HMS Magdala (1870)

Last updated

HMS Magdala (1870).jpg
Magdala with awnings rigged
History
Naval Ensign of the United Kingdom.svgUnited Kingdom
NameMagdala
Namesake Battle of Magdala
Builder Thames Ironworks & Shipbuilding Company
Laid down6 October 1868
Launched2 March 1870
CompletedNovember 1870
FateBroken up, 1904
General characteristics
Class and type Cerberus-class breastwork monitor
Displacement3,340 long tons (3,390 t)
Length225 ft (68.6 m) (p/p)
Beam45 ft (13.7 m)
Draught15 ft 3 in (4.6 m)
Installed power1,436  ihp (1,071 kW)
Propulsion2 shafts, 2 steam engines
Speed10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)
Range450  nmi (830 km; 520 mi) at 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph)
Complement155
Armament2 × twin 10-inch rifled muzzle loaders
Armour

HMS Magdala was a Cerberus-class breastwork monitor of the Royal Navy, built specifically to serve as a coastal defence ship for the harbour of Bombay (now Mumbai) 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 was ordered. While limited to harbour defence duties, the breastwork monitors were described by Admiral George Alexander Ballard as being like "full-armoured knights riding on donkeys, easy to avoid but bad to close with." [1] Aside from gunnery practice Magdala remained in Bombay Harbour for her entire career. The ship was sold for scrap in 1903.

Contents

Design and description

In July 1866 the India Office asked for two floating batteries to defend Bombay and the Controller of the Navy, Vice Admiral Spencer Robinson recommended that monitors be used. He recommended a design with 12-inch (305 mm) armour belt and 15 inches (381 mm) protecting the gun turret, armed with the largest possible guns, which would cost £220,000. [2] The India Office thought that this was too expensive and ordered a repeat of HMVS Cerberus instead for only £132,400. [3]

The ships had a length between perpendiculars of 225 feet (68.6 m), a beam of 45 feet (13.7 m), and a draught of 15 feet 3 inches (4.65 m) at deep load. They displaced 3,340 long tons (3,390 t). Their crew consisted of 155 officers and men. [4]

Propulsion

Magdala had two horizontal direct-acting steam engines, made by Ravenhill, each driving a single propeller. [5] The ship's boilers had a working pressure of 30  psi (207  kPa ; 2  kgf/cm2 ). The engines produced a total of 1,369 indicated horsepower (1,021 kW) on 21 October 1870 during the ship's sea trials which gave her a maximum speed of 10.67 knots (19.76 km/h; 12.28 mph). Magdala carried 220 long tons (220 t) of coal, [6] enough to steam 450  nmi (830 km; 520 mi) at 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph). [5]

Armament

The Cerberus-class ships mounted a pair of 10-inch rifled muzzle-loading guns in each hand-worked turret. The shell of the 10-inch (254 mm) gun weighed 407 pounds (184.6 kg) while the gun itself weighed 18 long tons (18 t). The gun had a muzzle velocity of 1,365 ft/s (416 m/s) and was credited with the ability to penetrate a nominal 12.9 inches (330 mm) of wrought iron armour at 100 yards (91 m). The guns could fire both solid shot and explosive shells. [7] Magdala was rearmed in 1892 with four breech-loading BL 8-inch guns. [4]

Armour

The Cerberus-class ships had a complete wrought iron waterline belt that was 8 inches (203 mm) thick amidships and thinned to 6 inches (152 mm) at the ends. The superstructure and conning tower were fully armoured, the reason it was called a breastwork, with 8–9 inches (203–229 mm) of wrought iron. The gun turrets had 10 inches (250 mm) on their faces and 9 inches (230 mm) on the sides and rear. All of the vertical armour was backed by 9–11 inches (229–279 mm) of teak. The decks were 1.5 inches (38.1 mm) thick, backed by 10 inches (250 mm) of teak. [8]

Service

HMS Magdala was laid down on 6 October 1868 by the Thames Ironworks in Leamouth, London. She was launched on 2 March 1870 and completed in November 1870. For her delivery voyage to India, Magdala was fitted with three temporary masts and made the trip under sail in the middle of winter without escort, as both her builders and the Royal Navy, considered her sufficiently seaworthy as to make the trip safely. Her life thereafter was wholly spent in Bombay Harbour, with occasional short trips to sea for firing practice. [9] She was sold for scrap in January 1903. [10]

