HMS Magnificent (1894)

HMS "Magnificent" was one of the nine "Majestic"-class battleships of the Royal Navy (RN).

Technical Characteristics

HMS "Magnificent" was laid down on 18 December 1893 at Chatham Dockyard. She was launched on 19 December 1894 and completed in December 1895.

When the lead ship of the class, HMS "Majestic", was launched in 1895, at convert|421|ft|m|abbr=on long and with a full-load displacement of 16,000 tons, she was the largest battleship ever built at the time. The "Majestic"s were considered good seaboats with an easy roll and good steamers, although they suffered from high fuel consumption. ["Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860-1905", p. 34] "Magnificent" began life as a coal-burner, but was converted to burn fuel oil by 1907-1908. [Gibbons, p. 137.] "Magnificent" and her sisters were the last British battleships to have side-by-side funnels, successor battleship classes having funnels in a line.

"Magnificent" had a new design in which the bridge was mounted around the base of the foremast behind the conning tower to prevent a battle-damaged bridge from collapsing around the tower. She had pear-shaped barbettes and fixed loading positons for the main guns, as did six of her sisters, although her sister ships "Caesar" and "Illustrious" and all future British battleship classes had circular barbettes and all-around loading for their main guns, ["Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860-1905", p. 34; Gibbons, p. 137.]

"Magnificent" and the other "Majestic"-class ships had 9 inches (229 mm) of Harvey armor, which allowed equal protection with less cost in weight compared to previous types of armor. This allowed "Magnificent" and her sisters to have a deeper and lighter belt than previous battleships without any loss in protection. [Gibbons, p. 137] She was divided into 150 watertight compartments.

The "Majestics" boasted a new gun, the 46-ton 12-inch (305-mm) 35-caliber ["Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860-1905", p. 36] Mk VIII, the first new British battleships to mount a 12-inch (305-mm) main battery since the 1880s. One hundred thirteen miles (182 km) of wire were wrapped around each gun barrel, and each gun took nine months to manufacture. "Magnificent" carried four such guns in two barbettes (one forward and one aft) with up to 400 rounds for each. The new gun, which would be the standard main armament of British battleships for sixteen years, was a significant improvement on the 13.5-inch (343-mm) gun which had been fitted on the Admiral and "Royal Sovereign" classes that preceded the "Majestic"s. ["Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860-1905", p. 34] and was lighter. This saving in weight allowed "Magnificent" to carry a secondary battery of twelve 6-inch (152-mm) 40-caliber ["Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860-1905", p. 36] guns, a larger secondary armament than in previous classes. [Gibbons, p. 137] She also had four submerged torpedo tubes in the bow and one above water in the stern.

Operational History

HMS "Magnificent" was commissioned at Chatham Dockyard on 12 December 1895 to relieve battleship HMS "Empress of India" as second flagship of the Channel Fleet. On 26 June 1897, she was present at the Fleet Review at Spithead for the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria. [Burt, p. 132]

As a result of a reorganization in January 1905, the Channel Fleet became the Atlantic Fleet, and "Magnificent" accordingly became a part of the Atlantic Fleet. A gun explosion aboard "Magnificent" on 14 June 1905 resulted in 18 casualties. On 15 November 1906, she ended her Atlantic Fleet service and paid off at Devonport. [Burt, p. 131]

"Magnificent" commissioned into reserve on 16 November 1906, based at Chatham. During her reserve service, she was attached to the Gunnery School at Sheerness as a gunnery training ship in December 1906. [Burt, p. 131]

"Magnificent" left Chatham in March 1907 and was assigned to the Nore Division of the Home Fleet at the Nore. During this service, she temporarily was flagship of the Commander-in-Chief in November 1907 ["Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906-1921", p. 7] and underwent a refit at Chatham in 1908 [Burt, p. 132] during which she had new fire control systems installed and was converted to burn fuel oil. ["Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906-1921", p. 7] She served as second flagship of the Home Fleet from August 1908 to January 1909. ["Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906-1921", p. 7]

"Magnificent" was reduced to a nucleus crew in February 1909 as part of the commissioned reserve. On 24 March 1909, she became the flagship of the Vice Admiral, 3rd and 4th Divisions, Home Fleet, at the Nore. She was relieved as flagship on 1 March 1910 by battleship HMS "Bulwark". [Burt, p. 131]

