Town class cruiser (1936)
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 HMS Belfast |
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| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Town |
| Operators: |  Royal Navy |
| Preceded by: | Arethusa class |
| Succeeded by: | Dido class |
| Subclasses: | Southampton Gloucester Edinburgh |
| Completed: | Ten |
| Lost: | Four |
| Preserved: | One |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | light cruiser |
| Displacement: | Southampton class 11,540 tons Gloucester class 11,930 tons Edinburgh-class 13,175 tons |
| Length: | Southampton and Gloucester classes 591.6 ft (180 m) Edinburgh-class 613.6 ft (187 m) |
| Beam: | Southampton-class 62.3 ft (19.0 m) Gloucester and Edinburgh classes 64.9 ft (19.8 m) |
| Draught: | Southampton-class 20 ft (6.1 m) Gloucester-class 20.6 ft (6.3 m) Edinburgh-class 22.6 ft (6.9 m) |
| Propulsion: | Four Admiralty 3-drum boilers Four Parsons steam turbines Four shafts Southampton-class 75,000 shp (56 MW) Gloucester and Edinburgh classes 82,500 shp (62 MW) |
| Speed: | 32 knots (59 km/h) |
| Range: | 5,300 nm at 13 knots 1,325 tons fuel oil |
| Complement: | 750 |
| Armament: | Southamptonand Gloucesterclass as designed
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| Aircraft carried: | Two Supermarine Walrus aircraft (Removed in the latter part of WWII) |
The Town-class were a ten-ship class of light cruisers of the Royal Navy. The Towns were designed to the constraints imposed by the London Naval Treaty of 1930. The ships were built in three distinct sub-classes, the Southampton, Gloucester and Edinburgh classes respectively, each sub-class adding on further weaponry.
Like their US and Japanese counterparts of that era, the Town-class cruisers were "light cruisers" in name only. As the London Treaty defined a "light cruiser" as one having a main armament no greater than 6.1 inches (155 mm) calibre, all three major naval powers sought to circumvent the limitations on heavy cruiser numbers by building "light cruisers" that were equal in size and effective power to heavy cruisers. These ships made up for their smaller calibre guns by carrying larger numbers of them.
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[edit] Southampton class
The Southampton class was the first and the subsequent two sub-classes were also known as modified or improved Southamptons. They had originally been built in response to the powerful US Brooklyn class and Japanese Mogami class light-cruisers.
[edit] Gloucester class
The subsequent Gloucesters had a redesigned deck and received thicker armour on the gun turrets.
[edit] Edinburgh class
The Edinburgh class were longer at 614 ft compared to 592 ft (187 to 180 m), initially to allow an increase in the main armament from twelve 6 inch (152 mm) guns in four triple turrets as in the two previous sub-classes, to sixteen 6 inch guns in four quadruple turrets. The idea was soon shelved however, due to the difficulties in actually manufacturing an effective quadruple 6 inch turret, and so the class reverted to the original main armament design, although improved. Four extra 4 inch (102 mm) "High Angle Low Angle" guns and eight extra 2 pounder (40 mm) guns and further armour protection were added instead.
[edit] Later improvements
All were heavily modified during WWII and after the Korean War, HMS Glasgow, Sheffield and Newcastle had one aft turret replaced by two quad 40 mm Bofors guns during WWII, since there was insufficient space to fit the needed extra anti-aircraft guns and retain the turret. This was not a problem in the Edinburghs, because it was longer they had more room. They still had substantial modifications to their weaponry, including addition of 40 mm Bofors guns. The addition of Radar equipment during WWII, aided the ships' combat effectiveness.
[edit] Service
The first Town-class ship were launched in 1936 and commissioned in 1937, just two years before the outbreak of war. The Town-class saw much service during the Second World War and took in many famous actions, such as the sinking of the Scharnhorst. Four of the Town-class were sunk during the war: HM Ships Edinburgh, Gloucester, Manchester, and Southampton. Many of the surviving ships saw successful service during the Korean War. The last Town-class ship to decommission was HMS Sheffield in 1967. One Town-class warship remains, HMS Belfast, moored on the River Thames in London as a museum-ship of the Imperial War Museum, a role she has performed since 1971.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- Colledge, J. J. and Warlow, Ben (2006). Ships of the Royal Navy: the complete record of all fighting ships of the Royal Navy, Rev. ed., London: Chatham. ISBN 9781861762818. OCLC 67375475.
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