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	Galatea in 1914
History
United Kingdom
Name	HMS Galatea
Builder	William Beardmore and Company
Laid down	9 January 1913
Launched	14 May 1914
Commissioned	December 1914
Identification	Pennant number: 0C (1914); 66 (Jan 18); 33 (Apr 18); 57 (Nov 19); N.67 (Jan 22)
Fate	Sold for scrap, 25 October 1921
General characteristics (as built)
Class and type	Arethusa-class light cruiser
Displacement	3,512 long tons (3,568 t)
Length	410 ft (125.0 m) p/p; 436 ft (132.9 m) o/a;
Beam	39 ft (11.9 m)
Draught	15 ft 7 in (4.75 m) (mean, deep load)
Installed power	40,000 shp (30,000 kW); 8 × Yarrow boilers;
Propulsion	4 × shafts; 4 × steam turbines
Speed	28.5 kn (52.8 km/h; 32.8 mph)
Range	5,000 nmi (9,300 km; 5,800 mi) at 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph)
Complement	270
Armament	2 × single BL 6 in (152 mm) Mk XII guns; 6 × single QF 4 in (102 mm) Mk V guns; 1 × single QF 3-pounder 47 mm (1.9 in) anti-aircraft gun; 4 × 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes;
Armour	Waterline belt: 1–3 in (25–76 mm); Deck: 1 in (25 mm);

HMS Galatea was one of eight Arethusa-class light cruisers built for the Royal Navy in the 1910s. She fought in the First World War, participating in the Battle of Jutland. Following the war, she was scrapped.

Design and description

The Arethusa-class cruisers were intended to lead destroyer flotillas and defend the fleet against attacks by enemy destroyers. The ships were 456 feet 6 inches (139.1 m) long overall, with a beam of 49 feet 10 inches (15.2 m) and a deep draught of 15 feet 3 inches (4.6 m). Displacement was 5,185 long tons (5,268 t) at normal^[3] and 5,795 long tons (5,888 t) at full load. Arethusa was powered by four Parsons steam turbines, each driving one propeller shaft, which produced a total of 40,000 indicated horsepower (30,000 kW). The turbines used steam generated by eight Yarrow boilers which gave her a speed of about 28.5 knots (52.8 km/h; 32.8 mph).^[4] She carried 840 long tons (853 t) tons of fuel oil^[3] that gave a range of 5,000 nautical miles (9,300 km; 5,800 mi) at 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph).^[5]

The main armament of the Arethusa-class ships was two BL 6-inch (152 mm) Mk XII guns that were mounted on the centreline fore and aft of the superstructure and six QF 4-inch Mk V guns in waist mountings. They were also fitted with a single QF 3-pounder 47 mm (1.9 in) anti-aircraft gun and four 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes in two twin mounts.^[4]

Service history

She was launched on 14 May 1914 at William Beardmore and Company shipyard. On her commissioning she was assigned as the leader to the 2nd Destroyer Flotilla of the Harwich Force, guarding the eastern approaches to the English Channel. On 4 May 1916, she took part in the shooting down of Zeppelin L 7. At the Battle of Jutland, she was the flagship of the 1st Light Cruiser Squadron under Commodore E.S. Alexander-Sinclair. She was the first ship to report the presence of German ships, triggering the battle. Galatea was also the first to receive a hit by the German light cruiser SMS Elbing, but no explosion occurred. She was sold for scrapping on 25 October 1921.^[6] Mount Galatea in Alberta, Canada is named after this ship.

Notes

^ Colledge, J J (1972). British Warships 1914–1919. Shepperton: Ian Allan. p. 47.
^ Dodson, Aidan (2024). "The Development of the British Royal Navy's Pennant Numbers Between 1919 and 1940". Warship International. 61 (2): 134–66.
^ ^a ^b Friedman 2010, p. 384
^ ^a ^b Gardiner & Gray, p. 55
^ Pearsall, Part I, p. 210
^ Gardiner & Gray, p. 56

Bibliography

Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969]. Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy (Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8.
Corbett, Julian (March 1997). Naval Operations to the Battle of the Falklands. History of the Great War: Based on Official Documents. Vol. I (2nd, reprint of the 1938 ed.). London and Nashville, Tennessee: Imperial War Museum and Battery Press. ISBN 0-89839-256-X.
Corbett, Julian (1997). Naval Operations. History of the Great War: Based on Official Documents. Vol. II (reprint of the 1929 second ed.). London and Nashville, Tennessee: Imperial War Museum in association with the Battery Press. ISBN 1-870423-74-7.
Friedman, Norman (2010). British Cruisers: Two World Wars and After. Barnsley, South Yorkshire, UK: Seaforth. ISBN 978-1-59114-078-8.
Friedman, Norman (2011). Naval Weapons of World War One. Barnsley, South Yorkshire, UK: Seaforth. ISBN 978-1-84832-100-7.
Gardiner, Robert & Gray, Randal, eds. (1985). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-85177-245-5.
Newbolt, Henry (1996). Naval Operations. History of the Great War Based on Official Documents. Vol. V (reprint of the 1931 ed.). Nashville, Tennessee: Battery Press. ISBN 0-89839-255-1.
Pearsall, Alan (1984). "Arethusa Class Cruisers, Part I". Warship. VIII. London: Conway Maritime Press: 203–11. ISBN 0-87021-983-9.
Pearsall, Alan (1984). "Arethusa Class Cruisers, Part II". Warship. VIII. London: Conway Maritime Press: 258–65. ISBN 0-87021-983-9.