![]() Lithograph of SMS Hagen from 1902, showing her original configuration | |
History | |
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Name | Hagen |
Namesake | Hagen |
Builder | Kaiserliche Werft , Kiel |
Laid down | September 1891 |
Launched | 21 October 1893 |
Commissioned | 2 October 1894 |
Stricken | 17 June 1919 |
Fate | Scrapped in the Netherlands, 1919 |
General characteristics as built | |
Class and type | Siegfried-class coast defense ship |
Displacement | |
Length | 79 m (259.2 ft) |
Beam | 14.90 m (48.9 ft) |
Draft | 5.74 m (18.8 ft) |
Installed power |
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Propulsion | |
Speed | 14.8 knots (27.4 km/h; 17.0 mph) |
Complement |
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Armament |
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Armor |
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SMS Hagen was the final vessel of the six-member Siegfried class of coastal defense ships (Küstenpanzerschiffe) built for the German Imperial Navy. Her sister ships were Siegfried, Beowulf, Frithjof, Heimdall, and Hildebrand. Hagen was built by the Kaiserliche Werft (Imperial Shipyard) in Kiel between 1891 and 1893, and was armed with a main battery of three 24-centimeter (9.4 in) guns. She served in the German fleet throughout the 1890s and was rebuilt in 1900 - 1902. She served in the VI Battle Squadron after the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, but saw no action. Hagen was demobilized in 1915 and used as a barracks ship thereafter. She was ultimately sold for scrap in 1919 and subsequently dismantled.
In the late 1880s, the German Kaiserliche Marine (Imperial Navy) grappled with the problem of what type of capital ship to build in the face of limited naval budgets (owing to parliamentary objections to naval spending and the cost of dredging the Kaiser Wilhelm Canal). General Leo von Caprivi, the new Chef der Admiralität (Chief of the Admiralty), requested a series of design proposals, which ranged in size from small 2,500 t (2,461-long-ton) coastal defense ships to heavily armed 10,000 t (9,800-long-ton) ocean-going battleships. Caprivi ordered ten coastal defense ships to guard the entrances to the canal, since even opponents of the navy in the Reichstag (Imperial Diet) agreed that such vessels were necessary. The first six of these, the Siegfried class, were based on the smallest proposal. [1]
Hagen was 79 meters (259 ft) long overall and had a beam of 14.90 m (48.9 ft) and a maximum draft of 5.74 m (18.8 ft). She displaced 3,500 t (3,400 long tons ) normally and up to 3,741 t (3,682 long tons) at full load. Her hull had a long forecastle deck that extended most of the vessel's length. She was also fitted with a pronounced ram bow. Hagen had a crew of 20 officers and 256 enlisted men. [2]
Her propulsion system consisted of two vertical 3-cylinder triple-expansion engines, each driving a screw propeller. Steam for the engines was provided by four coal-fired fire-tube boilers that were vented through a single funnel. The ship's propulsion system provided a top speed of 14.8 knots (27.4 km/h; 17.0 mph) from 4,800 metric horsepower (3,500 kW ) and a range of approximately 1,490 nautical miles (2,760 km; 1,710 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph). [2]
The ship was armed with a main battery of three 24 cm (9.4 in) K L/35 guns mounted in three single gun turrets. Two were placed side by side forward, and the third was located aft of the main superstructure. They were supplied with a total of 204 rounds of ammunition. For defense against torpedo boats, the ship was also equipped with a secondary battery of eight 8.8 cm (3.5 in) SK L/30 guns in single mounts. Hagen also carried four 35 cm (13.8 in) torpedo tubes, all in swivel mounts on the deck. One was at the bow, another at the stern, and two amidships. The ship was protected by an armored belt that was 240 mm (9.4 in) in the central citadel, and an armored deck that was 30 mm (1.2 in) thick. The conning tower had 80 mm (3.1 in) thick sides. [3] Hagen's armor consisted of new Krupp steel, a more effective type of armor than the compound steel the other members of the class received. [4] The sides of the ship were fitted with anti-torpedo nets. [3]
