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battlecruiser
battlecruiser, a development of the Dreadnought battleships pioneered in Britain. Battlecruisers were designed to function as advanced scouts of the battle fleet, powerful enough to push home their reconnaissance even up to the battle fleet of the enemy, but also fast enough to outstrip it. They carried guns of the same size as the Dreadnought battleships but had a speed of some 4 knots faster, which was attained by cutting down the thickness of their armour protection. They were the brainchild of Admiral Sir John Fisher when he became First Sea Lord in 1904. In fact, he called them fast armoured cruisers and it was not until 1912 that they were renamed generically as battlecruisers.
The first battlecruiser was HMS Invincible, a ship of 17,000 tons with a speed of 25.5 knots and carrying eight 12-in. (30-cm) guns. However, the first to be commissioned was her sister ship, the Indomitable. Others included the Lion, Admiral Beatty's flagship at Jutland, launched in 1910, and her sister ship the Tiger. They were followed by the 42,000-ton super battlecruiser HMS Hood, which carried eight 15-in. (37.5-cm) guns, the last battlecruiser to be built for the Royal Navy. She was completed in 1920 and was, at the time, the largest warship in the world, but was sunk by the German battleship Bismarck in 1941, a last bitter reminder that a thinly armoured ship was no match for one protected with adequate armour. See also warfare at sea. |
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Cite this article
"battlecruiser." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "battlecruiser." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O225-battlecruiser.html "battlecruiser." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O225-battlecruiser.html |
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battlecruiser
battlecruiser n. a large warship of a type built in the early 20th century, carrying similar armament to a battleship but faster and more lightly armored.
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Cite this article
"battlecruiser." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "battlecruiser." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-battlecruiser.html "battlecruiser." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-battlecruiser.html |
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battlecruiser
battlecruiser
•bowser, browser, carouser, dowser, espouser, Mauser, rouser, trouser, wowser
•rabble-rouser
•composer, discloser, dozer, exposer, Mendoza, mimosa, opposer, ponderosa, poser, proposer, proser, Rosa, Somoza, Spinoza
•bulldozer • Tannhäuser
•abuser, accuser, boozer, bruiser, chooser, cruiser, diffuser, infuser, lollapalooza, loser, Marcuse, medusa, mezuzah, misuser, peruser, refuser, snoozer, Sousa, user, yakuza
•battlecruiser • buzzer
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Cite this article
"battlecruiser." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 28 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "battlecruiser." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (May 28, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-battlecruiser.html "battlecruiser." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved May 28, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-battlecruiser.html |
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