ANS Penthesilea (BB-1918)
The Variaette Class had six hulls laid down, originally all were to have
12x14" guns, but contacts in America (Spies) that the US Navy was going to twin
16" for its latest battleships, the Murovian Empire should probably follow suit.
The change would provide the Empire with ships as good as any others in the
world. The only visual change between the Variaette and Penthesilea classes was
in the shape of the main turrets and the size of the barrels.
The bells to end World War One had barely stopped ringing when the last of the
Penthesilea class ship joined the Fleet. These three ships with the Variaette
class would be the core of the fleet around which the modern 'Task Force' would
be built. Aircraft carriers would be added and other long range escorts would be
needed as the quality of the enemy units increased. The late 1930's saw the
three ships go through the same rebuilding process as the Variaette class. The
six ships shared may features that allowed for an almost production line for the
rebuilds.
This is an easy class for me to produce. Only needing to change the turrets
makes for simple drawing changes.
Displacement | 31,300 tons std, 35,800 tons full load | 33,250 tons std, 38,500 tons full load |
Length | 620 ft | 632 ft |
Breadth | 101 ft | 101 ft |
Draught | 30 ft | 30 ft |
Machinery | 3 shaft, Steam Turbines, 50,000shp | 3 shaft, Steam Turbines, 80,000shp |
Speed | 22 knots | 26 knots |
Range | 9,000 miles at 12 knots | 10,000 miles at 12 knots |
Armour | 13.8" side, 2" deck, 13.8"/7.1"/4.1" turrets | 13.8" side, 6" deck, 13.8"/7.1"/4.1" turrets |
Armament | As Completed 1916 8 x 16" (4x2) 16 x 6" (16x1) 8 x 3" AA (8x1) |
After rebuild 1939 to 1941 refits 8 x 16" (4x2) 20 x 4" (10x2) 40 x 2pd (5x8) 12 x 20mm (1x2, 10x1) |
Torpedoes | 5 x 18" Submerged | nil |
Complement | 1200 (1300 as Flagship) | 1270 (1350 as Flagship) |
Notes | ANS Penthesilea ANS Pygela +1 |
Penthesilea with her mother and father. While not able to be a part of
the Sisterhood, her father had been a great General of the Amazons in their
conquests and trading wars in Central America. This put his name, Pygela, to
many ships in the Amazonian Navy.