Brooklyn-class cruiser

The Brooklyn-class cruiser was a class of nine light cruisers built for the United States Navy between 1935 and 1938. Armed with five triple 6-inch (152 mm) gun turrets (three forward, two aft), they mounted more main battery guns than any other standard US cruiser. The Brooklyn-class ships were all commissioned between 1937 and 1939, in the time between the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War and before the invasion of Poland. They served extensively in both the Pacific and Atlantic theaters during World War II.

This ship class includes St Louis (1938). It is not to be confused with St. Louis-class cruiser
USS Honolulu in 1944
Class overview
NameBrooklyn class
Builders
Operators
Preceded byOmaha class
Succeeded byCleveland class
SubclassesSt. Louis class
Built1935–1938
In service1938–1992
In commission1937–1992
Planned9
Completed9
Lost2
Retired7
General characteristics
TypeLight cruiser
Displacement
  • 9,767 long tons (9,924 t) (standard)
  • 12,207 long tons (12,403 t) (full load)
Length
  • 600 ft (180 m) wl
  • 608 ft 4 in (185.42 m) oa
Beam62 ft (19 m)
Draft23 ft (7.0 m)
Installed power
Propulsion
  • 4 × Parsons geared turbines
  • 4 × shafts
Speed32.5 knots (60.2 km/h; 37.4 mph)
Range10,000 nmi (19,000 km; 12,000 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Boats & landing
craft carried		2 × lifeboats
Complement868
Sensors and
processing systems
Armament
Armor
Aircraft carried4 × floatplanes
Aviation facilities2 × aircraft catapults

Helena was sunk in the Pacific, and while some of the others were heavily damaged, the remaining ships of the class were decommissioned shortly after the end of the war. Six were transferred to South American navies in 1951, where they served for many more years. One of these, ARA General Belgrano, formerly Phoenix, was sunk during the Falklands War in 1982.[1]

The Brooklyn-class ships had a strong influence on US cruiser design. Nearly all subsequent US cruisers, heavy and light, were directly or indirectly based on them.[1] Notable among these are the Cleveland-class light cruiser and Baltimore-class heavy cruiser of World War II.

Design

The Brooklyn-class design was a further refinement of the New Orleans-class heavy cruiser that preceded it.[2] The desire for the Brooklyns arose from the London Naval Treaty of 1930, which limited the construction of heavy cruisers, i.e., ships carrying guns with calibers between 6.1 and 8 inches (155 and 203 mm). Great Britain needed trade control cruisers and hoped that the treaty would limit nations to smaller cruisers with a 6,000-to-8,000-long-ton (6,096 to 8,128 t) range that she could afford. Agreement to the London Treaty and the proceeding with the American light cruiser design can be focused to Admiral William V. Pratt, who overrode the vehement objections of the General Board.[3]

Under the treaty the US was allowed 180,000 long tons (182,888 t) for 18 heavy cruisers and 143,500 long tons (145,803 t), with no limit on the number of ships, for light cruisers.[4] The United States needed large cruisers to deal with the extreme ranges that operations in the Pacific Ocean required. Cruisers with 6-inch (150 mm) guns and 10,000 long tons (10,160 t) were therefore desired.[5] The US Navy's experience with the Omaha class was not all that could be hoped for. The light hull design caused a stressed hull and was very overweight. Design started in 1930, with the first four of the class ordered in 1933, and an additional three ships in 1934. Basic criteria had been that speed and range should match heavy cruisers, and when the Japanese Mogami class carrying fifteen 6-inch main guns appeared, the new US ships would match their weaponry. Various combinations of armor and power plants were tried in the efforts to stay below the Treaty 10,000 ton limit.[6] Aviation facilities were moved to the stern of the ship from the amidships position of the New Orleans-class cruisers.[7][8]

From 1942, the bridge structure was lowered and radar was fitted.

St. Louis subclass

The last two ships of the class, St. Louis and Helena, were slightly modified versions of the design with new higher pressure boilers and a unit system of machinery that alternated boiler and engine rooms to prevent a ship from being immobilized by a single unlucky hit; this system would be used in all subsequent US cruisers. Additionally, AA armament was improved. They were the first US cruisers to be armed with twin 5-inch (127 mm)/​38-caliber guns. They could be distinguished visually from the other Brooklyns by the placement of the after deckhouse, immediately abaft the second funnel, and by the twin 5-inch mounts.

