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fighting ships of the world

KAISERLICHE MARINE (GERMANY)

CRUISERS

PRINZ ADALBERT armoured cruisers (1903-1904)

Prinz Adalbert 1906

Name No Yard No Builder Laid down Launched Comp Fate
Prinz Adalbert   27 Kiel KW 1900 22.6.1901 12.1.1904 TS till 1914, sunk 23.10.1915
Friedrich Carl   155 Blohm & Voss, Hamburg 1901 21.6.1902 12.12.1903 TS 3.1909-1914, sunk 17.11.1914

 

Displacement normal, t

9087

Displacement full, t

9875

Length, m

126.5 oa 124.9 wl

Breadth, m

19.6

Draught, m

7.43 mean 7.80 deep load

No of shafts

3

Machinery

3 VTE, 14 Dürr boilers

Power, h. p.

17000

Max speed, kts

20.5

Fuel, t

coal 1630 + oil 200

Endurance, nm(kts)

4970(12)

Armour, mm belt: 100 - 80, deck: 80 - 40 with 80 - 50mm slopes, main turrets: 150, secondary turrets: 100, casemates: 100, CT: 150

Armament

2 x 2 - 209/37 SK L/40 C/04, 10 x 1 - 149/37 SK L/40 C/97, 12 x 1 - 88/32 SK L/35 C/01, 4 x 1 - 7.9/79, 4 - 450 TT (1 bow, 2 beam, 1 stern)

Complement

586

Project history: These vessels were very similar to the Prinz Heinrich apart from their three funnels instead of two and four instead of two big guns. Like her they were wood-sheathed, and the armour protection, apart from there being a rather more extensive belt, was virtually the same. The lower part of the central casemate was a weak point, as it flooded easily even in a moderate sea: though a common feature in secondary batteries of the time, and not just in the German Navy, it happened particularly easily in this class, which greatly reduced the ships' fighting ability.

Ship protection: Main belt was 100mm between main barbettes and 80mm abreast them and was backed by 50mm wood. 40mm protective deck was connected with its lower edge by 50mm slopes, outside citadel protective deck had turtleback form and had 80mm flat and 80mm slopes. Fwd CT had 150m sides and 30mm roof, aft CT had only 20mm plating. Main turrets had 150mm sides and 30mm crowns, 4 15cm guns were placed in the turrets with 100mm sides, others were protected by 100mm casemates with 80mm shields, closed by 100mm bulkheads.

Modernizations: None.

Naval service: Prinz Adalbert spent most of her career as a gunnery schoolship, her sister in a similar role for torpedo warfare. Both were sunk in the Baltic, though Prinz Adalbert, torpedoed by the British submarine E8 23.10.1915 off Libava, sank with very heavy loss of life, unlike Friedrich Carl, sunk by Russian mine 17.11.1914 off Memel.

Prinz Adalbert

 

© Ivan Gogin, 2014