HMS ''Imperieuse'' was the

lead ship The lead ship, name ship, or class leader is the first of a series or class of ships all constructed according to the same general design. The term is applicable to naval ships and large civilian vessels. Large ships are very complex and may ...

of her class of two armoured cruisers 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 1880s. She was sold for scrap in 1913.

Design and description

The ''Imperieuse''-class ships were designed as enlarged and improved versions of the to counter the threat of enemy armoured ships encountered abroad. The ships had a

length between perpendiculars Length between perpendiculars (often abbreviated as p/p, p.p., pp, LPP, LBP or Length BPP) is the length of a ship along the summer load line from the forward surface of the stem, or main bow perpendicular member, to the after surface of the ster ...

of , a

beam Beam may refer to: Streams of particles or energy *Light beam, or beam of light, a directional projection of light energy **Laser beam *Particle beam, a stream of charged or neutral particles **Charged particle beam, a spatially localized grou ...

of and a deep draught of . The ships were designed to displace , but displaced as built, an increase of over .Lyon & Winfield, p. 268 The steel-hulled ships were fitted with a

ram Ram, ram, or RAM may refer to: Animals * A male sheep * Ram cichlid, a freshwater tropical fish People * Ram (given name) * Ram (surname) * Ram (director) (Ramsubramaniam), an Indian Tamil film director * RAM (musician) (born 1974), Dutch * ...

and their hulls were sheathed in

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 ...

which was covered in copper to reduce

biofouling Biofouling or biological fouling is the accumulation of microorganisms, plants, algae, or small animals where it is not wanted on surfaces such as ship and submarine hulls, devices such as water inlets, pipework, grates, ponds, and rivers that ...

. Their crew numbered approximately 555 officers and other ranks.Parkes, p. 239 The ship had two 3-cylinder, inverted compound steam engines, each driving a single propeller, using steam provided by a dozen oval and cylindrical boilers. The engines produced used forced draught and ''Imperieuse'' reached on her

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. The ''Imperieuse''-class ships carried a maximum of of coal which gave them an economical range of at a speed of . The ship was initially brig-rigged with two masts, but these were replaced by a single

military mast __NOTOC__ M ...

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 ...

shortly after completion as she proved to have very poor sailing qualities during her trials and to reduce weight by .

Construction and career

''Imperieuse'' 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 ...

Portsmouth Royal Dockyard His Majesty's Naval Base, Portsmouth (HMNB Portsmouth) is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy (the others being HMNB Clyde and HMNB Devonport). Portsmouth Naval Base is part of the city of Portsmouth; it is l ...

on 10 August 1881, launched on 18 December 1883, and completed in September 1886. She was the flagship of 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 ...

from 1889 to 1894 and 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 ...

from 1896 to 1899. She underwent extensive repairs at

Chatham Chatham may refer to: Places and jurisdictions Canada * Chatham Islands (British Columbia) * Chatham Sound, British Columbia * Chatham, New Brunswick, a former town, now a neighbourhood of Miramichi * Chatham (electoral district), New Brunswic ...

in early 1900. HMS Imperieuse in Burrard Inlet

''Imperieuse'' was renamed ''Sapphire II'' in February 1905 and reclassified as a depot ship for destroyers at

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

. Her name was reverted to ''Imperieuse'' in June 1909. She was sold on 24 September 1913 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 Morecambe for breaking up.

Notes

References

* * * * *

External links

* http://www.battleships-cruisers.co.uk/hms_imperieuse.htm {{DEFAULTSORT:Imperieuse Imperieuse-class cruisers Ships built in Portsmouth 1883 ships Victorian-era cruisers of the United Kingdom