BRITISH BATTLESHIPS.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 3, Issue 249, 20 November 1914, Page 2 (Supplement)

BRITISH BATTLESHIPS.

THK DREADNOI'GHT CLASS. of the problems of i]a\ nl warra re which may ho oX[K.vud to U> sol v. d wit Inn the next, few we"ks is tluit ol tln> " big slnp." There are experts who dechur e uiat th« chief HtreugtJi <rt a navy lie.s in its groat wliilo u?hrr> with oyutidenou assort that ihe day of the Dreadnoughts and super-Dreadnoughts is already over, aiul "hut submarines anil seapla'ies have made tlii-iii obsolete. Tho nation that is strong in submarine. toi|*do era it, and seaplanes. say tln.se latter critjes, ls the nation with whom the supremacy of thy >eas will in f 111ur«> remain. The preponderajvce <>l e\| opinini, however. Is in lavour of the Dreadnoughts. All tin- great Powers havo followed the example of Britain, and adopted tho " '<i«x ship' policy. Fortunately lor us however, wo are t;ir !ihca<l of all rivals in Dreadnoughts an in all other cUisms of war.-hips, tiermany has bet;n for some years ouir n«<arest rival. and wo have twont,v-»even Dreadnoughts completed to her .-eventeen. THE FIHST DHEADXOI'GHT. So familiar has the name Income as that ol a typo of batth-ship that Jt i? not easy to realise that ten veins ago there was not n single Dreadnought in exigence. Jt was UM)j, as a maiter ol tact, that there began to Ia- paragraphs m The pap.rs about a my-Uriou, slnp which nad Ihk'ii laid down at Portsmouth, and was lieing built with the greatest .secnpcy and Jtie iunio-t s|Mod. >he wa.s to be utterly unlike any warship ever btfore built, and when equip(>tU with her armament and ready for sea she would represent. 111 monev i'L'.UOO.iHIO. It w-is on October ?. llNlj, that the first Dreadnought was laid down. Hhe was launched m February P.XMj, and compli-r.d tho same Dooemlx*r. The teat was a world's record in battleship building, tor the vessel was completed, from the laying of the keel-plato to lu«' commissioning. in fit teen months. The British exainpl ■ was rcr.v shortly tollowed by other maritime Powers. and before long Germany. Fran e, the I'nittd Sates, and Japan had colli inonced tlie construction ol vessels ol tho same typ . Iho original Dreadnought, as stated above, wa.s built at Portsmouth, and liis late Majesty Kinn Kdvvard VII. launched her on February 10. IDOii. .She is 4!K> feet long, with n I team, or wid.h. ot_ Si' feet, and has a displacement ol li.LNK) tons, while her a'rmonr belt is of hardened steel II inclios thick.

THE GUNS. Her .imminent consists of gum of nji 0110 calibre— n.. ilio 1 and tlnw weapons are l."» f<ot long <uid ilirow an projectile with nui initial veloei.v ui 21H)0 loci a second. Ihi lionv v shot will, at a distance of tfiiV\> 'n,ilo\ penetjratc 13 'bjolius of hardened steel, w.hile the gun. which weighs tons, can he lired twice n minute, or ov. n more often under specially favourable conditions. Those enormous weapons aro mounted in pairt. in five harU't tes, which aire placed one on .he forecastle, cine on each tide amidships, and two further aft. No earlier battle-hip had carried more than ioiir 12-im h gun*. so that in th»-res-poet the celelirat• d Dre-adnouglit was entirely original. T\\elvo-pound<ir guns are fit-ed to repel tor|>edo attack. and of these t\\ointi*-vsevi n are mounted. She i> driven at a s|>oei] of 22 knots by turl>iti«v> ot 23.000 horse-power, and these have proved so successful that tliey hove Ikvji fiftu! in all the #ucmvil- - hattleship". The water-tuli® boilerv are of the Ualr.vek-Wilcov type, while tJi* ship has two rudders and four fcrew pro|>ellers.

