Shipbucket
https://111903.jhzobq.asia/forums/

First World War Battlecruiser Challenge
https://111903.jhzobq.asia/forums/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=9963		 Page 1 of 4
Author:  Kiwi Imperialist [ August 20th, 2020, 12:24 pm ]
Post subject:  First World War Battlecruiser Challenge
[ img ]

The Second World War aircraft carrier challenge generated some amazing entries. With that now in the past, it is time for the First World War battlecruiser challenge. Participants are asked to draw a fictional battlecruiser in active service at some point between the 28th of July 1914 and the 11th of November 1918. The battlecruiser does not have to be a participant in the First World War, or an equivalent conflict in its respective universe. It could, for example, belong to a neutral power. Unlike the Second World War aircraft carrier challenge, this challenge has the standard submission period of one month. Good luck everyone! Please read the challenge rules relating to submissions and drawings.

Design Requirements
  1. Your submission must depict a battlecruiser in active service at some point between 28 July 1914 and 11 November 1918.
  2. The battlecruiser should have a design speed of at least 24 knots (28 mph, 44 km/h).
  3. The main guns of the battlecruiser must have a calibre between 11 inches (28 cm) and 15 inches (38 cm).

Challenge Rules
  1. Each participant must submit a single image.
  2. The image should be a Shipbucket template modified to include the participant’s art. Templates which include a data sheet are allowed.
  3. One side-view of the participant's ship must be included. One top-view is also permitted, but not required. All other views are prohibited.
  4. If two views are included, they must depict the same ship at the same point in time.
  5. A textual description accompanying each submission is allowed, but not necessary.
  6. Off-topic posts will be reported to the relevant authorities.
  7. All art should be in Shipbucket scale.

This challenge will run until the 19th of September, ending at 23:59 UTC-12 (International Date Line West).
A countdown timer can be found at this link.

A poll will be held after this date. Members of the Shipbucket community will have an opportunity to score, on a scale of 1 to 10, each submission in the following categories:
  • Drawing Quality - The overall quality of the drawing. One might consider detailing, shading, and accuracy.
  • Design Realism - How realistic is the design presented? Any accompanying text may be considered.
  • Originality - Does the submission present a new and unique design, or is it a copy of an existing one?
Author:  Armoured man [ August 20th, 2020, 2:47 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: First World War Battlecruiser Challenge
it's the first time I've been in a position, to be the first one to post on a challenge thread, it's kind of funny in a way because over the past couple weeks I've been drawing a battlecruiser for my AU, that just happens to meet the requirements of this challenge, so anyway enjoy my entry

Haruryū class battlecruisers

General characteristics

Displacement: 28,500 tons standard, 29,800 full load
Length: 214.57 m (704 ft)
Beam: 27.73 m (91 ft)
Draft: 8.23 m (27 ft)
Installed power: 4-Direct drive steam turbines, 36 Babcock & Wilcox Coal fired boilers, 65,000 shp
Speed as built: 27 knots (31 mph; 50 km/h)


Armament: Haruryū as commissioned 1914
4x2 35cm type 12
1x16 12 type 13

Armour:
Main Belt: 9 inches
Ends: 3 inches
Upper Belt: 2 inches
Conning tower: 16 inches
Torpedo Bulkhead: 4 inches (added torpedo bulges supplementing armour)
Armored Deck: 2 inches max (increased to 4 inches max after rebuild)
Main Battery: 10 inches face, 4 inches sides/top, 11 inches barbettes

[ img ]
commissioned in 1914, Haruryū was for a short time one of the most powerful battlecruisers in the world, however with the arrival of the Japanese Kongo class that same year, many both in the Japanese and Zipang navis, feared that some kind of design theft had taken place, due to the striking similarities between both classes, however upon further investigation by both respective countries military intelligence bureaus, it was found that the similarities, between the classes appears to be a coincidence, in almost every respect.

Haruryū's sister ship, soraryū would be brought into service on the 23th of July 1914, more one day before the official start one of the Great War, as a result of being on friendly terms with the United Kingdom, Zipang offered ships for service with Royal Navy, in the Pacific and Indian Ocean, however, in the early stages of the war, Soraryū and Haruryū's did relatively little, helping to take German held positions in the western Pacific, of notable instances, the first battlecruiser Squadron and the third Cruiser Squadron of which Soraryū and Haruryū's were a part of, assisted the Australians in The Taking of German New Guinea, with them providing some Fire support to Australian troops, but still doing relatively little in the battle. late 1914 saw the arrival of the third member of the class, this being Ginryū, however, unlike her sisters, her sea trials didn't go that well, on the final inspection of her sea trials, it was found that the starboard propellers, produce a lot of vibration, which made working in the lower end of the ship extremely difficult and uncomfortable for the crew, another problem that was noted in the official report was that the, the guns in the number two turret had some quite bad accuracy issues, even with the guns being relined, these issues would still persisted throughout the rest of her career.

She would join the first battlecruiser Squadron just in time for it to be sent off to the Atlantic, to help bolster the grand fleets battlecruiser force, the three battlecruisers, all three battlecruisers will arrive on the 7th of January 1915, they would immediately be incorporated into the first battlecruiser squadron of the grand fleet, on the 24th of January the first battlecruiser Squadron would sale to intercept a force of German battlecruisers, at 8:52, the two forces of enemy ships would face each other, at dogger bank with the British battlecruiser Lion shooting the first Salvo of the battle, the Zipang battlecruisers fair quite reasonably during the battle with Haruryū managing to score for hits on the German battlecruiser seydlitz, as a result detonating it's forward most magazine, but in return both Haruryū and soraryū would be targeted by the two battlecruisers Derfflinger and Moltke, raining down a Hail of shells on the tow Zipang battlecruisers, however, the armour on the two battlecruisers would hold up under the furious brage, with some of the German 11 in shells simply bouncing off the armour. meanwhile ginryū would switchs it's fire from the Burning seydlitz to the Blücher, ginryū would unload a full Salvo, at the German armoured Cruiser with 2 out of 8 shells managing to hit,one penetrating the Barbet on the forward most gun turret rendering that turret completely useless, and the other penetrating the armoured belt and exploding in the number one boiler room of Barbet, dropping has speed significantly, over the following hour, ginryū and Blücher would continue to trade salvos with each other, however, despite putting up a furious defence, the German armoured Cruiser would quickly be incapacitated by the much larger 14 inch shells from the ginryū, ultimately leaving her a smoldering wreck in capable of of further combat, the seydlitzs by this point had been hit repeatedly by both British and Zipang battlecruisers, was now much like the Blücher a slowly sinking flaming wrack, with the Germans losing one battlecruiser, armoured Cruiser as well as numerous destroyers, they disengaged from the battle ultimately resulting in victory for the first battlecruiser Squadron, however, the British and Zipang ships didn't come out of the battle unscaved, ginryū had one of her gun turrets knocked out in its battle with the Blücher ,Haruryū and soraryū, in their battle with seydlitz and Derfflinger had taken quite substantial damage to their secondary batteries and superstructures, but was still relatively in combat capable condition despite damage. after the conclusion of the Battle of dogger bank, the first battle cruiser, Squadron would spend the rest of 1915 doing relatively other than the occasional training Cruise and gunnery practice, however, in May 1916 the first battlecruiser Squadron, would sali as part of the grand fleet to intercept the German high seas fleet, the first battlecruiser Squadron would engage the German battlecruisers of hipper's Squadron, with the first shots occurring at 15:48, over the next two hoursthe two squadrons trade body blows of each other with the British losing the battlecruiser indefatigable,

