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''Capitán Prat'' was a unique ironclad battleship of the Chilean Navy built in the late 1880s and completed in 1890. Armed with a main battery of four guns in four single turrets, ''Capitán Prat'' was the first battleship in the world to be equipped with an electrical system. She was built in the La Seyne dockyard in France, and commissioned into the Chilean fleet in 1891. Foreign navies tried to purchase the ship twice before the outbreak of wars, including an American attempt in 1898 and a Japanese offer in 1903. ''Capitán Prat'' served in the fleet for about ten years, until she was disarmed in accordance with a treaty signed with Argentina intended to stop a naval arms race between the two countries. The ship returned to service, however, and remained on active duty with the fleet until 1926, when she was reduced to a coastal defense ship. In 1928–1930, she was used as a submarine tender, and in 1935, she was disarmed and used as a training ship for engineers. She remained in the Navy's inventory until 1942, when she was sold for scrap. ==Design== ''Capitán Prat'' was long between perpendiculars and had a beam of . She displaced and had a draft of . Her hull was steel-built, with wood and copper sheathing, and was equipped with a ram bow. The ship mounted two masts, both with fighting tops. She had a crew of 480 officers and enlisted men.〔〔 She was powered by a pair of horizontal expansion engines that were supplied with steam by five cylindrical boilers. The boilers were trunked into two funnels on the centerline. Her propulsion system was rated at for a top speed of . She was designed to carry of coal, though she could carry up to .〔Gardiner, p. 411〕〔Miller, p. 86〕 She was the first battleship of any navy to utilize electricity to power machinery.〔Ropp, p. 72〕 The ship was armed with a main battery of four /35 caliber guns in single, electrically powered turrets. One was placed forward, on the centerline, two were mounted amidships, and the fourth was located aft of the superstructure on the centerline. Her secondary battery consisted of eight guns in four twin turrets; they were mounted on either side of the foremast and mainmast. Close-range defense against torpedo boats was provided by a battery of six 6-pounder guns, four 3-pounder guns, and ten 1-pounder guns. She was also armed with four torpedo tubes in deck-mounted launchers. One was in the bow, another in the stern, and two on the broadside.〔 The ship's armor consisted of Creusot steel. Her armored belt was thick amidships above the waterline, and below. Above the waterline, the belt was reduced to forward and aft. The belt was below the waterline, on either end of the ship. The belt extended for above the waterline and below. The citadel was thick and protected the ship's machinery spaces amidships. It extended to the upper deck and was closed on either ends by bulkheads thick. Outside the citadel, the deck was protected by thick armor. The barbettes for the main battery guns were thick, with thick hoods to protect the gun crews. The conning tower had thick sides.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Chilean battleship Capitán Prat」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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