AFRICA

Sister ships:  BRITANNIA, COMMONWEALTH, DOMINION, HIBERNIA, HINDUSTAN, KING EDWARD VII, NEW ZEALAND (renamed ZEALANDIA in 1911)

Notes:  The eight ships of the KING EDWARD VII class were ordered in three separate groups in the period 1901-1904.  They were the first Royal Navy battleships to mount the 9.2" gun in their secondary armaments.  As it turned out, this jump to 9.2" guns proved to be problematic in action, as the difference in splashes between the 12" guns of the main battery and the 9.2" guns of the secondary was very small, which made gunlaying corrections very difficult.  This difficulty gave impetus to the development of the "all-big-gun" type both in England and in other navies.  They were also the first class to have fire control positions on both masts, in place of the "fighting tops" found in the older ships.

The KING EDWARD VII class was over 1,000 tons heavier than the preceding DUNCAN class.  This increase in weight was not only due to increased size, but also due to an increase in the armor; the casemate protection of the 6" guns was abandoned in favor of a central battery layout.  The armor here was 7" thick, and increased the area covered by one deck higher than in the DUNCAN class.  The machinery installed in the eight ships differed greatly, as the entire class served as "test beds" for varying combinations of boilers.  However, they all exceeded their design speeds on trials.  They had very good turning circles (noted as being as little as 340 yards at 15 knots).  But their balanced rudders (the first installed in front-line ships since the 1870's) did not function as desired; it proved to be difficult to steer a steady course, and the subsequent, nearly-constant corrections that had to be made earned the class the nickname "The Wobbly Eight".  The KING EDWARD VII class were noted as being good gun platforms, but with a lower freeboard, they were noted as being wet ships in heavy weather.

AFRICA was commissioned for the Atlantic Fleet in November, 1906; she was transferred to the Channel Fleet in February, 1907.  In April, 1909, AFRICA joined the 2nd Squadron, Home Fleet.  She was reduced to nucleus crew in November, 1911 and became flagship of 3rd and 4th Divisions, Home Fleet (relieved by KING EDWARD VII in August, 1911).  AFRICA  was restored to full strength and assigned to 3rd Battle Squadron in May, 1912.  She joined the Grand Fleet in August, 1914.  AFRICA moved from Scapa Flow to the Nore in May, 1916.  In a refit in 1916-17, AFRICA had her ten 6" guns in the central battery removed, and replaced by four 6" guns in shields on the upper deck.  AFRICA was attached to 9th Cruiser Squadron from April, 1917 through November, 1918.  She was reduced to accommodation ship in April, 1919.  AFRICA  was sold for breaking up in 1920.

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