Maximum battleship
Encyclopedia
The "maximum battleships", also known as the "Tillman Battleships" were a series of World War I
-era design studies for extremely large battleship
s, prepared in late 1916 and early 1917 to the order of Senator "Pitchfork" Benjamin Tillman
. The United States Navy
was not interested in the designs at all, and only drew them up to win support from the Committee on Naval Affairs, on which Tillman sat. They were among the most spectacular battleship designs ever produced.
Senator Tillman had grown impatient with the Navy's requests for larger battleships every year as well as the Navy's habit of building battleships significantly larger than Congress authorized. He accordingly instructed the Navy to design "maximum battleships", the largest battleships that they could use.
The only limits on the potential size of an American battleship were the dimensions of the locks of the Panama Canal
. The locks measure roughly 1000 by, and so the "maximum battleships" were 975 feet (297 m) long and 108 feet (33 m) in beam. Draft was limited to 39.5 ft (12.04 m).
, that class was essentially just an enlargement of the preceding Nevada class
. In 1916, he repeated his request, and this time the Navy's Bureau of Construction and Repair
produced a series of design studies, which again had some influence on the design of the next class of battleships, in this case the South Dakotas
, an enlargement of the previous Colorado class
.
After the first four design studies were complete, design IV was chosen for further development and three additional studies, IV-1, IV-2, and IV-3, were prepared. At the request of Secretary of the Navy Josephus Daniels
, these designs used 18-inch guns instead of the 16-inch/50-calibers used in the earlier studies. The Navy decided that design IV-2 was the most practical (or perhaps the least impractical) and presented it to Congress early in 1917.
These designs differed from the battleships being built in two significant ways beyond just their size. Firstly, unlike preceding classes, the "maximum battleships" were designed with a continuous flush main deck. Most battleships in this era had a long forecastle deck. Secondly, the Tillman designs all included five casemate guns mounted aft, two on each side and one at the tip of the stern. Similar "stern chasers" had been previously mounted in the Nevada class
, but were omitted from the Pennsylvania class
. These casemates were a return to an older design idea; American battleship designers had abandoned hull-mounted casemates after the New Mexico class
. They had transpired to be too "wet" -- heavy seas rendered them unusable—and they had been removed from all earlier classes. However, the casemates on the "maximum battleships" would have been higher above the waterline than they had been on earlier designs, so it is possible that their huge size and flush decks would have provided enough freeboard astern to keep the casemates dry.
The Washington Naval Treaty
of 1922 limited naval armaments, causing the cancellation of the South Dakota-class battleships
and halting all consideration of the "maximum battleships."
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
-era design studies for extremely large 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...
s, prepared in late 1916 and early 1917 to the order of Senator "Pitchfork" Benjamin Tillman
Benjamin Tillman
Benjamin Ryan Tillman was an American politician who served as the 84th Governor of South Carolina, from 1890 to 1894, and as a United States Senator, from 1895 until his death in office. Tillman's views were a matter of national controversy.Tillman was a member of the Democratic Party...
. The United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
was not interested in the designs at all, and only drew them up to win support from the Committee on Naval Affairs, on which Tillman sat. They were among the most spectacular battleship designs ever produced.
Senator Tillman had grown impatient with the Navy's requests for larger battleships every year as well as the Navy's habit of building battleships significantly larger than Congress authorized. He accordingly instructed the Navy to design "maximum battleships", the largest battleships that they could use.
The only limits on the potential size of an American battleship were the dimensions of the locks of the Panama Canal
Panamax
Panamax and New Panamax are popular terms for the size limits for ships traveling through the Panama Canal. Formally, the limits and requirements are published by the Panama Canal Authority titled "Vessel Requirements"...
. The locks measure roughly 1000 by, and so the "maximum battleships" were 975 feet (297 m) long and 108 feet (33 m) in beam. Draft was limited to 39.5 ft (12.04 m).
Designs
Tillman's first request, in 1912–1913, was never completed, and though the studies it involved had some influence on the design of the Pennsylvania class of battleshipsPennsylvania class battleship
The Pennsylvania-class battleships, of the United States Navy, were an enlargement of the Nevada class; having two additional 45-caliber main battery guns, greater length and displacement, four propellers and slightly higher speed...
, that class was essentially just an enlargement of the preceding Nevada class
Nevada class battleship
The Nevada class battleships were the United States Navy's first battleship design equipped with triple gun turrets , as well as introducing the so-called "all or nothing" armor scheme, in which protection of vital areas was optimized against heavy caliber guns, leaving other parts...
. In 1916, he repeated his request, and this time the Navy's Bureau of Construction and Repair
Bureau of Construction and Repair
The Bureau of Construction and Repair was the part of the United States Navy which from 1862 to 1940 was responsible for supervising the design, construction, conversion, procurement, maintenance, and repair of ships and other craft for the Navy...
produced a series of design studies, which again had some influence on the design of the next class of battleships, in this case the South Dakotas
South Dakota class battleship (1920)
The first South Dakota class was a class of six battleships, laid down in 1920 but never completed. These battleships would have been the last dreadnoughts to be commissioned, if the Washington Naval Treaty not caused their cancellation one-third of the way through their construction, they would...
