The five ships of the London class[Note 1] were ordered in 1898 in response to increased naval construction for the Imperial Russian Navy.

The London-class ships were powered by a pair of three-cylinder inverted vertical triple-expansion steam engines.

Defence against torpedo boats was provided by sixteen quick-firing (QF) 12-pounder (3 in, 76 mm) 12 cwt guns,[Note 2] eight of which were mounted in the central superstructure and the remaining eight guns were positioned on the main deck fore and aft and fired through unarmoured embrasures in the hull.

As was customary for battleships of the period, they were also equipped with four submerged 18-inch (450 mm) torpedo tubes in the hull, two on each broadside.

The Mediterranean Fleet was recalled to Malta from the Adriatic Sea on 27 October after the Dogger Bank Incident where the Russian Baltic Fleet mistakenly fired upon British fishermen as it passed through the North Sea en route to the Far East during the Russo-Japanese War.

The fleet arrived on the 29th and began loading coal and ammunition in preparation for war, but stood down on 2 November after the Russians agreed to investigate the incident.

On 10 December, Bulwark was ordered back to England for her crew to be paid off and Domville hauled his flag down three days later.

On 9 June, the ship arrived at Genoa, Italy, where Domville hauled his flag down again and Captain Osmond Brock relieved Philpotts.

Two days later, she arrived in Malta where Admiral Lord Charles Beresford hoisted his flag aboard as Commander-in-Chief of the Mediterranean Fleet.

Bulwark began a lengthy refit at Malta on 30 October that lasted until 5 February 1906; the work included the addition of spotting tops equipped with 4-foot-6-inch (1.37 m) Barr & Stroud coincidence rangefinders.

[21] On 10 February, the ship departed for Lagos, Portugal, to rendezvous with the Channel and Atlantic Fleets for manoeuvres that lasted the rest of the month.

Her bottom was slightly damaged during the incidents and she entered drydock at HM Dockyard, Chatham on 31 October to begin repairs and a lengthy refit that lasted until 9 March 1908.

Ten days later, Devonport Dockyard began repairs to the ship's 12-inch turrets and replacement of the worn-out gun barrels that took until 3 March 1909 to complete.

Bulwark arrived at Chatham on 23 July to unload her ammunition and stores in preparation for an extensive refit that began on 1 September and lasted until 1 May 1912.

[32] On 4 June Captain Herbert Chatterton recommissioned Bulwark which was assigned to the 5th Battle Squadron (BS) of the Second Fleet.

Aside from occasional gunnery practice, the ship was very inactive for the rest of the year; for example, she did not leave Spithead from 18 November 1912 to 25 February 1913.

The ship participated in the annual fleet manoeuvres in August and returned to Spithead on 30 October where she remained for the rest of the year.

After covering the safe transportation of the British Expeditionary Force to France in August, the 5th BS remained in Portsmouth until 4 September when they returned to Portland.

The gunnery logbook, recovered partially intact, and the testimony of the chief gunner's clerk, as well as several other survivors, said the six-inch ammunition magazines were being restowed to keep the cordite propellant charges together in lots that morning.

This ignited the cordite charges which detonated the nearby shells and spread to the aft twelve-inch magazine, which exploded.

[43] On 29 November divers sent to find the wreck reported that the ship's port bow as far aft as the sick bay had been blown off by the explosion and lay 50 ft (15 m) east of the mooring.

[39][Note 4] It was designated as a controlled site in 2008 due to it being military remains and cannot be dived upon except with permission from the Ministry of Defence.

It was dedicated by Archdeacon Charles Ingles, the Chaplain of the Fleet,[46] and unveiled by Admiral Hugh Evan-Thomas, Commander-in-Chief, The Nore.

[48] Another memorial was placed in Woodlands Road Cemetery, Gillingham, Kent, as part of the Naval Burial Ground.