HMS ''Bellerophon'' was a central battery ironclad 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 mid-1860s.

Design and description

In this ship, designed by Sir Edward Reed, the power-to-weight ratio was increased; the long rows of guns on the broadside were replaced by a small number of guns, centrally placed, of the largest possible calibre; the armour was increased in thickness but reduced in length, and a sharp beak ram was combined with a classical style plough bow. This double bottom had the added advantage of allowing the engine to be carried higher, raising the centre of gravity of the whole ship and making her thereby a steadier gun platform.Parkes, p. 103 Unlike earlier classes, ''Bellerophons bow and stern had a "U" shaped profile, giving increased buoyancy at the ends noticeably absent in some earlier battleships. ''Bellerophon'' carried the first balanced rudder in Royal Navy service. Full helm could be applied by eight men in about 27 seconds,Parkes, p. 104 whereas in HMS ''Warrior'' it took forty men 90 seconds to perform the same manoeuvre. HMS ''Bellerophon'' was long between perpendiculars. She had a beam of and a maximum draught of .Ballard, p. 241

Propulsion

''Bellerophon'' had one 2-cylinder

trunk steam engine A marine steam engine is a steam engine that is used to power a ship or boat. This article deals mainly with marine steam engines of the reciprocating type, which were in use from the inception of the steamboat in the early 19th century to their ...

made by

John Penn and Sons John Penn and Sons was an English engineering company based in London, and mainly known for its marine steam engines. History Establishment In 1799, engineer and millwright John Penn (born in Taunton, Somerset, 1770; died 6 June 1843) started ...

driving a single propeller. Eight rectangular

boiler A boiler is a closed vessel in which fluid (generally water) is heated. The fluid does not necessarily boil. The heated or vaporized fluid exits the boiler for use in various processes or heating applications, including water heating, centr ...

s provided steam to the engine at a working pressure of . The engine produced a total of during the ship's

sea trial 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 ...

s in August 1864 and the ship had a maximum speed . ''Bellerophon'' carried of coal, enough to steam at .Parkes, p. 102 The ironclad was

ship rig A full-rigged ship or fully rigged ship is a sailing vessel's sail plan with three or more masts, all of them square-rigged. A full-rigged ship is said to have a ship rig or be ship-rigged. Such vessels also have each mast stepped in three s ...

ged and had a sail area of . ''Bellerophon'' was "dull under canvas" and only made under sail in a moderate

gale A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface winds moving at a speed of between 34 and 47 knots (, or ).9-inch rifled muzzle-loading gun. All ten of the guns were mounted on the main deck, five on each side. Five

7-inch In music, a single is a type of release, typically a song recording of fewer tracks than an LP record or an album. One can be released for sale to the public in a variety of formats. In most cases, a single is a song that is released separat ...

rifled muzzle-loaders were mounted outside the battery as chase guns. Four of these were mounted in pairs fore and aft on the main deck; the last gun was mounted on the upper deck at the stern. The ship also had four breech-loading 12-pounder Armstrong guns for use as

saluting guns 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 ...

.Ballard, p. 66 The shell of the 14-

calibre In guns, particularly firearms, caliber (or calibre; sometimes abbreviated as "cal") is the specified nominal internal diameter of the gun barrel bore – regardless of how or where the bore is measured and whether the finished bore match ...

9-inch gun weighed while the gun itself weighed . It had a muzzle velocity of and was credited with the ability to penetrate a nominal of

wrought iron Wrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon content (less than 0.08%) in contrast to that of cast iron (2.1% to 4%). It is a semi-fused mass of iron with fibrous slag inclusions (up to 2% by weight), which give it a wood-like "grain" ...

armour at the muzzle. The 16-calibre gun weighed and fired a shell. It was credited with the nominal ability to penetrate armour. When the ship was refitted in 1881–85, she became the only British ironclad to have her entire muzzle-loading armament replaced by breech-loaders. ''Bellerophon'' received ten BL Mk III guns, mounted in the central battery and four 6-inch (152 mm) guns as chase guns fore and aft. The forward guns were mounted in new embrasures in 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 ...

on the upper deck as the original guns were too low and were usually washed out in a head sea. Eight 4-inch breech-loading guns as well as four quick-firing 6-pounder Hotchkiss and 12 machine guns were fitted for defence against

torpedo boat A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval ship designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs were steam-powered craft dedicated to ramming enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes. Later evolutions launched variants of ...

s. The ship also received two Whitehead

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, s ...

launchers that were carried on the main deck, outside the armoured battery. The new eight-inch guns were some longer than the original nine-inch guns and the central battery proved to be too small for effective use of the guns.

