Uboot U-35

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German submarine U-35 was a Type VIIA U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine. She was built three years before the start of World War II. The submarine was laid down on 2 March 1936 by Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft at Kiel, launched on 24 September 1936, and commissioned on 3 November that year under the command of Kapitänleutnant (Kptlt.) Klaus Ewerth. The U-boat was featured on the cover of Life magazine on 16 October 1939, as in the days preceding, it "courteously" rescued all the sailors of a Greek ship that it was about to sink.

U-35 was scuttled just three months into World War II in November 1939. During her service, she conducted two war patrols and sank four vessels for a total loss of 7,850 tons while damaging one vessel of around 6,014 tons.

U-35 was ordered by the Kriegsmarine on 25 March 1935 (technically in violation of the Treaty of Versailles, but consistent with the soon to be signed Anglo-German Naval Agreement). Her keel was laid down on 2 March 1936 by Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft in Kiel as yard number 558. She was launched on 24 September 1936 and commissioned on 3 November of that year under the command of Kptlt. Klaus Ewerth.

Like all Type VIIA submarines, U-35 displaced 626 tonnes (616 long tons) while surfaced and 745 t (733 long tons) when submerged. She was 64.50 m (211 ft 7 in) in overall length and had a 45.50 m (149 ft 3 in) pressure hull. U-35's propulsion consisted of two MAN 6-cylinder 4-stroke M6V 40/46 diesel engines that totaled 2,100–2,310 PS (1,540–1,700 kW; 2,070–2,280 bhp). Her maximum rpm was between 470 and 485. The submarine was also equipped with two Brown, Boveri & Cie GG UB 720/8 electric motors that totaled 750 PS (550 kW; 740 shp). Their maximum rpm was 322. These power plants gave U-35 a total speed of 17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph) while surfaced and 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph) when submerged. This resulted in a range of 6,200 nmi (11,500 km; 7,100 mi) while traveling at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) on the surface and 73–94 nmi (135–174 km; 84–108 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) when submerged. The U-boat's test depth was 220 m (720 ft) but she could go as deep as 230–250 m (750–820 ft) without having her hull crushed. U-35's armament consisted of five 53.3 cm (21 in) torpedo tubes, (four located in the bow and one in the stern). She could carry up to 11 torpedoes or 22 TMA mines or 33 TMB mines. U-35 was also equipped with a 8.8 cm SK C/35 naval gun and had 220 rounds stowed on board. Her anti-aircraft defenses consisted of one 2 cm (0.79 in) anti-aircraft gun.

Pre-war

U-35 was known as the "bad luck boat" of the 2nd U-Boat Flotilla ("Saltzwedel") due to several accidents. She was rammed by a freighter in 1937, overrun and badly damaged by the pocket battleship Admiral Graf Spee in 1938, and was struck by an aircraft in 1939. She also had some success; U-35 (together with U-28), was the first U-boat to patrol the Atlantic, sailing under the command of Hans-Rudolf Rösing to Ponta Delgada in the Azores. She then undertook several patrols to Spain, Ceuta, Gibraltar and Morocco under the command of Hermann Michahelles and Werner Lott. After the death of Michahelles in a car accident, Otto Kretschmer was briefly given U-35 as his first U-boat command. Before taking over as the temporary skipper, Kretschmer, while serving as the watch officer, was accidentally left on the deck while U-35 dived during maneuvers and nearly drowned. During another peacetime drill in 1938, her sister boat, U-30, was involved in a near-fatal collision with U-35.

Last pre-war patrol

U-35's last pre-war patrol began on 27 August 1939, and took her from Memel (in the Baltic) to Kiel, where she arrived on 1 September, the first day of the invasion of Poland.

First war patrol

The U-boat departed Wilhelmshaven on 9 September 1939. That day, the submarine HMS Ursula fired the first British submarine torpedoes of the war when attacking U-35 about 23 nmi (43 km; 26 mi) north of the Dutch island of Schiermonnikoog. The U-boat escaped without damage and sailed northabout the British Isles to attack shipping.

On 18 September she stopped a group of three fishing trawlers west-north-west of St.Kilda. She sank two with gunfire, the 326-ton Arlita and the 295-ton Lord Minto after confiscating their radios and fishing gear but allowing their crews to evacuate. A third trawler, Nancy Hague, was allowed to proceed after taking on the crews of the other vessels.

After 14:10 on 21 September, U-35 fired three torpedoes at Convoy OA-7 south-west of the Isles of Scilly. She missed a destroyer and a tanker, but damaged the 6,014-ton British tanker Teakwood. The damaged ship was taken to Falmouth in Cornwall, escorted by HMS Ardent. The one sailor killed onboard Teakwood during this attack was the only person to have been killed during World War II in association with U-35.

At 18:45 on 1 October 1939, 42 miles off Ushant, U-35 stopped the unarmed neutral 2,239-ton Belgian merchant ship Suzon, which was carrying 2,400 tons of pit props from Bordeaux to Cardiff. After the crew abandoned ship after an inspection, she was torpedoed and sunk.

Diamantis

About 13:15 on 3 October, 40 miles west of the Scilly Islands, U-35 stopped the 4,990-ton Greek freighter Diamantis, which was taking 7,700 tons of manganese ore from Pepel, Sierra Leone, to Barrow-in-Furness. Like Suzon, she was a neutral, but carrying a strategic cargo to Britain and therefore a "legitimate target". The crew, misunderstanding the U-boat's instructions, abandoned ship prematurely. After two G7a torpedoes exploded prematurely, the ship was sunk by a G7e torpedo. Because the ship's lifeboats were not suited for use in bad weather, Lott decided to take all crew members aboard.

U-35's commander Werner Lott later commented:

In the rough weather I would not have been able to examine the ship's papers, so I gave a signal to follow me. I wanted to go to the Irish coast where I knew there would not be such rough weather. They did not follow me so I fired a shot from my gun at the bow of the boat. This had the result that the crew panicked and jumped into the small boats. One could foresee that with the rough seas that they would overturn.

The next day, 4 October, U-35 was seen by people in Ventry and Ballymore, Co. Kerry easing into the bay. The U-boat launched a dinghy and brought ashore the 28 Greek sailors from Diamantis.

