The First Naval Law in Germany, passed in 1898, envisioned a force of twelve armored cruisers intended for overseas service in the German colonies. However, the German Navy required cruisers for operations with the fleet as well, and attempted to design ships that could fulfill both roles,^[1] primarily due to budget constraints. The first product of the 1898 Naval Law, Prinz Heinrich, was an alteration of an earlier vessel, Fürst Bismarck, equipped with fewer guns and thinner but more comprehensive armor in a trade-off for higher speed and lower cost. According to the law, one large cruiser was to be built per year, so work began immediately on a follow-on vessel to fulfill the requirement.^[2][3]

The subsequent design—that of the Prinz Adalbert class—was prepared in 1899–1900,^[4] and was an improvement on Prinz Heinrich. The basic hull size and shape remained largely identical, but modifications were made to the armament and armor layout. Four quick-firing 21 cm (8.3 in) guns in twin turrets were substituted for the pair of slower 24 cm (9.4 in) guns mounted singly on the older vessel, as the design staff had by that time begun to question the wisdom of limiting the heavy gun battery to just two guns. The 21 cm caliber would remain the standard for all subsequent armored cruiser designs. The ships' secondary battery was kept largely the same as that of Prinz Heinrich, apart from the addition of another pair of 8.8 cm (3.5 in) guns.^[5]

Armor thickness remained similar in strength to that of Prinz Heinrich, though it was made more comprehensive, the primary improvement being to the upper belt, which was connected to the main battery barbettes by oblique armored bulkheads. The deck thickness was also increased, and a new propulsion system that was about 10 percent more powerful than Prinz Heinrich's increased the ships' top speed by .5 knots (0.93 km/h; 0.58 mph) compared to the earlier vessel.^[5]

General characteristics edit

The ships of the Prinz Adalbert class were 124.9 meters (410 ft) long at the waterline and 126.5 m (415 ft) overall, and had a beam of 19.6 m (64 ft). The ships were designed to displace 9,087 metric tons (8,943 long tons; 10,017 short tons), but at full load displaced up to 9,875 t (9,719 long tons; 10,885 short tons); they had a draft of 7.43 m (24.4 ft) forward and 7.9 m (26 ft) aft. The ships' hulls were constructed from transverse and longitudinal steel frames, over which the steel hull plates were riveted. The vessels contained fourteen watertight compartments and a double bottom that extended for 60 percent of the length of the hull.^[4] The designers reverted to the use of two heavy military masts that had been discarded in Prinz Heinrich's design.^[5]

The German navy regarded the vessels as good sea boats, with gentle motion when the ships' lower fuel bunkers were full. The ships were responsive to commands from the helm, and steering was controlled with a single rudder. They lost up to 60 percent speed with the rudder hard over, but suffered only minimal speed loss in heavy seas. The ships' casemate guns were placed too low, which rendered them exceedingly wet even in a slight swell. They had a transverse metacentric height of 0.734 m (2 ft 4.9 in). The ships had a standard crew of 35 officers and 551 enlisted men, though when serving as a squadron flagship this could be augmented by another 9 officers and 44 enlisted men. The ships were equipped with several boats, including a pair of picket boats, a launch, a pinnace, two cutters, two yawls, and two dinghies.^[6]

Prinz Adalbert and Friedrich Carl were powered by three vertical 3-cylinder triple expansion engines; the center shaft drove a three-bladed screw 4.5 m (15 ft) in diameter, while the two outboard shafts powered four-bladed screws 4.8 m (16 ft) in diameter. The engines were supplied with steam by fourteen coal-fired Dürr water-tube boilers produced by Düsseldorf-Ratinger Röhrenkesselfabrik, which were ducted into three funnels.^[4] Compared to those on earlier German cruisers, the propeller shafts were shortened and better faired into the hull lines to reduce the amount of drag they induced, and they were made self-supporting; these changes were incorporated into all future cruisers and battleships built by the Kaiserliche Marine.^[5]

