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HMS Royal Oak (1892)
Encyclopedia
HMS Royal Oak was a pre-dreadnought Royal Navy
battleship
of the seven-ship Royal Sovereign
class.
at Birkenhead
at a cost of £977,996. She was launched on 5 November 1892. She arrived at Portsmouth on 29 October 1893 for fitting out for trials and completed trials in June 1894.
Royal Oak was the only ship of the Royal Sovereign class not fitted with steam pipes abaft her funnels. She displaced 14,150 tons and was 380 feet (115.8 m)long with a beam of 75 feet (22.9 m) and a draught of 27 feet 6 inches (8.4 m). She produced 13000 hp and could make 18.2 knots (35.7 km/h). She carried a complement of over seven hundred.
At the time of their completion, she and her sisters were perhaps the best all round battleships in the world. Their greater freeboard enhanced their seagoing capabilities, enabling them to engage the enemy in rougher seas than previous designs, an important consideration in the North Sea
and North Atlantic; however, they tended to roll heavily in certain conditions, and after HMS Resolution
rolled badly in heavy seas in 1893 they were nicknamed the "Rolling Ressies," which stuck even though the problem was quickly corrected by the fitting of bilge keel
s. The ships were also faster and better armoured than their predecessors and carried a potent secondary armament but these features inevitably increased their weight, with previous battleships seldom topping 10,000 tonnes. [2]
Her main armament consisted of four 13.5-inch (343-mm) guns in two barbettes with a secondary set of ten 6-inch (152-mm) guns. She also sported an array of smaller guns and seven 18-inch (457-mm) torpedo tubes. She had a partial belt of 18-inch- (457-mm-) thick steel.
. When the squadron disbanded on 25 November 1896, she was reduced to Fleet Reserve at Portsmouth.
She recommissioned at Portsmouth on 9 March 1897 for service in the Mediterranean Fleet
, where she was to relieve battleship HMS Collingwood
. She departed Portsmouth on 24 March 1897, and arrived at Malta
on 5 April 1897. On 31 March 1899, she recommissioned at Malta for further Mediterranean Fleet service. On 7 June 1902, Royal Oak paid off and was relieved by battleship HMS Bulwark
.
Royal Oak departed the Mediterranean, arriving at Portsmouth on 6 June 1902. She soon moved to Chatham
for a refit.
On 16 February 1903, Royal Oak commissioned at Portsmouth for service in the Home Fleet. She relieved battleship HMS Nile
and received Nile's nucleus crew. In the summer of 1903, she participated in combined exercises in the Atlantic involving the Home Fleet, Channel Fleet
, Mediterranean Fleet
, and Cruiser Squadron.
In April 1904, while operating with the Home Fleet off the Scilly Isles, Royal Oak and her sister ship HMS Revenge
struck a sunken wreck and suffered bottom damage. On 9 May 1904, Royal Oak became flagship
of the Home Fleet's second-in-command, relieving her sister ship HMS Empress of India
in that role. Royal Oak took part in annual maneuvers in July and August 1904.
On 7 March 1905, Royal Oak paid off at Portsmouth into the Chatham Reserve, and her crew transferred to battleship HMS Caesar
. On 8 March 1905, Royal Oak recommissioned with a nucleus crew for service in the Sheerness-Chatham Division of the Fleet in Commission in Reserve at Home. While she was under refit at Chatham, an explosion on board Royal Oak killed one workman and injured three others on 11 May 1905.
In July 1905, Royal Oak participated in Reserve Fleet manoeuvres. These completed, she transferred her crew to battleship HMS Ocean
, then recommissioned with a new nucleus crew to serve as an emergency reserve ship at Chatham.
As a unit of the First Division of the Blue Fleet, Royal Oak took part in annual maneuvers off the coast of Portugal and in the eastern Atlantic from 12 June 1906 to 2 July 1906. On 1 January 1907, she recommissioned in reserve at Devonport
with a nucleus crew.
In April 1909 Royal Oak and the other reserve ships with nucleus crews at Devonport were formed into the 4th Division of the Home Fleet. In June 1911 she relieved her sister ship HMS Ramillies
as Parent Ship of the division, and was in turn relieved of this duty by her sister ship HMS Empress of India
in November 1911.
Impressive as they were upon their completion, ships such as Royal Oak were entirely outclassed by the new dreadnoughts that began to appear in 1906. Royal Oak paid off into Material Reserve in December 1911. She was towed to the Motherbank
by battleship HMS Bellerophon
in August 1912 and was sold for scrap on 14 January 1914.
During her career, Royal Oak was commanded by Captain Burges Watson among others.
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
battleship
Battleship
A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...
of the seven-ship Royal Sovereign
Royal Sovereign class battleship
The Royal Sovereign class was a class of pre-dreadnought battleships of the British Royal Navy. The class comprised seven ships built to the same design: HMS Royal Sovereign, , HMS Ramilles, HMS Repulse, HMS Resolution, HMS Revenge, and HMS Royal Oak, and a half-sister built to a modified design: ....
class.