The U-boat returned to Wilhelmshaven on 12 October after 34 days at sea where Lott was reprimanded for his actions, which were regarded as having endangered his crew.

Commemoration

On Saturday, 17 October 2009, more than 200 people attended various celebratory events in Ventry to mark the rescue and landing of the Greek seamen. The occasion was organised by the newly formed Ventry Historical Society.

The main ceremony was held on the green in front of Quinn's Pub, where an inscribed commemorative stone was erected. Guests included the German Ambassador Dr. Busso von Alvensleben and the Mayor of the Oinousses Islands in the Aegean, Evangelos Elias Angelakos, who unveiled the memorial stone. Other guests included descendants of Panagos Pateras, the captain and owner of the ill-fated Diamantis, officers of Southern Command, members of the Irish Coast Guard, the crew of the Valentia lifeboat, and a troop of Sea Scouts from Tralee.

The secretary of the historical society, Dr. Breandán Ó Ciobháin, delivered a welcoming address in Irish, English, Greek, and German, and invited the German ambassador to address the gathering:

I'm deeply moved about this generous gesture of erecting this memorial. In that terrible war, which we all remember very well, it was indeed an exceptional action that we are going to honour today. I'm more than happy that nowadays our three countries are united in the European Union and that we can be sure that anything like that will never occur again. The only thing that should survive is the sense of magnanimity and of courage that will serve as an example for all of us.

Mayor Angelakos said it was a great honor to attend the Ventry ceremony 70 years after the incident: "I would like to remind you of the magnanimous stance of Werner Lott, the commander of the U-35." The occurrence is one of only two such instances in World War II, where a German submarine crew risked its own safety to protect the crew of a vessel they torpedoed and sank.

Second war patrol

U-35 sailed from Wilhelmshaven on her second and final war patrol on 18 November 1939. On 29 November 1939 U-35 was scuttled by its crew in the North Sea, in position 60°53′N 02°47′ECoordinates: 60°53′N 02°47′E, after a depth charge attack from the British destroyers Kingston, Icarus, and Kashmir. Lord Louis Mountbatten, commanding the British squadron, took the extraordinary step of stopping his ships for an extended period of time and sending out boats to rescue the crew of the German submarine adrift in water. Consequently, unusual among U-boats lost during the war, all 43 hands on board survived and were taken prisoner. Indeed, every member of the U-35 crew during its short World War 2 service survived the war.

Summary of raiding history

Date                 Name of Ship Nationality         Tonnage (GRT) Fate

18 September 1939 Arlita         United Kingdom 326                         Sunk

18 September 1939 Lord Minto United Kingdom 295                         Sunk

21 September 1939 Teakwood United Kingdom 6,014                 Damaged

1 October 1939 Suzon         Belgium                 2,239                 Sunk

3 October 1939 Diamantis Greece                 4,990                 Sunk

History

Nazi Germany

Name U-35

Ordered 25 March 1935

Builder Germaniawerft, Kiel

Cost 4,189,000 Reichsmark

Yard number 558

Laid down 2 March 1936

Launched 24 September 1936

Commissioned 3 November 1936

Fate Scuttled, 29 November 1939

General characteristics

Class and type Type VIIA submarine

Displacement

626 tonnes (616 long tons) surfaced

745 t (733 long tons) submerged

Length

64.51 m (211 ft 8 in) o/a

45.50 m (149 ft 3 in) pressure hull

Beam

5.85 m (19 ft 2 in) o/a

4.70 m (15 ft 5 in) pressure hull

Height 9.50 m (31 ft 2 in)

Draught 4.37 m (14 ft 4 in)

Installed power

2,100–2,310 PS (1,540–1,700 kW; 2,070–2,280 bhp) (diesels)

750 PS (550 kW; 740 shp) (electric)

Propulsion

2 shafts

2 × diesel engines

2 × electric motors

Range

6,200 nmi (11,500 km; 7,100 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced

73–94 nmi (135–174 km; 84–108 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged

Test depth

220 m (720 ft)

Crush depth: 230–250 m (750–820 ft)

Complement 4 officers, 40–56 enlisted

Sensors and

processing systems Gruppenhorchgerät

Armament

5 × 53.3 cm (21 in) torpedo tubes (four bow, one stern)

11 × torpedoes or 22 TMA mines

1 × 8.8 cm (3.46 in) deck gun (220 rounds)

1 × 2 cm (0.79 in) C/30 anti-aircraft gun

Service record[1][2]

Part of:

2nd U-boat Flotilla

3 November 1936 – 29 November 1939

Identification codes: M 21 203

Commanders:

Kptlt. Klaus Ewerth

3 November – 5 December 1936

Kptlt. Hans Rudolf Rösing

6 December 1936 – February 1937

Kptlt. Hermann Michahelles

February – 30 July 1937

Oblt.z.S. Otto Kretschmer

31 July – 15 August 1937

Kptlt. Werner Lott

15 August 1937 – 29 November 1939

Operations:

last prewar patrol: 27 August – 1 September 1939

1st war patrol: 9 September – 12 October 1939

2nd war patrol: 18 – 29 November 1939

Victories:

Four commercial ships sunk (7,850 GRT)

One commercial ship damaged (6,014 GRT)

Submarine S-181 U-31

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U-31 (S181) is a Type 212A submarine of the German Navy, and the lead ship of her class.

U-31 was built by TKMS, with construction taking place at the shipyards of Thyssen Nordseewerke of Emden and Howaldtswerke at Kiel. Launched on 20 March 2002, U-31 was commissioned alongside her sister ship U-32 by German Minister of Defence Peter Struck in Eckernförde on 19 October 2005. U-31 is propelled by one diesel engine and an electric motor driven by nine fuel cells, making the submarine virtually undetectable.

Korvettenkapitän Bert Petzold is the submarine's commanding officer.

History

U-31 was built in two sections, the stern and propulsion by Nordseewerke, Emden and the bow at Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft, Kiel. The boats of the Type 212A class cost around 500 million euros to build. Equipped with fuel cell technology and stealth skin, they are almost undetectable, and are able to remain submerged for up to three weeks . The fuel cells are virtually emission free, with the exception of distilled water, resulting in less noise, heat and exhaust fumes.

