View source for HMS Neptune (1874)

{{Short description|Ironclad turret ship acquired by Royal Navy}}
{{other ships|HMS Neptune}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2016}}
{{Use British English|date=December 2016}}
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{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=H.M.S. Neptune RMG PU6260.jpg
|Ship caption=
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{{Infobox ship career
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|Ship country=United Kingdom
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|United Kingdom|naval}}
|Ship namesake=[[Neptune (mythology)|Neptune]]
|Ship name=HMS ''Neptune''
|Ship original cost=£600,000
|Ship awarded=
|Ship builder=[[J & W Dudgeon]], [[Cubitt Town]], London
|Ship laid down=1873
|Ship launched=10 September 1874
|Ship christened=
|Ship acquired=February–March 1878
|Ship completed=3 September 1881
|Ship commissioned=28 March 1883
|Ship decommissioned=
|Ship in service=
|Ship out of service=
|Ship renamed=
|Ship reclassified=
|Ship refit=
|Ship struck=
|Ship reinstated=
|Ship fate=Sold for [[ship breaking|scrap]] 15 September 1903
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=
|Header caption=
|Ship type=[[Ironclad warship|Ironclad]] [[turret ship]]
|Ship displacement={{convert|8964|LT|t}}
|Ship length={{convert|300|ft|m|1|abbr=on}} ([[Length between perpendiculars|p/p]])
|Ship beam={{convert|63|ft|m|1|abbr=on}}
|Ship draught={{convert|25|ft|m|1|abbr=on}}
|Ship power={{convert|8832|ihp|lk=in|abbr=on}}
|Ship propulsion=1 shaft, 1 2-cylinder [[Trunk engine#Trunk|Trunk steam engine]], 8 rectangular [[boiler (steam generator)|boiler]]s
|Ship sail plan=[[Barque]]-rigged
|Ship speed={{convert|14|kn|lk=in}}
|Ship range={{convert|1480|nmi|lk=in|abbr=on}} at {{convert|10|knots|abbr=on}}
|Ship complement=541
|Ship armament=*4 × [[RML 12.5 inch 38 ton gun|{{convert|12.5|in|mm|adj=on|sigfig=3}} rifled muzzle-loading guns]]
*2 × [[RML 9 inch 12 ton gun|{{convert|9|in|mm|adj=on|sigfig=3}} rifled muzzle-loading guns]]
*6 × 20-pounder [[breech-loading]] guns
*2 × {{convert|14|in|mm|abbr=on}} [[torpedo]] launchers
|Ship armour=*[[Belt armor|Belt]]: {{convert|9|-|12|in|mm|0|abbr=on}}
*[[Deck (ship)|Deck]]s: {{convert|1|-|3|in|mm|0|abbr=on}}
*[[Armored citadel|Citadel]]: {{convert|10|in|mm|abbr=on|0}}
*[[Gun turret]]s: {{convert|11|-|13|in|mm|0|abbr=on}}
*[[Conning tower]]: {{convert|6|-|8|in|mm|0|abbr=on}}
*[[Bulkhead (partition)|Bulkhead]]s: {{convert|8|in|mm|0|abbr=on}}
|Ship notes=
}}
|}

'''HMS ''Neptune''''' was an [[ironclad warship|ironclad]] [[turret ship]] originally designed and built in Britain for Brazil, but acquired for the [[Royal Navy]] in 1878. Modifications to suit the Royal Navy took three years to complete and the ship did not begin her first commission until 1883 with the [[Channel Fleet]]. She was transferred to the [[Mediterranean Fleet]] in 1885, but refitted in [[Portsmouth]] in 1886–87. ''Neptune'' then became the [[guard ship|coastguard]] ship for the 1st Class Reserve at [[Holyhead]] until 1893 when she was placed in [[Wikt:mothball|reserve]] in Portsmouth. While she was being towed to the [[ship breaking|breakers]] in 1903, ''Neptune'' unintentionally [[Ramming|rammed]] {{HMS|Victory||6}}, then serving as a training [[hulk (ship)|hulk]] for the Naval Signal School, collided with {{HMS|Hero|1885|6}}, and narrowly missed several other ships. She was scrapped in Germany in 1904.

