World of Warships HMS Warspite
Tommorow 29 04 2015, World of Warships devs will add the HMS Warspite, first British battleship, tier VI premium (7500 tokens). This battleship will available until the end of Closed Beta
Domani 29 04 2015 i devs di WoWs aggiungeranno la HMS Warspite, prima corazzata britannica classe Queen Elisabeth. Sarà una tier VI premium e sarà disponibile per 7500 token fino alla fine della closed beta.
HMS Warspite was a Queen Elizabeth-class battleship, the seventh warship of the Royal Navy to carry the name. Her thirty-year career covered both world wars and took her across the Atlantic, Indian, Arctic and Pacific Oceans. She was involved in several major engagements, including battles in the North Sea and Mediterranean, earning her the most battle honours ever awarded to an individual ship in the Royal Navy and the most awarded for actions during the Second World War. For this and other reasons Warspite gained the nickname the “Grand Old Lady” after a comment made by her most famous commander, Admiral Sir Andrew Cunningham in 1943.
HMS Warspite era una corazzata classe Queen Elizabeth , la settima nave da guerra della Royal Navy a portare questo nome. La sua carriera trentennale ha caratterizzato le due guerre mondiali e la portò attraverso l’Atlantico, Indiano, Artico e Pacifico. E’ stato coinvolta in diversi impegni importanti, tra cui battaglie nel Mare del Nord e nel Mediterraneo, guadagnandosi i maggiori onori di battaglia mai aggiudicati ad una sola nave della Royal Navy e il più premiato per azioni durante la Seconda Guerra Mondiale. Per questo ed altri motivi la Warspite ha guadagnato il soprannome di “Grand Old Lady”, dopo un commento fatto dal suo più famoso comandante, l’ammiraglio Sir Andrew Cunningham nel 1943.
When she was launched in 1913 the use of oil as fuel and untried 15-inch guns were revolutionary concepts in the naval arms race between Britain and Germany, a considerable risk for Winston Churchill, then First Lord of the Admiralty, and Admiral John Fisher who had advocated the design. However, the new “fast battleships” proved to be an outstanding success during the First World War. Warspite was refitted twice between the wars, but advances in technology and the cumulative effects of battle damage relegated her to the role of shore bombardment towards the end of the Second World War. She was decommissioned in 1945 and wrecked off the Cornish coast on the way to the scrap yard.
Quando venne lanciata nel 1913 l’uso di combustibile liquido e cannoni da 15 pollici erano stati concetti rivoluzionari nella corsa agli armamenti navali tra la Gran Bretagna e la Germania, un notevole rischio per Winston Churchill, allora Primo Lord dell’Ammiragliato, e l’ammiraglio John Fisher che avevano sostenuto il progetto. Tuttavia, le nuove “corazzate veloci” si rivelarono un grande successo durante la Prima Guerra Mondiale. La Warspite venne riallestita due volte tra le due guerre, ma i progressi tecnologici e gli effetti cumulativi di danni da battaglia relegarono la nave al ruolo di bombardamento costiero verso la fine della Seconda guerra Mondiale. Venne dismesso nel 1945 e naufragò al largo della costa della Cornovaglia sulla strada per il cantiere di demolizione.
Warspite was laid down in October 1912 at Devonport Dockyard and launched on the River Tamar a year later. On completion, Warspite displaced 33,410 tons. She was 639 ft 5 in (194.89 m) long, had a beam of 90 ft 6 in (27.58 m) and a draught of 30 ft 6 in (9.30 m). Her initial armament was eight BL 15 inch Mk I guns placed in four twin turrets, 14 single BL 6-inch Mk XII guns, two single QF 3-inch anti-aircraft guns, four single 3-pdr (47 mm) saluting guns and four 21-inch (530 mm) submerged torpedo tubes. When she was commissioned she was one of the fastest, most powerful and flexible super dreadnoughts in the world.
La Warspite fu varata nel mese di ottobre 1912 presso il Dockyard di Devonport e lanciata sul fiume Tamar un anno più tardi. Pesava 33.410 tonnellate ed era lunga 194,89 m. Il suo armamento iniziale era formato da 8 cannoni Mk I BL da 15 pollici collocati in quattro torrette binate, 14 cannoni singoli BL 6 Mk XII, due cannoni singoli QF cannoni antiaerei da 3 pollici, quattro cannoni singoli 3-pdr (47 millimetri) e quattro tubi lanciasiluri sommersi da 21 pollici (530 millimetri). Quando venne commissionata era una delle più veloci, più potenti e flessibili corazzate nel mondo.
