Dresden class

Dresden class

The SMS Dresden

Ship data country  German Empire Ship type Small cruiser draft Official draft 1905/06 Construction period 1906 to 1909 Launch of the type ship October 5, 1907 Units built 2 period of service 1908 to 1915

Ship dimensions and crew length 118.3 m ( Lüa ) 117.9 m ( KWL ) width 13.5 m Draft Max. 5.54 m displacement Construction: 3,664 t Maximum: 4,268 t   crew 361 men

Machine system machine 12 marine boilers 2 sets of Parsons turbines Machine performance 18,880 hp (13,886 kW) Top speed 25.2 kn (47 km / h) propeller 4 three-winged ⌀ 1.95 m

Armament 10 × 10.5 cm SK L / 40 (1,500 shots) 8 × 5.2 cm SK L / 55 (4,000 shots) 2 × torpedo tube ⌀ 45 cm (5 shots) Armor Deck: 20-80 mm Coam: 100 mm Command tower 20–100 mm Shields: 50 mm

The Dresden class was a series of two small cruisers of the Imperial Navy .

It was designed in 1905/06 and was the immediate successor to the Königsberg class . The ships were again named after German cities. Both units of this series, SMS Dresden and SMS Emden , were known trade troublemakers in the First World War.

draft

The Dresden- class ships were slightly larger than those of the Königsberg- class. The main armament remained the same with ten 10.5 cm guns. Their propulsion systems were a bit stronger, which allowed for higher speeds. In this regard, however, there were clear differences on both ships. The Emden had two propellers and, as the last small cruiser, the usual triple expansion engines. The Dresden , on the other hand, had four screws and Parsons turbines , which enabled it to run at higher speeds. During her war effort she was able to run away from British ships that were superior in several ways.

Although sister ships, there were also some externally significant differences between the Dresden and the Emden , which can be seen very well on some photos. The Dresden did not have a city coat of arms, but a front ornament. But she lacked the rear trim. The screw guard was further forward. The backspars were higher, the scuppers a little deeper than on the Emden . There were also differences in the course of the boat davits , the upper radio lines and the steam pipes on the chimneys.

Whereabouts

The two small cruisers of the Dresden class did not survive the First World War. They are the furthest German surface warships ever lost from their home waters: the Dresden lies off the Chilean island of Robinson Crusoe in the Pacific , the remnants of the Emden off North Keeling Island southwest of Sumatra in the Indian Ocean .

literature

• Gerhard Koop / Klaus-Peter Schmolke, Kleine Kreuzer 1903-1918, Bremen to Cöln Class , Volume 12 Ship Classes and Ship Types of the German Navy, Bernard & Graefe Verlag Munich, 2004, ISBN 3-7637-6252-3

Web links

Commons : Dresden class  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Footnotes

1. ↑ Technical data of the Dresden .