HMS New Zealand was one of three s. Launched in 1911, the ship was funded by the government of New Zealand as a gift to Britain, and she was commissioned into the Royal Navy in 1912. She had been intended for the China Station, but was released by the New Zealand government at the request of the Admiralty for service in British waters.
During 1913, New Zealand was sent on a ten-month tour of the British Dominions, with an emphasis on a visit to her namesake nation. She was back in British waters at the start of the First World War, and operated as part of the Royal Navy's Grand Fleet, in opposition to the German High Seas Fleet. The battlecruiser participated in all three of the major North Sea battles—Heligoland Bight, Dogger Bank, and Jutland—and was involved in the response to the inconclusive Raid on Scarborough, and the Second Battle of Heligoland Bight. New Zealand contributed to the destruction of two cruisers and was hit by enemy fire only once, sustaining no casualties; her status as a "lucky ship" was attributed by the crew to a Māori piupiu (warrior's skirt) and hei-tiki (pendant) worn by the captain during battle.
After the war, New Zealand was sent on a second world tour, this time to allow Admiral John Jellicoe to review the naval defences of the Dominions. In 1920, the battlecruiser was placed in reserve. She was broken up for scrap in 1922 to meet the United Kingdom's tonnage limit in the disarmament provisions of the Washington Naval Treaty.
Design The Indefatigable class was not a significant improvement on the preceding ; the main difference was the enlargement of the dimensions to give the ships' two wing turrets a wider arc of fire. The ships were smaller and not as well protected as the contemporary German battlecruiser and subsequent German designs. While Von der Tanns characteristics were not known when the lead ship of the class, , was laid down in February 1909, the Royal Navy obtained accurate information on the German ship before work began on New Zealand and her sister ship .Roberts, pp. 28–29
New Zealand had an overall length of , a beam of , and a draught of at deep load. The ship displaced at load and at deep load.Roberts, pp. 43–44 She initially had a crew of 818 officers and ratings, though this was to increase in subsequent years.Burt, p. 109 At the time of her visit to New Zealand in 1913 the engineering department had a staff of 335. This contemporary newspaper article provides a description of a visit to the ship's engine and boiler rooms.
The ship was powered by two sets of Parsons direct-drive steam turbines, each driving two propeller shafts using steam provided by 31 coal-burning Babcock & Wilcox boilers. The turbines were rated at and were intended to give the ship a maximum speed of . However, during trials in 1912, the turbines produced over , which allowed New Zealand to reach .Roberts, pp. 76, 80 The ship carried enough coal and fuel oil to give her a range of at a speed of .
The ship carried eight BL 12-inch Mk X guns in four twin gun turrets. Two turrets were mounted fore and aft on the centreline, identified as 'A' and 'X' respectively. The other two were wing turrets mounted amidships and staggered diagonally: 'P' was forward and to port of the centre funnel, while 'Q' was situated starboard and aft. Each wing turret had a limited ability to fire to the opposite side, but if the ship was full broadside to her target she could bring all eight main guns to bear. Her secondary armament consisted of sixteen 4-inch BL Mk VII guns positioned in the superstructure.Roberts, pp. 81–84 She mounted two 18-inch (450 mm) submerged torpedo tubes, one on each side aft of 'X' barbette, and twelve torpedoes were carried.Campbell (1978), p. 14
The Indefatigables were protected by a waterline armoured belt that extended between and covered the end barbettes. Their armoured deck ranged in thickness between with the thickest portions protecting the steering gear in the stern. The turret faces were thick, and the turrets were supported by barbettes of the same thickness.Roberts, p. 112
New Zealands 'A' turret was fitted with a rangefinder at the rear of the turret roof. It was also equipped to control the entire main armament in the event that the normal fire control positions were knocked out or communication between the primary positions and the gun layers was disabled.Roberts, pp. 90–91
Wartime modifications The ship was fitted with a single QF 6 pounder Hotchkiss anti-aircraft (AA) gun from October 1914 to the end of 1915.Roberts, p. 83 In March 1915, a single QF 3 inch 20 cwt"cwt" is the abbreviation for hundredweight, 20 cwt referring to the weight of the gun. AA gun was added. It was provided with 500 rounds. The battlecruiser's 4-inch guns were enclosed in casemates and given blast shields during a refit in November to better protect the gun crews from weather and enemy action. Two aft guns were removed at the same time.Campbell (1978), p. 13
New Zealand received a fire-control director sometime between mid-1915 and May 1916; this centralised fire control under the director officer. The turret crewmen merely had to follow pointers transmitted from the director to align their guns on the target. This greatly increased accuracy, as it was easier to spot the fall of shells and eliminated the problem of the ship's roll dispersing the shells when each turret fired independently.Roberts, pp. 92–93
To address deficiencies in the armour of British capital ships raised by the Battle of Jutland, New Zealand entered the dockyard in November 1916 where an additional inch of armour was added to selected horizontal areas of the main deck. In the forward part of the ship it covered the magazines for A-turret and the 4-inch guns; midships to cover the magazines for Q- and P-turrets, while it was extended vertically by to protect the magazine trunks and escape shafts.Wright, p. 186Roberts, p. 113 During a refit in June 1917 the armour was again improved when 1-inch armour plate was added on the lower deck at the bottom of the inner and outer upper coal bunkers as well as over the boiler.
