page_title: Town-class cruiser (1910)
section_title: Chatham class
hierarchical_section_title: Town-class cruiser (1910) / Design / Chatham class
caption_attribution_description: English: Stoker Edwards of Pontypridd served on the light cruiser HMS Dublin during 1916-1919. He was present at the battle of Jutland when she suffered damage and casualties. In November 1917 she sailed to Murmask carrying gold bullion to finance the White Russia forces. Tom was demobbed in February 1919. The postcard of the Dublin shows her probably pre-war. The silk card of her ship's badge was collected during the Great War. The battle ensign she wore at Jutland still exists in Dublin.Deutsch: Heizer Edwards aus Pontrypridd diente von 1916-1919 an Bord des leichten Kreuzers HMS Dublin. Er nahm an der Seeschlacht vor Jütland teil, in der der Kreuzer beschädigt wurde und Verluste erlitt. Im November 1917 transporitere Goldbarren nach Murmansk um die russische Weiße Armee zu finanzieren. Tom wurde aus dem Dienst im Februar 1919 entlassen. Die Postkarte der HMS-Dublin zeigt sie wahrscheinlich vor dem Krieg. Die Seidenmarke mit dem Abbild des Schiffsabzeichens wurde während des Krieges gesammelt. Die Kampfabzeichen, die sie bei der Schlacht vor Jütland trug, befinden sich noch immer in Dublin.
context_page_description: The Town class was a group of twenty-one light cruisers built for the Royal Navy and Royal Australian Navy. These vessels were long-range cruisers, suitable for patrolling the vast expanse covered by the British Empire. These ships, initially rated as second class cruisers, were built to a series of designs, known as the Bristol, Weymouth, Chatham, Birmingham and Birkenhead classes – all having the names of British towns except for the RAN ships, which were named after Australian cities.
context_section_description: The Chatham class of six ships, three for the Royal Navy and three for Australia (of which one was to be built in Australia) were ordered under the 1910–1911 Programme. The five British-built ships commissioned between 1912 and 1913, while Brisbane, the Australian-built ship was laid down in 1913 and completed in 1916. The major difference between the Chathams and the earlier Towns was a revised armour scheme. While the earlier ships were protected cruisers, depending on an armoured deck deep within the ship to protect machinery and magazines, the Chathams relied on a vertical belt of armour.
  The Chatham class were 458 feet (139.6 m) long overall, with a beam of 49 feet (14.9 m) and a draught of 16 feet (4.9 m). Displacement was 5,400 long tons (5,500 t) normal and 6,000 long tons (6,100 t) full load. The belt consisted of 2-inch (51 mm) of nickel-steel on top of 1-inch (25 mm) of high-tensile steel, tapering from 3–2 ¹⁄₂-inch (76–64 mm) forward and to 2-inch (51 mm) aft. It covered from 8.25–10.5 feet (2.51–3.20 m) above the waterline to 2.5 feet (0.76 m) below it. This belt was part of the load bearing structure of the ship, reducing the overall weight of structure required. A thin armoured deck, ³⁄₈ inch (9.5 mm) over most of its length and 1 ¹⁄₂ inches (38 mm) over the steering gear, was retained, mainly as a watertight deck. The ships' forecastle was again extended aft, reaching two-thirds of the length of the ship, and allowing two more guns to be raised up onto the forecastle, while the ships' metacentric height was reduced, making the ships better gun platforms. Officer's accommodation was moved back to the rear of the ships in this class. Machinery layout was again similar to the earlier Towns, with one ship, Southampton, having a two-shaft layout. It was rated at 25,000 shaft horsepower (19,000 kW) giving a speed of 25.5 knots (47.2 km/h; 29.3 mph).
  While main armament again consisted of eight 6 in guns in single mountings, a new gun, the BL 6 inch Mk XII was used. This was shorter and lighter than the Mk XI guns used in earlier ships, and while range was slightly less (14,000 yards (13,000 m) compared to 14,600 yards (13,400 m)), they were much easier to handle in rough weather and were more accurate. They had larger magazines, giving up to 200 rounds per gun rather than 150 in earlier ships. The remaining armament was unchanged.
  Wartime changes were similar to those made to the Weymouths, with a 3-inch anti-aircraft gun fitted during 1915 and director control with its associated tripod mast fitted later in the war. Four of the ships (Dublin, Southampton, Melbourne and Sydney) were fitted for platforms for operating aircraft.
caption: HMS Dublin
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