German Pre-dreadnoughts (1890-94) – Brandenburg, Kurfürst Friedrich Wilhelm, Weissenburg, Wörth Germany’s first pre-dreadnoughts Certainly the oldest battleships of the German Navy in 1914, two were left (two others sold, see later) in active service. Originally the class was composed of Brandenburg, Kurfürst Friedrich Wilhelm, Weissenburg, and Wörth. They were approved in 1889, laid down at … Read more
United Kingdom – Battlecruisers – Indefatigable, Australia, New Zealand The Indefatigable class Battlecruisers were the second generation, after the Invincible, wanted by Jackie Fisher, accepted into the 1908 naval plan. The artillery plan mirrored that of HMS Neptune, albeit with improved cross-deck arc of fire for their midships wing turrets. They also had a getter … Read more
United Kingdom (launched 1909) Dreadnought Battleship (service 1911-1921) HMS Neptune was a figurehead of a new class of dreadnoughts, but the two others were so heavily modified that they ended in their own class, the Colossus. The main difference resided in the artillery disposition, with two wing turrets staggered en echelon in order that all … Read more
Royal Navy (1907) – Bellerophon, Superb, Temeraire By December 1906, after the famous battleship was launched, 1st lord of the Admiralty sir Jackie Fisher was so confident over the design, that three sister-ships were already ordered respectively on similar plans. They were laid down at Portsmouth for HMS Bellerophon on 6 December 1906 and 1 … Read more
Austro-Hungarian Navy (1911-1937): Tátra, Balaton, Csepel, Lika, Triglav, Orjen. Ersatz: Triglav(ii), Lika(ii), Dukla, Uszok Tátra class destroyers: SMS Tátra, Balaton, Csepel, Lika, Triglav and Orjen were large, new generation Hungarian-built destroyers designed for the Adriatic. They were built in the general context of experimenting with larger destroyers-scouts leaning on light cruisers instead of torpedo-boat derived … Read more
27-knotters class destroyers United Kingdom (1894-1899) A class Destroyers, 36 built. The lineage of British Destroyers started with the experimental “26-knotters” in 1892 when Yarrow, Thornycroft and Laird were ordered ships tailored to hunt down torpedo boats. But as they were built, the naval programme of 1893-94 saw further orders of a type defined also … Read more
Cassin class destroyers (1913) USN Fleet Destroyers (1912-1935): USS Cassin, Cummings, Downes, Duncan, Aylwin, Parker, Benham, Balch (DD-43-50) The first USN “1000 tonners” Destroyers After the very early Bainbrige and the 800-tonners (late called “flivvers” – Paulding & Smith) the USN seeked a new incremental step based on the same desig, just upscaled the previous … Read more
The Netherlands – 1893-1920: HRMS Kortenar, Evertsen, Piet Hein The three Evertsen class were the first Dutch Netherland’s Navy modern coastal battleships, built after a long line of monitors. Built in 1893-96, they played their role as deterrent before WWI and started to be decommissioned in 1913, 1914, and 1920 for HRMS Kortenaer, as a … Read more
United Kingdom (1908) – St Vincent, Collingwood, Vanguard The second dreadnought-type serie The St Vincent were built in record time, compared to the previous Bellerophon which differed in many details from HMS Dreadnought. However, they still had their share of own differences: Higher upper masts, improved engines, slightly longer and beamier hull which was also … Read more
World’s navies (1863 to today) As these lines are written, the world would remember medical personal and nurses involved in the present COVID19 pandemic. But ships dedicated to the care of the wounded existed almost since the red cross was invented: By Swiss businessman Henri Dunant, horrified to see casualties at the battle of Solférino … Read more
