Lion class

===Description===
This class of four battlecruisers was designed after both weaponry and machinery had evolved beyond those available at the time their predecessors were laid down. It was also a reaction to the emergence of the first potential counterpart in a foreign navy, SMS Von der Tann, which sports a comparable speed and armament and was thus a great threat to the original battlecruisers. The main guns were upgraded to the 13.5" calibre which had recently become the new standard for British capital ships, and the armour was also strengthened to a thickness of no less than 9". The new ships are faster, better armoured and heavier armed than their predecessors, and were also much larger since they had to carry an immense power plant to achieve all this. Nevertheless, the result are ships that are both beautiful and lethal and do credit to their nickname Splendid Cats, and the victories won at Heligoland and Dogger Bank are theirs as well.
Of the four ships that were originally ordered, only two were actually of the same pattern. The third ship, HMS Queen Mary, already showed several improvements which merited her own class, and HMS Tiger was moulded after the model of an even mightier ship taking form on British shipyards, the Japanese battlecruiser Kongo. All ships were commissioned in 1912 and 1913.
===Ship data===
Relative combat value: 10422
Basic damage control capacity: 65%
Dimensions
Displacement: 26270 tons
Length: 213 m
Width: 27 m
Draught: 9 m
Standard crew: 997
Performance
Maximum speed (undamaged): 27 knots
Endurance: 10395 km
Coal capacity: 4635 tons
Armour protection
Conning tower armour: 10
Hull armour: 6
Main belt armour: 9
Deck armour: 2
Best armour type: Krupp
Armament
8 x 13.5in Mk V 1250 lb, centrally controlled. Ammo: 640 rounds
16 x 4in BL Mk VII, centrally controlled. Ammo: 2400 rounds
2 x 12-pdr 20cwt HA Mk Is, locally controlled. Ammo: 400 rounds
2 x 21in Mk II(X) Torpedoes, locally controlled. Ammo: 2 torpedoes
2 x 21in Mk II(M) Torpedoes, locally controlled. Ammo: 6 torpedoes
===Ships in class===
* Lion
* Princess Royal
Category:Ship type
Category:Royal Navy
Category:Battlecruiser
Category:Capital ship