Greek ironclad Vasilefs Georgios

History
Greece
Name: Vasilefs Georgios
Namesake: King George
Builder: Thames Ironworks, Blackwall, London
Launched: 28 December 1867
Completed: 1868
Decommissioned: 1915
Reclassified: Training ship, early 1900s
Fate: Scrapped, 1915
General characteristics (as built)
Type: Armored corvette
Displacement: 1,774 long tons (1,802 t)
Length: 200 ft 2 in (61.0 m)
Beam: 33 ft (10.1 m)
Draft: 16 ft (4.9 m)
Installed power: 2,100 ihp (1,600 kW)
Propulsion: 1 shaft, 1 steam engine
Sail plan: Schooner rigged
Speed: 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph)
Range: 1,300 nautical miles (2,400 km; 1,500 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)
Complement: 152
Armament:
Armor:
  • Belt: 4.5–7 in (114–178 mm)
  • Battery: 6 in (152 mm)

The Greek ironclad Vasilefs Georgios (Greek: Βασιλεύς Γεώργιος) was an armored corvette built in Great Britain for the Royal Hellenic Navy during the 1860s. She became a cadet training ship before she was stricken from the Navy List in 1912. The ship was scrapped in 1915.

Description

Vasilefs Georgios had a length overall of 213 feet 3 inches (65.0 m) long, a beam of 33 feet 2 inches (10.1 m) and a mean draft of 20 feet (6.1 m). The ship displaced 1,774 long tons (1,802 t). She had horizontal single-expansion steam engines that drove two propellers.[1] The engines were designed to produce a total of 2,400 indicated horsepower (1,800 kW) to give the ship a speed of 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph), but only produced 2,100 ihp (1,600 kW) for a speed of 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph).[2] For long-distance travel, Vasilefs Georgios was fitted with two masts and schooner rigged. She carried 210 long tons (210 t) of coal that gave her a range of about 1,300 nautical miles (2,400 km; 1,500 mi) at full speed. The ship had a crew of 120 officers and crewmen.[1]

Vasilefs Georgios was armed with a pair of Armstrong nine inches (229 mm) rifled muzzle-loading guns. The ship was a central-battery ironclad with the armament concentrated amidships in a hexagonal armored citadel. The citadel was protected by six-inch (152 mm) plates and the entire ships' side was covered by armor that had a maximum thickness of seven inches (178 mm) amidships and reduced to four point five inches (114 mm) at the ends.[3]

Construction and service

Vasilefs Georgios, named for King George I of Greece,[4] was built by Thames Ironworks, Blackwall, London. She was launched on 28 December 1867 and completed the following year. The ship became a training ship for naval cadets around the end of the 19th century[3] until she was stricken in 1912. Vasilefs Georgios was broken up in 1915.[5]

Notes

  1. 1 2 Silverstone, p. 278
  2. ↑ "Greek Ironclads Olga and Georgios", p. 212
  3. 1 2 "Greek Ironclads Olga and Georgios", pp. 212–13
  4. ↑ Silverstone, p. 281
  5. ↑ Gardiner & Gray, p. 383

Bibliography

  • Chesneau, Roger & Kolesnik, Eugene M., eds. (1979). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. Greenwich: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-8317-0302-4.
  • Gardiner, Robert & Gray, Randal, eds. (1984). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships: 1906–1922. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-907-3.
  • "Greek Ironclads Olga and Georgios". Warship International. Toledo, Ohio: Naval Records Club. X (2): 212–14. 1973. ISSN 0043-0374.
  • Silverstone, Paul H. (1984). Directory of the World's Capital Ships. New York: Hippocrene Books. ISBN 0-88254-979-0.
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