 Erin in the Moray Firth, August 1915
| |
 Ottoman Empire | |
|---|---|
| Name | Reşad V |
| Namesake | Sultan Mehmed V |
| Ordered | 8 June 1911 |
| Builder | Vickers |
| Yard number | 425 |
| Laid down | 6 December 1911 |
| Launched | 3 September 1913 |
| Renamed | Reşadiye |
| Fate | Seized, 31 July 1914 |
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | Erin |
| Namesake | Erin |
| Completed | August 1914 |
| Decommissioned | May 1922 |
| Fate | Sold for scrap, 19 December 1922 |
| General characteristics (as built) | |
| Type | Dreadnought battleship |
| Displacement | |
| Length | 559 ft 6 in (170.54 m) (o/a) |
| Beam | 91 ft 7 in (27.9 m) |
| Draught | 28 ft 5 in (8.7 m) |
| Installed power |
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| Propulsion | 4 × shafts; 4 × steam turbine sets |
| Speed | 21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph) |
| Range | 5,300 nmi (9,800 km; 6,100 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) |
| Complement |
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| Armament |
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| Armour | |
HMS Erin was a dreadnought battleship of the Royal Navy, originally ordered by the Ottoman government from the British Vickers Company. The ship was to have been named Reşadiye when she entered service with the Ottoman Navy. The Reşadiye class was designed to be at least the equal of any other ship afloat or under construction.[1] When the First World War began in August 1914, Reşadiye was nearly complete and was seized at the orders of Winston Churchill, the First Lord of the Admiralty, to keep her in British hands and prevent her from being used by Germany or German allies. There is no evidence that the seizure played any part in the Ottoman government declaring war on Britain and the Triple Entente.
Aside from a minor role in the Battle of Jutland in May 1916 and the inconclusive Action of 19 August the same year, Erin's service during the war generally consisted of routine patrols and training in the North Sea. The ship was deemed obsolete after the war; she was reduced to reserve and used as a training ship. Erin served as the flagship of the reserve fleet at the Nore for most of 1920. She was sold for scrap in 1922 and broken up the following year.
- ^ Burt, p. 245