IMPROVEMENTS IN ARMOUR-PLATED AND OTHER SHIPS
Year: 1863

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Clark, of Quadrant Road, Highbury New
Park, in the County of Middlesex, Engineer, for the Invention of
"IMPROVEMENTS IN ARMOUR-PLATED AND OTHER SHIPS."
Sealed the 28th July 1863, and dated the 2nd February 1863.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Clark at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 2nd
February 1868.
I, WILLIAM CLARK, of Quadrant Road, Highbury New Park, in the County
of Middlesex, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVEMENTS IN ARMOR-PLATED AND OTHER SHIPS," to be as follows:-
According to my Invention I build war ships having the main body or
continuous part of the hull but little above the load-water line, say, some
three or four feet, or it may be only to that height (water line); so far the
mould of the ship is much as in ordinary; from this level I carry up the hull
of the ship in sections, say, in two sections or parts, of a ship 400 feet in
length, of about 120 feet each, the one part commencing, say, some 30 or 40
feet from the stem, the other part about 20 feet from the stern. These parts
I build up to the height necessary for a man-of-war, and cover them entirely
with armour plates, the fore part of such sections to be of a bluff bow shape,
while the after parts may be semicircular. The part of the lower body
unoccupied by these structures, which will be a sort of deck, I form and cover
over with strong iron plates to give the necessary strength to the hull and to
resist the force of exploded shells or the graze of a shot, to which alone it
would be subject, being nearly or quite horizontal. In building these vessels
I carry a light upper deck over the entire area of a ship, which may be
arranged and carried between the raised parts of the hull, or girders stretched

page_text: from the one to the other, and if necessary supported by pillars from the
exposed plated deck below. I have mentioned the raised parts of the hull as
being two in number, but three or other number may be adopted, or even one
part of considerably less length than (perhaps a half) the whole length of the
ship. In the arrangement before described I would also carry up a small
section immediately behind the stem, but which I would not cover with
armour plates; it would serve as a connection to the forecastle and as a
support for the fore part of the upper deck, or the upper deck may terminate
at the armour-protected part, both fore and aft. Besides covering the raised
parts of the hull with armour plates I cover the main body thereof from end
to end with armour plates, say, to the required depth of five feet below the
water line, and for as much as the low part thereof may rise above to the
extent of three, four, or even five feet. I have supposed it might be necessary
that the main and full-length part of the hull requires to be five feet above the
load line to give the ship the necessary buoyancy, but which may not be the
case as the raised parts of the hull may give the necessary buoyancy even
although the full length and low parts of the hull are only at a level with the
water line, and it might even be advisable to sink that part of the hull below
the surface of the water by admitting water ballast or otherwise. In the latter
case, the armour plating might be dispensed with on the low parts of the hull,
while, if sunk to the level of the water line, only a depth of five feet of armour
plating would be sufficient. I believe a ship so built will possess all the
sailing qualities necessary, will roll and pitch much less by reason of the
exposure of a comparatively small area of side to the force of the wind and
and will come round and otherwise steer easier than a ship of similar
length and tonnage. For a ship of the size of the Minotaur a saving in the
weight of armour plate to the extent of some four hundred to five hundred tons
will be effected. The high parts of the sides only are pierced for guns, and in
fact contain all the offensive materiel. I have supposed the sea to wash over
the lower deck as described, but this part might be enclosed with light mate-
rials and utilized if desired, but to be abandoned in case of fighting; the ship
to be complete, as before described, with or without such addition. This ship
may be rigged somewhat as in ordinary and propelled by screw steam power
as usual, or water-propelling jets may be used in some cases with advantage.
I also construct other steam ships than for war in a similar manner, that is,
with a main low part of hull, from which is carried upwards at intervals sections
of the hull, each terminating in front of a sharp bow-like form, and aft of a
stern-like form, the whole being bridged anil decked over. from end to end.
These vessels are lightly constructed, and I prefer to make them of great
waves,

page_text: length as compared with their beam, say, ten or fifteen times; I prefer to
propel them by steam at both ends. The main and bow part of the hull
would be little above the level of the sea, while the other parts would rise
sufficiently above to give the necessary buoyancy, the sea washing freely over
the lower part of the hull as before mentioned. Ships so built will pitch and
roll much less than ordinary ships, and in the latter case attain a far higher
speed and admit of much more economical propulsion than usual.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said William Clark in the Great Seal Patent Office on the
1st August 1863.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
CLARK, of Quadrant Road, Highbury New Park, in the County of Middlesex,
Engineer, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Second day of February, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, in the twenty-sixth year
of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto
me, the said William Clark, Her special licens that I, the said William
Clark, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said William Clark, my executors, administrators, and assigns, should at
any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times
thereafter 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 ARMOUR-PLATED AND OTHER SHIPS," upon the condition
(amongst others) that I, the said William Clark, my executors or adminis-
trators, 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 immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Clark, 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, reference being had to the Sheet of Drawings hereunto annexed,
and to the letters and figures marked thereon (that is to say):-
According to my Invention I build war ships having the main body or