In 1897, the ship had her anti-torpedo nets removed. Hagen was extensively rebuilt between 1899 and 1900 in an attempt to improve her usefulness. The ship was lengthened to 86.13 m (282.6 ft), which increased displacement to 4,000 t (3,900 long tons; 4,400 short tons) normally and 4,247 t (4,180 long tons; 4,682 short tons) at full load. The lengthened hull space was used to install additional boilers; her old fire-tube boilers were replaced with more efficient water-tube Thornycroft boilers, and a second funnel was added. The performance of her propulsion machinery increased to 15.3 knots (28.3 km/h; 17.6 mph) from 5,332 metric horsepower (3,922 kW), with a maximum range of 3,400 nmi (6,300 km; 3,900 mi) at 10 knots. Her secondary battery was increased to ten 8.8 cm guns, and the 35 cm torpedo tubes were replaced with three 45 cm (17.7 in) tubes. Her crew increased to 20 officers and 287 enlisted men. Work was completed by 1900. [2]
Hagen, named for the legendary hero Hagen, was laid down in September 1891 at the Kaiserliche Werft (Imperial Shipyard) in Kiel. She was launched on 23 October 1893, having been christened by Otto Diederichsen, the director of the shipyard. She was commissioned for sea trials on 2 October 1894, under the command of Korvettenkapitän (Corvette Captain) Karl Rosendahl. She was then assigned to the newly created Reserve Division of the Baltic Sea. The ship embarked on an individual training cruise from 13 May to 2 June 1895 before joining the Reserve Division on 11 June. She was present for the naval review held at the opening of the Kaiser Wilhelm Canal on 25 June. [5] [6]
Hagen was immediately ordered to sail for Morocco in response to an international incident that followed the murder of two German merchants in the country. There, she joined the protected cruiser Kaiserin Augusta, and the old corvettes Marie and Stosch; the German government had demanded 250,000 marks as an indemnity, and the naval squadron was sent to secure it. After completing their mission, Hagen got underway on 10 August to return home, arriving in Wilhelmshaven nine days later. Upon returning, she immediately joined the rest of the fleet for the annual large-scale fleet maneuvers held every August and September. She operated with the Scouting Unit of the fleet for the exercises. On 19 September, she returned to the Reserve Division. At that time, KK von Arend relieved Rosendahl as the ship's commander. [6] [7]
In early 1896, Hagen was assigned as the guard ship for Kiel. KK Adolf Goetz took command of the ship in May. She trained with I Battle Squadron from 28 June to 9 July and then with the Scouting Unit for the annual fleet maneuvers. Following the end of the exercises, KK Guido von Usedom replaced Goetz. She returned to the Reserve Division in 1897, and from 3 August to 25 September, operated with the newly formed II Battle Squadron during the fleet maneuvers, along with her five sister ships. During this period, Hagen served as the flagship of Konteradmiral (KAdm—Rear Admiral) Volkmar von Arnim, one of the squadron's two divisional commanders. The rest of the year passed uneventfully for Hagen. She continued to operate with the squadron in 1898; during training exercises in May, Hagen suffered a boiler explosion on the 31st, forcing her to withdraw from the maneuvers. Unable to steam under her own power, Hagen was taken under tow by the aviso Pfeil, which took her to Kiel for repairs. In July, Usedom was transferred to another vessel and the ship's executive officer, Kapitänleutnant (Captain Lieutenant) August Goette briefly took command before being replaced by KK Paul Walther in August, though his tenure was also brief, as Hagen was decommissioned on 29 September. [6]
In May 1899, she was taken into drydock at the Kaiserliche Werft shipyard in Danzig for an extensive reconstruction. Work was completed in late 1900, and she began sea trials on 2 October under the command of KK Carl Paschen. Following the completion of testing, Hagen steamed to Neufahrwassar on 12 December, where she rejoined the Reserve Division. [2] [8] Following the death of Queen Victoria of Great Britain in January 1901, Hagen joined the ironclad Baden and the protected cruiser Victoria Louise to represent Germany at the funeral ceremony at the Isle of Wight on 31 January. Hagen arrived back in Danzig on 11 February. In May, KK Gerhard Gerdes briefly relieved Paschen as the ship's captain, but Paschen returned in June. She operated with the Reserve Division through to the fleet maneuvers in August, when she was assigned to II Squadron for the duration of the exercise. The ship then went to Kiel for an overhaul. At that time, KK Karl Dick took command of the ship. [9]
