The Museum The first torpedoes bore little resemblance to later more familiar designs. Made of elm wood, with copper-lined core of explosive, they had no propulsion of their own. Some were attached to a protruding spar extending like a knight's lance from the bow of the attacking vessel. Others were towed behind the stern on wither side. Both types were detonated by electric wire. The breakthrough came in 1866 when Robert Whitehead, an English engineer working near Trieste in Italy, invented the first self-propelled torpedo.
The Admiralty, and several other navies, bought the rights and began production. In most important respects the weapon was to change little from 1870 until the 1940s. Throughout his time, installations around Portsmouth Harbour, such as the Royal Navy Torpedo Depot, from 1886 to 1959, and Frater depot from 1959 to the present day, played a strong part in all major developments over many years.
In 1880, introduction of the launch tube enabled the torpedo to be launched above or below water. In 1896 the invention of the gyroscope allowed a course to be set and maintained. In 1914 the first torpedoes were dropped from aircraft, and in 1915 amatol, a superior explosive, was introduced.
Little was to change with Torpedo development until the 1930’s. Electric propulsion was developed to allow a smoother run, with less chance for the target to evade attack. Only in the last 60 years has the Torpedo changed significantly from Whitehead’s initial design. Advances in fuel have provided much more efficient propulsion. The introduction of wire guidance has enabled the course of a Torpedo to be corrected or changed, thus increasing the effectiveness and firing range.
