HMS Hydra (1871)
Encyclopedia
HMS Hydra was the second ship completed of the four breastwork monitor
s built for the Royal Navy
during the 1870s. The ships were ordered to satisfy demands for local defence during the war scare of 1870, but the pace of construction slowed down tremendously as the perceived threat of war declined. The ship spent most of her career in reserve; her only sustained period in commission was four months during the Russo-Turkish War in 1878 when the British were trying to force the Russians to end the war without seizing Constantinople
. Hydra was sold for scrap
in 1903.
of 45 feet (13.7 m), and a draught of 16 in 3 in (4.95 m) at deep load. They displaced 3480 long tons (3,535.9 t). Their crew consisted of 156 officers and men.
The Cyclops-class ships and other ships of her type were described by Admiral George Alexander Ballard
as being like "full-armoured knights riding on donkeys, easy to avoid but bad to close with." While not unfit to face heavy weather their decks were frequently awash in even a moderate sea. Their accommodations were rated the worst in the fleet, referred to by ordinary seamen as "ratholes with tinned air".
s had a working pressure of 60 pound per square inch. The engines produced a total of 1472 ihp on 4 July 1872 during the ship's sea trial
s which gave her a maximum speed of 11.2 knots (6.1 m/s). Hydra carried 250 long tons (254 t) of coal, enough to steam 3000 nmi (5,556 km) at 10 knots.
rifled muzzle-loading guns in each turret. The shell of the 10 inches (254 mm) gun weighed 407 pounds (184.6 kg) while the gun itself weighed 18 long tons (18.3 t). The gun had a muzzle velocity
of 1365 ft/s (416.1 m/s) and was credited with the ability to penetrate a nominal 12.9 inches (32.8 cm) of wrought iron
armour at 100 yards (91.4 m). The guns could fire both solid shot
and explosive shells
. They were mounted on carriages that used hydraulic jacks to elevate and depress the guns.
of wrought iron
that was 8 inches (203 mm) thick amidships and thinned to 6 inches (152 mm) at the ends. The superstructure and conning tower
was fully armoured, the reason it was called a breastwork
, with 8–9 in (203.2–228.6 mm) of wrought iron. The gun turret
s had 10 inches on their faces and 9 inches on the sides and rear. All of the vertical armour was backed by 9–11 in (22.9–27.9 ) of teak
. The decks
were 1.5 inches (3.8 cm) thick.
in Govan
. She was launched on 28 December 1871 and commissioned in August 1872. The ship was towed to Devonport
that same month for what proved to be a very lengthy fitting out period that was not completed on 31 May 1876. Cyclops cost £194,334 to build.Adjusted for inflation, the ship cost in current pounds.
as well as a false keel
. Four quick-firing
3-pounder Hotchkiss guns
were added on the breastwork for torpedo boat
defence as well as five machine gun
s and several searchlights. This increased their crew to approximately 191 men and added 80 long tons (81.3 t) to their displacement.
launched. She was placed in 1st Reserve after her completion. The ship, along with her sisters
, was commissioned between April and August 1878 during the Russo-Turkish War for service with Admiral
Sir Cooper Key
's Particular Service Squadron in Portland Harbour
. Hydra was paid off at Sheerness
in August 1878 and served as tender to HMS Duncan
. The ship was refitted in 1888–89 and was in Fleet Reserve at Chatham
until 1901. All four ships of the class participated in the annual fleet manoeuvers in 1887, 1889–90 and 1892. HMS Hydra, like all of her sisters, was placed on the non-effective list in 1901 and sold on 7 July 1903 for £8,400.Adjusted for inflation, the ship sold for in current pounds.
Breastwork monitor
A breastwork monitor was one of a number of ships designed by Sir Edward Reed, the Chief Constructor of the Royal Navy between 1863 and 1870....
s built 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...
during the 1870s. The ships were ordered to satisfy demands for local defence during the war scare of 1870, but the pace of construction slowed down tremendously as the perceived threat of war declined. The ship spent most of her career in reserve; her only sustained period in commission was four months during the Russo-Turkish War in 1878 when the British were trying to force the Russians to end the war without seizing Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
. Hydra was sold for scrap
Ship breaking
Ship breaking or ship demolition is a type of ship disposal involving the breaking up of ships for scrap recycling. Most ships have a lifespan of a few decades before there is so much wear that refitting and repair becomes uneconomical. Ship breaking allows materials from the ship, especially...
in 1903.
Design and description
The ships had an length between perpendiculars of 225 feet (68.6 m), a beamBeam (nautical)
The beam of a ship is its width at the widest point. Generally speaking, the wider the beam of a ship , the more initial stability it has, at expense of reserve stability in the event of a capsize, where more energy is required to right the vessel from its inverted position...
of 45 feet (13.7 m), and a draught of 16 in 3 in (4.95 m) at deep load. They displaced 3480 long tons (3,535.9 t). Their crew consisted of 156 officers and men.
