Protected cruisers, a type of naval cruiser of the late-19th century, gained their description because an armoured deck offered protection for vital machine-spaces from fragments caused by shells exploding above them. Protected cruisers resemble armored cruisers, which had in addition a belt of armour along the sides.
The Cressy-class cruiser was a class of six armoured cruisers built for the Royal Navy around 1900. Their design's incorporation of a pair of 9.2-inch guns and armoured sides served to address criticism directed against the previous Diadem class — advances made possible by their 1,000 ton increase in displacement over their predecessors. The ships were notably stable, except for a susceptibility to pitching.
HMS Warspite was an Imperieuse-class first-class armoured cruiser, launched on 29 January 1884 and commissioned in 1886.
The Drake class was a four-ship class of armoured cruisers built around 1900 for the Royal Navy.
The Devonshire-class cruiser was a group of six armoured cruisers built for the Royal Navy in the first decade of the 20th century. All ships of the class served in World War I. Argyll was wrecked, and Hampshire was sunk by a naval mine. The four survivors were disposed of soon after the war.
The eighth HMS Shannon was the first British armoured cruiser. She was the last Royal Navy ironclad to be built which had a propeller that could be hoisted out of the water to reduce drag when she was under sail, and the first to have an armoured deck.
The Edgar class was a nine-ship class of protected cruiser built around 1891 for the Royal Navy. Nine ships were completed, all of which participated in the First World War. One, HMS Hawke, was lost during the war, with the other eight being scrapped in the 1920s.
The Monmouth class was a ten-ship class of 10,000-ton armoured cruisers built around 1901 to 1903 for the Royal Navy and designed specifically for commerce protection. The ships were also referred to as County-class cruisers as they carried the names of British counties.
The Diadem-class cruiser was a class of "first class" protected cruiser built for the Royal Navy during the 1890s that served in the First World War. The class consisted of eight ships, built at a cost of around £600,000 each.
The Powerful class were a pair of first-class protected cruisers built for the Royal Navy (RN) in the 1890s, designed to hunt down enemy commerce raiders. Both ships served on the China Station and participated in the Second Boer War of 1899–1900. Terrible went on to help suppress the Boxer Rebellion a few months later. Powerful served as the flagship of the Australia Station in 1905–1912; shortly after her return home, she became a training ship and remained in that role until she was sold for scrap in 1929. Terrible was mostly in reserve after she returned home in 1902 and was often used as an accommodation ship. During the First World War she was disarmed and made one voyage as a troop transport in 1915. The ship became a depot ship when she returned home and then became a training ship in 1918. Terrible was sold for scrap in 1932.
The Orlando class was a seven ship class of Royal Navy armoured cruisers completed between 1888 and 1889.
The Blake class was a two-ship class of first-class protected cruiser built around 1890 for the Royal Navy.
The Nelson-class cruisers were a pair of armoured cruisers built in the 1870s for the Royal Navy.
Jean Bart was a protected cruiser of the Alger class built for the French Navy in the late 1880s and early 1890s. The second member of the class of three ships, Jean Bart and her sister ships were ordered during the tenure of Admiral Théophile Aube as Minister of Marine according to the theories of the Jeune École doctrine. The ships were intended as long-range commerce raiders, and they were armed with a main battery of four 164 mm (6.5 in) guns, were protected by an armor deck that was 50 to 100 mm thick, and were capable of steaming at a top speed of 19.5 knots.
The Centurion-class battleships were a pair of pre-dreadnought battleships built for the Royal Navy in the 1890s. They were rated as second-class battleships because they were less heavily armed and armoured than the first-class battleships. They were designed for service abroad and were given higher speed and longer range to counter the armoured cruisers then being built as commerce raiders.
The Vickers 10 inch naval gun was used on battleships and armoured cruisers built during the first decade of the 20th century. They were used as the Type 41 10-inch /45-caliber aboard the British-built semi-dreadnought Katori-class and Satsuma-class battleships of the Imperial Japanese Navy.
The Arrogant-class cruiser was a class of four protected cruisers built for the British Royal Navy at the end of the 1890s. One ship, HMS Gladiator, was lost following a collision with a merchant ship in 1908, while HMS Vindictive saw active service in the First World War, taking part in the Zeebrugge Raid in April 1918 before being sunk as a blockship during the Second Ostend Raid in May 1918.
The Alger class comprised three protected cruisers of the French Navy built in the late 1880s and early 1890s; the three ships were Alger, Isly, and Jean Bart. They were ordered as part of a fleet program that accorded with the theories of the Jeune École, which proposed a fleet based on cruisers and torpedo boats to defend France. The Alger-class cruisers were intended to serve a long-range commerce raiders to attack enemy merchant shipping. The ships were armed with a main battery of four 164 mm (6.5 in) guns supported by six 138 mm (5.4 in) guns and they had a top speed of 19 to 19.5 knots.
The Forbin class was a group of three protected cruisers built for the French Navy in the late 1880s and early 1890s. The class comprised Forbin, Coëtlogon, and Surcouf. They were ordered as part of a fleet program that, in accordance with the theories of the Jeune École, proposed a fleet based on cruisers and torpedo boats to defend France. The Forbin-class cruisers were intended to serve as flotilla leaders for the torpedo boats, and they were armed with a main battery of four 138 mm (5.4 in) guns.
Royal Navy 
