SMS Friedrich Carl
Encyclopedia
SMS Friedrich Carl was a German armored cruiser
built in the early 1900s for the Kaiserliche Marine
. She was the second ship of the Prinz Adalbert class
. Friedrich Carl was built in Blohm & Voss
shipyard in Hamburg
. She was laid down in 1901, and completed in December 1903, at the cost of 15,665,000 Marks
. She was armed with a main battery of four 21 cm (8.3 in) guns and was capable of a top speed of 20 kn (10.9 m/s).
The ship served with the German fleet after her commissioning before being used as a torpedo training ship in 1909. In August 1914 after the outbreak of World War I
, she was brought back to active service to act as Rear Admiral Behring's flagship in the Baltic Sea
. Her wartime career was cut short on 17 November when she struck a pair of Russian mines off Memel. The mines caused fatal damage, but the ship sank slowly enough to permit the safe evacuation of most of the crew; only seven men were killed in the incident.
under construction number 155. Her keel was laid in 1900 and she was launched on 21 June 1902. Fitting-out
work followed and this was completed by 12 December 1903, the day she was commissioned into the Imperial German Navy
. She had cost the Imperial German Government 15,665,000 Goldmarks
.
Friedrich Carl displaced 9087 t (8,943.5 LT) as built and 9875 t (9,719 LT) fully loaded, with a length of 126.5 m (415 ft), a beam of 19.6 m (64.3 ft) and a draft of 7.43 m (24.4 ft) forward. She was powered by three vertical triple expansion engines, which produced a total of 17272 ihp and yielded a maximum speed of 20.4 kn (11.1 m/s) on trials. She carried up to 1630 t (1,604.3 LT) of coal, which enabled a maximum range of up to 5080 nautical miles (9,408.2 km) at a cruising speed of 12 kn (6.5 m/s).
She was armed with four 21 cm (8.3 in) guns arranged in two twin gun turret
s, one on either end of the superstructure
. Her secondary armament consisted of ten 15 cm (5.9 in) guns, twelve 8.8 cm (3.5 in) guns and four 45 cm (17.7 in) underwater torpedo tubes, one in the bow, one in the stern, and one on both beams.
in August 1914, when she was again placed in active service. In October 1914, Friedrich Carl was the first German warship to carry seaplane
s. The ship carried two planes provisionally and had no permanent modifications made to support them. She was made the flagship
of Rear Admiral Behring, the commander of the German cruiser squadron in the Baltic Sea
. The squadron was based in Neufahrwasser in Danzig. The German naval command was aware that British submarines were operating in the Baltic Sea, and so ordered Behring to attack the Russian port at Libau
to prevent it from being used as a British submarine base.
The Russian Navy, however, had begun a campaign of mine-warfare in the Baltic. Russian destroyers laid a series of minefields off Memel, Pillau, and other German ports in October 1914. The Russian operations went completely undetected by the German navy. During this period, Friedrich Carl used her seaplanes in operations against the port in Libau. Behring was ordered to begin the attack on Libau in November; poor weather conditions delayed the operation until the 16th. Early on the 17th, Friedrich Carl was steaming some 30 nmi (55.6 km) off Memel when she struck two Russian mines. The ship was kept afloat for several hours, which allowed the crew to be evacuated safely. The operation went ahead as scheduled and blockships were sunk at the entrance to Libau. After the crew was removed, Friedrich Carl was abandoned; she capsized and sank at around 06:30. Only seven men were killed in the attack.
Armored cruiser
The armored cruiser was a type of warship of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Like other types of cruiser, the armored cruiser was a long-range, independent warship, capable of defeating any ship apart from a battleship, and fast enough to outrun any battleships it encountered.The first...
built in the early 1900s for the Kaiserliche Marine
Kaiserliche Marine
The Imperial German Navy was the German Navy created at the time of the formation of the German Empire. It existed between 1871 and 1919, growing out of the small Prussian Navy and Norddeutsche Bundesmarine, which primarily had the mission of coastal defense. Kaiser Wilhelm II greatly expanded...
. She was the second ship of the Prinz Adalbert class
Prinz Adalbert class armored cruiser
The Prinz Adalbert class was a type of armored cruiser built for the Imperial German Navy in the early 1900s. Two ships of the class were built, , and . Friedrich Carl was commissioned first, on 12 December 1903 and Prinz Adalbert followed on 12 January 1904. They were an improvement upon the...
. Friedrich Carl was built in Blohm & Voss
Blohm + Voss
Blohm + Voss , is a German shipbuilding and engineering works. It is a subsidiary of ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems; there were plans to sell 80% of Blohm + Voss to Abu Dhabi Mar Group, but talks collapsed in July 2011.-History:It was founded on April 5, 1877, by Hermann Blohm and Ernst Voss as a...
shipyard in Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
. She was laid down in 1901, and completed in December 1903, at the cost of 15,665,000 Marks
German gold mark
The Goldmark was the currency used in the German Empire from 1873 to 1914.-History:Before unification, the different German states issued a variety of different currencies, though most were linked to the Vereinsthaler, a silver coin containing 16⅔ grams of pure silver...
. She was armed with a main battery of four 21 cm (8.3 in) guns and was capable of a top speed of 20 kn (10.9 m/s).
