NAVYPEDIA

Photo

Cardiff 1928

Ships

Name	No	Yard No	Builder	Laid down	Launched	Comp	Fate
Ceres	66, 36, 58, D59	459	John Brown, Clydebank	11.7.1916	24.3.1917	6.1917	sold for BU 4.1946
Cardiff (ex-Caprice)	29, 39, D58	526	Fairfield, Govan	22.7.1916	12.4.1917	7.1917	sold for BU 1.1946
Curacoa	A7, 62, D41	257	Pembroke DYd	7.1916	5.5.1917	2.1918	collision 2.10.1942
Curlew	80, 3C, 48, D42	497	Vickers, Barrow	21.8.1916	5.7.1917	12.1917	sunk 26.5.1940
Coventry (ex-Corsair)	4C, 61, D43	1035	Swan Hunter, Wallsend	4.8.1916	6.7.1917	2.1918	sunk 14.9.1942

Technical data

Displacement normal, t	4190
Displacement full, t	5020
Length, m	137.2
Breadth, m	13.3
Draught, m	4.50
No of shafts	2
Machinery	2 sets Brown-Curtis geared steam turbines, 6 Yarrow boilers Curlew: 2 sets Parsons geared steam turbines, 6 Yarrow boilers
Power, h. p.	40000
Max speed, kts	29
Fuel, t	oil 935
Endurance, nm(kts)	5900(10)
Armour, mm	belt: 76 - 38, deck: 25, CT: 76 (not all), gun shields: 25
Armament	5 x 1 - 152/45 BL Mk XII, 2 x 1 - 76/45 20cwt QF Mk I, 4 x 1 - 47/40 3pdr Hotchkiss Mk I, 2 x 1 - 40/39 2pdr QF Mk II, 4 x 2 - 533 TT
Complement	460

Standard scale images

Graphics

Project history

When a new class of light cruisers was ordered in March-April 1916 the opportunity was taken to make a radical improvement to the Centaur / Caledon design. While no attempt was made to increase armament, by giving the hull 0.2m more beam and rearranging the guns it proved possible to increase fighting power. The tripod and bridgework were moved aft, allowing the second 152mm gun to be moved from its restricted position to 'B' position, superimposed over 'A' gun. It has been made not so much for strengthening of fwd salvo, how many to remove a bridge and rangefinders from a stem, having lowered their deck wetness (all ships of Arethusa class and "early C" strongly suffered from splashing of a fore end). Because of the increased upper weight the hull beam has been slightly increased. Despite the undertaken re-planning, they have appeared only hardly less wet than their predecessors.

"C" type cruisers were created for service in the North Sea under 1915 year design and became obsolete to the beginning of 1930th, and in 1935 the decision to convert them to AA ships was accepted. Coventry and Curlew in 1935-1936 had all old guns replaced by 10 single 102mm and 2 quintuple 40mm pompoms. To keep a stability it was necessary to load nearby 100t of ballast. Modernization has appeared successful, and during the period 1936-1940 it was planned rearm similarly remained 11 "C" type ships. However the program has been put aside. Only in the middle of 1939 works on Curacoa were begun. It was planned that other ships of class will follow them but the war was compelled to be limited to end of works on this ship which has become operational in 1940.

Ship protection

Armoured belt protected ship at full length, its thickness was 76mm abreast machinery spaces (51mm armour on 25mm plating), 51mm (38mm armour on 13mm plating) aft and 38mm (25mm armour on 13mm plating) fore. Belt was closed by aft 25mm bulkhead near stern. It extended to main deck (and to upper deck abreast machinery). Machinery and steering gear were covered by 25mm deck.

Modernizations

mid-1918, Coventry: turning flying-off platform for one Pup fighter was fitted amidships.

1919, all: CT was replaced by lighter one with thinner armour.

(1935 - 1936, Portsmouth DYd), Coventry: Full new armament consisted of 10 x 1 - 102/45 QF Mk V, 2 x 8 - 40/39 2pdr QF Mk VIII, full displacement was 5468t

(1935 - 1936, Chatham DYd), Curlew: Full new armament consisted of 10 x 1 - 102/45 QF Mk V, 1 x 8 - 40/39 2pdr QF Mk VIII, full displacement was 5355t

1938 - 1939, Coventry: - 1 x 8 - 40/39; + 2 x 4 - 12.7/62

1938 - 1939, Curlew: + 2 x 4 - 12.7/62

8/1939, Curlew: + type 79Z radar

1939 - 1940, Curlew, Coventry: - 2 x 1 - 102/45

(7/1939 - 4.1940, Chatham DYd), Curacoa: Full new armament consisted of 4 x 2 - 102/45 QF Mk XVI, 1 x 4 - 40/39 2pdr QF Mk VIII, 2 x 1 - 40/39 2pdr QF Mk VIII, 2 x 4 - 12.7/62, type 279 radar

4/1940, Coventry: + type 279 radar

12/1940, Curacoa: + 1 x 20 - 178 UP AA rockets projector

91941, Curacoa: - 1 x 20 - 178 UP; + 2 x 1 - 40/39 2pdr QF Mk VIII, type 285 radar

4/1942, Cardiff: + 6 x 1 - 20/70 Oerlikon Mk II/IV

5/1942, Curacoa: + type 271, type 282 radars

5/1942, Coventry: + 5 x 1 - 20/70 Oerlikon Mk II/IV

mid-1942, Ceres: + 6 x 1 - 20/70 Oerlikon Mk II/IV

9/1942, Curacoa: + 5 x 1 - 20/70 Oerlikon Mk II/IV, type 273 radar, full displacement was 5403t, including 200t of solid ballast.

2/1943, Cardiff: + type 290 radar

mid-1943, Ceres: - 2 x 1 - 40/39; + type 271, type 286 radars

7/1943, Cardiff: - type 290 radar; + type 271 radar

5/1944, Ceres: - 2 x 1 - 76/45, type 286 radar; + 8 x 1 - 20/70 Oerlikon Mk II/IV, type 290 radar

1.1946, Ceres: 5 x 1 - 152/45 P Mk XIII, 14 x 1 - 20/70 Mk III, 4 x 2 - 533 TT, type 271, type 290 radars

1.1946, Cardiff: 5 x 1 - 152/45 P Mk XIII, 2 x 1 - 76/45 Mk II, 2 x 1 - 40/39 HA Mk II, 6 x 1 - 20/70 Mk III, 4 x 2 - 533 TT, type 271 radar

Naval service

Ceres was damaged in collision with USN destroyer Fox in Bosphorus in April 1923. Curlew was sunk by German He 111 bombers (bombs near-misses) off Norwegian coast 26.5.1940. Coventry was damaged by torpedo explosion in March 1923 at Malta. She was sunk by German Ju 87 and Ju 88 bombers 14.9.1942 near Egyptian coast. Curacoa was mined in Baltic in May 1919 (steering gear was damaged, ship was towed to home base and repaired till late 1919). She was damaged by German bombs 24.4.1940 and repaired till December, 1940 and sunk 2.10.1942 being rammed by s/s Queen Mary (she was cut apart) in Atlantic.

Many thanks to Wolfgang Stöhr for additional information on this page.