View source for Beagle-class destroyer

{{hatnote group|
{{distinguish|Beagle-class sloop}}
{{other uses|G-class destroyer (disambiguation)}}
}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2017}}
{{Use British English|date=March 2017}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=HMS Scourge at sea (15832433805).jpg
|Ship caption= {{HMS|Scourge|1910|6}} at sea, 1914
}}
{{Infobox ship class overview
|Name=''Beagle'' class (or G class)
|Builders=
*[[John Brown & Company]]
*[[J. Samuel White & Company]]
*[[Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering Company]]
*[[Thames Ironworks and Shipbuilding Company]]
*[[William Denny & Brothers]]
*[[Cammell Laird & Company]]
*[[Harland & Wolff]]
*[[R. W. Hawthorn Leslie & Company]]
*[[John I. Thornycroft & Company]]
|Operators={{navy|United Kingdom}}
|Class before={{sclass2|Tribal|destroyer (1905)|4}}
|Class after={{sclass|Acorn|destroyer|4}}
|Subclasses=
|Built range=1909 &ndash; 1910
|In commission range=1910 &ndash; 1921
|Total ships building=
|Total ships planned=
|Total ships completed=16
|Total ships cancelled=
|Total ships active=
|Total ships laid up=
|Total ships lost=3
|Total ships retired=
|Total ships scrapped=13
|Total ships preserved=
}}{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption=
|Ship type=[[Destroyer]]
|Ship displacement={{convert|860|-|940|LT|t|0|abbr=on}}
|Ship length={{convert|275|ft|m|abbr=on|1}}
|Ship beam={{convert|27|ft|6|in|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship draught={{convert|8|ft|6|in|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship power={{convert|12500|HP|kW|abbr=on}}
|Ship propulsion=Coal-fired boilers, 2 or 3 shaft [[steam turbine]]s
|Ship speed={{convert|27|kn|lk=in|1}}
|Ship range=
|Ship complement=96
|Ship sensors=
|Ship EW=
|Ship armament=*1 × [[BL 4 inch naval gun Mk VIII|BL {{convert|4|in|mm|adj=on|0}} L/40 Mark VIII guns]], mounting P Mark V
*3 × [[12-pounder gun|QF 12-pounder 12 cwt Mark I]], mounting P Mark I
*2 × single [[British 21 inch torpedo|21 inch (533 mm)]] [[torpedo tube]]s
|Ship armour=
|Ship notes=
}}
|}
The '''''Beagle'' class''' (officially redesignated as the '''G class''' in 1913) was a [[ship class|class]] of sixteen [[destroyer]]s of the [[Royal Navy]], all ordered under the 1908-1909 programme and launched in 1909 and 1910. The ''Beagle''s served during [[World War I]], particularly during the [[Naval operations in the Dardanelles Campaign|Dardanelles Campaign]] of 1915.

==Design==
For the 1908–1909 shipbuilding programme, the [[British Admiralty]] decided to revert to a smaller, more affordable destroyer to follow-on from the large and fast {{sclass2|Tribal|destroyer (1905)|4}} (required to reach {{convert|33|kn|lk=in}}) and the experimental {{convert|36|kn|adj=on}} {{HMS|Swift|1907|6}}. The destroyers needed sufficient range to operate across the [[North Sea]] in the event of a confrontation with Germany, which rendered the {{sclass|Cricket|coastal destroyer|0}} coastal destroyers which had been built as a low-cost supplement to the expensive Tribals outdated, requiring larger numbers of a cheaper standard destroyer.<ref name="Fried p108,114">Friedman 2009, pp. 108, 114.</ref><ref name="conways06 p74">Gardiner and Gray 1985, p. 74.</ref> While the Tribals were oil fuelled, it was decided to return to the use of [[coal]] for the new destroyers, because of concerns over the availability of [[fuel oil|oil]] stocks in the event of a war and to reduce costs. They were the last British destroyers to be so fueled.<ref name="conways06 p74"/><ref name="Fried p118">Friedman 2009, p. 118.</ref><ref name="Manning p55">Manning 1961, p. 55.</ref>

