HMS Drake (1901)

Last updated • 11 min readFrom Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia

HMS Drake 1909.jpg
Drake at anchor in New York Harbor in 1909
History
Naval Ensign of the United Kingdom.svgUnited Kingdom
NameHMS Drake
NamesakeSir Francis Drake
Builder Pembroke Dock
Costapprox. £800 000
Laid down24 April 1899
Launched5 March 1901
ChristenedMrs. Lort Phillips
Completed9 January 1903
Commissioned13 January 1903
FateSunk by U-79, 2 October 1917
General characteristics
Class and type Drake-class armoured cruiser
Displacement14,150 long tons (14,380 t) (normal)
Length533 ft 6 in (162.6 m) (o/a)
Beam71 ft 4 in (21.7 m)
Draught26 ft (7.9 m)
Installed power
Propulsion
Speed23 knots (43 km/h; 26 mph)
Complement900
Armament
Armour

HMS Drake was the lead ship of her class of armoured cruisers built for the Royal Navy around 1900. She was assigned to several different cruiser squadrons in home waters upon completion, sometimes as flagship, until 1911 when she became the flagship of the Australia Station. Upon her return home, she was assigned to the 6th Cruiser Squadron of the 2nd Fleet and became the squadron's flagship when the fleet was incorporated into the Grand Fleet upon the outbreak of the First World War.

Contents

She remained with the Grand Fleet until refitted in late 1915, when she was transferred to the North America and West Indies Station for convoy escort duties. In 1916 she participated in the unsuccessful search for the German commerce raider SMS Möwe. In late 1917 Drake was torpedoed by a German submarine off Northern Ireland and sank in shallow water with the loss of eighteen lives near Rathlin Island. The wreck was partly salvaged, beginning in 1920; a fishing trawler collided with the remainder of the wreck in 1962 and sank the next day. The wrecks of the two ships were demolished during the 1970s, but their remnants remain a popular dive site. Since June 2017, Drake's wreck has been a scheduled historic monument.

Design and description

The Drake-class ships were designed as faster and larger versions of the preceding Cressy class with a slightly more powerful armament. They displaced 14,100 long tons (14,300  t ), over 2,000 long tons (2,032 t) more than the earlier ships. [1] The Drakes had an overall length of 553 feet 6 inches (168.7 m), a beam of 71 feet 4 inches (21.7 m) and a deep draught of 26 feet 9 inches (8.2 m). They were powered by two 4-cylinder triple-expansion steam engines, each driving one shaft, which produced a total of 30,000 indicated horsepower (22,000 kW) and gave a maximum speed of 23 knots (43 km/h; 26 mph) using steam provided by 43 Belleville boilers. On her sea trials, Drake reached a speed of 24.11 knots (44.65 km/h; 27.75 mph). [2] She carried a maximum of 2,500 long tons (2,500 t) of coal and her complement consisted of 900 officers and ratings. [3]

Arrangement of Guns and Armour of H.M.S. "Drake." EB1911 Ship Fig. 92 - HMS 'Drake' (1901).png
Arrangement of Guns and Armour of H.M.S. “Drake.”

The main armament of the Drake class consisted of two breech-loading (BL) 9.2-inch (234 mm) Mk X guns in single turrets, one each fore and aft of the superstructure. [3] Her secondary armament of sixteen BL 6-inch (152 mm) Mk VII guns was arranged in casemates amidships. Eight of these were mounted on the lower deck and were only usable in calm weather. [4] A dozen quick-firing (QF) 12-pounder (76 mm) 12-cwt guns were fitted for defence against torpedo boats. Two additional 12-pounder 8-cwt guns could be dismounted for service ashore. [5] The ships also carried three 3-pounder (47 mm) Hotchkiss guns and two submerged 18-inch (450 mm) torpedo tubes. [2]

By February 1916, all of the lower casemates for her six-inch guns had been plated over and six of them had been remounted on the upper deck so they could be used in heavy weather. Several twelve-pounders had to be removed to make room for the six-inch guns. [6]

The ship's waterline armour belt had a maximum thickness of 6 inches and was closed off by 5-inch (127 mm) transverse bulkheads. The armour of the gun turrets and their barbettes was 6 inches thick while that of the casemates was 5 inches thick. The protective deck armour ranged in thickness from 1–2.5 inches (25–64 mm) and the conning tower was protected by 12 inches (305 mm) of armour. [2]