U-31 and U-32 were commissioned in a joint ceremony at Eckernförde on 19 October 2005 by Defence Minister Peter Struck, in the presence of the Inspector of the Navy Vice- Admiral Wolfgang E. Nolting. They and their sister ships are stationed in Eckernförde and form part of the 1st Ubootgeschwader (1st Submarine Squadron) in Einsatzflottille 1.

History

Germany

Name U-31

Builder

Nordseewerke, Emden

Howaldtswerke, Kiel

Launched 20 March 2002

Commissioned 19 October 2005

Status in service.

Class and type Type 212A

General characteristics

Class and type Type 212

Type submarine

Displacement

1,450 tonnes (1,430 long tons) surfaced

1,830 tonnes (1,800 long tons) submerged

Length

56 m (183.7 ft)

57.2 m (187.66 ft) (2nd batch)

Beam 7 m (22.96 ft)

Draft 6 m (19.68 ft)

Installed power 1 x MTU-396 16V (2,150 kW); 1 x Siemens Permasyn electric motor Type FR6439-3900KW (2,850 kW)

Propulsion

1 MTU 16V 396 diesel-engine

9 HDW/Siemens PEM fuel cells, 30–40 kW each (U31)

2 HDW/Siemens PEM fuel cells each with 120 kW (U32, U33, U34)

1 Siemens Permasyn electric motor 1700 kW, driving a single seven-bladed skewback propeller

Speed 20 knots (37 km/h) submerged, 12 knots surfaced

Range

8,000 nmi (14,800 km, or 9,196 miles) at 8 knots (15 km/h) surfaced

3 weeks without snorkeling, 12 weeks overall

Endurance Surface 14,800 km at 15 km/h, Subsurface 780 km at 15 km/h, 3,000 nmi at 4 kn,

Test depth over 700 m (2,296 ft)

Complement 5 officers, 22 men

Sensors and

processing systems CSU 90 (DBQS-40FTC), Sonar: ISUS90-20, Radar: Kelvin Hughes Type 1007 I-band nav.,

Electronic warfare

& decoys EADS FL 1800U suite

Armament 6 x 533 mm torpedo tubes (in 2 forward pointing groups of 3) with 13[4] DM2A4, A184 Mod.3, Black Shark Torpedo, IDAS missiles and 24 external naval mines (optional)

PLAN S-366 Yuan Zheng 66 Hao

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The Kilo class, Soviet designation Project 877 Paltus (Russian: Па́лтус, meaning "halibut"), NATO reporting name Kilo, is a class of diesel-electric attack submarines designed and built in the Soviet Union for the Soviet Navy. The class was built until the mid-1990s, when production was switched to the more advanced Project 636 Varshavyanka variant, also known as Improved Kilo-class in the West.

Role

These attack submarines are mainly intended for anti-shipping and anti-submarine operations in relatively shallow waters. Original Project 877 boats are equipped with Rubikon MGK-400 sonar system (with NATO reporting name Shark Gill), which includes a mine detection and avoidance sonar MG-519 Arfa (with NATO reporting name Mouse Roar).

Newer Project 636 boats are equipped with improved MGK-400EM, with MG-519 Arfa also upgraded to MG-519EM. MGK 400E can detect submarines with 0.05 Pa/Hz noisiness in 16 km and surface vessels with 10 Pa/Hz noisiness in 100 km. The improved sonar systems have reduced the number of operators needed by sharing the same console via automation.

Anechoic tiles are fitted on casings and fins to absorb the sound waves of active sonar, which results in a reduction and distortion of the return signal. These tiles also help attenuate sounds that are emitted from the submarine, thus reducing the range at which the submarine may be detected by passive sonar.

Future

The Kilo class was to have been succeeded by the Lada class. However, by November 2011 it was apparent that the Lada-class would be delayed because Sankt Peterburg (B-585), the lead boat of the class, had shown major deficiencies. On 27 July 2012, the Russian Navy commander-in-chief announced that construction of the Lada-class submarines would resume, having undergone design changes. Series production was reported to be underway in the latter 2010s.

Nevertheless, the Russian Navy has also moved forward with the construction of Project 636.3, an improved version of the Kilo-class. Six units have been built for the Black Sea Fleet and further boats are being built for the Pacific and Baltic Fleets.

Variants

One Kilo-class submarine, B-871, was equipped with pump-jet propulsion.

The version Kilo 636MV (exported to Vietnam) contains a GE2-01 radar and an improved MGK 400E sonar. In this version, the submarine is also able to operate in more weather conditions than the original Kilo-class submarines.

Operators

The first submarine entered service in the Soviet Navy in 1980, and the class remains in use with the Russian Navy today. As of September 2011, 17 vessels were believed to still be in active service with the Russian Navy, while seven vessels were thought to be in reserve. 40 vessels have been exported to several countries:

Algeria: 2 Original Kilo (Project 877), 4 Improved Kilo (Project 636).

People's Republic of China: 2 Original Kilo (Project 877), 10 Improved Kilo (Project 636).

India: 10 Original Kilo (Project 877), 1 sustained major casualty; – Designated as the Sindhughosh class

Myanmar: one boat transferred from Indian Navy by March 2020.

Poland: 1 Original Kilo (Project 877) – ORP Orzeł.

Iran: 3 Original Kilo (Project 877).

Romania: 1 Original Kilo (Project 877) – Romanian submarine Delfinul.

Russia: 22 Original Kilo (Project 877),[27] 6 Improved Kilo (Project 636.3) and additional 6 Improved Kilo on order (636.3) for Pacific Fleet to be delivered 2019–2021. One more submarine was ordered in August 2020, during the International Military-Technical Forum "ARMY-2020".

Vietnam: 6 Improved Kilo (Project 636). Includes Vietnamese submarine Hồ Chí Minh City, Hà Nội, Hải Phòng, Đà Nẵng, Khánh Hoà, Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu.

Specifications:

Displacement:

2,300–2,350 tons surfaced

3,000–4,000 tons submerged

Dimensions:

Length: 70–74 meters

Beam: 9.9 meters

Draft: 6.2–6.5 meters

Maximum speed

10–12 knots surfaced (18–22 km/h)

17–25 knots submerged (31–46 km/h)

Propulsion: Diesel-electric 5,900 shp (4,400 kW)

Maximum depth: 300 meters (240–250 meters operational)

Endurance

400 nautical miles (700 km) at 3 knots (6 km/h) submerged

6,000 nautical miles (11,000 km) at 7 knots (13 km/h) snorkeling (7,500 miles for the Improved Kilo class)

45 days sea endurance

Armament

Air defence: 8 Strela-3 or 8 Igla-1, but after sea trial it has been rejected by the navy.

