HMS Achilles ( 1905 ) HMS " Achilles " was a armoured cruiser built for the Royal Navy in the first decade of the 20th century . She served with the 2nd Cruiser Squadron for most of the First World War . The ship did not participate in the Battle of Jutland in 1916 , but did sink the German raider " Leopard " in 1917 . " Achilles " became a training ship in 1918 and was sold for scrap in 1921 . General description . " Achilles " displaced as built and fully loaded . The ship had an overall length of , a beam of and a draught of . She was powered by four - cylinder triple - expansion steam engine s , driving two shafts , which developed a total of and gave a maximum speed of . The engines were powered by 19 Yarrow water - tube boilers and six cylindrical boilers . The ship carried a maximum of of coal and an additional of fuel oil that was sprayed on the coal to increase its burn rate . At full capacity , she could steam for at a speed of . Armament . Her main armament consisted of six BL Mark X guns in single Mk V turret s distributed in two centerline turrets ( one each fore and one aft ) and four turrets disposed in the corners about the funnels . Her secondary armament of four BL Mark II or Mark V guns in single Mk II turrets was carried amidships , between the wing 9 . 2 - inch guns . Twenty - six Vickers QF 3 - pounders were fitted , ten on turret roofs and eight each on the forward and aft superstructures . The last four ships of the cruisers had a secondary armament of turreted 7 . 5 - inch guns rather than the guns in open barbette s of the first two ships ; these latter four were sometimes referred to as the " Warrior " class . Because of the extra topweight of the turrets in comparison to their half - sisters their stability was reduced which made them very good seaboats and steady gun platforms because they did not roll as much . The ship also mounted three submerged torpedo tube s , one of which was mounted in the stern . Wartime modifications . A single Hotchkiss QF 6 - pounder anti - aircraft gun on a high - angle Mark Ic mounting was mounted on the quarterdeck in 1915 . It had a maximum depression of 8° and a maximum elevation of 60° . The gun fired a shell at a muzzle velocity of at a rate of fire of 20 rounds per minute . They had a maximum ceiling of , but an effective range of only . " Achilles " s foremast was converted to a tripod mast to support the weight of a fire - control director after the Battle of Jutland in 1916 , but when the director was actually fitted is not known . Service . " Achilles " was ordered as part of the 1903 – 04 naval construction programme as the third of four armoured cruisers . She was laid down on 22 February 1904 at Elswick by Armstrong Whitworth . The ship was launched on 17 June 1905 and completed on 22 April 1907 at the cost of £1 , 191 , 103 . Like her sister ships , she joined the 5th Cruiser Squadron in 1907 , and made a port visit to Russia in 1908 . The ship was later transferred to the 2nd Cruiser Squadron in 1909 . " Achilles " , accompanied by her sister , and three other armoured cruisers were sent to reinforce the defences of the Shetland Islands on 2 August 1914 , days before the start of the First World War . She , and her squadron , was assigned to the Grand Fleet after the beginning of the war . " Achilles " missed the Battle of Jutland on 31 May 1916 because she was refitting . On the evening of 18 August , the Grand Fleet put to sea in response to a deciphered message that the High Seas Fleet , minus the II Battle Squadron , would be leaving harbour that night . The Germans planned to bombard the port of Sunderland on 19 August , with extensive reconnaissance provided by airships and submarines . The Germans broke off their planned attack to pursue a lone British battle squadron reported by an airship , which was in fact the Harwich Force under Commodore Tyrwhitt . Realising their mistake , the Germans then set course for home . During the Grand Fleet ' s sortie , " Achilles " spotted a U - boat . During another sortie by the High Seas Fleet on 18 October 1916 , " Achilles " and three other armoured cruisers were ordered to patrol the northern end of the North Sea , between the approaches to Pentland Firth and Hardangerfjord in Norway , but they saw no German ships . On 16 March 1917 , " Achilles " and the armed boarding steamer were patrolling north of the Shetland Islands when they encountered the disguised German auxiliary cruiser " Leopard " . The latter ship heaved to when commanded , but maneuvered to prevent " Dundee " from boarding her and then fired two torpedoes which missed . " Dundee " retaliated by raking " Leopard " s stern , badly damaging the German ship and then " Achilles " opened fire herself . The German ship sank an hour later with no survivors . " Achilles " was transferred to the North America and West Indies Station in August 1917 for convoy escort duties , but returned to Britain for a refit between February and December 1918 . Upon completion of this refit " Achilles " became a stoker ' s training ship at Chatham . The ship was sold for scrap on 9 May 1921 .