Germany's first armored cruiser, SMS Fürst Bismarck in a most satisfying calendar illustration. Enlarge
- SMS Fürst Bismarck - 1898
- SMS Prinz Heinrich - 1900
- The Prinz Adalbert Class - 1903
- The Roon Class - 1905
- The Scharnhorst Class - 1907
- SMS Blücher - 1909
- Spy Out the Competition: British Armored Cruisers
- Cruiser Section Index Page
This page contains unedited material from Wikipedia.
SMS Fürst Bismarck was the ceremonial first ship launched under the watershed German Navy Law of 1898. The ailing Iron Chancellor was induced to give a written endorsement for the bill and naming the fist-launched ship after him was Tirpitz flattering the old man. It is doubtful Bismarck thought well of the trend to naval competition with Britain -- he had often cautioned Wilhelm not to antagonize Britain with a too-aggressive push for sea power. The photo above shows the new warship coming into her berth at Kiel. Enlarged view conveys some of the vesel's size and gravitas.
Upon commissioning, Fürst Bismarck was assigned to the German East Asia Squadron. She arrived at Qingdao in August 1900, under the command of Rear Admiral Kurt von Prittwitz und Gaffron, and participated in the bloody suppression of the Boxer Rebellion. When the new armored cruiser SMS Scharnhorst arrived at Qingdao in 1909 to replace Fürst Bismarck as flagship of the East Asia Squadron, she was ordered back to Germany. Upon arriving in Kiel in June 1909, she was decommissioned and entered a lengthy modernization that lasted until 1914.
At the outbreak of World War I, the ship was reactivated for coast defense duties, but was quickly withdrawn from active service. Fürst Bismarck spent the remainder of the war as a stationary accommodation and engineering training ship in Kiel. In 1919, she was used for a short time as an office ship. She was struck from the navy register on 17 June 1919, sold for scrap, and broken up the following year at Audorf-Rendsburg.
Specifications for the Fürst Bismarck:
Dimensions: 399' LWL x 65'6" x 27' LOA: 410' Displacement: 10,700 tons. Armament: (4) 9.4"/40 M99 (2x2), (12) 6"/40 QF, (10) 15½-pdr and (14) 1-pdr guns; (3) 18" torpedo tubes initially; torpedo setup changed several times. Armor: 8"/4"/2" belt, 8" turrets, 8" barbettes, 4" battery, casemates, and small turrets; 8" conn; 2" deck. Fuel capacity: 1,000 tons of coal std; 1,200 maximum. Propulsion: (8) coal-fired Schulz-Thornycroft and (8) cylindrical boilers; (3) vertical inverted 4-cyl triple expansion engines developing 13,600 hp, shafted to triple screw. Maximum speed: 19 kts. Crew: 529. Initial cost: £921,924 at 1898 valuation.
Metric specifications:
Dimensions: 121.6m LWL x 20m x 8.3m LOA: 125m Displacement: 10,700 tons. Armament: (4) 240 mm/40 M99 (2x2), (12) 152 mm/40 QF, (10) 15½-pdr and (14) 1-pdr guns; (3) 45 cm torpedo tubes initially; torpedo setup changed several times. Armor: 203/102/50 mm belt, 203 mm turrets, 203 mm barbettes, 102 mm battery, casemates, and small turrets; 203 mm conn; 50 mm deck. Fuel capacity: 1,000 tons of coal std; 1,200 maximum. Propulsion: (8) coal-fired Schulz-Thornycroft and (8) cylindrical boilers; (3) vertical inverted 4-cyl triple expansion engines developing 13,600 hp, shafted to triple screw. Maximum speed: 33.34 km/hr. Crew: 529. Initial cost: £921,924 at 1898 valuation.
This vessel was named for the Kaiser's brother, Prince Henry of Prussia, titular head of the Imperial German Navy. The Prinz Heinrich was built at Kiel Naval Dockyard, being laid down in December 1898 and completed in March 1902. She cost 16,588,000 Gold Marks, or about $4.1M US in the currency of that time.
At the start of World War I, Prinz Heinrich was assigned to the III Scouting Group. She participated in the operation to bombard Hartlepool on Dec. 16, 1914. Prinz Heinrich, along with the Roon, was assigned to the van of the High Seas Fleet, which was providing distant cover to Rear Admiral Hipper's battlecruisers, which were conducting the bombardment.
In April 1915, she was transferred to the Baltic. Less than a year later, in March 1916, she was demoted to barracks ship, and served in that capacity until the end of the war. Prinz Heinrich was scrapped in 1920.
Specifications for the Prinz Heinrich:
Dimensions: 391'4" x 65' x 25'6" Displacement: 8,930 tons. Armament: (2) 9.4"/40 (2x1), (10) 6"/40 QF, (12) 15½-pdr, and (10) 1-pdr guns; (4) submerged 18" torpedo tubes. Armor: 4"/2" belt, 6"/4" turrets, 4" barbettes, 6" conn, 4" small turrets, battery, and lower deck redoubt; 2" deck. Fuel capacity: 750 tons of coal std; 1,500 maximum. Propulsion: (14) coal-fired Dürr boilers; (3) vertical inverted 4-cyl triple expansion engines developing 15,700 hp, shafted to triple screw. Maximum speed: 20 kts. Crew: 501. Initial cost: £807,225 at 1900 valuation.