NO WATERTIGHT DUORS. Atiothw innovation in tho Dreadnought. w hj> the absence of all watertight (lours the transverse bulk-heads Wing carried right up alxive .he wutor. liik', au<l lilts being provide] to afTom communication from one compart ni' ni to another. Tlii.s feature is noticeable in all our later thi|*.. and greatly mininiih'> the risk of the vessel sinking through damage by collision, explosion, or For the first time Hi the Navy, alio, the offiocis lived forward and the men aft. the idea being that the former were thus nearer the positions which they occupied in notion or whilst on duty. The conning ;ower, trom which the ship is worlctd in action, h protected by 11-inch armour, and the uia.->ts are on the tripod principle. DIGGER DREADNOUGHTS. In thr comparatively short time t-tno iJio Dreadnought has l**en launched, however, the construction of tiusc huge battleships has devcloptd very rapidly. The t>uoceeding ships are in groups, the first being the Rellerophon, Temeratne, and Superb, completed in ISHX), ol liMXIO tons. i."J knots s|tccd, and wiMi a main armament like the Dreadnought hut with sixteen 1-inch guns tor repelling torpedo attack instead of the 12-poundcrs. The next group aire the >t. \inoent. Vanguard, and Collingwood, completed in 111 10. Their tonnage is l'J.-00, while their speed and armament are -similar to the ships ol the first, group. There i& little or no difference in appearance bet-wen these .si\ \cssels. but hey carrv two large 11 i|ied mast.- instead of the one large and on; small one in the Dreadnought. THE 1011 SHIPS The tliivd t v|x> comprise the Neptune. Hercules, and lulossus, all comploted iu 1911. The iorukr fs of 10,0 4 KJ :011s, while the wo latter are sister vessel of '_H).»oo toils each. Ihe designed speed u '.'l knots, hut it is said L'a knots have been attained with a hor*>-pouer of "VOW). The armament consists of ten l'J-inch guns mounted in pairs m live barbettes, two of which arc mounted «'ii echelon. The first pair of guns can fire ligh. alv;;d and either • ide to some distante ab.i 11 t.'ie U.iiii, while tlk second, placed in the port side, can fire on both sides. The thir<l pair ol guiis are mounted in a barVtle placed on the .starboard r>id\ and have ;i -imilar arc ol lire to the last named. Ri.Ji, ait arc the other two barliettes, the two iruns :u one firing dirrvtly o'.'er the barbel I* iwmedia lely abaft them. The three vessels above d"-ei i!»ed vij'e no l ', i-i.l"ielLv speaking, -istei ships, although their pins are moutKcd in the same «•!>'• Ibe Neptune h.i. s two tiripod masts, wh.ile the Hercules and Colossus have only each. SI'PER- DRE \ nNOT'CIITS'. Tlio fourth 'jrutin are what are known nf" " >u|M'r-Pr<>adnoiights." and rep recent a still tiirther :i (1 v anti' in m/.p a n'i gun power. Th-' Orion is »<nw serving a. second flagdiip in th" Home Fleet, while the Connueror. Thuntlerer, and Mmi ir li are also in All Ui«v« hn« i I-- ''K. h liirh »''*> M i f«"'l luug. ire of J.VGjG U/y., »U'l« '4u tur.

bmo engines art' of -7,000 horso-pourr, sufficient to Jrivo tJx> ships ui 21 lujot*. i'lui armament ponsmts 01 ten 13.iViuoh gun«, mounted in five turret!', nil ol which nro plncfv) in the centre lino of the ship. I'Jiero nr<\ t«o turrets supcrmiposod forward and nil, and one amidships, so <sich of the LCiins ih üblo to lire nlnioM nil roiiD<l horizon. Four more vessels of ;i t'ti 11 hi typo atv the King (!«>orge \ ~ Audaaou-, Ajux, «nd Ontunon. They nro of IW,(*J() u>n«, mount ton ;iiul twenty 4.T----inoli gun", whilo their is th«> .vime ;'h that ol the Ori'Hi. 'Mm newwl battleships ot nil ar« the Delhi, fletibon. Marlborough, and 1 r>»n Duke, the lirst-numed being so (n 11<> ( ] in commemoration ol the I><*l hl Durhar. tiii*: coon old names. Ii u ill Ino noticed thai all our nior|i«ti ' I s" lia\o t>ovn j{iv*ii g<H>d old nrtii's which hav«> Ivou m u-o in iho Navy lor many hundreds ol your*. Ships callul the Teuienure, .Neptune, iiinquoroi, Ajax, Orion, Holleroplwn, i olonsiis, I huii iorei. and I)roudnought "ere i~• nt at. the ever-ineiuoratilo nmtlo <>( *l i jiil;il j»aj* (.hi October VI, IN'-), and with Mich a glorious rivord iiclhikl them the present-dav U'lirern ot tiles,. litMorir names may ho <lopond«d Upon IO £IVO j| S Jin (ICOOIIJK yt themselves in baltie as did Uieir jtredetiMsnrs ol over a o»>ntnrv ago. Til* re i> no knowing but that the futur® will bring about as treat a <haugo in the design ol battleship rh is uvidetlt between the " Dreadnought" oarlier typos. Internal combustion «ugincfl tor larger nte by no menus in their infancy, and before long we may liiivo battleships of 30,(*0U tons tvitL no tunnels, and mounting h<\avi«r guns than have yet been dreamt of.