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HMS AGINCOURT
HMS Agincourt was a dreadnought battleship built in
the UK in the early 1910s. She holds the
distinction of mounting more heavy guns (fourteen)
and more turrets (seven) than any other dreadnought
battleship, in keeping with the Brazilians'
requirement for an especially impressive design.
With fourteen
twelve-inch guns mounted in seven twin turrets (each
named for a day of the week.) It was the
largest number of main-battery gun turrets ever
fitted on a battleship's centerline. When all
guns were fired together, the effect was described
as "awe inspiring."
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HMS Agincourt was originally part of Brazil's role
in a South American naval arms race. However,
the collapse of the rubber boom and a lessening of the rivalry with
Argentina led to her resale (while still under
construction) to Turkey who renamed her as Sultan Osman
I. She underwent trials in July 1914 and was
completed in August, just as World War I began.
The war broke out
during her sea trials before delivery. Even though
the Ottoman crew had arrived to collect her, the
British Government took over the vessel for
incorporation into the Royal Navy. The Turkish
captain, waiting with five hundred Turkish sailors
aboard a transport in the River Tyne, threatened to
board his ships and hoist the Turkish flag; First
Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill gave orders
to resist such an attempt "by armed force if
necessary." At the same time the British also
took over a second Ottoman battleship, a King George
V class-derived vessel being built by Vickers—Reşadiye.
Such an action was allowed for in the contracts, as
Churchill did not want to risk the ships being used
against the British, but it had consequences.
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The
takeover caused considerable ill will in the Ottoman
Empire, where public subscriptions had partially funded
the ships. The seizure, and the gift of the German
battlecruiser Goeben to the Ottomans, influenced public
opinion in the Empire to turn away from Britain, and
they entered the war on the side of Germany and the
Austro-Hungarian Empire against the Triple Entente of
Britain, France, and Russia on 29 October, after Goeben
had attacked Russian facilities in the Black Sea.
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On 1
January 1915, Agincourt was the last ship of the Sixth
Division of the 1st BS, along with HMS Hercules, HMS
Revenge and the flagship, HMS Marlborough, the most
heterogeneous group as each ship was from a different
class. Admiral Jellicoe, commander of the Grand
Fleet, kept it in cruising formation until 6:15 PM when
he ordered it to deploy from column into a single line
based on the port division, each ship turning 90° in
succession. This turn made the Sixth Division the
closest ships in the Grand Fleet to the battleships of
the High Seas Fleet and they fired on each ship as they
made their turn to port. This concentration of
fire later became known as "Windy Corner" to the British
as the ships were drenched by German shell splashes
although none were hit.
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At 6:24 Agincourt opened fire on a German battlecruiser
with her main guns. Shortly afterwards her
six-inch guns followed suit as German destroyers made
torpedo attacks on the British battleships to cover the
turn to the south of the High Seas Fleet.
Agincourt successfully evaded two torpedoes, although
another struck Marlborough. Visibility cleared around
7:15 and she engaged a Kaiser-class battleship without
result before it was lost in the smoke and haze.
Around 8:00 Marlborough was forced to reduce speed
because of the strain on her bulkheads from her torpedo
damage. In the reduced visibility the division
lost sight of the Grand Fleet during the night, passing
the badly damaged battlecruiser SMS Seydlitz without
opening fire. Agincourt fired 144 twelve-inch
shells and 111 six-inch shells during the battle.
Agincourt was later
transferred to the 2nd Battle Squadron and was present
at the surrender of the High Seas Fleet on 21 November
1918. She was placed in reserve at Rosyth in March
1919. After unsuccessful attempts to sell her to the
Brazilian Government, she was listed for disposal in
April 1921, but was used for experimental purposes later
that year. She was sold for scrap on 19 December 1922 to
comply with the tonnage limitations of the Washington
Naval Treaty, although she was not actually broken up
until the end of 1924.
This
HMS Agincourt battleship model
features:
- Correct gray shade for
English battleship of the period.
- Beautiful wooden deck,
not yellowish
-
Tough appearance like a real
war menace. This is artwork that nobody else could
achieve.
- Plank-on-frame,
hollow hull construction
(very important), weighing
less than 20 lbs (A solid hull of this model
would be over 60 lbs, requiring 2 people to
handle and a fortified table to accommodate.)
- >95% of parts are wood and metal.
60"
long x 10" wide x 20 tall
$5,900
S
& H $220
46" long $3,700
S
& H $150
23" long, solid hull
$2,300
S
& H $90
Models are built per commission only. We require only
a small deposit to start the process. $900  The
remaining balance won't be due until the model is
completed, in 3-4 months. We'll email you with 24
hrs to confirm your order.
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The following photos show
how a typical warship is built by ModelShipMaster.com.
As you can see, the models we build for you are
beautiful inside out. While others maximize the use of
dark decal and plastic casting to save time (their
construction photos are not shown because of this
reason), we minimize it. Our models are only appreciated
over time, destined to become valuable antique. Your
grandchildren will be proud of the heirloom.
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