By 1918, New Zealand carried two aircraft, a Sopwith Pup and a Sopwith 1½ Strutter, on flying-off ramps fitted on top of 'P' and 'Q' turrets. The Pup was intended to shoot down Zeppelins while the 1½ Strutter was used for spotting and reconnaissance.Layman, pp. 114–115 Each platform had a canvas hangar to protect the aircraft during inclement weather.Roberts, p. 92
Post-war modifications In preparation for its role as Admiral Jellicoe's personal transport for his planned visit to Australia, Canada, India and New Zealand New Zealand was refitted between December 1918 and February 1919.Wright, p. 189 The fore topmast and both top gallants were replaced. Her flying-off platforms were removed and new peacetime trim was installed. The range clocks were removed and the deflection scales on the turrets were painted over. The lower forward four-inch guns were removed and replaced with cabins on the port and starboard sides of the forward superstructure to house Jellicoe and provide offices for his staff of eight.Gordon, pp. 11–12Burt, p. 116
Acquisition and construction
At the start of the 20th century, the British Admiralty maintained that naval defence of the British Empire, including the Dominions, should be unified under the Royal Navy.Frame, p. 71 Attitudes on this matter softened during the first decade, and at the 1909 Imperial Conference, the Admiralty proposed the creation of Fleet Units: forces consisting of a battlecruiser, three light cruisers, six destroyers, and three submarines.Lambert, p. 64 While Australia and Canada were encouraged to purchase fleet units to serve as the core of new national navies, other fleet units would be operated by the Royal Navy at distant bases, particularly in the Far East; New Zealand was asked to partially subsidise a fleet unit for the China Station.Lambert, pp. 64–65
To this end, the Prime Minister of New Zealand, Sir Joseph Ward, announced on 22 March 1909 that his country would fund a battleship (later changed to an ) as an example to other countries.Lambert, pp. 64–67 It is unclear why this design was selected, given that it was known to be inferior to the battlecruisers entering service with the Imperial German Navy (). Historian John Roberts has suggested that the request may have been attributable to the Royal Navy's practice of using small battleships and large cruisers as flagships of stations far from the United Kingdom, or it might have reflected the preferences of the First Sea Lord, Admiral of the Fleet John Fisher, preferences not widely shared.Roberts, pp. 29–31 The New Zealand Government took out a loan to fund the cost of the ship.
When it came to naming the new ship the most obvious name was already being used by the existing King Edward VII-class battleship HMS New Zealand. It was decided to transfer the name to the new battlecruiser and to rename the older ship. Among the suggested names were Arawa, Caledonia, Wellington and Maori (which was already being used by a destroyer, and thus would have required a double renaming) being floated before Zealandia was eventually decided upon and subsequently approved by the King.Wright (2021), pp. 72–74
Construction WrightWright, p. 62 has identified that the Controller of the Admiralty John Jellicoe had wanted to have Australia and New Zealand constructed by the same shipbuilder. This would have reduced construction costs and simplified administration. Tenders were issued early in 1910, but of those who were prepared to tender, all were only prepared to construct one vessel. Both Australia and New Zealand for unknown reasons agreed to accept that of John Brown & Company which was highest of the two successful tenders, but the former signalled its acceptance first, leaving New Zealand to accept that of Fairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering. The estimated cost of Fairfield's offer was £1.8 million, which included the guns and the first issue of ammunition. Fairfield had already built HMS Indomitable, which would have given them confidence in their cost estimate, which included all stores including first coal and ammunition. In the end John Brown & Company delivered Australia well under their original tendered price.
New Zealands keel was laid at Fairfield's yard on the Clyde on 20 June 1910.Wright, p. 70Johnston & Buxton, p. 134 The construction contract was between the Admiralty and Fairfield (using the Admiralty's standard contract terms) and was overseen by the Admiralty with manufacturer's payment claims being approved and then passed on by the Admiralty to the New Zealand High Commission's office in London. Variation claims were often individually itemised (such as £1. 12s. 6d. for a specific drawing) and passed on for payment, with some payments still being processed as late as the 1914–15 financial year. The ship was built with all stores supplied from the Admiralty at the "Rate Book" price plus 20 per cent, with exception of the coal. The Admiralty did not charge New Zealand for its management of the project. Fairfield's share of the contract made a profit of £50,454 (6 per cent).Johnston & Buxton, p. 241
The four main gun mountings were made by Armstrong Whitworth's Elswick Ordnance Works,Johnston & Buxton, pp. 191 at a cost of £207,593 (excluding delivery and assembly)Wright, p. 136 while the guns were supplied by both Armstrong Whitworth and Vickers. The twenty-two 12-inch guns (including six spares) and thirty-six 4-inch guns (including four spares) required to equip both of the Dominion's ships cost a combined total of £249,550.Wright, p. 63
New Zealand was launched on 1 July 1911 in front of 8,000 onlookers by Lady Theresa Ward, the wife of Sir Joseph Ward, using a bottle of New Zealand wine for the christening.Wright, p. 74