SMS Preussischer Adler facts for kids
Painting of Preussischer Adler, by Christopher Rave
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Quick facts for kids Class overview |
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| Operators: |
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| Preceded by: | None |
| Succeeded by: | Nix class |
| Completed: | 1 |
| Retired: | 1 |
| History | |
| Name | Preussischer Adler |
| Builder | Ditchburn & Mare, Blackwall, London |
| Laid down | 1846 |
| Launched | 1846 |
| Stricken | 27 November 1877 |
| Fate | Sunk as a target, 26 June 1879 |
| General characteristics (as configured, 1848) | |
| Class and type | Aviso |
| Displacement | |
| Length | 62.72 m (205 ft 9 in) o/a |
| Beam |
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| Draft | 3.3 m (11 ft) |
| Installed power |
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| Propulsion |
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| Speed | 10.5 knots (19.4 km/h; 12.1 mph) |
| Complement |
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| Armament | 2 × 25-pounder mortars |
SMS Preussischer Adler was a paddle steamer built in the 1840s. She was first used for carrying mail and goods between the Kingdom of Prussia and the Russian Empire across the Baltic Sea. In 1848, the Prussian Navy took her over during the First Schleswig War. She became an aviso, which is a fast scout ship. This made her the first ship of her kind in the Prussian Navy.
During the war, Preussischer Adler fought in a battle with the Danish ship St. Croix. This was the first naval battle for the re-established Prussian fleet. After the war, her weapons were removed, and she went back to carrying mail. She worked on the route between Stettin and St. Petersburg until 1862. By then, a new railway line made the sea route unnecessary. The Prussian Navy bought her back that year and armed her again as an aviso.
In 1863, Preussischer Adler sailed to the Mediterranean Sea with two gunboats. They were called back because of growing tensions between Prussia and Denmark. This led to the Second Schleswig War. On their way back, the three Prussian ships met two steam frigates from Prussia's ally, Austria. This combined group attacked Danish ships that were stopping trade in the German North Sea ports. This battle, known as the Battle of Heligoland, happened in May 1864. Neither side won a clear victory, but the Austrian warships forced the Danes to stop their blockade. Because of boiler problems, Preussischer Adler could not join later naval actions. She had major repairs from 1867 to 1868.
The ship had many different jobs in the late 1860s and early 1870s. In 1868, she took important navy officers to watch Russian naval exercises. The next year, she helped finish the ironclad warship SMS König Wilhelm. During the Franco-Prussian War in 1870, she was the main ship for the Prussian squadron in the Baltic Sea. However, she did not see any fighting. From 1872, she was used as a training ship for engineers. She also worked as a ship protecting fishing boats. By 1877, the ship was in bad condition. She was taken out of service in April and officially removed from the navy's list in November. Finally, in 1879, she was sunk as a target ship during torpedo tests.
Contents
Building the Ship
Designing the Preussischer Adler
In 1843, the Prussian postal service started talking with the Russian government. They wanted to create a regular shipping line between St. Petersburg and Stettin. An agreement was made in 1845. Both countries agreed to provide a steamship for the route. Prussia ordered a ship from Britain in 1845, but it did not work well. So, a new order was placed with the Ditchburn & Mare shipyard in Blackwall, London, the next year.
The new ship was named Preussischer Adler, which means "Prussian eagle." This name came from the coat of arms of Prussia. The ship was designed by Carl Elbertzhagen, who was the Prussian Navy's main designer. It is not clear who first owned the ship. But Elbertzhagen's involvement suggests it was a state organization.
Ship's Size and Features
Preussischer Adler was about 62.72 m (205 ft 9 in) long overall. Her width was 9.6 m (31 ft 6 in) across the main part of the ship. It was 16.2 m (53 ft 2 in) wide if you include the paddle wheel boxes. The ship's depth in the water was 3.3 m (11 ft). She was designed to weigh 1,171 t (1,153 long tons). When fully loaded, she weighed 1,430 t (1,410 long tons).
Her body was made with iron frames and iron plating. She had wood decks. The ship had a crew of ten officers and one hundred sailors. She also carried six smaller boats. When she was a mail steamer, she could carry 168 passengers. Preussischer Adler was good in rough seas. However, she was hard to turn and slow to maneuver.
