HMS Warrior 1860
ENGINE ROOM
HMS Warrior’s engine room is preserved in pristine condition, with none of the dust and smoke of her operational life. Built with a horizontal trunk steam engine, Warrior could achieve a speed of 14.5 knots under steam, and a respectable 13 knots under sail, much faster than ships such at HMS Victory which fought at the battle of Trafalgar only 55 years previously.
The boiler rooms are dark and cramped and one can imagine how hot they must have become when the ship was underway.
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Coal would be delivered to the boiler room by use of an elevator system as pictured here. The next picture shows one of the two gigantic steam pistons. I’d hate to have to be the man to wield the spanner that would be used to tighten those bolts.
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As usual, an article such as this can only skirt over the myriad of details that a ship such as Warrior can reveal to the interested tourist, and I must end with my usual mantra – if you have the opportunity, pay HMS Warrior a visit!
To view the complete set of images from my visit, go to the ACG image gallery here.
A J Summersgill
