Q&A ยท 3:29:45-3:32:55

How the R and Queen Elizabeth classes used their casemate guns

The six-inch casemates mattered in World War I against cruisers and destroyers but saw fewer opportunities in World War II.

Question

How often were the casemate guns of the R and Queen Elizabeth classes actually used?

Short answer

They were useful and frequently relevant in World War I, but surviving casemates saw comparatively little use in World War II.

Notes

The casemate batteries were intended to stop cruisers and destroyers approaching the battleships, with individual hits capable of inflicting heavy damage on those targets. They saw frequent use in World War I, while ships retaining them in World War II appear to have used them much less. Warspite at Narvik is a disputed example: one participant recalls a report from a forward six-inch gunnery position, while another questions which guns were manned and could bear on the targets. The forward pairs might have had a firing opportunity that the guns farther aft lacked. Warspite's 15-inch fire against German destroyers is also recalled, alongside a criticism of photograph captions that identify her targets as shore batteries.