Editing Courageous-class battlecruiser (section)

=== Protection ===
Unlike on other British battlecruisers, the bulk of the armour of the ''Courageous''-class ships was made from high-tensile steel, a type of steel used structurally in other ships. Their waterline [[Belt armor|belt]] consisted of {{convert|2|in|0}} covered by a {{convert|1|in|0|adj=on}} skin. It ran from barbette to barbette with a one-inch extension forward to the two-inch forward [[bulkhead (partition)|bulkhead]] well short of the bow. The belt had a height of {{convert|23|ft|m|1}}, of which {{convert|18|in|m|1}} was below the designed waterline. From the forward barbette a three-inch bulkhead extended out to the ship's side between the upper and lower decks and a comparable bulkhead was in place at the rear barbette as well. Four decks were armoured with thicknesses varying from {{convert|.75|to|3|in}}, with the greatest thicknesses over the magazines and the steering gear. After the loss of three battlecruisers to magazine explosions during the [[Battle of Jutland]], {{convert|110|LT|t|0}} of extra protection was added to the deck around the magazines.<ref>Burt, pp. 308, 313.</ref>

The turrets, barbettes and conning tower were made from [[Krupp cemented armour]]. The turret faces were {{convert|9|in|0}} thick while their sides ranged from {{convert|7|to|9|in|0}} in thickness and the roof was {{convert|4.5|in|0}} thick. The barbettes had a maximum thickness of {{convert|6|to|7|in|0}} above the main deck, but reduced in thickness to {{convert|3|to|4|in|0}} between the lower and main decks. The conning tower armour was {{convert|10|in|0}} thick and it had a three-inch roof. The primary fire-control director atop the conning tower was protected by an armoured hood. The face of the hood was six inches thick, its sides were two inches thick and its roof was protected by three inches of armour. A communications tube with three-inch sides ran from the conning tower down to the lower conning position on the main deck. The [[torpedo bulkhead]]s were increased during building from {{convert|.75|in}} to {{convert|1.5|in}} in thickness.<ref>Roberts, pp. 54, 106, 113.</ref>

All three ships were fitted with a shallow [[anti-torpedo bulge]] integral to the hull which was intended to explode the torpedo before it hit the hull proper and vent the underwater explosion to the surface rather than into the ship. However, later testing proved that it was not deep enough to accomplish its task as it lacked the layers of empty and full compartments that were necessary to absorb the force of the explosion.<ref>Roberts, p. 111.</ref>