In giving a brief outline of the general features of the battleships and
cruisers composing the present British navy, it must be remembered that
the navy is made up of ships built during a period of fifteen or twenty
years; the newest being a great advance upon the older ones, yet
differing but little from those launched a few years before.
The indications at present are for fast ships of very large size, the
battleships--intended to act in squadrons--possessing the maximum of
offensive and defensive power; the cruisers--intended for scouting and
similar purposes--possessing a high rate of speed, heavy armament, and a
certain amount of protection; and, as the travelling speed of a fleet is
limited to that of the slowest vessel in the group, the aim of British
naval architects is to design all the battleships to go at approximately
the same speed, and similarly for the cruisers. A special feature of
all British warships is the large coal supply carried, in view of the
fact that they may be required to operate in any part of the world. For
this reason the armour in our ships is sometimes not so thick as in some
foreign ships, which sacrifice coal supply and radius of action to
obtain better protection. In other respects our ships are second to
none.
The British battleship of to-day varies from 12,000 up to 15,000 tons in
displacement, and has a maximum speed of fully 18 knots, or about
twenty-one miles an hour. They are armoured from end to end, and are
provided with two protective decks; the lower one, about the level of
the water-line, being to protect the "vitals"; the upper one, to prevent
the fragments of shells from above penetrating to the batteries below.
Forward and aft are the two barbettes, each carrying a pair of long
12-inch 50-ton guns, firing 850-pound shot, capable of penetrating 28
inches of wrought iron at a range of two miles. The secondary armament
of 6-inch or 7.5-inch guns is mounted in "casemates," or armoured
chambers, so disposed that two of them can also fire straight ahead, and
the other two straight astern. The most recent ships have these ahead
or astern guns mounted in turrets, and in the largest ships of all, some
of which are of 18,000 tons, these guns are 9.2-inch 380-pounders.
After the battleships come the cruisers, corresponding to the frigates
of olden days,--ships whose functions correspond to that of the cavalry
of land forces, having to act as scouts, carry messages, intercept the
enemy's ships, and capture his mercantile ships, or protect their own
merchant convoys. To perform these varied functions, one of the chief
requirements is speed, rather than heavy armament, so that it can run,
if need be, if it should happen to encounter a ship of greater power.
Accordingly the best cruisers are given the high maximum speed of 23 to
25 knots.
Cruisers are divided into two classes: armoured and unarmoured. The
former are really modified battleships, with thin armour and somewhat
lighter armament, to enable the necessary engine power and coal supply
to be provided. Armoured cruisers of this description could, at a
pinch, take part in fleet actions--even against ironclads, as shown at
the battle of the Yalu, between the Chinese and Japanese, when the
latter, with protected cruisers and one or two armoured cruisers,
defeated a fleet in which there were several ironclads much larger and
better protected than themselves.
The most recent armoured cruisers are ships of 13,000 to 14,000 tons
displacement, and are protected by a belt of 6-inch armour, in addition
to protective decks. They are armed with two or four 9.2-inch
380-pounder guns, mounted in barbettes of thick armour, and with a
number of 6-inch 100-pounders; a number of 12-pounders and 3-pounders
are also carried. Some ships of this description can spurt up to 25
knots--not so long ago considered a high speed even for a torpedo boat
destroyer.
The unarmoured cruisers are intended chiefly for scouting purposes, or
for capturing or protecting commerce. As they are only intended to
fight with ships similar to themselves, which may attempt to make havoc
among our merchantmen, their only protection is a protective deck which
covers the vitals. The first-class unarmoured cruisers have an armament
and speed similar to those of the armoured type, and may have casements
for their broadside guns, and barbettes for the heavy ones; the
second-class cruisers are armed with 6-inch and 4.7-inch guns, protected
by simple shields only, and they have a speed of from 19 to 20 knots.
In a previous chapter, the torpedo boats used in the American Civil War
were mentioned as being simply fast launches, and little progress was
made in their construction, until the Russo-Turkish war taught that
their value was much greater than had been supposed. From that time
onwards, larger and faster boats began to be built, and even a certain
amount of protection began to be given them, consisting of 1-inch iron
plates round the boilers and engines, which was proof against
small-arms, and even against the heavier Nordenfelt machine guns, except
at the closest quarters. Boats of this type were from 130 to 170 feet
long, and went at a speed of 22 knots. As speeds increased, there was
less risk for the torpedo boat, and greater risk for her enemy, and it
became plain, that some means of averting torpedo boat attack must be
devised, else it would be absolutely impossible for a fleet to blockade
an enemy's coast without grave risk to itself. Torpedo boats were
essentially for coast defence, as they could only venture out in calm
weather. It was therefore seen that a new type of boat was required,
capable of keeping the sea in all weathers. Accordingly, the "torpedo
boat destroyer" was designed with this object, and which, possessing
superior speed, and an armament sufficiently powerful, could run down
and destroy existing torpedo boats, would safeguard the fleet, and
enable it to keep comparatively near the blockaded coast. These boats
were also furnished with a torpedo equipment, so that they could be used
as torpedo boats in connection with a fleet.
