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The design of the King George V class
battleships began in the period of uncertainty when the inter-war naval
treaties were coming to an end, but when there was no clear direction on
the future for naval arms limitation. Britain was pushing for a limit of
14 inches to be imposed for main guns, whilst other nations also had their
own agendas. The critical path in capital ship construction time was the
production of the main guns, including the mountings and turrets, and as
the Admiralty wanted the ships to be in service in 1940 (to match the Bismarck
and Tirpitz) contracts had to be placed before the naval treaty
talks were concluded. In order to place contracts for the guns, outline
design work had to be completed by this date also, and this necessity had
a profound influence on the design of these ships.
The main guns were chosen to be 14 inch (365 mm)
calibre. This was in line with the British diplomatic moves intended to
result in a 14 inch limitation on all new capital ships. These
negotiations had broken down by 1937, however the guns had to be ordered
in mid-1936, and the six or 12 month delay entailed in changing the design
was considered to be grossly unacceptable. The initial intention was to
fit 12 guns, however it was decided to increase protection around the
magazines and in order to remain within the 35,000 ton treaty limitations
B turret was reduced to two guns.
In selecting the secondary armament the British
followed the French example of fitting dual HA/LA (high angle / low angle)
secondary guns, in stead of the traditional separate secondary guns for
surface targets and smaller tertiary guns for air targets (as the Germans
and Italians were doing). This had the advantage of giving more guns for
either air defence or surface defence, provided that both were not
required at the same time. A new design of 5.25 inch (140 mm) gun was
chosen, with 16 guns fitted in eight power-operated turrets (four on each
side).
Close-range anti-aircraft defence was light, in common
with most ships at that time. The eight-barrelled pom-pom was chosen as
the primary close-range weapon, and six were fitted to the first two ships
in the class. This was increased to eight in subsequent vessels. Finally,
several UP (unrifled projector) rocket mounts were fitted in the first two
ships, which fired an explosive charge attached to a parachute and a line.
As these were clearly useless the subsequent ships replaced them with 20
mm (0.8 inch) machineguns. The AA armament was considerably increased as
the war progressed.
Armour protection gave the ships a theoretical immunity
zone of 17,200 yards to 32,000 yards (15,727 m to 29,261 m) against 15
inch (381 mm) shells, meaning that at ranges below 17,200 yards a 15inch
shell could be expected to penetrate the side armour, and above 32,000
yards a 15 inch shell could be expected to penetrate the deck armour. It
must be stressed that this is a theoretical calculation, as in practice
several factors (particularly the sea state) affect the actual resistance
to shells at the instant they hit, and the immunity zone is constantly
changing as the ship heaves, rolls and pitches.
The speed of these ships was critical, as the existing
British battleships could not hope to catch new capital ships. They were
designed for 27.5 knots at deep load displacement, which was an increase
of 6.5 knots over the previous class.
A catapult and two hangars were provided for the
Supermarine Walrus amphibious biplane, intended to act in a reconnaissance
role and to spot the fall of shot. As radar became able to fulfil these
roles the aircraft were removed, eliminating a major fire hazard.
These ships gave magnificent service, and had a
profound influence on the war (for example, the Prince of Wales
caused the damage that caused the Bismarck sortie to be aborted,
the King George V helped destroy the Bismarck in the final
engagement, and the Duke of York caused the damage that forced the Scharnhorst
to slow and be caught). Nevertheless, there were problems with the main
guns (the new design had an unacceptable number of stoppages) and the bow
design (with spray affecting A and B turret rangefinders, and sometimes
causing water to enter A turret). These problems were caused or
exacerbated by the naval position that Britain found herself in as, for
example, the problems with the guns were identified during design but
could not be fixed due to the need to have the ships in service to counter
German warships. In the final analysis, they were able to fulfil their
defined role despite their shortcomings, and proved to be equal to the
task of containing the enemy surface threat. |
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King George V |
Builder |
Laid Down |
Launched |
Completed |
Left Service |
| John Brown |
5 May 1937 |
28 Feb 1940 |
4 Nov 1941 |
1957 |
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After taking Britain's new ambassador to the
United States she took part in the Loften Islands raid in March
1941, then returned to the Atlantic to protect convoys against the Gniesnau
and Scharnhorst, which were at sea. On 22 May 1941 she sailed
to intercept the Bismarck, and was part of the force that
destroyed her on 27 May. She then went in to dock for work on her
main guns. In October 1941 she attacked German ships in Glom Fjord,
Norway, before beginning Arctic convoy work. On 1 May 1942 she
collided with the destroyer Punjabi, and returned to duty on
1 July after repairs. In May 1943 she took part in the invasion of
Sicily, remaining in the Mediterranean for the Salerno operation
before returning to the UK. She was refitted between March and June
1944, and was transferred to the British Pacific Fleet in October.
She conducted several bombardments of Japanese facilities, and was
present at the formal Japanese surrender on 2 September 1945. |
| Prince of Wales |
Builder |
Laid Down |
Launched |
Completed |
Left Service |
| Cammell Laird |
1 Jan 1939 |
3 May 1939 |
31 Mar 1941 |
10 Dec 1941 |
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After working up, the Prince of Wales was
declared fit to join the fleet on 21 May 1941, and that same day she
was ordered to sea to intercept the Bismarck breakout. Along
with the Hood, she intercepted the Bismarck on 24 May
and straddled her with her third or fourth salvo, scoring two hits
and causing sufficient damage to cause the Bismarck to decide
to return to base. After the loss of the Hood she shadowed
the Bismarck, but lost her in poor visibility and returned to
port. After repairs, she took Winston Churchill to the Atlantic
Charter meeting in August 1941, and was later assigned to the
Mediterranean where she saw action against aircraft whilst escorting
convoys. She was ordered to Singapore in October 1941, and sortied
from there to attack Japanese landings in Malaya with the Repulse.