, an enlargement of the previous Colorado class
Colorado class battleship
The Colorado class battleships was a group of four battleships built by the United States Navy after World War I. However, only three of the ships were completed: , , and . The fourth, , was over 75% completed when she was canceled under the terms of the Washington Naval Treaty in 1922...
.
After the first four design studies were complete, design IV was chosen for further development and three additional studies, IV-1, IV-2, and IV-3, were prepared. At the request of Secretary of the Navy Josephus Daniels
Josephus Daniels
Josephus Daniels was a newspaper editor and publisher from North Carolina who was appointed by United States President Woodrow Wilson to serve as Secretary of the Navy during World War I...
, these designs used 18-inch guns instead of the 16-inch/50-calibers used in the earlier studies. The Navy decided that design IV-2 was the most practical (or perhaps the least impractical) and presented it to Congress early in 1917.
These designs differed from the battleships being built in two significant ways beyond just their size. Firstly, unlike preceding classes, the "maximum battleships" were designed with a continuous flush main deck. Most battleships in this era had a long forecastle deck. Secondly, the Tillman designs all included five casemate guns mounted aft, two on each side and one at the tip of the stern. Similar "stern chasers" had been previously mounted in the Nevada class
Nevada class battleship
The Nevada class battleships were the United States Navy's first battleship design equipped with triple gun turrets , as well as introducing the so-called "all or nothing" armor scheme, in which protection of vital areas was optimized against heavy caliber guns, leaving other parts...
, but were omitted from the Pennsylvania class
Pennsylvania class battleship
The Pennsylvania-class battleships, of the United States Navy, were an enlargement of the Nevada class; having two additional 45-caliber main battery guns, greater length and displacement, four propellers and slightly higher speed...
. These casemates were a return to an older design idea; American battleship designers had abandoned hull-mounted casemates after the New Mexico class
New Mexico class battleship
The New Mexico class battleships of the United States Navy, all three of whose construction began in 1915, were improvements on the design introduced three years earlier with the Nevada class....
. They had transpired to be too "wet" -- heavy seas rendered them unusable—and they had been removed from all earlier classes. However, the casemates on the "maximum battleships" would have been higher above the waterline than they had been on earlier designs, so it is possible that their huge size and flush decks would have provided enough freeboard astern to keep the casemates dry.
The Washington Naval Treaty
Washington Naval Treaty
The Washington Naval Treaty, also known as the Five-Power Treaty, was an attempt to cap and limit, and "prevent 'further' costly escalation" of the naval arms race that had begun after World War I between various International powers, each of which had significant naval fleets. The treaty was...
of 1922 limited naval armaments, causing the cancellation of the South Dakota-class battleships
South Dakota class battleship (1920)
The first South Dakota class was a class of six battleships, laid down in 1920 but never completed. These battleships would have been the last dreadnoughts to be commissioned, if the Washington Naval Treaty not caused their cancellation one-third of the way through their construction, they would...
and halting all consideration of the "maximum battleships."
| Tillman I | Tillman II | Tillman III | Tillman IV | Tillman IV-1 | Tillman IV-2 | South Dakota class South Dakota class battleship (1920) The first South Dakota class was a class of six battleships, laid down in 1920 but never completed. These battleships would have been the last dreadnoughts to be commissioned, if the Washington Naval Treaty not caused their cancellation one-third of the way through their construction, they would... |
Iowa class Iowa class battleship The Iowa-class battleships were a class of fast battleships ordered by the United States Navy in 1939 and 1940 to escort the Fast Carrier Task Forces which would operate in the Pacific Theater of World War II. Six were ordered during the course of World War II, but only four were completed in... |
Montana class Montana class battleship The Montana-class battleships of the United States Navy were planned as successors to the , being slower but larger, better armored, and having superior firepower... |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Design | 13 Dec 1916 | 13 Dec 1916 | 13 Dec 1916 | 29 Dec 1916 | 30 Jan 1917 | 30 Jan 1917 | 8 Jul 1918 | 9 Jun 1938 | 6 Feb 1940 |
| Displace- ment |
70,000 tons | 70,000 tons | 63,500 tons | 80,000 tons | 80,000 tons | 80,000 tons | 43,200 tons | 45,000 tons | 70,000 tons |
| Length | 975 feet | 660 feet | 860 feet | 921 feet | |||||
| Beam | 108 feet | 106 feet | 108 feet | 121 feet | |||||
| Draft | 32.75 feet | 32.75 feet | 36 feet | 36 feet | |||||
| Speed | 26.5 knots | 26.5 knots | 30 knots | 25.2 knots | 25.2 knots | 25.2 knots | 23.5 knots | 33 knots | 28 knots |
| Main battery |
12 16"/50 in four triple turrets | 24 16"/50 in four 6-gun turrets | 12 16"/50 in four triple turrets | 24 16"/50 in four 6-gun turrets | 13 18"/50 in five twin and one triple turret | 15 18"/50 in five triple turrets | 12 16"/50 in four triple turrets | 9 16"/50 in three triple turrets | 12 16"/50 guns in four triple turrets |