Metric specifications:
Dimensions: 119.28m x 19.8m x 7.8m Displacement: 8,930 tons. Armament: (2) 24 cm/40 (2x1), (10) 152 mm/40, (12) 12-pdr and (3) 3-pdr guns; (4) 45 cm torpedo tubes. Armor: 152/76 mm belt, 203/152 mm turrets, 102 mm barbettes, small turrets, battery and lower deck redoubt; 50 mm deck. Fuel capacity: 750 tons of coal std; 1,500 maximum. Propulsion: (14) coal-fired Dürr; boilers; (3) inverted vertical 4-cyl triple expansion engines developing 11,707.5 kW, shafted to triple screw. Maximum speed: 37 km/hr. Crew: 501. Initial cost: £807,225 at 1900 valuation.
SMS Adalbert was the name ship of a two-ship class, a luxury in the German navy and a sign that the design and type were favored. At the start of World War I, Prinz Adalbert was assigned to III Scouting Group of the High Seas Fleet. In November 1914, she transferred to the Baltic Sea to conduct operations against the Russian Navy. On January 24, 1915, she ran aground near Steinort while on a mission to bombard the naval base at Libau. The ship was soon refloated.
On July 2, 1915 the Russian and German Baltic squadrons clashed at the Battle of Åland and the Russians had the better of it. Following the action, the Adalbert was retiring to base when the British submarine E-9 torpedoed and badly damaged her near Rozewie. With assistance from a naval tug and light craft, the ship was able to make port and was soon back in action.
On 23 October 1915, the E-8 torpedoed Prinz Adalbert 20 miles west of Libau. The German ship's magazine exploded and she sank immediately with the loss of 672 crew. There were three survivors. Much later, the wreck was found by Swedish divers (June 2007) at 56°33' N, 20°18" E.
Specifications for the Prinz Adalbert class:
Dimensions: 405' x 65' x 25'9" Displacement: 9,050 tons std. Armament: (4) 8.2"/40 QF (2x2), (10) 6"/40 QF, (10) 15½-pdr, (10) 1-pdr guns, and (4) Maxim MG; (4) 18" submerged torpedo tubes. Armor: Krupp throughout. 4"/3"/2" belt; 6" turrets; 4" barbettes, small turrets, battery, and lower deck redoubt; 6" conn, 2" deck. Fuel capacity: 750 tons coal std, 1,500 maximum; 200 tons bunker oil. Steam plant: 14 coal-fired Dürr boilers (P.A.); 14 coal-fired Schulz-Thornycroft boilers (F.C.). Propulsion: (3) 4-cyl vertical inverted triple expansion engines developing 18,500 hp, shafted to triple screw. Speed: 21 kts. Crew: 557. Initial cost per ship: £779,433 at 1900 valuation.
Ships in class: Prinz Adalbert · Friedrich Carl
Metric specifications:
Dimensions: 144.3m x 20.9m x 7.8m Displacement: 9,050 tons std. Armament: (4) 208 mm/40 QF (2x2), (6) 152 mm/40 QF, (10) 15½-pdr, (10) 1-pdr guns, and (4) Maxim MG; (4) 45 cm torpedo tubes. Armor: Krupp throughout. 100/76/50 mm belt; 152 mm turrets; 100 mm barbettes, small turrets, battery, and lower deck redoubt; 152 mm conn, 50 mm deck. Fuel capacity: 750 tons coal std, 1,500 maximum; 200 tons bunker oil. Steam plant: 14 coal-fired Dürr boilers P.A.); 14 coal-fired Schulz-Thornycroft boilers (F.C.). Propulsion: (3) 4-cyl vertical inverted triple expansion engines developing 13,795.5 kW, shafted to triple screw. Speed: 38.9 km/hr. Crew: 557. Initial cost per ship: £779,433 at 1900 valuation.
As for the sister-ship, upon commissioning, the Friedrich Carl escorted the passenger ship König Albert as she carried Kaiser Wilhelm II on a Mediterranean cruise. Friedrich Carl joined the fleet in May 1904. She decommissioned in March 1908, but recommissioned in March 1909 as a torpedo trials test ship.
The Friedrich Carl's participation in World War I was brief but eventful. In August 1914, she was undergoing a refit as war engulfed the Continent. By September, she was assigned to the Baltic Sea. On 17 November 1914, she struck two mines laid by Russian destroyers west of Memel (now known as Klaipeda). She stayed afloat for several hours, allowing most of the crew to be rescued by the light cruiser Augsburg. Friedrich Carl then capsized and sank with the loss of eight crewmen.