The propulsion system was rated at 16,200 metric horsepower (16,000 ihp) for Prinz Adalbert and 17,000 PS (16,770 ihp) for Friedrich Carl and top speeds of 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph) and 20.5 knots (38.0 km/h; 23.6 mph), respectively. Both ships reached higher horsepower figures on trials, though their speeds were not significantly improved. The ships were designed to carry 750 t (740 long tons; 830 short tons) of coal, though storage could be increased to 1,630 t (1,600 long tons). This enabled a maximum range of up to 5,080 nautical miles (9,410 km; 5,850 mi) at a cruising speed of 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph). Electrical power was supplied by four generators with a total output of 246 kilowatts (330 hp) at 110 volts.^[4]

Armament edit

Prinz Adalbert and Friedrich Carl were armed with a main battery of four 21 cm (8.3 in) SK L/40 guns in two twin turrets,^[a] one on either end of the main superstructure. The four guns were supplied with a total of 340 rounds of ammunition, or 85 shells per gun. The turrets could depress to −5° and elevate to 30°, which provided a maximum range of 16,300 m (53,500 ft).^[4] The 21 cm gun fired a 238-pound (108 kg) shell at a muzzle velocity of 780 m (2,560 ft) per second.^[8] The ships' secondary armament consisted of ten 15 cm (5.9 in) SK L/40 guns, all placed in the sides of the hulls. Three guns were mounted in casemates amidships on either side, with a pair of gun turrets above them. These guns were provided with a total of 1,400 shells, or 140 per gun.^[4] These guns fired an 40-kilogram (88 lb) projectile at a muzzle velocity of 800 m (2,600 ft) per second. The guns could elevate to 30°, allowing a maximum range of 13,700 m (44,900 ft).^[8]

The ships also carried twelve 8.8 cm SK L/35 guns for close in defense; these were arranged in groups of four in shielded pivot mounts. Four guns were mounted around the forward conning tower, four were located around the rear two funnels amidships, with the last four guns placed on top of the rear superstructure.^[4] These guns fired a 7 kg (15 lb) shell at a muzzle velocity of 770 m (2,530 ft) per second. They could elevate to 25° and could engage targets out to 9,090 m (29,820 ft).^[8] The vessels' armament system was rounded out by four 45 cm (17.7 in) submerged torpedo tubes. They were mounted in the bow, stern, and on each broadside, and supplied with eleven torpedoes.^[4]

Armor edit

The steel armor used on the two ships was produced by the Krupp firm. The main belt armor consisted of a layer of teak that was 50 mm (2 in) thick, covered by 100 mm (3.9 in) thick steel plating in the central section, which covered the ships' machinery spaces and ammunition magazines. The belt was reduced to 80 mm (3.1 in) on either ends of the central portion; the bow and stern were unprotected. The armored deck ranged in thickness from 40 mm (1.6 in) to 80 mm. Sloped armor, which ranged in thickness from 50 to 80 mm, connected the deck to the armored belt. The ships' casemate guns, which were placed above the main belt, were protected by 100 mm thick armor plating, as were the 15 cm turret guns. The two 21 cm guns had 150 mm thick sides and 30 mm roofs. The forward conning tower was protected by 150 mm (5.9 in) sides and had a 30 mm (1.2 in) thick roof. The rear conning tower was much less thoroughly protected, with only 20 mm (0.79 in) worth of armor protection.^[4]

Prinz Adalbert went into service as a gunnery training vessel for the fleet after her commissioning, while Friedrich Carl served with the reconnaissance squadron of the Active Battle Fleet, initially as its flagship. Friedrich Carl also went on foreign cruises during this period, including to escort Kaiser Wilhelm II's yacht Hohenzollern on foreign visits. One of these included the Kaiser's visit to Morocco in 1905 that led to the First Moroccan Crisis. In 1909, with more modern cruisers entering service with the fleet, Friedrich Carl joined her sister ship as a training vessel, being used as a torpedo training ship. Throughout their prewar careers, the ships participated in extensive fleet training.^[11][12]

