were all mounted in hull embrasures while Georgii Pobedonosetss eight single-barreled guns were mounted on the battery deck. They fired a shell at a muzzle velocity of at a rate of 30 rounds per minute to a range of . Georgii Pobedonosets also had ten single-barreled Hotchkiss guns in her fighting top, but the older three ships mounted four 5-barreled guns. They fired a shell at a muzzle velocity of at a rate of 32 rounds per minute to a range of . They all carried seven above-water torpedo tubes, three tubes on each broadside plus a tube in the stern. Armor The Ekaterina II-class ships were originally designed with a short, heavily armored, central citadel, but this was changed during construction to a full waterline belt. The three older ships used compound armor imported from Charles Cammell of the United Kingdom. The maximum thickness of the belt was 16 inches which reduced, in steps, to eight inches at the bow and stern. The belt was high, and tapered down to a thickness of six inches at the bottom edge for the 16-inch plates. The upper of the belt was intended to be above the waterline, but the ships were overweight and much of the belt was submerged. For example, Ekaterina II only had above the waterline. The central citadel was above the belt, long and high. It had 12-inch sides and was closed off by a forward bulkhead (partition) and a rear bulkhead. The triangular redoubt was high and protected the guns with plates 12 inches thick. Sinops redoubt was about shorter to save weight. Armored hoods were fitted over the barbettes to protect the crews from small arms and splinters. Ekaterina IIs was thick, but those of Chesma and Sinop were thick. The 6-inch guns and torpedoes were completely unprotected. The thickness of the conning tower's sides varied between the ships; it was six inches on Ekaterina II, eight inches on Chesma and nine inches on Sinop. The armor deck was thick over the citadel, but only elsewhere. In contrast to her half-sisters the armor used on Georgii Pobedonosets was steel. The belt armor had a maximum thickness 12 inches which thinned, in two-inch steps, down to six inches forward and eight inches aft. Its height was reduced by in comparison to the other ships of the class to to save weight. However this left only six inches