u/Herfinde_NavyTD

The Fluorite was the second ship of the Feldspar-class large light cruisers, commissioned in 1929. Following the expiration of the naval treaties, it was planned to refit her with the same 6-inch triple turrets as the first ship. However, due to the large hull of this class and her high potential for growth, she was instead slated for a comprehensive conversion to better suit air defense, which included replacing her main armament with 5.25-inch Dual-Purpose (DP) guns. This refit was completed in 1943, and she was equipped with state-of-the-art radar.

While her basic hull form is identical to the refitted Feldspar, her major defining feature is the significant improvement in anti-aircraft capabilities through the installation of eight twin 5.25-inch mounts (16 guns total). However, because the two central turrets are waist mounts positioned on each beam, the actual number of guns that can be trained on a single broadside remains fourteen guns in seven turrets, unchanged from her original configuration. Similar to Feldspar, her torpedo tubes were halved and bulges were added, resulting in improved stability but a decrease in speed.

​Her secondary battery, consisting of six twin 4-inch HA mounts (12 guns total), mirrors Feldspar. However, her light anti-aircraft armament was so heavily augmented that she could well be classified as an anti-aircraft cruiser, boasting a total of 40 Bofors 40mm guns in quadruple and twin mounts, along with ten 20mm Oerlikon cannons in five twin mounts.

The Feldspar was a proposed F-class large light cruiser designed as a successor to the Emerald class. She was conceived under the Royal Navy's view that it was high time to build a "true" large light cruiser, following the conversion of the original Courageous-class ships into aircraft carriers. She was envisioned to enter service in 1928.

​With a length of 198 m and a beam of 20 m, she boasted an exceptional size for a light cruiser of her time. Her main armament consisted of fourteen 6-inch 50-caliber guns housed in seven twin turrets, effectively doubling the firepower of the Emerald class. She was also armed with four quadruple 21-inch torpedo mounts (16 tubes total). Her anti-aircraft armament included eight single 4-inch 45-caliber Dual-Purpose guns and ten 2-pounder "pom-pom" barrels.

​Although Feldspar possessed a hull comparable to a heavy cruiser, her design was fundamentally an extension of a light cruiser, as her classification implied. Her slender length-to-beam (L/B) ratio was a testament to this, enabling her to achieve a high speed of 36 knots.

​By the time of her completion, development of the intended triple turrets had stalled, resulting in the installation of the proven twin turrets. However, the hull had been designed to accommodate a future upgrade to triple mounts.

While the Oreste Baratieri’s eighteen-gun main battery and 28.5-knot speed made her highly attractive, she suffered from several issues. Her slender hull lacked sufficient stability when firing the main battery or during hard turns, which forced severe restrictions on her salvo fire. Furthermore, her anti-aircraft capability, though potent upon completion, was becoming inadequate due to the remarkable development of aviation. To resolve these problems, a modernization refit was completed in 1941.

​First, bulges were added below the waterline, widening her beam to 33 meters, and an underwater protection system was incorporated within them to enhance her survivability. The bridge structure and masts were also updated to a more modern configuration, ensuring her command capability.

​Although her main and secondary batteries remained unchanged, her small-caliber anti-aircraft guns were greatly strengthened; the 20 mm twin anti-aircraft mounts were doubled to twelve (24 guns total), and thirty-eight 37 mm/54 anti-aircraft guns were newly added in nineteen mounts. While this extensive overhaul reduced her speed to 27.3 knots, it was still a sufficient value for a fast battleship.

After the cancellation of the unfinished Francesco Caracciolo-class, the Regia Marina (Italian Navy) possessed only obsolete battleships during the interwar period until the completion of the Vittorio Veneto-class. Historically, they attempted to bridge this gap by extensively reconstructing these older vessels, ultimately entering World War II without adequate preparation. The Oreste Baratieri represents a hypothetical design for a newly constructed capital ship during this lull, envisioned to enter service in 1929.

​To simplify the armament design, she was equipped with an astonishing eighteen 320 mm/44 guns housed in six triple turrets, repurposed and bored out from older 30.5 cm guns. Her secondary battery consisted of twelve 15.2 cm/53 twin guns arranged in six turrets rather than traditional casemates, successfully mitigating the interference of heavy seas.

​Anticipating the rapid advancement of naval aviation and aircraft carriers, her anti-aircraft suite featured sixteen 10 cm/47 dual-purpose guns in eight twin mounts, complemented by twelve 20 mm anti-aircraft guns in six twin mounts.

​Measuring 225 meters in length with a 30-meter beam, her hull was remarkably long and slender for a battleship. Powered by a four-shaft propulsion system delivering 136,000 shp, she could achieve a maximum speed of 28.5 knots, making her a highly capable fast battleship.

​While her overall profile retained a somewhat archaic silhouette—characterized by the towering tripod masts fore and aft—her command and control capabilities were well secured by a substantial, imposing tower-like forward bridge.

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However, upon her completion, the vessel suffered from several inherent design flaws that required urgent rectification. (While one might argue these issues should have been resolved during the drawing-board phase, such post-commissioning defects were historically quite common in actual naval architecture.)

The Dlinnyy (Длинный) was a proposed anti-aircraft cruiser developed by the Soviet Navy in response to the urgent need for fleet air-defense vessels capable of protecting the fleet from German air attacks. Under this concept, existing weapons systems were adopted wherever possible. Had the ship been built, it would not have entered service in time for either the war against Germany or Japan, and is envisioned here as entering service in 1945, after the end of the Second World War.

Its main battery consisted of six twin 130 mm/50 gun mounts, while anti-aircraft defense was provided by eight twin 76 mm/55 dual-purpose gun mounts. Additional armament comprised forty 37 mm/67 anti-aircraft guns in a mixture of twin and quadruple mounts, giving the vessel a formidable anti-aircraft capability. Torpedo armament consisted of four triple 533 mm torpedo tube mounts.

Because its main guns were of destroyer-caliber, the Soviet Navy classified the vessel as a large anti-aircraft destroyer rather than a cruiser. Its name was likewise derived from the adjectives traditionally assigned to destroyers. Nevertheless, at 180 m in length with an 18 m beam, the ship was clearly cruiser-sized by contemporary standards, leading to considerable debate among foreign naval observers. However, with the London Naval Treaty already obsolete and the Soviet Union never having been a signatory, no serious diplomatic objections followed.

In appearance, the vessel represented something of a hybrid between contemporary Soviet destroyers and light cruisers. Powered by a twin-shaft propulsion system producing 99,000 shp, its long, slender hull enabled a maximum speed of 40 knots.