Haruryū would come under fire from the German battlecruisers lutzow and Moltke,but against the odds, Haruryū would somehow remain almost unscaved under the barrage from the German battlecruisers only being hit once on the bow, with the shell going in one side out the other, ginryū would be engaged by the Goeben and Von der Tann, suffering heavy damage as a result but still being combat capable by the end of the battle, at 16:25 the Queen Mary would be hit repeatedly by 11 inch shells from the German battlecruisers, and as a result going up in a colossal explosion, killing most of the crew, soraryū who had been nearby at the time suffered damage from the blast, causing a temporary loss of control due to the bridge crew being temporarily incapacitated, this would cause her to stray too close to the German battle line, as a result she was focused fired by the remaining battlecruisers suffering 24 continuous hits her superstructure and secondary guns would be completely destroyed, however, she would survive battle having to be towed back to scapa flow.

Because of the damage sustained by ginryū and soraryū, Haruryū would be the only member of her class to partake in the next fleet engagement between the high seas fleet and the grand fleet, and would go on to engage German battlecruisers and battleships of the high seas Fleet, managing to sink the German pre-dreadnought Thüringen, but in return taking two 15 in shell hits from the German battleship Bayern, one of these shells, knocking out her number 3 gun turret, however, in return she would managed to score a hit on the Bayern causing one of her 5 in magazines to explode, despite being damage, her and the remaining battlecruisers of the first battlecruiser Squadron, would speed ahead of the grand fleet to chase down the remaining German battlecruisers, in the rapidly fading Twilight of June the 1st, the two forces of battlecruisers would engage each other for the last time, with Haruryū managing to score a single 14-inch gun hit on the battlecruiser Derfflinger with little to no damage inflicted, when it came to the end battle results all three Zipang had survived the battle but at the great cost of lives, with a grand total of 678 Zipang sailors lost during the Battle of Jutland
Author:  emperor_andreas [ August 20th, 2020, 11:27 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: First World War Battlecruiser Challenge
That camouflage scheme combined with the blue below-the-waterline paint is awesome!
Author:  WesleyWestland [ August 21st, 2020, 3:38 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: First World War Battlecruiser Challenge
Hello! Here's my first submission to a Challenge, feedback would be appreciated. :)

[ img ]

This is HMS Gannet, the third Glory-class battlecruiser of the Royal Westlandian Navy. She entered service in 1915, and her sisters were HMS Glory and HMS Greyhound. The Glory-class represented a significant improvement over the preceding Lightning-class. The main armament was unchanged, but Q-turret was moved aft, allowing for the boiler rooms all being together amidships and the elimination of the third funnel. It still wasn’t a true superfiring arrangement with an X-turret, but the firing arcs were significantly improved. The other major change was an increase in armour thickness, raising the displacement by 1500 tonnes and reducing speed by one knot. This change would later be proven justified as all three Glory-class ships survived the Battle of Azh while HMS Loyalty of the Lightning-class was lost.

All three ships saw a lot of action in the First Great War (1915-1920), with Gannet serving as the flagship of the Battlecruiser Force throughout most of the war. At the Battle of Azh (1916), they were the most modern Westlandian battlecruisers present and formed the head of the Battlecruiser Force. They held their own against the Astintzen battlecruisers in the opening action and then led the Westlandian battleships into the main action where they were quite heavily damaged, especially Greyhound. The battle showed that, while their superior armour had saved them from being sunk, their armament and speed were insufficient compared to the enemy and the Undaunted-class that followed would trade the eight 32.5 cm guns for six 38 cm guns and managed a 31 knot top speed thanks to oil-fired boilers and geared turbines. Gannet would remain the flagship of the Battlecruiser Force until the massive HMS Illustrious joined the fleet shortly before the war’s end in 1920.

The entire class survived the war, but Glory and Greyhound were demilitarised and eventually scrapped after the naval treaty was signed in 1922. Gannet remained in service, spending much of the 1920s and ‘30s as a gunnery training ship except when the other battlecruisers went into refit. She was decommissioned in 1934 and was scrapped the following year.

A few (estimated) numbers:
Length o/a: 210 metres.
Beam: 27.5 metres.
Draught: 9.6 metres.
Displacement: 28,000/33,000 tonnes (standard/full load).
Propulsion: 4 x direct drive steam turbines (coal fired).
Top speed: 27 knots.

Main armament: 8 x 32.5 cm guns.
Secondary armament: 12 x 15 cm guns.
Anti-aircraft armament: 4 x 8.5 cm guns.
Underwater armament: 4 x torpedo tubes.
Belt armour: 300 mm.
Deck armour: 80 mm.
Turret armour: 275 mm.

Springsharp report:
Code: Select all
HMS Gannet, Westlandia Battlecruiser laid down 1912 (Engine 1913)

Displacement:
	26.134 t light; 27.447 t standard; 30.678 t normal; 33.263 t full load

Dimensions: Length (overall / waterline) x beam x draught (normal/deep)
	(690,62 ft / 687,01 ft) x 90,22 ft x (31,50 / 33,59 ft)
	(210,50 m / 209,40 m) x 27,50 m  x (9,60 / 10,24 m)

Armament:
      8 - 12,80" / 325 mm 45,0 cal guns - 1.056,34lbs / 479,15kg shells, 125 per gun
	  Breech loading guns in turret on barbette mounts, 1912 Model
	  2 x 2-gun mounts on centreline, forward deck forward
		1 raised mount - superfiring
	  2 x 2-gun mounts on centreline, aft evenly spread
		1 raised mount aft
      12 - 5,91" / 150 mm 45,0 cal guns - 103,86lbs / 47,11kg shells, 150 per gun
	  Breech loading guns in casemate mounts, 1912 Model
	  12 x Single mounts on sides, forward deck aft
		12 hull mounts in casemates- Limited use in heavy seas
      4 - 3,35" / 85,0 mm 45,0 cal guns - 18,90lbs / 8,57kg shells, 200 per gun
	  Anti-air guns in deck mounts, 1912 Model
	  4 x Single mounts on sides, forward deck aft
      Weight of broadside 9.773 lbs / 4.433 kg
      Main Torpedoes
      4 - 19,7" / 500 mm, 19,69 ft / 6,00 m torpedoes - 1,111 t each, 4,444 t total
	submerged side tubes