Notes

  1. ↑ Ballard, p. 219
  2. ↑ Brown, p. 57
  3. ↑ Parkes, p. 167
  4. 1 2 Roberts, p. 21
  5. 1 2 Silverstone, p. 165
  6. ↑ Ballard, pp. 248–49
  7. ↑ Roberts, p. 6
  8. ↑ Parkes, pp. 167–68
  9. ↑ Parkes, p. 169
  10. ↑ Silverstone, p. 249

Related Research Articles

HMVS <i>Cerberus</i> Wrecked navy ship in Victoria, Australia

HMVS Cerberus is a breastwork monitor that served in the Victoria Naval Forces, the Commonwealth Naval Forces (CNF), and the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) between 1871 and 1924.

HMS <i>Black Prince</i> (1861) 1861 Warrior-class ironclad ship

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, HMS Warrior. For a brief period the two Warrior-class ironclads were the most powerful warships in the world, being virtually impregnable to the naval guns of the time. Rapid advances in naval technology left Black Prince and her sister obsolete within a short time, however, and she spent more time in reserve and training roles than in first-line service.

HMS <i>Minotaur</i> (1863) Lead ship of the British Minotaur-class armoured frigates

HMS Minotaur was the lead ship of the Minotaur-class armoured frigates built for the Royal Navy during the 1860s. Minotaur took nearly four years between her launching and commissioning because she was used for evaluations of her armament and different sailing rigs.

HMS <i>Thunderer</i> (1872) Royal Navy Devastation-class turret ship

HMS Thunderer was one of two Devastation-class ironclad turret ships built for the Royal Navy in the 1870s. She suffered two serious accidents before the decade was out and gained a reputation as an unlucky ship for several years afterward. The ship was assigned to the Mediterranean Fleet in 1878 and was reduced to reserve in 1881 before being recommissioned in 1885. Thunderer returned home in 1887 and was again placed in reserve. She rejoined the Mediterranean Fleet in 1891, but was forced to return to the UK by boiler problems the following year. The ship became a coast guard ship in Wales in 1895 and was again placed in reserve in 1900. Thunderer was taken out of service in 1907 and sold for scrap in 1909.

HMS <i>Audacious</i> (1869) British lead ship of Audacious-class

HMS Audacious was the lead ship of the Audacious-class ironclads 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 training ship. The ship was towed to Scapa Flow after the beginning of the First World War to be used as a receiving ship and then to Rosyth after the war ended. Audacious was sold for scrap in 1929.

HMS <i>Resistance</i> (1861) British defence-class ironclads

HMS Resistance was the second of two Defence-class ironclads built for the Royal Navy in the 1860s. She was the first capital ship in the Royal Navy to be fitted with a ram and was given the nickname of Old Rammo. Resistance was initially assigned to the Channel Fleet upon commissioning, but was transferred to the Mediterranean Fleet in 1864, the first ironclad to be assigned to that fleet. She was rearmed in 1867 and became a guardship when recommissioned in 1869. The ship was reassigned to the Channel Fleet in 1873 before reverting to her former duties in 1877. Resistance was decommissioned in 1880 and was used for gunnery and torpedo trials beginning in 1885. The ship was sold for scrap in 1898 and foundered in 1899 en route to the breaker's yard. She was salvaged and later scrapped.

<i>Defence</i>-class ironclad British warship class

The Defence-class ironclads were a class of two warships built for the Royal Navy between 1859 and 1862. The ships were designed as armoured frigates in response to an invasion scare sparked by the launch of the French ironclad Gloire and her three sisters in 1858. They were initially armed with a mix of rifled breech-loading and muzzle-loading smoothbore guns, but the Armstrong breech-loading guns proved unreliable and were withdrawn from service after a few years.

