Moderator: Community Manager
[Post Reply] [*]  Page 8 of 12  [ 120 posts ]  Go to page « 16 7 8 9 1012 »
Author Message
Garlicdesign
Post subject: Re: ThiariaPosted: October 9th, 2013, 8:43 pm
Offline
User avatar
Posts: 1071
Joined: December 26th, 2012, 9:36 am
Location: Germany
Hello everyone!

Now presenting: Thiarian Cruisers from 1894 through 1908

The Thiarian navy was slow to recover after the defeat in the first Brazilian war. New ships were ordered already from 1894, but none were actually laid down till 1896. From the start, the Thiarians employed domestic yards alongside French and German ones, and by the time of the second Brazilian war, they had achieved complete autonomy and were capable of building the largest ships themselves. When Thiaria unwisely got involved in the Boer war, only one ship of the new cruiser programme was completed, and that one was held back by the French until after the war. In the next six years, they commissioned three scouts, three protected cruisers and two armoured cruisers, all (except one) of which gave successful service against the Brazilians. No losses were suffered during that conflict, and the cruisers continued to serve throughout the first world war, where one armoured cruiser and two scouts were lost.

1. Scouts

1.1. LT Dushlan
[ img ]
The Thiarians were very content with the german-built medium cruiser Fadcheann, and when a requirement for a fast scout cruiser was formulated in 1899, they wasted little time before choosing Schichau's proposal for a near-sister of the Novik then under construction for the Russian navy. This oddly old-fashioned looking ship was laid down early in 1901 and delivered late in 1903. LT Dushlan (Gaelic: Challenge) displaced slightly more than Novik (3.400 tons), carried a more powerful armament (2 140mm and 6 100mm guns) and was equally fast at 25 knots. She was however lightly built and not really suitable for Southern Atlantic climatic conditions, and the Thiarians were neither content with her seakeeping nor with her habitability. Nevertheless, she was assigned to the scouting force of the main battle fleet in the second Brazilian war and took part in both battles without being damaged. At Tranacorr, she evaded several torpedoes and shot up a Brazilian torpedo boat; she also delivered the coup de grace for the crippled enemy flagship Amazonas. In the first world war, she initially belonged to the reserve and training squadron, which started to hunt for enemy convoys after the first line fleet had been battered in the battle of Tristan da Cunha. She participated in four sorties in 1916 and 1917 before she accompanied the armoured cruiser Cuitheamh on a mission to destroy British installations on St.Helena in order to force the British to spread out their forces more widely. They encountered HM Submarine G4 on the return leg, which fired for torpedoes, one of which tore off Dushlan's bow. Then the British armoured cruisers Achilles and Duke of Edinburgh appeared, and the Thiarians decided to scuttle the Dushlan in order to enable Cuiteamh to escape.

1.2. Pioraid-class
This very successful class eliminated Dushlan's weaknesses and retained all her advantages. They displaced 3.600 tons, were good for 25 knots and carried ten modern 100mm guns with high rates of fire. They also were good sea boats and displayed excellent stability. Both were built on domestic yards and were considered mechanically very reliable. Between 1916 and 1917, the first ship was refitted with 4 140mm guns and 5 75mm HA guns; the hull torpedo tubes were removed and triple 457mm deck TTs were added. The second ship was not rebuilt due to war requirements.

1.2.1. LT Tainiu an Sceimh
[ img ]
[ img ]
Laid down at the Riordan yard at Cathair Riordan late in 1904, the Tainiu an Sceimh ('Tainiu the Ghost', named after the famous Thiarian corsair Tainiu Muillchoinn who fought the English during the independence war 1808 - 1816; that fame however resulted not from any actual successes but rather from the fact she was female) commissioned a few months before the second Brazilian war early in 1907 and served with the scouting group of the main battle fleet. Due to her still green crew, Tainiu fired very many shells but failed to hit anything; at Tranacorr, she was hit several times by the Brazilian cruiser Almirante Vidal (herself named for the winner of the battle of Gaofar) and suffered 60 casualties. After her repairs, she took part on a round-the-world voyage with her sister and the new armoured cruisers Siocair and Dibheirg in 1912 before docking for refit in February 1916. She missed the first year of the first world war and was assigned to the main battle fleet when she recommissioned in May 1917. At Caitriona, she scored hits on the Brazilian cruisers Rio Grande do Sul and 25 de Mayo (an american-built fast scout cruiser) and was hit herself 9 times; Rio Grande do Sul was later finished off by two newer Thiarian Turbine scouts. At Craigmiadh, she and her sister trailed the main fleet and had a head start when the fleet executed a battle turn to escape the English trap; she escaped unharmed and survived the war. Afterwards, she remained in service till 1933, mostly as a training ship, and her hulk survived as a minesweeper depot ship till 1941, when she was scrapped.