The ''Beagle''s were not built to a standard design, with detailed design being left to the builders of individual ships in accordance with a loose specification.<ref name="grand p68">Brown 2010, p. 68.</ref> They were between {{convert|263|ft|11+1/4|in|m|2}} and {{convert|275|ft|m|2}} long [[length between perpendiculars|between perpendiculars]], with a [[Beam (nautical)|beam]] of between {{convert|26|ft|10|in|m}} and {{convert|28|ft|1|in|m}}, with an average [[Draft (ship)|draught]] of {{convert|8|ft|6|in}}.<ref name="conways06 p73">Gardiner and Gray 1985, p. 73.</ref> It was expected that the ships would [[Displacement (ship)|displace]] {{convert|850|LT|}} but the builder's designs came out heavier,<ref name="Fried p118"/> at about {{convert|945|LT|t}} normal and {{convert|1100|LT|t|-1}} full load.<ref name="conways06 p73"/> Five [[Yarrow boiler|Yarrow]] or White-Forster boilers fed direct-drive [[steam turbine]]s driving three propeller shafts. The machinery was rated at {{convert|14300|shp|kW|lk=in}} to give a speed of {{convert|27|kn}}.<ref name="conways06 p73"/><ref name="grand p69">Brown 2010, p. 69.</ref> Three funnels were fitted.<ref name="Fried p116">Friedman 2009, p. 116.</ref>
  
The ''Beagle'' class was designed to carry a gun armament of five 12-pounder (76&nbsp;mm) guns, with two mounted side by side on a raised platform on the ship's [[forecastle]], two on the ship's beams, with the port gun mounted ahead of the starboard gun and one aft. While the ships were building, however, it was decided to replace the two forecastle guns by a single {{convert|4|in|mm|adj=on|0}} gun,{{#tag:ref|This was as a result of tests 1906 against the destroyer {{HMS|Skate|1895|2}}, which had shown that 12-pounder shells often exploded before they hit the target's engine room.<ref name="Fried p108-9">Friedman 2009, pp. 108–109.</ref>|group=lower-alpha}} giving a gun armament of one [[BL 4 inch naval gun Mk VIII]] and three [[QF 12-pounder 12 cwt naval gun|QF 12-pounder 12 cwt]] guns){{#tag:ref|"Cwt" is the abbreviation for [[hundredweight]], 12 cwt referring to the weight of the gun.|group=lower-alpha}} Torpedo armament consisted of two {{convert|21|in|mm|0|adj=on}} [[torpedo tube]]s, with one between the ship's [[Funnel (ship)|funnels]] and the aft gun, and one right aft at the stern of the ship. These torpedoes had a range of {{convert|1000|yd|m}} at {{convert|50|kn}} or {{convert|12000|yd|m}} at {{convert|30|kn}}. Two spare torpedoes were carried.<ref name="Friedman p116,8">Friedman 2009, pp. 116, 118.</ref><ref name="conways06 p73-4">Gardiner and Gray 1985, pp. 73–74.</ref>

Wartime modifications included replacement of the aft torpedo tube by a [[Ordnance QF 3-pounder Vickers|3-pounder]] (47&nbsp;mm) anti-aircraft gun in some ships,<ref name="conways06 p73"/> while [[depth charge]]s were also fitted.<ref name="Fried p116">Friedman 2009, p. 116.</ref>

The ''Beagle''s were followed, in the 1909-10 Programme, by the {{sclass|Acorn|destroyer|4}} (later known as the H class).

==Service==
As the ''Beagle''s completed in 1910, they joined the 1st Destroyer Flotilla of the Royal Navy's [[Home Fleet]].<ref name="conways06 p74"/> but in 1913 they were sent to the [[Mediterranean]],<ref name="Manning p26">Manning 1961, p. 26.</ref> where they formed the 5th Flotilla, remaining there on the outbreak of the [[First World War]].<ref name="conways06 p74"/> They were officially redesignated the G class in October 1913 as part of a general re-designation of the Royal Navy's destroyers.<ref name="conways06 p18,74">Gardiner and Gray 1985, pp. 18, 74.</ref> The ''Beagle'' class spent most of the war in the Mediterranean, with several taking part in the [[Naval operations in the Dardanelles Campaign|Dardanelles Campaign]]. Late in 1917, the ships of the class were recalled to British waters, where three ships were lost to accidents, two by running aground and one to collision.<ref name="conways06 p74"/>

Being coal-fired, they were obsolete by the end of the First World War and the surviving ships were all scrapped by the end of 1921.