Engines and Speed
The ship had one horizontal, 2-cylinder marine steam engine. This engine powered two large paddle wheels, one on each side. Each wheel was 6.34 m (20 ft 10 in) wide and had twenty paddles. Three boilers made the steam for the engine. The steam went into one tall funnel.
Her engines were rated at 900 metric horsepower (888 ihp). This gave her a top speed of 10.5 knots (19.4 km/h; 12.1 mph). But in real use, she could reach 11.5 knots (21.3 km/h; 13.2 mph) with 990 metric horsepower (976 ihp) power. She could store 200 t (200 long tons) of coal. To help the steam engines, the ship also had a topsail schooner rig. Her sails covered 600 m2 (6,500 sq ft). However, the ship did not sail very well.
Ship's Weapons
At first, the ship had no weapons. When she became an aviso in 1848, she got two 25-pounder mortars. The next year, she received two short 32-pounder guns. When she returned to civilian work in 1849, her guns were removed.
After she rejoined the navy in 1862, she got new weapons. These were four 36-pounder guns. After 1867, her weapons changed again. She then had four 24-pounder guns. Two of these were rifled (grooved inside for accuracy), and two were smoothbore (smooth inside).
Ship's Journey
Early Life and First War
Preussischer Adler was built in 1846. She started service in 1847 as a mail steamer. She worked on the route between Stettin and St. Petersburg. During the German revolutions of 1848–1849, the Prussian Navy took her over. This happened after the First Schleswig War started in March 1848. At that time, the Prussian Navy was too small to stop the larger Danish Navy from blocking German ports.
Ship owners wanted Prussia to arm Preussischer Adler and another mail steamer. But the postal service first refused because of international agreements. Pressure forced them to give the ships to the navy. Preussischer Adler's deck was strengthened to hold the new guns. While in navy service, her name was SMS, meaning "His Majesty's Ship." From August 1848 to August 1849, her civilian captain, Paul Barandon, commanded her. She kept her civilian crew.
The ship first sailed as a warship in August 1848. She went from Stettin to Swinemünde. By then, the Armistice of Malmö had been signed, stopping the fighting for a while. The Frankfurt Parliament wanted Prussia to give Preussischer Adler to the Imperial Fleet. But Prussia refused. Later, she helped launch two small gunboats. With the fighting stopped, the navy thought about taking her out of service. But Denmark started fighting again in February 1849. So, the navy decided to use the ship again. At this time, she got the two 32-pounder guns.
She was put back into service in May. Barandon was again in command, now as a navy officer. The ship's job was to protect German shipping near Stettin. She also had to stop Danish warships from attacking the Prussian coast.
On June 26, while practicing shooting, the ship heard news. A Danish warship was near Swinemünde. It had captured two Prussian merchant ships. Commodore Jan Schröder came aboard Preussischer Adler. The ship then sailed to Swinemünde to find the Danish ship. The next day, around 4 PM, she met the Danish brig St. Croix. This was near Brüsterort.
The two ships fought with their cannons from 750 to 1,350 m (2,460 to 4,430 ft) away. The battle lasted until 9:30 PM. This was the first naval battle for the re-established Prussian Navy. The Danes fired about 200 shells. The Prussian ship fired 63 shells from her mortars and six 32-pound shells. Neither ship was badly damaged. Preussischer Adler was hit once. One man was killed, which was the first battle death for the Prussian fleet.
Preussischer Adler returned to port for repairs. She then went back to Swinemünde in late July. She did not see more action because another ceasefire was signed. The ship then sailed back to Stettin. In November, her weapons were removed, and she returned to postal service. A long winter stopped the St. Petersburg–Stettin route until May 1850. She worked on this route without problems until 1862. By then, the Prussian Eastern Railway reached St. Petersburg. The train was much faster, so the sea route was no longer needed.
She then rejoined the Prussian Navy. The navy needed ships to make its fleet stronger. Preussischer Adler replaced the old paddle steamer SMS Danzig. She was put into service on July 18. She went to Danzig to be rebuilt for naval use. At this time, she received her 36-pounder guns.