1.2.2. LT Cormac Blaosc
[ img ]
Named for the corsair Cormac O Donaill, called An Blaosc (Gaelic: Skull), who performed some spectacular raids against British shipping in French service during the revolutionary wars, then joined Conaire's resistance fighters and retired as one of Thiaria's richest landowners in 1816, the Cormac Blaosc was laid down at the CTS (Gaelic: Comhlacht na Thiarann Saorloingeocht, Thiarian Shipbuilding Company) yard at Abersiorrad in October 1903, but needed till March 1808 to complete; at that time the action in the second Brazilian war was all but over. During the first world war, she took part in the Battle of Tristan da Cunha and scored five hits on the British scout cruiser HMS Active, which was heavily damaged; she was herself hit by a dozen 102mm shells. After repairs, she remained with the main battle fleet and fought at Caitriona, where she again dealt as much damage as she received without sinking anyone. Her luck ran out at Craigmiadh where she was set ablaze by two 305mm shells from HMS Australia and several 152mm and 102mm hits from HMS Newcastle during the breakthrough of the Thiarian fleet past the allied battlecruiser force.

2. Protected Cruisers

2.1. LT Dicheall
[ img ]
An obvious half-sister to the French D'Entrecasteaux, the Dicheall (Gaelic: Utmost Effort) was laid down at La Seyne in February 1896, completed in June 1900 and delivered in October 1901. At 9.100 tons load displacement, she was beamier and heavier than D'entrecasteaux, and instead of the former's exaggerated plough bow, she had a curved stem without a ram, making her a much better sea boat. Although she had Niclausse watertube boilers and half again the engine power, she was only half a knot faster at 20 knots. Range was however considerably better (10.000 nm at 10 kts). The ship carried 2 240mm and 12 140mm guns, but she was considered poorly ventilated and had substandard habitability. She also featured the rather grave design fault of steam pipes running right adjacent of the 140mm magazines which made them extremely hot. Although that problem was well known since the initial trials phase and cooling gear was installed in 1903 before the ship was finally commissioned, Dicheall suffered the gruesome fate of being ripped apart in a magazine explosion and sinking with 394 casualties on a hot summer day in January 1907 on the Noyalo anchorage.

2.2. Spleodar-class
This class was remarkable as being the first major ship class built entirely in Thiaria (the two tiny Contuirt-class scouts, little more than upscaled torpedo gunboats, did not really count). They were a pretty conventional 5.000-ton protected cruiser design of the kind which was built on the Tyne by the dozens for the British and foreign navies. They were however relatively thoroughly constructed and proved to be reliable steamers and good sea boats with comfortable quarters. With their long quarterdeck without a poop they had a distinctly modern look; their funnel arrangement of two forward, one aft had already become a trademark of Thiarian cruiser design. They carried a well-disposed armament of 8 165mm guns on a 5.300 ton hull, were good for 21 knots and had a range of 8.000 nm at 10 knots. Both were rearmed with 10 high-velocity 140mm guns and contemporary fire control gear between 1914 and 1916 and served through the first world war and into the early thirties.

2.2.1. LT Fulaingt
[ img ]
The Fulaingt (Gaelic: Endurance) was laid down at the CSCA yard in 1898 and commissioned in November 1902. She was intensely employed to show Thiaria's flag between 1903 and 1907 and was part of the main battle fleet in the second Brazilian war. She was damaged by a 240mm shell from the Brazilian coast-defence ironclad Floriano off Naomh Seoirse, but quickly repaired and also participated in the Battle of Tranacorr. After her rearmament, she was employed as a trade raider in the initial phase of Thiaria's involvement in the first world war and captured two small, poorly protected British convoys of five and six ships, respectively, sinking a sloop and a gunboat in the process. After a close encounter with HMS Roxburgh in January 1917, she spent eight months with repairs. Afterwards, she was set upon Brazilian coastal shipping and destroyed a dozen (mostly small) Brazilian steamers together with her sister Spleodar. While guarding a supply convoy between Thiaria proper and New Portugal she managed to ram and sink HM Submarine E33 in March 1918. After the war, she was kept in service till 1929, because most turbine cruisers had to be surrendered to the allies. At that time, she was still good for 18 kts. She was scrapped in 1932 and her name was re-assigned to a new light cruiser.

2.2.2. LT Spleodar
[ img ]
Laid down at the Nuatearman Naval yard in 1899, LT Spleodar (Gaelic: Zeal) commissioned in April 1903. She was considered the class ship although laid down and completed later than her sister, because both had been orderes at the same day. During the second Brazilian war, she destroyed the Brazilian torpedo gunboat Tupy off Naomh Seoirse and the protected Cruiser Almirante Abreu at Tranacorr; she was considered a crack ship afterwards and repeatedly became gunnery champion of the Thiarian fleet between 1908 and 1914. Rearmed 1914/15, she was employed as a trade raider in the first world war, but failed to locate any prey until January 1917 when she ran into a convoy protected by the armoured cruiser HMS King Alfred. Spleodar engaged the huge British cruiser and hit her eleven times, but broke off after suffering a 234mm hit amidships and retreated; the British commander feared that Spleodar might only be a decoy trying to lure his big cruiser away from the convoy and let her escape. After the Battle of Tristan da Cunha, she joined the reserve squadron and participated in three sorties; she was present when LT Bunreacht was sunk by HMS Warspite, but escaped again. After the Brazilians had joined the war, Spleodar raided Brazilian coastal shipping, later joined by her sister Fulaingt; Spleodar alone captured or destroyed 17 merchants. During 1918, she saw little action, and she remained in service till 1930. After she was scrapped in 1934, her name was reassigned to a new light cruiser.

