All of the greatest vessels of the British Royal and Merchant navies were gathered together for
the largest Fleet Review in British History, all assembled as part of the Diamond Jubilee
of Queen Victoria. Through the orderly and dignified pageantry,
a small vessel weaved between the great ships, evading the patrol boats of the Royal Navy.
Speeding through the flotilla of ships, and escaping capture, the little boat named Turbinia
had smashed all previous speed records as it neared its maximum of 34 knots.
With a 20-foot flame shooting out of its funnel, Turbinia had effectively caught the attention of the royals
and dignitaries attending the event, igniting curiosity about its steam turbine engines, and
changing the course of engine technology forever. Charles Parsons had been looking to build a steam
engine more efficient than the traditional triple expansion engine, but also one that was faster.
In 1884, he invented the modern steam turbine. A traditional triple expansion engine uses
high-pressure steam that powers a small cylinder that exhausts into an intermediate-pressure
cylinder, which then exhausts into one or two low-pressure cylinders, utilizing the natural
3 phase expansion of steam in an effort to get the maximum power output. The steam turbine
engine that Charles Parsons had created, operated similar to a pinwheel, high-pressure steam was
forced into the turbine which rotated several blades directly attached to a propeller shaft.
The sheer speed at which the blades rotated gave the engine an unmatched level of torque.
British Admiralty was kept updated by Parson’s developments, if his
new invention proved successful, then it would then be considered for use in the Royal Navy.
The Turbinia was constructed at Brown and Hood in Wallsend on Tyne, northern England.
Brown and Hood was not a shipbuilding company, but rather a sheet metal fabrication facility! Despite their lack of experience,
Turbinia was well-built and would make history as the world’s first steam turbine driven ship.
It measured 32 meters long, which is about 105 feet. And 2.7 meters wide, or about 9 feet
in width. They launched the vessel on the 2nd of August, 1894, but at that time the boat only had
one propeller, driven by a single turbine, and it performed poorly during its trials.
British Admiralty was not impressed, they watched as the boat vibrated violently,
and by the end of the trials, the propeller had become misshapen due to the issue of cavitation.
Cavitation was a phenomenon that was only just being investigated, it hadn’t been seen affecting
too many vessels because standard steam cylinder engines didn’t usually spin propellers fast enough
to cause cavitation.
So what is cavitation, you ask? Well, you see, propellers driven by a steam
turbine, turn with such speed that the blades of the propeller can actually create little vacuum
bubbles on their surface. When these little vacuum bubbles collapse, the force of the
surrounding water can hammer at the propeller’s surface causing pitting which only worsens the
issues of cavitation, eventually wearing away the propeller entirely. This necessitated the
development of more hydrodynamic propellers that can cause less cavitation to happen.
During the years of redevelopment on Turbinia, Charles Parsons gave it three turbines which
each drove a propeller shaft fitted with three sets of custom-engineered propellers,
for a total of nine screws! The vessel was refloated for its new trials,
this time British Admiralty was not present, after the previous disaster,
they were not convinced that steam turbines would ever exceed the usefulness of steam
cylinder power. But Charles Parsons was determined to prove them wrong.
They fired up Turbinia’s three-drum coal-fired water-tube boiler to its maximum pressure of
200 pounds per square inch, and took the small steamboat out to open water.
The little boat reached a top speed that surpassed Cunard’s RMS Campania which held
the record for the fastest ship in the world, with a top speed of 23.5 knots.
The Turbinia, however, could run circles around it at 34.5 knots.
Charles approached the British Admiralty
about allowing them to inspect the vessel and watch it perform. Unfortunately, they
didn’t have the patience, they were convinced after seeing the previous failed attempt,
that steam turbine technology would always be inferior to steam cylinder piston engines.
They scoffed at his request for an audience and effectively ignored him. Parsons realized that
if he wanted their attention, he would have to steal it with a spectacle most unorthodox.
On June 26th, 1897, a Navy review would be held at Spithead in Portsmouth where 165
vessels of the Royal and Merchant navies were put on display for Queen Victoria,
and would be inspected by the Prince and Princess of Wales acting in her stead.
The event was part of her Diamond Jubilee and would be attended by members of the British royal
family, and foreign dignitaries. It would be the largest pageant of British naval might that had
ever been displayed and it was a perfect event for Charles Parsons to make a bold statement.