Six 533 mm torpedo tubes with 18 53-65 ASuW or TEST 71/76 ASW torpedoes or VA-111 Shkval supercavitating torpedoes, or 24 DM-1 mines,

Kalibr-PL (export name Club-S) system comprising four launchers for individual anti-ship, anti-submarine and land attack cruise missiles[citation needed]

Crew: 52

Price per unit is US$200–250 million (China paid approx. US$1.5-2 billion for 8 Project 636 Kilo-class submarines)

The People's Liberation Army Navy Submarine Force (PLANSF) is the submarine service of the People's Liberation Army Navy. It consists of all types of submarines in operational service organized into three fleets: the North Sea Fleet, the East Sea Fleet, and the South Sea Fleet. Submarines have long been one of the three focuses of the People's Liberation Army Navy (the other two are aircraft and major surface combatants), and when the decision was made in late 2006 to concentrate on building other principal surface combatants to strengthen the air defense and to further delay the construction of aircraft carriers due to insufficient air cover, submarines will continue to play the lead dominant role in the assault force for the PLAN. Currently, PLANSF operates a fleet of 66 submarines which include nuclear as well as conventional submarines.

Its surface branch counterpart is the People's Liberation Army Navy Surface Force.

Dingyuan - 定远 - 定遠 - Pinyin - Dìngyuan - Ting Yuen - Ting Yuan

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Dingyuan (simplified Chinese: 定远; traditional Chinese: 定遠; pinyin: Dìngyǔan; Wade–Giles: Ting Yuen or Ting Yuan, English: Everlasting Peace[1]) was an ironclad battleship and the flagship of the Chinese Beiyang Fleet. She was the lead ship of the Dingyuan class, which included one other vessel, Zhenyuan, both of which were built in Germany in the early 1880s. Delivery of the two ironclads was delayed by the Sino-French War of 1884–1885. The ships were armed with a main battery of four 12 in (305 mm) guns in a pair of gun turrets, making them the most powerful warships in East Asian waters at the time.

Dingyuan served as the flagship of Admiral Ding Ruchang during her active career. In the 1880s and early 1890s, the Beiyang Fleet conducted a routine of training exercises and cruises abroad, with emphasis placed on visits to Japan to intimidate the country. The latter resulted in the Nagasaki Incident in 1886 and contributed to a rise in hostility between the two countries that culminated in the First Sino-Japanese War in 1894. She led the Chinese fleet during the Battle of the Yalu River on 17 September, where the Japanese Combined Fleet sank much of the Beiyang Fleet, though both Dingyuan and Zhenyuan survived despite numerous hits, thanks to their heavy armor. The survivors then retreated to Port Arthur for repairs, but after that city was threatened by the Japanese Army, fled to Weihaiwei.

As the Japanese continued to advance, they laid siege to Weihaiwei in late January 1895. On 5 February, a Japanese torpedo boat slipped into the port and hit Dingyuan with a torpedo, inflicting serious damage. The Chinese crew were forced to beach the vessel to avoid sinking, and for the next week, Dingyuan was used as a stationary artillery battery. Japanese ground forces seized the city's coastal fortifications on 9 February, allowing their artillery to shell the ships in the harbor, which prompted Ding to surrender. Dingyuan was scuttled in the harbor on 10 February. A full-scale replica of the ship was built in Weihai in 2003 as a museum ship and in 2019, the Chinese government announced that an underwater survey had located the original vessel's wreck.

Following the direct intervention of the imperialist European powers in the mid-19th century, including the First and Second Opium Wars, where their superior steam-powered fleets overwhelmed the small Imperial Chinese Navy that still relied on traditional junks, the Chinese began a naval construction program in the 1880s to meet these threats more effectively. They enlisted British and German assistance, and two Dingyuan-class ironclads were ordered from Germany.

Dingyuan was 308 ft (94 m) long overall, with a beam of 59 ft (18 m) and a draft of 20 ft (6.1 m). She displaced 7,220 long tons (7,340 t) normally and up to 7,670 long tons (7,790 t) at full load. She was powered by a pair of compound steam engines that each drove a screw propeller. Steam was provided by eight coal-burning fire-tube boilers that were ducted into a pair of funnels amidships. She was capable of a top speed of 15.7 knots (29.1 km/h; 18.1 mph) from 7,500 indicated horsepower (5,600 kW). Her crew consisted of 350 officers and enlisted men.

The ship carried a main battery of four 12 in (305 mm) 20-caliber breech-loading guns in two twin-gun turrets that were placed en echelon forward. These were supported by a secondary battery of two 5.9 in (150 mm) guns in a pair of single turrets, one at the bow and the other at the stern. For defense against torpedo boats, she carried a pair of 47 mm (1.9 in) Hotchkiss revolver cannon and eight 37 mm (1.5 in) Maxim-Nordenfelt quick-firing guns in casemates. Dingyuan was also equipped with three 14 in (356 mm) or 15 in (381 mm) torpedo tubes.

She was protected by compound armor that was 14 in for the armor belt, which covered the central part of the ship were the ammunition magazines and propulsion machinery spaces were located. An armor deck that was 3 in (76 mm) thick provided horizontal protection. Her conning tower was covered with 8 in (203 mm) of armor plate on the sides. The barbettes for the gun turrets were 12–14 in thick. A strake of armor that was 8 in thick protected the casemate guns.

Dingyuan was ordered in 1880 and was laid down at the AG Vulcan shipyard in Stettin, Germany in March 1881; her name means "eternal peace" in Chinese. Work proceeded quickly and she was launched on 28 December 1881 to clear the slipway so work could begin on her sister ship Zhenyuan. Fitting-out work continued into May 1883, when the vessel was completed, but delivery was to be delayed until Zhenyuan was finished in April 1884. The start of the outbreak of the Sino-French War in August prevented both Dingyuan-class ships from being delivered until 1885, since Germany would not transfer the vessels to a country at war.

