sharlin
Banned
[FONT="]The Franco-Japanese War – The first blows.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Aboard the Shikishima Captain Scott had to suppress a gasp as the first Japanese shells landed supprisingly close to their French targets. Columns of water towered above their distant targets, coating the French ships with nothing more dangerious than spray for the moment.[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Like the French we have trained to fight at long range. With potential enemies outnumbering our fleet it was felt that long range engagements would as you say ‘even the score” Admiral Scotts translator and aide on this fact finding mission said in answer to the Englishman’s unsaid question.[/FONT]
[FONT="]IJN Kasuga rear ship Japanese line, speed 18 knots.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The Italian built armoured cruiser was a formidable ship, originally built for Argentina the large cruiser had been purchased by Japan as tensions rose between France and Japan. Armed with a single 10 inch gun forwards and dual 8 inch guns aft the ship had a heavy punch for her size, especially when combined with the 6 inch guns dotting her flanks.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The large cruiser and her sister the Nissin had been seconded to the Battle fleet as ships of the line instead of the usual cruiser roles of scouting and fighting ships of their own weight. Now they would fight battleships as battleships themselves.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The ship shuddered as her 10 inch gun fired, thick chocolate coloured smoke spilling over her bow. The shudders continued as the 6 and 8 inch guns fired. Their target was an ugly brute of a ship, identified as a Admiral Baudin class vessel. The French ship was a huge target, looming out of the water, her high sides wreathed in smoke as her guns fired salvo after salvo. [/FONT]
[FONT="]The sea between the two ships was being torn apart, colums of water, some a hundred feet high were thrown into the air as shells fell short or long.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The Kasuga suddenly rocked to one side, the whole ship shuddering as the first hit of the engagement was scored. A 10.8 inch shell from the stern turret of the MN Formidable slammed into the 5.9 inch thick belt on the Kasuga’s flank and detonated.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The shell weighing 575 lbs was filled with high explosives and savaged the cruisers armour, ripping a 8 foot by 9 foot hole in the Kasuga’s hide, starting a fire for good measure. Moments later the cruiser shook again as two further shells landed. The first a 5.5 inch hit one of the cruisers boats and reduced it to burning matchwood, the second an old solid shot armour piercing 6.4 inch shell hit the cruisers superstructure, ripping through iron, steel and men before coming to a stop, its monumentum exhausted. [/FONT]
1)
2)
[FONT="]Aboard the old French battleship the guncrew’s cheered at their success as three bright flashes on their targets indicated hits. Even the Captain, a dour taskmaster permitted himself a smile. He may be in command of one of the oldest ships in the fleet but the old wolf still had sharp teeth.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The smile faded as a detonation shook his 12000 tonne command, then another, and another. The first was from a 6 inch shell which burst clean on the massively thick 16 inch steel belt of the old ship. The blast and impact dented and scorched the hull but did little damage. But the other impacts were far more worrying. A six inch shell hit well forwards, detonating right on the curved arc of the ships huge ram bow. The explosion annihilated a 3 pound gun mounting and its 4 man crew, starting a fire amongst the waiting ammunition which immediately started to cook off, the small shells blasts causing little damage but helped feed a growing fire.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The last hit was the most serious. A 10 inch, high explosive round slammed into the base of the big French ship’s thick funnel. The blast tore the thin steel to shreds, clogging the uptake with debris as well as starting another fire. Thick black smoke billowed out of the side of the now ruined funnel and the ship started to slow as the engines were partially starved of air.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Further up the two lines of ships other hits were scored. The Hoche was hit by a 12 inch round which did not go off, it left nothing but a dent in her side like a wrecking ball had slammed into her side, the flagship Marceau was hit twice by 6 inch rounds which started fires and killed crew but the French were hitting back. A 13.4 inch shell from the Neptune had hit and destroyed a 6 inch gun on the Hatsuse starting a fire that the Japanese damage control teams were struggling to put out whilst holes in armour indicated other less damaging hits.[/FONT]
[FONT="]MN D’Estrees shoreward of the French line speed 16 knots.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Captain Domercq paced the bridge slightly, on the unengaged side of the towering bulk of the Magenta the small cruiser was of little use. Even the spotters in the mast could see little of the engagement although the little cruiser had been badly shaken by a 12 inch shell that had landed a mere 20 yards away, pelting the ship with fragments and showering her with tonnes of water.[/FONT]
[FONT="]On the bridge a young Leiutenant swore in supprise which drew a few chuckles or reprimanding glances from his older comrades.
