Austria-Hungary
Radetzky all big gun proposal
1906
Displacement and Dimensions
15,000-20,000 tons. No dimensions given, though likely larger than real life Radetzky class as commissioned.
Capabilities
18-20 knots speed, 4,000 nautical miles at 10 knots, likely triple expansion steam engines providing power to three or four screws.
Armour
Generally similar scheme that that fitted to actual Radetzky class.
Armament
Either 4x4 28 centimetre guns or 3x2 28 centimetre guns with a similar light armament similar to real ship.
Designed
1904-1906
Ordered
Ordered to different design with more traditional armament.
Fate
Battleships scrapped at end of world war one in Italian yards following the Austro-Hungarian defeat in the first world war.
History of ships real life history
Early on in the design phase for what would become the Radetzky class of battleships several designs were submitted with varying gun layouts, including a version armed with an all big gun main battery in a dreadnought style arrangement comprising either one turret mounted either end of the superstructure and two wing turrets along the sides (probably mounted in an en echelon style mounting similar to the British Invincible and German Seydlitz though I could find nothing noting how the main battery would be arranged) or another version armed with three twin turrets arranged along the ships centreline, on a manner similar to the old German Brandenburg class battleships.
Ultimately a more traditional design was approved instead as the estimated cost of the ships, and the requirement for the construction of a new floating drydock to maintain the ships dissuaded the government from approving such a ship, this being despite some effort on the part of Franz Ferdinand (yes that Franz Ferdinand) and the empires naval league to get the design approved.
To the modified design the Radetzky class of three ships was laid down and delivered good service in the first world war where they threatened the French and Italian fleets from making any attempt to bombard the Austrian littoral and occasionally sortied out of harbour to launch a string of abortive attempts to bombard the Italian mainland and engage Italian fleet units. The ships were all scrapped at the end of the war by Italian yards as the nation that had built them realigned into several postwar states.
Alternate history if design entered service
The all big gun design comprising four twin turrets is approved by the Imperial government and construction is completed in 1910, three years before the other chief Mediterranean powers gain their first dreadnought battleships. Possibly due to the cost of constructing such a large battleship only two ships are completed, with the money for the third vessel going to the construction of the new floating drydock to maintain the two other vessels.
The launching of these ships spurs the Italians and the French to speed up their own battleship building programs, though this will have little appreciable effect by the outbreak of the first world war. The ships, along with the four Tegetthoff class dreadnoughts, give the Austro-Hungarian navy a powerful six ship core of dreadnoughts to oppose the handful of French and later Italian ships of the same type.
The added number of all big gun ships provides the Imperial navy the confidence to make repeated sorties against the Italian navy, engaging limited elements of the Regina Marina though they fail to contend with the larger Italian battleships. Managing only to sink a few cruisers and a handful of merchant ships. Coal shortages keep the ships in port for an extended period, but, with the war situation deteriorating rapidly on land the fleet is ordered to sortie out for a Lissa style of battle against the Italians.
This does not go well as the out of practice Austro-Hungarian fleet, suffering from low morale as well by this point, smashes into a combined Anglo-French and Italian force somewhere in the Adriatic and in a brief gunnery duel the Imperial navy looses its cohesion and flees back to port, chased the entire way by the allied fleet, mopping up at least one of the Radetzky class ships in the process.
The battle reignites fervour for the war briefly at home. But the situation the empire faces is dire and the battle merely serves to restore some pride in the fleet before the empire totally collapses. The surviving ship/ships are scrapped in Italy after the end of the war similarly to their real world cousins. It is likely that some elements of the ships, their guns, conning tower, or anchors are preserved in one of the post Imperial nations as a war memorial.
This is a test version of the entries for each ship that will come in the book. Hopefully it is interesting, easy to read and has all the stuff expected for a book. If there are any questions or pointers please let me know.