Both vessels were manned by German crews, sailing on 3 July 1885 under the German flag in company with the also German-built protected cruiser Jiyuan. The three ships arrived in Tianjin in November, where they were transferred to Chinese control. Li Hongzhang, the Viceroy of Zhili and director of China's naval construction program, inspected the vessels following their arrival. The two ironclads were then commissioned into the Beiyang Fleet, which was based in Port Arthur. The ships steamed south to Shanghai for the winter of 1885–1886.

In the 1880s, the Beiyang Fleet was occupied with an annual routine of winter training cruises to the South China Sea, often in company with the Nanyang Fleet. This cruise typically involved visits to Zhejiang, Fujian, and Guangdong provinces, and sometimes went as far south as stops in Southeast Asia. The rest of the year was spent in northern waters off Zhili, Shandong, and Fengtian provinces, conducting training exercises. Training cruises to foreign ports were conducted in the mid-1880s and early 1890s, both to train navigational skills on voyages far from shore and to show the flag. Discipline aboard the ships of the Beiyang Fleet was poor, which contributed to a low state of readiness of the ships. During this period, the fleet was commanded by Admiral Ding Ruchang, who employed Dingyuan as his flagship. At the time, China lacked dry docks large enough to handle Zhenyuan and Dingyuan, forcing the navy to rely on shipyards in Japan or in British Hong Kong for periodic maintenance.

The two Dingyuan-class ships began their training routine in April 1886 in joint maneuvers with the units of the Nanyang Fleet, which culminated in a naval review in Port Arthur. They received the British vessels of the China Station from 19 to 20 May. Dingyuan, Zhenyuan, and four cruisers made the first of their overseas cruises in August 1886, which included stops in British Hong Kong, Busan and Wonsan in Korea, Vladivostok, Russia, and Nagasaki, Japan. While at the latter port in August, Chinese crewmen became involved in an altercation with Japanese locals that resulted in the deaths of eight Chinese sailors and two Japanese police, with forty-two Chinese and twenty-nine Japanese injured. The so-called Nagasaki Incident was characterized by the Japanese press as an attempt by China to intimidate Japan, leading to calls for naval expansion to counter the Beiyang Fleet. The Japanese government ordered three Matsushima-class protected cruisers in response. The Japanese also refused to allow the Chinese ironclads to return for repairs in their shipyards, hampering the ability of the Beiyang Fleet to keep the vessels operational.

The year 1887 passed less eventfully, with the ships spending the bulk of the year in the Bohai Sea. Late in the year, another group of four European-built cruisers arrived, further strengthening the fleet and necessitating extensive maneuvers in 1888 to familiarize the crews with the rest of the fleet. The Beiyang Fleet adopted the same black, white, and buff paint scheme used by the Royal Navy at the time, repainting their vessels at some point in 1888. In 1889, the fleet was divided into two divisions; Dingyuan and several cruisers were sent on a tour of Korean ports while Zhenyuan and the rest of the fleet remained in the Bohai Sea for exercises. The two divisions rendezvoused in Shanghai in December, thereafter proceeding to Hong Kong for Zhenyuan and Dingyuan to be drydocked. They then cruised off Korea.

Another visit to Japan came in June and July 1891; the fleet stopped in Kobe on 30 June and Yokohama on 14 July. At the latter port, a large Japanese delegation of senior military commanders and members of the imperial family received the ships. Another voyage to Japan took place the following year. Coupled with the Nagasaki Incident, these voyages contributed to the growing tensions between China and Japan, since Hongzhang intended them to make clear Chinese naval strength at a time the Japanese fleet was small and poorly developed. At the core of the dispute was control over Korea, which since the Convention of Tientsin of 1884, was treated as a co-protectorate of China and Japan.

n early 1894, the Donghak Peasant Revolution broke out in Korea, prompting China to send an expedition of 28,000 to suppress the rebels. Japan viewed this as a violation of the Tientsin Convention and deployed 8,000 troops in response, leading to the outbreak of the First Sino-Japanese War on 1 August. The Chinese fleet was no match for the new Combined Fleet of Japan, as years of insufficient naval budgets had not allowed Hongzhang to update the vessels—funds he had planned to use to add new quick-firing guns to Zhenyuan and Dingyuan were instead appropriated for the 60th birthday of the Dowager Empress Cixi—and the Chinese lacked effective commanders and sufficiently trained crews. And to add to China's disadvantages during the war, the Japanese had broken the Chinese diplomatic codes in 1888, giving them access to China's internal communications.

As the Chinese made preparations in August for action, they removed the gun shields from the main battery turrets. Experience at the Battle of Pungdo had revealed the thin shields created numerous splinters when struck by enemy fire, and these fragments had inflicted numerous casualties to the gun crews of the cruiser Jiyuan at Pungdo. The crews also placed bags of coal around the gun batteries as a form of improvised armor. The ships were repainted light gray to make them more difficult to observe at sea. The ships of the Beiyang Fleet then steamed to Taku to take on supplies, thereafter doing little for the next month.

Ding took the fleet on a sweep into the Korea Bay on 12 September to clear the way for a convoy of troopships scheduled to deliver reinforcements to Korea. While on the way to the bay, he received faulty reports indicating the presence of Japanese warships off the Shandong Peninsula, prompting him to change course to search for them. Finding no enemy vessels, he took the fleet to Weihaiwei (now Weihai), and on 15 September, the fleet rendezvoused with the convoy to cover its approach to the mouth of the Yalu River, where the transports deposited the men and supplies on 16 September. During the unloading process, Dingyuan and the bulk of the fleet remained underway to provide distant support and avoid presenting themselves as stationary targets to Japanese torpedo boats known to be in the area. While the Chinese were on the way back to Port Arthur, the Combined Fleet under Vice Admiral Itō Sukeyuki intercepted them on 17 September, leading to the Battle of the Yalu River. The poorly-trained Beiyang Fleet sailed in a disorganized line abreast formation, while the Japanese approached them from the south in line ahead; the Chinese ships steamed at around 6 knots (11 km/h; 6.9 mph) and the Japanese at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph).

