ARA San Martín

For other ships with the same name, see List of ships named ARA San Martín.

Colorized photo of San Martin on her sea trials
History
Argentina
Name	San Martin
Namesake	José de San Martín
Builder	Cantiere navale fratelli Orlando, Livorno
Launched	25 May 1896
Acquired	October 1896
Stricken	18 December 1935
Fate	Scrapped, 1947
General characteristics (as built)
Class and type	Giuseppe Garibaldi-class armored cruiser
Displacement	8,100 t (8,000 long tons) (deep load)
Length	106.7 m (350 ft 1 in)
Beam	16.2 m (53 ft 2 in)
Draft	7.6 m (25 ft)
Installed power	13,000 ihp (9,700 kW) 8 cylindrical boilers
Propulsion	2 Shafts; 2 Vertical triple-expansion steam engines
Speed	18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph)
Range	6,000 nautical miles (11,000 km; 6,900 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)
Complement	488
Armament	2 × twin 203 mm (8 in) guns 10 × single 152 mm (6 in) guns 6 × single 120 mm (4.7 in) guns 10 × single 57 mm (2.2 in) Hotchkiss guns 8 × single 37 mm (1.5 in) Maxim guns 4 × 1 - 457 mm (18 in) torpedo tubes
Armor	Belt: 80–150 mm (3.1–5.9 in) Barbettes: 150 mm (5.9 in) Gun turrets: 150 mm (5.9 in) Conning tower: 150 mm (5.9 in)

ARA San Martín was one of four Giuseppe Garibaldi-class armored cruisers purchased by the Argentine Navy from Italy.

Design and description

San Martín had an overall length of 344 feet 2 inches (104.9 m), a beam of 50 feet 8 inches (15.4 m), and a mean draft (ship) of 23 feet 4 inches (7.1 m). She displaced 6,773 metric tons (6,666 long tons) at normal load. The ship was powered by two vertical triple-expansion steam engines, each driving one shaft, using steam from eight Scotch marine boilers. The engines were designed for a maximum output of 13,500 indicated horsepower (10,100 kW) and a speed of 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph). She had a cruising range of 6,000 nautical miles (11,000 km; 6,900 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph). Her complement consisted of 28 officers and 460 enlisted men.

Her main armament consisted of four 45-caliber Armstrong Whitworth 8-inch (203 mm) guns, in twin-gun turrets fore and aft of the superstructure. The ten 40-caliber quick-firing (QF) 6-inch (152 mm) guns that comprised her secondary armament were arranged in casemates amidships on the main deck. San Martín also had six QF 4.7-inch (119 mm) and six QF 6-pounder Hotchkiss guns to defend herself against torpedo boats. She was also equipped with four above-water 457 mm (18.0 in) torpedo tubes, two on each side.

The ship's waterline armor belt had a maximum thickness of 5.9 inches (150 mm) amidships and tapered to 3.1 inches (79 mm) towards the ends of the ship. Between the main gun barbettes it covered the entire side of the ship up to the level of the upper deck. The barbettes, the conning tower, and gun turrets were also protected by 5.9-inch armor. Her deck armor ranged from 1 to 2 inches (25 to 51 mm) thick.

Construction and career

The ship was launched on 25 May 1896 and was stricken from the Navy List on 18 December 1935.

References

• Arguindeguy, Pablo (1972). Apuntes sobre los buques de la Armada Argentina (1810-1970) (in Spanish). Buenos Aires: Comando en Jefe de la Armada.
• Burzaco, Ricardo (1997). Acorazados y Cruceros de la Armada Argentina, 1881-1992 (in Spanish). Buenos Aires, Argentina: Eugenio B. Ediciones. ISBN 987-96764-0-8.
• "Crucero Acorazado San Martín (1897)". Historia y Arqueologia Marítima (in Spanish).
• Chesneau, Roger & Kolesnik, Eugene M., eds. (1979). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. Greenwich: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-8317-0302-4.
• Freivogel, Zvonimir (2012). Jordan, John (ed.). The Loss of the Giuseppe Garibaldi. Warship 2012. London: Conway. pp. 40–51. ISBN 978-1-84486-156-9.
• Soliani, N., Colonel (1905). "The Armoured Cruisers Kasuga and Nisshin of the Imperial Japanese Navy". Transactions of the Royal Institution of Naval Architects. XLVII (Part I): 43–59. Retrieved 28 October 2015.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
• Silverstone, Paul H. (1984). Directory of the World's Capital Ships. New York: Hippocrene Books. ISBN 0-88254-979-0.