Armour

''Bellerophon'' had a complete

waterline The waterline is the line where the hull of a ship meets the surface of the water. Specifically, it is also the name of a special marking, also known as an international load line, Plimsoll line and water line (positioned amidships), that indi ...

belt Belt may refer to: Apparel * Belt (clothing), a leather or fabric band worn around the waist * Championship belt, a type of trophy used primarily in combat sports * Colored belts, such as a black belt or red belt, worn by martial arts practit ...

that was thick amidships and tapered to thick at the bow and stern. From the height of the main deck, it reached below the

. The central battery were protected by a section of 6-inch armour, long, with transverse bulkheads at each end. The forward chase guns were protected by a

strake On a vessel's hull, a strake is a longitudinal course of planking or plating which runs from the boat's stempost (at the bows) to the sternpost or transom (at the rear). The garboard strakes are the two immediately adjacent to the keel on ea ...

of armour. The upper deck was thick over the battery and the main deck was thick. The armour was backed by of

teak Teak (''Tectona grandis'') is a tropical hardwood tree species in the family Lamiaceae. It is a large, deciduous tree that occurs in mixed hardwood forests. ''Tectona grandis'' has small, fragrant white flowers arranged in dense clusters ( pan ...

and the skin of the ship was thick. The total weight of her armour was .

Construction

For the first time since the construction of , the basic method of construction of an ironclad's hull was altered. The usage of longitudinal girders to impart strength and resistance to the hull was discarded, and a "bracket frame" system devised by

Nathaniel Barnaby Sir Nathaniel Barnaby, (25 February 1829 – 16 June 1915) was Chief Constructor of the Royal Navy from 1872 to 1885. Biography Born on 25 February 1829 in Chatham, Barnaby began his career as a naval apprentice at Sheerness in 1843. He won ...

was adopted. This system allowed for the inclusion into the ship of a double bottom, with clear survival implications if damaged, while at the same time allowing for a saving in weight so that of the hull of ''Bellerophon'' weighed , versus for of . Some steel was used in the hull to save weight. HMS ''Bellerophon'' was ordered on 23 July 1863 from the Royal

Dockyard A shipyard, also called a dockyard or boatyard, is a place where ships are built and repaired. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Dockyards are sometimes more associated with maintenance ...

in Chatham,

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

. She was laid down on 28 December 1863 and launched on 26 April 1865. The ship was commissioned in March 1866 and completed on 11 April 1866.Ballard, p. 240 ''Bellerophon'' cost £356,493.Adjusted for inflation to 20 pounds, £.

Service history

''Bellerophon'' was commissioned at Chatham, and served in the Channel Fleet until 1871. She was struck by in 1868 while leaving

Belfast Lough Belfast Lough is a large, intertidal sea inlet on the east coast of Northern Ireland. At its head is the city and port of Belfast, which sits at the mouth of the River Lagan. The lough opens into the North Channel and connects Belfast to ...

, but only suffered minimal damage. The ship served with the Mediterranean Fleet from 1871 to 1872, and then paid off for refit where she was given a

poop deck In naval architecture, a poop deck is a deck that forms the roof of a cabin built in the rear, or " aft", part of the superstructure of a ship. The name originates from the French word for stern, ''la poupe'', from Latin ''puppis''. Thus ...

. ''Bellerophon'' relieved as flagship on the North America station in 1873. On 24 November 1873, ''Bellerophon'' collided with the Liverpool, Brazil and River Plate Steam Navigation Company's steamship , which sank. All on board ''Flamsteed'' were rescued by the Portuguese ship ''Blimani''. ''Bellerophon'' remained on the North America station until 1881. An extensive refit, including new boilers and new armament was followed by a further period on the North America station until 1892, when she paid off at Plymouth. She was re-commissioned as port guardship at Pembroke until 1903. ''Bellerophon'' was converted into a stokers' training ship in 1904, and renamed HMS ''Indus III''. The ship was sold on 12 December 1922 to P. and W. McLellan for scrap, although she did not arrive in

Bo'ness Borrowstounness (commonly known as Bo'ness ( )) is a town and former burgh and seaport on the south bank of the Firth of Forth in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. Historically part of the county of West Lothian, it is a place within the Fal ...

for breaking-up until March 1923.Ballard, pp. 67–69

Notes

Footnotes

References

* * * * * Reed, E. J.: ''Our Iron-clad Ships'', London 1869
Available at archive.org
*

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bellerophon, HMS, 1865 Battleships of the Royal Navy 1865 ships Victorian-era battleships of the United Kingdom Ships built in Chatham Maritime incidents in November 1873