HMS Centurion (1892)

HMS Centurion was a predreadnought second-class battleship of the Royal Navy. She was part of the three-ship "Centurion" class, designed for long-range patrolling of the United Kingdom's far-flung empire.

Technical Characteristics

HMS "Centurion" was laid down on 30 March 1890, launched on 3 August 1892, and completed for trials in September 1893. She commenced trials on 19 September 1893 and completed them in February 1894. [Burt, p. pp 94, 97]

She displaced 10,500 tons, was convert|360|ft|m in length and carried a complement of 620 officers and men. Her twin engines produced 13,000 ihp.

She was armed with four convert|10|in|mm|sing=on guns in two barbettes, had a convert|6|in|mm|sing=on secondary armament and three torpedo tubes. She was protected by a convert|12|in|mm|sing=on belt of compound armour, closed with convert|8|in|mm|sing=on bulkheads. She stored 1,125 tons of coal, giving her a range of convert|6000|nmi|km at convert|10|kn|km/h.

Operational History

HMS "Centurion" commissioned at Portsmouth on 14 February 1894 for service on the China Station. She departed the United Kingdom on 2 March 1894, arriving at Port Said, Egypt, on 15 March 1894 and at Singapore on 11 April 1894. At Singapore, she rendezvoused with armored cruiser HMS "Imperieuse" and relieved her as flagship of the China Station. She then proceeded to Hong Kong, arriving there on 21 April 1894. [Burt, p. 98]

In June 1896, "Centurion" grounded on a sandbank at Shimonoseki, Japan, without damage. On 1 April 1897 she recommissioned at Hong Kong to continue her service as Flagship, China Station. [Burt, p. 97] From December 1897, she was the flagship of Sir Edward Seymour.

Between 1897 and 1900, "Centurion" was actively engaged in Allied operations in northern China during the Boxer Rebellion. On 31 May 1900, she put landing parties ashore which joined other forces in storming the Taku forts and in relieving the foreign legations at Tientsin. [Burt, p. 97]

On 10 April 1901, while at Shanghai, she parted her mooring cables during a storm and drifted across the bows of battleship HMS "Glory". "Glory's" bow punched a hole in "Centurion's" hull below the waterline, but the damage was not serious and was repaired at Hong Kong. [Burt, p. 97]

"Centurion" ended her China Station service in June 1901. "Glory" relieved "Centurion" as flagship on 10 June 1901. "Centurion" departed Hong Kong on 3 July 1901 and arrived at Portsmouth on 19 August 1901. On 19 September 1901 she paid off into reserve there. [Burt, p. 97]

"Centurion" underwent a reconstruction at Portsmouth, including a partial rearmament, between September 1901 and November 1903. On 3 November 1903 she commissioned there for another period of service on the China Station. Departing Portsmouth on 10 November 1903, she called at Malta on 17 November 1903, at Port Said on 25 November 1903, at Aden on 6 December 1903, at Colombo, Ceylon, on 15 December 1903, and at Singapore on 27 December 1903 before arriving at Hong Kong on 31 December 1903. [Burt, p. 97]

In 1905, the United Kingdom and Japan ratified a treaty of alliance, reducing the need for a large Royal Navy presence on the China Station. The British squadron there was reduced, and all its battleships were withdrawn. Accordingly, on 7 June 1905, "Centurion", in company with battleship HMS "Ocean", departed Hong Kong. At Singapore, they rendezoused with battleships HMS "Albion" and HMS "Vengeance". The four battleships departed Singapore on 20 June 1905 and steamed in company to Plymouth, where they arrived on 2 August 1905. [Burt, p. 97]

"Centurion" paid off at Portsmouth on 25 August 1905. She recommissioned on 26 August 1905 with a nucleus crew as a unit of the Portsmouth Division of the Reserve Fleet. She participated in combined exercises of the Reserve Fleet, Atlantic Fleet, and Channel Fleet in June 1906. [Burt, pp. 97-98]

On 24 May 1907, "Centurion" transferred her crew to battleship HMS "Exmouth". On 25 May 1907, she recommissioned with a new nucleus crew to serve as a special service vessel with the Portsmouth Division of the Home Fleet. [Burt, p. 98] By April 1909, she was part of the 4th Division, Home Fleet, at Portsmouth. ["Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906-1921", p. 7]

Impressive as they were upon their completion, ships such as "Centurion" were entirely outclassed by the new dreadnoughts that began to appear in 1906. "Centurion" paid off at Portsmouth on 1 April 1909 and was placed on the sale list. By the end of June 1909 she was anchored at the Motherbank, awaiting disposal. She was sold for scrapping on 12 July 1910, and arrived at Morecambe for scrapping on 4 September 1910. [Burt, p. 98]

Notes

References

* Burt, R. A. "British Battleships 1889-1904". Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1988. ISBN 0870210610.
* Chesneau, Roger, and Eugene M. Kolesnik, eds., "Conway's All The Worlds Fighting Ships, 1860-1905", (Conway Maritime Press, London, 1979), ISBN 0-85177-133-5
* Gray, Randal, ed., "Conway's All The Worlds Fighting Ships, 1906-1921", Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1985. ISBN 0870219073.
* Pears, Randolph. (1979). "British Battleships 1892-1957: The great days of the fleets". G. Cave Associates. ISBN 978-0906223147