Bellerophon Class Dreadnought Battleship

Bellerophon class.  Visually similar to Dreadnought but with a second tripod mast.  The position of the tripod masts was far from ideal and if the wind was in the right direction they could be interfered with by smoke and heat form the funnels.  The positioning was influenced by the peacetime requirement for easy boat handling.

HMS Bellerophon
Built Portsmouth Dockyard, laid down December 1906, completed February 1909, cost £1,763,491.

HMS Superb
Built Elswick, laid down February 1907, completed June 1909, cost £1,744,287.

HMS Temeraire
Built Portsmouth Dockyard, laid down January 1907, completed May 1909, cost £1,641,114.

Size:
Length 522 feet waterline 526 feet overall, beam 82 feet 6 inches, draught 31 feet 5 inches, displacement 18,596 load22,540 tons deep.

Propulsion:
4 shaft Parsons turbines, 23,000 shp, 21kts

Trials:
Bellerophon 25,061 shp = 21.25 knots
Superb 27,407 shp = 21.56 knots
Temeraire 26,966 shp = 21.55 knots.

Armour:
10-5in belt, 9-5in barbettes, 11in turret faces, 3-0.5in decks

Armament:
10 x 12in 45cal MK X (5 x 2), 16 x 4in (16 x 1), 4 x 3 pounder (4 x 1), 3 x 18in TT

Comments:
Similar to the preceding Dreadnought class.  The main armament was the same but there was an increase in the secondary armament in response to the increasing size of torpedo boats.  They also had improved underwater protection with continuous anti-torpedo bulkheads running from the forward of the  forward magazine and covering to the end of the rear magazine.  Crew 680.

World War 1 Service:
Bellerophon
August 1914 1st then 4th Battle Squadron Grand Fleet.
27 August 1914 collided with SS St Clair off the Orkney Islands, no significant damage sustained.
May 1915 refit at Devonport.
Present at the Battle of Jutland 1916. Fired 62 12in rounds and received no damage.
June-September 1917 served as second flagship 4th Battle Squadron whilst HMS Colossus in refit.
November 1921 sold for scrap.

Superb
1st Battle Squadron Grand Fleet.
January-March 1915 refit at Portsmouth.
10 November 1915 transferred to 4th Battle Squadron.
May 1916 served as flagship 4th Battle Squadron whilst HMS Emperor of India in refit.
Present at the Battle of Jutland 1916. Fired 54 12in rounds and received no damage.
October 1918 detached to Eastern Mediterranean Squadron and became Flagship of Vice-Admiral Gough-Calthrope.
December 1922 sold for scrap.

Temeraire
4th Battle Squadron Grand Fleet.
18 March 1915 unsuccessfully attempted to ram German submarine U29 that had attacked HMS Neptune.
summer 1915 refit at Devonport.
Present at the Battle of Jutland 1916. Fired 54 12in rounds and received no damage.
October 1918 detached to Eastern Mediterranean Squadron.
End 1921 sold for scrap.

HMS Temeraire.  Some of the secondary anti-torpedo boat guns can be seen on the turret roofs.  It was not expected at the time of construction that these guns would be manned during a fleet action as it was felt that no Admiral would order such an attack during an action as it would interfere with the main action, the torpedo boats being used either before or after the main action.