== Ships ==
{| class="wikitable sortable" 
|-
! Name
! Builder
! Laid down
! Launch date
! Completed
! Fate 
|- 
| {{HMS|Beagle|1909|2}} || [[John Brown & Company|John Brown and Company]], [[Clydebank]] || 17 March 1909 || 16 October 1909 || June 1910.<ref name="Fried p305">Friedman 2009, p. 305.</ref> || Sold for breaking up 1 November 1921.<ref name="Ditt p60">Dittmar and Colledge 1972, p. 60.</ref>
|-
| {{HMS|Bulldog|1909|2}} || John Brown and Company, Clydebank || 30 March 1909 || 13 November 1909, || 7 July 1910.<ref name="Fried p305"/> || Sold for breaking up 21 September 1920.<ref name="Ditt p60"/>
|-
| {{HMS|Foxhound|1909|2}} || John Brown and Company, Clydebank || 1 April 1909 || 11 December 1909 || September 1910.<ref name="Fried p305"/> || Sold for breaking up 1 November 1921.<ref name="Ditt p60"/>
|-
| {{HMS|Pincher|1910|2}} || [[William Denny & Brothers]], [[Dumbarton]] || 20 May 1909 || 15 March 1910 || September 1910.<ref name="Fried p305"/> || Wrecked on [[Seven Stones reef]], [[Land's End]] 24 July 1918.<ref name="Ditt p60"/>
|-
| {{HMS|Grasshopper|1909|2}} || [[Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering Company]], [[Govan]] || 17 April 1909 || 23 November 1909 || July 1910.<ref name="Fried p305"/> || Sold for breaking up 1 November 1921.<ref name="Ditt p60"/>
|-
| {{HMS|Mosquito|1910|2}} || Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering Company, Govan || 22 April 1909 || 27 January 1910 || August 1910.<ref name="Fried p306"/> || Sold for breaking up 31 August 1920.<ref name="Ditt p60"/>
|-
| {{HMS|Scorpion|1910|2}} || Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering Company, Govan || 3 May 1909 || 19 February 1910 || September 1910.<ref name="Fried p306"/> || Sold for breaking up 26 October 1921.<ref name="Ditt p61">Dittmar and Colledge 1972, p. 61.</ref>
|-
| {{HMS|Scourge|1910|2}} || [[R. W. Hawthorn Leslie & Company]], [[Hebburn]] || 9  March 1909 || 11 February 1910 || August 1910.<ref name="Fried p306"/> || Sold for breaking up 9 May 1921.<ref name="Ditt p61"/>
|-
| {{HMS|Racoon|1910|2}} || Cammell Laird & Company, Birkenhead || 1 May 1909 || 15 February 1910 || October 1910.<ref name="Fried p306"/> || Wrecked on [[Ireland|Irish coast]] 9 January 1918 during blizzard.<ref name="Ditt p60"/><ref name="jfsww1 p314">Moore 1990, p. 314.</ref>
|-
| {{HMS|Renard|1909|2}} || [[Cammell Laird & Company]], [[Birkenhead]] || 20 April 1909 || 13 November 1909 || September 1910.<ref name="Fried p306"/> || Sold for breaking up 31 August 1920.<ref name="Ditt p60"/>
|-
| {{HMS|Wolverine|1910|2}} || Cammell Laird & Company, Birkenhead || 26 April 1909 || 15 January 1910 || September 1910.<ref name="Fried p306"/> || Sunk in collision with the [[Arabis-class sloop|sloop]] {{HMS|Rosemary||2}} in [[Lough Foyle]] 12 December 1917.<ref name="Ditt p61"/><ref>{{cite web|title=Wrecks Off Co. Londonderry|work=Irish-Wrecks Online|date=24 January 2005|url=http://www.irishwrecksonline.net/Lists/LondonderryList.htm|access-date=14 June 2015}}</ref>
|-
| {{HMS|Rattlesnake|1910|2}} || [[Harland & Wolff]], [[Glasgow]] || 29 April 1909 || 14 March 1910 || September 1910.<ref name="Fried p306"/> || Sold for breaking up 9 May 1921.<ref name="Ditt p60"/>
|-
| {{HMS|Nautilus|1910|2}} || [[Thames Ironworks and Shipbuilding Company]], [[Bow Creek (England)|Bow Creek]] || 14 April 1909 || 30 March 1910 || September 1911.<ref name="Fried p306"/> || The ship was renamed {{HMS|Grampus|1910|2}} on 16 December 1913,{{#tag:ref|While Friedman and Conway's list the ship as having been renamed on 16 December 1912,<ref name="conways06 p74"/><ref name="Fried p306"/> the ship remained listed under her original name in the March 1913 issue of The Navy List,<ref>{{cite journal|title=338: Naultilus Torpedo Boat Destroyer|journal=The Navy List|date=March 1913|page=348|url=http://digital.nls.uk/british-military-lists/pageturner.cfm?id=94247526}}</ref> not being noted as having been renamed until the January 1914 edition.<ref>{{cite journal|title=221a: Grampus (late Nautilus) (Ch). Torpedo Boat Destroyer|journal=The Navy List|date=January 1914|page=322|url=http://digital.nls.uk/british-military-lists/pageturner.cfm?id=91807861&mode=fullsize}}</ref>|group=lower-alpha}} freeing up the original name for [[HMS Nautilus (1914)|a submarine]]. Sold for breaking up 21 September 1920.<ref name="ditt p60-1">Dittmar and Colledge 1972, pp. 60–61.</ref>
|-
| {{HMS|Savage|1910|2}} || [[John I. Thornycroft & Company]], [[Woolston, Hampshire|Woolston]] || 2 March 1909 || 10 March 1910 || August 1910.<ref name="Fried p306"/> || Sold for breaking up 9 May 1921.<ref name="Ditt p61"/>
|-
| {{HMS|Basilisk|1910|2}} || [[J. Samuel White & Company]], [[Cowes]] || 11 May 1909 || 9 February 1910 || September 1910.<ref name="Fried p306"/> || Sold for breaking up 1 November 1921.<ref name="Ditt p60"/>
|-
| {{HMS|Harpy|1909|2}} || J. Samuel White & Company, Cowes || 23 April 1909 || 27 November 1909 || July 1910.<ref name="Fried p306">Friedman 2009, p. 306.</ref> || Sold for breaking up 1 November 1921.<ref name="Ditt p60"/>
|}

