Invention The Whitehead Torpedo (c. 1866 - )

From
c. 1866
Fiume (now Rijeka), Austrian Empire (now Croatia)

Summary

The Whitehead torpedo, developed in the mid 1860's by Robert Whitehead, revolutionised torpedo warfare, and led to the construction of vessels specifically designed for torpedo warfare.

Like the Howell Torpedo, the Whitehead Torpedo was 'uncontrolled', but it was distinguished from previous torpedo designs by its ability to travel a set distance underwater at a constant depth.

The Austrian Navy purchased the manufacturing rights for the Whitehead torpedo in 1869, while still permitting Whitehead to sell his invention to other navies. The British Royal Navy purchased and began manufacturing the design in 1871.

In 1891, the value of the Whitehead torpedo as weapon was established by the sinking of the Blanco Encalda with the loss of 11 officers and 171 men of the ship's company by the torpedo gunboat Almirante Condell.

Though the Whitehead continued to dominate the market for naval weapons, many adjustments were made to the design during the second half of the 19th century. In 1897 the addition of the Obry gyroscopic mechanism vastly improved the torpedo's stability and accuracy. Before the addition of the Obry mechanism, the Whitehead could travel an average of 600 yards on its intended course, after the range was increased to around 4000 yards. The speed of the torpedo's propulsion at its first incarnation was 6 knots. By 1898 the Whitehead torpedo could travel at 36 knots.

Skip to

Related entries

Related Glossary Terms

Related Inventions

Related Vessels

Published resources

Books

  • Whitehead Torpedo Production 1876-1915, Royal Norwegian Naval Museum, Horten, Norway, 1997. Details
  • Casali, A and Cattaruzza, M, Sotto I mari del mondo La Whitehead 1875-1990, Gius. Laterza & Figli Spa, Roma-Bari, 1990, 299-318 pp. Details
  • Gray, Edwyn, The Devil's Device: Robert Whitehead and the History of the Torpedo, Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, Maryland, 1991. Details
  • Gray, Edwyn, Nineteenth Century Torpedoes and Their Inventors, Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, Maryland, 2004. Details

Book Sections

  • Cowpe, E., 'The Royal Navy and the Whitehead Torpedo', in Ranft, B. (ed.), Technical change and British Naval policy 1860-1933, Hodder and Stoughton, London, 1997, pp. 23-36. Details
  • Eardley-Wilmot, Captain S., 'Torpedo Warfare', in The Development of Navies, Seeley and Co. Limited, London, 1892, pp. 193-210. Details

Journal Articles

  • 'Robert Whitehead', The Engineer, vol. 100, 17 November 1905, pp. 495-496. Details
  • 'The Whitehead Fish Torpedo', The Scientific American, 28 March 1874, p. 193. Details
  • 'Torpedoes and the Centennial', Engineering, vol. 23, 19 January 1877, pp. 54-55. Details
  • 'Notes from the South-West: The Whitehead Torpedo', Engineering, vol. 26, 29 November 1878, p. 436. Details
  • 'The Whitehead fish torpedo', Engineering, vol. 29, 7 May 1880, p. 360. Details
  • 'The Whitehead Fish Torpedo', Engineering, vol. 29, 7 May 1880, p. 360. Details
  • 'Launching Whitehead Torpedoes from Torpedo Boats', Engineering, vol. 35, 13 April 1883, p. 344. Details
  • 'The Autobiography of a Whitehead Torpedo', Engineering, vol. 39, February-May 1885, pp. 127-128. Details
  • 'The Whitehead torpedo in action', Engineering, vol. 51, 1 May 1891, p. 536. Details
  • 'The Whitehead Torpedo Works at Fiume', Engineering, vol. 72, 20 September 1901, pp. 395-401. Details
  • Briggs, m., 'Innovation and the Mid-Victorian Royal Navy: The case of the Whitehead torpedo', The Mariner’s Mirror, vol. 88, no. 4, 37561, pp. 447-455. Details
  • Ellicott, J. M., 'Automatic Torpedoes Automobile Torpedoes, the Whitehead and Howell with a Detailed Description of each', Engineering, vol. 50, November-December 1890. Details
  • John M. Ellicott, 'The Whitehead torpedo', The Engineer, vol. 72, 1891. Details
  • Sleeman, C. W. S., 'Torpedoes in the late war', Engineering, vol. 26, 1878. Details
  • Wolstencroft, A., 'The Whitehead Story', The Mariner’s Mirror, vol. 59, no. 3, August 1973, pp. 345-348. Details

Newspaper Articles

  • 'Naval and Military Intelligence', The Times, 22 May 1872, p. 5. Details
  • 'Naval and Military Intelligence', The Times, 11 July 1872, p. 5. Details
  • 'Naval and Military Intelligence', The Times, 11 December 1872, p. 3. Details
  • 'Naval and Military Intelligence', The Times, 29 December 1875, p. 3. Details
  • 'Naval and Military Intelligence', The Times, 25 February 1875, p. 5. Details
  • 'Naval and Military Intelligence', The Times, 31 October 1878, p. 10. Details
  • 'Naval and Military Intelligence', The Times, 20 February 1878, p. 7. Details
  • 'Naval and Military Intelligence', The Times, 31 January 1878, p. 5. Details
  • 'Naval and Military Intelligence', The Times, 16 January 1878, p. 10. Details
  • 'The Whitehead Torpedoes', The New York Times, 11 September 1890, p. 4. Details

Reports

  • The Liburnia Project, Whitehead , Livorno and the Italian Navy, The Whitehead Cultural Association. Details

Online Resources

Sources used to compile this entry: Gray, Edwyn, The Devil's Device: Robert Whitehead and the History of the Torpedo, Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, Maryland, 1991.

Prepared by: Rebecca Rigby