Armour:
   - Belts:		Width (max)	Length (avg)		Height (avg)
	Main:	11,8" / 300 mm	402,89 ft / 122,80 m	9,19 ft / 2,80 m
	Ends:	5,91" / 150 mm	284,12 ft / 86,60 m	12,47 ft / 3,80 m
	Upper:	7,87" / 200 mm	402,89 ft / 122,80 m	9,19 ft / 2,80 m
	  Main Belt covers 90 % of normal length

   - Torpedo Bulkhead - Additional damage containing bulkheads:
		1,97" / 50 mm	543,31 ft / 165,60 m	18,37 ft / 5,60 m
	Beam between torpedo bulkheads 73,82 ft / 22,50 m

   - Gun armour:	Face (max)	Other gunhouse (avg)	Barbette/hoist (max)
	Main:	10,8" / 275 mm	10,8" / 275 mm		10,8" / 275 mm
	2nd:	5,91" / 150 mm	      -			      -

   - Armoured deck - multiple decks:
	For and Aft decks: 3,15" / 80 mm
	Forecastle: 1,18" / 30 mm  Quarter deck: 1,18" / 30 mm

   - Conning towers: Forward 10,83" / 275 mm, Aft 10,83" / 275 mm

Machinery:
	Coal fired boilers, steam turbines, 
	Direct drive, 4 shafts, 85.485 shp / 63.772 Kw = 27,00 kts
	Range 7.500nm at 14,00 kts
	Bunker at max displacement = 5.817 tons (100% coal)

Complement:
	1.158 - 1.506

Cost:
	£2,282 million / $9,127 million

Distribution of weights at normal displacement:
	Armament: 2.020 tons, 6,6 %
	   - Guns: 2.011 tons, 6,6 %
	   - Weapons: 9 tons, 0,0 %
	Armour: 9.496 tons, 31,0 %
	   - Belts: 3.932 tons, 12,8 %
	   - Torpedo bulkhead: 727 tons, 2,4 %
	   - Armament: 2.217 tons, 7,2 %
	   - Armour Deck: 2.163 tons, 7,0 %
	   - Conning Towers: 457 tons, 1,5 %
	Machinery: 3.685 tons, 12,0 %
	Hull, fittings & equipment: 10.934 tons, 35,6 %
	Fuel, ammunition & stores: 4.544 tons, 14,8 %
	Miscellaneous weights: 0 tons, 0,0 %

Overall survivability and seakeeping ability:
	Survivability (Non-critical penetrating hits needed to sink ship):
	  43.733 lbs / 19.837 Kg = 41,8 x 12,8 " / 325 mm shells or 8,1 torpedoes
	Stability (Unstable if below 1.00): 1,11
	Metacentric height 5,2 ft / 1,6 m
	Roll period: 16,6 seconds
	Steadiness	- As gun platform (Average = 50 %): 57 %
			- Recoil effect (Restricted arc if above 1.00): 0,55
	Seaboat quality  (Average = 1.00): 1,13

Hull form characteristics:
	Hull has rise forward of midbreak,
	  a ram bow and a cruiser stern
	Block coefficient (normal/deep): 0,550 / 0,559
	Length to Beam Ratio: 7,61 : 1
	'Natural speed' for length: 26,21 kts
	Power going to wave formation at top speed: 49 %
	Trim (Max stability = 0, Max steadiness = 100): 50
	Bow angle (Positive = bow angles forward): -4,00 degrees
	Stern overhang: 1,31 ft / 0,40 m
	Freeboard (% = length of deck as a percentage of waterline length):
				Fore end,	 Aft end
	   - Forecastle:	23,00 %,  24,28 ft / 7,40 m,  22,64 ft / 6,90 m
	   - Forward deck:	36,75 %,  22,64 ft / 6,90 m,  22,64 ft / 6,90 m
	   - Aft deck:	21,75 %,  13,45 ft / 4,10 m,  13,45 ft / 4,10 m
	   - Quarter deck:	18,50 %,  13,45 ft / 4,10 m,  15,42 ft / 4,70 m
	   - Average freeboard:		19,27 ft / 5,87 m
	Ship tends to be wet forward

Ship space, strength and comments:
	Space	- Hull below water (magazines/engines, low = better): 80,2 %
		- Above water (accommodation/working, high = better): 136,8 %
	Waterplane Area: 43.258 Square feet or 4.019 Square metres
	Displacement factor (Displacement / loading): 123 %
	Structure weight / hull surface area: 190 lbs/sq ft or 928 Kg/sq metre
	Hull strength (Relative):
		- Cross-sectional: 1,11
		- Longitudinal: 1,47
		- Overall: 1,14
	Excellent machinery, storage, compartmentation space
	Excellent accommodation and workspace room
Author:  Krakatoa [ August 23rd, 2020, 1:57 am ]
Post subject:  Re: First World War Battlecruiser Challenge
USS Hawaii (CB-1916)

USN's first Dreadnought Scout Cruiser.

The USN could only watch in amazement as the German -v- British Naval Race fueled a revolution in dreadnoughts that pushed them from 20,000 tons and 12" guns to 30,000 tons and 16" guns in less than 10 years. The changes were almost from class to class. From Dreadnought battleship to Dreadnought cruiser the sizes of the ships just skyrocketed. A brand new ship could be obsolete six months later as new developments passed it by. The only way the USN could hope to keep up was to try and guess what was coming next and try and better it. So it proved with the USN's first try at a battlecruiser. The USN gleaned knowledge of the new Lion class battlecruisers and decided they could do better than that.

[ img ]

At 752x90 feet the Hawaii was a big ship. 32,000 tons of armour and steel speeding through the water at 30 knots. Three of the new triple 14" turrets gave them a decided advantage over their British and German peers. The tertiary armaments were not stinted either with 14x5", 14x4" and 4x3"AA. The problem was that in the time the USN built its one ship class, the British had built four of their similar Lion/Tiger types. Laid down in 1912, the ship completed in early 1916, just in time to see the British Renown and Repulse being completed. Personally I would prefer to be aboard the Hawaii with its nine guns than the R&R's six. Armour with an 11" belt and 3" deck was more than enough to counter the older battlecruisers but the new 15" guns and better would have no trouble piercing it.

