HMS Trafalgar was one of two Trafalgar class battleships

Trafalgar class battleship

The two Trafalgar-class battleships of the British Royal Navy were late nineteenth century ironclad warships. Both were named after naval battles won by the British during the Napoleonic wars under the command of Admiral Nelson.-Design:...

 commissioned in 1890 and 1891, the other being 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....

.

Design

They were designed to be improved versions of the Admiral

Admiral class battleship

The British Royal Navy's pre-dreadnought Admiral class battleships of the 1880s followed the pattern of the Devastation class in having the main armament on centre-line mounts with the superstructure in between. This pattern was followed by most following British designs until in 1906...

 and Victoria

Victoria class battleship

The Royal Navy's Victoria class battleships of the 1880s was the first class which used triple expansion steam engines, previous battleships having used compound engines.There were only two ships in this class...

 classes, having a greater displacement to allow for improved protection. However they sacrificed a full armoured belt for greater thickness amidships in a partial belt.

As originally designed, Trafalgar was to have displaced 11,940 tons, and carried a secondary armament of ten guns of 5 inches (127 mm) calibre, disposed in the broadside battery. Changes made during construction however, led to an increase in displacement to 12,590 tons; this led to the ships draught being increased by 12 inches (304.8 mm) from the initial design, and 18 inches (457.2 mm) with full bunkers. This in turn led to the main belt being immersed to a deeper level than had been intended, with a potential decrease in defensive effect in combat.

In October 1896 the secondary battery of 4.7 inches (119.4 mm) guns was replaced by a more powerful battery of six 6 inches (152.4 mm) quick firers.

The main artillery, while situated at a militarily effective height of 14 feet (4.3 m) above sea level, were only 42 inches (1,066.8 mm) above the deck. It was thought possible that firing along the keel line might cause structural damage; tests requested by the Chief Constructor

Director of Naval Construction

The Director of Naval Construction was a senior British civil servant post in the Admiralty, that part of the British Civil Service that oversaw the Royal Navy. The post existed from 1860 to 1966....

, however, showed the potential damage to be minimal.

As compared to HMS Sans Pareil

HMS Sans Pareil (1887)

HMS Sans Pareil was a Victoria Class battleship of the British Royal Navy of the Victorian era, her only sister-ship being .In deciding upon her design configuration the Board of Admiralty took what history shows was a retrograde step by requesting the reversion from barbettes to turrets for her...

 the under-water hull form was finer, with a larger rudder. together with the reduced freeboard as compared to earlier ships this had a significantly adverse effect on her handling; as she spent her active service in relatively calm water in the Mediterranean, this defect was of minimal importance.

Service history

She was completed, except for her main armament, in only three years and three months. The delay in the production of her guns meant that she was not commissioned, as second flagship Mediterranean Fleet until 2 April 1890. She served in this position until October 1897, when she paid off at Portsmouth

Portsmouth

Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...

, and where she remained as guardship until August 1902. She remained thereafter in reserve until 1907, when she went to Sheerness

Sheerness

Sheerness is a town located beside the mouth of the River Medway on the northwest corner of the Isle of Sheppey in north Kent, England. With a population of 12,000 it is the largest town on the island....

 to serve as a drill ship for crews of turrets and of submerged torpedo tubes. In April 1909 she reverted to active service with the fourth division of the Home Fleet, based at the Nore. She was sold on 9 March 1911.

External links

• Maritimequest HMS Trafalgar Photo Gallery