The ship was put into service in June 1863 for a trip abroad. There was a lot of debate about whether her engines were reliable enough for a long trip. Preussischer Adler was sent to the eastern Mediterranean Sea. She went with the gunboats Basilisk and Blitz. At that time, problems in Kingdom of Greece threatened German interests. In 1862, King Otto of Greece, who was German, was removed from the Greek throne. Gustav Klatt, a Corvette Captain, commanded Preussischer Adler and led the group of ships.
Another reason for the trip was to patrol the mouth of the Danube River at Sulina on the Black Sea. Prussia and other European powers had this right after the Crimean War ended in 1856.
Preussischer Adler, Basilisk, and Blitz left Kiel on September 19. They reached Piraeus, Greece, on October 9. From there, they went through the Dardanelles and Bosporus into the Black Sea. They patrolled the Danube for a short time. But they received orders to return home on December 3. This was because tensions were rising between Denmark and the German states. Boiler problems on Preussischer Adler and high coal use slowed their trip back. They only reached Brest, France by February 3, 1864. By then, war had started again between Denmark and the German Confederation.
Second Schleswig War
The Second Schleswig War began because Denmark passed a new law in 1863. This law tried to make the duchies of Schleswig, Holstein, and Lauenburg part of Denmark. This broke an earlier agreement from the First Schleswig War. The conflict started on February 1, 1864. Prussia and Austria demanded Denmark give up the disputed duchies.
At that time, the Danish fleet was much stronger than the Prussian navy. This allowed the Danes to blockade the German coast. To help Prussia, the Austrian Navy sent Wilhelm von Tegetthoff. He brought the screw frigates Schwarzenberg and Radetzky to break the Danish blockade.
While Tegetthoff's ships were still coming from the Mediterranean, the three Prussian ships stayed in Brest. They were unsure where Danish warships were in the North Sea. They did not want to risk fighting stronger enemy forces. By February 15, the Prussians knew that the Danish Navy had only sent one ship, Niels Juel, into the English Channel. So, the naval command ordered Klatt to return home.
From Brest, the ships went to Cherbourg, France, to get more coal. They then stayed close to the coast to avoid Niels Juel. They stopped in Den Helder, the Netherlands, on February 15. There, they waited for Tegetthoff's frigates to arrive. They joined forces for the last and most dangerous part of the trip back to Cuxhaven. During this time, the Danes had a North Sea Squadron looking for German ships. Tegetthoff arrived on May 1 and took command of the combined Austrian-Prussian squadron. They left for Cuxhaven two days later.
On the morning of May 9, Tegetthoff learned about a Danish squadron. It had the steam frigates Niels Juel and Jylland, and the corvette Hejmdal. They were patrolling near the island of Heligoland. Tegetthoff took his five ships to attack the Danish vessels. This led to the Battle of Heligoland. Preussischer Adler and the other Prussian ships stayed behind the Austrian frigates. They fired at the Danish ships when they could, but had little success.
After Schwarzenberg caught fire, Tegetthoff stopped the fight. He escaped to the neutral waters around Heligoland. The ships stayed there until the next morning. During this time, the Prussian ships sent their doctors to help the wounded on the Austrian frigates. Preussischer Adler was not hit and had no casualties. The next morning, the ships returned to Cuxhaven. Preussischer Adler carried many wounded to a hospital in Altona. Even though the Danish squadron won a tactical victory at Heligoland, the arrival of Austrian warships in the North Sea forced the Danes to end their blockade.
The day after the battle, both sides agreed to a temporary ceasefire. Preussischer Adler sailed to Hamburg. In June, a second Austrian squadron arrived. This included the ship of the line Kaiser and the armored frigate Don Juan d'Austria. They were led by Vice Admiral Bernhard von Wüllerstorf-Urbair. The Danish fleet, now outnumbered, stayed in port for the rest of the war. They did not seek battle with the Austro-Prussian fleet.
The combined fleet planned to capture the North Frisian Islands. Preussischer Adler was part of the strong fleet gathered for this attack. However, because of her boiler problems, she stayed in Hamburg. She did not take an active part in the operations. Austrian and Prussian soldiers crossed to the islands of Sylt and Föhr on July 12 without naval support. But parts of the fleet did help the soldiers as they fought the Danish defenders.
