List of ironclads of the Royal Navy
Encyclopedia
This is a list of ironclads of the Royal Navy
of the United Kingdom
. An ironclad was a steam-propelled warship in the early part of the second half of the 19th century, protected by iron or steel armour plates.
, warships of the Kingdom of Scotland
were under the Royal Scots Navy
.
formally came into existence with the Restoration
of Charles II
in 1660. Prior to this, warships were the property of the English Monarch, until the execution of Charles I in 1648, when the ships became the property of the state.
was the term used in the Royal Navy referring to a warship powerful enough to use line-of-battle tactics. Such ships were wooden-hulled sailing ships from 1660 until the transition towards battleships in nineteenth century. From 1840, steam-driven screw propellors were introduced and in 1860, the first iron-hulled, armour-plated warship, HMS Warrior
was launched. Battleships began to be built from 1880.
until the early 1880s, with the construction of the Colossus class
. Capital ships from the period 1860 onwards are given for comparison, as these would later evolve into the modern battleship.
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...
of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. An ironclad was a steam-propelled warship in the early part of the second half of the 19th century, protected by iron or steel armour plates.
Glossary
- BU = broken upShip breakingShip breaking or ship demolition is a type of ship disposal involving the breaking up of ships for scrap recycling. Most ships have a lifespan of a few decades before there is so much wear that refitting and repair becomes uneconomical. Ship breaking allows materials from the ship, especially...
- In the sections listing warships in the English/Royal Navy from 1618 onwards, the dates have been quoted using the modern convention of the year starting on 1 January.
Warships of the Scots Navy pre-1707
Prior to the Acts of Union 1707Acts of Union 1707
The Acts of Union were two Parliamentary Acts - the Union with Scotland Act passed in 1706 by the Parliament of England, and the Union with England Act passed in 1707 by the Parliament of Scotland - which put into effect the terms of the Treaty of Union that had been agreed on 22 July 1706,...
, warships of the Kingdom of Scotland
Kingdom of Scotland
The Kingdom of Scotland was a Sovereign state in North-West Europe that existed from 843 until 1707. It occupied the northern third of the island of Great Britain and shared a land border to the south with the Kingdom of England...
were under the Royal Scots Navy
Royal Scots Navy
The Royal Scots Navy was the navy of the Kingdom of Scotland from its foundation in the 11th century until its merger with the Kingdom of England's Royal Navy per the Acts of Union 1707.- Origins :...
.
Warships of the English Navy pre-1660
The Royal NavyRoyal 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...
formally came into existence with the Restoration
English Restoration
The Restoration of the English monarchy began in 1660 when the English, Scottish and Irish monarchies were all restored under Charles II after the Interregnum that followed the Wars of the Three Kingdoms...
of Charles II
Charles II of England
Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...
in 1660. Prior to this, warships were the property of the English Monarch, until the execution of Charles I in 1648, when the ships became the property of the state.
Ships of the line of the Royal Navy (1660-1880)
Ship of the lineShip of the line
A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed from the 17th through the mid-19th century to take part in the naval tactic known as the line of battle, in which two columns of opposing warships would manoeuvre to bring the greatest weight of broadside guns to bear...
was the term used in the Royal Navy referring to a warship powerful enough to use line-of-battle tactics. Such ships were wooden-hulled sailing ships from 1660 until the transition towards battleships in nineteenth century. From 1840, steam-driven screw propellors were introduced and in 1860, the first iron-hulled, armour-plated warship, HMS Warrior
HMS Warrior (1860)
HMS Warrior was the first iron-hulled, armour-plated warship, built for the Royal Navy in response to the first ironclad warship, the French Gloire, launched a year earlier....
was launched. Battleships began to be built from 1880.
List of ironclad warships of the Royal Navy (1860–1882)
The term battleship was not used by the AdmiraltyAdmiralty
The Admiralty was formerly the authority in the Kingdom of England, and later in the United Kingdom, responsible for the command of the Royal Navy...
until the early 1880s, with the construction of the Colossus class
Colossus class battleship (1882)
The Colossus class battleships were ironclad warships, carrying their main armament in turrets, which served in the Victorian Royal Navy from 1882...
. Capital ships from the period 1860 onwards are given for comparison, as these would later evolve into the modern battleship.