3. Armoured Cruisers

3.1. Urgharda-class
Thiaria engaged relatively late in the construction of armoured cruisers. When these ships were authorized in 1900, the Thiarians initially wanted an upscaled version of the French Desaix-class with more powerful armament; the final design was the same size as the French Gambetta-class at 12.700 tons. With a top speed of 23 knots, a 165mm KC belt and an armament of 8 195mm guns of a very powerful high-velocity model firing a 115kg shell (equal to any foreign 203mm gun), they ranked among the best and most balanced armoured cruisers of their time; their only true weakness was their ponderous silhouette with a massive superstructure and four huge funnels which made them rather easy to hit. They were refitted with modern fire control gear and a flak battery of 4 65mm guns in 1916. Urgharda was the last Thiarian cruiser to be built on a foreign yard.

3.1.1. LT Urgharda
[ img ]
[ img ]
LT Urgharda (Gaelic: Vanguard) was laid down at FCM in La Seyne in April 1903 and completed in December 1906; like many french-built ships for Thiaria, she was built faster than comparable vessels for France's own navy. During the second Brazilian war, she served as flagship of Thiaria's scouting fleet and destroyed the Brazilian protected cruiser Almirante Barrozo at Tranacorr. In the first world war, she was assigned to the reserve squadron, which was activated after the Battle of Tristan da Cunha. Urgharda took part in the most successful convoy intercept mission in November 1917 and sunk first the escorting armoured cruiser HMS Kent and then 5 merchants. Three sorties later, she destroyed the large protected cruiser HMS Powerful in March 1917 together with her sister Cuiteamh; HMS Powerful however gave them such a fight that Urgharda had to retreat with medium damage, and the British convoy managed to scatter. After the Brazilians had joined the war, Urgharda raided the Brazilian coast and shelled several small ports, ultimately coaxing the Brazilians into attacking New Portugal where they met their fate at Caitriona (Urgharda was not present during that battle). During 1918, Urgharda was employed as a gunnery TS as she was considered no longer up-to-date enough to operate with the main fleet. Under peace conditions, she had to be scrapped, which was done in 1922.

3.1.2. LT Cuiteamh
[ img ]
[ img ]
LT Cuiteamh (Gaelic: Retribution) was laid down at the Abernenui naval yard in June 1904 and commissioned in December 1907; she saw no action during the rest of the second Brazilian war. She differed from her sister in the design of her main turrets, in having steam cranes rather than derricks and in carrying less 65mm guns (12 instead of 20). Together with the newer armoured cruiser LT Dibheirg, Cuiteamh made a world cruise in 1912, visiting Buenos Aires, Valparaiso, Quito, Panama, San Francisco, Honolulu, Kobe, Shanghai, Saigon, Batavia, Goa, Mogadishu, Suez, Constantinople, Pola, Venice, Toulon, Cadiz, Brest, Rotterdam, Wilhelmshaven, Copenhagen, Kronshtadt, Stockholm, Reykjavik, New York, and Vera Cruz. During the first world war, her operations mirrored those of her sister; both operated as a team till Cuiteamh's loss. In March 1917, Cuiteamh did the lion's share of work to sink HMS Powerful together with her sister-ship. One month later, the next convoy raid went badly awry when the Thiarian fleet encountered HMS Warspite. Cuiteamh blew up in the initial phase of that battle after a 381mm shell exploded in her forward 195mm magazine.


To come: Thiarian cruisers 1909 through 1918

Greetings
GD


Top
[Profile] [Quote]
Rurik-2
Post subject: Re: ThiariaPosted: October 9th, 2013, 8:54 pm
Offline
User avatar
Posts: 598
Joined: February 22nd, 2011, 10:41 am
Location: Dnipro, Ukraine
waritem
Garlicdesign
=======
I get it. Thank you.

_________________
My Worklist:
ALT Ukrainian Navy: Reboot


Top
[Profile] [Quote]
eltf177
Post subject: Re: ThiariaPosted: October 10th, 2013, 9:33 am
Offline
Posts: 503
Joined: July 29th, 2010, 5:03 pm
These are nice, looking forward to the next group! :D


Top
[Profile] [Quote]
Hood
Post subject: Re: ThiariaPosted: October 10th, 2013, 10:36 am
Offline
Posts: 7232
Joined: July 31st, 2010, 10:07 am
Splendiferous work!

_________________
Hood's Worklist
English Electric Canberra FD
Interwar RN Capital Ships
Super-Darings
Never-Were British Aircraft


Top
[Profile] [Quote]
eswube
Post subject: Re: ThiariaPosted: October 10th, 2013, 4:49 pm
Offline
Posts: 10696
Joined: June 15th, 2011, 8:31 am
Awesome additions, keep it up! :)


Top
[Profile] [Quote]
Garlicdesign
Post subject: Re: ThiariaPosted: November 19th, 2013, 10:24 pm
Offline
User avatar
Posts: 1071
Joined: December 26th, 2012, 9:36 am
Location: Germany
Hello everyone!