“My god indeed Mr Amerak, remember to control yourself please.” Captain Domercq said, not needing to raise his voice. He was just as supprised as the rest of his bridge crew. No one told them the Japanese were this good. [/FONT]
[FONT="]“Any signal from the flagship? We can’t do a thing tethered here.”
“No Captain, nothing yet.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]The ship rattled and then there was an earsplitting BOOM as the Magenta was hit high up on her towering, ugly superstructure. The shellburst started a fire as the ships boats, those not blasted to splinters burst into flames.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Domercq watched the flames roaring out of the wound in the battleships structure before heading over to the voice tubes.[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Engineering, we’ll need full speed soon, can the engines take it?”[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Yes Sir, just give the word.” Came the muffled, tinny reply.[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Very well. Flags, signal the destroyers FOLLOW MY LEAD. SPEED 18 KNOTS.” [/FONT]
[FONT="]MN Infernet 400 meters astern of MN D’Estrees[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Captain Sir, signal from the D’Estrees, it reads FOLLOW MY LEAD, SPEED 18 KNOTS.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]The Captain, a old balding man whose command had patrolled the waters of this region since she had commissioned turned his glasses on the signal.[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Anything from the Flagship?”[/FONT]
[FONT="]“No Captain, the smoke’s obscuring her flags and we’ve received no radio messages.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Hmm…probably because the Japanese might be able to listen in. Very well. Acknowledge the signal and repeat it, signal our torpedo boats and the Chateaurenault as well, the Jeune École (3) theory is probably going to be put to the test..”[/FONT]
[FONT="]Astern of the small French cruiser the big four funnelled commerce raider the MN Chateaurenault also acknowledge the signal and started picking up speed. The Chateaurenault was a huge ship, weighing a massive 8200 tonnes but despite her weight she was nimble, a real greyhound capable of 23 knots and her engineering crew cared for their charges like a mother cared for a child.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Despite her size and speed, the big French ship was pathetically under gunned, armed with a pair of 6.4 inch guns and a measly six5.4 inch guns, three on each side. [/FONT]
[FONT="]As the trio of cruisers picked up speed their accompanying quartet of Torpedo boats accelerated too. In all the excitement, no one signalled the Marceau for confirmation, nor questioned the action of the cruiser and torpedo boats. Later this was put down to a mixture of smoke interference, confusion about the signals and a lack of attention due to the ‘excitement’ of being in an engagement as well as being under fire.[/FONT]
4)
[FONT="]MN Formidable rear of the French line – Speed 14 knots and falling.[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Captain Sir, we’re unable to clear the wreckage in the funnel, the fire is too intense and we can’t even get close, I swear that the paint’s burning.” The Damage control officer was smoke streaked, his uniform damp, the former pristine white now smeared with grey and black.[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Understood Michelle, but do what you can, it’s imperative we keep up with the fleet.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]The younger officer saluted as the Formidable’s guns fired another broadside. It took just under 2 minutes to load, aim and fire the 10.8 inch rifles mounted fore and aft whilst the 5.5 and 6.4 inch weapons barked their challenges much more rapidly, the advantage of the light shells, whilst the huge 10.8’s were loaded by nothing but hand power and winches. [/FONT]
[FONT="]“A hit! She’s on fire Sir!”[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Very good guns, keep hitting her.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]IJN Kasuga Speed 18 knots.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The big cruiser was in a bad way. Hit by four 10.8 rounds as well as an even dozen 5.5 inch and 6.4 inch rounds the armoured cruiser had lost three 6 inch guns. Two had been destroyed by direct hits whilst the third had suffered a hit from a shell that had severed a chunk of the barrel. The four big shells had all been High Explosive rounds which had torn where they hit into new shapes as they blasted the hull plating into ruin. [/FONT]
[FONT="]“Captain, the flooding is under control and we’re fighting the fires but we’re taking quite a pounding.”