Itō turned his ships to pass in front of the oncoming Beiyang Fleet. Dingyuan opened fire first, at about 12:20, at the extreme range of 5,300 yd (4,800 m), far in excess of what fire-control equipment was capable of accurately directing at the time. The blast effect from Dingyuan's initial salvo destroyed her own bridge, collapsing it and trapping Ding and his staff for the duration of the action, depriving the Beiyang Fleet of central control. The rest of the Chinese fleet quickly followed Dingyuan, but failed to score any hits as their opponents passed in front. The Japanese ships returned fire at 12:25, having divided into two squadrons and turned back to starboard to encircle the Chinese. Concentrating their fire on the cruisers on the Chinese right flank, they quickly destroyed the Chinese cruisers Yangwei and Chaoyong. The battle quickly devolved into a melee at close range, and the Chinese cruisers Zhiyuan and Jingyuan were sunk. In return, the Chinese warships inflicted serious damage on the old ironclad Hiei, which had been unable to keep pace with the rest of Itō's fleet, and was eventually forced to disengage and flee. Zhenyuan and Dingyuan hit the auxiliary cruiser Saikyō Maru with four 12-inch shells and inflicted significant damage.

The Japanese ships then concentrated their fire on Dingyuan and Zhenyuan. The ships' heavy citadel armor proved to be impervious to the Japanese shellfire directed against it, though the large-caliber Canet guns mounted on the Matsushima-class cruisers proved to be nearly useless and the other Japanese cruisers were engaged with their Chinese counterparts. Both ships were hit numerous times and several fires broke out, but both crews adeptly suppressed them despite being under heavy fire. By around 17:00, both sides were low on ammunition and the Chinese began to reform their surviving vessels into line-ahead formation. The Japanese eventually broke off at around 17:30 and withdrew. The battered Beiyang Fleet, by then reduced to the two Dingyuan-class ships and four smaller vessels, limped back to Port Arthur, arriving there the next day.

Repairs to the damaged ships began immediately, and fresh supplies and ammunition were sent to ready the vessels for action. By October, the Japanese Army had begun to approach Port Arthur, forcing the Chinese to withdraw the Beiyang Fleet to Weihaiwei. Ding sortied on 20 October and crossed the Bohai Strait to Weihaiwei without encountering Japanese forces. In early November, Ding sortied to cover the transfer of Zhenyuan, which had remained in Port Arthur as long as possible to complete repairs. The Japanese Army had advanced to Weihaiwei by the end of January 1895, launching a major attack on the port on the 30th to begin the Battle of Weihaiwei. They quickly captured the fortifications on the eastern side of the city despite heavy fire from Dingyuan and other vessels of the fleet. The capture of the fortresses forced the Chinese ships to withdraw to the western portion of the harbor, where they would be out of range for the guns there. Dingyuan disabled one of the 9.4 in (240 mm) disappearing guns in the fortress at Luchiehtsui, but several guns remained on operation, and Japanese gunners quickly set to work to bring them to bear on the trapped fleet. The Chinese ships bombarded Japanese forces as they advanced on the city's defenses.

A group of ten Japanese torpedo boats broke into the harbor on the night of 4/5 February and hit Dingyuan with a torpedo on the port side toward the stern. The attack inflicted serious damage and the crew's damage control efforts failed to contain the flooding, hampered by leaking watertight doors. They got steam up in the boilers and began to get underway, but with the uncontrolled flooding threatening to sink the ship, the crew was forced to ground her to prevent her from sinking. The ship was thereafter employed as a stationary artillery battery and Ding shifted his flag to Zhenyuan. Two of the attacking torpedo boats were discovered having been disabled in the previous night's action at dawn. The next night, the torpedo boats made another assault on the Chinese fleet, sinking a cruiser, a training ship, and an auxiliary vessel.

By 9 February, the Japanese had seized the fortifications that overlooked the rest of the harbor. They used the position to bombard the crippled Dingyuan with field artillery, further damaging the vessel. With their position in the harbor no longer tenable and most of the vessels damaged—Zhenyuan had also been badly damaged and was no longer seaworthy—Ding decided to scuttle Dingyuan the next day and then surrender. The decision provoked many of the senior officers of the Beiyang Fleet to commit suicide, including the ship's commander, Captain Liu Buchan. The exact nature of the crew's efforts to disable the vessel are unclear. Some reports indicate that a mine detonated amidships, and observers aboard the British protected cruiser HMS Edgar noted seeing a large explosion aboard Dingyuen. Photographic evidence, which shows the vessel aground in shallow water and with a gaping hole amidships, supports these reports, as does the observations of the British Vice Admiral Edmund Fremantle, who inspected the fleet shortly after the battle.

The Chinese government constructed a replica of Dingyuan at Weihai to commemorate both the original vessel and the Beiyang Fleet during the war; the vessel, built on a 1:1 scale, is open as a museum ship. Work on the vessel began in 2003.

On 2 September 2019 it was announced that the remains of Dingyuan had been located and over 150 artifacts recovered.

History

China

Name: Dingyuan

Ordered: 1880

Builder: Stettiner AG Vulcan, Stettin, Germany

Laid down: March 1881

Launched: 28 December 1881

Completed: May 1883

Commissioned: November 1885

Fate: Scuttled, 10 February 1895

General characteristics

Class and type: Dingyuan-class ironclad

Displacement:

Normal: 7,220 long tons (7,340 t)

Full load: 7,670 long tons (7,790 t)

Length: 308 ft (94 m)

Beam: 59 ft (18 m)

Draft: 20 ft (6.1 m)

Installed power:

8 fire-tube boilers

7,200 ihp (5,400 kW)

Propulsion:

2 compound steam engines

2 × screw propellers

Speed: 15.4 knots (28.5 km/h; 17.7 mph)

Range: 4,500 nmi (8,300 km; 5,200 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)

Complement: 350

Armament:

4 × 12 in (305 mm) breech-loading guns

2 × 5.9 in (150 mm) breech-loading guns

2 × 47 mm (1.9 in) Hotchkiss revolver cannon

6 × 37 mm (1.5 in) Maxim-Nordenfelt quick-firing guns

3 × 14 in (356 mm) torpedo tubes

Armor:

Belt: 14 in

Deck: 3 in (76 mm)

Barbettes: 12–14 in

Conning tower: 8 in (203 mm)

Knyaz Suvorov

 Scale 1:350 Brand Zvezda (Kit score 6/10)

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Knyaz Suvorov (Russian: Князь Суворов) was one of five Borodino-class pre-dreadnought battleships built for the Imperial Russian Navy in the first decade of the 20th century. Completed after the beginning of the Russo-Japanese War in 1904, she became the flagship of Vice Admiral Zinovy Rozhestvensky, commander of the Second Pacific Squadron. The squadron was sent to the Far East a few months after her completion to break the Japanese blockade of Port Arthur. The Japanese captured the port while the squadron was in transit and their destination was changed to Vladivostok. During the Battle of Tsushima on 27 May 1905, the ship fell out of the battle line after a shell hit her bridge, killing her helmsman and wounding her captain and Rozhestvensky. Knyaz Suvorov was eventually torpedoed and sunk by Japanese torpedo boats; other than 20 wounded officers evacuated by a destroyer, there were no survivors.