Now presenting: Thiarian cruisers 1908 - 1918

This post wraps up the Thiarian cruisers of the first world war era. The victory over Brazil and the conquest of resource-rich Nua Phortangheil (New Portugal) in 1908 had rendered Thiaria the single most powerful nation in South America and second only to the USA in the entire western Hemisphere. With the Navy's prestige at its all-time high, for the next ten years it needed only ask and received pretty much anything it wanted; as Brazil was rearming her fleet rather frantically too with copious British financial assistance, Thiaria's naval budget between 1908 and 1918 bordered on the obscene. In addition to the four super dreadnoughts laid down 1911 and 1912, Thiaria ordered two armoured cruisers with turbine machinery in 1907 and 1908, two light turbine cruisers each in 1909 and 1910, one very large battlecruiser each in 1913 and 1914 and two large light cruisers each in 1915 and 1916. In addition, two fast turbine scouts ordered by Turkey in 1914 were requisitioned in 1916. Of these ships, one battlecruiser and two light cruisers remained uncomplete in November 1918; the two 1915 light cruisers were finished when the war ended, but not yet operational. During the war, both armoured cruisers and three light cruisers were lost; the other battlecruiser and four of the five surviving light cruisers were surrendered to the Entente powers. Two unfinished light cruiser hulls and an unfinished battlecruiser hull remained in Thiaria's possession; the cruisers were completed during the 1920s to much altered designs, and the battlecruiser, after twelve most inglorious years as a floating oil depot, was completed between 1930 and 1934 as a large fleet aircraft carrier.

1. Scouts and light cruisers

1.1. Teanntas-class
These two handsome 4.000-ton cruisers were thoroughly modern when designed in 1909. They were fitted with turbine engines (imported three-shaft Curtis-turbines from the USA for Fuaimint, which worked satisfactorily, and license-produced two-shaft swiss Zoelly units for Teanntas, which did not) for a top speed of 27 knots and a main battery of uniform caliber (six 140mm guns). They were built in little over two years and handsomely countered the contemporary Brazilian Bahia-class. In service, they proved fast and fair sea-boats, although their motions were a little too lively to be really good gunnery platforms; like all Thiarian ships, they had good range and excellent accomodation.

1.1.1. LT Teanntas
[ img ]
[ img ]
LT Teanntas (Gaelic: Audacity) was built by the CTS yard and commissioned in July 1912. She was hampered throughout her service life by her unreliable engines, which kept breaking down for no good reason; she missed the battle of Tristan da Cunha due to a major turbine failure and the battle of Craigmiadh due to leaky boilers and spent 14 of the 30 war months under refit or repair. Her greatest hour came with the battle of Caitriona, where she was involved in the sinking of the Brazilian scout Rio Grande do Sul together with the newer LT Ardcheim (in fact, she only delivered the coup de grace, but claimed the kill nonetheless). She was herself heavily damaged by a 305mm shell from the Minas Gerais and comprehensively rebuilt afterwards with a high tripod forward which carried a director FCS, but quite ruined her lines. After the rebuild, she saw little service, as her engines put her into dock three more times. She was nonoperational at the armistice and remained in Thiarian possession. She was completely re-engined from 1923 to 1925 and served as a first-line cruiser till 1933 and as a TS afterwards. She was sunk by HM submarine Otus in November 1943 while on convoy escort duty.

1.1.2. LT Fuaimint
[ img ]
LT Fuaimint (Gaelic:Vigour) was by far the more satisfactory vessel of her class; she also was built faster by the Riordan Yard and commissioned in late 1911. She accompanied the armoured cruisers Dibheirg and Cuiteamh on their round-the-world voyage in 1912. In 1916, she took part in the battle of Tristan da Cunha and scored hits on both HMS Liverpool and HMS Newcastle without suffering any substantial damage herself. A few weeks later she was torpedoed twice by HM Submarine G2 and capsized and went down with all hands.

1.2. Ardcheim-class
A much improved and enlarged 4.800-ton-development of the Teanntas-class, the Ardcheim-class was Thiaria's direct answer to the Royal Navy's Falmouth-class. They repeated all favourable features of the Teanntas-class, including high speed (27 knots), good seakeeping, long range, fine accomodation and a powerful battery of unified calibre, eight 140mm guns in her case. Ardcheim had imported Curtis-Turbines and Cinseal license-produced ones; both worked reliably. Despite the lack of vertical armour, both ships proved very resilient to battle damage; Cinseal once survived a direct hit from a 381mm shell. These ships were the mainstay of Thiaria's scouting force throughout the war and were held in very high regard.

1.2.1. LT Ardcheim
[ img ]
LT Ardcheim (Gaelic: Uprightness) was built by the Nuatearman Naval Yard. She commissioned early in 1914 and spent her first two years on patrol duty. She collected valuable intelligence about British shipping routes and escort movements, frequently shadowing British forces for days. She took part in all major engagements of the war; unlike her sister, which was frequently damaged, Ardcheim mostly escaped serious damage. At Caitriona, she reduced the Brazilian scout Rio Grande do Sul to a wreck and dealt crippling damage to the larger light cruiser 9 de Julio, which was later finished off by Thiarian destroyers. Immediately afterwards, she received a major refit, which included a tripod foremast with director fire control, a flak outfit and a rather extravagant camouflage scheme. During a brief cruiser engagement in the middle of the southern Atlantic in February 1918, she set HMS Gloucester ablaze. She remained undamaged at Craigmiadh and scored eight hits on HMAS Melbourne before escaping. After the armistice, she became a Brazilian prize. Although she would have been a valuable addition to brazil's fleet, she was expended as a target in live-fire trials during 1924.

