SMS was the fourth member of the ten-ship of light cruisers that were built for the German (Imperial Navy) in the late 1890s and early 1900s. The class was the culmination of earlier unprotected cruiser and aviso designs, combining the best aspects of both types in what became the progenitor of all future light cruisers of the Imperial fleet. Built to be able to serve with the main German fleet and as a colonial cruiser, she was armed with a battery of ten guns and a top speed of .
In late 1901, she was assigned to the East Asia Squadron; she operated in East Asian waters for the next four years, during which time she evacuated German nationals from Chemulpo in the Korean Empire during the Russo-Japanese War in 1904. was ordered to reinforce German forces in German East Africa after the outbreak of the Maji Maji Rebellion in mid-1905. The revolt was quickly suppressed and was thereafter recalled to Germany for an overhaul, after which she was placed in reserve.
was recommissioned after the start of World War I, initially to patrol the Danish Straits. She was soon transferred to the Detached Division for offensive operations against Russian forces, taking part in several patrols in the northern Baltic. During one of these operations in November 1914, she failed to report sighting Russian destroyers laying a minefield that sank a German armored cruiser two days later, leading to her commander being relieved of command. In 1915, she supported German Army operations in the area around the Gulf of Riga, ultimately being damaged by naval mines in the Battle of the Gulf of Riga in August. She was decommissioned for repairs and then served as a training ship for the rest of the war.
As one of the six cruisers permitted for the post-war (Navy of the Realm), returned to active service between 1922 and 1924. This period passed uneventfully, though she served as the flagship of light forces in the Baltic and she made several visits to foreign ports in the region. Decommissioned in late 1924, she was used as a barracks ship until 1929, when she was struck from the naval register and broken up in 1930.
Design
Following the construction of the unprotected cruisers of the and the aviso for the German (Imperial Navy), the Construction Department of the (Imperial Navy Office) prepared a design for a new small cruiser that combined the best attributes of both types of vessels. The designers had to design a small cruiser with armor protection that had an optimal combination of speed, armament, and stability necessary for fleet operations, along with the endurance to operate on foreign stations in the German colonial empire. The resulting design provided the basis for all of the light cruisers built by the German fleet to the last official designs prepared in 1914.
was long overall and had a beam of and a draft of forward. She displaced normally and up to at full combat load. The ship had a minimal superstructure, which consisted of a small conning tower and bridge structure. Her hull had a raised forecastle and quarterdeck, along with a pronounced ram bow. She was fitted with two pole masts. She had a crew of 14 officers and 243 enlisted men.
Her propulsion system consisted of two triple-expansion steam engines manufactured by Germaniawerft, driving a pair of screw propellers. The engines were powered by ten coal-fired Marine-type water-tube boilers that were vented through a pair of funnels. They were designed to give , for a top speed of . carried of coal, which gave her a range of at .
The ship was armed with ten SK L/40 guns in single pivot mounts. Two were placed side by side forward on the forecastle; six were located on the broadside in sponsons; and two were placed side by side aft. The guns could engage targets out to . They were supplied with 1,000 rounds of ammunition, for 100 shells per gun. She was also equipped with two torpedo tubes with five torpedoes. They were submerged in the hull on the broadside.
The ship was protected by an armored deck that was thick. The deck sloped downward at the sides of the ship to provide a measure of protection against incoming fire. The conning tower had thick sides, and the guns were protected by thick gun shields.
Service history Early career
was ordered under the contract name "C", and was laid down at the (Imperial Dockyard) in Danzig in September 1899 and was launched on 3 July 1900. At her launching ceremony the shipyard director, (KAdm—Rear Admiral) Curt von Prittwitz und Gaffron, gave a speech and she was christened by Countess Amélie von Dohna-Schlobitten. After fitting-out work was completed, she was commissioned for sea trials on 14 September 1901. A month later, (KK—Corvette Captain) Ernst van Semmern took command of the ship. On 1 December, she was assigned to join the East Asia Squadron. She passed through the Mediterranean Sea, transited the Suez Canal, and steamed into the Red Sea; Semmern had been secretly ordered by the (Admiralty Staff) to inspect the Farasan Islands to determine whether a coaling station could be built there. The nature of Semmern's report is not known, but Russian accusations that Germany sought to seize the islands led Germany to formally renounce the idea in 1902.
After leaving the Red Sea, stopped in Aden, the British Aden Settlement, Colombo in British Ceylon, and Calcutta, India; while in Calcutta, she met the Austro-Hungarian protected cruiser . The two ships' officers met with the Swedish explorer Sven Hedin. then continued on, reaching Singapore on 7 February 1902. While in the East Asia Squadron, was based in Qingdao. The commander of the squadron, (Vice Admiral) Richard Geissler, came aboard the ship for a cruise in the Yangtze river on 28 April. The ship visited Wusung, Nanking, and Hankou before returning to Qingdao on 15 May. That year, s gunners earned the (Shooting Prize) for the East Asia Squadron, awarded every year by Kaiser Wilhelm II. In December, (FK–Frigate Captain) Karl Dick replaced Semmern as the ship's captain. The year 1903 passed uneventfully. After the outbreak of the Russo-Japanese War in February 1904, was sent to Chemulpo in the Korean Empire to evacuate German nationals from the country. From October to December, she embarked on another cruise in the Yangtze.