The Cyclops-class ships and other ships of her type were described by Admiral George Alexander Ballard
George Alexander Ballard
Admiral George Alexander Ballard, CB was an officer of the Royal Navy and a historian. Ballard was the eldest son of General John Archibald Ballard , and his wife Joanna, the daughter of Robert Scott-Moncrieff, and was born at Malabar Hill, Bombay on 7 March 1862...
as being like "full-armoured knights riding on donkeys, easy to avoid but bad to close with." While not unfit to face heavy weather their decks were frequently awash in even a moderate sea. Their accommodations were rated the worst in the fleet, referred to by ordinary seamen as "ratholes with tinned air".
Propulsion
Hydra had two 4-cylinder inverted compound steam engines made by John Elder, each driving a single 12 feet (3.7 m) propeller. The ship's boilerBoiler (steam generator)
A boiler or steam generator is a device used to create steam by applying heat energy to water. Although the definitions are somewhat flexible, it can be said that older steam generators were commonly termed boilers and worked at low to medium pressure but, at pressures above this, it is more...
s had a working pressure of 60 pound per square inch. The engines produced a total of 1472 ihp on 4 July 1872 during the ship's sea trial
Sea trial
A sea trial is the testing phase of a watercraft . It is also referred to as a "shakedown cruise" by many naval personnel. It is usually the last phase of construction and takes place on open water, and can last from a few hours to many days.Sea trials are conducted to measure a vessel’s...
s which gave her a maximum speed of 11.2 knots (6.1 m/s). Hydra carried 250 long tons (254 t) of coal, enough to steam 3000 nmi (5,556 km) at 10 knots.
Armament
The ships mounted a pair of 10-inchRML 10 inch 18 ton gun
The RML 10 inch guns Mk I - Mk II were large rifled muzzle-loading guns designed for British battleships and monitors. They were also fitted to the Bouncer-class flat-iron gunboats.-Design:...
rifled muzzle-loading guns in each turret. The shell of the 10 inches (254 mm) gun weighed 407 pounds (184.6 kg) while the gun itself weighed 18 long tons (18.3 t). The gun had a muzzle velocity
Muzzle velocity
Muzzle velocity is the speed a projectile has at the moment it leaves the muzzle of the gun. Muzzle velocities range from approximately to in black powder muskets , to more than in modern rifles with high-performance cartridges such as the .220 Swift and .204 Ruger, all the way to for tank guns...
of 1365 ft/s (416.1 m/s) and was credited with the ability to penetrate a nominal 12.9 inches (32.8 cm) of wrought iron
Wrought iron
thumb|The [[Eiffel tower]] is constructed from [[puddle iron]], a form of wrought ironWrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon...
armour at 100 yards (91.4 m). The guns could fire both solid shot
Round shot
Round shot is a solid projectile without explosive charge, fired from a cannon. As the name implies, round shot is spherical; its diameter is slightly less than the bore of the gun it is fired from.Round shot was made in early times from dressed stone, but by the 17th century, from iron...
and explosive shells
Shell (projectile)
A shell is a payload-carrying projectile, which, as opposed to shot, contains an explosive or other filling, though modern usage sometimes includes large solid projectiles properly termed shot . Solid shot may contain a pyrotechnic compound if a tracer or spotting charge is used...
. They were mounted on carriages that used hydraulic jacks to elevate and depress the guns.
Armour
The Cyclops-class ships had a complete waterline beltBelt armor
Belt armor is a layer of heavy metal armor plated on to or within outer hulls of warships, typically on battleships, battlecruisers and cruisers, and on aircraft carriers converted from those types of ships....
of wrought iron
Wrought iron
thumb|The [[Eiffel tower]] is constructed from [[puddle iron]], a form of wrought ironWrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon...
that was 8 inches (203 mm) thick amidships and thinned to 6 inches (152 mm) at the ends. The superstructure and conning tower
Conning tower
A conning tower is a raised platform on a ship or submarine, often armored, from which an officer can con the vessel; i.e., give directions to the helmsman. It is usually located as high on the ship as practical, to give the conning team good visibility....
was fully armoured, the reason it was called a breastwork
Breastwork (fortification)
A breastwork is a fortification. The term is usually applied to temporary fortifications, often an earthwork thrown up to breast height to provide protection to defenders firing over it from a standing position...
, with 8–9 in (203.2–228.6 mm) of wrought iron. The gun turret
Gun turret
A gun turret is a weapon mount that protects the crew or mechanism of a projectile-firing weapon and at the same time lets the weapon be aimed and fired in many directions.The turret is also a rotating weapon platform...
s had 10 inches on their faces and 9 inches on the sides and rear. All of the vertical armour was backed by 9–11 in (22.9–27.9 ) of teak
Teak
Teak is the common name for the tropical hardwood tree species Tectona grandis and its wood products. Tectona grandis is native to south and southeast Asia, mainly India, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Burma, but is naturalized and cultivated in many countries, including those in Africa and the...
. The decks
Deck (ship)
A deck is a permanent covering over a compartment or a hull of a ship. On a boat or ship, the primary deck is the horizontal structure which forms the 'roof' for the hull, which both strengthens the hull and serves as the primary working surface...
were 1.5 inches (3.8 cm) thick.