page_text: continuous part of the hull but little above the load line, say, some three or
four feet, or it may be only to the load line; so far the mould of the ship is
much as in ordinary; from this level I carry up the hull of the ship in
sections, say, in two sections or parts (for a ship 400 feet in length) of about
100 feet each in length, the one part commencing, say, some 30 or 40 feet
from the stem, and the other about 20 feet from the stern.
These parts I
build up to the height necessary for a man-of-war, and sheath or coat them
entirely with armour plates; the fore part of these sections or parts I prefer
of a bluff bow shape, while the after parts may be of a semicircular or other
form. The part of the lower body unoccupied by these raised sections or
structures will be a kind of deck, which I form and cover over with strong
iron plates to give the necessary strength to the hull and to resist the force of
exploded shells or the graze of shot, to which alone it would be subject, being
nearly or quite horizontal. In building these vessels I carry a light upper
deck, it may be over the entire area of the ship, which deck is carried
between the raised parts of the hull on girders stretched from the one to the
other; and if necessary supported by pillars from the exposed plated deck
below. I have mentioned the raised parts of the hull as being two in number,
but three or other number may be adopted. In the arrangement before
described I would also carry up a small section immediately behind the stem,
but which need not be covered with armour plates; it would serve as a
communication to the forecastle and as a support for the fore part of the
upper deck, or the upper deck may terminate at the armour-protected part
both fore and aft. Besides covering the raised parts of the hull with armour
plates I cover the main body thereof from end to end with armour plates, say,
to the required depth of 5 feet below the water line and over the whole of the
lower part of the hull rising above the water, which may be to the extent of
two, three, four, or even five feet. I have supposed it may be necessary that
the main and full-length part of the hull requires to be five feet above the
load line to give the ship the necessary buoyancy or liveliness, but which may
not be the case, as the raised parts of the hull are intended to and will give
great buoyancy if depressed in the water by the pitching and rolling of the
vessel, and may produce all the necessary buoyancy even although the full
length and low parts of the hull be only at a level with the water line; it may
even be advisable to sink that part of the hull below the surface of the water
by admitting water ballast or otherwise before going into action. In the latter
case the armour plating might be dispensed with at the low parts of the hull,
while, if sunk by the admission of water ballast only to the level of the water
line, a depth of 5 feet of armour plating would be sufficient. I believe a ship

page_text: so built will possess all the sailing qualities necessary, will roll and pitch much
less by reason of the exposure of a comparatively small area of side to the
force of the wind and waves, and will come round and otherwise steer much
easier than a ship built in the ordinary manner of similar length and tonage.
For a ship of five or six thousand tons burden a saving in the weight of
armour plate to the extent of some 400 to 500 tons will be effected. The
high parts of the sides are alone pierced for guns. I have supposed the sea
to wash over the lower deck, as above described, but these parts might be
enclosed with light materials to give the ship greater buoyancy and the space
utilized if desired, but to be abandoned in case of fighting. The ship must,
however, be complete as a ship, as before described, with or without such
addition given to the buoyancy. This ship may be rigged somewhat as in
ordinary and propelled by screw and steam power as usual; water-propelling
jets may be used in some cases with advantage. I also construct other than
war ships in a similar manner, that is to say, with a main low part of hull,
from which is continued upwards at intervals sections of the hull, each termi-
nating in front of a bow-like form, and aft of a circular or stern-like form, the
whole being bridged and decked over from end to to end. Such vessels being.
for mercantile purposes are lightly constructed, and I prefer to make them of
great length as compared with their beam, say, ten or fifteen times, which will:
effect great economy in the power when propelled by steam, which it may be.
advisable to apply at both bow & stern. The main and low part of the hull.
would be little above the level of the sea, while the other part would rise
sufficiently above to give the necessary buoyancy, the sea washing freely over
the low part of the bull, as before mentioned. Ships so built will pitch and,
roll much less than ordinary ships, and in the latter case attain a higher speed.
and permit of much more economical propulsion than ordinary steam vessels..
In constructing mercantile vessels on this principle I adopt the most approved
lines for the bow or part which cleaves the water and the run of the ship, and.
add great length to the waist, whereby I am enabled greatly to increase the
carrying capacity while little additional power is required to propel the vessel.