The Borodino-class ships were based on the design of the French-built Tsesarevich, modified to suit Russian equipment and building practices. They were built under the 1898 program "for the needs of the Far East" to concentrate ten battleships in the Pacific. Knyaz Suvorov was 389 feet 5 inches (118.69 m) long at the waterline and 397 feet 3 inches (121.1 m) long overall, with a beam of 76 feet 1 inch (23.2 m) and a draft of 29 feet 2 inches (8.9 m), 38 inches (965 mm) more than designed. Her normal displacement was 14,415 long tons (14,646 t), almost 900 long tons (914 t) more than her designed displacement of 13,516 long tons (13,733 t). Her intended crew consisted of 28 officers and 754 enlisted men, although she carried 928 crewmen during the Battle of Tsushima.

The ships were powered by a pair of vertical triple-expansion steam engines, each driving one propeller shaft, using steam generated by 20 Belleville boilers. The engines were rated at 15,800 indicated horsepower (11,800 kW) and designed to reach a top speed of 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph). Knyaz Suvorov, however, only reached a speed of 17.5 knots (32.4 km/h; 20.1 mph) from 15,575 ihp (11,614 kW) during her builder's machinery trials on 9 August 1904. The ships could carry enough coal to give them a range of 2,590 nautical miles (4,800 km; 2,980 mi) at a speed of 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph).

The main battery of the Borodinos consisted of four 12-inch (305 mm) Pattern 1895 guns which were mounted in two twin-gun turrets, one each fore and aft of the superstructure. Their secondary armament of twelve 6-inch (152 mm) Pattern 1892 guns were mounted in six twin-gun turrets carried on the upper deck, three turrets on each broadside. Defense against torpedo boats was provided by a suite of smaller guns. The twenty 75-millimeter (3 in) Pattern 1892 guns carried were mounted in casemates in the sides of the hull. The ships also mounted twenty 47-millimeter (1.9 in) Hotchkiss guns in the superstructure. The ships were fitted with four 15-inch (381 mm) torpedo tubes, one each above water in the bow and in the stern, and a submerged tube on each broadside.

The waterline armor belt of the Borodino class consisted of Krupp armor 5.7–7.64 inches (145–194 mm) thick. The armor of their gun turrets had a maximum thickness of 10 inches (254 mm) and their decks ranged from 1 to 2 inches (25 to 51 mm) in thickness. The 1.5-inch (38 mm) armored lower deck sloped downwards to connect to the anti-torpedo bulkhead of the same thickness.

Construction began on Knyaz Suvorov, named after Prince Alexander Suvorov, on 10 August 1901 at the Baltic Works in Saint Petersburg. The ship was laid down on 8 September, when the ceremonial laying of one of the plates was performed by Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich, General-Admiral of the Imperial Russian Navy. She was launched on 25 September 1902, in the presence of Tsar Nicholai II, Grand Duke Konstantin and King George I of Greece. She was completed in September 1904, after the beginning of the Russo-Japanese War, at the cost of 13,841,000 rubles.

On 15 October 1904, Knyaz Suvorov, Rozhestvensky's flagship as commander of the Second Pacific Squadron, set sail for Port Arthur from Libau along with the other vessels of the squadron with the mission of reinforcing the First Pacific Squadron at Port Arthur and breaking the Japanese blockade. Rozhestvensky had received numerous reports of Japanese agents and torpedo boats disguised as fishing vessels before sailing and he ordered maximum alertness after coaling at Skagen, Denmark, on 7 October. Early on the evening of the following day, when the squadron was near the Dogger Bank, the auxiliary repair ship Kamchatka reported that she was under attack by torpedo boats in the rain. About four hours later, the squadron encountered British fishing trawlers working the Dogger Bank in the fog and opened fire on them at very short range. One trawler was sunk and at least three others were damaged; several fishermen were killed and others wounded. The battleships also fired upon and damaged the Russian cruisers Aurora and Dmitrii Donskoi. The incident enraged the British population and caused a diplomatic incident with the British that nearly led to war until Russia apologized and agreed to pay reparations on 29 October.

Rozhestvensky led his ships down the Atlantic coast of Africa, rounding the Cape of Good Hope, and reached the island of Nosy Be off the northwest coast of French Madagascar on 9 January 1905 where they remained for two months while Rozhestvensky finalized his coaling arrangements. During this time, he learned of the capture of Port Arthur and changed his destination to Vladivostok, the only other port controlled by the Russians in the Far East. The squadron sailed for Camranh Bay, French Indochina, on 16 March and reached it almost a month later to await the obsolete ships of the Third Pacific Squadron, commanded by Rear Admiral Nikolai Nebogatov. The latter ships reached Camranh Bay on 9 May and the combined force sailed for Vladivostok on 14 May. En route, Rozhestvensky reorganized his ships into three tactical divisions for the forthcoming battle; the leading division consisted of the four new Borodino-class battleships with Knyaz Suvorov in the lead, followed by the Second Division that consisted of three older battleships and an armored cruiser and Nebogatov retained his ships as the Third Division. While exact figures are not available for Knyaz Suvorov, it is probable that the ship was approximately 1,700 long tons (1,700 t) overweight as she and her sisters were overloaded with coal and other supplies; all of which was stored high in the ships and reduced their stability. The extra weight also submerged the waterline armor belt and left only about 4 feet 6 inches (1.4 m) of the upper armor belt above the waterline.