On the US's entry to the war in 1917, the Hawaii was included in the Fleet that went to the European Theater. The battleships went to Scapa Flow becoming the 6th Battle Squadron while the Hawaii went to Rosyth to be based with the Battlecruiser Fleet. The Hawaii's one chance of glory came in late 1917 when with the Glorious and Courageous the ships fought the Second Battle of the Heligoland Bight. With three battlecruisers against four German light cruisers it should have been no contest, but the German commander handled his forces well, while the battlecruisers were forced to dodge around minefields, unable to bring their superiority to bear. The final section of the battle came about when a German battle squadron arrived and engaged the battlecruisers. The Hawaii covered the withdrawal of the Courageous and Glorious which were not meant to face a battleships guns with their 3" armour belt. The Hawaii did well, its 14" guns hitting and damaging two of the German battleships. Both sides were intent on taking no major losses so both withdrew behind their minefields where enemy forces would fear to follow.
Author:  Karle94 [ August 26th, 2020, 8:28 am ]
Post subject:  Re: First World War Battlecruiser Challenge
Livorno Class Battlecruiser for my Austrio-Hungarian AU.
Designed as a counter to a growing number of Austrio-Hungarian cruiser fleet, and concerns based on rumors that the KuK was developing battlecruisers of its own, Italy did not want to be left behind like it did with the first dreadnoughts, with the Tegetthoff commissioning before the Dante Alighieri. Work started in 1911 with a bunch of ideas, ranging from lightly armored designs similar to the Invincible and Indefatigable, to more heavily armored ones. more similar to the Lion, and Tiger. The design chosen was the more armored one. Though the armor was similar to the Conte di Cavour class, and with the same armaments, namely 12x12in guns, armor was lighter on the decks, and the bow/stern, and casemate armor. Designed in parallel with the Andrea Doria class, the Livorno would share many of its features, though with smaller guns and less armor. Speed, like the armor was hotly debated. Some wanted a high top speed of 30-32 knots, though with armor around 8 inches in the belt, and 50mm at the deck. Others argued for a slower speed of 26-28 knots, with the slower ships having 12 inches of belt armor, and 100mm of deck armor like the Andrea Doria class. In the end, an intermediate design was chosen, as it had a balanced armor-speed ratio. Two ships were ordered, Livorno was laid down in 1912, and commisioned in 1917. Venezia was laid down in 1914, and commisioned in 1920.

The Livorno would see some service in the great war, most of the time was spent cruising around waiting for Austrio-Hungarian ships to come out for battle. The KuK obliged in 1918, when a battle was fought between the KuK and the Regia Marina. The battle was inconclusive, with only smaller ships lost. Italy may have lost tactically, as the new KuK ships of the Ersatz Monarch SMS Graf Daun and SMS Hunyádi proved to be quite tough ships, easily overpowering the Conte di Cavour and Giulio Cesare, and the Tegetthoff class keeping the Livorno, Dante Alighieri and Leonardo da Vinci in line. Balance was achieved when the two ships of the Andrea Doria class with their 13,5in guns arrived. Both fleets retired with light to moderate damage sustainted to the heavy units. There would be no further battles between the KuK and Regia Marina for the rest of the war. In the post war environment the Livorno was joined by the Venezia, and together, they formed the high speed wing, serving on the flank of the more powerful battleships of the Francesco Caracciolo class when they were commisioned in the early-mid 20s. They were slated for scrapping in the mid 30s, but were kept, and rebuilt when the waters of Europe were getting hotter.

Battlecruiser Livorno as commisioned in 1917:
[ img ]

Springsharp report:
Livorno Class, Kigdom of Italy, Battlecruiser, laid down in 1912

Displacement:
24 945 t light; 26 099 t standard; 27 869 t normal; 29 285 t full load

Dimensions: Length overall / water x beam x draught
656,17 ft / 656,17 ft x 91,86 ft x 29,00 ft (normal load)
200,00 m / 200,00 m x 28,00 m x 8,84 m

Armament:
12 - 12,00" / 305 mm guns (4x3 guns), 864,00lbs / 391,90kg shells, 1912 Model
Breech loading guns in turrets (on barbettes)
on centreline ends, evenly spread, 2 raised mounts - superfiring
14 - 6,00" / 152 mm guns in single mounts, 108,00lbs / 48,99kg shells, 1912 Model
Breech loading guns in casemate mounts
on side, all amidships
4 - 3,00" / 76,2 mm guns in single mounts, 13,50lbs / 6,12kg shells, 1912 Model
Breech loading guns in deck mounts
on centreline ends, evenly spread
Weight of broadside 11 934 lbs / 5 413 kg
Shells per gun, main battery: 88
4 - 21,0" / 533,4 mm submerged torpedo tubes

Armour:
- Belts: Width (max) Length (avg) Height (avg)
Main: 9,80" / 249 mm 364,50 ft / 111,10 m 15,00 ft / 4,57 m
Ends: 4,00" / 102 mm 287,50 ft / 87,63 m 8,50 ft / 2,59 m
4,17 ft / 1,27 m Unarmoured ends
Upper: 4,00" / 102 mm 651,10 ft / 198,46 m 8,50 ft / 2,59 m
Main Belt covers 85 % of normal length
Main belt does not fully cover magazines and engineering spaces

- Torpedo Bulkhead:
2,00" / 51 mm 365,50 ft / 111,40 m 8,00 ft / 2,44 m

- Gun armour: Face (max) Other gunhouse (avg) Barbette/hoist (max)
Main: 11,0" / 279 mm 6,00" / 152 mm 9,00" / 229 mm
2nd: 5,00" / 127 mm - -

- Armour deck: 2,50" / 64 mm, Conning tower: 9,00" / 229 mm

Machinery:
Oil fired boilers, steam turbines,
Geared drive, 4 shafts, 95 818 shp / 71 480 Kw = 28,00 kts
Range 4 800nm at 15,00 kts
Bunker at max displacement = 3 186 tons

Complement:
1 078 - 1 402

Cost:
£2,661 million / $10,644 million

Distribution of weights at normal displacement:
Armament: 1 492 tons, 5,4 %
Armour: 8 444 tons, 30,3 %
- Belts: 3 605 tons, 12,9 %
- Torpedo bulkhead: 216 tons, 0,8 %
- Armament: 2 484 tons, 8,9 %
- Armour Deck: 1 960 tons, 7,0 %
- Conning Tower: 178 tons, 0,6 %
Machinery: 3 820 tons, 13,7 %
Hull, fittings & equipment: 11 088 tons, 39,8 %
Fuel, ammunition & stores: 2 924 tons, 10,5 %
Miscellaneous weights: 100 tons, 0,4 %

Overall survivability and seakeeping ability:
Survivability (Non-critical penetrating hits needed to sink ship):
32 419 lbs / 14 705 Kg = 37,5 x 12,0 " / 305 mm shells or 4,0 torpedoes
Stability (Unstable if below 1.00): 1,07
Metacentric height 5,0 ft / 1,5 m
Roll period: 17,3 seconds
Steadiness - As gun platform (Average = 50 %): 54 %
- Recoil effect (Restricted arc if above 1.00): 0,74
Seaboat quality (Average = 1.00): 1,09

