The other County Class

These armoured cruisers bearing County names were the answer to Britain's need to have well-armed and well-protected ships that were nonetheless cheaper than the previous Drake class. Their creation would need to produce a series of armoured cruisers for half the price of a Drake class.

Therefore a design was prepared and later sanctioned by the admiralty, and a total of ten were ordered and laid down in various shipyards from 1899 to 1901, the largest armoured cruiser series worldwide at that time. The creation of such a large and cheap class of cruisers was a true symbol of the British Navy and British industrial might.

Unfortunately in this race for budget cuts, and to remain below the 9800 tons threshold, many sacrifices were made in terms of armor and armament, opening the ships to criticism afterward. So much so that they came to be regarded as second-class armoured cruisers, evident from the too-easy destruction of the Monmouth in a duel with the German Scharnhorst, a ship supposedly in the same category.


HMS Suffolk

Monmouth-class design

The Monmouth was much smaller than the Drake and recognisable due to her three funnels, sufficient for her reduced machinery.

Contrary to the usual role of armoured cruisers, that being the intent to fight in naval battles and bring supplementary artillery support or replace battleships in distant stations, these ships were given the role of protected cruisers, expected only to fight light cruisers and armed merchant ships. Therefore their main artillery constituted only 6 in guns, rather than the two usual pairs of 9.2-inch guns.

Instead of the usual heavy-caliber turrets, both ships were given twin BL 6-inch (152 mm) Mk VII guns in turrets, with the rest of the armament being spread between barbettes in two stages: fore and aft and single ones in the center. For torpedo boats, ten single QF 12-pounder (3 inch, 76 mm) 12 cwt guns and three QF 3-pounder (47 mm) Hotchkiss guns were arranged in the superstructures and decks.

For close-quarters combat, two single submerged 18-inch (450 mm) torpedo tubes were fitted, one on each side. The ships were propelled by two shafts connected to two four-cylinder triple-expansion steam engines fed by 31 water-tube boilers rated for 22,000 hp, giving the class a top nominal speed of 22 knots. Protection was comprised of a belt 2–4 in (51–102 mm) thick, 0.75–2 in (19–51 mm) thick decks, 5 in (127 mm) barbettes, 5 in (130 mm) turrets, while the conning tower was 10 in (254 mm) and the bulkheads were 5 in (127 mm) thick.

Criticism

One of the numerous criticisms about these cruisers-on-a-budget, which also ended up being the cause of HMS Monmouth's loss, was the inefficiency of the lower barbette guns, as they were totally unusable in heavy weather. The electrical guidance of the guns was supposed to be one of their innovations but proved to be a mistake. The twin turrets were too heavy and cramped. The configuration of the armour was inspired by that of the Cressy class but was reduced in places, especially on the decks, which made them very vulnerable to long-range plunging fire.

The weight of the turrets compared to their hull height and lower draft also gave them a higher roll than expected. But in the end, they were still recognised as good steamers, and only three units failed to reach their nominal speed during trials.

Suffolk managed to reach 24.7 knots. These ships for the most part had relatively cushy careers, spent doing convoy escort and hunting German merchantmen turned trade raiders. Only Monmouth which was sunk in action, and Cornwall, which avenged her sister by sinking the SMS Leipzig in a follow-up engagement at the Falklands, fought in battles. HMS Kent HMS Kent served in China and was based in the Falklands in Admiral Cradock's squadron in August 1914. While she arrived too late for the Battle of the Coronel, she still saw action in the area, shadowing and later sinking SMS Nürnberg. Later, patrolling in search of the Dresden, she flushed it out and sank it off Mas a Fuera in Chile. Later she returned to China in May 1915 and escorted convoys to the end of the war. She then supported the Japanese-American operations against the Blochevicks in Vladivostok in 1919. Afterward, she returned to Hong Kong until her retirement in 1920.


Monmouth class diagram - Janes

HMS Monmouth

HMS Monmouth served in China, then was based in Pernambuco in August 1914. She was quickly assigned to Sir Charles Cradock's squadron in the Falklands and participated in the Battle of Coronel on 1 Nov. 1914. Her secondary artillery was totally ineffective in the heavy weather and she was sunk by Von Spee's squadron without any survivors. Battle of Coronel

HMS Bedford

HMS Bedford served in China from 1907 to 1910 and was lost at that time due to hitting a reef off Quelpart Island in the China Sea. 18 men were lost during the rescue, and her hull was demolished sometime later.

HMS Cumberland

HMS Cumberland was sent to West Africa upon the declaration of war. Based in Douala, she captured 10 German freighters. She spent the rest of her career in France, arriving in January 1915, and conducting patrols and escorting convoys with the 6th Cruiser squadron in the North Atlantic.