Construction
HMS Hydra was laid down on 5 September 1870 by the Robert NapierRobert Napier (engineer)
Robert Napier was a Scottish engineer, and is often called "The Father of Clyde Shipbuilding."-Early life:Robert Napier was born in Dumbarton at the height of the Industrial Revolution, to James and Jean Napier...
in Govan
Govan
Govan is a district and former burgh now part of southwest City of Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated west of Glasgow city centre, on the south bank of the River Clyde, opposite the mouth of the River Kelvin and the district of Partick....
. She was launched on 28 December 1871 and commissioned in August 1872. The ship was towed to Devonport
HMNB Devonport
Her Majesty's Naval Base Devonport , is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy . HMNB Devonport is located in Devonport, in the west of the city of Plymouth in Devon, England...
that same month for what proved to be a very lengthy fitting out period that was not completed on 31 May 1876. Cyclops cost £194,334 to build.Adjusted for inflation, the ship cost in current pounds.
Refit
Although a recommendation had been made while the ships were still under construction to extend the superstructure out to the sides of the ship to improve their stability and habitability, this was not acted upon until they were refitted during the 1880s. This refit also strengthened the breastwork and upper decks, added another watertight bulkheadBulkhead (partition)
A bulkhead is an upright wall within the hull of a ship or within the fuselage of an airplane. Other kinds of partition elements within a ship are decks and deckheads.-Etymology:...
as well as a false keel
False keel
The false keel was a timber, forming part of the hull of a wooden sailing ship. Typically 6 inches thick for a 74-gun ship in the 19th century, the false keel was constructed in several pieces, which were scarphed together, and attached to the underside of the keel by iron staples...
. Four quick-firing
Quick-firing gun
A quick-firing gun is an artillery piece, typically a gun or howitzer, which has several characteristics which taken together mean the weapon can fire at a fast rate...
3-pounder Hotchkiss guns
QF 3 pounder Hotchkiss
The QF 3 pounder Hotchkiss was a light 47-mm naval gun introduced in 1886 to defend against new small fast vessels such as torpedo boats, and later submarines...
were added on the breastwork for torpedo boat
Torpedo boat
A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval vessel designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs rammed enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes, and later designs launched self-propelled Whitehead torpedoes. They were created to counter battleships and other large, slow and...
defence as well as five machine gun
Machine gun
A machine gun is a fully automatic mounted or portable firearm, usually designed to fire rounds in quick succession from an ammunition belt or large-capacity magazine, typically at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute....
s and several searchlights. This increased their crew to approximately 191 men and added 80 long tons (81.3 t) to their displacement.
Service
HMS Hydra was the second ship to be completed, although she was the last ship of the classShip class
A ship class is a group of ships of a similar design. This is distinct from a ship-type, which might reflect a similarity of tonnage or intended use. For example, the is a nuclear aircraft carrier of the Nimitz class....
launched. She was placed in 1st Reserve after her completion. The ship, along with her sisters
Sister ship
A sister ship is a ship of the same class as, or of virtually identical design to, another ship. Such vessels share a near-identical hull and superstructure layout, similar displacement, and roughly comparable features and equipment...
, was commissioned between April and August 1878 during the Russo-Turkish War for service with Admiral
Admiral
Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks, of the highest naval officers. It is usually considered a full admiral and above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet . It is usually abbreviated to "Adm" or "ADM"...
Sir Cooper Key
Astley Cooper Key
Admiral Sir Astley Cooper Key, GCB, ADC, FRS was a Royal Navy officer who became First Naval Lord.-Naval career:Born the son of Charles Aston Key , a well-known surgeon, Key joined the Royal Navy in 1833...
's Particular Service Squadron in Portland Harbour
Portland Harbour
Portland Harbour is located beside the Isle of Portland, off Dorset, on the south coast of England. It is one of the largest man-made harbours in the world. Grid reference: .-History:...
. Hydra was paid off at Sheerness
Sheerness
Sheerness is a town located beside the mouth of the River Medway on the northwest corner of the Isle of Sheppey in north Kent, England. With a population of 12,000 it is the largest town on the island....
in August 1878 and served as tender to HMS Duncan
Duncan class ship of the line (1859)
The Duncan class of 101-gun two-decker steam line-of-battle ships are considered by Professor Andrew Lambert to have been the "final statement of the British design progress" for steam two-deckers. The class consisted of HMS Duncan and HMS Gibraltar. The Bulwark class had identical hulls...
. The ship was refitted in 1888–89 and was in Fleet Reserve at Chatham
Chatham Dockyard
Chatham Dockyard, located on the River Medway and of which two-thirds is in Gillingham and one third in Chatham, Kent, England, came into existence at the time when, following the Reformation, relations with the Catholic countries of Europe had worsened, leading to a requirement for additional...
until 1901. All four ships of the class participated in the annual fleet manoeuvers in 1887, 1889–90 and 1892. HMS Hydra, like all of her sisters, was placed on the non-effective list in 1901 and sold on 7 July 1903 for £8,400.Adjusted for inflation, the ship sold for in current pounds.