 HMS New Zealand between 1904 and 1911.
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | HMS New Zealand (later HMS Zealandia) |
| Namesake |
|
| Builder | Portsmouth Dockyard |
| Laid down | 9 February 1903 |
| Launched | 4 February 1904 |
| Completed | June 1905 |
| Commissioned | 11 July 1905 |
| Decommissioned | 20 September 1917 |
| Renamed | Renamed HMS Zealandia on 1 December 1911 |
| Fate | Sold for scrapping, 8 November 1921 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | King Edward VII-class pre-dreadnought battleship |
| Displacement | |
| Length | 453 ft 9 in (138.3 m) (loa) |
| Beam | 75 ft (22.9 m) |
| Draught | 25 ft 8 in (7.82 m) |
| Installed power |
|
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 18.5 knots (34.3 km/h; 21.3 mph) |
| Complement | 777 |
| Armament |
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| Armour | |
HMS New Zealand was a King Edward VII-class battleship of the Royal Navy. Like all ships of the class (apart from HMS King Edward VII) she was named after an important part of the British Empire. The ship was built by Portsmouth Dockyard between 1903 and 1905. Armed with a battery of four 12-inch (305 mm) and four 9.2 in (234 mm) guns, she and her sister ships marked a significant advance in offensive power compared to earlier British battleship designs that did not carry the 9.2 in guns.
After commissioning in July 1905, she served briefly with the Atlantic Fleet from October to March 1907 before transferring to the Channel Fleet. She then joined the Home Fleet in 1909. She was renamed HMS Zealandia in 1911. In 1912, she, along with her sister ships, was assigned to the 3rd Battle Squadron, part of the Home Fleet. That year, the squadron went to the Mediterranean Sea during the First Balkan War as part of an international blockade of Montenegro. In 1913, the ship returned to British waters.
When the First World War broke out, Zealandia was transferred back to the 3rd Battle Squadron, which was assigned to the Grand Fleet, the main British fleet during the war. Through 1914 and 1915, the ships frequently went to sea to search for German vessels, but Zealandia saw no action during this period. By the end of the year, the Grand Fleet stopped operating with the older 3rd Battle Squadron ships, and in November 1915, Zealandia was detached to serve in the Gallipoli Campaign. The campaign ended shortly thereafter, however, and so Zealandia returned to Britain in January 1916 and rejoined the 3rd Battle Squadron in March. Paid off in late 1917, the ship was converted into a gunnery training ship in early 1918, but she never served in that capacity. In 1919, she was used as a barracks ship before being sold in 1921 and broken up in 1923.