Faulknor class leader
Encyclopedia
The Faulknor class were a class of flotilla leader
s that were under construction in the United Kingdom
for the Chilean Navy
at the outbreak of World War I
. These ships were purchased by the British, taken over and completed for the Royal Navy
for wartime service. In common with Royal Navy convention
, they were named after famous Royal Navy captains of the past, in this case the members of the Faulknor family
.
that were significantly larger and heavier armed than their contemporaries. They had four funnels, a tall, narrow fore funnel and three broad, short funnels behind. They were initially armed with six single QF 4-inch guns, unusually arranged with four on the forecastle
- two sided in front of the wheelhouse and two sided abreast it - the remaining pair being sided on the quarterdeck. These guns were of a novel Elswick
design for the Chileans and when the ships were rearmed they were replaced with standard Royal Navy models. As rearmed in 1918 they carried a BL 4.7-inch gun
on the forecastle and another on a bandstand between the after pair of funnels, retained the pair of 4 inches (101.6 mm) guns abreast the wheelhouse and had two QF 2-pounder pom-poms
.
They were returned to the friendly nation of Chile in 1920, at which point the Thornycroft type leader
Rooke was renamed Broke to maintain this famous name (that of Admiral Sir Philip Bowes Vere Broke
of the Shannon
) in the Navy List.
on 31 May to 1 June 1916 where Broke collided with and sank the Acasta-class destroyer
Sparrowhawk
. Also in this action, Tipperary, serving with the 4th Destroyer Flotilla, was hit by 5.9-inch (150 mm) fire from the secondary battery of the German
dreadnought
Westfalen
and sank with the loss of 185 hands from her crew of 197.
In April 1917, Broke took part in an action known as the Battle of Dover Strait
with equally large singleton Swift
during which she was damaged.
Botha was damaged in the English Channel
on 21 March 1918 off the coast of Flanders
when she rammed and sank the German torpdeo boat A-19 and was then torpedoed in error by the French
destroyer Capitaine Mehl.
for details after return to Chile.
Flotilla leader
A flotilla leader was a warship suitable for commanding a flotilla of destroyers or other small warships, typically a small cruiser or a large destroyer...
s that were under construction in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
for the Chilean Navy
Chilean Navy
-Independence Wars of Chile and Peru :The Chilean Navy dates back to 1817. A year before, following the Battle of Chacabuco, General Bernardo O'Higgins prophetically declared "this victory and another hundred shall be of no significance if we do not gain control of the sea".This led to the...
at the outbreak of World War I
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...
. These ships were purchased by the British, taken over and completed for the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
for wartime service. In common with Royal Navy convention
Naming conventions for destroyers of the Royal Navy
The first Torpedo Boat Destroyer in the Royal Navy was HMS Havock of 1893. From 1906, the term "Torpedo Boat Destroyer" began to appear in the shortened form "Destroyer" when referring to Destroyer Flotillas...
, they were named after famous Royal Navy captains of the past, in this case the members of the Faulknor family
Faulknor family
The Faulknor family was an English family from Northamptonshire, of which several generations served as officers in the Royal Navy.-William Faulknor:...
.
Design
The s were a private design by J. Samuel WhiteJ. Samuel White
J. Samuel White was a British shipbuilding firm based in Cowes, taking its name from John Samuel White . It came to prominence during the Victorian era...
that were significantly larger and heavier armed than their contemporaries. They had four funnels, a tall, narrow fore funnel and three broad, short funnels behind. They were initially armed with six single QF 4-inch guns, unusually arranged with four on the forecastle
Forecastle
Forecastle refers to the upper deck of a sailing ship forward of the foremast, or the forward part of a ship with the sailors' living quarters...
- two sided in front of the wheelhouse and two sided abreast it - the remaining pair being sided on the quarterdeck. These guns were of a novel Elswick
Armstrong Whitworth
Sir W G Armstrong Whitworth & Co Ltd was a major British manufacturing company of the early years of the 20th century. Headquartered in Elswick, Newcastle upon Tyne, Armstrong Whitworth engaged in the construction of armaments, ships, locomotives, automobiles, and aircraft.-History:In 1847,...
design for the Chileans and when the ships were rearmed they were replaced with standard Royal Navy models. As rearmed in 1918 they carried a BL 4.7-inch gun
BL 4.7 inch /45 naval gun
The BL 4.7 inch 45 calibres gun was a British medium-velocity naval gun introduced in 1918 for destroyers, to counter a new generation of heavily-armed destroyers Germany was believed to be developing....
on the forecastle and another on a bandstand between the after pair of funnels, retained the pair of 4 inches (101.6 mm) guns abreast the wheelhouse and had two QF 2-pounder pom-poms
QF 2 pounder naval gun
The 2-pounder gun, officially designated the QF 2-pounder and universally known as the pom-pom, was a 1.575 inch British autocannon, used famously as an anti-aircraft gun by the Royal Navy. The name came from the sound that the original models make when firing...
.
They were returned to the friendly nation of Chile in 1920, at which point the Thornycroft type leader
Thornycroft type leader
The Thornycroft type leader or Shakespeare class were a class of five destroyer leaders designed by John I. Thornycroft & Company and built by them at Woolston, Southampton for the Royal Navy towards the end of World War I. They were named after historical naval leaders. Only Shakespeare and...
