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HMCS (later HMAS)〔His/Her Majesty's Colonial Ship, later His Majesty's Australian Ship〕 ''Protector'' was a large flat-iron gunboat commissioned and purchased by the South Australian government in 1884, for the purpose of defending the local coastline against possible attacks in the aftermath of the ‘Russian scare', of the 1870s.〔Cohen, Raymond (1979). ''Threat perception in international crisis''. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press. ISBN 0-299-08000-5. (OCLC: 4983577 ).〕 She arrived in Adelaide in September 1884 and subsequently served in the Boxer Rebellion, World War I and World War II. During July 1943, ''Protector'' was requisitioned for war service by the US Army. On the way to New Guinea and off Gladstone, she was damaged in a collision with a tug and abandoned. The hull was subsequently taken to Heron Island off the Queensland coast and later sunk for use as a breakwater. Her rusting remains are still visible to this day. ==Description and armament== Built at William Armstrong & Co, Newcastle-on-Tyne, England, ''Protector'' was built to a standard type F1 flat-iron gunboat design, but was one of the largest of its type, and was classified as a light cruiser, with a displacement of 920 tons. Her length was , with two compound surface-condensing engines that produced . Her top speed was . To conserve fuel (coal) she was also originally rigged as a topsail schooner.〔Sea Power Centre Australia (2008). (HMAS Protector (I) ) Retrieved online 15 September 2008.〕 For her size, ''Protector'' was exceptionally heavily armed. Her largest weapon was the Armstrong rifled breech-loading gun mounted at the bow. The gun weighed 12 tons and could fire a shell using a charge of of black powder.〔State Library of South Australia (2007). (''Gunboat The Protector.'' ) Retrieved online 25 February 2008.〕〔90 lb powder charge, as per (Text Book of Gunnery 1902 ), War Office, UK, and as per (Victorian Navy Manuals of 1887 & 1895 )〕 Other armaments included five Woolwich-Armstrong rifled breech-loading guns; four 3-pounder 1.85 calibre Hotchkiss QF guns and five Gatling machine guns. Her small arms consisted of: 200 0.45 Martini-Henry rifles Mk IV; 100 breech-loading revolvers; 100 cutlasses and 30 boarding pikes. At the outbreak of World War I, her armament was increased to include two guns, two 12-pounder guns and four 3-pounder guns. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「HMAS Protector (1884)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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