1.2.2. LT Cinseal
[ img ]
LT Cinseal (Gaelic: Pride) was built by the Abernenui Naval Yard and spent the war mostly together with her sister, except when she was under repair. She was hit by a 381mm shell from HMS Valiant at Tristan da Cunha, suffered 80 casualties and barely made it home. She was then repaired and received the same refit that would be given to Ardcheim a few months later. She was back in time for the Battle of Caitriona and damaged the Brazilian cruiser 25 de Mayo, which however managed to escape. Shortly before her sister destroyed HMS Gloucester, she was damaged by a Brazilian mine and had to undergo five months of repairs; she was ready just in time for the battle of Craigmiadh, where she valiantly placed herself between the crippled armoured cruiser LT Dibheirg and a British force of two battlecruisers (HMAS Australia and HMNZS New Zealand) and one light cruiser (HMAS Melbourne), who blew her to kingdom come with 5 305mm hits, 7 152mm hits and about 50 102mm hits. Despite Cinseal's sacrifice, the British eventually finished off the Dibheirg as well, but thanks to the stubborn Thiarian resistance this took them unreasonably long, giving the rest of the Thiarian formation (battlecruiser Aigean and light cruisers Ardcheim and Fuaimint) enough time not only to dash past two US battlecruisers, but also to sink one of them. Of Cinseal's complement, only 55 survived, which were treated very well by the Australians.

1.3. Tiopraid (ex-Turkish Malazgirt) -class
[ img ]
These 3.600ton-vessels were ordered by the Ottoman Empire in 1914 from Thiarian private yards when it had become clear that the two scouts they had ordered in Great Britain earlier that year would not be built. Due to Turkey's entrance in the first world war, it was equally unlikely they could lay their hands on these ships as well during the hostilities; Thiaria however granted them benign conditions, with the afterthought of acquiring both themselves, which they eventually did in the spring of 1917. They were Thiaria's first light cruisers with vertical armour protection, and at 30 knots were briefly the world's fastest operational cruisers. Originally, they were designed for two 140mm and eight 100mm guns, but both were completed with four 140mm guns. They differed in their torpedo battery; Sean an Dearg still had 450mm torpedoes, but Tiopraid the new 559mm ones. Despite deficiencies in sea-keeping, range and accomodation compared to the earlier larger Thiarian light cruisers, both ships were reliable and popular.

1.3.1. LT Tiopraid
[ img ]
LT Tiporaid (named after the early 19th century Thiarian corsair Liam O Tiporaid, who was one of Conaire's best captains with an impressive prize list; he later joined the French Pirate Jean Lafitte in his fight against the British) was built by the Riordan yard and commissioned in August 1917, just before the battle of Caitriona. She took part in that battle, but achieved nothing due to her still green crew. She later teamed up with the battlecruiser Aigean and assisted the Thiarian fleet's breakthrough at Craigmiadh, where she was lightly damaged. After the war, she was surrendered to the USA and used for experiments; she was scrapped in 1925.

1.3.2. LT Sean an Dearg
[ img ]
LT Sean an Dearg (named after the 18th entury Thiarian corsair Sean Roinan, called Sean an Dearg (Red John) by his crew; he fought for France during the seven years war, was ennobled after the war and enjoyed a life of luxury till he fell victim of the Reign of Terror and was guillotined at age 80 in 1793) commissioned in November 1917 after being built by the Boldisaire yard, a small company without experience in building large ships. For all that, the ship turned out very well, only to become Thiaria's most infamous cruiser. During her first combat sortie in February 1918, she was the site of the only significant war crime committed by Thiarian forces during the first world war after she rescued 110 survivors from HMS Gloucester (previously sunk by LT Ardcheim). Due to reports that HMS Gloucester had shelled Galway during the Easter uprising with several dozen casualties (in fact, only a sloop had fired a few rounds and not hit anything), Sean an Dearg's CO held a brief court-martial over the four surviving British officers and had them hanged from his cruiser's yardarms. He was hailed by Thiarian media as a hero and thus kept his command although having overstepped his authority rather badly. A few months later, the cruiser was severely damaged by British cruisers at the battle of Craigmiadh while accompanying the main battle fleet; crippled and burning, she was scuttled to avoid capture. Her officers chose to go down with their ship, thus avoiding certain death by hanging if captured by the British. 291 of her crew were rescued by the British and handled very roughly, in stark contrast to the good treatment of Cinseal's survivors by the Australians aboard HMAS Melbourne.