==Design and description==
[[File:HMS Neptune diagrams Brasseys 1888.jpg|thumb|left|{{center|Right elevation and deck plan (with masts truncated) as depicted in Brassey's Naval Annual 1888}}]]
HMS ''Neptune'' was designed by [[Edward James Reed|Sir Edward Reed]] for the [[Imperial Brazilian Navy]] in 1872 as a masted version of {{HMS|Devastation|1871|6}}, a larger, sea-going version of the {{sclass|Cerberus|monitor|0}} [[breastwork monitor]]s, and was given the provisional name ''Independencia''. Adding masts, however, meant adding a [[forecastle]] at the bow and a [[poop deck]] at the stern to provide the space required for the masts and rigging. These blocked the firing arcs of the [[gun turret]]s so that they were deprived of the [[axial fire]] which was the original design's greatest virtue. The ship resembled, instead, an enlarged version of {{HMS|Monarch|1868|6}}.<ref name=p7>Parkes, p. 277</ref>

During the [[Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)|Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78]] tensions dramatically escalated between Russia and Great Britain as the latter feared that the victorious Russian armies would occupy the Turkish capital of [[Constantinople]], something that the British were not prepared to tolerate. They mobilized much of the Royal Navy in case war did break out and purchased a number of ironclads under construction, including ''Independencia'', in 1878. The Brazilians sold the ship for £600,000, nearly twice as much as the £370,000 paid for ''Devastation'' a few years earlier. Another £89,172 was spent to bring her up to the standards of the Royal Navy.<ref>Parkes, pp. 267, 276–77</ref> In British service she was deemed "a [[white elephant]], being a thoroughly bad ship in most respects—unlucky, full of inherent faults and small vices, and at times a danger to her own consorts".<ref name=p7/>

''Neptune'' was {{convert|300|ft|m|1}} [[Length between perpendiculars|long between perpendiculars]]. She had a [[Beam (nautical)|beam]] of {{convert|63|ft|m|1}} and a [[Draft (hull)|draft]] of {{convert|25|ft|m|1}}. The ship normally displaced {{convert|8964|LT|t}} and {{convert|9311|LT|t}} at [[deep load]].<ref name=b2>Burt, p. 22</ref>

''Neptune'' proved a poor [[seakeeping|seakeeper]] as she was wet, difficult to manoeuvre and a heavy [[List (watercraft)|roller]].<ref name=g5/> She had a {{convert|12|ft|m|1|adj=on}} [[skylight (window)|skylight]] over the [[wardroom]], which as a result often flooded while the ship was at sea.<ref name=p0>Parkes, p. 280</ref>

===Propulsion===
''Neptune'' had one 2-cylinder [[Trunk engine|trunk steam engine]], made by [[John Penn (engineer)|John Penn and Sons]], driving a single {{convert|26|ft|m|1|adj=on}} propeller. Eight rectangular [[boiler (steam generator)|boiler]]s provided steam to the engine at a working pressure of {{convert|32|psi|kPa kg/cm2|0|abbr=on|lk=on}}. The engine had a total designed output of {{convert|8000|ihp|lk=in}}, but produced a total of {{convert|8832|ihp|abbr=on}} during [[sea trial]]s in February 1878 which gave ''Neptune'' a maximum speed of {{convert|14.65|kn|lk=in}}. The ship carried {{convert|670|LT|t}} of coal, enough to steam {{convert|1480|nmi|lk=in|abbr=on}} at {{convert|10|knots}} even though Sir [[George Tryon]] described her as "a weak ship in her engines and consuming a coal-mine daily".<ref>Parkes, pp. 276, 279</ref>

''Neptune'' was [[barque]]-rigged, but her twin funnels were so close to the mainmast that the sails and rigging rapidly deteriorated in service. The mast was eventually stripped of sails and [[yard (sailing)|yard]]s so that the ship only used the fore and mizzen masts; an unsightly combination described as "like a half-dressed harlot". During her 1886 refit the ship's masts and rigging were replaced by simple pole masts with [[Top (sailing ship)|fighting tops]] at the fore and mizzen positions only.<ref>Parkes, p. 279–80</ref>

