Solférino was the second and last ship of the of broadside ironclads built for the French Navy () in the early 1860s.
These two ironclads were the only two-decked broadside ironclad battleships ever built. They were also the first ships in the world to be equipped with a spur ram.
Design and description The Magenta class were two-decked ironclad ships of the line, much as the preceding were armored versions of traditional frigates. Solférino was long, had a beam of , and a draft of . The ship displaced . The Magentas were equipped with a metal-reinforced, spur-shaped ram, the first ironclads to be fitted with a ram,Campbell, p. 287 and they had a crew of 674 officers and enlisted men.Gille, p. 24
The Magenta-class ships had a single two-cylinder horizontal-return connecting-rod compound steam engine that drove the propeller shaft,de Balincourt & Vincent-Bréchignac, p. 25 using steam provided by eight boilers. The engine was rated at 1,000 nominal horsepower or and was intended to give the ships a speed in excess of . During their sea trials, Solférino achieved a speed of from . The Magenta class carried enough coal to allow them to steam for at a speed of .Silverstone, p. 62 They were originally fitted with a three-masted barquentine rig that had a sail area of , but they were re-rigged as barques with in 1864–1865.
Armament The design of the Magenta class was rather unique, because they were ironclads with two covered gun decks. Its lower gun deck was 1.96 m high. This was much higher than the gun decks of Couronne (1.79 m) and Gloire (1.81 m) which were found to be low. As designed, Solférino would get 48 canons de 16 cm modèle 1858-60. This armament was changed on multiple occasions.
On 4 January 1864 the armament was determined as:Konstam, p. 19 Upper deck: 2 * 22 cm rifled shell guns (muzzle-loading) on pivot mounts as chase guns fore and aft Upper gun deck: 24 * 16 cm rifled muzzle-loading (RML) Modèle 1858–60 guns Lower gun deck: 16 * (50-pdr) smoothbore muzzle-loading guns and 10 * 16 cm Modèle 1858–60 RML
On 20 October 1866, the lower battery was disarmed and a new configuration was determined: Upper deck: 4 * Canon de 24 C modèle 1864 (9.4 in) Upper gun deck: 6 * Canon de 24 C modèle 1864 (9.4 in) and 12 * Canon de 19 C modèle 1864 (7.6 in) Lower gun deck: empty
In February 1868, this was changed again to: Upper deck: 4 * Canon de 24 C modèle 1864 (9.4 in) Upper gun deck: 6 * Canon de 24 C modèle 1864 (9.4 in) Lower gun deck: empty
In December 1868, this was changed to: Upper deck: 4 * Canon de 19 C modèle 1864 (7.6 in) Upper gun deck: 10 * Canon de 24 C modèle 1864 (9.4 in) Lower gun deck: empty
Protection The Magentas had a full-length waterline belt that consisted of wrought-iron plates thick. Above the belt both gun decks were protected with of armor, but the ends of the ships were unprotected.
Construction and service Solférino, named after the French victory in the Battle of Solferino,Silverstone, p. 112 was laid down on 24 June 1859 by the Arsenal de Lorient, launched on 24 June 1861 and commissioned on 25 August 1862.
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Bibliography
External links
Plans of the Solférino (large TIF files) from the Atlas du génie maritime of the Service historique de la Défense ("Historical services of the ministry of Defence") Plan of the hull Cargo bay and machinery 2nd battery and castle 1st battery Riggings