Gazelle Class Light Cruisers

Gazelle Class.  There were considerable minor differences between the various members of this class with it being left up to individual shipyards to provide engines and boilers.  Gazelle had a bow and two above water torpedo tubes whilst the others had no bow tube and the broadside ones were below water.  Likewise there were many small differences in dimensions and displacement amongst the class.

SMS Gazelle
Built Germaniawerft, Kiel, laid down 1897, completed October 1900, cost 4,611,000 Marks.

SMSNiobe
Built Weser, Bremen, laid down 1898, completed June 1900, cost 4,534,000 Marks.

SMS Nymphe
Built Germaniawerft, Kiel, laid down 1898, completed September 1900, cost 4,647,000 Marks.

SMS Thetis
Built Danzig Navy Yard, laid down 1899, completed September 1901, cost 4,487,000 Marks.

SMS Ariadne
Built Weser, Bremen, laid down 1899, completed May 1901, cost 47,799,000 Marks.

SMS Amazone
Built Germaniawerft, Kiel, laid down 1899, completed October 1901, cost 4,858,000 Marks.

SMS Medusa
Built Weser, Bremen, laid down 1900, completed July 1901, cost 4,739,000 Marks

SMS Frauenlob
Built Weser, Bremen, laid down 1901, completed February 1903, cost 4,596,000 Marks.

SMS Arcona
Built Weser, Bremen,laid down 1901, completed May 1903, cost 4,493,000 Marks.

SMS Udine
Built Howaldtswerke, Kiel, laid down 1901, completed January 1904, cost 4,653,000 Marks.

Size:
Gazelle Length 104.4 m waterline 105 m overall, beam 12.2 m, draught 5.19 m, displacement 2,643 tonnes  load 2,963 tonnes full load.

Propulsion:
Gazelle 2 shaft triple expansion engines, 6,000 ihp, 19.5 knots
Others 2 shaft triple expansion engines, 8,000 ihp, 21.5 knots

Trials:
Gazelle 6,366 ihp = 20.2 knots
Niobe 8,113 ihp = 22.1 knots
Nymphe 8,486 ihp = 21.2 knots
Thetis 8,888 ihp = 21.9 knots
Ariadne 8,827 ihp = 22.2 knots
Amazone 9,018 ihp = 21.3 knots
Medusa 7,972 ihp = 20.9 knots
Frauenlob 8,623 ihp = 21.5 knots
Arcona 8,580 ihp = 21.5 knots
Udine 8,696 ihp = 21.5 knots

Armour:
1in decks, 2in gun shields

Armament:
10 x 105mm (4.1in) SKL/ 40cal (10 x 1), 3/2 x 450mm (17.7in) TT

Comments:
The first class of German light cruisers after a series of Avisos to which the class bore a resemblance.  they set the basic patern for future German light cruisers.  Crew 257.

World War 1 Service:
Gazelle
Operated in Baltic.
25 January 1915 Damaged by mine and never repaired.
1916 Used as a minelayer hulk.
1920 Removed from fleet lists and scrapped.

Niobe
Coast defence ship.
1917 Floating Barracks.
1925 Sold to Yugoslavia and sunk in 1943.

Nymphe
Coast defence ship.
1916 Floating Barracks.
1932 Scrapped.

Thetis
Coast defence ship.
1917 Gunnery training ship.
1930 Scrapped.

Ariadne
Coast defence ship.
28 August 1914 Sunk at the Battle of Heligoland Bight.

Amazone
Coast defence ship.
1916 Training ship.
1917 Decommissioned.
1954 Scrapped.

Medusa
Coast defence ship.
1917 Tender.
1945 Scuttled

Frauenlob
IV Scouting Group.
31 May 1916 Sunk at the Battle of Jutland.

Arcona
Coast defence ship.
1945 Scuttled.

Udine
Served in Baltic.
7 November 1915 Torpedoed and sunk by the British submarine E19.

SMS Frauenlob, one of several ships of the class sunk in the war.  Those that survived were in mainly secondary roles by the end of the war although several served with the German navy for some years post war as the more modern ships that survived the war were either scuttled or ceded to the victorious nations.