Subscribe to download
G3 Battlecruiser (1921)

The outbreak of World War One caused disruptions and shifting priorities for the Royal Navy, thus it was only able to build one battlecruiser, HMS Hood, during the War. Yet at the same time, Japan had purchased four Kongo-class battlecruisers with the Amagi-class soon to follow, while the American also began plans for six Lexington-class battlecruisers. By the end of WW1, it appeared that Britain was at risk of being outmatched by these new competitors. Thus in 1919, the Royal Navy began a series of new battlecruiser designs. An armament of nine 16-inch guns, thick armor and a speed of 32 knots was required for these new ships to match the Lexingtons and Amagis. To achieve these specifications while keeping size and cost at a reasonable level, the final G3 variant included some innovative and unique features.

To make the ship more compact, the G3 had all of its main turrets concentrated together forward, with two superfiring turrets ahead of the bridge and the aft turret immediately behind the bridge. Another new feature were the secondary guns placed in twin turrets instead of casemates, improving their arcs of fire. Mindful of the gruesome fates suffered by the thinly armoured battlecruisers lost at Jutland, the design featured a massive increase in protection, stronger than even battleships of the time. The belt armour was 14-inches thick and well sloped, and the deck armour a staggering 8-inches thick over the magazines. A separate armoured box towards the rear was provided to protect the machinery space. New small-tube boilers and a sleek, efficient hull with a squared-off transom stern were needed to push these 48,000-ton leviathans to the required 32-knot speed.

Four ships were ordered in October 1921, their names were not yet selected when their construction was cancelled three months later by the Washington Naval Treaty, which banned all warships over 35,000 tones. The efforts were not entirely wasted however; turrets built for the G3s were later simplified and fitted to the smaller, slower O3 design that evolved into the Nelson-class battleships.

No mods needed

Specifications
Length: 262m/ 860 ft
Beam: 33.8m/ 111 ft
Speed: 32 knots from 250,000 horsepower driving 4 shafts

Weapons
3x triple 16-inch/406mm main guns
8x twin 6-inch/ 152mm secondaries
6x single 4.7-inch/120mm AA
6x quadruple 40mm pom-pom AA
14x single 20mm AA
2x torpedo tubes

Armor
400-305mm/16-12 inches belt
200mm/ 7.9 inches deck over the magazine
100mm/4 inches deck over machinery