1.4. Calloid-class
[ img ]
The final Thiarian light cruiser design was prepared in 1915 in response to the latest Town-class variants with 9 152mm guns and vertical armour; since the Thiarians could not hope to match British numbers, their new cruisers were designed not only to outgun, but also to outrun them. Specifications asked for 12 140mm guns and 30 knots speed on a 6.000-ton hull with at least 60mm vertical armour. This was of course unrealistic; the final design was 6.450 tons, had two 140mm guns less and was only good for 28 knots. Side armour however was increased to 80mm and a powerful battery of four 559mm twin torpedo sets and 5 75mm HA guns were added. Four units were ordered in 1915; two were laid down immediately and two more in 1916. One each year was ordered from a navy yard and the other from a private yard. Names and yards were: LT Calloid (Tumult), laid down 1915 at the CTS yard; LT Diograis (Ardour), laid down 1915 at Nuatearman Naval Yard; LT Cathgangaid (Warspite), laid down 1916 at the CSCA yard; and LT Mioscais (Defiance), laid down 1916 at Abernenui Naval Yard. The navy yard ships received unlicensed copies of Parsons turbines, the private yard units the standard license-produced Curtis turbines; all had three shafts. Due to their narrow-tube boilers, they got along with three rather small funnels, with the distinctive gap between the second and the third that had become a trademark of Thiarian ships. They were handsome vessels with a rather extensive superstructure, foreshadowing the upcoming 1920s cruiser design (and looking a lot like the contemporary British E-class as well, whose design was a direct result of intelligence reports about the original specification of the Calloids).Despite the size and complexity of the ships, construction proceeded quickly, and by November 1918, the first two were completed, with Calloid commissioned in September and Diograis still undergoing acceptance trials. The other two were launched during 1918, but fitting-out was still in its first beginnings at the time of the armistice. Calloid became a British prize and Diograis a French one. The British scrapped Calloid rather unceremoniously in 1923, but the French commissioned her as the Nancy and kept her in service till 1937. Nancy was still afloat in 1940 and recommissioned for the French Navy; she made it to Britain and became a part of the FNFL in 1942, although she was not in any shape to be actively employed against her erstwhile builders. After serving as a TS, she was scuttled as part of a mulberry port in Normandy in 1944. The two unfinished ships remained in Thiaria and were completed to a totally revised design with 8 155mm guns in twin turrets, a lengthened stern and new engines for 31 knots of speed.



2. Armoured cruisers and battlecruisers

2.1. Siocair-class
Thiaria's final armoured cruisers belong to the transitional era between the last pre-dreadnoughts and the first dreadnoughts. They were powerful and fast ships with 8 240mm and 8 140mm guns, which comfortably outgunned every British armoured cruiser design and - at 25 knots - were also faster than practically all their contemporaries, with the sole exception of the German Blücher. Both were designed for competitive machinery; Siocair with her four funnels received the second most powerful VTE plant ever installed in a major warship, fed by no less than 48 French style Belleville boilers, whilst the three-funnelled Dibheirg had imported Curtis turbines and fewer, but more advanced US style Babcock boilers. Whilst Siocair was a fast, reliable and economical steamer, Dibheirg was a fuel hog which frequently broke down. With a vertical protection of 195mm and matching deck armour, they were very heavily protected (more so than many early battlecruisers), leading Thiarian admirals to the conclusion that they could hold their own against battlecruisers, an idea that was proven false by the guns of HMAS Australia at Craigmiadh rather cruelly. For all their excellence, the Siocair-class were luckless ships who did not achieve much and both were lost during the war.

2.1.1. LT Siocair
[ img ]
LT Siocair (Gaelic: Just Cause) was ordered from the CSCA private yard - during the entire WWI period Thiaria's finest shipbuilders - in 1907 shortly after the Brazilian war had commenced and laid down within weeks of placing the order. She was finished within less than three years and commissioned in late 1910 as flagship of the scouting squadron. After six years of peacetime service, she joined the main battlefleet in 1916 and took part in the battle of Tristan da Cunha where she escaped unharmed, but also achieved nothing at all. A few months later in December 1916, she was torpedoed and sunk by three torpedoes of HMS J4, becoming the largest Thiarian ship to fall prey to an enemy submarine during the war.

2.1.2. LT Dibheirg
[ img ]
LT Dibheirg (Gaelic: Revenge) was ordered from the Abernenui Naval yard at the same time as her sister, but - being Thiaria's first large warship with turbine propulsion - took a year and a half longer to complete. She travelled round the world together with the older Cuiteamh in 1912 and replaced her sister as flagship of the scouting squadron after her engines had been repaired in 1913. She was badly damaged at Tristan da Cunha and only barely made it back; during the repairs that followed, she received a heavy tripod mast and a powerful flak battery. At Caitriona, she fired at the Brazilian flagship Amazonas together with two super-dreadnoughts, hitting her target 10 times and yet making no difference. Although she was clearly of limited value among a fleet of super-dreadnoughts, she remained with the main battle fleet and took part in the battle of Craigmiadh as well, where she was shot up by HMAS Australia (13 hits) and HMNZS New Zealand (4 hits). 170 of her crew survived.

