HMS WARSPITE.
Queen Elizabeth Class 15" gun Battleship.
One of a class of eight 35,000ton. battleships of the `Queen Elizabeth' class "HMS Warspite" entered service just in time to take part in the Battle of Jutland where she distinguished herself by having a steering failure at a crucial moment and circling out of control in front of the whole German fleet, drawing all their fire, although damaged she was not seriously hurt and after repairs saw service with the home fleet untill armistice. Always in commision between the wars she was extensively re-fitted in the 1930's having a modern style bridge fitted, her gun control updated and boilers and engines replaced, this made her an extreemly useful battleship, being relatively small yet heavily armed with a nippy turn of speed.
On the outbreak of WWII she was stationed at Scapa Flow in the Orkneys, her greatest moment being the second battle of Narvik during the Norwegian campaign, here she sailed up the fjord and sank several german heavy destroyers and merchant ships, a very bold move to take such a large vessel into a very confined waterway.
She saw service in the Meditteranean where she helped the Malta convoys and took part in the battle of Taranto, by the end of the war she mounted over 100 x 20mm. Oerlikons as her wide beam made her an ideal anti-aircraft platform, at one time even firing wooden 15" practice shells as Stuka dive bombers (very effective method of putting them off target) she was sent for breaking-up in the early fifties, however to the end she was defiant and had to be broken up where she ran aground off Hartland.
Our hull is truly magnificent, with moulded in plating, torpedo bulges, hawse pipes, bilge keels and propeller shaft outlets, she will make-up into a really beautiful model that will be a practical on the water model, although we have no drawings to go with the hull we feel that anyone interested in having a go will be knowledgeble enough to source their own drawings and details, a real must for the warship enthusiast!
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