Germans SMS Moltke-class
British HMS Lion-class
An item reported that while designing the German battle cruisers Moltke (1) and Goeben the German navy tried to obtain advantages above the British Indefatigable and even the Lion (2) fitting the ships out with 10 instead of 8 heavy guns like the British armoured cruisers [battle cruisers] had. This was done by adding a fifth twin gun turret situated between the aft turret and the main mast firing over the aft turret. The two gun turrets amidships were place en échelon like the German Von der Tann and the British Invincible. This gun arrangement made it possible to fire with 10 guns in the broadsides, 6 ahead and 4 afterwards. There was yet one huge problem which could not be solved by a stronger secondary armament like the German ships had. The British navy was using 34cm guns on the Lion and similar ships, the German navy used 28cm guns!
Notes
1. Moltke-class. Sister ship the Goeben. Building ordered on 17 September 1908. Laid down at the shipyard of Blohm&Voss, Hamburg, Germany on 7 December 1908, baptized by Helmuth von Moltke the Younger and launched on 7 April 1910, commissioned on 30 August 1911 and scuttled by her own crew to prevent that she fell into British hands on 21 June 1919, raised in 1927 and broken up at Rosyth between 1927-1929. Displacement 22.979 tons/22.616 long tons (design)-25.400 tons/25.000 long tons (full loaded) and as dimensions 186,6 x 30 x 9,2 metres or 612.2 x 98.5 x 30.3 feet. The Parsons turbines supplied via 4 screws 51.289 (design)-84.609 (maximum) shp allowing a speed of 25,5 (design)-28,4 (maximum) knots and with a speed of 14 knots a range of 4.120 nautical miles. Her crew numbered 1.053 men included 43 officers. The armour consisted of a 10-29cm/3.9-11” thick belt. a 2,54-7,62cm/1-3” inch deck with the gun turrets, barbettes and conning tower protected by respectively 23cm/9.1”, 23cm/9.1” and 34cm/14”. The armament consisted of 5x2-28cm/11” L/50 guns, 12-15cm/5.9” guns and 12-8,8cm/3.5“ guns.
2. Displacement 26.690 tons/26.270 long tons (normal load)-31.310 tons/30.820 long tons (deep load) and as dimensions 213,4 x 27,0 x 9,9 (deep load) x 1,8 (metacentric height at deep load) metres or 700’ x 88‘6.75”x 32.5’ x 6‘. The 2 paired sets Parsons direct-drive steam turbines in separate engine-rooms manufactured by Vickers and 42 Yarrow boilers (in 7 boiler rooms) supplied via 4 shafts 70.000 (design)-96.238 (trials) shp allowing a speed of 28 (design)-28,5 (trials) knots. With a speed of 10 knots and a coal bunker capacity of 3.556 tons and 1.153 tons fuel oil was the range 5.610 nautical miles. Their crew numbered 1.092 men. The armour consisted of a 10,2-22,9cm/4-9” thick belt, 10,2cm/4” thick bulkheads, 6,4cm/2.5” thick decks with the gun turrets, barbettes and conning tower protected by respectively 22,9c./9”, 20,3-22,9cm/8-9” and 25,4cm/10”. The original armament consisted of 4x2-34,3cm/13.5” breech loading Mk V guns, 16x1-10,2cm/4” breech loading guns and 2x1-53,3cm/21” torpedo tubes. In begin 1918 carrying with her 2 planes launched from platforms on top of the Q and X turrets