Technical Characteristics
Royal Oak was ordered under the Naval Defence Act Programme of 7 March 1889 and built by Cammell LairdCammell Laird
Cammell Laird, one of the most famous names in British shipbuilding during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, came about following the merger of Laird, Son & Co. of Birkenhead and Johnson Cammell & Co. of Sheffield at the turn of the twentieth century.- Founding of the business :The Company...
at Birkenhead
Birkenhead
Birkenhead is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral in Merseyside, England. It is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the west bank of the River Mersey, opposite the city of Liverpool...
at a cost of £977,996. She was launched on 5 November 1892. She arrived at Portsmouth on 29 October 1893 for fitting out for trials and completed trials in June 1894.
Royal Oak was the only ship of the Royal Sovereign class not fitted with steam pipes abaft her funnels. She displaced 14,150 tons and was 380 feet (115.8 m)long with a beam of 75 feet (22.9 m) and a draught of 27 feet 6 inches (8.4 m). She produced 13000 hp and could make 18.2 knots (35.7 km/h). She carried a complement of over seven hundred.
At the time of their completion, she and her sisters were perhaps the best all round battleships in the world. Their greater freeboard enhanced their seagoing capabilities, enabling them to engage the enemy in rougher seas than previous designs, an important consideration in the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
and North Atlantic; however, they tended to roll heavily in certain conditions, and after HMS Resolution
HMS Resolution (1892)
HMS Resolution was a Royal Sovereign-class predreadnought battleship of the Royal Navy.-Technical characteristics:Resolution was laid down by Palmers on 14 June 1890, launched on 28 May 1892, and completed in November 1893.. She was long and had a maximum cruising speed of...
rolled badly in heavy seas in 1893 they were nicknamed the "Rolling Ressies," which stuck even though the problem was quickly corrected by the fitting of bilge keel
Bilge keel
A bilge keel is used to reduce the hull's tendency to roll. Bilge keels are employed in pairs . A ship may have more than one bilge keel per side, but this is rare. Bilge keels increase hydrodynamic resistance to rolling, making the ship roll less...
s. The ships were also faster and better armoured than their predecessors and carried a potent secondary armament but these features inevitably increased their weight, with previous battleships seldom topping 10,000 tonnes. [2]
Her main armament consisted of four 13.5-inch (343-mm) guns in two barbettes with a secondary set of ten 6-inch (152-mm) guns. She also sported an array of smaller guns and seven 18-inch (457-mm) torpedo tubes. She had a partial belt of 18-inch- (457-mm-) thick steel.
Operational history
Royal Oak commissioned on 14 January 1896 for service in the Particular Service Squadron, which was soon renamed the Flying SquadronFlying Squadron (Royal Navy)
The Flying Squadron was a special British Royal Navy squadron that operated during 1896.Following the Jameson Raid in South Africa, the German Emperor Wilhelm II sent a telegram of support to President Kruger. This led to a war scare in Europe...
. When the squadron disbanded on 25 November 1896, she was reduced to Fleet Reserve at Portsmouth.
She recommissioned at Portsmouth on 9 March 1897 for service in the Mediterranean Fleet
Mediterranean Fleet
Several countries have or have had a Mediterranean Fleet in their navy. See:* Mediterranean Fleet * French Mediterranean Fleet* Mediterranean Squadron * United States Sixth Fleet...
, where she was to relieve battleship HMS Collingwood
HMS Collingwood (1882)
HMS Collingwood was an ironclad battleship of the Royal Navy. She was the first example of the Admiral-class and was named after Admiral Cuthbert Collingwood, Horatio Nelson's second-in-command in the British victory at the Battle of Trafalgar....
. She departed Portsmouth on 24 March 1897, and arrived at Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
on 5 April 1897. On 31 March 1899, she recommissioned at Malta for further Mediterranean Fleet service. On 7 June 1902, Royal Oak paid off and was relieved by battleship HMS Bulwark
HMS Bulwark (1899)
HMS Bulwark belonged to a sub-class of the Formidable-class of pre-dreadnought battleships of the Royal Navy known as the London-class.-Technical description:...
.
Royal Oak departed the Mediterranean, arriving at Portsmouth on 6 June 1902. She soon moved to Chatham
Chatham, Medway
Chatham is one of the Medway towns located within the Medway unitary authority, in North Kent, in South East England.Although the dockyard has long been closed and is now being redeveloped into a business and residential community as well as a museum featuring the famous submarine, HMS Ocelot,...
for a refit.