Hull form characteristics:
Hull has raised forecastle, rise forward of midbreak, low quarterdeck
Block coefficient: 0,558
Length to Beam Ratio: 7,14 : 1
'Natural speed' for length: 25,62 kts
Power going to wave formation at top speed: 53 %
Trim (Max stability = 0, Max steadiness = 100): 50
Bow angle (Positive = bow angles forward): -10,00 degrees
Stern overhang: -1,50 ft / -0,46 m
Freeboard (% = measuring location as a percentage of overall length):
- Stem: 26,00 ft / 7,92 m
- Forecastle (20 %): 25,50 ft / 7,77 m (24,50 ft / 7,47 m aft of break)
- Mid (50 %): 24,50 ft / 7,47 m (16,50 ft / 5,03 m aft of break)
- Quarterdeck (15 %): 16,50 ft / 5,03 m (24,50 ft / 7,47 m before break)
- Stern: 17,50 ft / 5,33 m
- Average freeboard: 22,22 ft / 6,77 m
Ship tends to be wet forward

Ship space, strength and comments:
Space - Hull below water (magazines/engines, low = better): 111,7 %
- Above water (accommodation/working, high = better): 167,4 %
Waterplane Area: 42 384 Square feet or 3 938 Square metres
Displacement factor (Displacement / loading): 99 %
Structure weight / hull surface area: 181 lbs/sq ft or 882 Kg/sq metre
Hull strength (Relative):
- Cross-sectional: 0,96
- Longitudinal: 1,46
- Overall: 1,00
Hull space for machinery, storage, compartmentation is cramped
Room for accommodation and workspaces is excellent
Author:  denodon [ August 30th, 2020, 4:45 am ]
Post subject:  Re: First World War Battlecruiser Challenge
G'day all,

I have additional versions including peacetime Victorian Black and Gold, 1913 pale grey which she saw early WW1 service, along with her sister ship, on my personal website HERE.

[ img ]

Named after the Battle of Chioggia in 1380, where the Republic of Venice decisively defeated the Republic of Genoa, the Chioggia class battlecruisers were the first of their kind to be completed by the Republic of Venice.
Whilst Venice was not the major naval power in the Mediterranean that it had once been, commerce by sea and protecting the crucial trade links was still considered vital and something which the new class of capital ships would be ideally suited. A ship with the firepower to rival a battleship with comparable protection but a speed advantage was considered highly advantageous in dictating the terms of battle in favour of the republic.

Multiple designs were iterated and trialed with heavy involvement from the British. The ultimate design chosen for construction adopted a near identical main battery arrangement of the new German battlecruisers of the Moltke class but with the more powerful British 12″ gun. This also made them the first Venetian ships to carry a superfiring main battery. A reasonably heavy battery of 6″ guns in casemates along the ships sides provided considerable deterrent against torpedo boat attacks, for which additional 4″ quick-firing guns were installed atop of the main battery turret roofs to supplement fire.

Unusually for the designs of Europe, Venice adopted a Lattice or Cage mast for the new ships, in keeping with the first generation of Battleships designed just a few years before. These were intended to reduce weight considerably compared to the tripods favoured by the British whilst providing a stable platform for spotting that was less vulnerable to incoming fire. Only the Tsar of Russias fleet had any ships with similar structures in Europe, along with ships bought by Greece as surplus from the American fleet.

The Andrea Contarini was laid down late in 1909 and commissioned just in time for the Coronation of King George V of the United Kingdom where the new ship resplendent in an eye-pleasing Victorian scheme was presented alongside numerous other foreign vessels as part of celebrations.
She would have a sister ship completed, the Carlo Zeno, named after the heroic Venetian Admiral who's arrival late in the battle turned the tide of battle. Unlike the Andrea Contarini however, the Carlo Zeno posessed a slightly different arrangement with all boiler rooms ahead of the machinery spaces. Otherwise the two ships were identical.

As tensions continued to rise leading towards 1914, the ship would lose her vibrant colours to be replaced by the new, soon to be standard pale grey overall scheme intended to make the ships harder to spot in the bright sunshine and haze of the Mediterranean.

Unfortunately for Venice, the Mark XI 12″/50s used in the new ships proved to be not quite up to the original expectations. These guns, also used by the British adopted a longer barrel and a heavier charge in order to increase the muzzle velocity of the shell, thus improving range and striking power. In actual service however it was found the guns were inconsistent, suffering from rather considerable issues with dispersion at the same elevation which complicated gunlaying. This was later found to be the result of the larger charge not burning completely by the time the shell left the barrel. This also resulted in a shorter life for each barrel in service. Little could be done however despite efforts to resolve these issues and would plague the ships for the rest of their service careers.

The outbreak of World War I saw Venice join its ally the United Kingdom in declaring war on Imperial Germany and the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The two ships were involved in the chase of German shipping including the Battlecruiser Goeben which escaped to the then-neutral Ottomans.

Following this operation, all armaments on the ships had their paint stripped and replaced with a mixture of soot and grease in the same manner as the informally named "bouchon gras" of the French Fleet in order to better protect the guns from corrosion whilst in theory improving operational reliability.

Both sisters again participated in the ill-fated Gallipoli campaign in an attempt to push the Dardanelles strait after the Ottomans sided with the Central Powers. Andrea Contarini hit in a mine which saw her heavily flooded but miraculously remained afloat. She returned to Venice via Greece where she spent the rest of the war receiving repairs.

The Carlo Zeno fared better than her sister, taking only light damage from shore artillery before withdrawing with the rest of the allied fleets. For a time she supported the Otranto Barrage, an effort at bottlenecking the Austro-Hungarian fleet to the Adriatic, before deploying once more to Greece where she provided escort to allied shipping efforts. In 1917 she narrowly avoided a torpedo attack from an unknown but presumed to be German Submarine (one of her escorts was not so lucky).

Otherwise the remainder of the war was rather uneventful. She briefly supported intervention in the Black Sea following the loss of the Russian fleet to revolution but saw no more notable action.

The two ships by 1919 were starting to show their age. Their turbines by now were in dire need of overhaul. Their guns had been outclassed by the other Mediterranean powers and their speed eclipsed. Their mixed coal and oil firing was also considered obsolete by this point with the near total replacement of coaling with oil fired ships having begun even before the outbreak of war.