Sea-going ironclads (1860–1882)
- Warrior classWarrior class battleshipThe Warrior class ironclads were a class of two warships built for the Royal Navy between 1859 and 1862, the first ocean-going ironclads with iron hulls ever constructed. The ships were designed as armoured frigates in response to an invasion scare sparked by the launch of the and her three...
broadside ironclads- WarriorHMS Warrior (1860)HMS Warrior was the first iron-hulled, armour-plated warship, built for the Royal Navy in response to the first ironclad warship, the French Gloire, launched a year earlier....
(1860) - Preserved Portsmouth - Black PrinceHMS Black Prince (1861)HMS Black Prince was the third ship of that name to serve with the Royal Navy. She was the world's second ocean-going, iron-hulled, armoured warship, following her sister ship, . For a brief period the two s were the most powerful warships in the world, being virtually impregnable to the naval guns...
(1861) - Renamed Emerald 1903, renamed Impregnable III 1910, sold for BU 1923
- Warrior
- Defence classDefence class battleshipThe Defence class of ironclad battleships were the class which historically immediately followed the first two British ironclads, and HMS Black Prince. The class consisted of two ships, and .-Background:...
broadside ironclads- DefenceHMS Defence (1861)HMS Defence was the lead ship of the armoured frigates ordered by the Royal Navy in 1859. Upon completion in 1862 she was assigned to the Channel Fleet. The ship was paid off in 1866 to refit and be re-armed and was briefly reassigned to the Channel Fleet again when she recommissioned in 1868...
(1861) - Renamed Indus 1898; hulked 1922; sold for BU 1935 - ResistanceHMS Resistance (1861)HMS Resistance was the second and last ship of the Defence class to be commissioned. She served in the English Channel from 1862 to 1864, and was then posted to the Mediterranean, where she was the first British ironclad to see service...
(1861) - Sold 1898; foundered 1899; raised and BU
- Defence
- Hector classHector class battleshipThe Hector class battleships, and , laid down in 1861, were the class which immediately followed the Defence class into service with the Royal Navy....
broadside ironclads- HectorHMS Hector (1862)HMS Hector was the lead ship of the armoured frigates ordered by the Royal Navy in 1861. Upon completion in 1864 she was assigned to the Channel Fleet. The ship was paid off in 1867 to refit and be re-armed. Upon recommissioning in 1868 she was assigned as the guard ship of the Fleet Reserve in...
(1862) - Sold for BU 1905 - ValiantHMS Valiant (1863)HMS Valiant was the second ship of the armoured frigates ordered by the Royal Navy in 1861. Her builders went bankrupt shortly after she was laid down, which significantly delayed her completion. After being launched in 1863, she waited a further five years to receive her guns due to supply issues...
(1863) - Renamed Indus 1898, Valiant (Old) 1916, and Valiant III 1919; became floating oil tank 1924; BU 1957
- Hector
- AchillesHMS Achilles (1863)The broadside ironclad HMS Achilles was the third member of the 1861 programme, was described as an armoured frigate, and was originally projected as a modified version of the earlier ....
(1863) broadside ironclad — Renamed Hibernia 1902, Egmont 1904, Egremont 1918, and Pembroke 1919; sold for BU 1925 - Minotaur classMinotaur class battleshipThe Minotaur class armoured frigates were essentially enlarged versions of HMS Achilles with heavier armament and armour, and more powerful engines....
broadside ironclads- MinotaurHMS Minotaur (1863)HMS Minotaur was the lead ship of the armoured frigates built for the Royal Navy during the 1860s. They were the longest single-screw warships ever built. Minotaur took nearly four years between her launching and commissioning because she was used for evaluations of her armament and different...
(1863) - Renamed Boscawen 1904, Ganges 1906, and Ganges II 1908; sold for BU 1922 - AgincourtHMS Agincourt (1865)HMS Agincourt was one of three Minotaur class ironclads, the sistership of HMS Minotaur and a near sister to HMS Northumberland...
