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Blanco Encalada
Blanco Encalada
As per Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chilean_ironclad_Blanco_Encalada

Career
Name: Blanco Encalada
Namesake: Manuel Blanco Encalada

Builder: Earle's Shipbuilding Co., Hull

Laid down: 1873
Launched: 8 May 1875
Completed: 1875
Fate: Sunk by torpedo, 23 April 1891
General characteristics
Class & type: Almirante Cochrane-class ironclad

Type: Armoured frigate

Displacement: 3,480 long tons (3,540 t)
Length: 210 ft (64.0 m)
Beam: 46 ft 9 in (14.2 m)
Draught: 19 ft 8 in (6.0 m)
Installed power: 3,000 ihp (2,200 kW)

Propulsion: 2 shafts, 2 Trunk steam engines 6 cylindrical boilers

Sail plan: Barque rig

Speed: 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph)

Range: 1,200 nmi (2,200 km; 1,400 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)

Complement: 300
Armament: 6 ? 9 in (229 mm) muzzle-loading rifles
1 ? 20-pounder gun
1 ? 9-pounder gun
1 ? 7-pounder gun
Armour: Belt: 4.5?9 in (114?229 mm)
Battery: 6?8 in (152?203 mm)
Deck: 2?3 in (51?76 mm)
Conning tower: 4.5 in (114 mm)
Bulkheads: 6 in (152 mm)


The armoured frigate Blanco Encalada, commonly known as El Blanco, was a chilean navy ship at the end of the XIX century. She was built like her sistership the armoured frigate Cochrane in the United Kingdom in 1875. She actively participated in the Pacific War, being her most remarkable action the capture of the Peruvian iron clad ship Huascar in the Angamos Naval Combat. The Blanco was part of the congress forces which defeated the president Jos? Manuel Balmaceda in the civil war of 1891. She was sunk during this conflict the day 23rd of April of 1891, becoming in the first ship in the world to be sunk by a self propelled torpedo.

Background

In 1871, the president of Chile, Federico Err?zuriz Za?artu, sent to the congress the law project to authorize the executive to acquire two armored ships. The project, which was approved only with a vote of rejection (that of the previous president Jos? Joaqu?n P?rez Mascayano), arranged that both ships would be of medium-sized frigates and that the entire cost of the buy would be 2 000 000 pesos.
Las fragatas se llamar?an Cochrane y Valpara?so. La construcci?n del Blanco Encalada comenz? en abril de 1872 y fue lanzado al agua en 1875. Inicialmente, se llam? Valpara?so, nombre con el que arrib? al puerto del mismo nombre, el 24 de enero de 1876. Tom? el nombre de Blanco Encalada por decreto del Ministerio de Guerra y Marina del 15 de septiembre de 1876, a consecuencia de la muerte del almirante y primer presidente de la Rep?blica de Chile Manuel Blanco Encalada.
En enero de 1878, el presidente An?bal Pinto encarg? al ministro en Europa Alberto Blest Gana, poner en venta los blindados tan pronto se solucionara el diferendo con Argentina para as? paliar la crisis econ?mica que imperaba en el Chile desde hac?a algunos a?os. Por encargo de Blest Ganga, el dise?ador de las naves (E.J. Reed), ofreci? a Inglaterra al Cochrane en 220.000 libras esterlinas, este pa?s no se mostr? interesado, luego se intent? buscar la venta de los dos blindados a Rusia obteniendo el mismo resultado.
Construction and commissioning

The minister in England, Alberto Blest Gana, was instructed the management of the project. Blest Gana hired the designer of ships Edward James Reed, former naval architect of the British Admiralty, as technical adviser. The shipyard Earle's shipbuilding Co, in Hull, Yorkshire, United Kingdom was commissioned to carry out the building of these ships.

The frigates would be called Cochrane and Valparaiso. The construction of Blanco Encalada began in April, 1872 and it was launched to the water in 1875. Initially, she was called Valparaiso, name with which she arrived at the port of the same name, on January 24, 1876. She took the name of Blanco Encalada as a decree of the Department of War and Marine of September 15, 1876, as a consequence of the death of the admiral and the first president of the Republic of Chile Manuel Blanco Encalada.
In January, 1878, the president An?bal Pinto entrusted the minister in Europe Alberto Blest Gana, to put in sale the armoured frigates, so soon will solve the difference with Argentina this way to relieve the economical crisis that was reigning in Chile from some years ago. For order of Blest Ganga, the designer of the ships (E.J. Reed), offered them to England the Cochrane in 220.000 pounds sterling, this country did not prove to be an interested party, then it was tried to look for the sale of the two armoured frigates to Russia obtaining the same result.
General characteristics

Main dimensions

The principal dimensions of the Blanco were: 64.0 m in length (long), 14.0 m of breadth (width) and 6.0 m draft. The careen had a maximum displacement, this is including fuel, fresh water, armament, ammunition, food and crew, of 3650 t. The hull, built in riveted iron, was divided longitudinally into eight separate compartments (counting the fore and stern peaks), by seven bulkheads of the same material. The prow of the Blanco had, as was the custom in the designs of the late XIX century, with a sharp spur located 2.0 m (6 ft 9 in) under the waterline and planned to be 2.2 m (7 ft 6 in) in front of the perpendicular from the bow. The stern was on a cruise shape.
Propulsion system

The system of propulsion of the Blanco Encalada was mixed, machine to steam and sailing (Brigantine rigging). The main engine, provided by the company John Penn & Sons, was composed of two type compound steam engines, six boilers and two propellers. The machines had two horizontal cylinders, one high and one low pressure. The high pressure cylinder had a diameter of 1.16 m (46 in) while the low pressure had a diameter of 1.93 m (76 in). The career of both cylinders was 762 mm (2 ft 6 in).