“The enemy is as damaged as we are Commander, we will hold our place in the line unless ordered to withdraw.” The cruisers captain barked at his second in command, a vicious grin spreading across his face as he saw three bright flashes on his target followed by a much larger flash and blast of smoke and debris amidships.[/FONT]
[FONT="]MN Formidable Bridge.[/FONT]
[FONT="]“What in gods name was that…” The Captain said, picking himself up off the deck. The old ship had rocked under a tremendous blast that seemed to knock the ship sideways and shake her like a terrier with a rat in its mouth. [/FONT]
[FONT="]“My god…Sir! You’ve got to see this!”[/FONT]
[FONT="]The signal Lieutenant called out, looking astern from his position on the bridge. Groggily the Captain walked over, and was presented with a horrific sight. Originally the Formidable had mounted three shielded barbettes, in her 1901 refit the amidships turret had been removed and replaced with a box battery that was the home for six new 6.4 inch guns, now all he could see of this boxy structure was a mass of flames and billowing smoke.[/FONT]
[FONT="] A 10 inch shell from the Kasuga had hit clean on one of the guns as it was being reloaded. The blast destroyed the gun and its eight man crew but more importantly it had detonated the shell and propellant and that of the shells waiting nearby. The blast ripped through the thin bulkheads in the battery, setting off more ready to use ammunition that had been sent up to the guns. The end result was a charnel house of torn steel, fire and obliterated bodies.[/FONT]
[FONT="]All three guns on the port side had been destroyed, the explosion thankfully had not spread into the magazine, but the amidships was now a mass of flames and smoke. Even the mast seemed slightly askew.[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Sir! The blast disabled our radio we can’t…”[/FONT]
[FONT="]The forward gun turret fired, the blast made the Captains ear’s ring, he staggered back inside the conning tower. [/FONT]
[FONT="]“Take the men from the starboard battery, put them with the damage control teams, I don’t care if you have to use bucket chains, get that fire out!”
“Yes Captain!”[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Signal the flagship UNABLE TO MAKE MORE THAN 14 KNOTS.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Aye Sir!”
5)
1) Here you see the Kasuga after a gunnery shoot, you can see her single 10 inch gun forwards and her widely spaced funnels and single mast, this symmetry of design was favoured by the Italians who both designed and built the big cruiser, originally laid down for Argentina.
2) This is the armour scheme of the Admiral Baudin class of which the Formidable is a member. Although protected by a full length and full thickness waterline belt the armour scheme didn't protect the big ships upper hull making her very vulnerable to high explosive shells that would hit outside the armoured area.
3) The Jeune Ecole or 'Young School' was a school of thought that dominated French Naval planning for many years. Instead of building large and expensive battleships it emphasised the use of cruiser for raiding a hostile nations commerce and massed swarms of small torpedo carrying torpedo boats to sink any hostile warships attempting to blockade France as well as engaging ships on the high seas. This lead to the French developing the worlds first effective submarine arm as well as viewing the torpedo as a war winning weapon.
4) Here you see the cruiser Chateaurenauilt and her size is immediately obvious as is her handsome profile. Designed as a commerce raider the cruiser was poorly armoured but exceptionally fast, capable of running down any vessel afloat apart from torpedo boats. This picture was taken during one of her cruises in the Meditteranian.
5) Drawn after the war you see here the Formidable on fire and under fire. The image is deceptive as the ships on the right are meant to be Japanese and at this stage of the engagement were not that close.
Any comments both positive and negative are most welcome!
