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Almirante Latorre 1920

Ships

Name	No	Yard No	Builder	Laid down	Launched	Comp	Fate
Almirante Latorre (ex-Canada, ex-Libertad, ex-Valparaiso)			Armstrong, Newcastle, UK	27.11.1911	17.11.1913	30.9.1915 // 1.8.1920	stricken 2.1958
Almirante Cochrane (ex-Constitución, ex-Santiago)			Armstrong, Newcastle, UK	20.2.1913	8.6.1918	9.1923 // ---	incomplete 9.9.1914 to United Kingdom (aircraft carrier Eagle)

Technical data

Displacement standard, t	28000
Displacement full, t	32300
Length, m	190.5 pp 201.5 oa
Breadth, m	28.0
Draught, m	8.70 mean 9.10 max
No of shafts	4
Machinery	4 Brown-Curtis(HP) & Parsons(LP) steam turbines, 21 Yarrow boilers
Power, h. p.	37000
Max speed, kts	22.7
Fuel, t	coal 3300 + oil 520
Endurance, nm(kts)	4400(10)
Armour, mm	belt: 229 amidships and 152 - 102 at the ends, upper belt: 178 - 114, bulkheads: 114 - 76, deck: 25 + 37, barbettes: 254 - 102, turrets: 254 - 102, casemates: 152, CT: 279, decks: 102 - 25
Armament	as designed: 5 x 2 - 356/45 Armstrong A, 16 x 1 - 152/50 Armstrong TT, 4 x 1 - 47/40 Hotchkiss, 4 - 533 TT (beam, 20) Almirante Latorre as commissioned: 5 x 2 - 356/45 Armstrong A (BL Mk I), 14 x 1 - 152/50 Armstrong TT (BL Mk XVII), 2 x 1 - 76/45 20cwt QF HA Mk I/II, 4 - 533 TT (beam, 20)
Complement	1167

Standard scale images

Graphics

Project history

In reply to the Argentina 1908 programme, in Chile one year later they accepted own shipbuilding programme, included building of 23000t dreadnought with 8 305mm guns. Then number of ships increased to two, displacement to 28000t, and artillery calibre to 356mm. In 1911 means have been assigned and the competition was declared, which winner became Armstrong, the traditional supplier of the Chilean fleet.     Ships were named Libertad and Constitution, already after laying  they were renamed Valparaiso and Santiago, and then Almirante Latorre and Almirante Cochrane. After the First World War beginning British Government requisitioned incomplete ships. 9.9.1914 Almirante Latorre was renamed Canada and 30.9.1915 she was commissioned by Royal Navy. At completion in the project a number of the changes have brought approximating it to British standards. Almirante Cochrane also was requisitioned and completed in 1923 as aircraft carrier Eagle.    Almirante Latorre in 1920 was redeemed by the customer, 20.8.1920 accepted by Chilean crew and 20.2.1921 arrived to Valparaiso.    Project of Chilean dreadnoughts was grounded on the most modern for that moment British battleship Iron Duke, differing by armament structure (356mm guns instead of 343mm) and protection.

Ship protection

Narrow 229mm belt covered space between end turrets, further it was consecutive become thinner to 152 and 102mm and, not reaching ship ends, was closed by 102mm bulkheads. If the ship was fully loaded the belt was completely under water. Over the main belt the upper 178mm belt was placed (114mm by upper edge), extended to an upper deck. Main protective deck had 37mm thickness, above it the upper 25mm deck was placed, and out of citadel only lower armoured deck was available with 51 (fwd) or 102mm (aft) thickness. Turrets had 254mm faces, 229mm sides and 51mm roofs.

Modernizations

(6/1929-3/1931, Devonport DYd): bulges were installed, breadth was increased to 31.4m (displacement was 28662/32800t), boilers were converted to pure oil, steam turbines were replaced by Parsons geared steam turbines (55000hp, 22.4kts, 5500t of oil, 4400(10)nm); thickness of turret roofs was increased from 51 to 102mm; maximal elevation angle of main guns was increased from 15° to 18.5°; - 2 x 1 - 76/45; + 4 x 1 - 102/45 QF Mk V

1932: + catapult (on the bow), 1 seaplane (Fairey IIIF, since 1939 Ar 95A)

1938: + 2 x 1 - 40/39 2pdr QF Mk VIII, 2 x 1 - 13.2/76

1944: - catapult, seaplane; + 4 x 1 - 13.2/76

1950: - 2 x 1 - 40/39, 6 x 1 - 13.2/76, 4 - 533 TT; + 19 x 1 - 20/70 Mk 4, SG radar

Naval service

Active career of Almirante Latorre proceeded till 1951 when there was a fire in the engine room. After that ship up to the end 1950s laid in base of Talcahuano, though in 1952 the project of her repair and modernization was made. In May, 1959 she was towed off on demolition to Japan where she was BU in the mid-sixties.