For some strange reason I had a sudden desire to knock up some Victorian ironclads last week (nothing to do with "the Plan", one of those spur of he moment decisions. After a few days playing on Meshmixer I had knocked up three new models. Last year I created fleets for the Russo Turkish war in 1/1200 using some 3d models I bought on Wargame Vault. The models needed a lot of work to turn them into reasonable representation of the actual ships, and in so doing I created a library of funnels, turrets, masts and other fittings as well as hulls from which I could create new ships. At that time I used those pieces to build the auxiliary fleets of both sides (so plenty of steamers and paddle gunboats). This time I was looking for something bigger.
There are four new classes, three turret ships and a monitor. The turret ships are based on HMVS Cerberus, HMS Inflexible and a lengthened Inflexible type (mainly because I got the length wrong the first time). The fourth is a Royal Navy monitor. Whilst reading the new Helion book on HMS Captain I came across a section that briefly discussed RN plans for armoured ships for coastal defence (and a possible war in North America). The passage hinted at the preparation of designs for turret monitors similar to the US Passaic and Canonicus classes, so I thought I'd have a go at knocking one up. The design takes a "traditional" US monitor arrangement but with a Coles turret and with a deckhouse (I wanted something that looked distinct from a US type). The idea being that the deckhouse provided some cabins and other spaces in a lightly built open structure that was sacrificial in action, the engines, magazines, crew accommodation etc. below the armoured deck. I was quite pleased with the result.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUhRLDkD2S3aSJttF_95ms1NNoeGGVgheLLuGATQQfwm3mfNykSlkbE01hdV_cVn_iM4kTShfbmM6wcgoFU98PIrRU3ycZASEfGcWM5zBJhX3jb492_G0N8VX-5a1b4d8DUEjdveWAuiU/w400-h225/2021-02-10+08.48.56.jpg)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdl7ovhL_jG0TKbZXy_yWl3jni_ishcZd3wtuTebqjZcpmLw1ltovpC8KL7HXmUPc0tuU65uqUSxP4YNrcKZRMsvKzgndg0GFSUXAyW8ijxqy83Z6hhCOWUXp2FsAHz0w5GsNbBfh3Jco/w400-h225/2021-02-10+08.49.17.jpg)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5jHyy0mz4360UCY-0SdAkA11IGDQNOjnk1eQrfkqsbZTDgwDPQFwxmVFklWn_UCf3jb79d-ro4snpw9Trlrk-ic7CwDXFmHVJmNr01fwrS1gQ494V1ThClyelkdrTTe87Hqlx3Hxinhs/w400-h225/2021-02-10+08.49.24.jpg)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqaEmb-JsLtcwi-kxiejqKzF84R72HCnLHtATeZPlfdGXAiPpYqGuc83TAiR4O4qPRlSt6PEYvqHckfpJahVowLN0__bPOsoFEro08_nLXdNqD-1pb1gmIoyWyJDvOjPMV2x-TgIRppP4/w400-h225/2021-02-10+08.49.47.jpg)
None of these are true representations of their subjects (and in the case of the monitor of course, entirely conjectural), But they will see sterling service in the naval "imagi-nations" campaign setting that I am slowly working up, alongside the other hypothetical 1870s ironclads that I created when printing out the Turkish fleet.
More on that project another day....