A cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period. During the Age of Sail, the term 'cruiser' reflected a type of mission - independent scouting, raiding or commerce protection - fulfilled by a frigate or sloop, which were the 'cruising warships' of a fleet.
From the middle of the 19th century, 'cruiser' came to be a classification for the ships intended for this kind of role, though cruisers came in a wide variety of sizes, from the small protected cruiser to armoured cruisers which were as large (though not as powerful) as a battleship.
By the early 20th century, cruisers could be placed on a consistent scale of warship size, smaller than a battleship but larger than a destroyer. In 1922, the Washington Naval Treaty placed a formal limit on cruisers, which were defined as warships of up to 10,000 tons displacement carrying guns no larger than 8 inches in calibre. These limits shaped cruisers up until the end of World War II. The very large battlecruisers of the World War I era were now classified, along with battleships, as capital ships.
In the later 20th century, the obsolescence of the battleship left the cruiser as the largest and most powerful surface combatant. The role of the cruiser varied according to ship and navy, often including air defence, commerce raiding and shore bombardment. The U.S. Navy in the Cold War period built guided-missile cruisers primarily designed to provide air defence, while the navy of the USSR built cruisers with heavy anti-ship missiles designed to sink NATO carrier task forces.
Currently only three nations, the United States, Russia, and Peru (BAP Almirante Grau (CLM-81) while still in service with the Peruvian Navy), operate cruisers, though the line between cruisers and destroyers is once again blurred. New models of destroyers (for instance the Zumwalt class or Arleigh Burke class) are often larger and more powerful than cruiser classes they replace.
| Cruiser | Picture | Spesifications | Country | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ticonderoga Class cruiser |  | Displacement: 9,800 tons full load Length: 567 feet (173 m) Beam: 55 feet (16.8 meters) Draught: 34 feet (10.2 meters) Propulsion: 80,000 shaft horsepower (60,000 kW) Speed: 32.5 knots (60 km/h) Range: 6,000 nmi (11,000 km) at 20 kn (37 km/h); 3,300 nmi (6,100 km) at 30 kn (56 km/h) | US | 1983 |
| Project 1142.2 - Kirov Class |  | Displacement: 9,287 long full load Length: 191.3 m (627 ft 7 in) Beam: 17.66 m (57 ft 11 in) Draught: 6.15 m (20 ft 2 in) (full load) Propulsion: 113.500 shp Speed: 35.94 knots (66.56 km/h) Range: 3,750 nmi (6,950 km; 4,320 mi) at 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph) | Russia | 1980 |
| Slava Class cruiser |  | Displacement: 12,500 tons full load Length:186.4 m Beam: 20.8 m Draught: 8.4 m Propulsion: 130,000 shp Speed: 32 knots Range: 7,500 miles @ 18 knots | Russia | 1979 |
| Virginia Class Cruiser |  | Displacement: 11,666 tons full load Length:179 m Beam: 19 m Draught: 10 m Propulsion: 120,000 shp Speed: 30 knots Range: unlimited | US | 1976 |
| California Class Cruiser |  | Displacement: 10,600 tons full load Length:179 m Beam: 19 m Draught: 9.6 m Propulsion: 120,000 shp Speed: 30 knots Range: unlimited | US | 1974 |
| Sverdlov Class Cruiser |  | Displacement: 16,640 tons full load Length:210 m Beam: 22 m Draught: 6.9 m Propulsion: 110,000 shp Speed: 32.5 knots Range: 9000 nm | Soviet | 1966 |
| Kara Class |  | Displacement: 9,900 tons Length: 173.2 m Beam: 18.6 m Draught: 6.7 m Propulsion: 120,000 hp Speed: 32 knots Range: 9,000 miles | Russia | 1965 |
| Jeanne d'Arc R 97 |  | Displacement: 10,575 -12,365 tons Length: 182 m Beam: 24 m Draught: 7.5 m Propulsion: 29 420 kW Speed: 28 knots (52 km/h) Range: 3 000 - 7,500 nautical miles (14,000 km) at 15 knots (28 km/h) | France | 1964 |
| Leahy class guided missile cruiser |  | Displacement: 7,800 tons Length: 533 ft Beam: 55 ft Draught: 21 ft Propulsion: 85,000 shp Speed: 32 knots Range: 8,000 nm @ 20 knots | US | 1962 |
| Project 58 Missile or Kynda class cruisers |  | Displacement: 4,400-5,500 tons Length: 142 m Beam: 15.8 m Draught: 5.3 m Propulsion: 100,000 shp Speed: 34 knots Range: 3,610 miles | Russia | 1961 |
| Long Beach class cruiser |  | Displacement: 15,025 tons Length: 220 m Beam: 22.3 m Draught: 9.4 m Propulsion: 80,000 shp Speed: 32.5 knots Range: - miles | US | 1956 |
| Des Moines class cruiser |  | Displacement: 17,000 tons Length: 218 m Beam: 23.3 m Draught: 6.7 m Propulsion: 120,000 shp Speed: 33 knots Range: 10,500 nmi at 15 knots | US | 1948 |
| Worcester class cruiser |  | Displacement: 14,700 tons Length: 680 ft Beam: 71 ft Draught: 26 ft Propulsion: 120,000 shp Speed: 33 knots Range: 8,000 nmi (15,000 km) @ 15 knots (17 mph; 28 km/h) | US | 1948 |
| Oregon City class cruiser |  | Displacement: 17,000 tons Length: 205 m Beam: 21.6 m Draught: 8 m Propulsion: 120,000 shp Speed: 32.4 knots Range: - knots | US | 1946 |
| De Grasse class cruiser |  | Displacement: 9,389 tons Length: 199.3 m Beam: 21.5 m Draught: 5.54 m Propulsion: 54,000 shp Speed: 33.8 knots Range: - knots | France | 1946 |
| Fargo class cruiser |  | Displacement: 10,000 tons Length: 186.28 m Beam: 20.27 m Draught: 6.1 m Propulsion: - shp Speed: 33 knots Range: - knots | US | 1945 |