The next two years passed in the same pattern of training exercises with the Reserve Division followed by fleet maneuvers in August and September. In September 1902, KK Hartwig von Dassel relieved Dick. The only event of note was a serious engine break down in early July 1903, forcing her to go to the Kaiserliche Werft in Danzig for repairs that lasted from 8 to 30 July. After Hagen reached the shipyard, Fregattenkapitän (FK—Frigate Captain) Eugen Weber took command of the vessel. She took part in the fleet maneuvers that year, thereafter being decommissioned on 17 September and placed in the reserve fleet. Hagen was reactivated only once in the next ten years, to take part in fleet maneuvers in 1909, which began on 22 July and concluded on 15 September; she thereafter returned to the reserve. [10]
Following the start of World War I in July 1914, Hagen was mobilized for wartime service, being recommissioned on 12 August under the command of FK Lebrecht von Klitzing. She was assigned to VI Battle Squadron for coastal defense, along with her sister ships and the two Odin-class coastal defense ships. The unit was initially stationed on Germany's North Sea coast beginning on 15 September. She accidentally ran aground off Voslapp and had to be pulled free by her sister Hildebrand on 28 September. Hagen took part in coastal patrol duty from 29 September to 13 December, alternating between the Jade Bight and the mouth of the Weser. When the battlecruisers of I Scouting Group conducted the Raid on Yarmouth on 2–3 November, Hagen and the other ships were sent to the outer Jade roadstead to cover their return. In the early hours of 4 November, as I Scouting Group returned to the Jade, Hagen came to the aid of the sinking armored cruiser Yorck, helping to evacuate more than half of her crew. That month, FK Kurtz replaced Klitzing as the ship's captain. Hagen was transferred to the mouth of the Ems on 14 December, remaining there on guard duty through 14 June 1915. She thereafter returned to patrol the Jade and Weser for the next two months. [11] [12]
On 30 August 1915, Hagen was withdrawn from guard duty, and the next day, VI Battle Squadron was disbanded. Hagen left Wilhelmshaven on 1 September, bound for Danzig, where she was decommissioned, which allowed Hagen's crew to be transferred to other warships. [11] [13] Beginning in June 1916, she was employed as a barracks ship initially in Libau, to support U-boat crews stationed in the Baltic. She was towed to Danzig on 19 August to serve as a barracks for the crew of the old pre-dreadnought battleship Lothringen, which was at that time on patrol duty in the Danish straits. She was moved once again, further west to Warnemünde, on 22 September, where she remained through the end of the war. Following Germany's defeat in November 1918, she was struck from the naval register on 17 June 1919. She was sold for scrapping to Norddeutsche Tiefbaugesellschaft of Berlin and broken for scrap. [3] [13]
SMS Siegfried was the lead ship of the six-member Siegfried class of coastal defense ships built for the German Imperial Navy. Her sister ships were Beowulf, Frithjof, Heimdall, Hildebrand, and Hagen. Siegfried was built by the Germaniawerft shipyard between 1888 and 1890, and was armed with a main battery of three 24-centimeter (9.4 in) guns. She served in the German fleet throughout the 1890s and was rebuilt in 1903 - 1904. She served in the VI Battle Squadron after the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, but saw no action. Siegfried was demobilized in 1915 and used as a barracks ship thereafter. She was ultimately broken up for scrap in 1920.
SMS Ägir was the second and final member of the Odin class of coastal defense ships built for the Imperial German Navy. She had one sister ship, Odin. Ägir was named for the norse god, and was built by the Kaiserliche Werft in Danzig between 1893 and 1896. She was armed with a main battery of three 24-centimeter (9.4 in) guns. She served in the German fleet throughout the 1890s and was rebuilt in 1901–1903. She served in the VI Battle Squadron after the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, but saw no action. Ägir was demobilized in 1915 and used as a tender thereafter. After the war, she was rebuilt as a merchant ship and served in this capacity until December 1929, when she was wrecked on the island of Gotland.
SMS Hela was an aviso built for the German Kaiserliche Marine in the mid-1890s, the last vessel of that type to be built by the German Empire. As the culmination of the type in German service, she represented significant improvements over earlier vessels, particularly the Wacht and Meteor classes, which had been disappointments in service. She was intended to serve as a fleet scout and as a flotilla leader for torpedo boats. Hela marked a step toward the development of the light cruiser. Armed with a battery of four 8.8 cm (3.5 in) guns and three 45 cm (17.7 in) torpedo tubes, the ship proved to be too weakly-armed for front-line combat.
