In- PROVEMENTS IN PLATING OR PROTECTING SHIPS OF WAR, FORTIFICATIONS, AND OTHER LIKE STRUCTURES, AND THE MANUFACTURE OF THE PLATES EMPLOYED THEREFOR
Year: 1867

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Gustav Julius Günther, of Stamford Hill, in the
County of Middlesex, Mining Engineer, for the Invention of "In-
PROVEMENTS IN PLATING OR PROTECTING SHIPS OF WAR, FORTIFICATIONS, AND
OTHER LIKE STRUCTURES, AND THE MANUFACTURE OF THE PLATES EMPLOYED
THEREFOR."
Sealed the 10th March 1868, and dated the 25th October 1867.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Gustav Julius Günther
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
25th October 1867.
I, GUSTAV JULIUS GÜNTHER, of Stamford Hill, in the County of Middlesex,
Mining Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN PLATING OR PROTECTING SHIPS OF WAR, FORTIFICATIONS,
AND OTHER LIKE STRUCTURES, AND THE MANUFACTURE OF THE PLATES EMPLOYED
THEREFOR," to be as follows:-
The objects of my Invention are chiefly, 1st, that none of those parts,
of the armour which are exposed to the effects of the enemy's fire shall
exhibit any bolt holes or other similar sources of weakness; 2ndly, that by,
the shape of plates and other accessory parts hereafter alluded to, the cohesion

page_text: of all the parts composing the armour may be independent of any backing or
any fastening to any backing, whether the backing be iron, wood, masonry or
other material. Thus the improved armour instead of being by its weight a
source of weakness and danger to any structure which it may enclose, floating
or stationary, will on the contrary contribute in an eminent degree towards
the solidity, internal cohesion and stability of such structure; in fact on
occasions the armour alone without any backing may be made to answer every
purpose. The plates may be oblong, square, polygonal, or other form according
to the purpose for which they may be intended, but oblong plates being at
present most generally in use, that shape has for the sake of simplicity been
kept in mind in the following description:-The plates are rolled with
sufficiently strong back flanges at their upper and lower (or more) edges, and
only these flanges are perforated subsequently with bolt holes in such manner
that on the lower edge of one plate being placed and fitted upon the upper
edge of another plate, bolts may be passed through the flanges of both plates
and the plates be thus firmly bolted to one another. In order to relieve the
strain upon the rows of bolts by means of which and the flanges the plates are
fastened together grooves of any convenient shape are cut into the correspond-
ing opposite edges of the respective plates to be joined together in such
manner that after the junction of the plates the two grooves would form a
hollow space, which in its length would run alongside and parallel with the
flanges and with the rows of bolt holes; but before the plates are joined there
is fitted into these grooves an iron or steel bar or bars, the body of which fits
tightly into the grooves of both the upper and lower plates, so that the bar or
bars will have to be first split asunder longitudinally (by the force of a shot
striking the plate in front) before the the bolts could be broken, and the plates
torn asunder. Under ordinary circumstances it is presumed that the fastening
of all the plates to each other by means of the flanges before described along
their longitudinal edges will insure sufficient cohesion to the whole structure
of plates thus fastened without it being necessary to join the end edges of the
plates in a similar manner, although of course the doing so would insure
additional strength. But wherever greater strength is desirable the end
and even all the sides of the plates are joined to each other and a firm solic
structure thus formed by these ends and sides being inserted into T or H pieces
The edges of the plates being secured in their places by means of bolt
inserted and passed through the strong back flanges of the T or H pieces
passing them through the whole thickness of the armour plates, and may
required' penetrate also partly into the rear face of the front or armour flange
of the Tor H pieces. For very heavy structures where thick armour plate

page_text: are employed the front part and the rear flange of the T or H pieces may be
proportionally stronger and thicker and their front part rounded off. When
the plates are fastened to each other by means of the T or H pieces, the parts
of the plates thus fastened together need have no back flanges. The fastening
of such armour to any backing or structure may be effected by inserting.
between the edges of the plates smaller plates or pieces of this section
or of analogous form, in which case the projecting or thick part
of such plates or pieces will whenever thus inserted fill instead of the bar herein-
before described the space formed by the groove before mentioned; the back
part of the said piece being secured to the backing in any convenient manner.
The intimate cohesion of all the armour plates amongst themselves as ob;
tained by the modes of armour plating before described will prove of great
advantage in armour-plated floating rams, for example for by the plates being
fastened also to the beak or ram the whole of their vis inertia will as it were be
expended upon increasing the blow of that ram without the shock at all
tending to loosen the structure of the ship, as is the case where the armour is
merely as it were hung to the ship's side.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent;
filed by the said Gustav Julius Günther in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 21st April 1868.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, GUSTAV
JULIUS GUNTHER, of Stamford Hill, in the County of Middlesex, Mining
Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fifth day of October, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven, in the thirty-first year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said Gustav Julius Gunther, Her special licence that I, the said
Gustav Julius Gunther, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said Gustav Julius Gunther, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to
time and at all times thereaftër during the term therein expressed, should
and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an
Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN PLATING OR PROTECTING SHIPS OF WAR

