List of Dreadnought Battleships of The Royal Navy - Orion Class

Orion Class

The Orion class were the first class of second generation dreadnoughts constructed for the Royal Navy. The class composed of four ships, Orion, Monarch, Conqueror, and Thunderer. The lead ship of the class, Orion, was launched in 1910. The Orion class had much heavier armour then their predecessors and were the first class of Royal Navy dreadnoughts to have all their main guns in the centreline. The main armament was also a new 13.5 inch gun with a range of 25,000 yards, that proved to be very accurate and reliable. This increase in size also delivered a heavier broadside. The 12 inch shells weighed 850 pounds, while the 13.5 inch shells weighed 1,250 pounds each. The members of the Orion class cost almost £1.9 million to construct. All four of the battleships were present at the Battle of Jutland in 1916, but took no damage. They had a relatively short career, all being decommissioned in 1921, due to the Washington Naval Treaty. Orion and Conqueror were scrapped in 1922. Monarch served as a target ship, surviving a full day of shelling and bombing on 20 January 1925 before being sunk by fire from Revenge. Thunderer served longest, acting as a training ship from 1922 until she, too, was sold for scrap in December 1926.