The Hector-class ironclads were a pair of armoured frigates built for the Royal Navy (RN) in the 1860s. Hector was completed in 1864 and assigned to the Channel Fleet until she began a refit in 1867. Valiant's builder went bankrupt, delaying her launching by a year. The ship then had to wait almost another five years to receive her guns and be commissioned. Both ships were assigned to the Reserve Fleet from 1868 until they were paid off in 1885–1886. They were mobilized during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878, but saw no action. They were hulked in the late 1890s and assigned to shore establishments. Hector was scrapped in 1905, but Valiant was converted into a floating oil tank in 1926; she was sold for scrap thirty years later.

HMS Hector was the lead ship of the Hector-class 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 the southern district until 1886. She usually served as Queen Victoria's guard ship when the sovereign was resident at her vacation home on the Isle of Wight. Hector was paid off in 1886 and hulked in 1900 as a storage ship before being sold for scrap in 1905.

HMS <i>Northumberland</i> (1866) 1866 ship

HMS Northumberland was the last of the three Minotaur-class armoured frigates built for the Royal Navy during the 1860s. She had a different armour scheme and heavier armament than her sister ships, and was generally regarded as a half-sister to the other ships of the class. The ship spent her career with the Channel Squadron and occasionally served as a flagship. Northumberland was placed in reserve in 1890 and became a training ship in 1898. She was converted into a coal hulk in 1910 [see below] and sold in 1927, although the ship was not scrapped until 1935.

HMS <i>Bellerophon</i> (1865)

HMS Bellerophon was a central battery ironclad built for the Royal Navy in the mid-1860s.

<i>Cerberus</i>-class monitor

The Cerberus-class breastwork monitor was a pair of breastwork monitors built for the Royal Navy in the 1860s.

HMS <i>Ajax</i> (1880) UK Ajax-class ironclad

HMS Ajax was the name ship of her class of ironclad battleships built for the Royal Navy during the 1870s. Completed in 1883, she was immediately placed in reserve until 1885 when the ship was commissioned for the first time. Later that year, Ajax was assigned as a coast guard ship in Scotland and remained there for the next six years. She was reduced to reserve again in 1891 and was taken out of service a decade later. The ship was sold for scrap in 1904 and subsequently broken up.

HMS <i>Neptune</i> (1874) Ironclad turret ship acquired by Royal Navy

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 transferred to the Mediterranean Fleet in 1885, but refitted in Portsmouth in 1886–87. Neptune then became the coastguard ship for the 1st Class Reserve at Holyhead until 1893 when she was placed in reserve in Portsmouth. While she was being towed to the breakers in 1903, Neptune unintentionally rammed HMS Victory, then serving as a training hulk for the Naval Signal School, collided with HMS Hero, and narrowly missed several other ships. She was scrapped in Germany in 1904.

<i>Cyclops</i>-class monitor Class of breastwork monitors

The 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 Cerberus-class monitors. The ships were ordered to satisfy demands for local defence during the war scare of 1870, but the pace of construction slowed tremendously as the perceived threat of war declined. The Cyclops-class monitors spent most of their careers in reserve and were finally sold off in 1903.

HMS <i>Cyclops</i> (1871) British Cyclops-class monitor

HMS Cyclops was the lead ship of the Cyclops-class 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 tremendously as the perceived threat of war declined. The ship spent most of her career in reserve; her only sustained period in commission was four months in Portland Harbour, during the Russo-Turkish War in 1878 when the British were trying to force the Russians to end the war without allowing them to seize Constantinople. Cyclops was sold for scrap in 1903.

HMS <i>Gorgon</i> (1871)

HMS Gorgon was the first ship commissioned of the four Cyclops-class breastwork monitors built for the Royal Navy during the 1870s.

HMS <i>Hecate</i> (1871)

HMS Hecate was the last ship completed of the four Cyclops-class breastwork monitors built for the Royal Navy during the 1870s.

HMS <i>Hydra</i> (1871) Cyclops-class monitor

HMS Hydra was the second ship completed of the four Cyclops-class 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 tremendously as the perceived threat of war declined. The ship spent most of her career in reserve; her only sustained period in commission was four months during the Russo-Turkish War in 1878 when the British were trying to force the Russians to end the war without seizing Constantinople. Hydra was sold for scrap in 1903.

References

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.