page_text: FORTIFICATIONS, AND OTHER LIKE STRUCTURES, AND THE MANUFACTURE OF THE PLATES
EMPLOYED THEREFOR," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said
Gustav Julius Gunther, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in
writing under my, or their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly
describe and ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what
manner the same was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in
the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and imme-
diately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Gustav Julius Gunther, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by
the following statement thereof, reference being had to the Drawings hereunto
annexed, that is to say :-
The objects of my Invention are chiefly :-First, that none of those parts
of the armour which are exposed to the effects of the enemy's fire shall exhibit
any bolt holes or other similar sources of weakness; second, that by the
shape of the armour plates and of other necessary parts hereafter alluded to,
and by the mode in which they are put together, the cohesion of all the parts
composing the armour may be independent of any backing or any fastening
to any backing, whether said backing be iron, wood, masonry, concrete, or
any other material; and that thus the improved armour instead of being by
its weight a source of weakness and danger to any structure, floating or
stationary, which it may enclose (or compose), will on the contrary contribute
in an eminent degree towards the solidity, internal cohesion, and stability of
any such structure. In fact, in the case of turrets, smaller isolated or
detached fortificatory works, armour-plated stationary or moveable batteries,
exposed watch towers, or any other structure where the saving of space is a
.consideration, the improved armour alone, without any backing, may (provided
the plates be sufficiently thick) be made to answer every purpose. It will be
perceived that in the improved methods of armour plating hereafter described,
the tensile strength of the metal composing the armour is made as far as
possible to contribute towards the solidity and shot resisting strength of the
whole structure. Take for example a ship to which armour plates of the
shape and in the manner as hitherto and now still in use have been bolted, the
great weight of such armour would obviously in the case of any accident
during action or otherwise hasten the parting asunder of the component parts
of such ship; but if such ship were coated with my armour plates the metal of
the plates themselves would have to be torn asunder before the ship could be
other form
destroyed. The plates may be oblong, square, polygonal, or of any

page_text: according to the purpose to which they may be intended, but oblong plates
being at present most generally in use that shape has for the sake of simplicity
been kept in mind in the following descriptions.
Figure 1. is a front view in perspective; and Figure II. a back view, also in
perspective, of an armour constructed according to my Invention in its simplest
form. The plates are rolled, forged, or cast with sufficiently strong back
flanges b, b, at their upper and lower edges; and only these flanges b.are
perforated with bolt holes (as indicated by the dotted: lines c, c,) in such a
manner that on the lower edge of one plate being placed and fitted upon the
upper edge of another plate bolts may be passed through the flanges b, b,
of both (or more) plates, and said plates be thus firmly bolted together.
In order to relieve or counteract any sudden strain upon the rows of
bolts, by means of which bolts and of the flanges 6 the plates are fastened
together, grooves of any convenient shape, say of square section
shewn at d, Figure I.. are cut into the corresponding opposite edges of the
respective plates in such a manner that after the junction of the plates
has been effected the two grooves would form a hollow space also of square
section running alongside of and parallel with the back flanges and their rows
of bolt holes; but before the plates are thus joined together one or more
iron or steel bars are inserted, the body of which fits tightly into and
completely fills up the grooves of both the upper and lower plate, so that the
bar or bars will first have to be torn and split asunder longitudinally before
the bolts could be broken and the plates and bolts torn asunder.
as
Figures III. and IV. represent sections of plates to be fastened together by
means of back flanges in the same way as above described, but these plates
are rolled and subsequently planed and grooved in such a shape and such a
manner that in each.plate the upper back flange b is as it were attached to an
intermediate or backing flange b¹. I call this a backing flange because the
intermediate flange of each subjacent plate serves as it were as. a backing to
the lower or front part a' of the superincumbent plate. The back flanges b, b,
in Figures III. and IV., are of the same shape and serve the same purpose as
those in Figures I. and II. A groove d is arranged in the upper edge of the
part a of each plate at the angle of junction between the upper horizontal
surface of said part a and the outer or front side of the vertical backing
flange 6; this groove runs parallel with the said flange throughout the whole
length of the plate, while at the same time at the lowermost iuner angle of the
part a of each plate a tongue d' is left, the size and shape of which and the
groove & being such that on any two thus shaped plates being joined together.
d