Construction and service

HMS Drake, named after the Elizabethan adventurer Sir Francis Drake, [7] was laid down at Pembroke Dock on 24 April 1899, [8] and launched on 5 March 1901, when she was christened by Mrs. Lort Phillips, wife of local landowner F. Lort Phillips, of Lawrenny. [9] Based at Portsmouth for her gun, torpedo and circle trials in late 1902, there was also trials with a new type of propeller. [10] She was completed and temporarily assigned to the Fleet reserve on 9 January 1903, [11] and commissioned to the Cruiser Squadron of the Channel Fleet on 13 January 1903, [12] under the command of the future First Sea Lord, Captain Francis Bridgeman. [13] From January to May 1903 she cruised with the Mediterranean squadron together with her sister ship the Good Hope. [14]

John Jellicoe, also a future First Sea Lord and commander of the Grand Fleet, was her next captain in 1903–04. [15] Between 1905 and 1907 HMS Drake was the Flagship of the 2nd Cruiser Squadron; Admiral Prince Louis of Battenberg in command. During Battenberg's tenure the squadron visited Greece, Portugal, Canada, and the United States, where the American press commented favourably on Prince Louis's courtesy, unassuming manner and democratic nature. [16] In 1907 the ship was commanded by Captain Arthur Hayes-Sadler and serving as the flagship of the 2nd Cruiser Squadron under the command of Rear Admiral Charles Henry Adair. [17] The following year, Drake became the flagship of 1st Cruiser Squadron of the Channel Fleet (attending the Hudson–Fulton Celebration during this time) and then was assigned as flagship of the 5th Cruiser Squadron of the Atlantic Fleet in 1909. [18] She was re-commissioned as the flagship of the Australia Station from early 1911 until returning to home waters in 1913. [19] She then went into the 6th Cruiser Squadron, notionally part of the Second Fleet, on 13 March 1913, but actually was in care and maintenance under the control of the Third Fleet. [20]

That fleet was merged into the Grand Fleet upon mobilization in mid-1914 and Drake became flagship of Rear Admiral William Grant, commander of the squadron. The squadron was briefly deployed at the beginning of the war to blockade the northern exit from the North Sea. [21] In October 1914, under the command of Aubrey Smith, the ship was used to carry Russian bullion worth eight million pounds to Britain; on arrival, Drake lay thirty miles off Archangel, and the gold was brought to her at night. [22] The ship was refitted in October 1915 [23] and then transferred to the North America and West Indies Station for convoy escort duties. [12] She participated in the unsuccessful search in the West Indies for the German commerce raider SMS Möwe in December 1916. [24]

Drake was torpedoed by the German submarine U-79, commanded by Kapitänleutnant Otto Rohrbeck, [25] on 2 October 1917 after her Convoy HH24 had dispersed for its several destinations. The ship was about five miles (8.0 km) off Rathlin Island at the tip of Northern Ireland when she was hit. The torpedo struck the No. 2 Boiler Room and caused two of her engine rooms and the boiler room to flood, killing 18 crewmen. These gave her a list and knocked out her steam-powered steering. Her captain decided to steam for Church Bay on Rathlin Island and accidentally collided with the merchant ship SS Mendip Range before she dropped anchor. The collision did not damage Drake much, but Mendip Range was forced to beach herself lest she sink. Drake's crew was taken off before she capsized later that afternoon. [26]

Her wreck at 55°17.1084′N06°12.5136′W / 55.2851400°N 6.2085600°W / 55.2851400; -6.2085600 in Church Bay is a favourite site for divers because the wreck is only at a depth between 15–19 metres (49–62 ft) and generally has good visibility. Salvage of the wreck began in 1920 and continued for several years. On the night of 3 November 1962, the steam trawler Ella Hewett struck the wreck and subsequently sank almost atop Drake. Ammunition and ordnance was salvaged during the 1970s and the wrecks were demolished with depth charges to reduce the chance of any other ships coming to grief on the wrecks. In 1978, the remaining fuel oil was salvaged to reduce pollution from leaking oil. [27]

Notes

  1. "Cwt" is the abbreviation for hundredweight, 12 cwt referring to the weight of the gun.

