Hard Pre-Dreadnoughts Part III Quiz / Test | Military Matters

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Great Britain built the most numerous class of pre-dreadnoughts, which was also regarded in some naval circles as the standard for the type. What was the name of the ship class?

Answer: Majestic class

The "Majestic" class of 1894 consisted of nine ships, the "Majestic", "Caesar",
"Hannibal", "Illustrious", "Jupiter", "Magnificent", "Mars", "Prince George", and "Victorious". They carried four 12-inch and twelve 6-inch guns on a displacement of 16,320 tons. "Majestic" was sunk by torpedos in 1915; all other ships were scrapped in 1922.

2. The following class of British pre-dreadnoughts were a smaller version of the "Majestics", with the same armament. These ships were designed for the China station. What was the name of this ship class?

Answer: Canopus class

The "Canopus" class of 1896 included the ships, "Glory", "Albion", "Ocean", "Goliath", and "Vengeance". These ships were some 2000 tons lighter than the "Majestics". "Ocean" and
"Goliath" were sunk supporting the Gallipoli landings in 1915; all others of the class were scrapped in 1922.

3. The "Formidable" class of three ships was laid down by Britain in 1898. Two of the ships were sunk in 1915 supporting the Gallipoli landings. Which ship survived World War I?

Answer: Implacable

The "Formidable", "Irresistible", and the "Implacable" carried four 12-inch guns and twelve 6-inch guns on a displacement of 15,000 tons. "Formidable" and "Irresistible" were both sunk at Gallipoli. "Implacable" was scrapped in 1922.

4. The next British pre-dreadnoughts to be built were the "London" class of 1898. How many ships were in this class?

Answer: Five

The five ships of the "London" class were the "London", "Bulwark", "Venerable", "Queen", and "Prince of Wales". "Bulwark" was destroyed by a magazine explosion in 1914. All others of the class were scrapped in 1922.

5. The fourth class of pre-dreadnoughts built by Germany were the "Braunschweig" class of 1901. How many of these ships were built?

Answer: Five

The "Braunschweig" class of 1901 included the "Elsass", "Hessen", "Preussen", and "Lothringen". The "Braunschweig", "Preussen", and "Lothringen" were all scrapped in 1931.
The "Elsass" was scrapped in 1936.
"Hessen" was converted to a target ship in 1935, ceded to the Soviet Union, and scrapped in 1960.

6. Another French single ship design was the "Suffren", which was laid down in 1898. What was her main armament?

Answer: Four 12-inch guns

The French "Suffren" weighed 12,900 tons and carried four 12-inch and ten 6.5 inch guns. She was torpedoed by a German U-boat off the coast of Lisbon, Portugal in 1916.

7. The French "Republique" class of 1901 carried an unusually heavy secondary battery. How many 6.5 inch guns were mounted on these ships?

Answer: Eighteen

The French ships "Republique" and "Patrie" of 1901 carried a main battery of four 12-inch guns and a secondary battery of eighteen 6.5 inch guns. Both ships were relegated to training duty after World War I. "Republique" was scrapped in 1921, "Patrie" in 1937.

8. The Russian pre-dreadnought "Rostislav", laid down in 1894, was a small Black Sea battleship. What innovation was inherent in her design?

Answer: First ship to burn fuel oil

The "Rostislav" was originally designed as a small coast-defense ship, but her size was increased to that of a sea-going unit. Half of her boilers ran on fuel oil instead of coal. Armament was four 10-inch and eight 6-inch guns on a displacement of 10,700 tons. "Rostislav" was scuttled off the Crimean Peninsula in 1920.

9. The Russian "Peresvet" class of 1898, which also included the "Pobeda" and the "Oslyabya", all fought in the Russo-Japanese War. How many of them were sunk?

Answer: Three were sunk, two were salvaged

The "Peresvet" was scuttled at Tsushima but was salvaged by the Japanese and renamed "Sagami". She was sold back to Russia in 1916. "Pobeda" was sunk at Port Arthur but was also salvaged and renamed "Suwo" by Japan. She served until 1923. The "Oslyabya" was sunk at Tsushima.

10. One of the most famous of the pre-dreadnought ships was a single ship Russian design. Laid down in 1898, this vessel's crew mutinied in 1905 and sailed the ship to Romania. This event was the subject of a 1925 Russian film. What was her name?

Answer: Potemkin

The "Potemkin" of 1898 displaced 12,700 tons and carried four 12-inch and sixteen 6-inch guns. During the unrest in Russia in 1905, the crew mutinied and sailed to Costanza in Romania. Returned to Russia, she was renamed "Panteleimon" and scrapped in 1923.

11. This Russian pre-dreadnought, the "Retvizan" of 1899, was built for the Russian Navy by a foreign power. Where was the ship built?

