SMS Bremse (1884)
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 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
| Name | Bremse |
| Operator | Imperial German Navy |
| Builder | AG Weser, Bremen |
| Laid down | 1883 |
| Launched | 29 May 1884 |
| Commissioned | 22 December 1884 |
| Decommissioned | 29 August 1902 |
| Stricken | 10 March 1903 |
| Fate | Sold, 1910 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Brummer-class gunboat |
| Displacement | |
| Length | 64.8 m (212 ft 7 in) |
| Beam | 8.5 m (27 ft 11 in) |
| Draft | 2.68 to 4.77 m (8 ft 10 in to 15 ft 8 in) |
| Installed power |
|
| Propulsion | |
| Speed | 14.1 knots (26.1 km/h; 16.2 mph) |
| Range | 1,370 nautical miles (2,540 km; 1,580 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) |
| Complement |
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| Armament |
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| Armor | |
SMS Bremse was the second and final member of the Brummer class of armored gunboats built for the German Kaiserliche Marine in the 1880s. The ship was ordered to serve in Germany's coastal defense system alongside the Sachsen-class ironclads and Wespe-class gunboats. They were significantly less well armed and protected compared to the Wespes, but they were lighter and faster vessels. Bremse's primary armament was a single 21 cm (8.3 in) gun carried in her bow, and she had a top speed of about 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph).
Bremse saw relatively little activity through her career, spending most of her time in the reserve fleet. In 1891, 1893, and 1902, she was commissioned to serve as a fisheries protection vessel in the North Sea. In those years, she also visited Britain, and in 1893, she was present for a naval review in Kiel, Germany. She was struck from the naval register in 1903 and converted into a storage hulk. Later, she was modified to serve as a floating fuel oil storage tank. She was sold into civilian service in 1910; her ultimate fate is unknown.
The two Brummer-class gunboats were ordered in the early 1880s as a follow-on to the eleven Wespe-class gunboats that had been built in the late 1870s, which were intended to serve as part of an integrated coastal defense system, supporting the four Sachsen-class ironclads. The Wespes had proved to be controversial vessels, owing to their slow speed and tendency to roll badly, which was caused by their excessive weight, particularly the very large gun they carried. As a result, the Brummer class carried a smaller gun and dispensed with the heavy belt armor used in the Wespes. They also introduced new compound armor, rather than the old, heavy wrought iron used in the earlier vessels.[1][2]
Bremse was 64.8 meters (212 ft 7 in) long overall, with a beam of 8.5 m (27 ft 11 in) and a draft of 2.68 to 4.77 m (8 ft 10 in to 15 ft 8 in). She displaced 867 metric tons (853 long tons) as designed and 929 t (914 long tons) at full load. The ship's crew varied over the course of her career, consisting of 3–5 officers and 62–73 enlisted men. She was powered by a pair of double-expansion steam engines that drove a single 4-bladed screw propeller, with steam provided by two coal-fired cylindrical fire-tube boilers, which gave her a top speed of 15.2 knots (28.2 km/h; 17.5 mph) at 2,081 metric horsepower (2,053 ihp). At a cruising speed of 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph), she could steam for 1,370 nautical miles (2,540 km; 1,580 mi).[3][4]
The ship was armed with a main battery that consisted of a single 21 cm (8.3 in) K L/30 built-up gun in an open barbette mount forward. This was supported by a single 8.7 cm (3.4 in) K L/24 built-up gun and two 37 mm (1.5 in) Hotchkiss revolver cannons. She was also armed with a 35 cm (13.8 in) torpedo tube submerged in her bow. Bremse was protected by a compound armor deck that was 25 to 40 mm (0.98 to 1.57 in) thick. The barbette for the main battery was 160 mm (6.3 in) thick compound steel, backed with 200 mm (7.9 in) of teak planking.[3][4]