5 knots,
protected with from nine to fourteen inches of armor, and prepared
to inflict damage on an enemy with torpedoes shot from under and
above the water, and with four 12-inch guns, twelve 6-inch guns,
sixteen 3-inch guns, and twenty guns of smaller caliber but of
quicker firing possibilities.
Her next class was that of the _Canopus_--the _Goliath, Vengeance,
Ocean, Albion_, and _Glory_--2,000 tons lighter than the first
class named above, but more modern in equipment and construction,
having been built between the years 1900 and 1902. Their motive
power was heavier, being 13,500 horsepower, and their speed was
almost a knot faster. Increase in the power of naval guns had made
unnecessary any increase in the thickness of their armor, and
consequently ranged from 6 to 12 inches in thickness. Their armament
was about the same as that of the older class, but each carried
two more torpedo tubes.
[Illustration: GERMAN AND ENGLISH NAVAL POSITIONS]
Discussion in naval circles throughout the world turned then to
the question of whether it were better to build heavier ships with
heavier armament, or to build lighter and faster ships designed
to "hit and get away." The British authorities inclined toward
the former view, and between 1901 and 1904 the British navy was
augmented with the _Implacable, London, Bulwark, Formidable, Venerable,
Queen, Irresistible_, and _Prince of Wales_--each of the heretofore
unheard-of displacement of 15,000 tons.
Pages:
250
251
252
253
254
255
256
257
258
259
260
261
262
263
264
265
266
267
268
269
270
271
272
273
274