Answer: United States

Built in the United States because all Russian shipyards were at full capacity,
"Retvizan" carried four 12-inch and twelve 6-inch guns on a displacement of
13,000 tons. She was sunk at Port Arthur in 1904, salvaged by the Japanese and renamed "Hizen". The ship was sunk as a target in 1924.

12. Another Russian pre-dreadnought that was built by a foreign power was the "Tsesarevich" of 1899. Where was this ship constructed?

Answer: France

The "Tsesarevich" was built in France and was the basis for the Russian-built "Borodino" class of 1899. "Tsesarevich" carried four 12-inch and twelve 6-inch guns on a displacement of 13,100 tons. Renamed "Grazhdanin" by the Red Navy during the Civil War, she was scrapped in 1924.

13. This Japanese pre-dreadnought fought at Tsushima in 1905. She was converted to a troopship in 1937, and then a repair ship in 1938. She was sunk by a U.S. submarine while on her way to Singapore in 1942. Can you name her?

Answer: Asahi

Built in Britain, the "Asahi" fought at Tsushima and served throughout World War I before being relegated to a coast defense ship in 1921. She carried four 12-inch and fourteen 6-inch guns on a displacement of 15,400 tons.

14. This Japanese ship was also built in Great Britain. She was Admiral Togo's flagship at Tsushima. The ship is the only pre-dreadnought battleship left in the world.

Answer: Mikasa

The "Asahi" of 1899 carried four 12-inch and fourteen 6-inch guns on a displacement of 15,400 tons. "Mikasa" was sunk by an internal explosion in 1905 but was salvaged and continued in service. She was designated a museum ship in 1922.

15. This British pre-dreadnought class were virtual repeats of the "London" class ships. What was the name of the lead ship?

Answer: Duncan

The "Duncan" class of 1900 weighed 14,000 tons and carried four 12-inch and twelve 6-inch guns. Ships in the class were the "Duncan", "Albemarle", "Cornwallis", "Exmouth", "Montagu", and "Russell". "Montagu" was wrecked in 1906 in the Bristol Channel. "Russell" and "Cornwallis" were both lost in World War I. All other units were scrapped in 1920.

16. The British "King Edward VII" class of 1902 introduced a heavier secondary battery of 9.2-inch guns to the Royal Navy. How many ships of this class were built?

Answer: Eight

The eight ships of the "King Edward VII" class, including the "Commonwealth",
"Hindustan", "Britannia", "Dominion", "New Zealand", "Africa", and "Hibernia",
introduced a heavier secondary battery as many foreign navies were doing. "King Edward VII" and "Britannia" were lost in World War I, while all the other ships were scrapped in 1922.

17. The most numerous class of Russian pre-dreadnoughts were the "Borodino" class of 1899. How many of these ships were built?

Answer: Five

The "Borodino" class of five ships included the "Imperator Alexander III", the "Knyaz Suvorov", "Oryol", and "Slava". The ships carried four 12-inch and twelve 6-inch guns and weighed 14,100 tons. The "Borodino", "Imperator Alexander III", and "Knyaz Suvorov" were all sunk at Tsushima, while the "Oryol" surrendered and was renamed "Iwami" by the Japanese. "Slava" was scuttled in the Baltic in 1917.

18. The American "Illinois" class of 1896 consisted of three ships, the "Illinois", "Alabama", and "Wisconsin". What caliber gun was their main armament?

Answer: 13-inch

The "Illinois" class, like many other American pre-dreadnoughts, had relatively short active careers. Completed in 1901, all three were relegated to training duties by 1911. "Alabama" was sunk as a target in 1921, "Wisconsin" was scrapped in 1922, and "Illinois" served as a floating arsenal until 1956.

19. The American "Maine" class of 1899 reverted to a main armament of 12-inch guns but added two 6-inch guns to the secondary battery. How many ships were in this class?

Answer: Three

The American ship "Maine", along with her sister ships "Missouri" and "Ohio", carried four 13-inch and sixteen 6-inch guns on a displacement of 13,700 tons. All three units served as training ships during World War I and were scrapped by 1923.

20. The American "Virginia" class of 1902 carried half of her secondary battery of 8-inch guns superimposed over her main armament of 12-inch weapons. Was this design feature successful in practice?

Answer: No

As with the previous "Kearsarge" class of 1896, the "double turret" design of the "Virginia" class was not successful, as the blast from the main guns interfered with the firing of the 8-inch guns. The ships in the class were the "Virginia", "Nebraska", "Georgia", "New Jersey", and Rhode Island.

Source: Author Reamar42

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor Bruyere before going online.
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Pre-Dreadnoughts Part III Trivia Quiz

The ships known as Pre-Dreadnoughts were first created in the latter part of the nineteenth century. All of the world's major naval powers built them, and they evolved with each new ship class. What do you know about these ships?

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