- Author
- Bastock, John
- Subjects
- None noted
- Tags
- None noted.
- RAN Ships
- None noted.
- Publication
- December 1971 edition of the Naval Historical Review (all rights reserved)
QUEEN ELIZABETH
Launched: 1913
Displacement: 27,500 tons
Length: 645 feet
Beam: 90½ feet.
Armament: Eight 15-in. and twelve 6-in. guns. Several lighter guns and four submerged 21-in. torpedo-tubes.
Protection: Sides and turrets up to 13-in. thick. Decks to 3-in.
Machinery: Turbines. Oil fired. Four screws. DHP 75,000. Speed 24 knots.
Presenting a combination of power, speed and good looks rarely, if ever, equalled in battleship design, the Queen Elizabeths were undoubtedly the finest group of fighting ships ever put afloat.
They were the first warships to mount 15- in. guns, the first large vessels to be oil-fired, and the first battleships to steam at 24 knots. Because of their great speed, the five `QEs’ during World War I formed a battle- squadron of their own, (the 5th BS), and were sent in support of the battle-cruisers at the Battle of Jutland.
Between the wars, all were modified, having the two funnels trunked into one. Apart from this, Barham and Malaya were not altered very much in appearance, but Queen Elizabeth, Valiant and Warspite were extensively rebuilt. All served throughout World War II, during which Barham was lost with heavy toll of life.