page_text: and they may be otherwise disposed, that is to say, they may be further
forward or aft, or of larger or smaller dimensions. If greater buoyancy is
required at the bow, for instance, it may be advisable to place the fore
chamber farther forward, or it may be better still to enclose the forward open
part of the ship, but which I should do in light framing and plates easily
penetrable by shot and shell, from the effects of which the ship would be
protected by her plating.
'Between the part B and the gun chamber I support the upper deck E on
girders F, and pillars G, as also between and aft of the gun chambers; these
may be further strengthened by longitudinal and transverse diagonal stays, as
seen in the side view and cross section, Fig. 4. The gun chambers A may, of
course, be pierced for a greater or lesser number of guns according to the
capacity or requirements. The rudder head entering the vessel below the
water line will require to enter through a stuffing box, and may be worked
below the open deck C, or the steering gear may be carried forward and up
to the upper deck E within the after gun chamber. Fig. 4 represents a
midship section of Fig. 2, and Fig. 5, a partial longitudinal central section of
the same.
It is unnecessary here to enter into the detail of construction of these
armour-plated ships, as that will be readily understood and carried out by
ship-builders; at same time, I may mention that great strength will be
necessary in the lower part of the hull, as being in itself sufficient to support
the
gun chambers without the ties formed by the upper deck E, its girders,
uprights, and stays. To obtain the requisite strength, in addition to the sides
of the ships, it may be necessary to fit her with longitudinal diagonal framing,
which may be placed over the keel, or it may be better to fit her with two
sister kelsons, as at H, H, Figs. 4 & 5, which kelsons form the lower part of
the diagonal framing, and correspond with two beams I, I, under the lower
deck C. The parts H, H, and I, I, are suitably connected by uprights and
diagonal stays (see Fig. 5) of the proper strength to impart the necessary
stiffness and strength to the ship. As before mentioned, the armour-plating
is confined within the red line in Fig. 2, or may extend higher, and enclose
the bulwarks above the gun chambers. This plating is represented by the
black lines a, a, in the plan & section, Figs. 3 and 5, and the lower deck
plating by b, in Fig. 5.
.
Fig. 6 represents a side view of a steam vessel for commercial purposes, con-
structed according to my Invention, Fig. 7, a deck plan, and Fig. 8 a plan
with the upper deck removed, while Fig. 9 represents a transverse section on
line 1, 2, Fig. 6. In these vessels I have represented the raised sections of

page_text: the hull carried up from the lower part as being three in number, one forward,
one in midships, and one at the stern, each of a length as being calculated
to impart the necessary buoyancy, or rather liveliness to the ship, but their
length, in proportion to the length of the vessel, may be much less than that
shown in the Drawings. In this case the upper deck L is supported between
the raised sections of the ship on uprights N and diagonal framings M, M,
which, with the girders, should be such as to form part of the permanent
strength of the ship. The diagonals M being at the sides of the ship, may,
to impart greater strength, be continued below the exposed lower deck P.
The lower exposed deck P may be carried on transverse beams R of
sufficient strength without intermediate uprights or framing, as seen in Fig. 9.
I make this deck considerably higher in the centre than at the sides, towards
which it is inclined, in order that the water may run off readily. The
general details and fittings of the ship it is unnecessary to describe or
represent.
Vessels constructed according to this Invention, although of great length
in proportion to their beam, will expose comparatively little top sides to the
force of the wind and waves, and having little top hamper, will therefore be
liable to roll much less than ordinary ships, and while pitching, in descending
in the water, such ships will have proportionately less general displacement,
and in consequence will not be thrown so high out of the water; therefore
the rise and fall of the bow and stern, or other part of the ship will rise and
fall less than in an ordinary ship. Besides having great length, a ship so
constructed will bridge the waves, and in addition to the buoyancy of the
immersed section (to the load water line) will have three auxiliary points of
suspension produced by the raised chambers or compartments of the vessel's hull.
In order to prevent the sea washing over the upper deck, it may be
necessary to carry the deck much higher from the water line (say twenty-five
or thirty feet) than in ordinary ships, but for which this form and construction
of ship will be readily capable, as having less weight above the water line,
and being less subject to rolling motion than vessels of an ordinary build. ·
In witness whereof, I, the said William Clark, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Thirty-first day of July, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three.