full broadside of 14 guns would have capsized her. This was proven wrong by her Gunnery Officer at Jutland, who fired fourteen broadsides at the High Seas Fleet. The resulting sheet of flame was described as looking like a battle cruiser blowing up, although no damage resulted other than a few popped rivets.
She had poor armour in comparison with her armament, having just 9 inches (229 mm) maximum belt thickness compared with 12 inches (305 mm) or more that existed in contemporary Dreadnoughts. Added to this her internal layout was poor, with fewer bulkheads and more open spaces than would have been acceptable for a ship designed for the Royal Navy. She would have ranked as a battlecruiser but for her low speed. By her completion, her 12 inch (305 mm) guns had started to become obsolete - most capital ships under construction having larger calibres.
The Royal Navy made modifications before commissioning her: in particular they removed a flying-off deck for seaplanes. They failed, however, to modify a number of written labels, causing problems for seamen who could not distinguish, for example, hot taps from cold.
Her nickname, 'The Gin Palace', came from her luxurious fittings (which may have led to the original high cost to the Brazilians) and a corruption of her name (A Gin Court), Pink Gin having been a popular drink among Royal Navy officers at the time.
[edit] Battle honours
HMS Agincourt formed part of the First Battle Squadron at the Battle of Jutland, which she survived unscathed firing several broadsides without damage.
She was reallocated to the Second Battle Squadron in 1918 and decommissioned in 1919. After unsuccessful attempts to sell her to the Brazilian Government she was recommissioned as a depot ship before being decommissioned again in 1921 and scrapped in 1924.
