Canarias
1936
(USA Models USA-006)
- Class: Canarias - 2 cruisers of 1928
- Displacement: 10,274 tons
- Dimensions: 636 x 64 x 17 ft
- Machinery: 4-shaft geared turbines, 90,000 shp = 33 knots
- Armor: belt 2in, magazines 4.5in, crowns 3in, deck 1-1.5in, turrets & C.T. 1in
- Armament: 8-8in (4x2), 8-4.7in (8x1) A.A. guns; 12-21in T.T. (fixed)
- Complement: 780
- Builder: SECN, Ferrol
- Keel Laid: 15 Aug 1928
- Launched: 28 May 1931
- Commissioned: 16 Sep 1936
- Service: Served as flagship of Nationalist Navy during Spanish Civil War. Broke the Republican blockade of Straits of Gibraltar in Sep 1936 by sinking Republican destroyer Almirante Ferrandiz. She ferried troops from N.Africa for assault on Madrid and then operated in Mediterranean against Republican shipping and coastal positions. Joined by sister ship Baleares in Jan 1937. Deployed to Bay of Biscay in Mar 1937 where she sank or captured seven ships. On 5/6 Mar 1938 both cruisers fought a confused night action against 3 Republican destroyers, and Baleares was torpedoed and sunk. Canarias continued her mercantile warfare, taking more prizes and then badly damaging destroyer Jose Luis Diez near Gibraltar. In Mar 1939 she supported an uprising in Cartagena as the war wound down. During the Civil War she sank or captured a total of 32 ships aside from the two destroyers. The remainder of her career was peaceful; she was modernized post-war and her distinctive large funnel replaced by two separate funnels. Laid up in Dec 1975 and sold for scrapping in 1977.
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