HMS Venerable (1899)

HMS Venerable at Malta in 1915.
History
United Kingdom
Name	HMS Venerable
Builder	Chatham Dockyard
Laid down	2 January 1899
Launched	2 November 1899
Completed	November 1902
Commissioned	12 November 1902
Decommissioned	late December 1918
Fate	Broken up, 1922
General characteristics
Class and type	London-class battleship
Displacement	Normal: 14,500 long tons (14,700 t) Full load: 15,700 long tons (16,000 t)
Length	431 ft 9 in (131.6 m) o/a
Beam	75 ft (22.9 m)
Draught	26 ft (7.9 m)
Installed power	20 × water-tube boilers 15,000 ihp (11,000 kW)
Propulsion	2 × triple-expansion steam engines 2 × screw propellers
Speed	18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph)
Complement	714
Armament	4 × BL 12 in (305 mm) Mk IX guns 12 × BL 6 in (152 mm) Mk VII guns 16 × QF 12-pdr (3 in (76 mm)) guns 6 × QF 3-pdr 47 mm (1.9 in) guns 4 × 18 in (457 mm) submerged torpedo tubes
Armour	Belt: 9 in (229 mm) Bulkhead: 9–12 in (229–305 mm) Barbettes: 12 in (305 mm) Turrets: 10 in (254 mm) Casemates: 6 in (152 mm) Conning tower: 14 in (356 mm) Deck: 1–2.5 in (25–64 mm)

HMS Venerable (1899) was a member of the London class of pre-dreadnought battleships built for the British Royal Navy. The Londons were near repeats of the preceding Formidable-class battleships, but with modified armour protection. Venerable's main battery consisted of four 12-inch (305-mm) guns, and she had top speed of 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph). The ship was laid down in January 1899, was launched in November that year, and was completed in November 1902. Commissioned that month, Venerable served in the Mediterranean Fleet until 1908, and was subsequently recommissioned into the Channel Fleet. Following a major refit in 1909, she served with the Atlantic and Home Fleets.

After the outbreak of World War I, she took part in defensive and offensive operations with the Channel Fleet, shelling German positions in Belgium through May 1915. Thereafter transferred to the Mediterranean, she saw service in the Dardanelles campaign in mid-1915, and then in the Adriatic through 1916. That December, she returned to England and was refitted as a depot ship in 1918. She was sold for scrap in 1921 and was ultimately broken up in 1922.