(1865) - Renamed Boscawen III 1904 and Ganges II 1906; became coal hulk C109 1908; sold for BU 1960 - Northumberland (1866) - Renamed Acheron 1904; became coal hulk C 1909, renamed C68 1926; sold 1927; became hulk Stedmound
- Minotaur
- Prince Consort classPrince Consort class battleshipThe Prince Consort class of battleship were four Royal Navy wooden-hulled broadside ironclads: HMS Royal Oak, HMS Prince Consort, HMS Ocean, and HMS Caledonia. They were originally laid down as Bulwark-class battleships, but were converted to ironclads...
broadside ironclads (converted from Bulwark class 2-deckersBulwark class battleship (1859)The Bulwark class were the final class of wooden line-of-battle ships laid down for the Royal Navy. They were laid down after . In March 1861 their construction was suspended, and seven were later converted to iron-clads...
)- Prince ConsortHMS Prince Consort (1862)HMS Prince Consort was laid down at Pembroke as the 91-gun second rate battleship HMS Triumph, but her name was changed in February 1862 in memory of the recently deceased Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha....
(1862) (ex-Triumph) - Sold for BU 1882 - CaledoniaHMS Caledonia (1862)HMS Caledonia was a broadside ironclad of the Prince Consort class.Originally laid down as two-decker steam ship of the line of the Bulwark class, HMS Caledonia, HMS Triumph and were converted on the building stocks to armoured frigates.The three ships of the Prince Consort class were intended to...
(1862) - Sold for BU 1886 - OceanHMS Ocean (1862)HMS Ocean was the last of the Royal Navy's three s to be completed in the mid-1860s. She was originally laid down as a 91-gun second-rate ship of the line, and was converted during construction to an armoured frigate. The ship spent the bulk of her career on the China Station and served as flagship...
(1862) - Sold for BU 1882
- Prince Consort
- Royal OakHMS Royal Oak (1862)HMS Royal Oak was the first ship of the Prince Consort class, and is sometimes described as a half-sister to the other three ships.In common with the others of her class, she started life as a wooden two-decked second-rate line-of-battle ship of 91 guns...
(1862) broadside ironclad (converted from Bulwark class 2-decker) - Laid up 1871; sold for BU 1885 - Royal AlfredHMS Royal Alfred (1864)HMS Royal Alfred was a broadside ironclad frigate of the Victorian era, serving with the Royal Navy. She was half-sister to and .In 1861, in response to the French warship building programme initiated by Emperor Napoleon III, the British Board of Admiralty selected seven wooden two-decked...
(1864) central-battery ironclad (converted from Bulwark class 2-decker)- Sold for BU 1885 - ResearchHMS Research (1863)HMS Research was a small ironclad warship, converted from a wooden-hulled sloop and intended as an experimental platform in which to try out new concepts in armament and in armour...
(1863) central-battery ironclad — Sold for BU 1884 - EnterpriseHMS Enterprise (1864)The seventh HMS Enterprise of the Royal Navy was an armoured sloop launched in 1864 at Deptford Dockyard. Originally laid down as a wooden screw sloop of the Camelion class, she was redesigned by Edward Reed and completed as a central battery ironclad...
(1864) central-battery ironclad — Sold for BU 1886 - FavoriteHMS Favorite (1864)HMS Favorite was one of the three wooden warships of moderate dimension selected by Sir Edward Reed for conversion to broadside ironclads in response to the increased tempo of French warship building....
(1864) central-battery ironclad — Sold for BU 1886 - ZealousHMS Zealous (1864)HMS Zealous was one of the three ships forming the second group of wooden steam battleships selected in 1860 for conversion to ironclads. This was done in response to the perceived threat to Britain offered by the large French ironclad building programme...
(1864) central-battery ironclad (converted from Bulwark class 2-decker) - Laid up 1875; sold for BU 1886 - RepulseHMS Repulse (1868)HMS Repulse was the last wooden battleship constructed for the Royal Navy.She was laid down as a 90-gun second-rate line-of-battle ship with two decks; having been approved for conversion to a broadside ironclad in 1861, work on her was intentionally delayed until the performance of earlier...
(1868) central-battery ironclad (converted from Bulwark class 2-decker) - Sold for BU 1889 - Lord Clyde classLord Clyde class battleshipThe Lord Clyde class battleships, which consisted of and , were wooden-hulled ironclad frigates, designed by Sir Edward Reed, and promoted by the Board of Admiralty for economic reasons, in order to make use of the large stocks of seasoned timber available in the shipyards.- Overview :The design...
broadside ironclads- Lord ClydeHMS Lord Clyde (1864)HMS Lord Clyde was a wooden broadside ironclad built at Pembroke dockyard, a sister to HMS Lord Warden.-Design:Part of the genesis of her design and construction was the perception that this dockyard possessed a large surplus of seasoned timber, and the economic motive on the part of the Board of...
