BL 16.25 inch Mk I naval gun

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Ordnance BL 16.25 inch gun Mk I
BL 16.25 inch 110 ton gun Photo.jpg
Type Naval gun
Place of origin United Kingdom
Service history
In service 1888 – 1909?
Used by Royal Navy
Production history
Manufacturer Elswick Ordnance Company
No. built 12
Variants no two guns were identical
Specifications
Weight 111 tons
Barrel  length 487.5 inches (12.38 m) bore (30 calibres)

Shell 1,800 pounds (820 kg) Armour-piercing, Common, Shrapnel
Calibre 16.25-inch (412.8 mm)
Elevation -5° – 13°
Muzzle velocity 2,087 feet per second (636 m/s) [1]
Maximum firing range 12,000 yards (11,000 m) [2]

The Elswick BL 16.25 inch naval gun was an early British superheavy rifled breech-loading naval gun, commonly known as the 110-ton gun or 111-ton gun.

Contents

Service

Forward barbette on HMS Benbow HMS Benbow Forward 16.25 inch gun barbette.jpg
Forward barbette on HMS Benbow
Turret on HMS Sans Pareil HMS Sans Pareil 16.25 inch turret.jpg
Turret on HMS Sans Pareil
111-ton gun on proof mount The railroad and engineering journal (1887) (14571889167).jpg
111-ton gun on proof mount

Elswick had already supplied similar guns to Italy's Regia Marina and fitted in the Italian ironclad Andrea Doria of 1885 and the Royal Navy required parity for its Mediterranean Fleet. The adoption of this gun was influenced by the slow rate of production of the preferred new 13.5-inch (343 mm) guns: the Royal Navy had the option of delaying the completion of the new Admiral-class ironclads until sufficient 13.5-inch guns were available to equip them with four guns in two twin barbettes as planned; to use 12-inch (305 mm) guns, or to equip them with the new 16.25-inch (413 mm) guns.

Regia Marina 1861-1946 maritime warfare branch of Italys military; predecessor of the Italian Navy

The Regia Marina was the navy of the Kingdom of Italy from 1861 to 1946. In 1946, with the birth of the Italian Republic, the Regia Marina changed its name to Marina Militare.

Italian ironclad <i>Andrea Doria</i>

Andrea Doria was an ironclad battleship built for the Italian Regia Marina in the 1880s and 1890s. Named for the 16th-century Genoese admiral Andrea Doria, she was the third and final ship of the Ruggiero di Lauria class. The ship was armed with a main battery of four 17-inch (432 mm) guns, was protected with 17.75-inch (451 mm) thick belt armor, and was capable of a top speed of 17 knots.

Royal Navy Maritime warfare branch of the United Kingdoms military

The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by the English kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years War against the Kingdom of France. The modern Royal Navy traces its origins to the early 16th century; the oldest of the UK's armed services, it is known as the Senior Service.

The decision made was to install 16.25-inch guns in HMS Benbow in 1887 in single barbettes fore and aft, each gun substituting for two 13.5-inch guns. For the following HMS Victoria and HMS Sans Pareil the 16.25-inch guns were mounted in pairs in a single turret placed forward.

HMS <i>Benbow</i> (1885) Admiral-class battleship

HMS Benbow was a Victorian era Admiral-class battleship of the British Royal Navy, named for Admiral John Benbow. Completed in 1888, Benbow spent the majority of her career in reserve with only brief spurts as part of the active fleet. The battleship was scrapped in 1909.

HMS <i>Victoria</i> (1887) 1887 Victoria class battleship of the Royal Navy

HMS Victoria was the lead ship in her class of two battleships of the Royal Navy. On 22 June 1893, she collided with HMS Camperdown near Tripoli, Lebanon, during manoeuvres and quickly sank, killing 358 crew members, including the commander of the British Mediterranean Fleet, Vice-Admiral Sir George Tryon. One of the survivors was executive officer John Jellicoe, later commander-in-chief of the British Grand Fleet at the Battle of Jutland.

HMS <i>Sans Pareil</i> (1887) Victoria-class battleship

HMS Sans Pareil was a Victoria-class battleship of the British Royal Navy of the Victorian era, her only sister ship being HMS Victoria.

Weaknesses such as droop and cracking were discovered in the early design, and the many subsequent changes meant that none of the twelve guns built were identical, so the Mk I denomination was discontinued and the individual guns were referred to by their serial numbers. The great weight, low rate of fire and short life of less than 75 rounds meant that the guns were less than successful and were in fact never fired in action.

Ammunition

Diagrams of common, shrapnel and armour-piercing projectiles and their fuzes for the gun BL 16.25 inch gun ammunition diagrams.jpg
Diagrams of common, shrapnel and armour-piercing projectiles and their fuzes for the gun

See also

Notes

  1. 1800lb shell, with 960lb S.B.C. (slow burning Brown "cocoa" powder – a form of gunpowder) charge. Text Book of Gunnery, 1902. Table XII, Page 336
  2. Text Book of Gunnery, 1902. Table XII, Page 336

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References