HMS Berwick

HMS Berwick, named after a Scottish county, was laid down by Beardmore, in a Dalmuir shipyard on the 19th of April 1901, launched on the 20th of September 1902, and completed on 9 December 1903. She was assigned to the 2nd Cruiser Squadron, Channel Fleet, and later transferred to the Home Fleet in March 1906. On 2 April 1908, she tragically collided with the destroyer Tiger (which sank with 36 lives lost) during a night exercise in the Channel, off the Isle of Wight. After a refit at Portsmouth until April 1909, she joined the 4th Cruiser Squadron, stationed in the North American and West Indies Station. In September 1914 she captured the SS Spreewald and patrolled for German raiders while also spending some of her time escorting convoys until the end of the war. Her last station was with the 8th Light Cruiser Squadron in 1919.

HMS Essex

HMS Essex served in the West Indies in 1914.

She was sent to the North Atlantic until Nov. 1916, capturing two German cargo ships, and then heading to the West Indies Station. From January 1916 onwards, she was based at the Canarias Islands, capturing another cargo ship, and remained there until the end of the war.

HMS Kent

HMS Kent served in China and was based in the Malvinas within Admiral Cradock's squadron in August 1914. He was seconded from it but took part in the second battle of Coronel on 8 December, flowing KMS Nürnberg. Patrolling in search of the Dresden, he flushed it out and sank it off Mas a Fuera in Chile.

Later based in China, he returned to China in May 1915 and escorted him to the end of the war, returning to China. He then supported in 1919 the Japanese-American operations against the Blochevicks in Vladivostok. He returned to Hong Kong until his retirement in 1920.

HMS Suffolk

HMS Suffolk served for a long time in the Mediterranean. On the eve of the war, he was based in the Falklands at 4 Wing Sub, under the orders of Rear-Admiral Cradock, whose mark he bore.

In August he passed to Pernambuco, and participated in the hunt for the cruiser KMS Karlsruhe. From 1915 to 1916 he was based in the Pacific and then in China until 1918. In 1919, he was sent to support the Japanese-American forces in Vladivostock against the Russian Bolsheviks. Back in France, he served until 1920 as a training ship.

HMS Lancaster

The HMS Lancaster served in the Mediterranean and the West Indies before 1914. In January 1915 she joined the 7th squadron of the Grand Fleet in France. From 1916 to 1918 she was then based in the Pacific, before being grounded in 1919 in Birkenhead.

HMS Donegal

HMS Donegal was built at Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering, Govan shipyard, completed on 5 November 1903. She joined the 1st Cruiser Squadron, Channel Fleet. Then she headed for the China Station, but ran aground near the Suez en route, and had to return to Chatham for repairs. She was afterward assigned to the Home Fleet in 1907 and then shortly transferred to the 4th Cruiser Squadron (North America and West Indies Station), but collided with the merchant ship SS Malaga at Gibraltar in December. In 1912 she served with the Training Squadron of the Home Fleet and was assigned to the reserve Third Fleet in August of 1914. After a new refit, she was assigned to the 5th Cruiser Squadron in Sierra Leone for convoy protection, before being transferred to the 6th Cruiser Squadron, Grand Fleet in January 1915. In the fall of the year, she was assigned to the 7th Cruiser Squadron, to escort convoys to Archangelsk. were totally unusable in heavy weather. The electrical guidance of the guns was supposed to be one of their innovations but proved to be a mistake. The twin turrets were too heavy and cramped. The configuration of the armour was inspired by that of the Cressy class but was reduced in places, especially on the decks, which made them very vulnerable to long-range plunging fire. The weight of the turrets compared to their hull height and lower draft also gave them a higher roll than expected. But in the end, they were still recognised as good steamers, and only three units failed to reach their nominal speed during trials. Suffolk managed to reach 24.7 knots. These ships for the most part had relatively cushy careers, spent doing convoy escort and hunting German merchantmen turned trade raiders. Only Monmouth which was sunk in action, and Cornwall, which avenged her sister by sinking the SMS Leipzig in a follow-up engagement at the Falklands, fought in battles.

HMS Cornwall

Cornwall was launched at Pembroke Royal Dockyard, Wales, and completed on the 1st of December 1904, assigned to the 2nd Cruiser Squadron (Channel Fleet). In the fall of 1906, she underwent a refit and became a cadet training ship in January 1908, with the 4th Cruiser Squadron (North America and West Indies).

In 1911 she ran aground on Pinnacle Rock, Sable Island (Nova Scotia) while assisting HMCS Niobe, which had also just had run aground. Cornwall was repaired at Halifax and in 1913 was moved to be refitted in Devonport, which was completed in January 1914. She then visited ports from the Mediterranean to Scandinavia, participating in the July 1914 Fleet review followed by a short refit, and an assignment to the 5th Cruiser Squadron for trade protection on the Eastern Atlantic route as the war started.