(1864) - Sold for BU 1875 - Lord WardenHMS Lord Warden (1865)HMS Lord Warden was the second and final ship to be completed of the Lord Clyde class.She was heavier than her sister, by about 360 tons; partly because she carried heavier machinery and was fitted with a poop, and partly because the wood used for the construction of Lord Clyde was, as it...
(1865) - BU 1889
- Lord Clyde
- PallasHMS Pallas (1865)HMS Pallas was a purpose-built wooden-hulled ironclad of the Royal Navy, designed as a private venture by Sir Edward Reed, and accepted by the Board of Admiralty because, as an economy measure, they wished to use up the stocks of seasoned timber held in the Woolwich Dockyard...
(1865) central-battery ironclad — Sold for BU 1886 - BellerophonHMS Bellerophon (1865)HMS Bellerophon was a central battery ironclad built for the Royal Navy in the mid-1860s.-Design and description:In this ship, designed by Sir Edward Reed, the power-to-weight ratio was increased; the long rows of guns on the broadside were replaced by a small number of guns, centrally placed, of...
(1865) central-battery ironclad — Renamed Indus III 1904; sold for BU 1922 - PenelopeHMS Penelope (1867)HMS Penelope was the last small ironclad to be commissioned in the Royal Navy.Because of the absence through illness of the Chief Constructor, Sir Edward Reed, the design of this ship was entrusted to his brother-in-law and the future Chief Constructor, Nathaniel Barnaby.-Design:She was...
(1867) central-battery ironclad — Hulked 1897; sold for BU 1912 - HerculesHMS Hercules (1868)HMS Hercules was a central-battery ironclad of the Royal Navy in the Victorian era, and was the first warship to mount a main armament of calibre guns....
(1868) central-battery ironclad — Renamed Calcutta 1909 and Fisgard II 1915; sold for BU 1932 - MonarchHMS Monarch (1868)HMS Monarch was the first sea-going warship to carry her guns in turrets, and the first British warship to carry guns of calibre.-Design:...
(1868) masted turret-ship — Renamed Simoom 1904; sold for BU 1905 - Captain classHMS Captain (1869)HMS Captain was an unsuccessful warship built for the Royal Navy due to public pressure. She was a masted turret ship, designed and built by a private contractor against the wishes of the Controller's department...
masted turret-ship- CaptainHMS Captain (1869)HMS Captain was an unsuccessful warship built for the Royal Navy due to public pressure. She was a masted turret ship, designed and built by a private contractor against the wishes of the Controller's department...
(1869) - Foundered 1870
- Captain
- Audacious classAudacious class battleshipThe Audacious class battleships were designed by Sir Edward Reed at the request of the Board of Admiralty to serve as second-class battleships on distant foreign stations.-Background and design:...
central-battery ironclads- AudaciousHMS Audacious (1869)HMS Audacious was the lead ship of the s built for the Royal Navy in the late 1860s. They were designed as second-class ironclads suitable for use on foreign stations and the ship spent the bulk of her career on the China Station. She was decommissioned in 1894 and hulked in 1902 for use as a...
(1869) - Renamed Fisgard 1904 and Imperieuse 1914; sold for BU 1922 - InvincibleHMS Invincible (1869)HMS Invincible was an Audacious-class ironclad battleship of the Royal Navy. She was built at the Napier shipyard and completed in 1870. Completed just 10 years after , she still carried sails as well as a steam engine.-Armament:...
(1869) - Renamed Erebus 1904 and Fisgard II 1906; foundered under tow 1914 - Iron DukeHMS Iron Duke (1870)The first HMS Iron Duke was an iron Audacious-class central battery ironclad.She was originally to have been called HMS Duke but she was nicknamed Iron Duke during construction as she was armoured unlike many other vessels under construction. The phrase was already in circulation as it was a...
