Cardiff 1939
Coventry 1940
Curacoa 1941
| Name | No | Yard No | Builder | Laid down | Launched | Comp | Fate |
| Ceres | 66, 36, 58, D59 | 459 | John Brown, Clydebank | 11.7.1916 | 24.3.1917 | 6.1917 | sold for BU 4.1946 |
| Cardiff (ex-Caprice) | 29, 39, D58 | 526 | Fairfield, Govan | 22.7.1916 | 12.4.1917 | 7.1917 | sold for BU 1.1946 |
| Curacoa | A7, 62, D41 | 257 | Pembroke DYd | 7.1916 | 5.5.1917 | 2.1918 | collision 2.10.1942 |
| Curlew | 80, 3C, 48, D42 | 497 | Vickers, Barrow | 21.8.1916 | 5.7.1917 | 12.1917 | sunk 26.5.1940 |
| Coventry (ex-Corsair) | 4C, 61, D43 | 1035 | Swan Hunter, Wallsend | 4.8.1916 | 6.7.1917 | 2.1918 | sunk 14.9.1942 |
|
Displacement normal, t |
4190 |
|
Displacement full, t |
5020 |
|
Length, m |
137.2 |
|
Breadth, m |
13.3 |
|
Draught, m |
4.50 |
|
No of shafts |
2 |
|
Machinery |
2 sets Brown-Curtis geared steam turbines, 6 Yarrow boilers Curlew: 2 sets Parsons geared steam turbines, 6 Yarrow boilers |
|
Power, h. p. |
40000 |
|
Max speed, kts |
29 |
|
Fuel, t |
oil 935 |
| Endurance, nm(kts) | 5900(10) |
| Armour, mm |
belt: 76 - 38, deck: 25, CT: 76 (not all), gun shields: 25 |
|
Armament |
5 x 1 - 152/45 BL Mk XII, 2 x 1 - 76/45 20cwt QF Mk I, 4 x 1 - 47/40 3pdr Hotchkiss Mk I, 2 x 1 - 40/39 2pdr QF Mk II, 4 x 2 - 533 TT |
|
Complement |
460 |
Project history: When a new class of light cruisers was ordered in March-April 1916 the opportunity was taken to make a radical improvement to the Centaur / Caledon design. While no attempt was made to increase armament, by giving the hull 0.2m more beam and rearranging the guns it proved possible to increase fighting power. The tripod and bridgework were moved aft, allowing the second 152mm gun to be moved from its restricted position to 'B' position, superimposed over 'A' gun. It has been made not so much for strengthening of fwd salvo, how many to remove a bridge and rangefinders from a stem, having lowered their deck wetness (all ships of Arethusa class and "early C" strongly suffered from splashing of a fore end). Because of the increased upper weight the hull beam has been slightly increased. Despite the undertaken re-planning, they have appeared only hardly less wet than their predecessors.
"C" type cruisers were created for service in the North Sea under 1915 year design and became obsolete to the beginning of 1930th, and in 1935 the decision to convert them to AA ships was accepted. Coventry and Curlew in 1935-1936 had all old guns replaced by 10 single 102mm and 2 quintuple 40mm pompoms. To keep a stability it was necessary to load nearby 100t of ballast. Modernization has appeared successful, and during the period 1936-1940 it was planned rearm similarly remained 11 "C" type ships. However the program has been put aside. Only in the middle of 1939 works on Curacoa were begun. It was planned that other ships of class will follow them but the war was compelled to be limited to end of works on this ship which has become operational in 1940.
Ship protection: Armoured belt protected ship at full length, its thickness was 76mm abreast machinery spaces (51mm armour on 25mm plating), 51mm (38mm armour on 13mm plating) aft and 38mm (25mm armour on 13mm plating) fore. Belt was closed by aft 25mm bulkhead near stern. It extended to main deck (and to upper deck abreast machinery). Machinery and steering gear were covered by 25mm deck.
Modernizations: mid-1918, Coventry: turning flying-off platform for one Pup fighter was fitted amidships.
1919, all: CT was replaced by lighter one with thinner armour.
(1935 - 1936, Portsmouth DYd), Coventry: Full new armament consisted of 10 x 1 - 102/45 QF Mk V, 2 x 8 - 40/39 2pdr QF Mk VIII, full displacement was 5468t
(1935 - 1936, Chatham DYd), Curlew: Full new armament consisted of 10 x 1 - 102/45 QF Mk V, 1 x 8 - 40/39 2pdr QF Mk VIII, full displacement was 5355t
1938 - 1939, Coventry: - 1 x 8 - 40/39; + 2 x 4 - 12.7/62
1938 - 1939, Curlew: + 2 x 4 - 12.7/62
8/1939, Curlew: + type 79Z radar
1939 - 1940, Curlew, Coventry: - 2 x 1 - 102/45
(7/1939 - 4.1940, Chatham DYd), Curacoa: Full new armament consisted of 4 x 2 - 102/45 QF Mk XVI, 1 x 4 - 40/39 2pdr QF Mk VIII, 2 x 1 - 40/39 2pdr QF Mk VIII, 2 x 4 - 12.7/62, type 279 radar
4/1940, Coventry: + type 279 radar
12/1940, Curacoa: + 1 x 20 - 178 UP AA rockets projector
91941, Curacoa: - 1 x 20 - 178 UP; + 2 x 1 - 40/39 2pdr QF Mk VIII, type 285 radar
4/1942, Cardiff: + 6 x 1 - 20/70 Oerlikon Mk II/IV
5/1942, Curacoa: + type 271, type 282 radars
5/1942, Coventry: + 5 x 1 - 20/70 Oerlikon Mk II/IV
mid-1942, Ceres: + 6 x 1 - 20/70 Oerlikon Mk II/IV
9/1942, Curacoa: + 5 x 1 - 20/70 Oerlikon Mk II/IV, type 273 radar, full displacement was 5403t, including 200t of solid ballast.
2/1943, Cardiff: + type 290 radar
mid-1943, Ceres: - 2 x 1 - 40/39; + type 271, type 286 radars
7/1943, Cardiff: - type 290 radar; + type 271 radar
5/1944, Ceres: - 2 x 1 - 76/45, type 286 radar; + 8 x 1 - 20/70 Oerlikon Mk II/IV, type 290 radar
1.1946, Ceres: 5 x 1 - 152/45 P Mk XIII, 14 x 1 - 20/70 Mk III, 4 x 2 - 533 TT, type 271, type 290 radars
1.1946, Cardiff: 5 x 1 - 152/45 P Mk XIII, 2 x 1 - 76/45 Mk II, 2 x 1 - 40/39 HA Mk II, 6 x 1 - 20/70 Mk III, 4 x 2 - 533 TT, type 271 radar
Naval service: Ceres was damaged in collision with USN destroyer Fox in Bosphorus in April 1923. Curlew was sunk by German He 111 bombers (bombs near-misses) off Norwegian coast 26.5.1940. Coventry was damaged by torpedo explosion in March 1923 at Malta. She was sunk by German Ju 87 and Ju 88 bombers 14.9.1942 near Egyptian coast. Curacoa was mined in Baltic in May 1919 (steering gear was damaged, ship was towed to home base and repaired till late 1919). She was damaged by German bombs 24.4.1940 and repaired till December, 1940 and sunk 2.10.1942 being rammed by s/s Queen Mary (she was cut apart) in Atlantic.
Many thanks to Wolfgang Stöhr for additional information on this page.
Cardiff 1928
Curlew 1938
© Ivan Gogin, 2008-15