Lot 162: Alma Claude Burlton Cull (British, 1880-1931) H.M.S. Hindustan at sea

H.M.S. Hindustan at sea
signed 'A.B. Cull', inscribed and dated 1922 (lower left)
watercolour
17 x 27.7cm (6 11/16 x 10 7/8in).

H.M.S. Hindustan was one of the eight 'King Edward VII' class battleships first ordered in 1901. Laid down on Clydebank in October 1902, launched in December 1903 and completed in July 1905, Hindustan displaced 17,290 tons (deep loaded) and measured 454 feet in length with a 78 foot beam. All identically armed, the class was well-protected by 4,175 tons of armour-plating and had bunkers for 2,200 tons of best Welsh steam coal. First commissioned into the Atlantic Fleet, she – like Britannia – was attached to the 3rd Battle Squadron of the Grand Fleet when War began in August 1914. Due to her age and increasing obsolescence, most of Hindustan's war service was spent in Home Waters and, having survived hostilities, she was scrapped in 1921.