Parsons and his crew carefully moved Turbinia down the coast from Newcastle to Portsmouth,
being careful to not allow the public to catch sight of the vessel prematurely,
or to alert the British Admiralty of their plan. The maneuver they conspired to perform
would certainly lead to arrests and possible charges against them,
but Parsons later explained, “If you believe in a principle, never damage it with poor expression.
You must go the whole way. I had to startle people.”
It was a clear summer day, the dreadnoughts were carefully lined up and decorated with
signal flags, the Royal Yacht Victoria and Albert was slowly making its way through the procession,
allowing the Prince of Wales to inspect the ships and salute the officers and crew from a distance.
Nearby, small Navy Pickets patrolled the waters, chasing away any small boats that came too close,
but one would race past them with immense speed. From behind a French vessel,
the Turbinia broke into the procession, flying past the Royal Yacht and quickly overtaking them.
Parsons ordered full speed, and at that, the little steamer bolted across the water, weaving
between the military ships, evading capture from several pickets that struggled to keep up.
The Prince of Wales was caught off-gaurd but watched the chase unfold with a curious eye.
With one last evasive move, the Turbinia made way for the harbor,
leaving a large wake that nearly swamped the remaining picket behind her.
She safely made her way to the companionway of RMS Teutonic where father and son, Thomas and Bruce Ismay
awaited the arrival of Charles Parsons for a trial run on his new turbine-driven boat.
Prince Henry of Prussia had signaled that he wanted to speak with Parsons about the Turbinia
and after the review, the Prince of Wales also inquired about a tour of the vessel.
A journalist at the Graphic reported, “The Turbinia, the fastest vessel in the world,
advertised itself in the most audacious manner by darting, or rather flashing, hither and
thither after the Royal Procession.” The Times wrote, “her lawlessness may be excused by the
novelty and importance of the invention that she embodies.” Indeed, the risky stunt that Charles
Parsons had performed, proved to be a triumph. After further speed and power demonstrations
attended by the Admiralty, Parsons was able to establish the Turbinia Works at Wallsend,
he then constructed turbine engines for two Navy destroyers, HMS Viper and HMS Cobra, which were
both launched in 1899. Cunard Line was designing two superliners, Lusitania and Mauretania,
and intended to use Parsons turbines to make them the fastest ocean liners in the world,
but they needed a proof of concept. At the time, two smaller Cunard ships were under construction,
Caronia and Carmania, it was decided that the Caronia would continue with the installation of
its triple expansion engine, but Carmania would receive the turbine engine instead. As it turned out,
Carmania achieved an average speed of 1 knot faster than Caronia using the same amount of fuel.
This may not sound like much, but when crossing an ocean, that can cut a voyage down by several hours.
The successful test won Parsons the contract to build his largest turbine engines yet,
specifically for Lusitania and Mauretania, the latter of which would hold the coveted
Blue Riband for 19 years. When Mauretania was completed, Turbinia was brought alongside her
for publicity photos, she then escorted the ocean liner on her way out to sea,
though engine trouble prevented her from following Mauretania the whole way.
Parsons steam turbines would become the blueprint for future steamship technology, which would
eventually become almost exclusively the engine of choice for fast ocean liners and naval vessels.
The fastest ocean liner of all time would be the SS United States which used four
Westinghouse turbine engines, thrusting the ship at its maximum recorded speed of 38.32 knots.
Steam turbines are still used today in power plants.
Usually, a fuel source like coal, petroleum, or even heat generated by a nuclear reactor
will boil the water to create steam which powers a modern turbine, the design of which dates back
to the original creations by Charles Parsons. And it was a steam turbine that laid the groundwork
for the invention of the gas turbine, which today is commonly known as the jet engine.
In 1908 Parsons company, now called the Marine Steam Turbine Company, decided to slow down the
deterioration of the vessel by taking it out of the water, and kept it stored inside the
company building. In 1926 the boat was offered to the London Science Musuem, which required the
vessel to be cut in half because the entire boat could not fit inside the exhibit hall.
In 1961 the museum put the ship back together to display it in the Newcastle Municipal Museum
of Science and Industry, however, in 1994 it was moved to their museum of Science and Engineering
which is now known as the Discovery Museum. And there she sits today,
the world’s first speed boat, and the first modern steam turbine propulsion system.
With such confidence in his ability, Charles Parsons declared a new future
for marine propulsion technology. Risking his business and his freedom on a publicity stunt,
he had successfully convinced the world of his creation. Though steam turbines are
rarely used anymore, there was a time which this revolutionary technology had dominated the seas,
and inspired technology for air travel, all thanks to this speedy little steamship, Turbinia.