The engines were capable of generating a total maximum power of 1.23 MW (2.920 HP) at 90 revolutions per minute. These machines were rotating two propellers of four blades 4.8 m (15 ft 9 in diameter) and 4.72 m (15 ft 6 in) paso.

Steam for the machines was provided by six cylindrical tubular boilers with a maximum pressure of work of 413,6 kPa (60 psi). Total heating surface was 836,12 square metres (9000 ft).

This propulsion system allowed her to register the Blanco Encalada, during testing of the measured mile, a top speed of 12.8 kn. However, maximum operating speed, clean bottom, was 12 kn. At this speed fuel consumption was 45 tonnes of coal per day, while 10 kn consumption was of 35 t of coal per day.
Armour

The ship was protected on the waterline by an armored belt which extended all around from 1.2 m (4 ft) under the maximum flotation displacement plane to battery deck. The maximum thickness was 230 mm (9 in) at the level of the waterline, midship, and 115 mm (4.5 in) in the bow and stern. Between the structure of the helmet and the armouring had a lining of separation of 254 mm (10 in) thick teak wood to reduce the impact of projectiles.

The battery deck, which was flush with the armoured belt, was protected with a Breastplate of 76 mm (3 in) in central area reduced to 50 mm (2 in) to bow and stern.

The battery, which had a tweendeck height of 2.25 m, was protected in the bands and at the front by two strakes of plates, the top of 152 mm (6 in) thick and the bottom of 203 mm (8 in). The back of the battery was protected by uniform armour of 115 mm (4.5 in) thick. Like the helmet armour, a metal structure with an inner lining of teakwood in 304-355 mm (12-14 in) was bolted.
Armament

The main armament, which was mounted on the central redoubt, consisted of 6 Armstrong muzzle-loading of 228 mm (9 in) guns distributed three-band mounted on carriages Scott central pivot, allowing the bow Cannon shoot in front of the breadth. The centerpiece fired at an angle of 70 ? ahead and 35 ? to stern and the third from the breadth to the Stern. Armament completed it with a canon of 20 pounds, one of 9 and 7, and a Nordenfeldt gun installed in the cofa's ratchet, one inch (2.54 cm) caliber, and fired a projectile of a pound (454 grams) weight.

In July 1880, during the blockade of Callao, an Armstrong canon of 70 pounds in the castle of bow was intalled. This canon had belonged to the steamer Loa.

War Operations

Pacific War (1879-1883)

The armored frigate Blanco Encalada took part actively in the Pacific War, being the flagship of the navy of Chile.

Her first actions, under command of the Admiral Juan Williams Rebolledo, consisted in taking part to the blockade of the port of Iquique and in the frustrated expedition to the port of the Callao.
Later, the Blanco, tried to give fruitlessly hunting to the monitor Hu?scar. The Williams incapability in finishing what today is known as the "Raids of the Hu?scar" motivated finally his resignation to the command of the Chilean fleet. The defeat in beginning a decisive combat against the monitor owed principally to the poor condition of the machines and boilers of the Blanco and to the skill of the commander of the Peruvian ship.

The command of the Blanco was assumed by the new commander in chief of the navy Admiral Galvarino Riveros C?rdenas, who ordered to regroup and give maintenance to the armoured ships of the Chilean fleet. For this purpose the Blanco was anchored in Mejillones where they proceeded to repair their engines using the workshops of the Antofagasta Nitrate Company and cleaning of hull using divers brought from Valparaiso. The success of the work, which ended in late September, however, was limited. The Blanco could reach, in thesea trials, one speed of 9 kn only. After repairs the Blanco had an important participation in the Angamos Naval Combat where the Chilean fleet finally captured the monitor Huascar the day October 8, 1879. The last major action of the Blanco was the capture, in the vicinity of Mollendo, of the peruvian gunboat Pilcomayo, the 18th of November of 1879.
Civil War 1891
During the Civil War of 1891 who lived in Chile, the Blanco Encalada was part of the forces congressmen that defeated President Jos? Manuel Balmaceda.
On 16 January, being the armoured frigate Blanco in pararell to the buoys of the Navy in Valpara?so, she was bombarded by the strengths of the city, which were under the control of the presidential forces. Subsequently, the Blanco provided support to forces members in the fighting in San Francisco de Huara (15-17 February) and the customs of Iquique (February 19).
On 23 April, the Blanco was torpedoed in the port of Caldera by the torpedo boats Admiral Lynch and Almirante Condell of the presidentialist naval forces. At dawn the two boats fired a total of six torpedoes of the type Whitehead to the frigate. One was right in the center of the hull and caused its collapse in minutes. The attack left balance as 11 officers and 171 crew members and civilians killed, among them the Secretary of the Board of Governors, don Enrique Vald?s Vergara, apart from the loss of arms, ammunition and supplies for the troops congressmen who were on the ground. As anecdotal data it is worth mentioning that the member of the Board of Governors, Ramon de Barros Luco, except grabbed from the tail of a cow, which was part of the livestock in foot that is used to carry on board, because they do not know how to swim, although he always denied this anecdote, which was annoying to the utmost degree. This battle also marked an important milestone in the development of the self-propelled torpedoes, because it was the first occasion in which a torpedo of this type sink an armoured ship..
Wreck of the Blanco and Remains of her crew.
The wreck of the armoured frigate Blanco Encalada are 18 m depth in the middle of the Bay of Caldera. In 1957 the wreck was blasted to facilitate the construction of a mechanized port.

In the layman's boiler cemetery, the first of its kind in Chile, a monument and the graves of sailors who perished aboard the Blanco Encalada can be found.

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