The ''Astraea'' class was an eight ship class of

protected cruiser 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 re ...

s built for the

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during the 1890s. The ships served on a number of foreign stations during their careers, particularly in the waters of the

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

and

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contin ...

s, and around the Cape of Good Hope. Already obsolete by the outbreak of the

First World War 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 ...

, most continued to see service in a variety of roles, though rarely in a front line capacity. By the end of the war the majority were being used as

training Training is teaching, or developing in oneself or others, any skills and knowledge or fitness that relate to specific useful competencies. Training has specific goals of improving one's capability, capacity, productivity and performance. I ...

depot ship A depot ship is an auxiliary ship used as a mobile or fixed base for submarines, destroyers, minesweepers, fast attack craft, landing craft, or other small ships with similarly limited space for maintenance equipment and crew dining, berthing and ...

s, and they were soon sold out of the service and scrapped. However, one ship, , was bought by

the Marine Society The Marine Society is a British charity, the world's first established for seafarers. In 1756, at the beginning of the Seven Years' War against France, Austria, and Saxony (and subsequently the Mughal Empire, Spain, Russia and Sweden) Britain ur ...

and used as a training ship until 1940.

Design and construction

Astraea class cruiser diagram Brasseys 1897

The eight ships were ordered under the provisions of the 1889 Naval Defence Act as an improved design of the precedings. They were to displace 1000 tons more than the ''Apollo''s, and were to have improved sea-keeping abilities, and heavier and better placed armament. The result was a design with a full length deck that gave a higher

freeboard In sailing and boating, a vessel's freeboard is the distance from the waterline to the upper deck level, measured at the lowest point of sheer where water can enter the boat or ship. In commercial vessels, the latter criterion measured relativ ...

amidships This glossary of nautical terms is an alphabetical listing of terms and expressions connected with ships, shipping, seamanship and navigation on water (mostly though not necessarily on the sea). Some remain current, while many date from the 17th ...

, and placed the main armament higher on the superstructure. Though this made them drier ships, the design was criticised for being a larger and more expensive development of the ''Apollo''s, but without offering any substantial increase in armament, speed or endurance. The increased weight did however make them more

seaworthy Seakeeping ability or seaworthiness is a measure of how well-suited a watercraft is to conditions when underway. A ship or boat which has good seakeeping ability is said to be very seaworthy and is able to operate effectively even in high sea stat ...

, and the design provided the basis for the development of future protected cruisers. The ships were built at several of the principal navy dockyards: three at Devonport, two at Pembroke, and one each at Sheerness,

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and

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Service

All eight ships spent at least some time on foreign stations, particularly in the Indian and Pacific Oceans, and despite their obsolescence, all but went on to see service in a variety of roles during the First World War. was the first ship to be launched, in late 1892. She served on the

Pacific Station The Pacific Station was created in 1837 as one of the geographical military formations into which the Royal Navy divided its worldwide responsibilities. The South America Station was split into the Pacific Station and the South East Coast of ...

during the early part of her career, but was converted into a submarine

in 1907. She spent the First World War serving in this role, and was sold for scrapping in 1920. The nameship of the class, , was the third of the class to be launched, on 17 March 1893, behind ''Bonaventure'' and . ''Astraea'' served on the

China Station The Commander-in-Chief, China was the admiral in command of what was usually known as the China Station, at once both a British Royal Navy naval formation and its admiral in command. It was created in 1865 and deactivated in 1941. From 1831 to 18 ...

and in the Indian Ocean, before joining 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 F ...

at the Nore in 1912. She moved to the Cape of Good Hope and West African Station in 1913, and spent the war there, bombarding Dar es Salaam and taking part in the blockade of . She was

paid off Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to placing a warship in ...

after the war and was sold in 1920. ''Cambrian'' served on the

Australia Station The Australia Station was the British, and later Australian, naval command responsible for the waters around the Australian continent.Dennis et al. 2008, p.53. Australia Station was under the command of the Commander-in-Chief, Australia Station, ...

and in the Indian Ocean, before returning to Britain in 1913 to be paid off and put up for sale. The outbreak of the First World War led to the navy retaining her and commissioning her as a stoker's

training ship A training ship is a ship used to train students as sailors. The term is mostly used to describe ships employed by navies to train future officers. Essentially there are two types: those used for training at sea and old hulks used to house class ...

named ''Harlech'' in 1916. She was renamed ''Vivid'' in 1921 and was sold in 1923. HMS Fox

''Charybdis'' spent most of her career in British waters, with occasional voyages to the Indian Ocean and Far East commands. She became part of the

12th Cruiser Squadron The 12th Cruiser Squadron also known as Cruiser Force G was a formation of cruisers of the British Royal Navy from 1914 to 1915 and then again from 1939 to 1943. History First formation The squadron was first formed 1 August 1914 and was initia ...

on the outbreak of war, but was damaged in a collision in 1915 and was laid up at

Bermuda ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = National song , song = "Hail to Bermuda" , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , mapsize2 = , map_caption2 = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = , es ...

. Used for harbour service from 1917 she was converted to a mercantile vessel and loaned to a shipping firm in 1918. She was returned to the navy in 1920, sold in 1922 and broken up the following year. also served in China and India, and was on the sale list on the outbreak of war. Retained for use as a depot ship, she was renamed ''Indus II'' in 1915 and was sold in 1922. served on the Cape and West African station, until being laid up and finally sold in 1914, the first of the class to leave service. served in British and East Indian waters in the pre-war period. She was particularly active off the East African and Egyptian coasts during the war, and was paid off and sold in 1920. HMS ''Hermione'' was the longest-lived of the class. Serving alternately in British waters and at the Cape, she was in reserve by the outbreak of war. She briefly became a

guard ship A guard ship is a warship assigned as a stationary guard in a port or harbour, as opposed to a coastal patrol boat, which serves its protective role at sea. Royal Navy In the Royal Navy of the eighteenth century, peacetime guard ships were usual ...

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, but by 1916 she was serving as the headquarters for coastal motor launches and motor torpedo boats. Paid off in 1919 she was sold to

in 1922 and was renamed ''Warspite''. She was finally broken up in 1940.

Design and construction

Service

Ships

Notes

References

External links