The next logical development in Germany's armored-cruiser line, the two-ship Roon class, stepped up to 24 boilers and four funnels. Despite their altered profile and nominally increased horsepower, these ships were slightly enlarged repeats of the Prinz Adalbert class.
After commissioning into the fleet, Roon was assigned to the I Scouting Group. In 1908, she served as the flagship for Rear Admiral Jacobsen in the second division. The Roon served here until 1912 when she was replaced by the new battlecruiser Moltke.
At the start of World War I, Roon was serving as the flagship of the III Scouting Group. The ship participated in several actions during World War I, including the raid on Scarborough, Hartlepool and Whitby, during which she served in the cruiser screen for the dreadnoughts of the High Seas Fleet and was actually sighted -- but not fired upon -- by British Adm. Beatty's forces. Tempestuous weather and poor visibility shielded her from further scrutiny on that occasion. Roon also conducted operations against Russian forces in the Baltic Sea, including bombardments against the Russian positions at Libau in support of the army in May 1915. The Battle of the Åland Islands took place in July 1915 between Roon and several other German cruisers on the one side, and Russian forces led by the powerful armored cruiser Rurik; both Roons escaped without critical damage. In August Roon and Prinz Heinrich bombarded Russian positions in the Baltic and briefly engaged several Russian destroyers.
After 1916, Roon was disarmed and used as a guard ship and floating barracks in Kiel until the end of the war. Design work commenced in 1916 to convert the ship into a seaplane carrier; work was planned to last from 1917 to 1918 over a period of 20 months, but was abandoned as the German war effort imploded during mid- and late 1918. The ship was struck from the naval register on November 25, 1920 and scrapped the following year at Kiel-Nordmole.
Specifications for the Roon class:
Dimensions: 403'3 x 65'6" x 25'6" Displacement: 9,050 tons std. Armament: (4) 8.2"/40 Mk IX (2x2), (10) 6"/40 Mk XI, and (14) 24-pdr guns; (4) MG; (4) submerged 18" torpedo tubes. Armor: Krupp throughout. 4"/3"/2½" belt; 6" turrets; 4" barbettes, lower deck redoubt, and small turrets; 6" main conn; 3" secondary conn, 2¾" deck. Fuel capacity: 750 tons of coal std, 1,000 tons maximum; 200 tons bunker oil. Steam plant: 16 coal-fired Dürr boilers. Propulsion: (3) inverted vertical triple expansion engines developing 19,000 hp, shafted to triple screw. Speed: 21 kts. Crew: 557. Initial cost per ship: £780,133 at 1904 valuation.
Ships in class: Yorck · Roon
Metric specifications:
Dimensions: 122.9m x 20m x 7.8m Displacement: 9,050 tons std. Armament: (4) 208 mm/40 Mk IX (2x2), (10) 152 mm/40 Mk XI, and (14) 24-pdr guns; (4) MG; (4) submerged 45 cm torpedo tubes. Armor: Krupp throughout. 102/76/64 mm belt; 152 mm turrets; 102 mm barbettes, lower deck redoubt, and small turrets; 152 mm main conn; 76 mm secondary conn, 72 mm deck. Fuel capacity: 750 tons of coal std, 1,000 tons maximum; 200 tons bunker oil. Steam plant: 16 coal-fired Dürr boilers. Propulsion: (3) vertical inverted triple expansion engines developing 14,168.3 kW, shafted to triple screw. Speed: 38.9 km/hr. Crew: 557. Initial cost per ship: £780,133 at 1904 valuation.
Yorck also served in the I Scouting Group with her sistership, in the second division. In 1908, the ship won the annual Kaiser's Challenge Cups for Prize Firing for the reconnaissance squadron. In 1911, the ship came under the command of Franz von Hipper, who would go on to command the I Scouting Group during the war. Hipper held this position aboard Yorck from Oct. 1, 1911 to Jan. 26, 1912. In early 1912 the ship was decommissioned and her crew was transferred to the new battlecruiser Seydlitz.
The ship's career was cut short during World War I. At the outbreak of war, Yorck was brought out of the reserve fleet and joined her sister-ship Roon in the III Scouting Group. On returning from a raid on Scarborough, Hartlepool and Whitby, the ship made a navigational error entering Jade Bay, blundering into a German defensive minefield. After triggering several mines in succession, the ship sank quickly; only 127 men were rescued out of a crew of 629. Her wreckage was removed gradually over several periods between 1929 and the mid 1980s.
In a typically inaccurate memorial print, the Yorck hits the mine. Actual incident happened at night and in severe weather.
SMS Roon and, behind her, Fürst Bismarck at Kiel in a workaday setting. One of the intermittent rays of wan seasonal light has penetrated the permanent haze of industrial smoke that lies over seaport and anchorage, splashing a welcome beam along the ships' starboard sides, where a detail of well-chilled sailors is repainting Roon's bow from planks suspended over the side. Columns of coal smoke uncoil and drift lanzily over Battleship Row 1908. Click here for enlarged view.
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