SMS Gneisenau was a Bismarck-class corvette built for the German Imperial Navy in the late 1870s. The ship was named after the Prussian Field Marshal August von Gneisenau. She was the fifth member of the class, which included five other vessels. The Bismarck-class corvettes were ordered as part of a major naval construction program in the early 1870s, and she was designed to serve as a fleet scout and on extended tours in Germany's colonial empire. Gneisenau was laid down in June 1877, launched in September 1879, and was commissioned into the fleet in October 1880. She was armed with a battery of fourteen 15 cm (5.9 in) guns and had a full ship rig to supplement her steam engine on long cruises abroad.
SMS Wörth was one of four German pre-dreadnought battleships of the Brandenburg class, built in the early 1890s. The class also included Brandenburg, Kurfürst Friedrich Wilhelm, and Weissenburg. The ships were the first ocean-going battleships built for the Kaiserliche Marine. Wörth was laid down at the Germaniawerft dockyard in Kiel in May 1890. The ship was launched on 6 August 1892 and commissioned into the fleet on 31 October 1893. Wörth and her three sisters carried six heavy guns rather than four, as was standard for most other navies' battleships. She was named for the Battle of Wörth fought during the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–1871.
SMS Brandenburg was the lead ship of the Brandenburg-class pre-dreadnought battleships, which included Kurfürst Friedrich Wilhelm, Weissenburg, and Wörth, built for the German Kaiserliche Marine in the early 1890s. She was the first pre-dreadnought built for the German Navy; earlier, the navy had only built coastal defense ships and armored frigates. The ship was laid down at the AG Vulcan dockyard in 1890, launched on 21 September 1891, and commissioned into the German Navy on 19 November 1893. Brandenburg and her three sisters were unique for their time in that they carried six heavy guns instead of the four that were standard in other navies. She was named after the Province of Brandenburg.
SMS Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse was a German pre-dreadnought battleship of the Kaiser Friedrich III class, built around the turn of the 20th century. The ship was one of the first battleships built by the German Imperial Navy as part of a program of naval expansion under Kaiser Wilhelm II. Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse was built in Kiel at the Germaniawerft shipyard. She was laid down in January 1898, launched in June 1899, and completed in May 1901. The ship was armed with a main battery of four 24-centimeter (9.4 in) guns in two twin turrets.
SMS Sachsen was the lead ship of her class of four ironclads of the German Kaiserliche Marine. Her sisterships were Bayern, Württemberg, and Baden. Sachsen was built in the AG Vulcan shipyard in Stettin. She was laid down in April 1875, launched on 21 July 1877, and commissioned on 21 October 1878. The ship was armed with a main battery of six 26 cm (10.2 in) guns in individual open mounts.
SMS Bayern was one of four Sachsen-class armored frigates of the German Kaiserliche Marine. Her sister ships were Sachsen, Baden, and Württemberg. Named for Bavaria, Bayern was built by the Kaiserliche Werft in Kiel from 1874 to 1881. The ship was commissioned into the Imperial Navy in August 1881. She was armed with a main battery of six 26 cm (10.2 in) guns in two open barbettes.
SMS Heimdall was the fourth vessel of the six-member Siegfried class of coastal defense ships built for the German Imperial Navy. Her sister ships were Siegfried, Beowulf, Frithjof, Hildebrand, and Hagen. Heimdall was built by the Kaiserliche Werft in Wilhelmshaven between 1891 and 1894, and was armed with a main battery of three 24-centimeter (9.4 in) guns. She served in the German fleet throughout the 1890s and was rebuilt in 1900–1902. She served in the VI Battle Squadron after the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, but saw no action. Heimdall was demobilized in 1915 and used as a barracks ship thereafter. She was ultimately broken up for scrap in 1921.
SMS Beowulf was the second vessel of the six-member Siegfried class of coastal defense ships built for the German Imperial Navy. Her sister ships were Siegfried, Frithjof, Heimdall, Hildebrand, and Hagen. Beowulf was built by the AG Weser shipyard between 1890 and 1892, and was armed with a main battery of three 24-centimeter (9.4 in) guns. She served in the German fleet throughout the 1890s and was rebuilt in 1900 – 1902. She served in the VI Battle Squadron after the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, but saw no action. Beowulf was demobilized in 1915 and used as a target ship for U-boats thereafter. She was ultimately broken up for scrap in 1921.