(1870) - Hulked 1900; sold for BU 1906 - Vanguard (1870) - Sunk in collision 1875
- Audacious
- Swiftsure classSwiftsure class battleship (1870)The Swiftsure class battleships of the late Victorian era were broadside ironclads designed and built specifically for service as Flagships on the Pacific station....
central-battery ironclads- SwiftsureHMS Swiftsure (1870)HMS Swiftsure was the lead ship of the Swiftsure class battleships built in the late Victorian era. Her sister-ship was .-Service history:...
(1870) - Hulked 1901; renamed Orontes 1904; sold for BU 1908 - TriumphHMS Triumph (1870)HMS Triumph was a broadside ironclad battleship of the Victorian era, the sister-ship of . These two ships comprise the Swiftsure class of 1870....
(1870) - Renamed Tenedos 1904, Indus IV 1912, and Algiers 1912; sold for BU 1921
- Swiftsure
- SultanHMS Sultan (1870)HMS Sultan was a broadside ironclad of the Royal Navy of the Victorian era, who carried her main armament in a central box battery. She was named for Sultan Abdülâziz of the Ottoman Empire, who was visiting England when she was laid down. Abdülâziz cultivated, good relations with the Second French...
(1870) central-battery ironclad — Named Fisgard IV 1906-1931; sold for BU 1946 - Devastation classDevastation class battleshipThe two British Devastation-class battleships of the 1870s were the first class of ocean-going capital ship that did not carry sails, and the first which mounted the entire main armament on top of the hull rather than inside it...
mastless turret-ship- DevastationHMS Devastation (1871)HMS Devastation was the first of two Devastation-class mastless turret ships built for the British Royal Navy. This was the first class of ocean-going capital ship that did not carry sails, and the first whose entire main armament was mounted on top of the hull rather than inside it...
(1871) - Sold for BU 1908 - ThundererHMS Thunderer (1872)HMS Thunderer was a British Royal Navy Devastation-class battleship.Thunder was an ironclad turret ship designed by Edward James Reed with revolving turrets, launched in 1872...
(1872) mastless turret-ship — Sold for BU 1909
- Devastation
- AlexandraHMS Alexandra (1875)HMS Alexandra was a central battery ironclad of the Victorian Royal Navy, whose seagoing career was from 1877 to 1900. She spent much of her career as a flagship, and took part in operations to deter Russian aggression against Turkey in 1878 and the bombardment of Alexandria in 1882.-Background:At...
(1875) central-battery ironclad — Sold for BU 1908 - TemeraireHMS Temeraire (1876)HMS Temeraire was an ironclad battleship of the Victorian Royal Navy which was unique in that she carried her main armament partly in the traditional broadside battery, and partly in barbettes on the upper deck.-Design and construction:...
(1876) central-battery ironclad with barbettes — Renamed Indus II 1904 and Akbar 1915; sold for BU 1921 - Superb class (intended for Ottoman Empire) central-battery ironclads
- SuperbHMS Superb (1875)HMS Superb was an ironclad battleship designed by Sir Edward Reed for the Ottoman Navy, and was built in Britain by Thames Ironworks under the name of Hamidieh. She had both engines and sails....
(launched as Hamidieh, renamed) (1875) - Sold for BU 1906 - (Ottoman Messudieh)
- Superb
- NeptuneHMS Neptune (1878)HMS Neptune was an ironclad turret ship originally designed and built in Britain for Brazil, but acquired for the Royal Navy in 1878. Modifications to suit the Royal Navy took three years to complete and the ship did not begin her first commission until 1883 with the Channel Fleet. She was...
(1874) (ex-Independencia) masted turret-ship — Sold for BU 1903 - DreadnoughtHMS Dreadnought (1875)The fifth HMS Dreadnought of the British Royal Navy was a turret ironclad battleship built at Pembroke Dockyard, Wales.-Construction:Begun as Fury in 1870, the original design was recast for heavier armour and higher speed. The renamed ship was laid down in 1872 at Pembroke Dockyard and was...
(1875) mastless turret-ship — Sold for BU 1908 - InflexibleHMS Inflexible (1876)HMS Inflexible was a Victorian ironclad battleship carrying her main armament in centrally placed turrets. The ship was constructed in the 1870s for the Royal Navy to oppose the perceived growing threat from the Italian Regia Marina in the Mediterranean.The Italian Navy had started constructing a...