Regardless, the two vessels remained in commission until 1920 where both were laid up just beyond the Venetian lagoon. Following the signing of the Washington Naval Treaty, both old ships were listed for disposal. The still damaged Andrea Contarini was turned into a target ship and finally sunk in 1924, whilst the Carlo Zeno was sold for scrap, with the breaking having been completed by 1923, thus ending the careers of Venices’ first battlecruisers.
Code: Select all
Andrea Contarini, Most Serene Republic of Venice Battlecruiser laid down 1909 (Engine 1910)

Displacement:
20,320 t light; 21,388 t standard; 22,490 t normal; 23,371 t full load

Dimensions: Length (overall / waterline) x beam x draught (normal/deep)
(590.50 ft / 584.00 ft) x 96.00 ft x (27.00 / 27.81 ft)
(179.98 m / 178.00 m) x 29.26 m x (8.23 / 8.48 m)

Armament:
6 – 12.00″ / 305 mm 50.0 cal guns – 914.65lbs / 414.88kg shells, 100 per gun
Breech loading guns in turret on barbette mounts, 1909 Model
3 x Twin mounts on centreline ends, majority aft
1 raised mount aft – superfiring
4 – 12.00″ / 305 mm 50.0 cal guns – 914.65lbs / 414.88kg shells, 100 per gun
Breech loading guns in turret on barbette mounts, 1909 Model
1 x Twin mount on sides, forward deck aft
1 x Twin mount on sides, aft deck forward
12 – 6.00″ / 152 mm 45.0 cal guns – 108.93lbs / 49.41kg shells, 120 per gun
Breech loading guns in casemate mounts, 1909 Model
12 x Single mounts on sides, evenly spread
8 – 4.00″ / 102 mm 50.0 cal guns – 33.89lbs / 15.37kg shells, 150 per gun
Breech loading guns in deck mounts, 1909 Model
8 x Single mounts on centreline, evenly spread
8 raised mounts
Weight of broadside 10,725 lbs / 4,865 kg
Main Torpedoes
2 – 18.0″ / 457 mm, 12.20 ft / 3.72 m torpedoes – 0.606 t each, 1.212 t total
submerged side tubes

Armour:

    Belts: Width (max) Length (avg) Height (avg)
    Main: 11.0″ / 279 mm 384.00 ft / 117.04 m 13.50 ft / 4.11 m
    Ends: 4.00″ / 102 mm 200.00 ft / 60.96 m 12.50 ft / 3.81 m
    Upper: 4.00″ / 102 mm 495.00 ft / 150.88 m 7.50 ft / 2.29 m
    Main Belt covers 101 % of normal length
    Torpedo Bulkhead – Additional damage containing bulkheads:
    1.50″ / 38 mm 495.00 ft / 150.88 m 8.50 ft / 2.59 m
    Beam between torpedo bulkheads 82.00 ft / 24.99 m
    Gun armour: Face (max) Other gunhouse (avg) Barbette/hoist (max)
    Main: 10.0″ / 254 mm 7.00″ / 178 mm 10.0″ / 254 mm
    2nd: 10.0″ / 254 mm 7.00″ / 178 mm 10.0″ / 254 mm
    3rd: 6.00″ / 152 mm 1.50″ / 38 mm –
    Armoured deck – multiple decks:
    For and Aft decks: 2.00″ / 51 mm
    Forecastle: 1.00″ / 25 mm Quarter deck: 1.00″ / 25 mm
    Conning towers: Forward 10.00″ / 254 mm, Aft 8.00″ / 203 mm

Machinery:
Coal and oil fired boilers, steam turbines,
Direct drive, 4 shafts, 64,974 shp / 48,471 Kw = 25.92 kts
Range 4,300nm at 12.00 kts
Bunker at max displacement = 1,984 tons (50% coal)

Complement:
917 – 1,193

Cost:
£2.130 million / $8.520 million

Distribution of weights at normal displacement:
Armament: 2,051 tons, 9.1 %
– Guns: 2,049 tons, 9.1 %
– Weapons: 2 tons, 0.0 %
Armour: 7,098 tons, 31.6 %
– Belts: 3,449 tons, 15.3 %
– Torpedo bulkhead: 234 tons, 1.0 %
– Armament: 1,815 tons, 8.1 %
– Armour Deck: 1,291 tons, 5.7 %
– Conning Towers: 309 tons, 1.4 %
Machinery: 2,813 tons, 12.5 %
Hull, fittings & equipment: 8,313 tons, 37.0 %
Fuel, ammunition & stores: 2,170 tons, 9.6 %
Miscellaneous weights: 45 tons, 0.2 %
– Hull below water: 10 tons
– Hull above water: 15 tons
– On freeboard deck: 10 tons
– Above deck: 10 tons

Overall survivability and seakeeping ability:
Survivability (Non-critical penetrating hits needed to sink ship):
27,347 lbs / 12,404 Kg = 31.7 x 12.0 ” / 305 mm shells or 9.2 torpedoes
Stability (Unstable if below 1.00): 1.24
Metacentric height 6.9 ft / 2.1 m
Roll period: 15.3 seconds
Steadiness – As gun platform (Average = 50 %): 56 %
– Recoil effect (Restricted arc if above 1.00): 0.39
Seaboat quality (Average = 1.00): 1.05

Hull form characteristics:
Hull has raised forecastle,
a ram bow and a cruiser stern
Block coefficient (normal/deep): 0.520 / 0.525
Length to Beam Ratio: 6.08 : 1
‘Natural speed’ for length: 24.17 kts
Power going to wave formation at top speed: 53 %
Trim (Max stability = 0, Max steadiness = 100): 53
Bow angle (Positive = bow angles forward): -5.00 degrees
Stern overhang: 0.00 ft / 0.00 m
Freeboard (% = length of deck as a percentage of waterline length):
Fore end, Aft end
– Forecastle: 21.00 %, 29.00 ft / 8.84 m, 23.50 ft / 7.16 m
– Forward deck: 30.50 %, 16.50 ft / 5.03 m, 16.50 ft / 5.03 m
– Aft deck: 35.00 %, 16.50 ft / 5.03 m, 16.50 ft / 5.03 m
– Quarter deck: 13.50 %, 16.50 ft / 5.03 m, 18.00 ft / 5.49 m
– Average freeboard: 18.53 ft / 5.65 m

Ship space, strength and comments:
Space – Hull below water (magazines/engines, low = better): 96.2 %
– Above water (accommodation/working, high = better): 130.4 %
Waterplane Area: 38,047 Square feet or 3,535 Square metres
Displacement factor (Displacement / loading): 100 %
Structure weight / hull surface area: 177 lbs/sq ft or 864 Kg/sq metre
Hull strength (Relative):
– Cross-sectional: 0.95
– Longitudinal: 1.58
– Overall: 1.00
Adequate machinery, storage, compartmentation space
Excellent accommodation and workspace room
Author:  Rodondo [ September 2nd, 2020, 11:10 am ]
Post subject:  Re: First World War Battlecruiser Challenge
As the soon as the the procurement of Rurik Class Armoured cruisers was halted due to the arrival of HMS Invincible to the world’s eyes, pen was hitting paper and design parameters were being set down by the Admiralty in Russia in an attempt to seize an opportunity. Still smarting from the loss of Tsushima and the Sino-Russian War as a whole, the Admiralty were keen to reset the balance in Europe and North Asia to better suit them. Aware that the Japanese had a class of Armoured Cruiser that bordered on being pocket battlecruiser nearing completion and another on the way, they were keen to establish dominance early. In addition to their new rival, old rival Turkey was considering proposals from both Vickers and Armstrong to build a small flotilla of Battleships, ranging from coastal battleships up to 23,000t 13.5” armed super dreadnoughts. Wary of these developments on two fronts, the Chesma Class was ordered in a pair to serve in the Black Sea to establish hegemony in the region.