SMS Frithjof was the third vessel of the six-member Siegfried class of coastal defense ships built for the German Imperial Navy. Her sister ships were Siegfried, Beowulf, Heimdall, Hildebrand, and Hagen. Frithjof was built by the AG Weser shipyard between 1890 and 1893, and was armed with a main battery of three 24-centimeter (9.4 in) guns. She served in the German fleet throughout the 1890s and was rebuilt in 1900 - 1902. She served in the VI Battle Squadron after the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, but saw no action. Frithjof was demobilized in 1915 and used as a barracks ship thereafter. She was rebuilt as a merchant ship in 1923 and served in this capacity until she was broken up for scrap in 1930.
SMS Hildebrand was the fifth vessel of the six-member Siegfried class of coastal defense ships built for the German Imperial Navy. Her sister ships were Siegfried, Beowulf, Frithjof, Heimdall, and Hagen. Hildebrand was built by the Kaiserliche Werft at Kiel between 1890 and 1893, and was armed with a main battery of three 24-centimeter (9.4 in) guns. She served in the German fleet throughout the 1890s and was rebuilt in 1900–1902. She served in the VI Battle Squadron after the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, but saw no action. Hildebrand was demobilized in 1915 and used as a barracks ship thereafter. She ran aground while en route to the Netherlands for scrapping in 1919, and was eventually broken up in situ in 1933.
SMS Odin was the lead ship of her class of coastal defense ships built for the Imperial German Navy. She had one sister ship, Ägir. Odin, named for the eponymous Norse god, was built by the Kaiserliche Werft in Danzig between 1893 and 1896, and was armed with a main battery of three 24-centimeter (9.4 in) guns. She served in the German fleet throughout the 1890s and was rebuilt in 1901–1903. She served in the VI Battle Squadron after the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, but saw no action. Odin was demobilized in 1915 and used as a tender thereafter. After the war, she was rebuilt as a merchant ship and served in this capacity until 1935, when she was broken up for scrap.
SMS Amazone was the sixth member of the ten-ship Gazelle class of light cruisers that were built for the German Kaiserliche Marine in the late 1890s and early 1900s. The Gazelle 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 10.5 cm (4.1 in) guns and a top speed of 21.5 knots.
SMS München was the fifth of seven Bremen-class cruisers of the Imperial German Navy, named after the city of Munich. She was built by AG Weser in Bremen, starting in 1903, launched in April 1904, and commissioned in January 1905. Armed with a main battery of ten 10.5 cm (4.1 in) guns and two 45 cm (18 in) torpedo tubes, München was capable of a top speed of 22.5 knots.
SMS Blitz was an aviso of the German Kaiserliche Marine built in the early 1880s. She was the lead ship of her class, which included one other vessel, SMS Pfeil. Her primary offensive armament consisted of a bow-mounted torpedo tube, and she was armed with a battery of light guns to defend herself against torpedo boats, a sign of the growing importance of torpedoes as effective weapons in the period. The Blitz class featured a number of innovations in German warship design: they were the first steel hulled warships and the first cruiser-type ships to discard traditional sailing rigs.
SMS Wacht was an aviso of the Imperial German Navy, the lead ship of her class. She had one sister ship, Jagd. Wacht was built by the AG Weser shipyard; she was laid down in 1886, launched in August 1887, and commissioned in August 1888. She served in the active fleet through the 1890s and participated in numerous training exercises. Her career was cut short on 4 September 1901, when she collided with the old ironclad SMS Sachsen. The latter's ram bow holed Wacht under the waterline and caused her to rapidly sink. Her crew was safely rescued, however, and there were no casualties.
SMS Jagd was an aviso of the Imperial German Navy, the second and final member of the Wacht class. She had one sister ship, Wacht. Jagd was laid down in 1887 at the AG Weser shipyard, launched in July 1888, and commissioned in June 1889. She served in the German fleet for the next fifteen years, until she was withdrawn from active duty in 1904. Thereafter, she was used as a harbor ship. In 1910, she was stricken from the naval register and hulked. She was later used as a torpedo training platform until 1920, when she was sold for scrapping.
SMS Grille was an aviso of the Prussian Navy built in France in the mid-1850s as part of a naval expansion program directed by Prince Adalbert of Prussia, who saw the need for a stronger fleet. She was authorized in 1855 in the aftermath of the First Schleswig War, which had demonstrated the weakness of the Prussian fleet. Grille was the first screw propeller-driven steamship to be built for Prussia; all earlier steam-powered vessels had been paddle steamers.