Chapter 768 - 352: Navy Arms Race

After the design of the Monarch-class battleship was approved by the Ministry of the Navy, the construction work immediately commenced.

The first to begin construction was the Royal Guanizuo Shipyard, which was tasked with building the Ferdinand II, the future flagship of the Spanish Royal Fleet.

The construction of the Ferdinand II-class Battleship will take a year and a half. It was to begin in September 1890, with an expected launch in March 1892.

Besides the prolonged sea trials, this brand-new battleship is expected to join the navy no sooner than three years later, which is 1893.

The construction of the second Monarch-class battleship, Isabella I, would commence slightly later, as the Valencia United Shipyard was not as large as the Royal Guanizuo Shipyard.

Isabella I was planned to start construction in November 1890, aiming for completion by mid-1892. If the construction process went smoothly, both of these new battleships were expected to be in the navy’s ranks by 1894.

The remaining El Ferrol Royal Navy Shipyard and Cartagena Shipyard also had their respective tasks.

In fact, after the design scheme for main warships of more than 10,000 tons was finalized, a design for a 7,000-ton cruiser could be formulated similarly by sacrificing some performance aspects.

It is also mandatory to mention Spain’s demands for 7,000-ton cruisers: they are to serve as secondary main warships, meaning these 7,000-ton ships are to play a role in naval battles.

After several days of discussions by the warship design committee, a rough design plan for the 7,000-ton cruiser was quickly finalized.

Given its 7,000-ton tonnage, this class of cruiser could not feasibly match a battleship in terms of firepower, armor protection, and speed.

To participate in decisive battles, firepower was more critical than armor protection and speed, and speed was more important than armor protection.

The rationale is straightforward: only sufficient firepower can damage the opponent’s main warship. Only enough speed can keep up with the opponent’s main warship; otherwise, it becomes a stationary target.

As for armor protection, it might be important for a battleship, but not as crucial for a cruiser.

The cruiser itself only weighs 7,000 tons, and considering the need for speed, it cannot achieve battleship-level armor protection even if it sacrifices firepower.

Instead of attempting, it is better to completely forgo armor protection and enhance firepower and speed to levels comparable to battleships.

Even though a cruiser with weak protection might sink after a few hits, as long as it hits the opponent’s main warship a few times before sinking, it’s not a loss for the Spanish Navy.

To ensure that a 7,000-ton cruiser can inflict damage on enemy’s main warships, the caliber of the cruiser’s artillery was the first to be decided.

A 305mm gun caliber, although not as large as the 343mm caliber of a Monarch-class battleship, is still a devastatingly powerful main warship-class cannon.

In terms of propulsion, the cruiser copied the power set of the Monarch-class battleship, using two triple-cylinder triple-expansion vertical steam engines.

However, the power was lowered; during regular ventilation, the power was around 7,500 horsepower, and at full power, it almost reached the standard power level of a Monarch-class battleship.

Considering the cruiser is only about 7,000 tons, such power is more than sufficient.

This cruiser design’s maximum speed was expected to surpass 18 knots, with a speed of about 17 knots when the steam group was running at full power.

Fast speed and strong firepower are all the cruiser’s advantages. As for armor protection, the cruiser design only has weaknesses.

The main armor belt thickness of this cruiser is even less than Spain’s two ironclads, and its armor protection can be described with the word ’fragile’.

Without exaggeration, if the opponent’s main warship hits it with a single artillery shell, the cruiser risks sinking.

However, with high risk comes high reward; a cruiser of just 7,000 tons also has the ability to sink the opponent’s main warship.

Considering the ever-increasing cost of building main warships, as long as this cruiser could achieve a two-for-one exchange ratio, it would be a profitable endeavor for Spain.

Because this type of cruiser is destined to fight with a life-for-life strategy, this new 7,000-ton cruiser was named the Warrior Level.

El Ferrol Royal Navy Shipyard and Cartagena Shipyard were fully responsible for building 10 Warrior Level cruisers, with the task of launching two cruisers each year over the next five years.

After all, the 7,000-ton class warships do not take as long to build as battleships. The construction time for a battleship can exceed a year, typically ranging from a year and a half to two and a half years.

The construction time for a 7,000-ton class cruiser can be reduced to a year, meaning El Ferrol Royal Navy Shipyard and Cartagena Shipyard each needed to build one cruiser annually to meet the navy’s five-year shipbuilding plan requirements.

September 1890 was an extraordinarily eventful month for Spain.

In early September, the Ferdinand II-class Battleship was officially announced to commence construction. Carlo, King of Spain, personally attended the groundbreaking ceremony of the Ferdinand II-class Battleship and expressed his expectations for the new Spanish Navy.