The German collier SS Syra was her first prize on the 5th of August. Transferred to the Brazilian coast in September she joined the infamous Vice-Admiral Christopher Craddock's 4th Cruiser Squadron. However, she was soon reassigned to patrol the River Plate and missed Cradock's search for the German East Asia Squadron off the Chilean coast and its subsequent destruction in the Battle of Coronel on the 1st of November.

Therefore HMS Cornwall proceeded to the Falkland Islands, joining the new squadron led by Vice-Admiral Doveton Sturdee, and participated in the Battle of the Falklands. The appearance of two German ships at 07:30 caught Sturdee's ships by surprise but the pre-dreadnought battleship Canopus kept them at bay until 09:20. Cornwall, therefore, had time to warm her boilers, raise steam and prepare for battle stations, before even starting to recoal.

The squadron left the harbour by 10:30 for the "general chase" led by Sturdee's two battlecruisers. Being chased down by the quicker British squadron Von Spee chose to scatter his ships, turning towards the British fleet to engage it, allowing his three light cruisers to disperse. Cornwall and her sister ship Kent, plus the light cruiser Glasgow broke off from the engagement to pursue these three cruisers.

Glasgow engaged the SMS Leipzig at long range, slowing her. Then Cornwall closed to 7,000 yards (6,400 m) at 18:00 and set the Leipzig ablaze. Five minutes later, she ceased fighting and the Cornwall approached to 5,000 yards (4,600 m) to observe the scene when, surprisingly, a gun on the Leipzig opened fire, as the burning protected cruiser refused to strike her colors.

Both British cruisers pulled back and fired more salvos. Even when the German captain mustered what was left of his crew to strike the colours, the ship's flag area was engulfed in flames and could not be reached. Therefore the shelling went on until two green flares were fired at 20:12, signifying surrender. The German collier SS Syra was her first prize on 5 August. Transferred to the Brazilian coast in September she joined the infamous Vice-Admiral Christopher Craddock's 4th Cruiser Squadron.

The British armoured cruiser then closed within 500 yards to rescue the Germans, sending her own boats. Sadly, due to the darkness and the conditions around Leipzig's sinking, only 18 men were rescued. Cornwall had been hit by the German cruiser 18 times, but apparently without a single loss, apart from those injured. Cornwall searched afterward for the remainder of German ships and later departed for home on 3 January 1915.

After a short refit at Devonport and in Avonmouth she sailed for South Africa on the 23rd of March 1915. She arrived at Kibondo Island off the German East African coast in April to blockade the SMS Königsberg in the Rufiji River. She later headed north to the Dardanelles on 10 May. Afterward, she made her way to the China Station at the end of the year and was based in Singapore in February of 1916, undergoing a long refit until May. She patrolled the Dutch East Indies, then went to French Indochina in July.

In October she traveled to Hong Kong and patrolled the Chinese coast, being back to Singapore in December and then sailed to South Africa for escort duties. Some of her 12-pounder guns were removed and transferred to troopships. She was later refitted at Liverpool and paid off on the 7th of March, recommissioned on 4 August 1917, escorting one troopship to Halifax, before later returning to the North Atlantic and West Indies Station. After her convoy service until the end of 1918, she went back as a cadet training ship from January 1919 and was paid off for good on 21 August, before being sold for scrap on 7 June 1920.


A British Monmouth class cruiser with an interesting camouflage (alamy photos)

Specifications

Dimensions: 141,2 x 20,12 x 7,6 m (463 x 66 x 25 ft)

Displacement: 9100 t, 9800 Ton Fully Loaded

Crew: 678

Propulsion: 2 propellers, 2 TE 4 cyl., 31 Belleville boilers, 22 000 hp

Speed: 23 knots (43 km/h; 26 mph)

Armament: 14 x 152 mm, 10 x 76 mm, 3 x 47 mm, 2 x 457mm TTs (sub)

Armor: Belt 102, Barbettes 120, Turrets 120, Blockhaus 280, Deck 51 mm.

HMS Monmouth, Author's illustrator


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Links, sources, read more

Brassey, T.A. (ed)The Naval Annual 1905 and 1906
Corbett, Julian. Naval Operations to the Battle of the Falklands.
Friedman, Norman (2012). British Cruisers of the Victorian Era.
Massie, Robert K. (2004). Castles of Steel: Britain, Germany, and the Winning of the Great War at Sea
wikipedia - Monmouth class cruiser
Conway's all the world's fighting ships 1860-1905