Footnotes

  1. Friedman 2012, pp. 243–52, 336
  2. 1 2 3 Chesneau & Kolesnik, p. 69
  3. 1 2 Friedman 2012, p. 336
  4. Friedman 2012, pp. 243, 260–61
  5. Friedman 2012, pp. 250, 336
  6. Friedman 2012, p. 247
  7. Silverstone, p. 225
  8. "The Launch of Four Warships". The Times. No. 36394. London. 5 March 1901. p. 8.
  9. "Naval & Military intelligence". The Times. No. 36395. London. 6 March 1901. p. 10.
  10. "Naval & Military intelligence". The Times. No. 36879. London. 22 September 1902. p. 8.
  11. "Naval & Military intelligence". The Times. No. 36974. London. 10 January 1903. p. 6.
  12. 1 2 Friedman 2012, p. 244
  13. Ross, p. 116
  14. "Naval & Military intelligence". The Times. No. 36983. London. 21 January 1903. p. 8.
  15. Heathcote, p. 129
  16. Wikipedia, New York Times
  17. Navy List 1908
  18. The Navy List, January 1910. London: HMSO. 1910. p. 303.
  19. The Navy List, August 1912. London: HMSO. 1912. p. 268.
  20. The Navy List, July 1913. London: HMSO. 1913. p. 269b, 902.
  21. Goldrick, p. 25
  22. P. S. King, ed., The Russian Economist, vol. 1 (1920), p. 347: "The first shipment of gold from Russia to England, called for by the agreement between the British and Russian governments, and amounting to £8,000,000 sterling, took place in October 1914. The secrecy of this shipment was guarded by all possible precautions. The cruiser Drake and the military transport Mantois, upon reaching Archangel, were kept in the open sea at a distance of thirty miles from the land, and the gold was transhipped during the night from lighters."
  23. Transcript
  24. Newbolt, Vol. IV, pp. 181, 184
  25. Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: HMS Drake". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 28 February 2014.
  26. Aspinall, pp. 554–59; Newbolt, Vol. V, p. 162; Wessex Archaeology, p. 18
  27. Wessex Archaeology, pp. 3, 9–10

Bibliography

Further reading

Related Research Articles

HMS <i>Cardiff</i> (D58) C-class ship built for Royal Navy

HMS Cardiff was a C-class light cruiser built for the Royal Navy during World War I. She was one of the five ships of the Ceres sub-class and spent most of her career as a flagship. Assigned to the Grand Fleet during the war, the ship participated in the Second Battle of Heligoland Bight in late 1917. Cardiff was briefly deployed to the Baltic in late 1918 supporting anti-Bolshevik forces during the British campaign in the Baltic during the Russian Civil War.

<i>Minotaur</i>-class cruiser (1906) British class of armoured cruisers

The Minotaur class was a three-ship class of armoured cruisers built in the first decade of the twentieth century for the Royal Navy. These were the last class of armoured cruisers built for the Royal Navy, with that role being substantially replaced by the first battlecruisers. These initially served with the Home Fleet, generally as the flagships of cruiser squadrons. Minotaur became flagship of the China Station in 1910 and Defence served as flagship of the 1st Cruiser Squadron in the Mediterranean from 1912; Shannon remained at home as flagship of several different squadrons.

HMS <i>Hyacinth</i> (1898) British ship

HMS Hyacinth was one of three Highflyer-class protected cruisers built for the Royal Navy in the 1890s. Initially assigned to the Channel Fleet, she spent much of her early career as flagship for the East Indies Station. She was reduced to reserve in 1912 after a lengthy refit before becoming the flagship of the Cape of Good Hope Station in 1913. After the beginning of World War I in August 1914, she spent the first few months of the war escorting convoys around South Africa. In early 1915, she was deployed to German East Africa to blockade the German light cruiser SMS Königsberg. She destroyed a German blockade runner attempting to bring supplies through the blockade in April and sank a German merchant vessel in early 1916. Hyacinth remained on the Cape Station for the rest of the war and was paid off in 1919, although she was not sold for scrap until 1923.

HMS <i>Sutlej</i> (1899) Cruiser of the Royal Navy

HMS Sutlej was a Cressy-class armoured cruiser built for the Royal Navy around 1900. Upon completion she was assigned to the China Station. In 1906 she became a training ship for the North America and West Indies Station before returning home and being assigned as the flagship of the reserve Third Fleet in 1909. Relieved as flagship in 1910, she remained in reserve until the beginning of World War I in August 1914.