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Aboard the Shikishima Captain Scott had to suppress a gasp as the first Japanese shells landed supprisingly close to their French targets. Columns of water towered above their distant targets, coating the French ships with nothing more dangerious than spray for the moment.[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Like the French we have trained to fight at long range. With potential enemies outnumbering our fleet it was felt that long range engagements would as you say ‘even the score” Admiral Scotts translator and aide on this fact finding mission said in answer to the Englishman’s unsaid question.[/FONT]
[FONT="]IJN Kasuga rear ship Japanese line, speed 18 knots.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The Italian built armoured cruiser was a formidable ship, originally built for Argentina the large cruiser had been purchased by Japan as tensions rose between France and Japan. Armed with a single 10 inch gun forwards and dual 8 inch guns aft the ship had a heavy punch for her size, especially when combined with the 6 inch guns dotting her flanks.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The large cruiser and her sister the Nissin had been seconded to the Battle fleet as ships of the line instead of the usual cruiser roles of scouting and fighting ships of their own weight. Now they would fight battleships as battleships themselves.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The ship shuddered as her 10 inch gun fired, thick chocolate coloured smoke spilling over her bow. The shudders continued as the 6 and 8 inch guns fired. Their target was an ugly brute of a ship, identified as a Admiral Baudin class vessel. The French ship was a huge target, looming out of the water, her high sides wreathed in smoke as her guns fired salvo after salvo. [/FONT]
[FONT="]The sea between the two ships was being torn apart, colums of water, some a hundred feet high were thrown into the air as shells fell short or long.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The Kasuga suddenly rocked to one side, the whole ship shuddering as the first hit of the engagement was scored. A 10.8 inch shell from the stern turret of the MN Formidable slammed into the 5.9 inch thick belt on the Kasuga’s flank and detonated.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The shell weighing 575 lbs was filled with high explosives and savaged the cruisers armour, ripping a 8 foot by 9 foot hole in the Kasuga’s hide, starting a fire for good measure. Moments later the cruiser shook again as two further shells landed. The first a 5.5 inch hit one of the cruisers boats and reduced it to burning matchwood, the second an old solid shot armour piercing 6.4 inch shell hit the cruisers superstructure, ripping through iron, steel and men before coming to a stop, its monumentum exhausted. [/FONT]
1)
2)
[FONT="]Aboard the old French battleship the guncrew’s cheered at their success as three bright flashes on their targets indicated hits. Even the Captain, a dour taskmaster permitted himself a smile. He may be in command of one of the oldest ships in the fleet but the old wolf still had sharp teeth.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The smile faded as a detonation shook his 12000 tonne command, then another, and another. The first was from a 6 inch shell which burst clean on the massively thick 16 inch steel belt of the old ship. The blast and impact dented and scorched the hull but did little damage. But the other impacts were far more worrying. A six inch shell hit well forwards, detonating right on the curved arc of the ships huge ram bow. The explosion annihilated a 3 pound gun mounting and its 4 man crew, starting a fire amongst the waiting ammunition which immediately started to cook off, the small shells blasts causing little damage but helped feed a growing fire.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The last hit was the most serious. A 10 inch, high explosive round slammed into the base of the big French ship’s thick funnel. The blast tore the thin steel to shreds, clogging the uptake with debris as well as starting another fire. Thick black smoke billowed out of the side of the now ruined funnel and the ship started to slow as the engines were partially starved of air.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Further up the two lines of ships other hits were scored. The Hoche was hit by a 12 inch round which did not go off, it left nothing but a dent in her side like a wrecking ball had slammed into her side, the flagship Marceau was hit twice by 6 inch rounds which started fires and killed crew but the French were hitting back. A 13.4 inch shell from the Neptune had hit and destroyed a 6 inch gun on the Hatsuse starting a fire that the Japanese damage control teams were struggling to put out whilst holes in armour indicated other less damaging hits.[/FONT]
[FONT="]MN D’Estrees shoreward of the French line speed 16 knots.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Captain Domercq paced the bridge slightly, on the unengaged side of the towering bulk of the Magenta the small cruiser was of little use. Even the spotters in the mast could see little of the engagement although the little cruiser had been badly shaken by a 12 inch shell that had landed a mere 20 yards away, pelting the ship with fragments and showering her with tonnes of water.[/FONT]
[FONT="]On the bridge a young Leiutenant swore in supprise which drew a few chuckles or reprimanding glances from his older comrades.