(1876) central citadel turret-ship — Sold for BU 1903 - Ajax classAjax class battleshipThe Ajax class of battleships consisted of two ships, and . They were ironclad ships serving in the Victorian Royal Navy, armed with turret-mounted main armament....
central citadel turret-ships- AgamemnonHMS Agamemnon (1879)HMS Agamemnon was a Victorian Royal Navy Ajax class ironclad turret battleship, the sister-ship of .Agamemnon and Ajax were built to the same design, and were smaller and less expensive versions of Inflexible...
(1879) - BU 1903 - AjaxHMS Ajax (1880)HMS Ajax was the first of the two Royal Navy Ajax class ironclad battleships to be laid down, but was completed one day later than her sister,...
(1880) - Sold for BU 1904
- Agamemnon
Coastal service ironclads
- Royal SovereignHMS Royal Sovereign (1857)HMS Royal Sovereign was originally laid down as a 120-gun first-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy. She would have mounted sixteen cannon, 114 guns, and a pivot gun. With the rise of steam and screw propulsion, she was ordered to be converted on the stocks to a 131-gun screw ship, with...
(1862) turret-ship (converted from Duke of Wellington class 3-decker) - Sold for BU 1885 - Prince AlbertHMS Prince Albert (1864)HMS Prince Albert was designed and built as a shallow-draught coast-defence ship, and was the first British warship designed to carry her main armament in turrets. The ship was named after Prince Albert, the late husband of Queen Victoria...
(1864) turret-ship — Sold for BU 1899 - Scorpion classScorpion class battleshipThe two Scorpion class ironclads, and , were ordered by the Confederate States Navy in 1862 and seized in 1863 by the British to prevent their delivery. This would have violated the Foreign Enlistment Act, which forbade British subjects to build or arm any ships for governments at war with...
masted turret-ships- ScorpionHMS Scorpion (1863)HMS Scorpion, an ironclad turret ship built at Birkenhead, England, was one of two sister ships that the Confederate States of America secretly ordered from the Laird shipyard in 1862. To conceal her true ownership, all concerned endorsed the fiction that she was being constructed as the Egyptian...
(1863) - Sunk as target 1901; raised and sold for BU 1903; foundered en route scrapyard 1903 - WivernHMS Wivern (1863)HMS Wivern was an ironclad turret ship built at Birkenhead, England, one of two sister ships secretly ordered from the Laird & Son shipyard by the Confederate States of America in 1862. Her true ownership was concealed by the fiction that she was being constructed as the Egyptian warship El Monassir...
(1863) - Sold for BU 1922
- Scorpion
- Cyclops classCyclops class monitorThe Cyclops class monitor was a group of four ironclad breastwork monitors built for the Royal Navy during the 1870s. They were slightly modified versions of the s. The ships were ordered to satisfy demands for local defence during the war scare of 1870, but the pace of construction slowed down...
turret-ships- CyclopsHMS Cyclops (1871)HMS Cyclops was the lead ship of the breastwork monitors built for the Royal Navy during the 1870s. The ships were ordered to satisfy demands for local defence during the war scare of 1870, but the pace of construction slowed down tremendously as the perceived threat of war declined...
(1871) - Sold for BU 1903 - GorgonHMS Gorgon (1871)HMS Gorgon was the first ship commissioned of the four breastwork monitors built for the Royal Navy during the 1870s....
(1871) - Sold for BU 1903 - HecateHMS Hecate (1871)HMS Hecate was the last ship completed of the four breastwork monitors built for the Royal Navy during the 1870s....
(1871) - Sold for BU 1903 - HydraHMS Hydra (1871)HMS Hydra was the second ship completed of the four breastwork monitors built for the Royal Navy during the 1870s. The ships were ordered to satisfy demands for local defence during the war scare of 1870, but the pace of construction slowed down tremendously as the perceived threat of war declined...
(1871) - Sold for BU 1903
- Cyclops
- Cerberus class turret-ships
- CerberusHMVS CerberusHMVS Cerberus is a breastwork monitor that served in the Victoria Naval Forces, the Commonwealth Naval Forces , and the Royal Australian Navy between 1871 and 1924....
