HMS Marshal Soult
Encyclopedia
HMS Marshal Soult was a Royal Navy
Marshal Ney class
monitor
constructed in the opening years of the First World War
. Laid down as M14, she was named for the French general of the Napoleonic Wars
Marshal
Nicolas Jean de Dieu Soult
.
Designed for inshore operations along the sandbank strewn Belgian coastline, Marshal Soult was equipped with two massive 15 in (381 mm) naval guns. Originally, these guns were to have been stripped from one of the battlecruisers and after they were redesigned. However the guns were not ready, and guns intended for the battleship
were used instead. The diesel engine
s used by the ships were a constant source of technical difficulty, restricting their use.
Marshal Soult performed numerous bombardment operations against German positions in Flanders, including during the First Ostend Raid
in April 1918. In October 1918, she became a tender to the Gunnery School HMS Excellent at Portsmouth
and in March 1919 undertook a similar role at Devonport
before paying off in March 1921. Recommissioned in 1924, she moved to Chatham
in April 1926 as a training ship.
Her armament was removed in March 1940 and was later fitted to the new Roberts-class
monitor , which was completed in 1943. She served throughout the Second World War
as a depot ship for trawlers at Portsmouth
until being sold on 10 July 1946 and scrapped at Troon
.
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
Marshal Ney class
Marshal Ney class monitor
The two Marshal Ney class monitors were built for the Royal Navy during the First World War-Design and development:The need for monitors for shelling enemy positions from the English Channel had become apparent only at the start of the war and they were designed with some haste...
monitor
Monitor (warship)
A monitor was a class of relatively small warship which was neither fast nor strongly armoured but carried disproportionately large guns. They were used by some navies from the 1860s until the end of World War II, and saw their final use by the United States Navy during the Vietnam War.The monitors...
constructed in the opening years of the First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. Laid down as M14, she was named for the French general of the Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
Marshal
Marshal
Marshal , is a word used in several official titles of various branches of society. The word is an ancient loan word from Old French, cf...
Nicolas Jean de Dieu Soult
Nicolas Jean de Dieu Soult
Nicolas Jean-de-Dieu Soult, 1st Duke of Dalmatia , the Hand of Iron, was a French general and statesman, named Marshal of the Empire in 1804. He was one of only six officers in French history to receive the distinction of Marshal General of France...
.
Designed for inshore operations along the sandbank strewn Belgian coastline, Marshal Soult was equipped with two massive 15 in (381 mm) naval guns. Originally, these guns were to have been stripped from one of the battlecruisers and after they were redesigned. However the guns were not ready, and guns intended for the battleship
Battleship
A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...
were used instead. The diesel engine
Diesel engine
A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...
s used by the ships were a constant source of technical difficulty, restricting their use.
Marshal Soult performed numerous bombardment operations against German positions in Flanders, including during the First Ostend Raid
First Ostend Raid
The First Ostend Raid was the first of two attacks by the Royal Navy on the German-held port of Ostend during the late spring of 1918 during the First World War...
in April 1918. In October 1918, she became a tender to the Gunnery School HMS Excellent at Portsmouth
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
and in March 1919 undertook a similar role at Devonport
HMNB Devonport
Her Majesty's Naval Base Devonport , is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy . HMNB Devonport is located in Devonport, in the west of the city of Plymouth in Devon, England...
before paying off in March 1921. Recommissioned in 1924, she moved to Chatham
Chatham, Medway
Chatham is one of the Medway towns located within the Medway unitary authority, in North Kent, in South East England.Although the dockyard has long been closed and is now being redeveloped into a business and residential community as well as a museum featuring the famous submarine, HMS Ocelot,...
in April 1926 as a training ship.
Her armament was removed in March 1940 and was later fitted to the new Roberts-class
Roberts class monitor
The Roberts class of monitors of the Royal Navy consisted of two heavily-gunned vessels built during the Second World War. They were the Roberts, completed in 1941, and Abercrombie, completed in 1943....
monitor , which was completed in 1943. She served throughout the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
as a depot ship for trawlers at Portsmouth
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
until being sold on 10 July 1946 and scrapped at Troon
Troon
Troon is a town in South Ayrshire. It is situated on the west coast of Scotland, about eight miles north of Ayr and three miles northwest of Glasgow Prestwick International Airport. Lying across the Firth of Clyde, the Isle of Arran can be seen. Troon is also a port with freight and ferry services...
.