Pre-dreadnought battleships were sea-going battleships built from the mid- to late- 1880s to the early 1900s. Their designs were conceived before the appearance of HMS Dreadnought in 1906 and their classification as "pre-dreadnought" is retrospectively applied. In their day, they were simply known as "battleships" or else more rank-specific terms such as "first-class battleship" and so forth. The pre-dreadnought battleships were the pre-eminent warships of their time and replaced the ironclad battleships of the 1870s and 1880s.
HSwMS Äran was a Swedish first class coastal defence ship (Pansarskepp). A development of Dristigheten, the Äran class mounted the same 21 cm (8.3 in) main guns, but differed in the layout of the secondary armament. The vessel was launched in 1901 by Gustaf V breaking a bottle of champagne on her bow, the last time that ceremony took place following complaints that breaking wine on a ship was sacrilegious. The warship served on neutrality patrols in the First World War and was damaged after running aground in 1932. In the period immediately before the Second World War, the ship's armament was deemed out of date, and in 1939 and 1940 significant improvement to the vessel's anti-aircraft capability were made with the addition of 25 mm (1 in), 40 mm (1.6 in) and 57 mm (2.2 in) guns. After the war, the Swedish Navy decided to retire all its coastal defence ships. Äran was retired in 1947 and sold to be broken up in 1951, the last sections of the ship finally sinking in 1968.
HSwMS Sverige was a Sverige-class coastal defence ship (Pansarskepp) commissioned by Sweden during the last year of the First World War. The ship cost approximately 12 million kronor, a sum raised entirely by public donations. The fundraising was done because of the Karl Staaff government's reluctance to spend money on a new battleship. In addition to its impressive cost, the ship also had a significant impact on the Swedish Navy and its capabilities.
Coastal defence ships were warships built for the purpose of coastal defence, mostly during the period from 1860 to 1920. They were small, often cruiser-sized warships that sacrificed speed and range for armour and armament. They were usually attractive to nations that either could not afford full-sized battleships or could be satisfied by specially designed shallow-draft vessels capable of littoral operations close to their own shores. The Nordic countries and Thailand found them particularly appropriate for their island-dotted coastal waters. Some vessels had limited blue-water capabilities; others operated in rivers.
Masséna was a pre-dreadnought battleship of the French Navy, built in the 1890s. She was a member of a group of five broadly similar battleships, along with Charles Martel, Jauréguiberry, Bouvet, and Carnot, that were ordered in response to the British Royal Sovereign class. She was named in honour of Marshal of France André Masséna. Masséna significantly exceeded her design weight and suffered from serious stability problems that inhibited accurate firing of her guns; as a result, she was considered to be an unsuccessful design.
HDMS Peder Skram (F352) was a Peder Skram-class frigate in the Royal Danish Navy which was in use until 1990. It is now docked at Holmen in Copenhagen where it serves as a privately operated museum ship along with the ships of the Royal Danish Naval Museum. The ship is named after Peder Skram, a 16th-century Danish admiral.
The Peder Skram-class frigate was a class of frigates built for the Royal Danish Navy in the period 1964–1967. Only two vessels in this class were ever constructed, Peder Skram (F352) and Herluf Trolle (F353). The ships were named after Danish admirals Peder Skram and Herluf Trolle
Peder Skram, a 16th-century Danish admiral.
The Habsburg class was a group of pre-dreadnought battleships built by Austria-Hungary at the turn of the 20th century. They were the first sea-going battleship built by Austria-Hungary since the central battery ship Tegetthoff in 1876. The class was composed of three ships: Habsburg, Árpád, and Babenberg. They were armed with three 24 cm (9.4 in) guns in two turrets and were capable of slightly better than 19.5 knots at full speed. Habsburg and Árpád were modernized in 1910–11.
The Evertsen class or Kortenaer class was a class of coastal defense ships of the Royal Netherlands Navy. The class comprised Evertsen, Piet Hein and Kortenaer.
The Koningin Regentes class was a class of coastal defence ships of the Royal Netherlands Navy. The class comprised Koningin Regentes, De Ruyter and Hertog Hendrik.
HDMS Niels Juel was a training ship built for the Royal Danish Navy between 1914 and 1923. Originally designed before World War I as a monitor, construction was slowed by the war and she was redesigned as a training cruiser. Completed in 1923 she made training cruises to the Black and Mediterranean Seas, South America and numerous shorter visits to ports in northern Europe. The ship often served as a flagship and occasionally was used as a royal yacht for visits to overseas possessions and other countries.
