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The Devastation Turret Class warship was designed in 1868 by Sir Edward J. Reed. The Reed concept was to produce short, handy ships of medium size as heavily armed as possible with a good turn of speed. His concept also included warships that could attack and destroy an opponent without much risk of being damaged during the process.〔The British Battle Fleet, Volume I, 1915, page 264〕 During his studies of the American low-freeboard monitors, he developed his idea: the breastwork monitor.〔The British Battle Fleet, Volume I, 1915, page 292〕 The First Lord of the Admiralty, Admiral Sir Hugh Childers and Admiral Sir Robert Spencer Robinson (Comptroller of the Royal Navy) in discussions with the Chief Constructor of the Royal Navy, Sir Edward Reed of the need for a large breastwork monitor capable of steaming from Queenstown (now Cobh, Ireland) on the south-east coast of Ireland to Halifax, Nova Scotia on the east coast of Canada.〔Modern Ships of War 1888, page 25〕 ''HMS Devastation'' and a second vessel (''HMS Thunderer'') were ordered for the Royal Navy under the 1869 – 1870 Naval Estimates. A third vessel (''HMS Fury'') would be ordered the following year to a modified design.〔The British Battle Fleet, Volume I, 1915, page 317〕 The vessels were assailed in the British Press as absolute failures even before either were launched.〔The British Battle Fleet, Volume I, 1915, page 312〕 From their commissioning to 1888 they were the most formidable British battleships in the Royal Navy.〔Modern Ships of War, 1888, page 15〕 ==Design and development== The Admiralty Design Board set forth the requirements for the oceangoing monitors. These included the requirement of two twin 12-inch gun turrets capable of firing 600-pound shells with a 280-degree firing arc. The turrets would require 14-inch armour protection, with the machinery spaces and shell rooms protected by 12-inch-thick armour. Further, to reduce the interference with the main guns, no masts or sails were needed. The ships would need two steam engines for security and a minimum 12-knot speed. The trans-Atlantic concept was changed to a coastal defence ship, so a very low freeboard of was specified. The loss of in September 1871 led to concerns about the stability of turret ships, and a special committee was set up to determine the safety of turret ships. Changes to the design were recommended.〔Modern Ships of War, 1888, page 15〕 The freeboard of the design was increased to .〔Repoert of Chief Engineer J.W. King, USN, 1887, page 37 to 45〕 Another change was to extend the armoured breastwork with unarmoured structure to the sides of the ship and carried aft to improve the stability at large angles of heel. This greatly improved the crew comfort by adding extra accommodation and especially latrines, but since it was not armoured would have been riddled in a battle, reducing the stability of the vessel.〔Brown 2003, page 61〕 In 1871 a model of ''Devastation'' was tested in a water tank, and subsequently with an version. Once ''Devastation'' was completed, tests could be carried out with the real ship. This included building up a roll of 7 degrees by having 400 men run back and forth across the deck 18 times. Other tests involved taking it to sea to look for rough weather, in one trial waves of 20–26 feet (6–8 m) were encountered which gave the ship a 14-degree roll either way.〔Brown 2003, page 61〕 In 1872 the armour protection of the turret was subjected to a series of tests. A replica of the proposed turret was constructed and tested at Shoeburyness in May 1872. The armour plate backed by of teak and a metal skin resisted hits from a 25-ton 12-inch gun firing at a range of , although one shot hit a joint between plates and opened a gap wide but did not penetrate.〔Brown 2003, page 60〕 A second test involved ''HMS Hotspur'' firing three shots at the turret of ''HMS Glatton'' from a 25-ton gun at a range of 200 yards. The first shot missed, however the second and third shot struck the turret. The turret was not appreciably damaged, though theoretically it should have been penetrated.〔The British Battle Fleet, Volume I, 1915, page 320〕 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「Devastation Turret Class Ship」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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