HMS <i>King Alfred</i> (1901) Cruiser of the Royal Navy

HMS King Alfred was one of four Drake-class armoured cruisers built for the Royal Navy around 1900. She served as flagship of the China Station from 1906 until relieved in 1910. Upon her return home that year, she was placed in reserve before being recommissioned in mid-1914. She was assigned to the 6th Cruiser Squadron of the Grand Fleet at the beginning of World War I. She was transferred to the 9th Cruiser Squadron in 1915 and assigned to convoy protection duties by the end of the year. King Alfred participated in the unsuccessful searches for the German commerce raider SMS Möwe in 1916–17 before beginning to escort convoys later that year. The ship was torpedoed by a German submarine in 1918, but returned to service. She was sold for scrap in 1920.

HMS <i>Leviathan</i> (1901) Cruiser of the Royal Navy

HMS Leviathan was one of four Drake-class armoured cruisers built for the Royal Navy around 1900. She was assigned to the China Station upon completion and then served in the Mediterranean Fleet in 1905–06. She was assigned to the 7th Cruiser Squadron in 1907 before she was briefly reduced to reserve. Leviathan was recommissioned in 1909 for service with the 4th Cruiser Squadron before she was placed in reserve in 1913.

HMS <i>Lancaster</i> (1902) Cruiser of the Royal Navy

HMS Lancaster was one of 10 Monmouth-class armoured cruisers built for the Royal Navy in the first decade of the 20th century. Upon completion she was assigned to the 3rd Cruiser Squadron of the Mediterranean Fleet. She remained there until 1912 when she returned home to be placed in reserve. The ship was recommissioned in 1913 for service with the 4th Cruiser Squadron on the North America and West Indies Station. She remained there until she was assigned to the Grand Fleet in 1915. She was transferred to the Pacific in 1916 and she became flagship of the Eastern Squadron in 1918. The ship was sold for scrap in 1920.

HMS <i>Devonshire</i> (1904) Cruiser of the Royal Navy

HMS Devonshire was the lead ship of her class of six armoured cruiser built for the Royal Navy in the first decade of the 20th century. She was assigned to the 1st Cruiser Squadron of the Channel Fleet upon completion in 1905 and was transferred to the 2nd Cruiser Squadron of the Atlantic Fleet in 1907. She was assigned to the reserve Third Fleet in 1909 and then to the 3rd Cruiser Squadron of the reserve Second Fleet in 1913.

HMS <i>Antrim</i> (1903) Cruiser of the Royal Navy

HMS Antrim was a Devonshire-class armoured cruiser built for the Royal Navy in the first decade of the 20th century. She was assigned to the 1st Cruiser Squadron of the Channel Fleet upon completion in 1905 and was transferred to the 2nd Cruiser Squadron of the Atlantic Fleet in 1907. She was assigned to the reserve Third Fleet in 1909 and then became flagship of the 3rd Cruiser Squadron of the reserve Second Fleet in 1913.

HMS <i>Roxburgh</i> (1904) Cruiser of the Royal Navy

HMS Roxburgh was one of six Devonshire-class armoured cruisers built for the Royal Navy in the first decade of the 20th century. She was assigned to the 1st Cruiser Squadron of the Channel Fleet upon completion and was transferred to the reserve Third Fleet in 1909. She was then assigned to the 5th Cruiser Squadron of the reserve Second Fleet in 1912 and the 3rd Cruiser Squadron the following year.

HMS <i>Minotaur</i> (1906) British lead ship of the Minotaur-class

HMS Minotaur was the lead ship of the Minotaur-class armoured cruisers built for the Royal Navy. Launched in 1906, she served as the flagship of the China Station before the First World War. Shortly after the war began, the ship searched unsuccessfully for the German East Asia Squadron and was transferred to the Grand Fleet at the end of 1914. During the rest of the war Minotaur served as the flagship of the 7th and 2nd Cruiser Squadrons and spent most of her time assigned to the Northern Patrol. In mid-1916 she participated in the Battle of Jutland but did not fire her weapons during the battle. The ship was paid off in 1919 and sold for scrap the following year.

HMS <i>Cassandra</i> (1916) Royal Navy C-class light cruiser

HMS Cassandra was a C-class light cruiser of the Royal Navy. She was part of the Caledon group of the C class of cruisers. Cassandra had a short career, being commissioned in June 1917 and sunk by a mine during the British intervention in the Russian Civil War on 5 December 1918.

HMS <i>Caledon</i> (D53) Royal Navy C-class light cruiser

HMS Caledon was a C-class light cruiser built for the Royal Navy during World War I. She was the name ship of the Caledon sub-class of the C class. She survived both world wars to be scrapped in 1948.

