HMS Resolution (1892)

HMS "Resolution" was a "Royal Sovereign"-class predreadnought battleship of the Royal Navy.

Technical Characteristics

"Resolution" was laid down by Palmers on 14 June 1890, launched on 28 May 1892, and completed in November 1893. [Burt, p. 63] . She was convert|410|ft|m long and had a maximum cruising speed of convert|17|kn|km/h. Her armament included four 67-ton 13.5-inch (343-mm) guns and several smaller calibre guns.

s. [Burt, p. 66] The secondary armament was designed to provide potent, quick firing support for the main battery. Despite their greatly increased weight, thanks to a main armour belt which ran for two thirds of their length, they were the fastest capital ships in the world in their time.

In 1906, the "Royal Sovereigns", like every other battleship in the world, were made obsolete with the launch of the revolutionary HMS "Dreadnought", the first all-big-gun battleship.

Operational History

HMS "Resolution" was commissioned at Portsmouth, United Kingdom, on 5 December 1893 for service in the Channel Squadron. She left Plymouth on 18 December 1893 to join the squadron at Gibraltar. On 19 December 1893 and 20 December 1893 she encountered very heavy weather, including 42-foot (12.8 m) seas with up to 300-foot (91.5 m) lengths. She rolled very heavily, and at least two seas broke over her upper deck and caused slight damage. Sensationalist press reporting claimed that "Resolution" had rolled as much as 40 degrees and, although the fitting of bilge keels to the "Royal Sovereign"-class battleships soon corrected the problem, the ships of the class were nicknamed the "Rolling Ressies" based on the experience of "Resolution" in the 1893 storm.

From 2 August 1894 to 5 August 1894, "Resolution" was a unit of "Fleet Red" in annual maneuvers held in the Southwest Approaches. She recommissioned for further Channel Fleet service on 9 April 1895. On 18 July 1896, she collided with her sister ship HMS "Repulse", suffering slight plating and keel damage.She again took part in annual maneuvers from 24 July 1896 to 30 July 1896, this time off the southwest coasts of England and Ireland as part of "Fleet A." [Burt, p. 84]

On 26 June 1897, "Resolution" was part of the Fleet Review at Spithead for the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria. [Burt, p. 84]

From 29 July 1899 to 4 August 1899, "Resolution" participated in annual maneuvers in the Atlantic as part of "Fleet A." The next summer, she again participated in the annual maneuvers, which were held from 24 July 1900 to 3 August 1900 in the Southwest Approaches, this time as a part of "Fleet A2." [Burt, p. 84]

"Resolution" paid off at Portsmouth in October 1901 and was placed in reserve, but on 17 November 1901 she recommissioned to serve as coast guard ship at Holyhead. On 8 April 1903, she paid off into reserve again to undergo a refit. [Burt, p. 84]

. [Burt, p. 84]

In the summer of 1906, "Resolution" took part in maneuvers during which she suffered slight damage when she collided with her sister ship HMS "Ramillies" near the Tongue Lightship on 15 July 1906. [Burt, p. 84; however, Burt p. 81, says the collision date was 16 June 1906.] Later that year, she underwent another refit at Chatham. [Burt, p. 84]

On 12 February 1907, "Resolution" transferred to the Special Service Division of the Home Fleet at Devonport. She remained in that service until 8 August 1911, when she paid off. She was then laid up at the Motherbank, awaiting disposal. [Burt, p. 84]

On 2 April 1914, "Resolution" was sold for scrapping. She was scrapped in the Netherlands. [Burt, p. 84]

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 Worlds Fighting Ships, 1860-1905", (Conway Maritime Press, London, 1979), ISBN 0-85177-133-5