British protected cruiser 1st class HMS Hawke 1889-1914

Blake-class

Edgar-class

Powerful-class

Part of the Edgar-class consisting of the Edgar, Hawke, Endymion, Royal Arthur (ex-Centaur), Gibraltar, Grafton, St. George, Theseus and Crescent, preceded by the Blake-class and succeeded by the Powerful-class. Built under the Naval Defence Act of 1889. Laid down at the Chatham Dockyard, England on 16 June 1889, launched on 11 March 1891, sea trials in March 1892, completed on 16 May 1893, training ship for boys 1904-1906, added to the torpedo school at Sheerness, England in 1907 and torpedoed and sunk by the German submarine U-9 off Aberdeen, Scotland on 15 October 1914.

Displacement 7.790 tons and as dimensions 109,73 (between perpendiculars)-118,11 (over all) x 18.29 x 7,24 metres or 360-387.6 x 60 x 23.9” feet. Coal-fired machinery consisted of 2-3cylinder vertical triple expansion steam engines and 4 boilers supplying 12.000 ihp allowing a speed of 20 knots and with a speed of 10 knots a range 10.000 nautical miles. Crew numbered 544 men. Armour consisted of a 7,6cm/3”-12,7cm/5” deck with the casemate protected by 15,2cm/6” thick armour and the main guns by 7,6cm/3” thick shields and the conning tower by 25,4cm/10”. Armament consisted of 2x1-23,37cm/9.2” inch breech loading Mk VI guns, 10x1-5,24cm/6” quick firing guns, 12x1-6pd guns, 4x1-3pd guns and 4-45,72cm/18“ torpedo tubes.