The German East Asia Squadron was an Imperial German Navy cruiser squadron which operated mainly in the Pacific Ocean between the mid-1890s until 1914, when it was destroyed at the Battle of the Falkland Islands. It was based at Germany's Jiaozhou Bay Leased Territory in China.
The siege of Tsingtao was the attack on the German port of Qingdao (Tsingtao) from Jiaozhou Bay during World War I by Japan and the United Kingdom. The siege was waged against Imperial Germany between 27 August and 7 November 1914. The siege was the first encounter between Japanese and German forces, the first Anglo-Japanese operation of the war, and the only major land battle in the Asian and Pacific theatre during World War I.
SMS Fürst Bismarck was Germany's first armored cruiser, built for the Kaiserliche Marine before the turn of the 20th century. The ship was named for the German statesman Otto von Bismarck. The design for Fürst Bismarck was an improvement over the previous Victoria Louise-class protected cruisers—Fürst Bismarck was significantly larger and better armed than her predecessors.
SMS Kaiserin und Königin Maria Theresia was an armored cruiser used by the imperial Austro-Hungarian Navy from 1895 to 1917; she was the first ship of that type built by the Austro-Hungarian Navy. The ship was a unique design, built by the Stabilimento Tecnico Triestino shipyard in Trieste; she was laid down in July 1891, launched in April 1893, and completed in November 1894. Armed with a main battery of two 24-centimeter (9.4 in) guns and eight 15 cm (5.9 in) guns, the ship provided the basis for two subsequent armored cruiser designs for the Austro-Hungarian Navy.
SMS Leopard was a torpedo cruiser (Torpedoschiff) of the Austro-Hungarian Navy. She and her sister ship, SMS Panther, were part of a program to build up Austria-Hungary's fleet of torpedo craft in the 1880s. Both ships, the only members of the Panther class, were built in Britain at the Armstrong shipyard in Elswick. Leopard was laid down in January 1885, launched in September 1885, and completed in March 1886. She was armed with a battery of two 12 cm (4.7 in) guns and ten 47 mm (1.9 in) guns, along with four 356 mm (14 in) torpedo tubes.
SMS Kaiserin Augusta was a unique protected cruiser, built for the German Kaiserliche Marine in the early 1890s. Named for Empress Augusta, who died in January 1890, she was laid down in 1890, launched in January 1892, and completed in November of that year. Owing to budgetary restrictions, Kaiserin Augusta was designed to fill both fleet scout and colonial cruiser roles. The ship was initially armed with a main battery of four 15 cm (5.9 in) and eight 10.5 cm (4.1 in) guns, which by 1896 was replaced with twelve new model 15 cm guns. She was the first ship in the German Navy to feature a three-shaft propeller arrangement.
SMS Kaiser Karl VI was the second of three armored cruisers built by the Austro-Hungarian Navy. She was built by the Stabilimento Tecnico Triestino in Trieste between June 1896 and May 1900, when she was commissioned into the fleet. Kaiser Karl VI represented a significant improvement over the preceding design—Kaiserin und Königin Maria Theresia—being faster and more heavily armed and armored. She provided the basis for the third design, Sankt Georg, which featured further incremental improvements. Having no overseas colonies to patrol, Austria-Hungary built the ship solely to reinforce its battle fleet.
The Type 24 torpedo boat (also known as the was a group of six torpedo boats built for the Reichsmarine during the 1920s. As part of the renamed Kriegsmarine, the boats made multiple non-intervention patrols during the Spanish Civil War in the late 1930s. One was sunk in an accidental collision shortly before the start of World War II in September 1939 and the others escorted ships and searched for contraband for several months of the war. They played a minor role in the Norwegian Campaign of April 1940 and resumed their escort duties. After being transferred to France late in the year, the Type 24s started laying their own minefields in the English Channel.
SMS Cormoran was an unprotected cruiser of the Bussard class, the fifth member of a class of six ships. She was built for the Imperial German Navy for overseas duty. The cruiser's keel was laid down in Danzig in 1890; she was launched in May 1892 and commissioned in July 1893. Cormoran was armed with a main battery of eight 10.5-centimeter (4.1 in) guns, and could steam at a speed of 15.5 knots.