World War I edit

The two ships were re-mobilized after the outbreak of World War I in August 1914. Prinz Adalbert was initially assigned to the IV Scouting Group, and alternated between the North and Baltic Seas for various operations, including cruising with the fleet during the Raid on Yarmouth in early November.^[13] Friedrich Carl was sent to the Cruiser Division of the Baltic Sea commanded by Konteradmiral (Rear Admiral) Ehler Behring, where she served as his flagship.^[10] The division was based in Neufahrwasser in Danzig. Behring was ordered to attack the Russian port of Libau, which was believed to be acting as a staging area for British submarines. On 17 November, while steaming to Libau, Friedrich Carl struck a pair of Russian naval mines off Memel. The ship's crew managed to keep the cruiser afloat long enough to allow nearby vessels to take off the entire crew; only seven men were killed in the attack. The operation proceeded as planned, however, and several blockships were sunk in the harbor entrance.^[14][15]

After the sinking of Friedrich Carl, Prinz Adalbert was transferred to the Cruiser Division and Behring shifted his flag to the vessel.^[13][15] The ship conducted several operations against Russian forces in the southern Baltic in the first half of 1915, including bombardments of Libau and supporting minelayers around the Gulf of Riga. She ran aground off Steinort in January but was able to free herself. After repairs were completed, she returned to active duty in March.^[16] In May, she supported the German Army attack that captured Libau. On 1 July 1915, the ship sortied to reinforce a German minelaying operation that had come under attack by a Russian cruiser flotilla. While en route with the armored cruiser Prinz Heinrich, Prinz Adalbert was torpedoed by the British submarine E9.^[17] The damage was severe, though the cruiser was able to return to Kiel for repairs.^[18]

Repairs were finally completed by September 1915. She took part in a sortie into the Gulf of Finland toward the end of the month that resulted in no action. On 23 October, Prinz Adalbert was steaming some 20 miles west of Libau in company with a pair of destroyers when she was intercepted by the submarine E8.^[19] E8 fired a spread of torpedoes at a range of approximately 1,200 meters (3,900 ft), which detonated the ship's ammunition magazine.^[20] The explosion destroyed the ship, which sank immediately with the loss of 672 crew. There were only three survivors. The sinking was the greatest single loss of life for the German Baltic forces for the duration of the war.^[14][19]

Footnotes edit

Citations edit

• Campbell, N. J. M. & Sieche, Erwin (1986). "Germany". In Gardiner, Robert & Gray, Randal (eds.). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. London: Conway Maritime Press. pp. 134–189. ISBN 978-0-85177-245-5.
• Corbett, Julian Stafford (1921). Naval Operations: From The Battle of the Falklands to the Entry of Italy Into the War in May 1915. Vol. II. London: Longmans, Green & Co. OCLC 924170059.
• Dodson, Aidan (2016). The Kaiser's Battlefleet: German Capital Ships 1871–1918. Barnsley: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-229-5.
• Grießmer, Axel (1999). Die Linienschiffe der Kaiserlichen Marine: 1906–1918; Konstruktionen zwischen Rüstungskonkurrenz und Flottengesetz [The Battleships of the Imperial Navy: 1906–1918; Constructions between Arms Competition and Fleet Laws] (in German). Bonn: Bernard & Graefe Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7637-5985-9.
• Gröner, Erich (1990). German Warships: 1815–1945. Vol. I: Major Surface Vessels. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-0-87021-790-6.
• Halpern, Paul G. (1995). A Naval History of World War I. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-55750-352-7.
• Herwig, Holger (1998) [1980]. "Luxury" Fleet: The Imperial German Navy 1888–1918. Amherst: Humanity Books. ISBN 978-1-57392-286-9.
• Hildebrand, Hans H.; Röhr, Albert & Steinmetz, Hans-Otto (1993). Die Deutschen Kriegsschiffe: Biographien – ein Spiegel der Marinegeschichte von 1815 bis zur Gegenwart [The German Warships: Biographies − A Reflection of Naval History from 1815 to the Present] (in German). Vol. 3. Ratingen: Mundus Verlag. ISBN 3-7822-0211-2.
• Hildebrand, Hans H.; Röhr, Albert & Steinmetz, Hans-Otto (1993). Die Deutschen Kriegsschiffe: Biographien – ein Spiegel der Marinegeschichte von 1815 bis zur Gegenwart [The German Warships: Biographies − A Reflection of Naval History from 1815 to the Present] (in German). Vol. 7. Ratingen: Mundus Verlag. ISBN 9783782202671.
• Polmar, Norman & Noot, Jurrien (1991). Submarines of the Russian and Soviet Navies, 1718–1990. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-0-87021-570-4.