U.S.S. TEXAS - BB35

 

Protective Systems

The ship had to be able to take punishment as well as dish it out and like any other battleship, Texas was heavily armored.  She had heavy armor belts that extended above and below the waterline to protect vital areas of the ship.  Critical areas above the belt were enclosed within additional armor that made up the Citadel.  As good as that sounds, Texas' protection scheme was minimal at best and the ship would have been in serious trouble if attacked by air, high angle shots or torpedo.

Most of the of the ship's design occurred in 1910-11, well before aircraft presented a threat and when gun ranges were fairly short.  For that reason, the threat of plunging fire through the decks by high trajectory shell fire and aerial bombs was not seriously considered.  Texas' deck armor was fairly light and even though it was increased during the 1925-27 modernization, there was little protection against common WWII threats.

Newer ships also had complex interior armor and bulkhead arrangements that improved their survivability against torpedo attacks.  Texas had little of this, but torpedo blisters were added during the modernization to provide at least a little more protection.

 

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The ship's belt armor was covered by torpedo blisters that were added during its 1925-27 modernization.  The historic photo to the right shows the ship prior to launch and before the belt was added.  The teak timbers that fill the gap between the armor and hull can be seen.  The other photo taken on the third deck shows some of the large nuts used to hold the armor in place.

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The protective deck, between 3rd deck and 1st platform, sloped close to the stern to enclose the steering gear.  The left hand photo shows a yard worker riveting some in place during construction.  The second photo shows the same armor from inside the steering gear room.  The last photo shows the armor and heavy structural bracing where it joins the hull.

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The citadel provided heavy armor protection for critical systems located on upper deck levels.  Some of the systems included the fresh water evaporators and boiler uptakes.  In its early days, the ship had 5" gun mounts located in hull positions at the second deck level.  Many of these were also protected by the citadel as its armor extended out to the hull along a significant length of the ship.  The illustration indicates the extent of the armor.  The lower, left photo shows one of the four heavy armored doors through the citadel that required a geared handle mechanism to close.  The lower, right photo shows a profile of the armor at one of the old gun mounts.

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The torpedo blisters were added during the 1925-26 modernization was an attempt to make Texas a little safer from torpedo attacks.  The idea is that a torpedo would explode against the blister and much of the explosive force would dissipate inside the blister instead of penetrate the hull.  However, the added buoyancy provided by the blisters seriously affected Texas' handling in heavy seas and made the ship roll heavily and handle poorly.  The left photo shows how they significantly added to the ship's entry into the water.  The right clearly shows the top of the blister and how it juts out from the original hull.