The ''Velasco'' class of

unprotected cruiser An unprotected cruiser was a type of naval warship in use during the early 1870s Victorian or pre-dreadnought era (about 1880 to 1905). The name was meant to distinguish these ships from “protected cruisers”, which had become accepted in ...

s was a series of eight cruisers built during the 1880s for service with the

Spanish Navy The Spanish Navy or officially, the Armada, is the maritime branch of the Spanish Armed Forces and one of the oldest active naval forces in the world. The Spanish Navy was responsible for a number of major historic achievements in navigation, ...

. They were named after

Luis Vicente de Velasco Luis Vicente de Velasco e Isla (9 February 1711 - 31 July 1762) was a Spanish officer and naval commander in the Royal Spanish Navy. He is known for his valiant defense during the Siege of Havana in 1762, during which he was killed in action. ...

Description

The ''Velasco'' class consisted of two slightly different subclasses. The first two ships, ''Velasco'' and ''Gravina'', built by the Thames Ironworks & Shipbuilding & Engineering Co. Ltd. at

Leamouth Leamouth is a locality in the Blackwall area of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. The area takes its name from the former ''Leamouth Wharf'' and lies on the west side of the confluence of the Bow Creek stretch of the Lea, at its confluence ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, had fewer but heavier guns and were slightly faster than the next six, which were built at various yards in

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. The class took a long time to complete, with the two British-build ships being laid down in 1881 and the last Spanish built one not being completed until 1889. The ships had one rather tall funnel, an iron hull, and

barque A barque, barc, or bark is a type of sailing vessel with three or more masts having the fore- and mainmasts rigged square and only the mizzen (the aftmost mast) rigged fore and aft. Sometimes, the mizzen is only partly fore-and-aft rigged, b ...

rigging. They were unarmored.

History

The ''Velasco''-class cruisers generally were assigned to colonial service. They were an ill-fated class, with two lost at sea and three more sunk during the

Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (cloc ...

. The three survivors lasted into the early 20th century, with the last one stricken in 1927.

Ships in class

''Velasco''

Completed in 1881, ''Velasco'' was in the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

at the outbreak of the

in April 1898 and was sunk in the

Battle of Manila Bay The Battle of Manila Bay ( fil, Labanan sa Look ng Maynila; es, Batalla de Bahía de Manila), also known as the Battle of Cavite, took place on 1 May 1898, during the Spanish–American War. The American Asiatic Squadron under Commodore ...

on 1 May 1898.

''Gravina''

Completed in 1881, ''Gravina'' was sent to the Philippines, where she sank in a

typhoon A typhoon is a mature tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere. This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, and is the most active tropical cyclone basin on Earth, accounting for a ...

in 1884.

''Infanta Isabel''

Completed in 1885, ''Infanta Isabel'' was the longest lived of the class, undergoing a reconstruction in 1911 and not being stricken until 1927.

''Isabel II''

Completed in 1887, ''Isabel II'' saw action during the Spanish–American War in the Second and Third Battles of San Juan, and was stricken in 1907.

''Cristóbal Colón''

Completed in 1889, was lost off

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

in October 1895.

''Don Juan de Austria''

Completed in 1887, ''Don Juan de Austria'' was in the

at the outbreak of the Spanish–American War in April 1898 and was sunk in the

on 1 May 1898. Salvaged, repaired and in 1900 commissioned into American Navy.

''Don Antonio de Ulloa''

Completed in 1886, ''Don Antonio de Ulloa'' was in the

at the outbreak of the Spanish–American War in April 1898 and was sunk in the

on 1 May 1898.

''Conde del Venadito''

Completed in 1888, ''Conde del Venadito'' was stricken around 1905

References

*Chesneau, Roger, and Eugene M. Kolesnik, Eds. ''Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905.'' New York, New York: Mayflower Books Inc., 1979. . *Gray, Randal, Ed. ''Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921.'' Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1985. . * Nofi, Albert A. ''The Spanish–American War, 1898''. Conshohocken, Pennsylvania:Combined Books, Inc., 1996. .

External links

The Spanish–American War Centennial Web Site
{{Velasco class cruiser Cruiser classes