(1868) (Victoria) - Renamed Platypus II 1918; sunk as breakwater 1926 - MagdalaHMS Magdala (1870)HMS Magdala was a breastwork monitor of the Royal Navy, built specifically to serve as a coastal defence ship for the harbour of Bombay in the late 1860s. She was ordered by the India Office for the Bombay Marine. The original specifications were thought to be too expensive and a cheaper design...
(1870) (India) - Sold for BU 1904
- Cerberus
- AbyssiniaHMS Abyssinia (1870)HMS Abyssinia was a breastwork monitor ordered, designed and built by J & W Dudgeon specifically for the Bombay Marine for the defence of the harbour at Bombay....
(1870) (India) turret-ship — Sold for BU 1903 - GlattonHMS Glatton (1871)HMS Glatton was a breastwork monitor which served in the Victorian Royal Navy.-Design:She was designed by Sir Edward Reed to a specific formula determined by the Board of Admiralty, and her purpose was never made wholly clear. Reed himself said "there is no vessel with the objects of which I am...
(1871) turret-ship — Sold for BU 1903 - HotspurHMS Hotspur (1870)HMS Hotspur was a Victorian Royal Navy ironclad ram – a warship armed with guns but whose primary weapon was a ram.-Background:It had been recognised since the time of the Roman Empire or before that a ship, while it might carry weaponry, was itself a potent weapon if used as a missile...
(1870) turret-ship — Sold for BU 1904 - RupertHMS Rupert (1872)HMS Rupert was a battleship of the Victorian Royal Navy, whose principal weapon was designed to be her ram.-Design:She was similar in design to , but unlike her carried a revolving turret similar to that carried in...
(1872) turret-ship — Sold for BU 1907 - Belleisle classBelleisle class battleshipThe two ships of the Belleisle class, and , originally built in Britain for the Turkish Navy, were taken over by the Royal Navy in 1878.In 1878 Russia and Turkey were at war, and it was perceived by the British Government that Britain might be drawn into the conflict. This perception has become...
(intended for Ottoman EmpireOttoman EmpireThe Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
) central battery ships- BelleisleHMS Belleisle (1876)HMS Belleisle was one of the four ships currently under construction for foreign navies in British shipyards which were purchased by the British government for the Royal Navy in 1878, at the time of the Russian war scare....
(launched as Peki-Shereef, renamed) (1876) -Sold for BU 1904 - OrionHMS Orion (1879)HMS Orion was a of the Victorian Royal Navy. Originally constructed for the Ottoman Empire, and called Bourdjou-Zaffer, she was purchased by the British Government before completion....
(planned name: Boordhi-Zaffer) (1879) - Renamed Orontes 1909; sold for BU 1913
- Belleisle
- Conqueror classConqueror class battleshipThe Conqueror class battleships were ironclad warships which served in the Victorian Royal Navy, and whose main weapon was designed to be the Ram.The class consisted of two ships, and...
turret-ships- ConquerorHMS Conqueror (1881)HMS Conqueror was an ironclad battleship of the Victorian Royal Navy, whose main armament was an armoured ram.She was the first ship of the Conqueror class to be laid down, her only sister-ship being , which was completed some two years later...
(1881) - Sold for BU 1907 - HeroHMS Hero (1885)HMS Hero was the second and final Conqueror-class battleship. She was an ironclad who served in the Victorian Royal Navy.Hero was — like her sister-ship — designed to be an improved version of with a ram as her main armament...
(1885) - Sunk as target 1908; raised and BU
- Conqueror
Sources
- Ballard, Admiral G.A. The Black Battlefleet, published Nautical Publications Co. and Society for Nautical Research, 1980. ISBN 0-245-53030-4
- Chesnau, Roger and Kolesnik, Eugene (Ed.) Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships, 1860-1905. Conway Maritime Press, 1979. ISBN 0-83170-302-4
- Gardiner, Robert (Ed.). Conway’s All the World’s Fighting Ships, 1906-1921. Conway Maritime Press, 1985. ISBN 0-85177-245-5
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- Reed, Edward JEdward James ReedSir Edward James Reed , KCB, FRS, was a British naval architect, author, politician, and railroad magnate. He was the Chief Constructor of the Royal Navy from 1863 until 1870...
Our Ironclad Ships, their Qualities, Performance and Cost. John Murray, 1869.