On 27 September 1910, "Magnificent" recommissioned within the Home Fleet to serve as a turret drill ship and stokers' training ship at Devonport. [Burt, p. 131] Her sternwalk was damaged in a collision in December 1910. ["Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906-1921", p. 7] She became tender to the turret drill ship HMS "Vivid" in February 1911] and a seagoing ["Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906-1921", p. 7] gunnery training ship at Devonport on 14 May 1912. She was slightly damaged on 16 June 1913 when she ran aground in fog near Cawsand Bay. She recommissioned for 3rd Fleet service on 1 July 1913. [Burt, p. 131]

During a precautionary mobilization of the fleet immediately prior to the outbreak of World War I, "Magnificent" and her sister ships HMS "Hannibal", HMS "Mars", and HMS "Victorious" on 27 July 1914 formed the 9th Battle Squadron, subordinate to the Admiral of Patrols and stationed at the Humber. "Magnificent" served as guard ship at the Humber. World War I began while she was stationed there. [Burt, pp. 131-132]

On 7 August 1914, the 9th Battle Squadron was dissolved, and "Magnificent" and "Hannibal" transferred to Scapa Flow to reinforce the defenses of the anchorage of the Grand Fleet there, becoming a guard ship at Scapa Flow. The "Majestic"-class ships were by then the oldest and least effective battleships in service in the Royal Navy, and when first-class protected cruiser HMS "Crescent" relieved "Magnificent" of guard ship duty on 16 February 1915, "Magnificent" paid off. [Burt, p. 132]

Later in February 1915, "Magificent" arrived at Belfast to be disarmed. ["Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906-1921", p. 7] In March and April 1915, all of her 12-inch (305-mm) and all except for four of her 6-inch (152-mm) guns were removed. Her 12-inch (305-mm) guns were taken to arm the new "Lord Clive"-class monitors HMS "General Craufurd" and HMS "Prince Eugene". After she was disarmed, "Magnificent" was laid up at Loch Goil in April 1915. [Burt, p. 132]

On 9 September 1915, "Magnificent" was recommissioned to serve along with her similarly disarmed sister ships "Hannibal" and "Mars" as a troopship for the Dardanelles campaign. The three former battleships departed the United Kingdom on this duty on 22 September 1915, arriving at Mudros on 7 October 1915. On 18 December 1915 and 19 December 1915, "Magnificent" took part in the evacuation of Allied troops from Suvla Bay. She departed the Dardanelles in February 1916 after the conclusion of the campaign and returned to England, where she paid off at Devonport on 3 March 1916. [Burt, p. 132]

"Magnificent" remained at Devonport until August 1917, serving as an overflow ship. In August 1917, she began a refit at Harland & Wolff in Belfast for conversion to an ammunition ship. When her refit was completed in October 1918, she was transferred to Rosyth for service as an ammunition store ship. [Burt, p. 132]

"Magnificent" was placed on the disposal list on 4 February 1920, but continued to serve as an ammunition store ship at Rosyth until April 1921. She was sold for scrapping on 9 May 1921. Scrapping began at Inverkeithing in 1922. [Burt, p. 132]

Notes

References

* Burt, R. A. "British Battleships 1889-1904". Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1988. ISBN 0870210610.
* Roger Chesneau and Eugene M. Kolesnik, ed., "Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships, 1860-1905", (Conway Maritime Press, London, 1979), ISBN 0-85177-133-5
* Dittmar, F. J and Colledge, J. J., "British Warships 1914-1919, (Ian Allen, London, 1972), ISBN 0-7110-0380-7
* Gibbons, Tony. "The Complete Encyclopedia of Battleships and Battlecruisers: A Technical Directory of All the World's Capital Ships From 1860 to the Present Day". London: Salamander Books Ltd., 1983.
* Gray, Randal, Ed. "Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1906-1921." Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1985. ISBN 0870219073.

External links

* [http://www.maritimequest.com/warship_directory/great_britain/battleships/magnificent/hms_magnificent.htm Maritimequest HMS Magnificent Photo Gallery]