The St Katherines were a one-up on contemporary Wesmeric and Salian battleships that came before. As the navy had alot to catch up on if it was to challenge Aemoric navies in their own seas, the Antarans would need to push even more for quality over quantity. In this vain, the class of 27k ton capitals was chosen over previous proposals for 20-23k ships, which would've been ordered in triples from between 1310 to 1314, numbering 12 new battleships to be commissioned by 1317.
The navy settled with 8 vessels commissioned between 1316 and 1318, the St Katherine and St Mia classes, all named for Antara's patron saints of the past. This was also the more reasonable proposal, as shipyards with enough slipways were still somewhat limited at the time. St Katherine saw the jump in artillery caliber from 305mm to 356mm, this was to match foreign trends. The 356mm/50 had a troubled early history as its barrel life was short and its accuracy leaving much to be desired. These issues were only ironed out after the Great War had ended, but it's range and penetration was good for the time, however by then the navy had moved onto 406mm guns. Aside from the artillery upgrade, the ship's design was standard for its period, as was its speed of 21 knots.
The St Katherines were part of Antara's central battle group of the Great War and saw much action as Battleship Division 4. At the Battle of Hampton in 1320, BatDiv 4 encountered Wesmere's own 4th Battleship Squadron, as well as the 3rd, made up of a total of 9 capital ships. With the assistance of Sieg battle lines, and the trailing BatDiv 3, the Antarans and Siegs pummeled the opposing fleet. St Naomi and St Lucian suffered considerable damage, whilst St Camilla was fired on by Konig Armin and Kaiser Friedrich in a friendly fire incident. The similiar profiles between Antaran and Wesmeric battleships caused considerable confusion once each squadron had begun to move independently as the battle waged on. The confusion also created doubts as to which warships sank the other, however the engagement between the battleships alone still resulted in six Wesmeric capitals sinking, four Antaran, and one Sieg.
All four ships remained in service throughout the interwar period and in the World War. St Camilla, St Katherine, and St Lucian were all moored at Port Isla at the surprise attack that brought the Antarans into the war in 1342. St Camilla was struck by six torpedoes and capsized as a result of flooding, whilst St Katherine was struck by two and listed heavily to starboard, but was saved by damage control. St Lucian was ignored throughout the attack. St Camilla was irreparable and was broken apart over several months of work. St Katherine was repaired after four months. St Lucian was boxed in by surrounding wreckages and did not resume service until St Katherine had returned from mainland waters in early 1343. These two vessels saw extensive combat in the Scyllic fleet thereafter.
Whilst this was going on, St Naomi had been stationed on the East coast as a part of the Freyatic Fleet, she was lost to air attack by Salian forces in 1345. After the war, the remaining vessels had been in service for over 20 years and were obsolete. St Lucian was elected for nuclear testing and was sunk as a result. St Katherine was to be scrapped, but with funding from the public, she was instead preserved as a memorial ship in the city that shared her name. In 1392, the battleship was permanently moved to a dry berth where it still remains.
Specifications
Tonnage - 26 800 tonnes standard, 30 000 full load
Speed - 21 knots
Range - 8000nm at 12 knots
Main battery - 5xII 356mm/50
Secondary battery - 12xI 152mm/45
Tertiary battery - 16xI 76mm/50 (as commissioned)
Hull armor - 305mm main belt, 76mm upper and extended belt, 356mm main CT, 254mm secondary CT, 76mm armoured deck
Turret armor - 356mm MB face, 305mm barbettes, 254mm MB sides, 152mm casemates
Ships in class
St Katherine - decommissioned and preserved as museum ship, 1350
St Naomi - sunk by air attack, 1345
St Lucian - sunk in nuclear testing, 1352
St Camilla - sunk during attack on Port Isla, 1342
