Theresia (ship)
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The Theresia was a frigate of the Austrian Navy under Emperor Joseph II , which performed its service on the Danube as part of the imperial Danube flotilla.
The Theresia was a two- decker with brig rigging and 14 pairs of rudders. The armament consisted of 38 cannons . The figurehead was a Chinese guardian lion with the Rudolf crown on its head and a shield in its paws, which showed five coats of arms (including that of the Archduchy of Austria, Hungary and Bohemia).
history
The Theresia was (probably the only) seaworthy sailing ship built in the Klosterneuburg shipyard within two years by the Swedish shipbuilder Erich Åhsberg and was launched in 1768 in the presence of Empress Maria Theresia and her son Joseph II . At that time, the ship was still nameless, but it aroused the mistrust of the Ottomans , who believed that they recognized Austrian war preparations against their empire. In order to appease the Hohe Pforte , the Viennese court announced that the frigate had only been built for the amusement of the empress and that it would not serve a warlike purpose. Afterwards it was mothballed in a camp in Peterwardein for almost twenty years , until it was brought out again after the reconquest of Belgrade , rebuilt and reduced in size. At this point in time the frigate also got its name when it was christened Theresia (named after his mother ), personally requested by Emperor Joseph II .
During her time in Peterwardein, the Austrian field marshal and imperial count Andreas Hadik von Futak visited Theresa shortly before the planned Austrian siege of Belgrade and wounded his left leg and developed a high fever, which meant that the siege had to be postponed. Because of his wounding, Futak was recalled from his high command for Belgrade and replaced by Gideon Ernst von Laudon , who was finally able to conquer the city on October 8, 1789.
The main task of Theresa consisted in the military control of the Danube. She was one of several frigates that the Habsburgs had used on the river in the early days of the Danube flotilla. However, it quickly became apparent that large warships like the Theresia were more than ineffective on the Danube, as they could hardly maneuver and - due to their great draft - repeatedly ran aground.
The figurehead of Theresa is now in the shipping museum in Spitz an der Donau. There is also a unique model of Kurt Schaefer's Danube regatta , made by him over a period of twelve years. Schaefer won the gold medal and trophy for the " best model before 1820 " at the international model competition in Swanley / London in January 2001 with the Theresia model .
literature
- Franz Ludwig (Ed.), Newest Conversations-Lexicon , Vol. 8, Vienna 1828, p. 132
- Showcase Kultur.Region, October 2012, p. 43