page_text: the tongues d' of the row of superincumbent plates fit exactly into the grooves
d of the corresponding subjacent plates. The plates shown in Figure IV.
differ from those in Figure III. only in having additional tongues e¹ and corre-
sponding grooves e; the shape of these plates is especially adapted for turrets
and fortifications of great thickness; where on account of limited space no thick
backing could be arranged or would be convenient. All the tongues, and
grooves before mentioned run throughout the whole length of the plates and
all the sides of said tongues and grooves are parallel with the side of the
respective plates and the top surface of each tongue, as also the bottom surface
of each groove, are at right angles with the aforesaid sides. It will be under-
stood that in constructing armour composed of such plates, we have to begin
with the lowermost range of plates, the corresponding tongues of each lower
jlate fitting, into the corresponding grooves of each superincumbent plate, the
backing flanges 6 of ench lower plate fitting into the recesses r of the upper
or superincv.mrbent plates. The upper edges of the topmost plates should be
so. shaped tliat the outer edge of the covering or roof of such armour-plated
structure could be intimately and firmly joined to the said uppermost front
plates by means of tongues and grooves and fastening flanges, so also the
lower edges of the lowermost plates would have to be most intimately connected
with the foundation or base structure by being keyed into and firmly bolted to
the same.
.
In any of the above described methods of armour plating, it would be more
convenient to. proceed with the placing of the armour at the same
time that the back structure (wherever such is necessary) is being built
up or constructed.
But when it is desired to replace existing armour of
the old style by the improved armour without disturbing the armour-plated
structure, I prefer the modified form of plates represented in vertical
section in Figure 3a and in back or inside view in Figure 3b. The shape
of these plates is identical with that of those shewn in Figure III. except
that the back flanges b, b, are left out and bolt holes c, c, are contrived in
the backing flanges 64, 61, so that said plates could be bolted to a ship's
sides or to any other structure in the usual way while at the same time owing
to the shape of the plates the bolt heads and bolt holes are perfectly
protected against hostile shot by being covered with the front part a¹ of the
superincumbent plate. The plates shown in Figure IV. may by leaving out
the back flanges b, b, and if necessary making the backing flanges 61, 61, a
little higher and perforating the same with bolt holes, be adapted for replacing
ordinary armour in the same way as the plates Figure 3* are adapted. But

page_text: in manufacturing plates of the shape as shown in Figure 3* care should be
taken to make the "backing" flange b' a few inches higher than is the height
of the corresponding recess r of the superincumbent plates, into which recess r
the backing flanges have to fit; then in each plate the middle part of the
upper edge of the vertical or backing flange b' is cut out to the depth of a
few inches and to a length corresponding exactly to one half of the whole
length of the plate, there being thus left standing in its original height exactly
one-fourth of said length of said upper edge at each end of the plate, as
indicated at f. f. A corresponding depth and length is at the same time cut
out from that part of the lower edge of the plate which forms the upper surface
of the recess r, thus forming an indentation f¹, f, in the middle of said
lower surface, and the length of said indentation is also one-half of the
whole length of the plate. Owing to this arrangement each individual plate
holds and clamps together two subjacent and two superincumbent plates, and
in this manner the whole armour composed of such plates would contribute
to bind and as it were hoop together the structure that may be covered by it;
at the same time the vis inertia of all the plates is brought to bear against
and resist any shock or strain longitudinally applied, and the fastening bolts
are thus relieved of the effect of any such shock or strain. A mode of clamping
together all the plates longitudinally similar to that shown in Figures 3" and
3b could also be easily applied to the plates Figures 1, 2, 3, and 4 by simply
making the tongues d' and a little higher and cutting out in the middle one
half (as in Figure 4b), and also cutting out a corresponding depth in the middle
of the bottom of the grooves d and e.
b
In any of the above-described methods of armour plating additional strength
may be obtained by joining the end edges of the plates by means of the H or
T pieres about to be described; or such H or T pieces may be employed for
joining all the edges of plates of ordinary shape, thus forming the whole
armour. Figure V. shows in section and Figure VI. in inside or back view
such H or T piece armour. The frout part 6 of each H piece h should be of
sufficient thickness and its front face formed by slanting or inclined planes, 'so
as to resist shot more effectually. This front part of the shape, as shown in
the section in Figure V. is connected with the back flange 6 by means of
the centre part 6¹, all three parts 6, 61, 62, being forged or rolled out of
one solid piece of iron or steel. The edges d¹ of the plates which are to be
joined together by means of such pieces are so shaped as to fit exactly into
their recesses d, and the edges only of the plates a are perforated with bolt
holes c, and so are the back flanges 62, the bolts passing through said back
flanges 6', then through the whole thickness of the edges d³, and may penetrate