2.2. Aigean-class: LT Aigean
[ img ]
After construction of the Conaire-class super-dreadnoughts was well under way, the Thiarian admiralty requested the construction of two battlecruisers under the 1913 programme. The navy's design department looked at the most advanced foreign types - HMS Tiger, SMS Derfflinger, USS America and the Japanese Kongo-class - and created a 33.000-ton behemoth with 9 340mm Schneider-pattern guns in three triple turrets. They incorporated anything that was good - and bad - in Thiarian ship design. Typically, superfiring turrets forward were ruled out because of concerns over topweight and stability and the battery was concentrated aft, which was quite anachronistic since it had already been proven that superfiring turrets were no risk to the stability of a 30.000 ton hull. On the other hand, armour protection was formidable (second only to the German Derfflinger), seakeeping was excellent, accomodation was fine and range was outstanding. Cost and complexity of these ships had reached such extremes that even the Thiarian Oireachtas, which had little scruples concerning naval spending, only one ship each was voted in 1913 and 1914. The class ship was laid down early in 1914 at CSCA's, the second ship late that year at the Abernenui Naval yard. The first ship received license-built Curtis turbines, who were of much improved reliability than the early ones used for the Conaire-class, the second one unlicensed domestic copies of Parsons turbines; otherwise, there were few differences. During the war, massive repair requirements curtailed the availability of resources for these big ships, and building went along slower than usual; this was especially true in case of the second ship because the navy yards drew all the repair jobs for the frequently damaged capital ships of the fleet. The first ship was launched shortly before Thiaria entered the war and named LT Aigean (Ocean); fitting out took another 20 months, and she was commissioned in April 1918 after the crack crew of the old armoured cruiser Urgharda had been transferred to the new battlecruiser to speed up full readiness; for a few precious months in 1918, Thiaria possessed the largest and most powerful battlecruiser worldwide. The other ship was launched as late as January 1918 and named LT Antartach (Antarctic), but fitting-out never really got underway. Aigean played a prominent part in the battle of Craigmiadh, where she entered herself into the very short list of capital ships who claimed the destruction of two others of their kind. Leading the Thiarian fleet into the slightly too elaborate trap set for them by the British, Aigean blanketed HMS Colossus with several incredibly precise salvoes of 340mm shells from 16.000 meters out and reduced her to a sinking condition before using her superior speed to escape. When a squadron of two US and two British battlecruisers tried to close the trap, Aigean and her cruiser escorts outran them with a 30-knot dash, firing her aft turrets at USS United States all the time and hitting her no less than 19 times, resulting in her loss after two days of frantic attempts to bring her in. Aigean herself was heavily damaged by 14 356mm shells, but escaped and was repaired with maximum priority till October 1918. After the war, Aigean became a Biritish prize and was thoroughly picked apart in a comprehensive series of experiments, revealing that the Thiarians had done many things right the first time which the British had not quite mastered even with their final battlecruiser HMS Hood.

For those who care: Here are her SpringSharp stats:

Displacement:
29.742 t light; 31.250 t standard; 33.070 t normal; 34.525 t full load

Dimensions: Length (overall / waterline) x beam x draught (normal/deep)
(725,10 ft / 715,22 ft) x 96,78 ft x (30,51 / 31,57 ft)
(221,01 m / 218,00 m) x 29,50 m x (9,30 / 9,62 m)

Armament:
9 - 13,50" / 343 mm 45,0 cal guns - 1.322,77lbs / 600,00kg shells, 100 per gun
Breech loading guns in turret on barbette mounts, 1915 Model
3 x Triple mounts on centreline ends, majority aft
1 raised mount aft - superfiring
12 - 5,51" / 140 mm 55,0 cal guns - 90,37lbs / 40,99kg shells, 250 per gun
Breech loading guns in casemate mounts, 1915 Model
12 x Single mounts on sides, evenly spread
12 hull mounts in casemates- Limited use in heavy seas
8 - 3,94" / 100 mm 45,0 cal guns - 30,78lbs / 13,96kg shells, 250 per gun
Anti-air guns in deck mounts, 1915 Model
8 x Single mounts on sides, evenly spread
Weight of broadside 13.236 lbs / 6.004 kg
Main Torpedoes
2 - 22,0" / 559 mm, 26,25 ft / 8,00 m torpedoes - 1,805 t each, 3,610 t total
submerged side tubes

Armour:
- Belts: Width (max) Length (avg) Height (avg)
Main: 11,6" / 295 mm 451,51 ft / 137,62 m 11,71 ft / 3,57 m
Ends: 5,51" / 140 mm 263,68 ft / 80,37 m 11,71 ft / 3,57 m
Upper: 5,51" / 140 mm 451,51 ft / 137,62 m 8,01 ft / 2,44 m
Main Belt covers 97% of normal length

- Torpedo Bulkhead - Strengthened structural bulkheads:
1,97" / 50 mm 451,51 ft / 137,62 m 27,99 ft / 8,53 m
Beam between torpedo bulkheads 72,18 ft / 22,00 m

- Gun armour: Face (max) Other gunhouse (avg) Barbette/hoist (max)
Main: 13,6" / 345 mm 8,27" / 210 mm 12,4" / 315 mm
2nd: 5,51" / 140 mm 2,76" / 70 mm 2,76" / 70 mm
3rd: 1,57" / 40 mm - -

- Armoured deck - multiple decks:
For and Aft decks: 5,71" / 145 mm
Forecastle: 1,97" / 50 mm Quarter deck: 3,94" / 100 mm

- Conning towers: Forward 13,58" / 345 mm, Aft 12,40" / 315 mm

Machinery:
Coal and oil fired boilers, steam turbines,
Direct drive, 4 shafts, 102.325 shp / 76.334 Kw = 28,00 kts
Range 7.000nm at 12,00 kts
Bunker at max displacement = 3.275 tons (50% coal)