===Armament===
The Brazilians had ordered four [[Armstrong Whitworth|Whitworth]] {{convert|12|in|mm|adj=on|sigfig=3}} for the [[gun turret]]s and a pair of {{convert|8|in|mm|adj=on|sigfig=3}} [[breech-loading]] guns as [[chase gun]]s, but these were replaced in British service. HMS ''Neptune'' mounted a pair of [[RML 12.5 inch 38 ton gun|{{convert|12.5|in|mm|adj=on|sigfig=3}}]] [[Muzzle-loading rifle#Rifled Muzzle Loaders MLR|muzzle-loading rifles]] in each turret and two [[RML 9 inch 12 ton gun|{{convert|9|in|mm|adj=on|sigfig=3}} rifled muzzle-loading guns]] in the forecastle as chase guns. These guns only traverse 45° to the side. The ship also had six 20-pounder Armstrong guns for use as [[saluting guns]]. Two {{convert|14|in|0|adj=on}} [[torpedo tubes]] were mounted on the main deck, one on each side, for [[Whitehead torpedo]]es.<ref name=p8>Parkes, p. 278</ref>

The shell of the 16-[[caliber (artillery)|calibre]] 12.5-inch gun weighed {{convert|809|lb|kg|1}} while the gun itself weighed {{convert|38|LT|t}}. It had a [[muzzle velocity]] of {{convert|1575|ft/s|m/s|abbr=on}} and was credited with the ability to penetrate a nominal {{convert|18.4|in|mm|0}} of [[wrought iron]] armour at the [[muzzle (firearms)|muzzle]]. The 14-calibre 9-inch gun weighed {{convert|12|LT|t}} and fired a {{convert|254|lb|kg|1|adj=on}} shell at a muzzle velocity of {{convert|1420|ft/s|m/s|abbr=on}}. It was credited with the nominal ability to penetrate {{convert|11.3|in|mm|adj=on|0}} armour.<ref>Gardiner, p. 6</ref> The [[muzzle blast]] of the main guns was more than the deck immediately below the muzzles could stand and the full charge for the guns was reduced from {{convert|200|to|180|lb|kg|1}} of powder to minimize the damage.<ref name=p8/>

===Armour===
''Neptune'' had a complete [[waterline]] [[Belt armor|belt]] of wrought iron that was {{convert|12|in|mm|0}} thick amidships and thinned to {{convert|10|in|mm|0}} and then to {{convert|9|in|mm|0}} in steps at the ends of the ship. The armour extended {{convert|5|ft|6|in|1}} above the waterline and {{convert|3|ft|1}} below it. An [[armoured citadel]] {{convert|112|ft|m|1}} long protected the bases of the [[gun turret]]s, the funnel uptakes and the ventilation shafts for the engines and boilers. The sides of the citadel were 10&nbsp;inches thick and it was closed off by transverse [[Bulkhead (partition)|bulkhead]]s {{convert|8|in|0}} thick. The chase guns at the bow were protected by a patch of {{convert|6|in|0|adj=on}} armour.<ref name=g5>Gardiner, p. 25</ref>

The faces of the turrets were {{convert|13|in|0}} thick while the sides were {{convert|11|in|0}} thick. They were backed by {{convert|13|-|15|in|0}} of [[teak]]. The armoured [[Deck (ship)|deck]] was {{convert|2|-|3|in|0}} outside the citadel and 2&nbsp;inches thick inside it. ''Neptune'' was provided with a [[conning tower]] protected by 6–8&nbsp;inches of armour situated right in front of the [[foremast]]. It could "be regarded as the first adequately installed conning position installed in a British" ironclad.<ref>Parkes, pp. 278</ref>

==Service==
HMS ''Neptune'' was [[Keel laying|laid down]] in 1873 for the Brazilian Navy under the name of ''Independencia'' by [[J & W Dudgeon]] in [[Cubitt Town]], [[London]]. The shipyard attempted to [[Ship naming and launching|launch]] her on 16 July 1874, but she stuck fast and did not budge. A second attempt was made on 30 July during which the ship got about one-third down the slipway and stuck, extensively damaging her bottom plating. She was finally launched on 10 September, after she had been lightened, and she was towed to [[Samuda Brothers]] for repairs and [[fitting out]]. The cost of the accident resulted in the bankruptcy of Dudgeons in 1875.<ref>{{cite news |title=Money-Market and City Intelligence|newspaper = The Times | date = 19 October 1875|page=6|issue=28450}}</ref>