“My god indeed Mr Amerak, remember to control yourself please.” Captain Domercq said, not needing to raise his voice. He was just as supprised as the rest of his bridge crew. No one told them the Japanese were this good. [/FONT]
[FONT="]“Any signal from the flagship? We can’t do a thing tethered here.”
“No Captain, nothing yet.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]The ship rattled and then there was an earsplitting BOOM as the Magenta was hit high up on her towering, ugly superstructure. The shellburst started a fire as the ships boats, those not blasted to splinters burst into flames.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Domercq watched the flames roaring out of the wound in the battleships structure before heading over to the voice tubes.[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Engineering, we’ll need full speed soon, can the engines take it?”[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Yes Sir, just give the word.” Came the muffled, tinny reply.[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Very well. Flags, signal the destroyers FOLLOW MY LEAD. SPEED 18 KNOTS.” [/FONT]
[FONT="]MN Infernet 400 meters astern of MN D’Estrees[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Captain Sir, signal from the D’Estrees, it reads FOLLOW MY LEAD, SPEED 18 KNOTS.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]The Captain, a old balding man whose command had patrolled the waters of this region since she had commissioned turned his glasses on the signal.[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Anything from the Flagship?”[/FONT]
[FONT="]“No Captain, the smoke’s obscuring her flags and we’ve received no radio messages.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Hmm…probably because the Japanese might be able to listen in. Very well. Acknowledge the signal and repeat it, signal our torpedo boats and the Chateaurenault as well, the Jeune École (3) theory is probably going to be put to the test..”[/FONT]
[FONT="]Astern of the small French cruiser the big four funnelled commerce raider the MN Chateaurenault also acknowledge the signal and started picking up speed. The Chateaurenault was a huge ship, weighing a massive 8200 tonnes but despite her weight she was nimble, a real greyhound capable of 23 knots and her engineering crew cared for their charges like a mother cared for a child.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Despite her size and speed, the big French ship was pathetically under gunned, armed with a pair of 6.4 inch guns and a measly six5.4 inch guns, three on each side. [/FONT]
[FONT="]As the trio of cruisers picked up speed their accompanying quartet of Torpedo boats accelerated too. In all the excitement, no one signalled the Marceau for confirmation, nor questioned the action of the cruiser and torpedo boats. Later this was put down to a mixture of smoke interference, confusion about the signals and a lack of attention due to the ‘excitement’ of being in an engagement as well as being under fire.[/FONT]
4)
[FONT="]MN Formidable rear of the French line – Speed 14 knots and falling.[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Captain Sir, we’re unable to clear the wreckage in the funnel, the fire is too intense and we can’t even get close, I swear that the paint’s burning.” The Damage control officer was smoke streaked, his uniform damp, the former pristine white now smeared with grey and black.[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Understood Michelle, but do what you can, it’s imperative we keep up with the fleet.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]The younger officer saluted as the Formidable’s guns fired another broadside. It took just under 2 minutes to load, aim and fire the 10.8 inch rifles mounted fore and aft whilst the 5.5 and 6.4 inch weapons barked their challenges much more rapidly, the advantage of the light shells, whilst the huge 10.8’s were loaded by nothing but hand power and winches. [/FONT]
[FONT="]“A hit! She’s on fire Sir!”[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Very good guns, keep hitting her.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]IJN Kasuga Speed 18 knots.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The big cruiser was in a bad way. Hit by four 10.8 rounds as well as an even dozen 5.5 inch and 6.4 inch rounds the armoured cruiser had lost three 6 inch guns. Two had been destroyed by direct hits whilst the third had suffered a hit from a shell that had severed a chunk of the barrel. The four big shells had all been High Explosive rounds which had torn where they hit into new shapes as they blasted the hull plating into ruin. [/FONT]
[FONT="]“Captain, the flooding is under control and we’re fighting the fires but we’re taking quite a pounding.”
