"Jutland question" Topic

Just finished reading a book about the battle of Jutland and made me wonder if any of the British or German ships in the battle were oil fueled? I would think most of the ships were coal fueled, but some of the newer Battle Cruisers?

The British "Fast" battleship Squadron, 5th Battle Squadron, was oil fueled. That was why they could deploy in close support of the Battle cruiser squadrons.

HMS Barham Flagship of Rear Admiral H. Evan-Thomas; Captain A. W. Craig;
HMS Valiant Captain M. Woollcombe;
HMS Warspite Captain E. M. Philpotts;
HMS Malaya Captain the Honourable A. D. E. H. Boyle;

so did not have to rely on gangs of stokers to maintain top speeds.

The Royal Sovereign, Queen Elizabeth and Renown (Repulse) classes were designed to be "all oil fuel" ships. Many of the other dreadnoughts in the British fleet used coal and oil.

As far as I can tell none of the German dreadnoughts were "all oil fuel" but many (most?) were coal and oil.

I suspect it was the shortage of oil for Germany and the relative shortage of oil at Scapa Flow for the British (oil fueled dreadnoughts use LOTS of fuel) caused the British and Germans to depend on coal.

When the US joined the war the British asked that only coal fired ships be sent to join the fleet at Scapa Flow.

GB – All the British BCs present at Jutland were mixed firing, principally coal-fired with the boilers of one boiler room (usually that most forward) fitted with oil-fired boilers. The only exclusively oil-fired capital ships at Jutland were the QE class FBs and the Royal Sovereign class BBs. In addition, IIRC, all the British DDs operating with the BCF and Grand Fleet at Jutland were oil-fired.

The advantages of oil fuel for warships of all classes had been found to be so manifestly profound that Great Britain had conceptually committed to it pre-WW1 and had built up a significant war reserve at home by the start of the war. The laying down of the fully oil-fired QEs and Royal Sovereigns marked the fleet's formal and exclusive commitment to oil and the end of coal-fired capital ship construction by the RN.

The only operationally significant oil fuel shortage suffered by the RN occurred in 1917 and ironically was principally caused by the forced diversion of naval oil fuel reserves to a fuel starved British Army on the Western Front to keep its massive motor transport park (about 55,000 vehicles by then) in operation.

B

"…laying down of the fully oil-fired QEs and Royal Sovereigns…"

According to Burt, the conversion of the Royal Sovereigns to all oil burning was approved in December 1914, thus after laying down.

NCC1717 wrote – According to Burt, the conversion of the Royal Sovereigns to all oil burning was approved in December 1914, thus after laying down.

….. You are correct; it was pushed through by Fisher shortly after his return to the Admiralty in Oct 1914. But the original intent, as I understand it from my reading, was for the Royal Sovereign class to follow the QEs as oil-fired ships. The decision to revert to coal firing stemmed from a concern about potential shortages in the supply of oil.

B