The Marathon-class cruiser was a class of second class cruiser of the Royal Navy ordered under the naval programme of 1887. The class was a smaller version of the .
Three of the ships, Melpomene, Magicienne and Marathon, were built for foreign (tropical) service, with a sheath of wood and copper - this added weight and made them slightly slower.
Ships Name Builder Laid down Launched Completed Fairfields, Govan 10 August 1887 23 August 1888 1889 Fairfields, Govan 10 August 1887 12 May 1888 1889 Chatham 25 April 1887 9 June 1888 1889 Portsmouth 10 October 1887 20 September 1888 1890 Chatham 25 August 1887 11 August 1888 1889
Boiler trials By 1901, the Royal Navy had ordered eight Dürr boilers from Germany, to be installed as a trial on board as a substitute for the Belleville boilers then in naval use.
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External links
www.battleships-cruisers.co.uk