HMS Caroline moving to Portsmouth?

To take a bit of time away from football I like to talk about a subject that has got me interested ever since I heard about this ship and it's decommissioning. This is that HMS Caroline which is a C-class light cruiser launched 1914 and is the only surviving veteran of the Battle of Jutland in World War One. As this war is slowly fading into history and no living veterans still alive this is a important artifact of naval history, it still is largely intact and in good condition.
The Royal Navy Museum in Portsmouth took over it's well being after it was decommission from the Royal Navy Reserve in November 2011.

HMS Caroline berthed in Belfast

The first mention of it being possibly moving to Portsmouth came in 2009 when rumours of it's eventual retirement was announced, the Commanding Officer of Caroline said the rumours of it being run by the Royal Navy Museum in Portsmouth as 'wide of the mark'  he further said; “They have no desire to move the ship from Belfast — they never wanted to move her to Portsmouth, it is all speculation,”.
On online forums discussing this subject many citizens of Belfast believe it is logical to leave HMS Caroline in her existing berthing because of it's proximity to the Titanic Experience which opened in April 2012. Another warship fighting for survival as a museum HMS Plymouth is seen as the logical favorite for Portsmouth.
Now in June 2012 plans are underway to piggy-back HMS Caroline back to Portsmouth to be restored to a museum ship to join alongside Mary Rose, HMS Victory, HMS Warrior (1860) and Monitor (M33). This again was met with equal views from Belfast and supporters of HMS Plymouth.


That's the background story of HMS Caroline's decommission and potential home as a museum ship, I have a personal interest in the ship after hearing about this. Because of it's historical importance to naval power in World War One this is an essential monument to save to those who lost their lives at sea during the war. The Battle of Jutland was the biggest naval engagement of warships between the Royal Navy and the Imperial German Navy, this was seen as the modern 'Trafalgar' as it was the first large scale naval battle between Dreadnought battleships, Caroline was part of this battle as part of 26 cruisers.
After World War One it was saved from being scrapped by being placed in Belfast as a training ship for the Royal Navy Reserve, it was a home for many sailors who trained during the Second World War.  It was listed as part of the Historic Fleet, Core Collection which protects ships that are of historical significance, many historical ships are listed in this collection such as HMS Victory, the Cutty Sark and SS Great Britain.

Why would Caroline fit so well into Portsmouth? Well it would fit perfectly into the current line up of ships in the Historic Dockyard in Portsmouth and would serve as 'missing link' from the Ironclad HMS Warrior to the modern day navy ships next door. With only 54 years apart from each other it would demonstrate the fast and rapid evolution of the Royal Navy after decades of industrial revolution and advancing technology. If berthed next to the Warrior it would show a progression of trust and belief that adopted new technology was a good thing, for instance Caroline was installed with steam turbines which would give her an impressive speed 28 knots and would link well with the large steam engines of the Warrior and how it quickly evolved, got smaller and more efficient with advancing technology such as Turbinia.
It also has similar dimensions to the Warrior, it only is bigger in draught and beam by around 10ft, and would fit alongside on a jetty. A aerial shot shows how much room there is next to the ironclad warship;

Berthing Caroline opposite to HMS Warrior (which is similar in length) could be plausible

The ship can also serve as a reminder to other ships that helped shape naval power during the war, starting with the most famous ship of all, HMS Dreadnought, launched in 1906 it made all other battleships obsolete, with it's fast steam turbines and impressive armament it set an unprecedented message to it's enemies. By World War One Dreadnought construction was underway in the UK, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Austria-Hungary and as far away as Japan. With Dreadnought being constructed in Portsmouth it serves and important lesson as one of the reasons why World War One started.

Caroline would also provide a boom in the local economy and tourism industry, with the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Jutland just only 4 years away I'm sure whoever will own and run the ship would want her to be open to the public for that. The addition of Caroline to the Historic Dockyard attraction line up would be fantastic, it would provide more value for money on top of an already outstanding price for what you get.

What would need to be done? The current ship has undergone a lot of changes since it's berthing in Belfast in the 1920s, here is the original ship and it's side profile;

HMS Caroline in active Royal Navy service

Here is the ship in her current condition;

With modifications made while she was a training school in the Royal Navy Reserve

The ship would need her superstructure reshaped back to it's original fittings, removed of rooms and buildings put onto the ship in her career as a training ship. It would also require the reinstatement of the all it's armaments including it's front turrets which I'm sure would have to be re-cast. This could be a project that could be taken on by students at the University of Portsmouth or a combined effort even to restore items of the ship. With the ship kept in a good condition the only major costs of refurbishing of the ships would be to bring it back up to it's original fittings in 1916, especially casting new turrets and parts of the superstructure.

But what about HMS Plymouth? With the subject of HMS Plymouth it would probably be more beneficial to keep it in it's namesake city, it would serve as a reminder and homage to those who gave their lives to the Falklands War. If Portsmouth wanted a ship to remember the Falklands then I would either recommend HMS Bristol (Type 82 Destroyer) or HMS Hermes (which is currently INS Viraat) once she is retired from the Indian Navy, both served in the conflict and would serve more fittingly to those in Portsmouth than HMS Plymouth. Especially Hermes who was the flagship of the task force which liberated the islands months after it was invaded by the Argentine forces.

HMS Hermes (now INS Viraat) returning from the Falklands War

Overall I believe it would be foolish to overlook HMS Caroline and leave it in Belfast, despite all the history and the local fondness to the ship the Navy Museum must keep the ships well-being in mind, it's artifacts are stored in Portsmouth and would have better facilities to maintain it there. It would be received positively and would act as a poignant reminder to a terrible war which is unfortunately slowly being forgotten as the decades go on. The Naval side of the war is only told through the Battle of Jutland and Caroline would serve as a guide to all Naval involvement in World War One, and also to the Battle of Jutland itself.
I for one will welcome her home if this becomes a reality and will eagerly anticipate visiting her decks, as a keen history lover and of the Royal Navy and it's rich history it would be fantastic for the city and the Historic Dockyard to have a ship of such historical significance in such a good condition. It would be foolish otherwise!

I hope you've enjoyed the blog, it's a subject matter I feel passionately about, but was not sure if this would end up a good constructive debate, or a load of rambling about HMS Caroline.