Events in the year 1914 in Japan. It corresponds to Taishō 3 (大正3年) in the Japanese calendar.
SMS Iltis was the lead ship of the Iltis class of gunboats built for the German Kaiserliche Marine in the late 1890s and early 1900s. Other ships of the class are SMS Luchs, SMS Tiger, SMS Eber, SMS Jaguar, and SMS Panther.
SMS Jaguar was the second member of the Iltis class of gunboats built for the German Kaiserliche Marine in the late 1890s and early 1900s, for overseas service in the German colonial empire. Other ships of the class are SMS Iltis, SMS Luchs, SMS Tiger, SMS Eber and SMS Panther.
SMS Luchs was the fourth member of the Iltis class of gunboats built for the German Kaiserliche Marine in the late 1890s and early 1900s. Other ships of the class are SMS Iltis, SMS Tiger, SMS Eber, SMS Jaguar and SMS Panther.
SMS Tiger was the third member of the Iltis class of gunboats built for the German Kaiserliche Marine in the late 1890s and early 1900s. Other ships of the class were SMS Iltis, SMS Luchs, SMS Eber, SMS Jaguar and SMS Panther.
SMS Sebenico was a torpedo cruiser of the Austro-Hungarian Navy, the third member of the Zara class, though built to a slightly different design to her two half-sister ships in an unsuccessful attempt to improve her speed. She was laid down in July 1880, launched in February 1882, and commissioned in December that year. Too slow to be used in her intended roles as a fleet scout and a flotilla leader, she saw little active service. She took part in an international naval demonstration off Crete in 1897, where she sank a Greek ship trying to break the blockade. Sebenico served as a training ship for the rest of her career, including with the artillery school from 1903 to 1915, and with the torpedo school until the end of World War I in 1918. Ceded to Italy as a war prize in 1920, she was then broken up for scrap.
SMS S90 was a torpedo-boat of the Imperial German Navy. She was built by Schichau at Elbing as the lead ship of her class, completing in 1899.
The Kaiser Franz Joseph I class was a class of two protected cruisers built for the Austro-Hungarian Navy. Named for Austro-Hungarian Emperor Franz Joseph I, the class comprised SMS Kaiser Franz Joseph I and SMS Kaiserin Elisabeth. Construction took place throughout the late 1880s, with both ships being laid down in 1888. Kaiser Franz Joseph I was built by Stabilimento Tecnico Triestino in Trieste, while Kaiserin Elisabeth was built at the Pola Navy Yard in Pola. The Kaiser Franz Joseph I-class ships were the first protected cruisers constructed by the Austro-Hungarian Navy. Kaiser Franz Joseph I was the first ship of the class to be commissioned into the fleet in July 1890. She was followed by Kaiserin Elisabeth in November 1892.
SMS Kaiser Franz Joseph I was a protected cruiser built for the Austro-Hungarian Navy. Named for the Austrian emperor and Hungarian king Franz Joseph I, Kaiser Franz Joseph I was the lead ship of her namesake class. Constructed by Stabilimento Tecnico Triestino in Trieste, she was laid down in January 1888 and launched in May 1889. Kaiser Franz Joseph I was commissioned into the Navy in June 1890. As the first protected cruiser constructed by the Austro-Hungarian Navy, she was intended to serve as Austria-Hungary's response to the Italian cruisers Giovanni Bausan and Etna. Her design was heavily influenced by the Jeune École, a naval strategy which had gained prominence in the 1880s as a means to combat a larger and more heavily armored navy of battleships through the use of torpedo flotillas.
SMS Triglav was one of six Tátra-class destroyers built for the kaiserliche und königliche Kriegsmarine shortly before the First World War. Completed in August 1914, the ship participated in an unsuccessful attempt to recapture a small island in the Central Adriatic Sea from the Italians in July 1915. In November and early December Triglav was one of the ships conducting raids off the Albanian coast to interdict the supply lines between Italy and Albania. She was crippled by a mine during the 1st Battle of Durazzo in late December, but was taken in tow. The ship had to be abandoned when the Austro-Hungarian ships were spotted on the return voyage and she was sunk by French destroyers.
Austria-Hungary 
