The Riysian Navy in the Great Astyrian War
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In the years leading up to the Great Astyrian War, the Riysian Navy embarked on a major building and modernization program, benefiting from a period of general economic prosperity. The main driver behind this buildup was the sultan of Riysa, who believed that a strong navy would allow the increasingly fragile and unstable Riysian Empire to reassert itself in regional politics, project power across Astyria, and reinvigorate the slowly dying Empire.
By the time the Great Astyrian War started, the Riyisan Navy boasted one of the most modern navies in northern Astyria, consisting of 6 dreadnought battleships, 3 semi-dreadnoughts, . Ships of the Navy participated in several major battles during the Great Astyrian War on the side of the Northern Powers. One of the most notable battles of the Riysian Navy was the Battle of <insert name here>, where ships of the Northern and Western Fleets fought against the Belkan Navy in one of the first naval engagements of the War.
Nevertheless, despite the growth in power and prominence of the Riysian Navy, it was powerless to stop the collapse of the Riysian Empire, occurring almost immediately after the end of the Great Astyrian War. It has further been suggested that the massive pre-War buildup might have accelerated its collapse, with the massive costs of enlarging and maintaining the Riysian Navy forcing the Empire into a spiral of debt and bankruptcy that it couldn't recover from.
Doctrine
Knowing that the Riysian Empire lacked the money or industrial base to support a large battleship-focused navy like some of its peers, the Hay'at al-Arkan at the turn of the century developed a war doctrine relying on much cheaper cruisers. In this doctrine, squadrons of cruisers would provide the striking power of the Navy, with the slower, expensive, and largely irreplaceable battleships kept in reserve for defending the coastline or for combating weaker fleets.
Despite the increased funding available to the Riysian Navy, this doctrine was largely kept intact up until the Great Astyrian War, with some amendments. Most notably, battleships could now carry their own offensive power as part of a balanced fleet concept. Additionally, the role of battlecruisers and submarines were clearly defined, both receiving an increasingly important role in supporting the main fleet.
Organization
In addition to the traditional Northern and Southern fleets of the Riysian Navy, a new, third fleet was founded in 1908, the Western Fleet. The purpose of this fleet was to accommodate the "cruiser warfare" doctrine of the Riysian Navy, commanding the majority of the Riysian Navy's cruisers as well as all of its battlecruisers. This fleet was headquartered near the Northern Fleet and typically worked in concert with it.
Pre-dreadnought battleships
Dreadnought battleships
Amawi-class
 The Muawiyah steaming into port.
| |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Built: | 1909–1912 |
| In service: | 1912-1926 |
| Completed: | 4 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Amawi-class dreadnought |
| Displacement: | 27,648 tonnes (27,211 long tons) maximum |
| Length: | |
| Beam: | 12 m (39 ft 4 in) |
| Draught: | 4.62 m (15 ft 2 in) |
| Propulsion: |
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| Speed: | 22.3 knots (41.3 km/h; 25.7 mph) |
| Range: | 7,900 nmi (14,600 km; 9,100 mi) at 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph) |
| Complement: | 330 |
| Armament: |
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The Amawi class are considered to be the first Riysian class of "true" dreadnought battleships, being the most common dreadnought battleship of the Riysian Navy going into the War, and a distinct symbol of Riysian power. These ships were the first Riysian ships to introduce steam turbines and high-velocity 12 inch (304.8 mm) main guns, and had a significantly greater cruising range and speed than any other Riysian battleship; when it was launched, the Amawi was considered to be the most technologically advanced ship in the Riysian Navy.
Amawi class dreadnoughts featured six turrets with two 304.8 mm guns each, with one on both the bow and stern, as well as two turrets on each broadside. Each gun was allocated 87 shells, for a total of 1,044 304.8 mm shells. This gave it a decent broadside, but wasted some weight and space as only four turrets could fire on the same broadside. Secondary armament included 14 154 mm guns in casemates with