HDMS Herluf Trolle (F353) was a Peder Skram-class frigate in the Royal Danish Navy which was in use until 1990. The ship is named after Herluf Trolle, a 15th-century Danish admiral.
HSwMS Tapperheten was a Äran-class coastal defence ship that served with the Swedish Navy. A development of Dristigheten, the Äran class mounted the same 21 cm (8.3 in) main guns, but differed in the layout of the secondary armament. The vessel was launched in 1901 and served with the coastal defence squadron at Karlskrona. In 1907, the warship attended a naval review by Edward VII. Tapperheten ran aground off the island of Sandön in 1914, earning the nickname, Fastigheten (Permanence) due to the lack of damage received until the vessel was refloated six months later. Subsequently, the vessel served in the First World War protecting Sweden's neutrality. The warship gained a second nickname, Tappaankarheten, for losing an anchor in 1927. After an upgrade to the anti-aircraft armament, the ship also served in the Second World War before retiring in 1947 and being sold to be broken up in 1952.
HSwMS Manligheten was a Äran-class coastal defence ship that served with the Swedish Navy. A development of Dristigheten, the Äran class mounted the same 21 cm (8 in) main guns, but differed in the layout of the secondary armament. The vessel was launched in 1903 and served on neutrality patrols in the First World War. During the two decades following the conflict, the ship undertook a number of international tours that called at ports in Britain, the Netherlands and Spain. Manligheten ran aground in 1930 and was freed by an ingenious manoeuvre by the destroyer Wachtmeister, which created waves by speeding past the stranded vessel. While serving in the Second World War, the vessel was damaged by a paravane in 1939 and modernised between 1940 and 1941. Decommissioned in 1950, Manligheten was broken up, although the ship's hull remaining in use as a pontoon until 1984.
HDMS Herluf Trolle was the lead ship of the Herluf Trolle class of coastal defense ships built for the Royal Danish Navy. The Herluf Trolle class was built in response to a naval construction program in neighboring Imperial Germany. The Danish ships were built in the late 1890s and early 1900s. They were armed with a main battery of two 240 mm (9.4 in) guns and were capable of a top speed of 15.5 knots. Because she was intended to operate as part of a solely defensive naval strategy, Herluf Trolle had a fairly uneventful career. She visited Britain in 1902 to represent Denmark at the coronation of Edward VII and Alexandra. During World War I, Denmark remained neutral and Herluf Trolle was assigned to the defense forces that guarded Danish territorial waters. Sharply reduced naval budgets in the 1920s and 1930s curtailed further activities, and in 1932, she was discarded for scrap.
HDMS Olfert Fischer was the second member of the Herluf Trolle class of coastal defense ships built for the Royal Danish Navy. The Herluf Trolle class was built in response to a naval construction program in neighboring Imperial Germany. The Danish ships were built in the late 1890s and early 1900s. They were armed with a main battery of two 240 mm (9.4 in) guns and were capable of a top speed of 15.5 knots. Because she was intended to operate as part of a solely defensive naval strategy, Olfert Fischer had a fairly uneventful career. She visited Britain in 1911 to represent Denmark at the coronation of George V and Mary. During World War I, Denmark remained neutral and Olfert Fischer was assigned to the defense forces that guarded Danish territorial waters. Sharply reduced naval budgets in the 1920s and 1930s curtailed further activities, and Olfert Fischer saw little activity during this period, apart from testing a reconnaissance aircraft in 1922. She was eventually converted into a target ship and used for tests of aerial bombing of a ship underway in October 1936, before being sold for scrap immediately thereafter.
HDMS Peder Skram was the third and final member of the Herluf Trolle class of coastal defense ships built for the Royal Danish Navy. The Herluf Trolle class was built in response to a naval construction program in neighboring Imperial Germany. The Danish ships were built in the late 1890s and early 1900s; Peder Skram was delayed significantly compared to her sisters, and was laid down in 1905, after her two sister ships had already been completed. The ships were armed with a main battery of two 240 mm (9.4 in) guns and were capable of a top speed of 15.5 knots.
HDMS Skjold was an armored coastal defense ship built for the Royal Danish Navy in the 1890s, the only member of her class. The naval command had wanted a larger vessel, but parliamentary reluctance to fund a more expensive vessel forced the navy to compromise with a smaller ship. As she was intended to serve as part of the defense of Copenhagen, she was fairly small and had a shallow draft, but was heavily armed and armored for her size. She carried a single 240 mm (9.4 in) gun in an armored gun turret forward, and had a complete armor belt.
Royal Danish Navy