- History
- Notes
- References
- External links
{{distinguish|Minotaur-class cruiser (disambiguation){{!}}Minotaur-class cruiser}}{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2017}}{{Use British English|date=September 2017}}{{Infobox ship image| Ship image= HMSminotaur.jpg | Minotaur|1863|6}}
}}{{Infobox ship class overview | Name=Minotaur class | Builders= | UK}} | Achilles|1863|6}} | Prince Consort|ironclad|4}} | Subclasses= | Cost= | Built range= | In service range= | In commission range= | Total ships completed=3 | Total ships scrapped=3
}}{{Infobox ship characteristics | Hide header= | Header caption= | Ship class=Armoured frigate | 10627|LT|t}} | 400|ft|m|1|abbr=on}} between perpendiculars- {{convert|407|ft|0|in|m|abbr=on}} overall
| 59|ft|6|in|m|1|abbr=on}} | 27|ft|9|in|m|1|abbr=on}} | 6949|ihp|lk=in|abbr=on}} | Ship propulsion=*1 shaft, 1 Trunk steam engine- 10 rectangular fire-tube boilers
| 14|kn|lk=in}} | 1500|nmi|lk=in|abbr=on}} at {{convert|7.5|knots|abbr=on}} | Ship complement=800 actual | Ship sail plan=5-masted | 9|in|mm|adj=on|0}} rifled muzzle-loading guns- 24 × {{convert|7|in|mm|adj=on|0}} rifled muzzle-loaders
| 4.5|-|5.5|in|mm|0|abbr=on}}- Bulkheads: {{convert|5.5|in|mm|0|abbr=on}}
| Ship notes=
}} | The Minotaur-class armoured frigates were enlarged versions of {{HMS|Achilles|1863|6}} with heavier armament, thicker armour, and more powerful engines. The ships of this class were unique among ironclad warships in possessing on completion five masts, named fore-, second-, main-, fourth- and mizzen. HistoryThey were originally intended to mount forty Armstrong 110-pounder breech-loading guns on the main deck, with ten more on pivot mountings on the upper deck. The failure of these guns in service led to a complete re-evaluation of their armament, with a concomitant delay in the arming of the whole class. The ships were armed with a combination of 9-inch muzzle-loading rifles (MLR) on metal carriages and 7-inch MLRs on rope-worked carriages. In a moderate swell these 7-inch guns were virtually unworkable, making the Minotaurs both the heaviest and the worst armed of the Victorian battleships. The Minotaurs were poor sailors, never exceeding a speed under sail of about {{convert|9.5|kn}} with all sail set and a favourable wind. They were, in spite of the number of masts they exhibited, the most sluggish of all British ironclads under sail. They were regarded as good sea-boats, and were considered to be among the steadiest ships in the battle-fleet{{Citation needed|date=August 2008}}. They were slow in manoeuvre under hand-steering, but were regarded as good after steam steering was fitted. NotesReferences- {{cite book|last=Ballard |first=G. A., Admiral |title=The Black Battlefleet |year=1980 |publisher=Naval Institute Press |location=Annapolis, MD |isbn=0-87021-924-3 |oclc=}}
- {{cite book|last=Brown|first=David K.|title=Warrior to Dreadnought: Warship Development 1860–1905|edition=reprint of the 1997|year=2003|publisher=Caxton Editions|location=London|isbn=1-84067-529-2}}
- {{cite book|title=Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905|editor1-last=Chesneau|editor1-first=Roger|editor2-last=Kolesnik|editor2-first=Eugene M.|publisher=Conway Maritime Press|location=Greenwich, UK|year=1979|isbn=0-8317-0302-4}}
- {{cite book|last=Parkes|first=Oscar|title=British Battleships|publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, MD|year=1990|edition=reprint of the 1957|isbn=1-55750-075-4}}
- {{cite book|last=Silverstone|first=Paul H.|title=Directory of the World's Capital Ships|year=1984|publisher=Hippocrene Books|location=New York|isbn=0-88254-979-0}}
- {{cite book|title=Text Book of Gunnery|url=http://cgsc.cdmhost.com/u?/p4013coll11,222|year=1887|publisher=Harrison and Sons for His Majesty's Stationery Office|location=London}}
External links{{Commonscat|Minotaur class battleship}}{{Minotaur class ironclad}} 1 : Minotaur-class ironclads |