SMS Greif (1886)
 SMS Greif
| |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Operators |  Imperial German Navy |
| Preceded by | Blitz class |
| Succeeded by | Wacht class |
| Completed | 1 |
| History | |
 German Empire | |
| Name | SMS Greif |
| Builder | Germaniawerft, Kiel |
| Laid down | 1885 |
| Launched | 29 July 1886 |
| Commissioned | 9 July 1887 |
| Stricken | 25 October 1912 |
| Fate | Scrapped, 1921 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Aviso |
| Displacement | |
| Length |
|
| Beam | 9.75 m (32.0 ft) |
| Draft | 4.22 m (13 ft 10 in) |
| Installed power |
|
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph) |
| Range | 2,180 nmi (4,040 km; 2,510 mi) at 12 kn (22 km/h; 14 mph) |
| Complement |
|
| Armament |
|
SMS Greif was an
Completed in 1887, Greif was not
Design
By the 1880s, the development of torpedoes and torpedo boats had produced a weapons system that could effectively challenge powerful ironclad warships. This led to the development in France of the Jeune École doctrine that emphasized the use of cheap torpedo boats and cruisers instead of expensive ironclads. As other navies, including Germany's, began to adopt the strategy, German planners saw the need for small warships capable of defending the fleet against attacking torpedo boats. The naval command called for a top speed of 19 knots (35 km/h; 22 mph), which would allow the vessel to also operate as a scout for the fleet. To keep weight limited, the armament was to consist of a pair of 10.5 cm (4.1 in) guns.[1][2] The ship proved to be a disappointment in service and she spent little time as a front-line combat unit.[3]
General characteristics
Greif was 99.5 meters (326 ft)
Greif was a mediocre sea boat and was moderately handy. She pitched slightly but rolled significantly more. Her transverse metacentric height was 0.48 m (1 ft 7 in). The ship had a crew of seven officers and 163 enlisted men, though the latter later increased to 178. Greif carried several smaller boats, including one picket boat, two cutters, one yawl, and one dinghy.[4]
Machinery
Greif's propulsion system consisted of two horizontal 2-cylinder
The ship's propulsion system was rated at 5,400
Armament
Unlike the other avisos built by the German navy, which carried
Service history
The
On 10 October 1890, the navy established the Torpedo Trials Command to further develop the torpedo arm of the fleet; this work had previously been carried out by the Torpedo Workshop in
Greif underwent a thorough overhaul from 17 April 1893 to 2 October, thereafter returning to service with the Torpedo Trials Command. This duty ended on 31 October 1894 when she was decommissioned. She remained out of service until 5 May 1897, when she was recommissioned for service with the fleet as a scout and
In December, Greif was assigned to I Division and she joined the battleships on a winter cruise to Christiana, Norway. While the divisional flagship, Kurfürst Friedrich Wilhelm, was in dock for repairs, Greif served in her place from 29 December to 20 February 1898 with VAdm August von Thomsen aboard. Two days later, Grief herself went into dock for periodic maintenance, particularly to her boilers, which were badly worn out. Repairs were completed by 13 May, at which point she returned to I Squadron, joining the ships in Kirkwall, Scotland on 19 May. At the end of the month, she was reassigned to II Division, thereafter participating in the summer and autumn maneuvers that took place in the North and Baltic Seas. During the latter exercises, Greif collided with the torpedo boat S71 on 23 August, though neither vessel was seriously damaged. She operated as part of I Scouting Group, which also included the aviso Hela and the special ship Pelikan. In the first half of December, Greif and the rest of II Division visited Swedish ports; she also served as the division flagship during this period, until 17 December.[9]
Greif was withdrawn from front-line service on 1 April 1899, thereafter taking part in experiments with wireless equipment. She was then assigned to the Naval Artillery Inspectorate as a
Notes
References
- ISBN 978-0-87021-790-6.
- Hildebrand, Hans H.; Röhr, Albert & Steinmetz, Hans-Otto (1993). Die Deutschen Kriegsschiffe: Biographien – ein Spiegel der Marinegeschichte von 1815 bis zur Gegenwart [The German Warships: Biographies − A Reflection of Naval History from 1815 to the Present] (in German). Vol. 4. Ratingen: Mundus Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7822-0382-1.
- Lyon, Hugh (1979). "Germany". In Gardiner, Robert; Chesneau, Roger; Kolesnik, Eugene M. (eds.). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. Greenwich: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 978-0-85177-133-5.
- Sondhaus, Lawrence (1997). Preparing for Weltpolitik: German Sea Power Before the Tirpitz Era. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-55750-745-7.