Royal Sovereign-class battleship

The high-freeboard Royal Sovereign underway in a moderate sea
Class overview
Name	Royal Sovereign class
Operators	Royal Navy
Preceded by	Trafalgar class
Succeeded by	Centurion class
Subclasses	Hood
Built	1889–1894
In commission	1892–1915
Completed	8
Retired	2
Scrapped	6
General characteristics
Type	Pre-dreadnought battleship
Displacement	14,150 long tons (14,380 t) (normal)
Length	380 ft (115.8 m) (pp)
Beam	75 ft (22.9 m)
Draught	27 ft 6 in (8.4 m)
Installed power	11,000 ihp (8,200 kW) 8 cylindrical boilers
Propulsion	2 shafts; 2 Triple-expansion steam engines
Speed	17.5 knots (32.4 km/h; 20.1 mph)
Range	4,720 nmi (8,740 km; 5,430 mi) @ 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)
Complement	670–692
Armament	2 × twin 13.5 in (343 mm) guns 10 × single 6 in (152 mm) guns 10 × single 6 pdr 2.2 in (57 mm) guns 12 × single 3 pdr 1.9 in (47 mm) guns 7 × 18 in (450 mm) torpedo tubes
Armour	Waterline belt: 14–18 in (356–457 mm) Bulkheads: 14–16 in (356–406 mm) Barbettes: 11–17 in (279–432 mm) Casemates: 6 in (152 mm) Conning tower: 12–14 in (305–356 mm) Deck: 2.5–3 in (64–76 mm) Gun turrets: 11–17 in (279–432 mm)

The Royal Sovereign class was a group of eight pre-dreadnought battleships built for the Royal Navy in the 1890s. The ships spent their careers in the Mediterranean, Home and Channel Fleets, sometimes as flagships, although several were mobilised for service with the Flying Squadron in 1896 when tensions with the German Empire were high following the Jameson Raid in South Africa. Three ships were assigned to the International Squadron formed when Greek Christians rebelled against the Ottoman Empire's rule in Crete in 1897–1898.

By about 1905–1907, they were considered obsolete and were reduced to reserve. The ships began to be sold off for scrap beginning in 1911, although Empress of India was sunk as a target ship during gunnery trials in 1913. Hood was fitted with the first anti-torpedo bulges to evaluate underwater protection schemes in 1911 before being scuttled as a blockship a few months after the start of the First World War in August 1914. Only Revenge survived to see active service in the war, during which she bombarded the Belgian coastline. Renamed Redoubtable in 1915, she was hulked later that year as an accommodation ship until she was sold for scrap after the war.