HMS King George V (41)
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 At Japan, 1945 (USS Missouri in background) | |
| Career | 
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|---|---|
| Ordered: | |
| Laid down: | 1 January, 1937 |
| Launched: | 21 February, 1939 |
| Commissioned: | 11 December, 1940 |
| Decommissioned: | 1949 |
| Fate: | sold for scrap |
| Struck: | 1957 |
| General Characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 44,460 tons |
| Length: | 745 feet |
| Beam: | 103 feet |
| Draught: | 35.5 feet |
| Propulsion: | 140,000 hp |
| Speed: | 27.5 knots (28.5 in an emergency) |
| Range: | 4,750 nm at 18 knots |
| Complement: | 1,314 to 1,631 |
| Armament: | 10 x 14-in guns
16 x 5.2-in guns 64 x 2-pounders |
| Aircraft: | 4 x Walrus |
| Motto: | |
The second HMS King George V was the name ship of her class of battleships. The armament of this class was always controversial. The Second London Naval Treaty had been somewhat ignored after a time. King George V and the four other ships of the class carried 10 14-inch guns.
While some argued that this was inferior to the 15-inch guns of the massive German battleship Bismarck and her sister-ship Tirpitz, the designers of this class pointed out that the ten guns of the 14-inch class versus the eight 15-inch rifles of the Bismarck type had advantages. They pointed out that at normal battle ranges the 14-inch gun could penetrate any practical naval armor, could shoot repeated rounds faster, and in the bad weather of the North Atlantic the extra range of bigger guns was not needed. The 10 guns of the British ship could fire a more numerous number of shots increasing hit probability.
She was the flagship of the Home Fleet under the command of Admiral Sir John Tovey, and was involved in the legendary chase for Bismarck. On 27 May 1941, she and Rodney poured an incredible number of shells into to the hull of the ill-fated German ship.
Following the successful destruction of Bismarck, the ship was involved in a tragic accident, in which she collided with the destroyer Punjabi, resulting in the sinking of the latter ship and minimal damage for King George V during the spring of 1942. She also covered the landings at Sicily, as well as having the prestigious honour of taking Winston Churchill back to Britain from the Tehran Conference.
From 1944 to the surrender of Japan, King George V served with the British Pacific Fleet, being present at Japan during the official surrender ceremony. She was recommissioned as flagship of the Home Fleet in 1946, but was decommissioned just three years later into the Reserve Fleet and subsequently scrapped at Dalmuir in 1957. Four of the five King George V-class ships survived World War II; Prince of Wales was sunk near Singapore in December 1941. The survivors, including King George V, were scrapped in 1957.
For other ships of the same name see HMS King George V.
| King George V-class battleship |
| King George V | Prince of Wales | Duke of York | Anson | Howe |
| List of battleships of the Royal Navy |