In June 1905, FK Ludwig Glatzel became the ship's commander. Following the outbreak of the Maji Maji Rebellion against colonial rule in German East Africa in July, was detached from the East Africa Squadron to reinforce the colonial garrison, though she officially remained part of the unit. s crew again secured the for the 1905 training year. She left Hong Kong on 28 August and arrived in East Africa on 26 September; the unprotected cruiser joined her there on 1 October. Since Glatzel was the senior-most captain of the vessels in the area, which also included the unprotected cruiser , the station ship in East Africa, he became the commander of the naval forces in the region. The rebellion was quickly suppressed, however, and by 30 December Glatzel reembarked s landing party. He reported to the on 2 January 1906 that and were no longer required and the naval command concurred, though remained in Dar es Salaam until 29 March, when she was ordered to return to Germany. After arriving in Danzig, was decommissioned on 18 June for a major overhaul, after which she was placed in reserve for the next eight years.
World War I
1914
Following the start of World War I in July 1914, was recommissioned on 4 August and assigned to the Coastal Defense Division of the Baltic Sea, commanded by KAdm Robert Mischke. Work to ready the ship for wartime service was completed by 24 August, and she was thereafter deployed to patrol the Danish Straits to guard against incursions by British warships. was transferred on 18 October to the Detached Division, commanded by KAdm Ehler Behring; the unit was tasked with offensive operations against Russian forces in the eastern Baltic. She took part in a sweep as far north as Gotska Sandön on 24–26 October before being sent with the 20th Torpedo-boat Half-flotilla to guard Memel against Russian attacks. She sent a landing party of seventy-four men to reinforce the defenses of Bajohren on 30–31 October.
was thereafter recalled to Danzig. While on the way back on the night of 6 November, s crew observed a pair of ships in the distance, but her commander, FK Paul Nippe, failed to report the sighting. At around midnight, the cruiser engaged in a brief action with a Russian destroyer. Behring was harshly critical of Nippe's failure to inform him of the events and Behring's superior, Prince Heinrich of Prussia, who was the (Supreme Commander of the Baltic Sea) relieved Nippe of command. KK Walter Hildebrand then took command of the ship on 22 November. As it turned out, the vessels had observed were four Russian destroyers that had laid a minefield off Memel that claimed Behler's flagship, the armored cruiser , on 17 November.
Behring led another sweep into the direction of Åland that lasted from 15 to 18 December; and the light cruiser screened the eastward flank by patrolling off Utö, protecting the main German element from being surprised by Russian vessels that might sortie from the Gulf of Finland. While on the way back, encountered the German auxiliary and did not recognize her in the darkness. She opened fire, prompting to return fire, but quickly sank the auxiliary. On 26 December, she was temporarily transferred to V Battle Squadron to screen a sortie of the old pre-dreadnought battleships that advanced as far north as Gotland. The ships arrived back in port on 30 December and returned to the Detached Division.
1915 On 6 to 9 January 1915, Behring conducted another sweep to Utö, the harbor of which was being used by Russian submarines as an advance base. Since had the shallowest draft of any of the cruisers on the operation, she was selected to lead an attack on the port with several torpedo boats. Behring called off the attack, however, after determining the force was not strong enough to overpower the Russian defenses. was sent to the in Kiel for repairs from 20 January to 5 February. She then returned to the Detached Division, and Behring came aboard from 17 to 20 March for another sweep in company with the light cruiser . The ships patrolled north of Memel, where Russian naval forces were known to operate. remained in Memel for the next month and supported a minelaying operation off the island of Dagö in the Gulf of Riga.
On 20 April, the German naval command created a new command element in the Baltic: the (Leader of Reconnaissance Fores in the Eastern Baltic), with KAdm Albert Hopman its first commander. was assigned to the unit. As the Central Powers prepared to launch the Gorlice–Tarnów Offensive in early May, the extreme left flank of the German Army was ordered to launch a diversionary attack on 27 April. was assigned to the naval support for the attack; on the first day of the attack, she and shelled the port of Libau. then patrolled off the entrance to the Irben Strait that led into the Gulf of Riga. On 7 May, the Army was poised to seize Libau, and so requested naval support for the attack. and several other cruisers and torpedo boats covered the assault on the city and patrolled to ensure no Russian naval forces attempted to intervene. On 12 May, a Russian submarine attacked twice, but failed to score any hits.