“The enemy is as damaged as we are Commander, we will hold our place in the line unless ordered to withdraw.” The cruisers captain barked at his second in command, a vicious grin spreading across his face as he saw three bright flashes on his target followed by a much larger flash and blast of smoke and debris amidships.[/FONT]
[FONT="]MN Formidable Bridge.[/FONT]
[FONT="]“What in gods name was that…” The Captain said, picking himself up off the deck. The old ship had rocked under a tremendous blast that seemed to knock the ship sideways and shake her like a terrier with a rat in its mouth. [/FONT]
[FONT="]“My god…Sir! You’ve got to see this!”[/FONT]
[FONT="]The signal Lieutenant called out, looking astern from his position on the bridge. Groggily the Captain walked over, and was presented with a horrific sight. Originally the Formidable had mounted three shielded barbettes, in her 1901 refit the amidships turret had been removed and replaced with a box battery that was the home for six new 6.4 inch guns, now all he could see of this boxy structure was a mass of flames and billowing smoke.[/FONT]
[FONT="] A 10 inch shell from the Kasuga had hit clean on one of the guns as it was being reloaded. The blast destroyed the gun and its eight man crew but more importantly it had detonated the shell and propellant and that of the shells waiting nearby. The blast ripped through the thin bulkheads in the battery, setting off more ready to use ammunition that had been sent up to the guns. The end result was a charnel house of torn steel, fire and obliterated bodies.[/FONT]
[FONT="]All three guns on the port side had been destroyed, the explosion thankfully had not spread into the magazine, but the amidships was now a mass of flames and smoke. Even the mast seemed slightly askew.[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Sir! The blast disabled our radio we can’t…”[/FONT]
[FONT="]The forward gun turret fired, the blast made the Captains ear’s ring, he staggered back inside the conning tower. [/FONT]
[FONT="]“Take the men from the starboard battery, put them with the damage control teams, I don’t care if you have to use bucket chains, get that fire out!”
“Yes Captain!”[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Signal the flagship UNABLE TO MAKE MORE THAN 14 KNOTS.”[/FONT]
[FONT="]“Aye Sir!”
5)
1) Here you see the Kasuga after a gunnery shoot, you can see her single 10 inch gun forwards and her widely spaced funnels and single mast, this symmetry of design was favoured by the Italians who both designed and built the big cruiser, originally laid down for Argentina.
2) This is the armour scheme of the Admiral Baudin class of which the Formidable is a member. Although protected by a full length and full thickness waterline belt the armour scheme didn't protect the big ships upper hull making her very vulnerable to high explosive shells that would hit outside the armoured area.
3) The Jeune Ecole or 'Young School' was a school of thought that dominated French Naval planning for many years. Instead of building large and expensive battleships it emphasised the use of cruiser for raiding a hostile nations commerce and massed swarms of small torpedo carrying torpedo boats to sink any hostile warships attempting to blockade France as well as engaging ships on the high seas. This lead to the French developing the worlds first effective submarine arm as well as viewing the torpedo as a war winning weapon.
4) Here you see the cruiser Chateaurenauilt and her size is immediately obvious as is her handsome profile. Designed as a commerce raider the cruiser was poorly armoured but exceptionally fast, capable of running down any vessel afloat apart from torpedo boats. This picture was taken during one of her cruises in the Meditteranian.
5) Drawn after the war you see here the Formidable on fire and under fire. The image is deceptive as the ships on the right are meant to be Japanese and at this stage of the engagement were not that close.
Any comments both positive and negative are most welcome!
[/FONT]
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