Type:
Displacement: Length: Beam: Draft: Propulsion: Speed: Range: Endurance: Complement: Radar & Sensor Suites and Processing Systems Armament: |
Ironclad
9,284 tons 128 metres 17.8 metres 3.7 metres Fully-rigged sail 1x refitted trunk steam engine and shaft Up to 14 knots under normal conditions Approximately 2,100 nautical miles 20 days with trainees aboard 657, including 550 cadets (or 420, accompanying 130 members of the Bands & Drummers of the Xuande-Xiphoian Naval Services) Commercial off the shelf communications and navigations equipment Blank firing replicas of: 26 x Smoothbore muzzle-loading 68-pounder guns 10 x Rifled breechloading 110-pounder guns 4 x Rifled breechloading 40-pounder guns |
The Forum class ironclads were introduced and heralded a new age in Xuande and Xiphoian naval power in the winter of 1860. Larger guns, more reliable steam engines, and an according need to improve armour led to the development of the Forum class, which were to be delivered over a period of 10 years.
Whereas similar ironclads were simply wooden ships with mounted iron panels, the Forum class was redesigned from the Menkou class of frigates, but redeveloped for an all-metal hull and interior metal designs. The vessel was tremendously fast for it's time, capable of up to 17 knots with sail and steam operating simultaneously, and with a retractable propeller when operating only under sail to maximise hydrodynamic performance. The vessels armour was designed as a solid 4 and a half inches plates of iron backed by 18 inches of teak, designed to reduce shock and splintering, which was shown to be practically invulnerable to many naval guns of the time. Similarly bringing in a new age of armour design, the Forum class utilises an interior citadel with armour enclosing a box designed to be shot- and shell-proof. It was calculated that the ship could be critically damaged, but the citadel would provide sufficient buoyancy to keep the vessel afloat. The armament of this vessel had a number of changes during development, but the final arsenal comprised 40 cannons of various calibre; all could fire shot and shell. Additionally, the twenty-six 68-pounder guns could fire a novel hollow "Martin" shell, which used a forge - still serviceable today - aboard the vessel to load the hollow space with molten iron. Bursting iron on the hull of a wooden vessel would have an additional ability to deliver thousands of iron fragments at hundreds of degrees, which would start and restart fires as they cooled. The vessel was delivered with high speed, high power, and at the edge of naval development. It was used as a squadron leader, going on tour around Xuande and Xiphoi before undertaking counter-piracy and counter-slavery operations in the various areas of interests to the Forum. The first launched vessel was the namesake of the class - Forum - but the second and fifth delivered vessels were named Xuande and Xiphoi. Today, those two ships remain functional, and two other vessels - Deimarkos and White Bluff are preserved as museum ships. In following decade, the increasing availability of steel began to threaten the dominance of the Forum class. All but a handful of the Forum class were utilised either as second-class reserve or training vessels, with nine ships being sold to the Zellatian High Empire. Of the planned vessels, only half were ever made. Nonetheless, the Forum class was essential in building the capability and unity for the 15 year old Navy of Xuande & Xiphoi, and it is why they are retained today as the heritage of our united fleet. After renovation of the two serviceable vessels in 1995 and an updated renovation in 2015, Xuande and Xiphoi took up their new position as the nation's flagships on the high seas. It has complete functions, appropriate facilities and good seaworthiness, and now trains generations of Xuande-Xiphoian midshipmen and Petty Officers. Roles for cadets aboard the ship range from the simple - as mess cooks supporting the full time cooks - through to rotating to the various jobs in the deparments: Gunnery, Deck, Navigation, Engineering, Hull, and Supply. The Navy's basic combat units are ships, and their crews must work closely together to utilise the fighting power of the ship. The sail training ship is recognized by the navies of various countries as a weapon to cultivate team spirit, and the use of these vessels is exceptionally useful to building the necessary experience of Navy officers. The Navy is also a military service that values cultural traditions. Compared with hardware elements such as warships, warplanes, and missiles, software, elements such as naval warfare theory, naval tradition, and ocean complex are often harder to cultivate. Building these experiences across generations are part of building a strong navy. The Navy is a service that needs to be built and consolidated for generations or even generations. Ocean consciousness and nautical culture are not shaped in a short time. Therefore, the sail training ship is not only the object of the nostalgia of naval powers, but also bears the ardent expectations of passing on the traditional nautical culture from generation to generation. These vessels are suitable for diplomatic visits, as they are not armed warships, and more representative of a country's maritime culture. When the sail training ship is moored in the port, towering masts and traditional hulls are often more attractive to foreigners than modern warships. As such, a great many of the ports visited by this vessel are foreign, and the rotation of cadets is facilitated by modern air travel. The sail training offered by this vessel provides relevant and timeless sea experience to the cadets. From the most basic climbing masts to the final training of the whole process, coupled with ocean sailing, the experience of ocean sailing enables the trainees to practice the theoretical knowledge they have learned at the Naval Academy or the Petty Officer's Promotion Course, but also exercise and train the courage and confidence of officers and men. The process of sail training is the process of organization, command and coordination, and also the process of training team spirit. The Navy is a service that takes a generation or even generations to build. The use of the ancient sailing control method of the sail training ship can continuously improve the intrinsic quality of the trainees and is an effective way to cultivate the naval tradition. The sail training ship helps naval officers to know and become familiar with the ocean faster and better. "Ocean perception" is an important subject of the sail training ship. By driving the sailboat and sailing with the sea, the trainees can form a comprehensive understanding of the integration of people, ships and seas by experiencing the influence of meteorology, hydrology, tides and ocean currents on maritime military operations. The Navy has made very few changes on the original vessel, but this vessel now includes:
Apart from these critical changes for health and safety - and to best serve VIPs - this vessel is held as closely to the standards of its time as possible. Cadets maintain the ship and operate it in the way of their forefathers. Some examples of this committment include:
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