Year: 1872




The London Standard gives full &C
count of the recent turret test which took
place at Portsmouth, England, some time
since, which resulted in a complete triumph
OF our turret system The fact is estab-
llshed that the turret, properly constructed.
Is fully competent to resist the power Of
the heaviest prejectile thrown from gun
not yet invented The Standard after
giving description of the vessels goes on
to say


The first shot at the 'Glatton' was fired
at III 30 q. III. from the 600 FOUNDER Of the
Hotspur, at distance Of 200 yards 1t
struck the roof Of the turret and streak
Of flame attested the severity Of the blow
The second shot WAS fired, and it told An
account says:


The Pallisser projectlle had struck ON
the horizontal joint Of the l4inch' plates,
and had forced them slightly apart, as was
clearly marked by the dark line on either
side of the perfectly round shot hole 1t
was indeed a terrible shot for the turret
it had hit it under the fifth rib, as it were,
but its mechanism was not hurt its gear
ing was all sound. The turret had held its
own. The hitting force Of that huge shot
was over 4, 900 foot tons the IS pounds Of
pebble powder had hurled it with speed
of more than 300 feet per second. The
first shot cut away two of the stanchions
on the top Of the turret-this explained
the thin fiash-and had twisted some of the
railing bars. The second shot had struck
full on the middle of the turrent between
the joints, the shot head remaining in the
hole, the depth to the end Of its core being
IA inches, and the grape of the plates
inches, diminishing to zero at about or
feet on each side. Inside the turret the /
inch iron lining was stripped from behind
three Of the vertical ribs halfway down on
one side and from top to within 10 inches
Of bottom ON the other and turned back
between two of these ribs the shot had
driven the doubles skin out into a hummock,
splitting the inner skin at the horizontal
JOINT Of the outer skin. The middle ril Of
the three was broken through midway Of
its height, the cape being 3 inches All
three ribs were contorted, and long slivers
Of the wood backing protruded through
the crack in the skin n-plates. Three Of the
rear ends Of the large through bolts were
exposed in vertical line, the nut of the
middle one being broken off at the cons
Of the minus screw-thread, and
the rubber of the lower Bascombe washer
being pressed out at its edges. The dam
age wasby no means severe, and was such
as ShOeburyness experiments would have
led one to expect.


A third shot was fired, and it was now
clearly seen that the turret had been struck
low down, close upon the junction line Of
the glacis- plata perfectly round and
dangerous wound. All anxiety was soon
however, by the sight Of the tur-
ret slowly revolving tirst one way and then
the other. Again away in the tender to
inspect results. The shot had struck on
the leather fringe Just where it covered the !
extreme edge Of the glacis-plating thence
it had curved slightly upwards, driving
INTO the lower l4-inch plate midway be-
in the hole-which was perfectly round
but was easily got out, when the penetra-
tion was found to be l34 inches. Inside /
the turret the only damage done was the
of the inward ends Of the two
wood-butfers against which the gun carriage
would abut when the gun WAS run out of 1
the port for action. This result was per
fectly satisfactory, for nothing could dem
the excellent qualities Of the tur
ret more completely. During the practice |
a goat, fowl, and rabbit, with several
buckets Of water, were kept inside it, the |
living creatures coming out unscathed from !
their ordeal Both these rounds were most /
fortunate, and as the latter solved the |
problem of the free working Of the turret |
without heeling the ship-which was only
to bring the junction Of turret
and glscis in position to meet the FIRE Of the
Hotspur's gun-further practice was aban-
loned, except that the port shoppers of the
Citations turret were taken out, and her
two guns run in and out with perfect ease,
her turret turned by hand and by steam,
and 800 FOUNDER shot fired from each Of
her two guns.