The ''Acasta'' class (in September 1913 re-designated the K class) was a
class
Class or The Class may refer to:
Common uses not otherwise categorized
* Class (biology), a taxonomic rank
* Class (knowledge representation), a collection of individuals or objects
* Class (philosophy), an analytical concept used differentl ...
of twenty
destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort
larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in ...
s built for the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...
under the Naval Programme of 1911 - 1912 that saw service during
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. They were the last class of Royal Navy destroyers to have mixed names with no systematic theme (see
naming conventions for destroyers of the Royal Navy
In the Royal Navy there have been a variety of naming conventions for destroyers.
Origins
Destroyers were originally developed as a defence against torpedo boats, and the first torpedo boat destroyer (TBD) in the Royal Navy was of 1893. From ...
for more information.) When the class was designated as "K", names beginning with that letter were allocated to the ships but never used.
[No class of ships were designated as J class.][Friedman 2009, p. 129.] The class saw extensive wartime service and seven were lost, including four at the
Battle of Jutland
The Battle of Jutland (german: Skagerrakschlacht, the Battle of the Skagerrak) was a naval battle fought between Britain's Royal Navy Grand Fleet, under Admiral John Jellicoe, 1st Earl Jellicoe, Sir John Jellicoe, and the Imperial German Navy ...
.
Design
The ''Acasta''s were larger and heavier armed than the preceding H and I classes ( and , respectively), displacing about 25% more and with the mixed calibre armament replaced with a uniform fit of
QF 4-inch guns, which the ''Acasta''s introduced. Previous weapons had been of the breech-loading (
BL) type. The 4-in guns were shipped one on the
forecastle
The forecastle ( ; contracted as fo'c'sle or fo'c's'le) is the upper deck of a sailing ship forward of the foremast, or, historically, the forward part of a ship with the sailors' living quarters. Related to the latter meaning is the phrase " be ...
and one at the stern, as in the ''Acheron'' class, while the third was variously sited on the centreline between the two torpedo tubes or abaft both.
[March. ''British Destroyers'', pp. 125, 129, 130.] All ships had three funnels, the foremost being tall and narrow, the second short and wide and the third level with the second but narrower. The foremost torpedo tube was sited between the second and third funnels, a distinctive feature of this class.
There were twelve 'standard' vessels built to a common Admiralty design,
and eight builders' specials that (except for ''Garland'') had a shorter, less beamy hull; five of the latter were from
Thornycroft
Thornycroft was an English vehicle manufacturer which built coaches, buses, and trucks from 1896 until 1977.
History
In 1896, naval engineer John Isaac Thornycroft formed the Thornycroft Steam Carriage and Van Company which built its firs ...
with (one of Thornycroft's ships, , was planned to
diesel
Diesel may refer to:
* Diesel engine, an internal combustion engine where ignition is caused by compression
* Diesel fuel, a liquid fuel used in diesel engines
* Diesel locomotive, a railway locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engin ...
cruising motors, but these were not ready in time and ''Hardy'' was completed with Thornycroft's standard machinery).
[Friedman 2009, pp. 126–129.] One by
Parsons
Parsons may refer to:
Places
In the United States:
* Parsons, Kansas, a city
* Parsons, Missouri, an unincorporated community
* Parsons, Tennessee, a city
* Parsons, West Virginia, a town
* Camp Parsons, a Boy Scout camp in the state of Washingt ...
() had semi-geared turbines
[Friedman 2009, p. 127.] giving a speed of on trials, with a seventh from
Fairfields
Fairfields is a district and civil parish that covers a large new development area on the western flank of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. As the first tier of Local Government, the parish council is responsible for the people who l ...
had a clipper
bow. The eighth 'special' was by
William Denny, Dumbarton, which was built using
longitudinal framing
Longitudinal framing (also called the Isherwood system after British naval architect Sir Joseph Isherwood, who patented it in 1906) is a method of ship construction in which large, widely spaced transverse frames are used in conjunction with l ...
rather than conventional transverse framing. While ''Ardent'' novel construction seems to have been a success, no more destroyers were built for the Royal Navy using longitudinal framing until the
J-class destroyers in the 1930s.