page_text: some distance into the rear face of the front parts of the H pieces. That
part of the bolts which fits into the back flanges 6° should be screw-threaded, so
as to keep the bolt in its position. The bolt need have no other head but what
is necessary to give it the required turn when being screwed into its position.
Figure 7 shows in horizontal section and Figure 8 in vertical section one
of the various methods which may be employed to secure or fasten any of the
above-described armour to the back structure; 9 being a plate of a T shape
in section, the two tongues which form the front part of said plate fitting
into corresponding grooves which have been cut into the vertical end edges of
the two adjoining armour plates a, a, while the rear part of the plate or piece g
is secured in or to the back structure in any convenient way. For port holes
or embrasures.special strong frames should be forged, if possible, in one piece,
the front edge and inner sides of which frames would present to the hostile
shot a mass of solid iron, while the non-exposed sides of such frames would
contain grooves similar to the grooves d of the H pieces in Figure 5, into
which grooves the edges of the adjoining armour plates would fit and be
fastened by means of bolts. The introduction of specially constructed solid
port hole or embrasure frames would considerably increase the shot-resisting
strength of the whole structure, while at the same time such frames would offer
greater facilities and safety in any arrangements for closing said openings by
means of shot-proof shutter plates sliding in strong grooves and resting and
moving say on wellcoiled steel spheres instead of rollers. For turrets and any
other round structures the plates would have to be bent to the proper curve,
and the final planing and trimming of their various parts so as to make them
fit exactly to each other may take place after the bending of the plates. Plates
of very great thickness may be furnished with a greater number of tongues
and grooves than are shewn in the Diagrams. The number and position
of the bolt holes depend upon the nature of the structure to be plated or
protected. The lowermost range of plates is well secured to a properly
constructed base, and the topmost range be equally well secured to the roof or
covering plates none of the plates can start from their position even if not
secured by means of bolts.
All the joints of any of the above-described systems of armour plating should
be fitted with a thin layer of strongly cohesive iron cement, or any other superior
cementing medium, so that in this manner the joints and bolt holes of the
whole armour would not only be rendered perfectly waterproof, but also the
cohesive strength of said armour be proportionately increased.
:
And having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in what
manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I claim,-

page_text: First. The manufacture and employment in plating or protecting ships of
war and other structures as aforesaid of plates a, Figures 1 and 2, having
back flanges b, substantially as and for the purpose herein-before described.
Second. The manufacture and employment in combination with the bars d'
in plating or protecting ships of war and other structures as aforesaid, of
plates a, Figures 1 and 2, having back flanges 6 and grooves d, substantially
as and for the purpose herein-before described.
Third. The manufacture and employment in plating or protecting ships of
war and other structures as aforesaid of plates a, Figure 3, having back flanges b,
backing flanges 6', grooves d, and tongues d', substantially as and for the
purpose herein-before described.
Fourth. The manufacture and employment in plating or protecting ships of
war and other structures as aforesaid of plates a, Figure 4, having back
flanges b, backing flanges 6', grooves d, tongues d', grooves e, and tongues e',
substantially as and for the purpose herein-before described.
Fifth. The manufacture and employment in plating or protecting ships of
war and other structures as aforesaid of plates a, Figures 3* and 3b, having
backing flanges b², grooves d, and tongues d', substantially as and for the
purpose herein-before described.
Sixth. The manufacture and employment in plating or protecting ships of
war and other structures as aforesaid of plates a without back flanges, as in
Figure 4, but having backing flanges b', grooves d, tongues d', grooves e, and
tongues e¹, substantially as and for the purpose herein-before described.
Seventh. Plating or protecting ships of war and other structures as aforesaid
by plates a, a, and H or T pieces h of the respective shapes and combined
together substantially as herein-before described with reference to Figures 5
and 6.
In witness whereof, I, the said Gustav Julius Gunther, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Fourteenth day of April, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight.
GUSTAV JULIUS GÜNTHER. (L.S.)