Armament

The Brooklyn class was equipped with 15 6-inch/​47 caliber Mark 16 naval guns, developed from the 6-inch/​53 caliber Mark 8 used on the Omaha-class cruiser. The decision was reached as the gun could achieve up to ten rounds per minute rate of fire. This gave the class the ability to send up to 150 rounds a minute at its intended target. This allowed the cruiser to smother an enemy ship with fire. The turret arrangement was five turrets, each mounting three guns on a single sleeve, which did not allow the guns in a turret to move independently. The 6-inch guns were of a new design, the Mark 16, which could fire a 130-pound (59-kilogram) armor-piercing shell (AP) up to 26,100 yards (23,866 m) with twice the penetrative power of the old gun. The ammunition was of the semi-fixed type.[9] The impact of the shell changed the General Board's view on the usefulness of light cruisers in service.[10]

As designed, the anti-aircraft weaponry specified eight 5-inch (127 mm)/​25 caliber guns and eight .50 inches (12.7 mm) caliber M2 Browning machine guns. The intention to mount 1.1-inch (28 mm)/​75 caliber anti-aircraft guns was frustrated and the requirement was not fully met until 1943. The weapon as deployed was less than satisfactory with frequent jamming and weight being serious issues.[11] Some of the class had 5-in/38 caliber guns installed versus the 5-in/25 guns.[12] There were varied mixes of 20-millimeter (0.79 in) Oerlikon cannons and 40-millimeter (1.6 in) Bofors gun mountings actually installed during World War II, 28 40 mm (4 × 4, 6 × 2) and twenty 20 mm (10 × 2) being the most common.[6]

Fire control

The Brooklyn class was deployed with the Mark 34 director and later the Mark 3 radar. This would be upgraded to the Mark 8 and again to the Mark 13 radar. The secondary battery was controlled by the Mark 28 and upgraded to the Mark 33 fire control systems. The associated radars were the Mark 4 fire control radar and upgraded again to the Mark 12. Two anti-aircraft fire directors were fitted to each ship. A late World War II refit saw the Mk 51 director installed for the Bofors guns. Night engagements were improved when in 1945, the Mark 57 and 63 directors were installed.[13]

Successors

The vast majority of cruisers built by the United States during World War II derive from the Brooklyn design.[1] Modifications of the Brooklyn-class hull were the predecessors to the two main lines of wartime cruisers, respectively the Cleveland-class light cruiser armed with 6-inch guns and Baltimore-class heavy cruiser armed with 8-inch guns. The third line, the Atlanta-class light cruiser armed with 5-inch guns, shared the same unit system of machinery arrangement as the other two lines, but on a smaller hull with two shafts instead of four.[14]

The Brooklyn class would lead to the Cleveland-class light cruiser (less a fifth triple 6-inch turret), which then led to the Fargo-class cruiser and finally the Worcester-class cruiser. The other successor was USS Wichita, built on a modified Brooklyn-class hull, with a heavy cruiser armament featuring three rather than five triple turrets, but each turret containing larger 8-inch guns, and increased armor. Wichita was succeeded by the Baltimore class and the later Oregon City-class cruiser class, and finally the upgraded Des Moines-class cruiser. The Atlanta class would be succeeded by the Juneau class and then almost by the cancelled CL-154 class. As the Baltimore class began building about a year after the Cleveland class, later Cleveland developments and improvements were incorporated into the Baltimore-class hull.

Finally, both Cleveland and Baltimore hulls were converted to light aircraft carriers. The Independence class of light aircraft carriers, were converted from Cleveland-class cruisers under construction,[15] and the Saipan-class light carriers used the basic form of the Baltimore-class cruiser design.[16]

Ships in class
Construction data
Ship name Hull no. Class/​subclass Builder Laid down Launched Comm. Decomm. Fate Ref.
Brooklyn CL-40 Brooklyn Brooklyn Navy Yard, New York City 12 Mar 1935 30 Nov 1936 30 Sep 1937 3 Jan 1947 Transferred to Chilean Navy as O'Higgins, 9 Jan 1951; sank under tow to a scrapyard in 1992 [1]
Philadelphia CL-41 Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, Philadelphia 28 May 1935 17 Nov 1936 23 Sep 1937 3 Feb 1947 Transferred to Brazilian Navy as Barroso, 9 Jan 1951; scrapped in 1974 [1]
Savannah CL-42 New York Shipbuilding Corporation, Camden 31 May 1934 8 May 1937 10 Mar 1938 3 Feb 1947 Sold for scrap, 6 Jan 1960 [1]
Nashville CL-43 24 Jan 1935 2 Oct 1937 6 Jun 1938 24 Jun 1946 Transferred to Chilean Navy as Capitán Prat, 9 Jan 1951; sold for scrap 1983 [1]
Phoenix CL-46 25 Apr 1935 19 Mar 1938 3 Oct 1938 3 Jul 1946 Transferred to Argentine Navy as Diecisiete de Octubre, 9 Apr 1951, renamed ARA General Belgrano 1956

