WWI Battleships shape

[JimTex]

I've noticed that most of the WWI BBs have a smaller forward Deck than the hull. I have a lot of references but I haven't seen any reason for the strange shape. :?:

 

[steveburt]

Do you mean the ram bow-shape?
It's a hangover from 19th century ironclad designs.
After WW1 most ships went with a flared 'cruiser' bow.

Basically, it's a naval architecture fashion thing...

 

[DM]

The other feature that this could refer to is the practice of employing what were effectively "cut outs" along the sides of the focsle, with the result that the upper deck was inset from the side of the ship by an increwasing degreee as you move aft. This was generally done to improve firing arcs for secondary guns mounted in casemates in the hull (or in the case of ships with wing turrets such as Dreadnought, to improve the arcs of part of the main battery).

 

[JimTex]

The USS Arkansas is a good example of the bow I'm talking about. I found a very old picture and she had guns in bow at those points.

 

[AdrianH]

Some photos of HMS Iron Duke here also fit the description:
http://www.maritimequest.com/warship_directory/great_britain/battleships/iron_duke/hms_iron_duke.htm

Mind you, if the secondary guns did fire near straight ahead along that bow, I wouldn't want to be responsible for having to repaint the bow afterwards.

Also clearly visible is the ram style bow. After the battle of Lissa in 1866, in which ramming played an unusually significant part, naval architects decided that rams were a good idea and included them in ship designs for the next half century.

 

[steveburt]

And the Dreadnought did indeed ram and sink a submarine; sadly it was a friendly one.

 

[Brass]

And the Dreadnought did indeed ram and sink a submarine; sadly it was a friendly one.

Actually, it was U-29, which Dreadnought rammed in Pentland Firth on March 18, 1915, after it had fired a torpedo at British ships on maneuvers.