SMS Wittelsbach
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| 300px SMS Wittlesbach | |
| Career (Germany) | Kaiser |
|---|---|
| Name: | Wittlesbach |
| Namesake: | House of Wittelsbach |
| Builder: | Kaiserliche Werft Wilhelmshaven |
| Laid down: | September 1899 |
| Launched: | 3 July 1900 |
| Commissioned: | 15 October 1902 |
| Fate: | Scrapped in 1921 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Wittelsbach-class battleship |
| Displacement: | 12,798 tons |
| Length: | 416 ft (127 m) |
| Beam: | 74 ft (23 m) |
| Draught: | 26 ft (7.9 m) |
| Propulsion: |
3 shafts triple expansion 15,000 ihp |
| Speed: | 17 knots (31 km/h) |
| Range: | 5,000 nautical miles (9,000 km); 10 knots (20 km/h) |
| Complement: | 683 |
| Armament: |
4 × 9.2 in (234 mm) guns (40 cal.) 18 × 5.9 in (150 mm) guns 12 × 3.4 in (86 mm) guns 5 × 17.7 in (450 mm) torpedo tubes |
| Armor: |
Belt 9-4 inches turrets 10 inches deck 3 inches |
Seiner Majestät Schiff Wittelsbach was the lead ship of the Wittelsbach-class of pre-dreadnought battleships of the Kaiserliche Marine. Wittelsbach was built at Wilhelmshaven Navy Dockyard. She was laid down in September, 1899, and completed in October, 1902, at the cost of 22,740,000 marks. Wittelsbach was the first capital ship built under the Navy Law of 1898, brought about by Admiral Alfred von Tirpitz.
Contents
Technical Data
Dimensions and machinery
Wittelsbach was 127 m (416 ft) long overall, and 125 m (410 ft 9 in) at the waterline. The ship's beam was 22.8 m, and her draught was 8.0 m, and displaced 11.800 tons. Three triple-expansion engines gave her 13,900 shp and a top speed of 17 knots (31 km/h). Her range at 10 knots (20 km/h) was 5,000 nautical miles (9,000 km). The crew numbered 683 officers and sailors.
Armament
The main armament consisted of four 24 cm (9.2 inch) guns in twin turrets, mounted fore and aft of the superstructure. Eighteen 15 cm guns, twelve 8.8 cm rapid fire guns as well as twelve 3.7 cm machine guns comprised the secondary battery, all of which were mounted in single mounts along the length of the ship. Most of the secondary weapons were mounted in turrets or casemates. Wittelsbach was also armed with six 45 cm torpedo tubes.
Armor
Her armor measured 22.5 cm at the strongest point of the belt (tapering off fore and aft, down to 10.1cm at the thinnest points), 5 cm on the main deck, and 25 cm for the command tower and the main gun turrets.
Service history
World War I
At the start of World War I, Wittelsbach was a member of the IV Battle Squadron, which covered the Baltic Sea. Between 26 - 31 August, 1914, Wittlesbach attempted to assist the beached cruiser Magdeburg. In May, 1915, Wittelsbach was transferred to support the German Army in the Baltic Sea area. She ran aground on 11 July, 1915, but sustained no damage. In August, 1916, she was decommissioned, and became a training ship.
Fate
Wittelsbach was converted into a depot ship in 1919 for minesweeping motor launches in Wilhelmshaven. She carried 12 of these shallow draft vessels. [1] She was stricken from the Navy List in March, 1921, and sold for scrap later that year.
References
- ↑ Hore, Peter: The Ironclads, page 67. Anness Publishing Ltd, 2006. ISBN 978-1-84476-299-6
External links
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