Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Notable Point · 24:56-25:44

Cressy machinery, protection, and cost

The class's displacement, machinery, armour scheme, weapons, and price establish what a large late-1890s British armoured cruiser actually represented.

6-inch Guns9.2-inch Guns18-inch TorpedoesArmour ProtectionBelleville BoilersCressy Class Armoured CruisersNaval EngineeringShip DesignTriple Expansion EnginesWarship Costs
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Notes

The class displaced roughly 12,000 tons and used thirty Belleville boilers with two triple-expansion engines driving twin shafts. The machinery was rated at 21,000 indicated horsepower for a designed top speed of about twenty-one knots, while an individual ship cost roughly £725,760. Protection ranged from a two-to-six-inch belt and one-to-three-inch deck to six-inch barbettes and turrets, a twelve-inch conning tower, and five-inch bulkheads. Two submerged eighteen-inch torpedo tubes supplemented the two 9.2-inch guns, twelve six-inch guns, and lighter quick-firing weapons. These figures establish why the Cressys were powerful first-class cruisers by late-1890s standards without being compact battleships.