== Notes ==
{{reflist|group=lower-alpha}}

==Citations==
{{reflist|30em}}

==Bibliography==
{{Commons category|Beagle class destroyer}}
*{{cite book|last=Brown|first=David K.|title=The Grand Fleet: Warship Design and Development 1906–1922|year=2010|publisher=Seaforth Publishing|location=Barnsley, UK|isbn=978-1-84832-085-7}}
*{{Cite Colledge2006}}
*{{cite book|last1=Dittmar|first1=F. J.|last2=Colledge|first2=J.J.|title=British Warships 1914–1919|year=1972|publisher=Ian Allan|location=Shepperton, UK|isbn=0-7110-0380-7}}
*{{cite book|last=Friedman|first=Norman|title=British Destroyers: From Earliest Days to the Second World War|year=2009|publisher=Seaforth Publishing|location=Barnsley, UK|isbn=978-1-84832-049-9}}
* {{cite book|editor-last1=Gardiner|editor-first1=Robert|editor-last2=Gray|editor-first2=Randal|title=Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921|year=1985|publisher=Conway Maritime Press|location=London|isbn=0-85177-245-5}}
*{{cite book |last = Manning | first =T.D. |title = The British Destroyer  |publisher = Putnam| date = 1961 | location = London|oclc=6470051}}
*{{cite book|last=Moore|first=John|title=Jane's Fighting Ships of World War I|year=1990|publisher=Studio|location=London|isbn=1-85170-378-0}}

{{Beagle class destroyer}}
{{WWI British ships}}

[[Category:Beagle-class destroyers| ]]
[[Category:Destroyer classes]]
[[Category:Ship classes of the Royal Navy]]