The war ended with Denmark's defeat. The Treaty of Vienna was signed on October 30. After that, repair work began on Preussischer Adler's troublesome boilers. This work finished by March 1865. She was then taken to Danzig. There, she was taken out of service for a more complete overhaul. This project was delayed until October 1867 and lasted until February 1868.
Later Years of Service
She was put back into service on August 11, 1868. Her job was to carry a group of important navy officers to Russia. She sailed on August 20 with Vice Admiral Eduard von Jachmann, the head of the Navy Ministry. They met with Vice Admiral Nikolay Krabbe, the Russian Navy Minister. They also watched Russian naval exercises.
Preussischer Adler then carried the Prussian officers back to Kiel. Immediately, she took aboard King Wilhelm I, Frederick Francis II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin, and Carl Scheel-Plessen. She carried them to the artillery training ship Thetis. They watched experiments with torpedoes and naval mines in the Kieler Förde. The winter of 1868–1869 was mild, so the ship stayed in service until early 1869. She had a smaller crew during this time.
On January 20, 1869, Preussischer Adler carried materials. These were used to finish the new armored frigate König Wilhelm. This ship was being built in London. She also brought Corvette Captain Heinrich Köhler, who was in charge of checking the new ship. Preussischer Adler stayed in London to help with the final work on König Wilhelm. She then escorted the ironclad back to Kiel on May 4.
She then took part in the ceremonies for the founding of the port of Wilhelmshaven. These were held from May 29 to June 22. In August and September, she worked with the new ironclad squadron for its first training exercises. She stayed in service until October 13. Then, she was taken out of service for the winter. The ship was briefly put back into service in early 1870. She was used as a harbor ship in Kiel.
She was called into action after the Franco-Prussian War started in July. She served as the main ship for Rear Admiral Eduard Heldt. He was the commander of the Naval Station of the Baltic Sea. Heldt organized the Baltic Sea Forces to help defend Prussia's Baltic coast. Preussischer Adler spent the war at Friedrichsort. She watched the minefield that protected the Kieler Förde. The French Navy sent ships into the Baltic. But they had poor planning and few ships that could operate close to shore. So, they left on September 24. Heldt ended his command six days later. After the war, the naval command dissolved the Baltic Sea Forces on March 19, 1871.
Preussischer Adler first stayed in service as a guard ship in Kiel. Then, she became a smaller ship that helped the base command. She helped the ironclad Kronprinz tow a new floating dry dock from Swinemünde to Kiel. This happened from June 29 to July 1. At the end of July, she was assigned to help train engineers and boiler room staff.
The next month, she carried Prince Friedrich Karl from Flensburg to Heiligenhafen. In mid-August, the ship moved from Kiel to Wilhelmshaven. She continued to serve as a helper ship there. Prince Adalbert, the Inspector General of the Navy, boarded Preussischer Adler for his last trip in the North and Baltic Seas in September. After the trip, the ship returned to Wilhelmshaven. There, she was taken out of service.
In April 1872, Preussischer Adler was put back into service for a new job: protecting fisheries. At that time, British fishing boats were entering German waters. They were attacking German fishers to drive them away. Otto von Bismarck, the German Chancellor, asked the navy to solve this problem. Preussischer Adler was tasked with patrolling German waters. Her job was to remove British ships fishing illegally. She started these operations on July 1, replacing Blitz.
She was taken out of service again in February 1873. The next year, she went back to training engine and boiler room crews. She served as a fishery protection ship again in July that year. After that, she had short periods in her training role between 1875 and 1877. She was finally taken out of service for the last time on April 30, 1877. Her hull was in poor condition. So, she was removed from the naval register on November 27.
She remained in the fleet's inventory until November 1879. Then, she was used as a target ship in torpedo experiments. Alfred von Tirpitz, the new head of the torpedo department, wanted to test torpedoes on an iron-hulled ship. She was sunk by two torpedoes from the aviso Zieten. This happened in tests on June 26. During later efforts to clear the wreck, the ship's bow ornament was removed. It is now kept at the Mürwik Naval School.