Sunk, 2 May 1982, Falklands War

 [1]
Boise CL-47 Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company, Newport News 1 Apr 1935 3 Dec 1936 12 Aug 1938 1 Jul 1946 Transferred to Argentine Navy as Nueve de Julio, 11 Jan 1951; scrapped in 1983 [1]
Honolulu CL-48 Brooklyn Navy Yard, New York City 9 Dec 1935 26 Aug 1937 15 Jun 1938 3 Feb 1947 Sold for scrap, 17 Nov 1959 [1]
St. Louis CL-49 St. Louis Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company 10 Dec 1936 15 Apr 1938 19 May 1939 20 Jun 1946 Transferred to Brazilian Navy as Tamandare, 29 Jan 1951; sank under tow to the scrappers in 1980
Helena CL-50 Brooklyn Navy Yard 9 Dec 1936 28 Aug 1938 18 Sep 1939 — Torpedoed and sunk, 6 Jul 1943

Service history

War service

Several Brooklyns were seriously damaged during World War II, although all but one of the cruisers survived. Boise was severely damaged by a shell that hit her forward turret magazine during the Battle of Cape Esperance on 11 October 1942, suffering many casualties, but the magazine (being partially flooded as a result of shell hits in her hull) did not explode. Nashville was hit by a kamikaze attack on 13 December 1944, off Mindoro, which killed or wounded 310 crewmen. Honolulu was torpedoed at the Battle of Kolombangara on 12–13 July 1943, as was her near-sister St. Louis. After being repaired in the United States, Honolulu returned to service only to be torpedoed by a Japanese aircraft on 20 October 1944, during the invasion of Leyte.[17] On 11 September 1943, Savannah was hit by a German Fritz X radio guided bomb which penetrated her #3 turret and blew out the bottom of the ship. Skillful damage control by her crew saved her from sinking. While under repair in the United States, Savannah and Honolulu were rebuilt with a bulged hull that increased their beam by nearly 8 feet (2.4 m) and their 5-inch/​25 caliber guns were replaced by four twin 5-inch/38 caliber guns, although the repairs to Savannah were completed too late for her to see frontline action again.[18]

Helena was sunk in 1943 during the Battle of Kula Gulf. The remains of the ship were discovered below the surface of New Georgia Sound by Paul Allen's research ship Petrel in April 2018. St. Louis was seriously damaged twice, but survived the war.

Post-war

All ships of the class went into reserve in 1946-47. Six were sold to South American countries in the early 1950s, and served for many more years: Brooklyn and Nashville to Chile, St. Louis and Philadelphia to Brazil, and Boise and Phoenix to Argentina. Savannah and Honolulu remained in reserve until struck in 1959. ARA General Belgrano (ex-Phoenix) was torpedoed and sunk by HMS Conqueror during the Falklands War,[19] while O'Higgins (ex-Brooklyn) remained in service with the Chilean Navy until 1992.[20] She sank under tow, on her way to the scrappers, in the mid-Pacific in 1992.

See also

Citations
  1. Ewing p. 76
  2. Friedman pp. 155–156
  3. Friedman pp. 164–165
  4. Friedman p. 187
  5. US Navy Light Cruisers location 77
  6. Whitley pp. 248–249
  7. Friedman p. 183
  8. Whitley p. 248
  9. DiGuilian, Tony (12 February 2021). "6"/47 (15.2 cm) Mark 16". NavWeaps.com. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
  10. Friedman p. 194
  11. Schreier, Konrad F. (1994). "The Chicago Piano". Naval History. United States Naval Institute. 8 (4): 44–46.
  12. Stille p. 100
  13. Stille p. 130
  14. Friedman pp. 183, 233-236
  15. Silverstone p. 48
  16. Fahey p. 9
  17. Ewing pp. 81–88
  18. Whitley p. 249
  19. Ewing pp. 77–88
  20. Rickard, John (18 May 2015). "USS Phoenix (CL-46)". HistoryOfWar.org. Retrieved 17 October 2015.

Sources
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Brooklyn class cruiser.
  • Ewing, Steve (1984). American Cruisers of World War II. Missoula, Montana: Pictorial Histories Publishing Company. ISBN 0-933126-51-4.
  • Fahey, James C. (1945). The Ships and Aircraft of the United States Fleet. New York: Ships and Aircraft.
  • Friedman, Norman (1984). U.S. Cruisers: An Illustrated Design History. Annapolis, Maryland: U.S. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 9780870217180.
  • Preston, Antony (1980). Cruisers. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall. ISBN 013-194902-0.
  • Silverstone, Paul H. (1968). U.S. Warships of World War II. Garden City, New York: Doubleday & Company.
  • Stille, Mark (2016). U.S. Navy Light Cruisers 1941–45. Bloomsbury. ISBN 978-1472811400.
  • Whitley, M. J. (1995). Cruisers of World War Two: An International Encyclopedia. London: Arms and Armour Press. ISBN 1-85409-225-1.
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