H.M.S. Britannia (1904)

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H.M.S. Britannia (1904)
Pendant Number: 27 (1914)
21 (Jan 1918)
N.40 (Apr 1918)[1]
Builder: Portsmouth Royal Dockyard[2]
Ordered: 1903-04 Programme[3]
Laid down: 4 Feb, 1904[4]
Launched: 10 Dec, 1904[5]
Completed: 8 Sept, 1906[6]
Commissioned: 2 Oct, 1906[7]
Torpedoed: 9 Nov, 1918[8]
Fate: by UB.50

H.M.S. Britannia was one of eight King Edward VII class battleships. She entered service in 1906 and spent most of her service in the Great War with a shifting roster of her sisters in the Third Battle Squadron.

Construction

The keel of the Britannia was laid down without ceremony on 4 February, 1904, on the same day that her sister ship New Zealand vacated the slipway.[9] She was launched on 10 December by Lady Londonderry in front of a large crowd.[10] On 2 October, 1906, Britannia was completed to full complement under Captain Robert N. Ommanney for service in the Atlantic Fleet.[11]

Service

As part of the Channel Fleet, Britannia started a refit in Portsmouth in August 1908, after Battle Practice.[12]

Britannia was assigned to the Third Battle Squadron upon its creation in May, 1912 and remained with the Squadron until being detached along with Africa — a ship that would become her traveling buddy — in September, 1916.[13]

In October, 1916, she and Africa were assigned to the British Adriatic Squadron.[14] In March, 1917, the pair were sent to join the Ninth Cruiser Squadron.[15] The two battleships operated in the North Atlantic with Ninth Cruiser Squadron with a dwindling number of cruisers throughout the war. By November, 1918, they were gone.[16][17][18]

Some time between September and November, 1918, Britannia was moved to "Miscellaneous Service", though she remained in commission.[19] She was torpedoed and sunk on 9 November off Cape Trafalgar, becoming the last Royal Navy ship lost in the war.[20]

Radio

By the end of 1913, she and the rest of the Third Battle Squadron were all equipped with Battleship Auxiliary W/T sets.[21]

Captains

Dates of appointment are provided when known.

See Also

Footnotes

  1. Dittmar; Colledge. British Warships 1914–1919. p. 31.
  2. Dittmar; Colledge. British Warships 1914–1919. p. 31.
  3. Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. p. 38.
  4. Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. p. 38.
  5. Dittmar; Colledge. British Warships 1914–1919. p. 31.
  6. Navy (Dockyard Expense Accounts), 1907–1908. p. 36.
  7. The Navy List. (January, 1908). p. 287.
  8. Dittmar; Colledge. British Warships 1914–1919. p. 31.
  9. "The Duke of Connaught at Portsmouth" (News). The Times. Friday, 5 February, 1905. Issue 37309, col D, p. 6.
  10. "Launch of the Britannia" (Official Appointments and Notices). The Times. Monday, 12 December, 1904. Issue 37575, col D, p. 6.
  11. "Naval and Military Intelligence" (Official Appointments and Notices). The Times. Wednesday, 3 October, 1906. Issue 38141, col B, p. 4.
  12. Report from Lord Charles Beresford dated 10 April, 1908, in Naval Policy - Strategy - Tactics: Miscellaneous papers from Private Office received by record office at The National Archives. ADM 116/942, unnumbered folio halfway within series.
  13. See Third Battle Squadron (Royal Navy) for details on her service in 3BS.
  14. Supplement to the Monthly Navy List. (October, 1916). p. 20.
  15. Supplement to the Monthly Navy List. (March, 1917). p. 14.
  16. Supplement to the Monthly Navy List. (July, 1918). p. 21.
  17. Supplement to the Monthly Navy List. (August, 1918). p. 21.
  18. Supplement to the Monthly Navy List. (November, 1918). p. 21.
  19. Supplement to the Monthly Navy List. (November, 1918). p. 19.
  20. Dittmar; Colledge. British Warships 1914–1919. p. 31.
  21. Annual Report of the Torpedo School, 1913. W/T Appendix, p. 13.
  22. Ommanney Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/39. f. 993.
  23. Ommanney Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/19. f. 153.
  24. Morgan Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 37.
  25. Morgan Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 37.
  26. Browning Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 124.
  27. The Navy List. (January, 1910). p. 287.
  28. Ballard Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 65.
  29. The Navy List. (April, 1911). p. 287.
  30. Ballard Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 65.
  31. Thorp Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/43. f. 20.
  32. The Navy List. (August, 1912). p. 288.
  33. Thorp Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/43. f. 20.
  34. Sandeman Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 4.
  35. The Navy List. (October, 1915). p. 392n.
  36. Sandeman Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/43. f. 4.
  37. Campbell Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/43. f. 465.
  38. Campbell Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/43/521. f. 465.
  39. Farquhar Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 341.
  40. The Navy List. (December, 1916). p. 392p.
  41. Farquhar Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/42. f. 341.
  42. The Navy List. (November, 1917). p. 391x.
  43. Caulfeild Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/43. f. 255.
  44. Caulfeild Service Record. The National Archives. ADM 196/43. f. 255.

Bibliography

  • Dittmar, F.J.; Colledge, J.J. (1972). British Warships 1914–1919. London: Ian Allan.
  • Parkes, O.B.E., Ass.I.N.A., Dr. Oscar (1990). British Battleships 1860–1950. London: Pen & Sword Ltd. ISBN 0850526043. (on Bookfinder.com).
  • Preston, Antony (1972). Battleships of World War I. New York, NY: Galahad Books. ISBN 0883653001.


King Edward VII Class Pre-dreadnought
  Africa Britannia Commonwealth Dominion  
  Hibernia Hindustan King Edward VII Zealandia  
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