Complement:
1.225 - 1.593

Cost:
£3,966 million / $15,864 million

Distribution of weights at normal displacement:
Armament: 2.172 tons, 6,6%
- Guns: 2.164 tons, 6,5%
- Weapons: 7 tons, 0,0%
Armour: 12.407 tons, 37,5%
- Belts: 4.106 tons, 12,4%
- Torpedo bulkhead: 920 tons, 2,8%
- Armament: 2.238 tons, 6,8%
- Armour Deck: 4.566 tons, 13,8%
- Conning Towers: 577 tons, 1,7%
Machinery: 4.061 tons, 12,3%
Hull, fittings & equipment: 11.103 tons, 33,6%
Fuel, ammunition & stores: 3.327 tons, 10,1%
Miscellaneous weights: 0 tons, 0,0%

Overall survivability and seakeeping ability:
Survivability (Non-critical penetrating hits needed to sink ship):
46.746 lbs / 21.204 Kg = 38,0 x 13,5 " / 343 mm shells or 5,2 torpedoes
Stability (Unstable if below 1.00): 1,10
Metacentric height 5,7 ft / 1,7 m
Roll period: 17,0 seconds
Steadiness - As gun platform (Average = 50 %): 71 %
- Recoil effect (Restricted arc if above 1.00): 0,72
Seaboat quality (Average = 1.00): 1,22

Hull form characteristics:
Hull has rise forward of midbreak,
a normal bow and a cruiser stern
Block coefficient (normal/deep): 0,548 / 0,553
Length to Beam Ratio: 7,39 : 1
'Natural speed' for length: 26,74 kts
Power going to wave formation at top speed: 50 %
Trim (Max stability = 0, Max steadiness = 100): 58
Bow angle (Positive = bow angles forward): 20,00 degrees
Stern overhang: 0,33 ft / 0,10 m
Freeboard (% = length of deck as a percentage of waterline length):
Fore end, Aft end
- Forecastle: 23,00%, 26,25 ft / 8,00 m, 24,28 ft / 7,40 m
- Forward deck: 45,00%, 24,28 ft / 7,40 m, 24,28 ft / 7,40 m
- Aft deck: 14,00%, 16,40 ft / 5,00 m, 16,40 ft / 5,00 m
- Quarter deck: 18,00%, 16,40 ft / 5,00 m, 17,06 ft / 5,20 m
- Average freeboard: 22,00 ft / 6,71 m
Ship tends to be wet forward

Ship space, strength and comments:
Space - Hull below water (magazines/engines, low = better): 96,0%
- Above water (accommodation/working, high = better): 168,0%
Waterplane Area: 48.219 Square feet or 4.480 Square metres
Displacement factor (Displacement / loading): 106%
Structure weight / hull surface area: 186 lbs/sq ft or 909 Kg/sq metre
Hull strength (Relative):
- Cross-sectional: 0,96
- Longitudinal: 1,38
- Overall: 1,00
Adequate machinery, storage, compartmentation space
Excellent accommodation and workspace room
Ship has slow, easy roll, a good, steady gun platform
Good seaboat, rides out heavy weather easily

Greetings
GD


Last edited by Garlicdesign on November 22nd, 2013, 7:56 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Top
[Profile] [Quote]
Biancini1995
Post subject: Re: ThiariaPosted: November 19th, 2013, 10:28 pm
Offline
User avatar
Posts: 744
Joined: August 19th, 2011, 7:54 pm
Wow wow very nice ship Garlic

_________________
Verusea Alternative Universe is starting to build up.


Top
[Profile] [Quote]
KHT
Post subject: Re: ThiariaPosted: November 19th, 2013, 10:35 pm
Offline
User avatar
Posts: 1396
Joined: November 19th, 2011, 12:49 pm
Ooooh.... Aaaah.
I must say, I really like your AU drawings.


Top
[Profile] [Quote]
BB1987
Post subject: Re: ThiariaPosted: November 19th, 2013, 10:55 pm
Offline
User avatar
Posts: 2818
Joined: May 23rd, 2012, 1:01 pm
Location: Rome - Italy
Truly amazing.

_________________
My Worklist
Sources and documentations are the most welcome.

-Koko Kyouwakoku (Republic of Koko)
-Koko's carrier-based aircrafts of WWII
-Koko Kaiun Yuso Kaisha - KoKaYu Line (Koko AU spinoff)
-Koko - Civil Aviation


Top
[Profile] [Quote]
Hood
Post subject: Re: ThiariaPosted: November 20th, 2013, 11:18 am
Offline
Posts: 7232
Joined: July 31st, 2010, 10:07 am
Outstanding work with excellent drawings and backstories! I can't wait to see more of this Navy filled out. This is one of the best AUs at the moment.

_________________
Hood's Worklist
English Electric Canberra FD
Interwar RN Capital Ships
Super-Darings
Never-Were British Aircraft


Top
[Profile] [Quote]
Display: Sort by: Direction:
[Post Reply]  Page 8 of 12  [ 120 posts ]  Return to “Alternate Universe Designs” | Go to page « 16 7 8 9 1012 »

Jump to: 

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 0 guests


The team | Delete all board cookies | All times are UTC


Powered by phpBB® Forum Software © phpBB Limited
[ GZIP: Off ]