HMS Lion

[healdav]

3 hours ago, pete-c said:

 

Having mixed with a few Naval types over the years, I was under the impression that once off the liberty boat, 'recreation' meant the consumption of varying types of falling-down water - rather than bobbing about on it! 

That wasn't funny the first time someone said it.

[MikB]

6 hours ago, healdav said:

Or just a canoe for recreational purposes.

If that's its draught and freeboard when afloat, it doesn't look safe on any body of water bigger than a village pond. That's why I thought it looked like a collapsible.

[healdav]

1 hour ago, MikB said:

If that's its draught and freeboard when afloat, it doesn't look safe on any body of water bigger than a village pond. That's why I thought it looked like a collapsible.

Just suggesting. I wouldn't argue either way. However, canoes don't have much free board and it looks rather like the canoes the commandos used in WW2.

 

[pete-c]

Possibly a type of Folbot - 'Cockle' perhaps.  Anyone got a decent illustration of such a craft?

Edited 7 February , 2017 by pete-c

[TeeCeeCee]

17 hours ago, pete-c said:

Possibly a type of Folbot - 'Cockle' perhaps.  Anyone got a decent illustration of such a craft?

 

I found a 1940s 'sailing canoe' that has the same flat sides and flat bottom shape. It has it's differences but put a coaming around the cockpit opening and you're there:

 

Vintage 1940s Canoe

 

It looks like the plans allow for it to be home-made.

 

Edited 8 February , 2017 by TeeCeeCee

[MikB]

7 hours ago, TeeCeeCee said:

 

I found a 1940s 'sailing canoe' that has the same flat sides and flat bottom shape. It has it's differences but put a coaming around the cockpit opening and you're there:

 

Vintage 1940s Canoe

 

It looks like the plans allow for it to be home-made.

 

 

That's quite an interesting print in that it appears to be an American drawing (from the spelling of 'centerboard' and probably the name of the draughtsman), but it's drawn in first-angle ('English') projection - thanks. There are certainly similarities to the object on Hood's deck, but that appears to have a bottom that's plane-flat for deck-stowage, which the boat in the blueprint doesn't.

[TeeCeeCee]

5 hours ago, MikB said:

 

That's quite an interesting print in that it appears to be an American drawing (from the spelling of 'centerboard' and probably the name of the draughtsman), but it's drawn in first-angle ('English') projection - thanks. There are certainly similarities to the object on Hood's deck, but that appears to have a bottom that's plane-flat for deck-stowage, which the boat in the blueprint doesn't.

 

The canoe plan does show the 'sections' and the bottom is flat, it's just that it curves upwards towards bow & stern (which, I take it, you think is lacking on the object on the deck?)

 

Having looked at the sailing rig to that "17ft canoe" called "Skinny", I think that the object maybe some sort of sailing canoe/skiff.

 

My eldest brother used to take his 2-man fibreglass canoe to the beach but I don't think it was successful as, along with lifejackets, they lacked the skirts that seal around the man in the openings, and there's a reason that object has high coamings.:-)

 

p.s. I have seen that image dated as circa 1923

[Guest]

On 17/01/2016 at 00:38, pete-c said:

Spotted whilst watching afternoon telly this week.

During a recent episode of Father Brown, on BBC 1, I spied the following inscription on a garden bench two of the characters were sitting on.

'HMS Lion 1914-18'

Could this have been constructed from timber taken from the ship during the process of breaking-up? Or could this piece of furniture have been in situ on the vessel immediately following the 14-18 War?

Here is a link to a listing for a chair made from teak from the HMS Lion: https://www.antiques-atlas.com/antique/antique_teak_garden_armchair_from_hms_lion/as111a4953

Not a great leap to believe the bench can be from the same maker.

[Falloden]

Hughes Bolckow were shipbreakers and over many years produced a wide range of domestic and decorative items from the timbers of ships that they had broken up.  These mementos often appear in antique auctions and I recently purchased such a teak bowl from a ship on which my father served as a cadet.

[TeeCeeCee]

Lion was stripped of the armaments (demilitarised) in Rosyth, there's film of workmen pulling the fronts of the turret armour off and cutting the 13.5s into 12in lenths. That was a very important stipulation in the contract as the ship was counted towards the Washington Treaty tonnage. It looks like the navy supervised this, in their dock, so they were absolutely sure it was done before the expiry date. 

 

Hughes Bolckows original plan was to scrap her in Blyth but the city fathers forbid such a big ship being towed into such a small port lest it take charge and block the channel. If a largely coal exporting port was blocked, it was feared it would cause mass unemployment in surrounding collieries. 

 

HB took this to law and in the end a burdensome compromise was reached where the city fathers would only allow Lions entry if it was lighter and less of a handful. Actually you get the feeling that they wanted nothing to do with scrapping warships as they made HB "jump thru hoops" as they created expensive and involved conditions such as (with the laid-up Thunderer) getting the engines & boilers working again, with enough expensive coal + % spare for emergencies, with a engine-room crew for passage, with HB employing men ashore to signal the ferry, etc, etc. This for ships that were under tow! 

 

Thus Lion was taken to Jarrow where the upper-works and upper decks were removed down to the protective deck. What remained of the hull was then cut in half and the aftmost 20ft of the aft half removed*.  What remained was towed to Blyth in two operations where HB scrapped what remained. 

 

* My guess was that this was to remove the rudders entirely and so produce a slightly shorter and far more manageable tow. 

 

So my question is, if the deck planks were removed in Jarrow, how'd they get to HBs Blyth workshop to make their garden furniture, ink-wells, etc? 🙂

 

 

Edited 5 December , 2018 by TeeCeeCee

[Falloden]

Blyth appears to have been the manufacturing point for all ship mementos, where ever the ship had actually been broken up.  My Queen of Bermuda bowl has an HB Blyth label despite the ship having been broken up at Faslane.  Presumably suitable timber from many HB breaking sites was shipped to Blyth for turning into furniture, etc.

 

Perhaps a rather similar question as to how do you know you have got the right ashes back from the crematorium.

[penfold]

The crew list of HMS Lion at the Battle of Jutland.

[Hyacinth1326]

Good work Penfold. Regards and gratitude to you and your team