''Independencia'' ran her sea trials in December 1877.<ref name=Silverstonep253/> On 22 December, she ran aground in the [[River Thames]] at [[Greenwich]], [[Kent]].<ref name=GH241277>{{Cite news |title=Shipping Intelligence |newspaper=Glasgow Herald |location=Glasgow |date=24 December 1877 |issue=11857 }}</ref> She was refloated on 25 December and towed in to [[Greenhithe, Kent|Greenhithe]], Kent.<ref name=S251277>{{Cite news |title=Mercantile Ship News |newspaper=The Standard |location=London |date=25 December 1877 |issue=16668 |page=7 }}</ref> ''Independencia'' was run into by the British [[steamship]] ''Firebrick'' at Greenhithe, Kent on 23 February 1878 and sustained slight damage.<ref name=NC010378>{{Cite news |title=Shipping |newspaper=Newcastle Courant |location=Newcastle upon Tyne |date=1 March 1878 |issue=10601 }}</ref> She was purchased by the Royal Navy in March 1878 and renamed ''Neptune'',<ref name=g5/> after the [[Neptune (mythology)|Roman god of the sea]].<ref name=Silverstonep253>Silverstone, p. 253</ref> She was then taken to [[Portsmouth]] for alterations to her armament and other equipment that took until 3 September 1881 to complete.<ref name=g5/>

''Neptune'' was [[Ship commissioning|commissioned]] on 28 March 1883 for service with the [[Channel Fleet]]. She was transferred to the [[Mediterranean Fleet]] in 1885, but returned to Portsmouth in July 1886 for a refit. The ship was assigned as the [[guard ship]] for the 1st Class Reserve at [[Holyhead]] in May 1887. ''Neptune'' [[Ship decommissioning|paid off]] into [[reserve fleet|reserve]] in November 1893 in Portsmouth. In April 1902 she was transferred from Fleet reserve to Dockyard Reserve.<ref>{{Cite newspaper The Times |title=Naval & Military intelligence |date=25 April 1902 |page=8 |issue=36751| }}</ref> The ship was sold for £18,000 on 15 September 1903 for scrap.<ref name=p0/>

While under tow by the tug ''Rowland'' and another at her side out of Portsmouth on 23 October 1903, ''Neptune'' broke the cables connecting her to the tugs in a storm. With the winds and a strong flood tide pushing her, she was pushed back into the harbour and narrowly missed the training tender of the [[Royal Naval College, Osborne]], {{HMS|Racer|1884|6}}. ''Neptune'' struck the training brig ''Sunflower'' anchored beside ''Racer'' a glancing blow and then hit the port side of {{HMS|Victory||6}}, making a hole at her [[orlop]] deck. ''Neptune'' then was pushed by the tides and winds toward {{HMS|Hero|1885|6}} and came to rest against the bow ram of ''Hero''.<ref>The Times, 24/10/1903 & 26/10/1903</ref> She was finally broken up in [[Lemwerder]], [[Germany]], in 1904.<ref name=p0/>

==Footnotes==
{{Reflist}}

==References==
*{{cite book|last=Burt|first=R. A.|title=British Battleships 1889–1904|year=1988|publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, MD|isbn=0-87021-061-0}}
*{{cite book|title=Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905|editor=Gardiner, Robert|publisher=Conway Maritime Press|location=Greenwich|year=1979|isbn=0-8317-0302-4|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/conwaysallworlds0000unse_l2e2}}
*{{cite book|last=Parkes|first=Oscar|title=British Battleships|publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, MD|year=1990|edition=reprint of the 1957|isbn=1-55750-075-4}}
*{{cite book|last=Silverstone|first=Paul H.|title=Directory of the World's Capital Ships|year=1984|publisher=Hippocrene Books|location=New York|isbn=0-88254-979-0}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|HMS Neptune (ship, 1874)}}
* [http://www.battleships-cruisers.co.uk/hms_neptune1.htm HMS Neptune Photo Gallery]

{{Good article}}

{{British ironclads}}
{{1874 shipwrecks}}
{{1877 shipwrecks}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Neptune (1878)}}
[[Category:Battleships of the Royal Navy]]
[[Category:Ships built in Cubitt Town]]
[[Category:1874 ships]]
[[Category:Victorian-era battleships of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in July 1874]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in December 1877]]