The ship served with the German fleet after her commissioning before being used as a torpedo training ship in 1909. In August 1914 after the outbreak of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, she was brought back to active service to act as Rear Admiral Behring's flagship in the Baltic Sea
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
. Her wartime career was cut short on 17 November when she struck a pair of Russian mines off Memel. The mines caused fatal damage, but the ship sank slowly enough to permit the safe evacuation of most of the crew; only seven men were killed in the incident.
Construction
Friedrich Carl was ordered under the provisional name Ersatz König Wilhelm and built at the Blohm & Voss shipyard in HamburgHamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
under construction number 155. Her keel was laid in 1900 and she was launched on 21 June 1902. Fitting-out
Fitting-out
Fitting-out, or "outfitting”, is the process in modern shipbuilding that follows the float-out of a vessel and precedes sea trials. It is the period when all the remaining construction of the ship is completed and readied for delivery to her owners...
work followed and this was completed by 12 December 1903, the day she was commissioned into the Imperial German Navy
Kaiserliche Marine
The Imperial German Navy was the German Navy created at the time of the formation of the German Empire. It existed between 1871 and 1919, growing out of the small Prussian Navy and Norddeutsche Bundesmarine, which primarily had the mission of coastal defense. Kaiser Wilhelm II greatly expanded...
. She had cost the Imperial German Government 15,665,000 Goldmarks
German gold mark
The Goldmark was the currency used in the German Empire from 1873 to 1914.-History:Before unification, the different German states issued a variety of different currencies, though most were linked to the Vereinsthaler, a silver coin containing 16⅔ grams of pure silver...
.
Friedrich Carl displaced 9087 t (8,943.5 LT) as built and 9875 t (9,719 LT) fully loaded, with a length of 126.5 m (415 ft), a beam of 19.6 m (64.3 ft) and a draft of 7.43 m (24.4 ft) forward. She was powered by three vertical triple expansion engines, which produced a total of 17272 ihp and yielded a maximum speed of 20.4 kn (11.1 m/s) on trials. She carried up to 1630 t (1,604.3 LT) of coal, which enabled a maximum range of up to 5080 nautical miles (9,408.2 km) at a cruising speed of 12 kn (6.5 m/s).
She was armed with four 21 cm (8.3 in) guns arranged in two twin gun turret
Gun turret
A gun turret is a weapon mount that protects the crew or mechanism of a projectile-firing weapon and at the same time lets the weapon be aimed and fired in many directions.The turret is also a rotating weapon platform...
s, one on either end of the superstructure
Superstructure
A superstructure is an upward extension of an existing structure above a baseline. This term is applied to various kinds of physical structures such as buildings, bridges, or ships...
. Her secondary armament consisted of ten 15 cm (5.9 in) guns, twelve 8.8 cm (3.5 in) guns and four 45 cm (17.7 in) underwater torpedo tubes, one in the bow, one in the stern, and one on both beams.
Service history
Friedrich Carl served with the fleet from her commissioning in December 1903. She was assigned to I Subdivision of the Cruiser Division of the Active Fleet. Along with the light cruisers , , and , Friedrich Carls subdivision was attached to the I Squadron of the Active Fleet. Friedrich Carl was the flagship of Rear Admiral Schmidt, the commander of the Cruiser Division. A second subdivision, composed of an armored cruiser and three light cruisers was attached to the II Squadron. She served with the fleet until 1 March 1909, when she was withdrawn for use as a torpedo training ship. She served in this capacity until the outbreak of World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
in August 1914, when she was again placed in active service. In October 1914, Friedrich Carl was the first German warship to carry seaplane
Seaplane
A seaplane is a fixed-wing aircraft capable of taking off and landing on water. Seaplanes that can also take off and land on airfields are a subclass called amphibian aircraft...
s. The ship carried two planes provisionally and had no permanent modifications made to support them. She was made the flagship
Flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...
of Rear Admiral Behring, the commander of the German cruiser squadron in the Baltic Sea
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
. The squadron was based in Neufahrwasser in Danzig. The German naval command was aware that British submarines were operating in the Baltic Sea, and so ordered Behring to attack the Russian port at Libau
Liepaja
Liepāja ; ), is a republican city in western Latvia, located on the Baltic Sea directly at 21°E. It is the largest city in the Kurzeme Region of Latvia, the third largest city in Latvia after Riga and Daugavpils and an important ice-free port...
to prevent it from being used as a British submarine base.
The Russian Navy, however, had begun a campaign of mine-warfare in the Baltic. Russian destroyers laid a series of minefields off Memel, Pillau, and other German ports in October 1914. The Russian operations went completely undetected by the German navy. During this period, Friedrich Carl used her seaplanes in operations against the port in Libau. Behring was ordered to begin the attack on Libau in November; poor weather conditions delayed the operation until the 16th. Early on the 17th, Friedrich Carl was steaming some 30 nmi (55.6 km) off Memel when she struck two Russian mines. The ship was kept afloat for several hours, which allowed the crew to be evacuated safely. The operation went ahead as scheduled and blockships were sunk at the entrance to Libau. After the crew was removed, Friedrich Carl was abandoned; she capsized and sank at around 06:30. Only seven men were killed in the attack.