HMS ''Southampton'' was a
light cruiser
A light cruiser is a type of small or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck. Prior to th ...
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 ...
in the 1910s. She was a member of the ''Chatham''
sub-class of the ''Town'' class. The ship survived 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 ...
and was sold for
scrap in 1926.
Design and description
The ''Chatham'' sub-class were slightly larger and improved versions of the preceding ''Weymouth'' sub-class.
[Gardiner & Gray, p. 53] They were
long overall
__NOTOC__
Length overall (LOA, o/a, o.a. or oa) is the maximum length of a vessel's hull measured parallel to the waterline. This length is important while docking the ship. It is the most commonly used way of expressing the size of a ship, an ...
, with a
beam of and a
draught of .
Displacement
Displacement may refer to:
Physical sciences
Mathematics and Physics
* Displacement (geometry), is the difference between the final and initial position of a point trajectory (for instance, the center of mass of a moving object). The actual path ...
was normal
[Friedman, p. 384] and at full load. Twelve
Yarrow boiler
Yarrow boilers are an important class of high-pressure water-tube boilers. They were developed by
Yarrow & Co. (London), Shipbuilders and Engineers and were widely used on ships, particularly warships.
The Yarrow boiler design is characteristic ...
s fed ''Southampton''s
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 ...
steam turbines,
driving two
propeller shaft
A drive shaft, driveshaft, driving shaft, tailshaft (Australian English), propeller shaft (prop shaft), or Cardan shaft (after Girolamo Cardano) is a component for transmitting mechanical power and torque and rotation, usually used to connect ...
s, that were rated at for a design speed of . The ship reached during her
sea trials
A sea trial is the testing phase of a watercraft (including boats, ships, and submarines). It is also referred to as a "shakedown cruise" by many naval personnel. It is usually the last phase of construction and takes place on open water, and i ...
from . The boilers used both
fuel oil and coal, with of coal and tons of oil carried, which gave a range of at .
The main armament of the ''Chatham''s was eight
BL 6-inch Mk XI naval guns. Two of these guns were mounted on the centreline fore and aft of the
superstructure and two more were mounted 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 ...
deck abreast the
bridge
A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...
. The remaining four guns
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 ...
were raised to the extended forecastle deck, which meant that they could be worked in all weathers. All these guns were fitted with
gun shields.
Four
Vickers 3-pounder (47 mm) saluting gun
A salute is usually a formal hand gesture or other action used to display respect in military situations. Salutes are primarily associated with the military and law enforcement, but many civilian organizations, such as Girl Guides, Boy Sco ...
s were also fitted. Their armament was completed by two submerged
21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes
A torpedo tube is a cylindrical device for launching torpedoes.
There are two main types of torpedo tube: underwater tubes fitted to submarines and some surface ships, and deck-mounted units (also referred to as torpedo launchers) installed abo ...
.
Construction and career
''Southampton'' was
laid down
Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship.
Keel laying is one o ...
on 6 April 1911 by
John Brown & Company
John Brown and Company of Clydebank was a Scottish marine engineering and shipbuilding firm. It built many notable and world-famous ships including , , , , , and the ''Queen Elizabeth 2''.
At its height, from 1900 to the 1950s, it was one of ...
at their
Clydebank shipyard and
launched on 16 May 1912. Upon completion in November, the ship was assigned to the
1st Battle Squadron
The 1st Battle Squadron was a naval squadron of the British Royal Navy consisting of battleships. The 1st Battle Squadron was initially part of the Royal Navy's Grand Fleet. After World War I the Grand Fleet was reverted to its original name, ...
and she became
flagship of the
1st Light Cruiser Squadron
The 1st Light Cruiser Squadron was a naval unit of the Royal Navy from 1913 to 1924.
History
The 1st Light Cruiser Squadron was a Royal Navy unit of the Grand Fleet during World War I. Four of its ships ('' Inconstant'', '' Galatea'', '' Cordeli ...
in July 1913.
The ship had an extremely active wartime career. ''Southampton'' participated in the
Battle of Heligoland Bight, and later in the
Battle of Dogger Bank in early 1915. In May 1916, ''Southampton'' fought in the
Battle of Jutland as flagship of
2nd Light Cruiser Squadron where she torpedoed the German light cruiser , which subsequently sank. In 1917, she was transferred to the
8th Light Cruiser Squadron with whom she remained for the rest of the war.
''Southampton'' was sold for scrapping on 13 July 1926 to
Thos. W. Ward
Thos. W. Ward Ltd was a Sheffield, Yorkshire, steel, engineering and cement business, which began as coal and coke merchants. It expanded into recycling metal for Sheffield's steel industry, and then the supply and manufacture of machinery.
I ...
, of
Pembroke Dock.
[Lyon, Part 3, p. 51]
Notes
Bibliography
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External links
Ships of the Chatham groupA North Sea Diary 1914–1918Account by
Stephen King-Hall, an officer who served on her through the war.
Battle of Jutland Crew Lists Project - HMS Southampton Crew List
{{DEFAULTSORT:Southampton (1912)
Town-class cruisers (1910) of the Royal Navy
Ships built in Barrow-in-Furness
1912 ships
World War I cruisers of the United Kingdom