HMS <i>Caradoc</i> (D60) British C-class light cruiser

HMS Caradoc was a C-class light cruiser built for the Royal Navy during World War I. She was one of the four ships of the Caledon sub-class. Assigned to the Grand Fleet during the war, the ship participated in the Second Battle of Heligoland Bight in late 1917. Caradoc was briefly deployed to the Baltic in late 1918 supporting anti-Bolshevik forces during the British campaign in the Baltic and then was transferred to the Mediterranean Fleet in early 1919 and spent the next year and a half doing the same thing in the Black Sea during the Russian Civil War. The ship was withdrawn from the Black Sea in mid-1920 to observe the Greco-Turkish War of 1919–22 and the Chanak Crisis of late 1922. Caradoc spent most of the rest of her time between the World Wars overseas or in reserve with deployments to the Far East and the North America and West Indies Station.

HMS <i>Cambrian</i> (1916) British C-class light cruiser

HMS Cambrian was a C-class light cruiser built for the Royal Navy during World War I. She was the name ship of her sub-class of four ships. Assigned to the Grand Fleet upon completion in 1916, the ship played only a small role during the war. Cambrian was assigned to the Atlantic and Mediterranean Fleets during the 1920s and was sent to support British interests in Turkey during the Chanak Crisis of 1922–1923. The ship was placed in reserve in late 1929. She was sold for scrap in 1934.

HMS <i>Carysfort</i> (1914) C-class light cruiser in the Royal Navy

HMS Carysfort was a C-class light cruiser built for the Royal Navy during World War I. She was one of six ships of the Caroline sub-class and was completed in 1915. Assigned to the Grand Fleet, the Harwich Force, and the Dover Patrol during the war, the ship served as a flagship for part of the war. Her only known combat was a short battle against German torpedo boats in the English Channel, although she was very active patrolling the North Sea and unsuccessfully searching for German ships. Carysfort was assigned to the Home and Atlantic Fleets after the war and was sent to the Mediterranean Fleet during the Chanak Crisis of 1922–23 to support British interests in Turkey. In 1922, she patrolled off the Irish coast during the Irish Civil War. The ship was placed in reserve after returning home in 1923 and, aside from ferrying troops overseas, remained in reserve until she was sold for scrap in 1931.

HMS <i>Conquest</i> (1915) Royal Navy C-class light cruiser

HMS Conquest was a C-class light cruiser of the Royal Navy that saw service during World War I. She was part of the Caroline group of the C class.

HMS <i>Cordelia</i> (1914) C-class light cruiser in the Royal Navy

HMS Cordelia was a C-class light cruiser built for the Royal Navy during World War I. She was one of six ships of the Caroline sub-class and was completed at the beginning of 1915. The ship was assigned to the 1st and 4th Light Cruiser Squadrons (LCS) of the Grand Fleet for the entire war and played a minor role in the Battle of Jutland in mid-1916. Cordelia spent most of her time on uneventful patrols of the North Sea. She served as a training ship for most of 1919 before she was recommissioned for service with the Atlantic Fleet in 1920. The ship was placed in reserve at the end of 1922 and was sold for scrap in mid-1923.

HMS <i>Highflyer</i> (1898) Cruiser of the Royal Navy

HMS Highflyer was the lead ship of the Highflyer-class protected cruisers built for the Royal Navy in the 1890s. She spent her early career as flagship for the East Indies and North America and West Indies Stations. She was reduced to reserve in 1908 before again becoming the flagship in the East Indies in 1911. She returned home two years later and became a training ship. When World War I began in August 1914, she was assigned to the 9th Cruiser Squadron in the Central Atlantic to intercept German commerce raiders and protect Allied shipping.

<i>Warrior</i>-class cruiser Royal Navys Warrior-class of four armoured cruisers

The Warrior class consisted of four armoured cruisers built for the Royal Navy in the first decade of the 20th century. After commissioning, all four sister ships were assigned to the Channel and Home Fleets until 1913 when Warrior was transferred to the Mediterranean Fleet. After the start of World War I in August 1914, Warrior participated in the pursuit of the German battlecruiser SMS Goeben and light cruiser SMS Breslau and her three sisters were assigned to the 2nd Cruiser Squadron of the Grand Fleet. Warrior joined the 1st Cruiser Squadron of the Grand Fleet in late 1914. Neither squadron participated in any of the naval battles in the North Sea in 1915. Natal was destroyed by a magazine explosion in late 1915 and only two of the ships participated in the Battle of Jutland in 1916. Cochrane was not engaged during the battle, but Warrior was heavily damaged and sank the following morning.