Intelligence reports suggested that the Invincible class was armoured with a 6” belt resulted in some concern that the only way was up, the designers considering a belt bracket of 175-250mm but with funding from the Duma, it was decided a 200mm belt was an appropriate thickness provided it was of good quality steel. Losses at Tsushima had been a sobering experience for the whole Russian naval establishment and every ship designed since was subject to lessons learnt. The Chesma class was to be no different, with significant underwater subdivision and the hull-form being only slightly tumble home. In addition to this, the store for ready use ammunition was reduced and counter-flooding compartments were made available in the design. Built to be as close to Gangut as possible, this was to both to make it hard to discern which class it was at a distance and the more economical sense of being cheaper to build, however being Russian that was never going to be the case.

Two ships were allocated out of the funding, four had been hoped for from the Admiralty but the Duma had been reluctant to even authorise the two. Chesma ( Чесма ) and Cahul ( Кагуле ) were to be built in St Petersberg but were postponed temporarily at first to make space and funds for the Gangut class and then indefinitely. Months wore to years and newer ships swanning about the worlds seas meant that the Chesma was old-hat before she’d even see the water in addition to social unrest which was delaying other matters let alone the ships. Cancelled in 1913 definitely, had the ships been built they would have served as a powerful opposition to the ex-SMS Goeben in the Black Sea or help to swing the balance back towards Russia in the Baltic

Armed with three triple 305 mm/52 (12") Pattern 1907 turrets, it was a considerable broadside firing from A, R and Y positions, a minimum of 3 guns , maximum of 9 could be brought into bear. Secondary batteries were scaled back due to bad experiences in the past with Russian capital ships, having flooded casemates during turns or in even a slight sea. She fielded the excellent 120mm in two pairs of casemates aft of Y turret and two pairs above the main deck between A and R. Consideration was given to fitting another 8 more mounts but was omitted due to worries about restricting the main battery’s firing arcs and having thinner sections in the upper belt. The tertiary battery though was extensive, boasting sixteen 47mm guns mounted around the ship and on top of the main battery as light vessel defense. in addition to this, there were four 18" (456 mm) Model 1907 torpedo tubes mounted in single broadside underwater tunes below the water just out side of the main belt. This was a later addition to the design that was seen to undermine the ends of the Citadel and was considered for removal from the final design to save weight and remove the risk of having an magazine outside of the belt.

Machinery was uniquely powerful, 16 Parsons style turbines were installed to give a value of 80,000ihp at full power, moving the ship at a designed speed of 27.8 knots. Carrying up to 3000t of coal, the ships could steam for 6000nm at 12 knots. But they weren’t stocked greatly for endurance in terms of food stores and water, considering they were to be used on the Black Sea. The machinery was to be sourced from the United Kingdom.

Had they been built they would have been individually, in good hands, more than a match for the ex-Goeben of the Turkish navy. As a pair they would have been a significant fleet in being alone, able to hinder any planning in the Black Sea from foreign powers.

[ img ]
Quote:
Chesma, Russia Battlecruiser laid down 1910

Displacement:
17,208 t light; 18,323 t standard; 19,997 t normal; 21,336 t full load

Dimensions: Length (overall / waterline) x beam x draught (normal/deep)
(573.68 ft / 570.00 ft) x 81.50 ft x (27.00 / 28.43 ft)
(174.86 m / 173.74 m) x 24.84 m x (8.23 / 8.67 m)

Armament:
9 - 12.01" / 305 mm 52.0 cal guns - 924.41lbs / 419.31kg shells, 140 per gun
Breech loading guns in turret on barbette mounts, 1910 Model
3 x Triple mounts on centreline, evenly spread
Aft Main mounts separated by engine room
8 - 4.72" / 120 mm 50.0 cal guns - 55.82lbs / 25.32kg shells, 250 per gun
Breech loading guns in casemate mounts, 1910 Model
8 x Single mounts on sides amidships
4 raised mounts
12 - 1.85" / 47.0 mm 45.0 cal guns - 3.19lbs / 1.45kg shells, 300 per gun
Muzzle loading guns in deck mounts, 1910 Model
12 x Single mounts on sides amidships
8 raised mounts
Weight of broadside 8,805 lbs / 3,994 kg
4 - 18.0" / 456 mm, 17.06 ft / 5.20 m torpedoes - 0.817 t each, 3.270 t total
In 4 sets of submerged side tubes

Armour:
- Belts: Width (max) Length (avg) Height (avg)
Main: 7.87" / 200 mm 370.00 ft / 112.78 m 16.40 ft / 5.00 m
Ends: 1.97" / 50 mm 200.00 ft / 60.96 m 8.20 ft / 2.50 m
Upper: 3.94" / 100 mm 350.00 ft / 106.68 m 6.56 ft / 2.00 m
Main Belt covers 100 % of normal length
Main belt does not fully cover magazines and engineering spaces

- Torpedo Bulkhead:
1.57" / 40 mm 367.45 ft / 112.00 m 26.25 ft / 8.00 m

- Gun armour: Face (max) Other gunhouse (avg) Barbette/hoist (max)
Main: 7.87" / 200 mm 2.95" / 75 mm 4.92" / 125 mm
2nd: 3.94" / 100 mm - -
3rd: 0.02" / 1 mm - -

- Box over machinery & magazines: 2.95" / 75 mm
Forecastle: 0.39" / 10 mm Quarter deck: 0.79" / 20 mm

- Conning towers: Forward 7.87" / 200 mm, Aft 0.00" / 0 mm

Machinery:
Coal fired boilers, steam turbines,
Hydraulic drive, 4 shafts, 80,000 shp / 59,680 Kw = 27.77 kts
Range 6,000nm at 12.10 kts
Bunker at max displacement = 3,013 tons (100% coal)

Complement:
840 - 1,093

Cost:
£2.035 million / $8.139 million

Distribution of weights at normal displacement:
Armament: 1,795 tons, 9.0 %
- Guns: 1,792 tons, 9.0 %
- Torpedoes: 3 tons, 0.0 %
Armour: 5,159 tons, 25.8 %
- Belts: 2,566 tons, 12.8 %
- Torpedo bulkhead: 562 tons, 2.8 %
- Armament: 517 tons, 2.6 %
- Armour Deck: 1,389 tons, 6.9 %
- Conning Tower: 125 tons, 0.6 %
Machinery: 3,636 tons, 18.2 %
Hull, fittings & equipment: 6,617 tons, 33.1 %
Fuel, ammunition & stores: 2,789 tons, 13.9 %
Miscellaneous weights: 0 tons, 0.0 %