On 16 February 1903, Royal Oak commissioned at Portsmouth for service in the Home Fleet. She relieved battleship HMS Nile
HMS Nile (1888)
HMS Nile was a battleship of the Royal Navy of the Victorian era, a ship of the Trafalgar class, and the only sister-ship of HMS Trafalgar....
and received Nile's nucleus crew. In the summer of 1903, she participated in combined exercises in the Atlantic involving the Home Fleet, Channel Fleet
Channel Fleet
The Channel Fleet was the Royal Navy formation of warships that defended the waters of the English Channel from 1690 to 1909.-History:The Channel Fleet dates back at least to 1690 when its role was to defend England against the French threat under the leadership of Edward Russell, 1st Earl of...
, Mediterranean Fleet
Mediterranean Fleet
Several countries have or have had a Mediterranean Fleet in their navy. See:* Mediterranean Fleet * French Mediterranean Fleet* Mediterranean Squadron * United States Sixth Fleet...
, and Cruiser Squadron.
In April 1904, while operating with the Home Fleet off the Scilly Isles, Royal Oak and her sister ship HMS Revenge
HMS Revenge (1892)
HMS Revenge was a pre-dreadnought battleship of the Royal Sovereign class of the British Royal Navy. She was renamed HMS Redoubtable in 1915. HMS Revenge notably served as the flagship of the Flying Squadron and bombarding the coast of Flanders during World War I before being refitted as an...
struck a sunken wreck and suffered bottom damage. On 9 May 1904, Royal Oak became flagship
Flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...
of the Home Fleet's second-in-command, relieving her sister ship HMS Empress of India
HMS Empress of India (1891)
HMS Empress of India was a pre-dreadnought battleship of the Royal Navy and part of the eight-ship Royal Sovereign class. She was laid down at Pembroke Dockyard on 9 July 1889 and launched by the Duchess of Connaught on 7 May 1891. Initially known as HMS Renown, her name was changed before...
in that role. Royal Oak took part in annual maneuvers in July and August 1904.
On 7 March 1905, Royal Oak paid off at Portsmouth into the Chatham Reserve, and her crew transferred to battleship HMS Caesar
HMS Caesar (1896)
HMS Caesar was a Majestic-class pre-dreadnought battleship of the Royal Navy, named after the Roman military and political leader Julius Caesar.-Technical description:...
. On 8 March 1905, Royal Oak recommissioned with a nucleus crew for service in the Sheerness-Chatham Division of the Fleet in Commission in Reserve at Home. While she was under refit at Chatham, an explosion on board Royal Oak killed one workman and injured three others on 11 May 1905.
In July 1905, Royal Oak participated in Reserve Fleet manoeuvres. These completed, she transferred her crew to battleship HMS Ocean
HMS Ocean (1898)
The fourth HMS Ocean was a Canopus-class battleship of the British Royal Navy.-Technical Description:HMS Ocean was laid down at Devonport Dockyard on 15 December 1897, launched on 5 July 1898, and completed in February 1900...
, then recommissioned with a new nucleus crew to serve as an emergency reserve ship at Chatham.
As a unit of the First Division of the Blue Fleet, Royal Oak took part in annual maneuvers off the coast of Portugal and in the eastern Atlantic from 12 June 1906 to 2 July 1906. On 1 January 1907, she recommissioned in reserve at Devonport
Devonport, Devon
Devonport, formerly named Plymouth Dock or just Dock, is a district of Plymouth in the English county of Devon, although it was, at one time, the more important settlement. It became a county borough in 1889...
with a nucleus crew.
In April 1909 Royal Oak and the other reserve ships with nucleus crews at Devonport were formed into the 4th Division of the Home Fleet. In June 1911 she relieved her sister ship HMS Ramillies
HMS Ramillies (1892)
HMS Ramillies was a pre-dreadnought battleship of Royal Navy and part of the seven ship Royal Sovereign' class.-Technical Characteristics:...
as Parent Ship of the division, and was in turn relieved of this duty by her sister ship HMS Empress of India
HMS Empress of India (1891)
HMS Empress of India was a pre-dreadnought battleship of the Royal Navy and part of the eight-ship Royal Sovereign class. She was laid down at Pembroke Dockyard on 9 July 1889 and launched by the Duchess of Connaught on 7 May 1891. Initially known as HMS Renown, her name was changed before...
in November 1911.
Impressive as they were upon their completion, ships such as Royal Oak were entirely outclassed by the new dreadnoughts that began to appear in 1906. Royal Oak paid off into Material Reserve in December 1911. She was towed to the Motherbank
Motherbank
The Motherbank is a shallow sandbar off the northeast coast of the county Isle of Wight in the United Kingdom. It lies in The Solent between Cowes and Ryde....
by battleship HMS Bellerophon
HMS Bellerophon (1907)
HMS Bellerophon was a dreadnought of the Royal Navy. She was the lead ship of the Bellerophon class, and the fourth Royal Navy vessel to bear the name of the mythic Greek hero...
in August 1912 and was sold for scrap on 14 January 1914.
During her career, Royal Oak was commanded by Captain Burges Watson among others.