SMS Kaiser Friedrich III

Seiner Majestät Schiff "Kaiser Friedrich III" was the lead ship of the "Kaiser Friedrich III" class pre-dreadnought battleship. She was laid down at Wilhelmshaven Navy Dockyard in March, 1895, and finished in October, 1898, at the cost of 21,472,000 Marks.

Following the advent of the dreadnought revolution, the ships of her class were reconstructed with a reduced superstructure, taller funnels, and rearrangement of the secondary battery. The ship's complement was also increased.

Already obsolete by the beginning of World War I, "Kaiser Friedrich III" and her sister ships served in limited capacities, first as coastal defense ships and later in auxiliary roles, in "Kaiser Friedrich III's"' case it was as a prison ship. She was scrapped in 1919, following the end of the war.

Design

Dimensions and machinery

"Kaiser Friedrich III" was 396 ft 9 in (121 m) at the waterline and 411 ft (125 m) overall. She had a beam of 67 ft (20.4 m), a draught of 27 ft (8.2 m), and displaced 11,599 tons fully loaded. "Kaiser Friedrich III" was powered by 3 shaft triple expansion engines that produced 14,000 ihp and a top speed of convert|17|kn|km/h.

Armament

"Kaiser Friedrich III's" armament consisted of a main battery of four 9.4 inch (238mm) 40 cal guns in twin turrets, one fore and one aft. She carried a much heavier secondary battery compared to the previous "Brandenburg" class, carrying 15 5.9 inch (150mm) guns, 12 3.4 inch (88mm) guns, and 12 1 pounders, all singly mounted. She also carried six 17.7 inch (450mm) torpedo tubes.

Armor

"Kaiser Friedrich III" had an armor belt that was twelve inches (305 mm) thick at its strongest area, that which covered the ship's vitals, and tapered to four inches (102 mm) at the thinnest parts, at the bow and stern. The deck armor was three inches (76 mm) thick. The turrets were protected by ten inches of armor plate.

ervice history

"Kaiser Friedrich III" was commissioned into the German Imperial Navy on 7 October 1898. In 1910, "Kaiser Friedrich III" and her sisterships were assigned to the III Squadron of the High Seas Fleet.

"Kaiser Friedrich III" saw limited duty during World War I, as a part of V Squadron of the Imperial Navy, until 1915, when she was deactivated. "Kaiser Friedrich III" was reactivated in 1916 as a prison ship in Kiel, serving in that capacity until the end of the war. In 1917, "Kaiser Friedrich III" was moved to Flensburg, and again to Swinemünde. In 1918, "Kaiser Friedrich III" became a barracks ship for the Naval academy. In 1919, "Kaiser Friedrich III" was struck from the navy lists, and sold for scrap. Her bow ornament is on display in Dresden. [Hore, Peter: The Ironclads", page 67. Anness Publishing Ltd, 2006. ISBN 978-1-84476-299-6]

Gallery

References

External links

* [http://www.worldwar1.co.uk/pre-dreadnought/sms-kaiser-fredrich-iii.html World War 1 Naval Combat]