Between March 1934 and March 1937 she underwent a major reconstruction in Portsmouth at a cost of £2,363,000. This refit gave the Admiralty a virtually new warship, replacing internal machinery and significantly changing the battleship’s appearance and capabilities.
Tra il marzo 1934 e il marzo 1937 subì un’importante ristrutturazione a Portsmouth. Questo refit diede all’Ammiragliato una nuova nave da guerra, sostituirono degli impianti interni e cambiarono in modo significativo l’aspetto e le funzionalità della corazzata.
Propulsion: The reconstruction project replaced her propulsion machinery and installed six individual boiler rooms. This increased fuel efficiency, reducing fuel consumption from 41 tons per hour to 27 at almost 24 knots, and gave the warship 80,000 shp. The 1,500 ton weight saving on the lighter machinery was used to increase protection and armament.
Propulsione: Il progetto di ricostruzione sostituì la propulsione e installò sei locali caldaie individuali. Questo aumentò l’efficienza del carburante, riducendo il consumo di carburante da 41 tonnellate l’ora a 27 a quasi 24 nodi e diede alla nave da guerra 80.000 shp. Il risparmio di 1.500 tonnellate sul peso dei macchinari venne usato per aumentare la protezione e armamento.
Armour: 1,100 tons of armour were added, improving coverage forward of A turret and the boiler rooms, as well as an increase to 5 inches over the magazines and 3.5 inches over the machinery. Better sub-division of the engineering rooms strengthened the hull and improved its integrity.
Armament: The last pair of torpedo tubes were removed and the 6 inch guns had their protection reduced; four guns were removed from the fore and aft ends of the batteries. Eight 4 inch high-angle guns in four twin mountings and two octuple 2 pdr pom-poms were added to her anti-aircraft defences, as well as additional .50 calibre machine guns on two of the main turrets. The original 15-inch turrets were upgraded to increase the elevation of the guns by ten degrees, providing a further 9,000 yards of range to a maximum of 32,300 yd (29.5 km) with a 6crh shell. The fire control was also modernised to include the HACS MkIII* AA fire control system and the Admiralty Fire Control Table Mk VII for surface fire control of the main armament.
Armamento: L’ultima coppia di tubi lanciasiluri vennero rimossi e i cannoni da 6 pollici ebbero la loro protezione ridotta; quattro cannoni vennero rimossi davanti e alla fine delle batterie. Vennero aggiunti per difesa antiaerea otto cannoni ad alto angolo da 4 pollici in quattro attacchi binati e due batterie da otto pompon 2 PDR, così come ulteriori mitragliatrici calibro .50 su due delle principali torrette. Le originali torrette da 15 pollici vennero aggiornate per aumentare l’elevazione dei cannoni di dieci gradi, fornendo ulteriori 9.000 metri di portata massima (totali 29,5 km), con proiettili da 6crh. Il controllo del fuoco venne inoltre modernizzato per includere il sistema di controllo di fuoco HACS MkIII * e l’Admiralty Table Control Mk VII per il controllo dell’armamento principale sulla superficie.
Additionally her superstructure was radically altered, allowing two cranes and an aircraft hangar to be fitted. This could carry four aircraft, but Warspite typically carried only two: from 1938 to 1941 these were Swordfish floatplanes and from 1942 to 1943 Walrus flying boats. Her tripod mast was removed and a distinctive armoured citadel built up to enclose the bridge and to provide space for her to operate as a flagship.
Inoltre la sua sovrastruttura venne radicalmente modificata, vennero montate due gru e un hangar. Avrebbero potuto portare quattro aerei, ma normalmente solo due: dal 1938 al 1941 erano idrovolanti Swordfish e dal 1942 al 1943 idrovolanti Walrus. Il suo albero treppiede venne rimosso e una cittadella corazzata fu costruita per racchiudere il ponte e per fornire lo spazio per operare come Flagship.
Source –
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Warspite_%2803%29
- Ballantyne, Iain (2013). Warspite, From Jutland Hero to Cold War Warrior. Barnsley, UK: Pen & Sword Maritime
- Plevy, Harry (2001). Battleship Sailors: The Fighting Career of HMS Warspite Recalled by Her Men. Chatham Publishing
- Roskill, Stephen W. (1997). HMS Warspite: The Story of a Famous Battleship. Naval Institute Press.
- http://worldofwarships.eu/en/news/common/welcome-warspite/
