Cardiff 1939
Coventry 1940
Curacoa 1941
| Name | No | Builder | Laid down | Launched | Comp | Fate |
| Cardiff (ex-Caprice) | D58 | Fairfield, Govan | 22/7/1916 | 12/4/1917 | 7/1917 | sold for BU 1/1946 |
| Ceres | D59 | John Brown, Clydebank | 11/7/1916 | 24/3/1917 | 6/1917 | sold for BU 4/1946 |
| Coventry (ex-Corsair) | D43 | Swan Hunter, Wallsend | 4/8/1916 | 6/7/1917 | 2/1918 | sunk 14/9/1942 |
| Curacoa | D41 | Pembroke DYd | 7/1916 | 5/5/1917 | 2/1918 | collision 2/10/1942 |
| Curlew | D42 | Vickers, Barrow | 21/8/1916 | 5/7/1917 | 12/1917 | sunk 26/5/1940 |
|
Displacement normal, t |
4190 |
|
Displacement full, t |
5020 |
|
Length, m |
137.2 |
|
Breadth, m |
13.3 |
|
Draught, m |
4.50 |
|
No of shafts |
2 |
|
Machinery |
Brown-Curtis geared steam turbines, 6 Yarrow boilers Curlew: Parsons geared steam turbines, 6 Yarrow boilers |
|
Power, h. p. |
40000 |
|
Max speed, kn |
29 |
|
Fuel, t |
oil 935 |
| Endurance, nm(kts) | 5900(10) |
| Armour, mm |
belt: 76 - 38, deck: 25, CT: 76 (not all), gun shields: 25 |
|
Armament |
5 x 1 - 152/45 BL Mk XII, 2 x 1 - 76/45 QF Mk I HA, 4 x 1 - 47/40 Hotchkiss, 2 x 1 - 40/39 pompom, 4 x 2 - 533 TT |
|
Complement |
460 |
Ship project history: Ceres class ships had, after "D" type cruisers (rather the reverse!) fwd main guns mounted superimposed. It has been made not so much for strengthening of fwd salvo, how many on purpose to remove a bridge and rangefinders from a stem, having lowered their deck wetness (all ships of Arethusa class and "early C" strongly suffered from splashing of a fore end). Because of the increased upper weight the hull beam has been slightly increased. Despite the undertaken re-planning, they have appeared only hardly less wet than their predecessors.
"C" type cruisers were created for service in the North Sea under 1915 year design and become obsolete to the beginning of 1930th, and in 1935 the decision to convert them to AA ships was accepted. Coventry and Curlew in 1935-1936 had all old arms changed to 10 single 102mm and 2 õ 8 40mm pompoms. To keep a stability it was necessary to load nearby 100t of ballast. Update has appeared successful, and during the period 1936-1940 it was planed rearm similarly remained 11 "C" type ships. However the program has been put aside. Only in the middle of 1939 works on Curacoa have begun. It was planed that other ships of class will follow them but the begun of war was compelled to be limited to end of works on this ship which has become operational in 1940.
Protection: Armoured belt protected ship at full length, its thickness was 76mm abreast machinery spaces (51mm armour on 25mm plating), 51mm (38mm armour on 13mm plating) aft and 38mm (25mm armour on 13mm plating) fore. Belt was closed by aft 25mm bulkhead near stern. It extended to main deck (and to upper deck abreast machinery). Machinery and steering gear were covered by 25mm deck.
Modernizations: mid-1918, Coventry: turning flying-off platform for one Pup fighter was fitted amidships.
1919, all: CT was replaced by lighter one with thinner armour.
(1935 - 1936, Portsmouth DYd), Coventry: Full new armament consisted of 10 x 1 - 102/45 QF Mk V HA, 2 x 8 - 40/39 pompom, full displacement was 5468t
(1935 - 1936, Chatham DYd), Curlew: Full new armament consisted of 10 x 1 - 102/45 QF Mk V HA, 1 x 8 - 40/39 pompom, full displacement was 5355t
1938 - 1939, Coventry: - 1 x 8 - 40/39; + 2 x 4 - 12.7/62
1938 - 1939, Curlew: + 2 x 4 - 12.7/62
1939 - 1940, Curlew, Coventry: - 2 x 1 - 102/45
(7/1939 - 4/1940, Chatham DYd), Curacoa: Full new armament consisted of 4 x 2 - 102/45 QF Mk XVI HA, 1 x 4 - 40/39 pompom, 2 x 1 - 40/39 pompom, 2 x 4 - 12.7/62, type 279 radar
12/1940, Curacoa: + 1 x 20 - 178 UP AA rockets projector
91941, Curacoa: - 1 x 20 - 178 UP; + 2 x 1 - 40/39 pompom, type 282, 285 radars
4/1942, Cardiff: + 6 x 1 - 20/70 Oerlikon, type 290 radar
5/1942, Coventry: + 5 x 1 - 20/70 Oerlikon
mid-1942, Ceres: + 6 x 1 - 20/70 Oerlikon
9/1942, Curacoa: + 5 x 1 - 20/70 Oerlikon, type 273 radar, full displacement rose to 5403t, including 200t of solid ballast.
1943, Cardiff: + type 273 radar
late 1943, Ceres: - 2 x 1 - 40/39; + type 273, 290 radars
5/1944, Ceres: - 2 x 1 - 76/45; + 8 x 1 - 20/70 Oerlikon
Naval service: Ceres was damaged in collision with USN destroyer Fox in Bosphorus in April 1923. Curlew was sunk by German He 111 bombers (bombs near-misses) off Norwegian coast 26/5/1940. Coventry was damaged by torpedo explosion in March 1923 at Malta. She was sunk by German Ju 87 and Ju 88 bombers 14/9/1942 near Egyptian coast. Curacoa was mined in Baltic in May 1919 (steering gear was damaged, ship was towed to home base and repaired till late 1919). She was damaged by German bombs 24/4/1940 and repaired till December, 1940 and sunk 2/10/1942 being rammed by s/s Queen Mary (she was cut apart) in Atlantic.
Cardiff 1928
Curlew 1938
© Ivan Gogin, 2008-09