** U.S. Navy World war I First World war capital ships
The U.S. Navy: World War I --Capital Ships
Figure 1.-- Here are sailors from BB-13 'USS Virginia' gettinh to know French children in Brest. Late in the war, 'Virginia' was involved with two convoy escorts during the war, the second reaching Brest just after the Armistice was signed (November 1918). The escort durty only went half way to France. There were rendezvous points where other escorts, we believed Irish based American escorts, would take them on to France. (We believe this was primarily a measure to conserve British coal supplies.) After the War, 'Virginia' was reconfigured to help transport the AEF home. This is when the photograph here was taken (December 1918-July 1919). 'Virginia' was destroyed in the controvercial American aerial bombing tests conducted by aviatior Gen. Billy Mitchell (1923).
World War I navies were assessed in terms of the number of battleships which as a result were considered to be capital or the most important ships. Early American battleships incliding the ships built in Presudent Roosevelt massive constructiion program (1902-08) had a variety of naval artillery with varying calibre and range. After the battle of Tsushima (1906), it was clear to naval planners that the armament of a battleship should be primarily the big guns. HMS Dreadnought was the embodiment of this principle. American had begun building a modern fleet including capital ships. The U.S. Navy quickly shifted construction to the Dreadnought types. At the time of World War I the U.S. Navy has some 36 capital ships. This was a force comparble by itself to the German High Seas Fleet. We are unsure how the two fleets compared in fire power and capabilities. There was some discussioin at the time as to where the Germans or Anericbs had the world's second mnost powerful fleet. One contemprary American source suggests that the American battleships were decidely superior. [Brandyce] The main American battle fleet was not deployed to Europe even hough further action was expected in the North Sea. The Germans, however, never came. The German High Seas fleet after Jutland (1916) kept their high seas fleet in port. The United States like the British had begun shifting the fleet over to from coal to oil-fired propulsion, but still relied heavily on coal. The British were having trouble supplying their own oil-fired ships. So the only capital American ships deployed to the North Sea were the older coal-fired ships. American admirals were hesitant to divide the American battle fleet, but eventually dispatched Battle Ship Division Nine to join the British Grand Fleet in the North Sea. They were based at Scappa Flow in the Orkney Islands. The British Grand Flee was based at Scapa Flow at the beginning of the War. The British moved the battle-cruisers Rosyth (February 1915). This put them in a better podition to protect Britain's east coast. The Battleships graduallhy followed over time. As a result, the Aerican battleships could be accomodated at Scappa. Division Nine began with four older coal-fired ships, but the composition changed over time. It participated in Grand Fleet exercises as well as Scandanvian convoy escort duties and helped to lay the Northern Mine Barage designed to stop U-boats from reaching the Atlantic. There were unsuccessful German U-boat attacks. Division Six was dispatched to assist with Atlantic convoy protection. It consisted of three ships and was based Berehaven, Bantry Bay, Ireland. Notable in Division Six was the brand new BB-37 USS Oklahoma a Nevada-class battleship whuch was the first American class of oil-burning dreadnoughts. Oklahoma is better known as one of the two battleships destroyed by the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor launching the Pacific War.) The other American battleships patrolled off the American East Coast. The battleships were also used in convoy escort duty, both supllies and men. The German admirals had guaranteed the Kaiser that the U-bots woulld prevent the Americans from transporting an armny to France. In fact, the U-boats totally failed. The American-based battleships only went half way across the Atlantic. There were rendezvous points where other escorts, we believed Irish-based American escorts, would take them on to France. (We believe this was primarily a measure to conserve British coal supplies.) The Ameican battleships also served as as training platforms for the many untrained men inducted durung the War, some of whim were deployed in European waters. BB-3 USS Oregon was deployed to the Pacific and supported the U.S. expeditionary force in Siberia. After the War the battleships were used to help bring the AEF home.
Sources
Brandyce, H. D. "A comparison of the German and American Navies: Our great superiority in gun-fire places the United States in the lead," (July 22, 1911). A CIH consultant writes, "He could be right. The comparisons would have to be by ship types and gun types, not by weight of ships. But I can't see how they can compare accuracy of gun crews because they never fought against each other. By World War II RADAR took over accuracy issues.