On 10 December 1941 she was lost, along with the Repulse, to
Japanese aircraft. |
| Duke of York |
Builder |
Laid Down |
Launched |
Completed |
Left Service |
| John Brown |
5 May 1937 |
28 Feb 1940 |
4 Nov 1941 |
1957 |
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The Duke of York began service escorting
Arctic convoys, with brief breaks to transport Winston Churchill to
the United States and to take part in the invasion of North Africa
in October 1942. She was present when the German battle cruiser Scharnhorst
sortied to attack convoy JW55B in December 1943. Action was joined
on 26 December, the Duke of York scoring several hits thereby
slowing the Scharnhorst enough to enable her to be caught and
sunk. She continued in the Arctic until September 1944, then went
for refit in Liverpool. She left for the Pacific in April 1945, and
was the Flagship of the British Pacific Fleet at the Japanese
surrender. |
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Anson |
Builder |
Laid Down |
Launched |
Completed |
Left Service |
| Swan Hunter and Wigham
Richardson |
22 Jul 1937 |
24 Feb 1940 |
22 Jun 1942 |
1957 |
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The Anson was the only one of the class
never to fire her main guns in anger. She saw service covering
Arctic convoys until June 1944, when she was sent for modification
to Plymouth. In April 1945, along with the Duke of York, she
sailed for the Pacific to join the British Pacific Fleet, although
she arrived too late to see any action. |
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Howe |
Builder |
Laid Down |
Launched |
Completed |
Left Service |
| Fairfield |
1 Jun 1937 |
9 Apr 1940 |
29 Aug 1942 |
1957 |
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The Howe was involved in the Arctic
convoys until May 1943. In July 1943 she was transferred to the
Mediterranean for the invasion of Sicily, and after the surrender of
Italy in September she returned to the UK. She was sent for refit in
Devonport in December 1943, in preparation for service in the
Pacific. This began in Ceylon in August 1944, where she became
flagship of the British Pacific Fleet. She saw action during the
Okinawa campaign, bombarding Japanese islands and providing
anti-aircraft fire to the fleet. In June 1945 she again went in to
dock for overhaul, this time in Durban, and was still there when the
war ended. |
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Specifications |
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King George V As-Built [Note 1] |
Howe As-Built [Note 1] |
| Vessel Particulars |
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| Displacement |
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| - Standard |
38,031 tons |
39,450 tons |
| - Full Load |
42,237 tons |
42,530 tons |
| Length (OA) |
745 ft 0.13 in (227.08 m) |
745 ft 0.25 in (227.08 m) |
| Length (WL) |
740 ft 0.25 in (225.56 m) |
740 ft 0.25 in (225.56 m) |
| Length (PP) |
700 ft 0.25 in (213.37 m) |
700 ft 0.25 in (213.37 m) |
| Beam |
112 ft 4.25 in (34.25 m) |
112 ft 6.25 in (34.30 m) |
| Draft (Standard) |
29 ft (8.84 m) |
29 ft (8.84 m) |
| Draft (Full Load) |
32 ft 6 in (9.91 m) |
34 ft 10.5 in (10.63 m)
[Note 2] |
| Block Coefficient |
0.60 |
0.60 |
| Propulsion |
111,700 shp (83.3 MW) |
112,930 shp (84.2 MW) |
| Speed |
28 kts |
27.5 kts |
| Weapons |
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| Main Guns |
10 x 14 in (356 mm) (2 x 4, 1 x 2) |
10 x 14 in (356 mm) (2 x 4, 1 x 2) |
| Other Guns |
16 x 5.25 in (133 mm) in eight double mounts
32 x 2 lb (0.91 kg) pom-poms in four octuple mounts
4 x UP launchers in four single mounts |
16 x 5.25 in (133 mm) in eight double mounts
48 x 2 lb (0.91 kg) pom-poms in six octuple mounts
18 x 20 mm (0.8 in) machineguns in 18 single mounts |
| Magazine |
1,000 x 14 in (356 mm) rounds
6,400 x 5.25 in (133 mm) rounds
86,400 x pom-pom rounds |
1,000 x 14 in (356 mm) rounds
6,400 x 5.25 in (133 mm) rounds
115,200 x pom-pom rounds |
| Armour |
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Side Belt |
13.75
in tapering to 5.5 in (349 to 140 mm) |
13.75
in tapering to 5.5 in (349 to 140 mm) |
|
End Bulkheads |
11.76
in (299 mm) fwd
9.8 in (249 mm) aft |
11.76
in (299 mm) fwd
9.8 in (249 mm) aft |
|
Magazine |
14.7 in
(373 mm) sides
6 in (152 mm) top |
14.7 in
(373 mm) sides
6 in (152 mm) top |
|
Barbette |
11.76
in (299 mm) forward
12.75 in (324 mm) sides
10.82 in (275 mm) aft |
11.76
in (299 mm) forward
12.75 in (324 mm) sides
10.82 in (275 mm) aft |
|
Turret |
12.75
in (324 mm) face
8.84 in (225 mm) sides
5.88 in (149 mm) roof |
12.75
in (324 mm) face
8.84 in (225 mm) sides
5.88 in (149 mm) roof |
|
Deck |
5 in
(127 mm) |
5 in
(127 mm) |
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Miscellaneous |
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Aircraft |
2 Supermarine Walrus |
2 Supermarine Walrus |
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Compliment |
1,409 |
1,556 |
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