HMS battleship Warspite

HMS battleship Warspite can justly claim to be the most famous British warship of World War II. Already well-known for her exploits at Jutland as long ago as 1916, she won further laurels as the flagship of Sir Andrew Cunningham, Commander-in Chief of the Mediterranean Fleet.

Her 15-inch guns fired upon Italian cruisers at Matapan, at German destroyers at Narvik, and at Panzer formations in Normandy. Between 1939 and 1945 she saw more action than any other capital ship, and suffered severe damage on several occasions. Although only the sixth Warspite to feature in the Royal Navy her battle honours went back to 1596, and she bore one of the Navy's proudest names.

Warspite was the fifth unit of the Queen Elizabeth class, which were outstanding among British battleships, and the most far-sighted design of their day. What made them remarkable was their heavy protection and armament, combined with high speOO. factors which made them front-line units for thirty years. They were a remarkable tribute to the expertise of British ship-designers for they were novel in so many ways: the first battleships using oil-fuel only, the first to mount the new 15-inch gun, and also the first to reach a speed of 25 knots.

One of the finest features of the Queen Elizabeths was the simplicity of the design. The 15-inch gun was rugged and reliable, the layout of the armament was logical, and the very appearance of the ships suggested symmetry and coordinated power. Their original profile, with two large funnels and a heavy tripod foremast, made them the best-Iooking ships afloat.

Battleship design was a compromise, and the Queen Elizabeths demonstrate this very well. As originally conceived they were simply faster Iron Dukes, with improvements suggested by experience with the battle-cruiser Tiger. The adoption of the 15-inch gun meant a great increase in gun-power, which allowed one turret to be eliminated. The extra boilers needed to increase speed to 25 knots were put in the space which was now available, and as oil-firing boilers were to be used, the weight saved in coal-bunkerage was allocated toarmour.

Warspite was laid down at Devonport in 1912, and commissioned for the 5th Battle Squadron in March 1915. She remained with the 5th B.S. throughout the War, in comPMY with her sisters. At Jutland, on 31 May 1916 she and three other Queen Elizabeths were attached to Sir David Beatty's battle-cruiser squadron on account of their high speed. When action was joined with the German battle-cruisers the Queen Elizabeths' 15-inch guns gave them an obvious advantage over the enemy, but when the main German fleet came into action Warspite was hit in the steering compartment.

At a crucial moment in the battle, as the two enormous fleets approached one another, the Warspite's steering gear broke down completely, and she turned circles under heavy fire from no fewer than seven German battleships. Onlookers called it 'Windy Corner', for they were certain that she was about to be sunk, but the gallant Warspite emerged with all guns firing, and full of fight. After peacetime service with the Atlantic Fleet and the Mediterranean Fleet she was taken in hand for modernisation in 1934, and did not reappear until 1937 . The drawing depicts her in this modernised state, the original funnels having first been trunked together and then completely replaced. During the reconstruction the original superstructure was removed and replaced. The tripod foremast and lighter bridgework was replaced by a large tower bridge; a complete re-engining and reboilering resulted in a new streamlined funnel. The old 6.inch battery of secondary guns was reduced by two guns on each side, and anew large aircraft hangar was added abaft the funnel.

The Warspite's list of war damage gives some idea of the extent of her service from 1939 to 1945. On 22 May 1941 she was badly hit by bombs during the evacuation of Crete, and spent seven months under repair. Two years later, on 16 September 1943 two German glider bombs struck her while she was bombarding shore positions during the Salerno landings. After another seven months' repairs she was transferred to the bombarding force for the D.day landings, and carried out many bombardments. While passing through the English Channel on 13 June 1944 she was damaged by a magnetic mine, but after lightning repairs at Rosyth she was back off the Normandy beaches. By now very weary, with one 15-inch turret useless from the mine-damage, she t carried out a last vital bombardment in support of the Walcheren landing in i November 1944.


The Admiralty announced in March 1946 that the Warsp;te was for disposal, and she was sold 12 July 1946. But before the first breaker's hammer touched her s she ran aground in Prussia Cove, Cornwall in April 1947. Despite many efforts n to refloat her she fulfilled the expectations of her staunch admirers by refusing e to move, and had to be broken up where she lay. Throughout her life the 'Old d Lady' had proved that she had a will of her own, and nobody who had served in o her was surprised that she managed to avoid the scrapyard.


The drawing shows H.M.S. Warspite as she appeared in 1942-43, when several h changes had been made to her equipment. The !ore topmast was formerly le stepped before the lower mast, but thiS has been shifted abaft the lower mast to make room for the Type 273 radar lantern. Type 279 revolving aerials have been : added to the mastheads, and Type 285 to the high-angle directors. Note the le Type 279 radar office u.nder the after end of .the flag-deck, and the 24-inch s searchlight on the extension to the flag-deck. Slight alterations have been made  to the bridgework since 1939, but the pom-pom deck on either side of the In funnel and hangar remain virtually unchanged.

Ile Battleships had large outfits of boats, and no two ships were alike. Warspite had ed 45-foot motor boats and launches, all stowed above the aircraft hangar .
Additional 30-foot motor boats are stowed on either side of the after superIk, structure at forecastle deck level. Note that the Walrus amphibian aircraft is still carried.