426 
MINUTES OF PROCEEDINGS OF 
Sovereign.” She has four turrets, one for two guns, the remainder for one 
gun each, and thus has an armament of 5 guns. 
This ship of 3765 tons, 800 horse power and 240 ft. in length, is wholly 
cased with h\" plates and has 1" of iron on her deck. Her draught of 
water aft is 23 ft. 9 in., and the estimated cost of the conversion was £66,000. 
The cost of a turret for two guns is, at present, about £4500. 
The other turret ships in the service are the “ Wyvern,” “ Scorpion,” and 
“ Prince Albert.” The two first (the celebrated Birkenhead rams) are iron 
’ships of 1857 tons and have 250 horse-power engines; they have two turrets 
for two 12-ton guns each. 
“ The “ Prince Albert/’ also an iron ship, has four turrets for one gun each. 
The following are some of the advantages* * which are claimed for turret 
ships by the advocates of the system:— 
(1) The power of carrying the heaviest ordnance that can be manu¬ 
factured. 
(2) A greater power of broadside in comparison to tonnage. 
(3) Rapidity of fire and facility for working guns in bad weather, when 
broadside guns could not be used. 
(4) Great speed, great defensive power, cheap of construction. 
These are some of the advantages urged. It must, however, be stated 
that the advocates of broadside ships deny that these points are specialities 
of turret ships, whilst on the other hand the leakage hitherto found to be 
consequent upon the penetration of the upper deck by the turret is said to 
have proved a serious drawback to ships of the American monitor type. There 
is one point of the turret system about which I think all must agree. I allude 
to the additional protection thus afforded to men and guns during action. A 
few turnsf of the winch places the port holes out of the line of fire, and thus 
whilst the gun is being reloaded, the detachments are completely protected. 
The interior width of a two gun turret, for 12-ton guns, is 19 ft., and 
the turrets consist of 5plates on 7of teak, except at the ports where 
an additional thickness of 4" of iron is used; the iron skin is thick. 
No experiment has yet been made in this country by firing at turrets with 
the heavy artillery now being introduced into the service, it is therefore 
impossible to say how the machinery will answer after receiving repeated 
blows from the impact of heavy shot. The system has fallen into dis¬ 
favour with some, owing to failures of American turret ships;J but I think 
am of opinion that the ‘ Royal Sovereign,’ as she now stands, is the most formidable vessel of war I 
have ever been on board of, she would easily destroy, if her guns were rifled, any one of our present 
iron-clads, whether of the ‘ Warrior,’ ‘Hector,’ or ‘Research’ class. Her handiness, speed, weight 
of broadside, and the small target she offers, increases tenfold her power of assault and retreat.” 
* See Appendix B, p. 444. 
t The turrets only take 30 seconds to revolve. 
J The following report and extracts give the damage caused to federal iron-clads,— 
“ Sib., — I have the honor to report the following damages sustained by this ship (iron-clad 
‘Manhattan’) in action of to-day with the rebel ‘Fort Morgan’ and the rebel iron-clad ‘Tennessee 
“ Turret .—One two and a quarter inch indentation from conical steel-pointed shot, four feet from 
deck ; one seven-eighth inch indentation just above base ring; outside three rivet heads knocked off 
and seven started; base ring separated slightly. 