Overall survivability and seakeeping ability:
Survivability (Non-critical penetrating hits needed to sink ship):
20,038 lbs / 9,089 Kg = 23.1 x 12.0 " / 305 mm shells or 2.8 torpedoes
Stability (Unstable if below 1.00): 1.28
Metacentric height 5.7 ft / 1.7 m
Roll period: 14.3 seconds
Steadiness - As gun platform (Average = 50 %): 56 %
- Recoil effect (Restricted arc if above 1.00): 0.54
Seaboat quality (Average = 1.00): 1.11

Hull form characteristics:
Hull has raised forecastle, rise aft of midbreak,
a ram bow and a cruiser stern
Block coefficient (normal/deep): 0.558 / 0.565
Length to Beam Ratio: 6.99 : 1
'Natural speed' for length: 23.87 kts
Power going to wave formation at top speed: 57 %
Trim (Max stability = 0, Max steadiness = 100): 50
Bow angle (Positive = bow angles forward): 7.00 degrees
Stern overhang: -4.00 ft / -1.22 m
Freeboard (% = length of deck as a percentage of waterline length):
Fore end, Aft end
- Forecastle: 35.50 %, 30.00 ft / 9.14 m, 25.00 ft / 7.62 m
- Forward deck: 0.00 %, 0.00 ft / 0.00 m, 0.00 ft / 0.00 m
- Aft deck: 49.50 %, 18.00 ft / 5.49 m, 18.00 ft / 5.49 m
- Quarter deck: 15.00 %, 18.00 ft / 5.49 m, 19.00 ft / 5.79 m
- Average freeboard: 21.27 ft / 6.48 m

Ship space, strength and comments:
Space - Hull below water (magazines/engines, low = better): 134.9 %
- Above water (accommodation/working, high = better): 133.3 %
Waterplane Area: 32,665 Square feet or 3,035 Square metres
Displacement factor (Displacement / loading): 94 %
Structure weight / hull surface area: 150 lbs/sq ft or 733 Kg/sq metre
Hull strength (Relative):
- Cross-sectional: 0.93
- Longitudinal: 1.81
- Overall: 1.00
Hull space for machinery, storage, compartmentation is cramped
Room for accommodation and workspaces is excellent

Belt armour length *does* cover magazines in the design as shown.
Author:  Kiwi Imperialist [ September 3rd, 2020, 1:36 am ]
Post subject:  Re: First World War Battlecruiser Challenge
denodon wrote: *August 30th, 2020, 4:45 am
G'day all,

Finally decided to try and finish another challenge entry so here we go. I wasn't sure if we had to depict the ships as in service during WW1 or if we could depict them prior to the war but them being vessels that served unchanged into it (aside from the paint scheme of course).
I have additional versions including 1913 pale grey which she service in WW1 as, along with her sister ship, on my personal website HERE.

[ img ]
Your peacetime scheme looks outstanding Denodon. Unfortunately, each submission should show a battlecruiser as it would have appeared on a date between 28 July 1914 and 11 November 1918. This includes the paint scheme applied to the ship. I apologise for creating the ambiguity which you discuss in your post. In order to make your submission compliant with the rules, there are a couple options available. You could submit a drawing of the Chioggia class in the wartime pale grey scheme, which is still quite stunning. Alternatively, you could modify the backstory so the peacetime scheme is retained until the declaration of war. Please, do whatever you think is best.
Author:  morgansshipyard [ September 4th, 2020, 12:09 am ]
Post subject:  Re: First World War Battlecruiser Challenge
FNS Charlemagne, 1914
[ img ]
The lead ship of the Charlemagne-class battlecruisers was laid down 1912 and commissioned in December of 1914. Charlemagne reflected a shift in the purpose of French battlecruisers from their traditional cruiser-hunting role to a battlefleet support-and-scout mission. Originally, the vessel was intended to be armed with 4x3 340mm guns, but political considerations (as to not fall behind the British, who were building the Queen Elizabeth and Revenge-class battleships) dictated that her main battery be replaced with 4x2 381mm guns. Charlemagne was immediately assigned to the First Battlecruiser Squadron upon commissioning, and saw her first action against the High Seas Fleet in the Battle of Southwold, where a combined British-French battlecruiser force fought a German flotilla attempting to bombard the small town. The resulting skirmish saw Charlemagne slightly damaged by the main batteries of Derfflinger and Seydlitz, although the latter had her two midships turrets and bow turret burnt out by combined fire from Lion, Charlemagne and Princess Royal. Her next major action was the Battle of Jutland, and like the rest of the French detachment in that battle accidentally ran on the entire head of the High Seas Fleet while pursuing the battlecruisers. The devastating impact of her 381mm guns broke the back of the cruiser Rostock and caused damage to the battleships Kaiser and Kronprinz, damaging the latter so badly her commander feared she would sink before she made port (ultimately Kronprinz survived, but would spend over six months in the dockyard before she could put to sea again). However, Charlemagne did not get off scot-free. German shells tore her aft superstructure apart and caused severe flooding in her stern, with a torpedo hit destroying her starboard torpedo launchers. After Jutland, Charlemagne would not see action until the Zeebrugge skirmish, which saw her and her sister Le Roi Soleil engage the pre-dreadnought Prussen, a minelayer and two torpedo boats. Prussen was sunk by repeated 381mm hits, and the other vessels were destroyed by the 138mm secondary guns of the two ships. Neither ship was damaged, although both were nearly hit by the heavy guns at Knokke. Champagne, Le Roi Soleil and Francis I were all present for the surrender of the High Seas Fleet at Scapa Flow. Postwar, their careers stretched over three decades, but that is not covered here.

SPECIFICATIONS:
Displacement: 28,813 tons standard; 30,421 tons full load

Dimensions: Length overall / water x beam x draught
714.47 ft / 702.00 ft x 84.00 ft x 32.00 ft (normal load)
217.77 m / 213.97 m x 25.60 m x 9.75 m
Armament:
8 - 15.00" / 381 mm guns
18 - 5.46" / 139 mm guns
Armor:
- Belts: Width (max) Length (avg) Height (avg)
Main: 10.0" / 254 mm 422.50 ft / 128.78 m 16.00 ft / 4.88 m
Ends: 4.00" / 102 mm 265.00 ft / 80.77 m 11.00 ft / 3.35 m
- Torpedo Bulkhead:
3.00" / 76 mm 422.50 ft / 128.78 m 28.00 ft / 8.53 m
- Gun armour: Face (max) Other gunhouse (avg) Barbette/hoist (max)
Main: 10.0" / 254 mm 8.00" / 203 mm 10.0" / 254 mm
2nd: 6.00" / 152 mm
- Armor deck: 4.00" / 102 mm, Conning tower: 10.00" / 254 mm
Machinery:
Oil fired boilers, steam turbines,
Geared drive, 4 shafts, 71,267 shp / 53,165 Kw = 26.00 kts
Range 5,500nm at 10.00 kts
Bunker at max displacement = 1,609 tons
Complement:
1,130 - 1,470
Page 1 of 4 All times are UTC
Powered by phpBB® Forum Software © phpBB Limited
https://www.phpbb.com/