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Centurion file photo [3484]

Centurion

CountryUnited Kingdom
Ship ClassKing George V (1911)-class Battleship
BuilderHM Dockyard, Devonport, Britain
Laid Down16 Jan 1911
Launched18 Nov 1911
Commissioned22 May 1913
Decommissioned1 Jan 1924
Sunk9 Jun 1944
Displacement25,500 tons standard
Length597 feet
Beam89 feet
Draft29 feet
MachineryCoal boilers, turbines
Speed21 knots
Crew782
Armament5x2x343mm, 12x102mm, 4x47mm, 3x533mm submerged torpedo tubes
RecommissionApr 1941

Contributor:

ww2dbaseUpon commissioning, Centurion was assigned to the 2nd Battle Squadron. During WW1, she served in the North Sea and the Mediterranean; she was a participant of the Battle of Jutland on 31 May 1916. During the inter-war years, she was dispatched to the Black Sea during the Russian Civil War, served in the Mediterranean Sea between 1919 and 1924, and was decommissioned in 1924. Upon decommissioning, she became a remote-controlled target ship. In 1940, she was reactivated after being fitted with a false superstructure to make her look like the battleship Anson in an effort to confuse German intelligence. She began her new career as a false battleship in Apr 1941 based out of Gibraltar. She made a troublesome voyage from Gibraltar to Port Said around the southern tip of Africa, then participated in Operation Vigorous, one of the Malta-bound convoys, in Jun 1942. She also spent time off Suez to provide additional anti-aircraft weaponry to British task forces. She left the Mediterranean Sea in Jan 1944 for a return trip to Britain, where she ran aground and required repairs. On 9 Jun 1944, during the Normandy Campaign, she was sunk off the beaches as breakwater for the newly established beachheads.

ww2dbaseSource: Wikipedia.

Last Major Revision: May 2007

Photographs

Centurion as appeared on a postcard, circa 1911-1913Allied cargo transfer point on Omaha Beach, 19 Jul 1944; note British battleship Centurion in the center of background

Centurion Operational Timeline

22 May 1913 Centurion was commissioned into service.
1 Jan 1924 Centurion was decommissioned from service.




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More on Centurion
Event(s) Participated:
» Malta Campaign
» Normandy Campaign, Phase 1

Battleship Centurion Photo Gallery
Centurion as appeared on a postcard, circa 1911-1913Allied cargo transfer point on Omaha Beach, 19 Jul 1944; note British battleship Centurion in the center of background


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