[Brown 2010, pp. 70–71.]
Service
At the outbreak of World War I until mid-1916, the ''Acasta''s were serving in the
Grand Fleet
The Grand Fleet was the main battlefleet of the Royal Navy during the First World War. It was established in August 1914 and disbanded in April 1919. Its main base was Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands.
History
Formed in August 1914 from the ...
as the
4th Destroyer Flotilla
The British 4th Destroyer Flotilla , or Fourth Destroyer Flotilla, was a naval formation of the Royal Navy from August 1909 to July 1951.
History
In 1907 the Home Fleet had a large formation of destroyers called the Home Fleet Flotilla of destr ...
, with as leader. By the time of the
Battle of Jutland
The Battle of Jutland (german: Skagerrakschlacht, the Battle of the Skagerrak) was a naval battle fought between Britain's Royal Navy Grand Fleet, under Admiral John Jellicoe, 1st Earl Jellicoe, Sir John Jellicoe, and the Imperial German Navy ...
the leader was the , with ''Ardent'', ''Fortune'', ''Shark'' and ''Sparrowhawk'' lost in the course of the battle
and ''Acasta'' was so badly damaged that she had to be practically rebuilt. After Jutland the remainder of the flotilla moved to the
Humber
The Humber is a large tidal estuary on the east coast of Northern England. It is formed at Trent Falls, Faxfleet, by the confluence of the tidal rivers Ouse and Trent. From there to the North Sea, it forms part of the boundary between th ...
and then to
Portsmouth
Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council.
Portsmouth is the most dens ...
by the end of 1916, before dispersing, some ships to the
6th Destroyer Flotilla
The British 6th Destroyer Flotilla, or Sixth Destroyer Flotilla, was a military formation of the Royal Navy from 1911 to 1939 and again from 1947 to 1951
History
The flotilla was formed in 1911 at Portsmouth, with its first commander, Captain Mo ...
and the
Dover Patrol
The Dover Patrol and later known as the Dover Patrol Force was a Royal Navy command of the First World War, notable for its involvement in the Zeebrugge Raid on 22 April 1918. The Dover Patrol formed a discrete unit of the Royal Navy based at Dove ...
and the remainder to
Devonport. All survivors of the war were sold out of service for scrapping by 1921.
Ships
Admiralty K class
K-class Builders' specials
File:HMS Acasta, Acasta-class destroyer - IWM Q 75130.jpg, HMS ''Acasta''
File:HMS Ambuscade.jpg, HMS ''Ambuscade''
File:HMS Ardent (1913).jpg, HMS ''Ardent''
File:HMS Contest.jpg, HMS ''Contest''
File:HMS Hardy (1913).jpg, HMS ''Hardy'' at speed
File:HMS Midge, Acasta-class destroyer - IWM Q 75123.jpg, HMS ''Midge''
File:HMSSpitfireJutlanddamage.jpg, HMS ''Spitfire'' showing damage sustained at Jutland
File:HMS Unity, Acasta-class destroyer - IWM Q 75117.jpg, HMS ''Unity''
File:HMS Victor, Acasta-class destroyer. - IWM Q 75116.jpg, ''Victor''
Notes
References
Bibliography
* Brown, David K., ''The Grand Fleet: Warship Design and Development 1906–1922''. Barnsley, UK: Seaforth Publishing, 2010. .
* Maurice Cocker, ''Destroyers of the Royal Navy, 1893-1981'', 1983, Ian Allan
* Friedman, Norman, ''British Destroyers: From Earliest Days to the Second World War'', Barnsley, UK: Seaforth Publishing, 2009. .
External links
{{WWI British ships
Destroyer classes
Ship classes of the Royal Navy
World War I destroyers of the United Kingdom