The Zhiyuan-class cruiser (Zhiyuan, Jingyuan) was a bright pearl in the navy of the late Qing Dynasty, and although its performance parameters were advanced at that time, they were limited by their small tonnage, and their actual combat effectiveness was limited to a certain extent. The following details its four major performance characteristics and their limitations:
Powerful firepower configuration: The Zhiyuan-class cruiser is equipped with three German-made 35 times diameter 210 mm main guns, and with the gun carriage of the British Armstrong Company, it achieves 2The high-speed rate of fire fired once in 5 minutes surpasses similar ships of the same period. In addition, it was armed with a number of 57-mm, 37-mm and 11-mm rapid-fire guns, which ensured superiority in close combat. Among the more than 2,000-ton ships of the Beiyang Navy, the Zhiyuan-class firepower configuration is the most dense and efficient.
Special protection design: Despite the displacement of only 2,300 tons, the Zhiyuan class adopts a double-bottom design, which is divided into up to 60 to 70 watertight compartments, which improves the ship's anti-sinking and survivability. The dome armor design also enhances the protection of the ship to a certain extent, but due to its tonnage limitations, the overall protection capability is still far from that of the real ironclad ship.
High-speed sailing performance: The Zhiyuan class is equipped with an advanced three-expansion steam engine, with a total horsepower of up to 5,500 horsepower, which can be increased to 7,500 horsepower under the condition of strong pressure ventilation, and the design speed is as high as 18 knots, which is one of the fastest non-torpedo ships in the Beiyang Fleet, which is comparable to the Naniwa-class cruisers in the Japanese Combined Fleet.
A number of advanced technologies and equipment were introduced: such as horizontal three-expansion steam engine, electronically controlled artillery salvo device, main gun night operation and aiming device, 6-pounder rapid-fire gun, etc., all advanced technology and equipment introduced by the late Qing Navy, reflecting the scientific and technological content of the Zhiyuan class as the latest type of ship at that time.
However, the small tonnage of the Zhiyuan class has brought obvious practical problems
Small tonnage carries large firepower: The hull of more than 2,000 tons is loaded with heavy artillery beyond its carrying capacity, resulting in a serious tilt of the hull during a volley of firepower, affecting stability and combat effectiveness.
Limited protection capability: Despite a series of protection designs, the overall protection of the Zhiyuan class was still relatively weak due to insufficient base tonnage, which was exposed in the Battle of Dadonggou, where the hull was severely damaged by the enemy's intensive fire and eventually capsized.
To sum up, the Zhiyuan-class cruiser reflected the advanced level of the world's navy at that time in terms of firepower configuration, protection design, speed and technical equipment, but it was limited by a small displacement and could not give full play to its due combat effectiveness. Unfortunately, under realistic conditions, the Zhiyuan class can only play a role between a reconnaissance ship and a capital ship, and its actual utility has not reached the ideal state.
The rapid sinking of the Zhiyuan ship in the First Sino-Japanese Naval Battle is thought-provoking. After digging historical documents, we found that the key factor in the sinking of the Zhiyuan was not simply due to direct combat damage, but due to a seemingly small but crucial link in the maintenance of the ship - the aging of the rubber seal of the watertight door was not replaced in time. Although the captains discovered this hidden danger and reported it, due to the complicated approval process and financial management mechanism at the time, this seemingly simple repair work was not effectively implemented.
In the joint report of Cao Jiaxiang and Rao Mingheng, two officers of the Zhenyuan ship after the war, it was clearly pointed out that the Zhiyuan ship and the Jingyuan ship had requested the replacement of the damaged watertight door rubber, but the application was not approved. This detail eventually turned into a fatal wound, causing the Zhiyuan ship to sink quickly after being bombarded, with a large amount of seawater pouring in in a short period of time, unable to save it.
This history reveals the serious shortcomings in the army's logistics support and management system, reflecting the neglect of the maintenance of military facilities and the lag of financial allocation and material procurement processes in the Qing Dynasty at that time, which has become one of the important factors determining the outcome of the war. In contrast, Japanese ships may have been more rigorous in their handling of similar details, and thus survived the blow, which also leaves us with a profound historical lesson: details often determine success or failure, and no detail of military security can be easily ignored.
Looking back at history, we can't help but imagine that if the maintenance work of the Beiyang Navy at that time could have been properly handled, many ships might have avoided the fate of sinking, and the outcome of the Sino-Japanese First Sino-Japanese Naval Battle might have been rewritten. However, history does not allow for assumptions, and only through in-depth reflection on the lessons of the past can we better warn future generations, pay attention to every subtlety, and not allow similar problems to hinder the development of our naval power again.