Gun tompion from HMS 'Dreadnought', 1906. It is decorated with an unofficial ship's badge showing the head of a bulldog within two circles of rope twist. The badge is made of cast brass attached to a beaten copper plaque. It is attached to an oak base for display. HMS 'Dreadnought' was the first of a new generation of battleships and rendered her predecessors obsolete. She was the fastest battleship in the world when completed and the first capital ship to be powered by steam turbines giving her a speed of 21 knots. She had a uniform battery of 12 inch guns. Built at H.M. Dockyard, Portsmouth, she was launched in 1906 and was scrapped in 1926.