Rozhestvensky decided to take the most direct route to Vladivostok using the Tsushima Strait and was intercepted by the Japanese battlefleet under the command of Admiral Tōgō Heihachirō on 27 May 1905. As the Russians entered the strait, they were arrayed in separate columns with the Second Division on the left and the Third trailing. Around noon, well after they had been spotted by the Japanese, Rozhestvensky ordered the Second Division, lead by the battleship Oslyabya, to form line ahead behind the First Division, but poorly trained signalmen caused confusion throughout the fleet and the Third Division fell in behind the Second Division, leaving the First Division on the main column's right, although it was still in the lead. When the main Japanese fleet was spotted by the Russians at 13:19, Rozhestvensky was still trying to get his ships properly formed.

The location sent to Tōgō had been inaccurate and his ships were out of position when they spotted the Russians; unwilling to engage the First Division, Tōgō maneuvered his ships across the front of the Russian forces and then reversed course to position his battleships on the left flank of the leading Russian ships. During this maneuver, Knyaz Suvorov opened fire at the Japanese battleship Mikasa, flagship of Admiral Tōgō Heihachirō at 14:05 at a range of 6,300 yards (5,800 m). Mikasa began to return fire after the Japanese ships had finished their maneuver and was joined by the battleship Asahi and the armored cruiser Azuma as the Japanese battleships split their fire between Knyaz Suvorov and Oslyabya. The battleship Fuji joined the others firing at Knyaz Suvorov around 14:20, which had been set on fire by hits from the other ships. At 14:35, splinters entered the conning tower killing her helmsman and wounding Rozhestvensky and the ship's captain; splinters from another shell again wounded Rozhestvensky so he drifted in and out of consciousness.[Note 2] Shortly afterwards, flames made the conning tower untenable so that the ship had to be steered from her auxiliary-control position. Around 14:52, another hit jammed the steering gear after a four point turn to starboard had been ordered and caused the ship to make nearly a full circle before she could be steered by her engines. Splinters from numerous shell hits shredded water hoses and made it much more difficult to put the numerous fires out. By this time Knyaz Suvorov's aft 12-inch gun turret had been destroyed by an explosion that blew its roof off onto the quarterdeck, her forward funnel had fallen down and her mainmast had been shot away.

Knyaz Suvorov never regained her position in the battle line and was engaged at short range by Mikasa and the battleship Shikishima as well as five cruisers of Vice Admiral Kamimura Hikonojō's 2nd Division between 15:20 and 15:35. Mikasa and two of the cruisers fired one torpedo each at her during this time, but none of them hit the ship. At 15:39, the cruiser Chihaya fired a pair of torpedoes and claimed one hit although no change was visible in Knyaz Suvorov's condition. Chihaya was hit by one shell just above the waterline during her attack that forced her to make emergency repairs. Around 15:40 the British observer aboard Azuma reported that Knyaz Suvorov was down by the bow with a heavy list to port and was covered by thick gray smoke from the forecastle to the mainmast. By this time, the ship's forward 12-inch gun turret had been knocked out, but some smaller guns were still in action. The Japanese 5th Destroyer Division attacked five minutes later with torpedoes at ranges under 900 yards (820 m), but failed to score any hits with their five torpedoes. The flotilla leader was hit in the boiler room by a three-inch shell that may have been fired by Knyaz Suvorov.

The ship found herself between the two fleets at 16:08 and was fired at by most of the Japanese ships at short range. Observers aboard those ships noted that she resembled "an island volcano in eruption". Mikasa fired two torpedoes and Shikishima fired one torpedo at Knyaz Suvorov during this time without effect. Captain William C. Pakenham, the Royal Navy's official military observer aboard Asahi under the Anglo-Japanese Alliance, noted that Knyaz Suvorov was hit by a 12-inch shell near the rear 6-inch turret around 16:30 that caused an explosion and caused flames to spout 50 feet (15 m) in the air. At 17:05 the 4th Destroyer Division attacked with three destroyers; only one of the six torpedoes hit Knyaz Suvorov. The ship immediately took on a 10° list, but showed no signs of sinking. One shell from Knyaz Suvorov struck the destroyer Asagiri, but did not inflict much damage.

Around 17:30, the Russian destroyer Buinyi came and took off the wounded officers from Knyaz Suvorov, including Rozhestvensky, leaving an unwounded midshipman in command. The ship continued southwards at about 4–5 knots (7.4–9.3 km/h; 4.6–5.8 mph) and was engaged by many of the Japanese cruisers from about 18:30 until four torpedo boats of the 11th Torpedo Division attacked at 19:20. They fired seven torpedoes of which two or three hit the ship. One was thought to have caused a magazine to explode as a cloud of yellow and black smoke poured out and Knyaz Suvorov listed further to port before capsizing at about 19:30.[3] Other than the 20 officers taken off by Buinyi, there were no survivors of the 928 crew aboard. Naval historian Sir Julian Corbett commented: "While she had a gun above water she fired, and not a man survived her of all that crew, to whose stubborn gallantry no words can do justice. If there is immortality in naval memory it is hers and theirs.

History

Russian Empire

Name: Knyaz Suvorov (Князь Суворов)

Namesake: Prince Alexander Suvorov

Builder: Baltic Works, Saint Petersburg

Cost: 13,841,000 rubles

Laid down: 8 September 1901[Note 1]

Launched: 25 September 1902

In service: September 1904

Fate: Sunk at the Battle of Tsushima, 27 May 1905

General characteristics

Class and type: Borodino-class pre-dreadnought battleship

Displacement: 14,415 long tons (14,646 t)

Length: 397 ft (121.0 m) (o/a)

Beam: 76 ft 1 in (23.2 m)

Draft: 29 ft 2 in (8.9 m)

Installed power:

20 Belleville boilers

15,575 ihp (11,614 kW)

Propulsion: 2 shafts, 2 triple-expansion steam engines

Speed: 17.5 knots (32.4 km/h; 20.1 mph)

Range: 2,590 nmi (4,800 km; 2,980 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)

Complement: 782 (designed)

Armament:

2 × twin 12 in (305 mm) guns

6 × twin 6 in (152 mm) guns

20 × single 75 mm (3 in) guns

20 × single 47 mm (1.9 in) guns

4 × 15 in (381 mm) torpedo tubes

Armor:

Krupp armor

Belt: 5.7–7.64 inches (145–194 mm)

Deck: 1–2 inches (25–51 mm)

Turrets: 10 inches (254 mm)