Rooke was renamed Broke to maintain this famous name (that of Admiral Sir Philip Bowes Vere Broke
Philip Broke
Rear Admiral Sir Philip Bowes Vere Broke, 1st Baronet KCB was a distinguished officer in the British Royal Navy.-Early life:Broke was born at Broke Hall, Nacton, near Ipswich, the eldest son of Philip Bowes Broke...
of the Shannon
HMS Shannon (1806)
HMS Shannon was a 38-gun Leda-class frigate of the Royal Navy. She was launched in 1806 and served in the Napoleonic Wars and the War of 1812...
) in the Navy List.
Service
All of the class were present at the Battle of JutlandBattle of Jutland
The Battle of Jutland was a naval battle between the British Royal Navy's Grand Fleet and the Imperial German Navy's High Seas Fleet during the First World War. The battle was fought on 31 May and 1 June 1916 in the North Sea near Jutland, Denmark. It was the largest naval battle and the only...
on 31 May to 1 June 1916 where Broke collided with and sank the Acasta-class destroyer
Acasta class destroyer
The Acasta class was a class of twenty destroyers built for the Royal Navy under the Naval Programme of 1911 - 1912 that saw service during World War I...
Sparrowhawk
HMS Sparrowhawk (1912)
HMS Sparrowhawk was an Acasta-class destroyer built in 1912 and sunk in 1916 at the battle of Jutland after a collision with the destroyer leader HMS Broke.-Construction:...
. Also in this action, Tipperary, serving with the 4th Destroyer Flotilla, was hit by 5.9-inch (150 mm) fire from the secondary battery of the German
Kaiserliche Marine
The Imperial German Navy was the German Navy created at the time of the formation of the German Empire. It existed between 1871 and 1919, growing out of the small Prussian Navy and Norddeutsche Bundesmarine, which primarily had the mission of coastal defense. Kaiser Wilhelm II greatly expanded...
dreadnought
Dreadnought
The dreadnought was the predominant type of 20th-century battleship. The first of the kind, the Royal Navy's had such an impact when launched in 1906 that similar battleships built after her were referred to as "dreadnoughts", and earlier battleships became known as pre-dreadnoughts...
Westfalen
SMS Westfalen
SMS Westfalen "SMS" stands for "Seiner Majestät Schiff", or "His Majesty's Ship" was one of the s, the first four dreadnoughts built for the German Imperial Navy. Westfalen was laid down at AG Weser in Bremen on 12 August 1907, launched nearly a year later on 1 July 1908, and commissioned into the...
and sank with the loss of 185 hands from her crew of 197.
In April 1917, Broke took part in an action known as the Battle of Dover Strait
Battle of Dover Strait
The Second Battle of Dover Strait was a naval battle of the First World War, fought in the Dover Strait in April 1917 and should not be confused with the major Battle of Dover Strait in 1916...
with equally large singleton Swift
HMS Swift (1907)
HMS Swift was a unique destroyer leader designed and built for the Royal Navy prior to World War I, another product of Admiral "Jackie" Fisher's relentless quest for speed...
during which she was damaged.
Botha was damaged in the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
on 21 March 1918 off the coast of Flanders
Flanders
Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
when she rammed and sank the German torpdeo boat A-19 and was then torpedoed in error by the French
French Navy
The French Navy, officially the Marine nationale and often called La Royale is the maritime arm of the French military. It includes a full range of fighting vessels, from patrol boats to a nuclear powered aircraft carrier and 10 nuclear-powered submarines, four of which are capable of launching...
destroyer Capitaine Mehl.
Ships
| Name | Ship Builder | Launched | Completed | Fate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Faulknor HMS Faulknor (1914) HMS Faulknor was a British destroyer of the First World War. She was purchased by the Royal Navy whilst still under construction in Britain for the Chilean Navy who had ordered her in 1912 as part of the Almirante Lynch class... (ex-Almirante Simpson) |
J S White, Cowes | February 26, 1914 | Completed 1914 | Returned to Chile 1920 |
| Broke HMS Broke (1914) HMS Broke was a Faulknor-class destroyer leader of the Royal Navy, initially built for the Chilean Navy as the Almirante Lynch-class destroyer Almirante Goni. The outbreak of the First World War led to her being purchased by the Admiralty in August 1914 shortly after her launching, and renamed HMS... (ex-Almirante Goñi) |
J S White, Cowes | May 25, 1914 | 1914 | Returned to Chile 1920 |
| Botha (ex-Almirante Williams Rebolledo) | J S White, Cowes | 2 December 1914 | 1915 | returned to Chile 1920 |
| Tipperaray (ex-Almirante Riveros) | J S White, Cowes Cowes Cowes is an English seaport town and civil parish on the Isle of Wight. Cowes is located on the west bank of the estuary of the River Medina facing the smaller town of East Cowes on the east Bank... |
March 5 1915 | 1915 | Sunk by gunfire at Battle of Jutland Battle of Jutland The Battle of Jutland was a naval battle between the British Royal Navy's Grand Fleet and the Imperial German Navy's High Seas Fleet during the First World War. The battle was fought on 31 May and 1 June 1916 in the North Sea near Jutland, Denmark. It was the largest naval battle and the only... , May 31, 1916 |
See also
Almirante Lynch-class destroyersAlmirante Lynch class destroyer
The Almirante Lynch class destroyers were a group of ships built for the Chilean Navy just before World War I. The Chileans had long been customers of British shipyards and ordered six ships from J. Samuel White in 1911. These destroyers were a private design by J. Samuel White that were...
for details after return to Chile.