In these "destroyers," as they are called for short, everything must be
sacrificed to save weight; the hull must be a mere shell, and the
engines and boilers reduced to the very minimum of weight that can be
expected to stand the strain of the power developed. When we know that
the sides of a destroyer are only 0.3-inch thick, and that her engines
and boilers only weigh 50 pounds for each horse-power they give out,
while those of a mail steamer weigh 280 pounds, and those of a cargo
steamer 440 pounds, per horse-power developed, we can hardly wonder that
these boats have frequent breakdowns.
Present day destroyers are boats of 200 to 300 tons displacement, and
are about 227 feet long. They attain a maximum speed of about 33 knots,
or 37 miles an hour, which is produced by engines of 6,000 to 8,000
horse-power. They carry two swivel torpedo tubes on deck, and an
armament of one 12-pounder gun and six 3-pounders. They are also fitted
with search lights. To prevent the sea from breaking over the bows, it
is raised somewhat higher than the rest of the deck, and is curved at
the sides, so that waves breaking over it are diverted to the side,
instead of sweeping aft over the deck. The bridge is placed at the rear
of this hood, and carries the 12-pounder gun. These boats carry 80 tons
of coal, and have a crew of 60 men. The accomodation for the crew,
however, is very cramped, and those who work them have to put up with a
good deal of discomfort.
Like the torpedo boats, destroyers are low in the water; with their
short dumpy funnels, short mast, and inky hue, they have a peculiarly
"wicked" appearance.
A new departure in these boats has been made by the introduction of
"turbine" engines, which are much lighter and take up less room than
engines of the ordinary type. These engines go at such a high rate of
speed that four screw-propellers have to be provided to transmit the
power efficiently. Turbine destroyers have attained a speed of 35 and a
half knots, or nearly 41 miles per hour. One more type of vessel
remains to be mentioned, which is receiving a good deal of attention at
present. These are the "submarines," or boats designed to navigate
under water. Their use, however, is largely discounted by the fact that
it is impossible to see to any distance under water--in fact, a
well-known submarine expert has said that the navigation of a submarine,
even under the best conditions, presents exactly the same difficulties
as that of an ordinary ship sailing in a fog. Hence a submarine must
frequently rise to the surface to ascertain the distance traversed, and
see that the proper course has been kept, and until some satisfactory
means of avoiding this has been discovered, submarines will probably
remain of comparatively little value for purposes of war.
The submarines made for the Navy are, 63 feet long, by 11 and 3 quarters
feet broad. When running "awash"--that is, with a small part of their
upper works above water, they are driven by a gasoline engine at a speed
of over 10 miles an hour. Sufficient gasoline is carried to take them
over 400 miles at this speed. When submerged, the speed is naturally
glower; the gasoline engines are stopped, all openings are closed, and
electric storage batteries are put in operation. These drive the boat
at the rate of eight miles an hour, but for a run of four hours only,
after which the batteries require recharging. For this reason
submarines always require to act in concert with what has been called a
"mother ship."
The most important types of vessels composing the British Navy have now
been described. There are many others--sloops, gunboats, transports,
despatch-boats, coal ships, hospital-ships, etcetera, which need not be
more than mentioned. What warships will be like in the future it is
impossible to forecast, as will be seen from what has been already said.
Improvements in armour and guns, as well in machinery, are ever being
made, which may alter the present type of ship altogether. Sad it is to
think of the enormous expenditure of money and ingenuity in providing
means of destroying our fellow-men with the greatest facility, and what
a relief it would be to everybody if only the nations could agree to
disarm--and keep disarmed! But as this may not be, for the present at
any rate, we must be content to bear the burden of our national
insurance policy, and, however much we may grudge its necessity, see
that our naval power is sufficient to keep the command of the sea, on
which our very existence as a nation depends. Of one thing we may rest
certain, that the same spirit, the same indomitable courage and
readiness to sacrifice their lives in defence of their country, exists
among our officers and men in not less proportion than it did before
England was engaged in that glorious struggle, with the world in arms
against her, for her liberties and independence, the successful
termination of which secured for her that peace which has now endured,
with few interruptions, for well-nigh a century. That peace it will be
our wise policy to maintain while we can do so with honour; at the same
time guarding ourselves by every means in our power against the assaults
of envious foes who may venture to attack us.