Английская Википедия:HDMS Peder Skram (1908)
Шаблон:Infobox ship imageШаблон:Infobox ship careerШаблон:Infobox ship characteristics
HDMS Peder Skram was the third and final member of the Шаблон:Sclass of coastal defense ships built for the Royal Danish Navy. The Herluf Trolle class was built in response to a naval construction program in neighboring Imperial Germany. The Danish ships were built in the late 1890s and early 1900s; Peder Skram was delayed significantly compared to her sisters, and was laid down in 1905, after her two sister ships had already been completed. The ships were armed with a main battery of two Шаблон:Cvt guns and were capable of a top speed of Шаблон:Convert.
Design
By the end of the 19th century, which had seen Denmark's decline from a major navy before the devastating Battle of Copenhagen in 1801 to a minor coastal defense force by the 1890s, the Royal Danish Navy was primarily concerned with countering the naval strength of its neighbor, Imperial Germany. In the early 1890s, the Germans had completed eight coastal defense ships of the Шаблон:Sclass and Шаблон:Sclasses, prompting the Danish government to consider strengthening their fleet in 1894 in response. As work on the design began, the designers reviewed the lessons of the First Sino-Japanese War, which was fought over the course of 1894 and into 1895. Funds for the first ship, Шаблон:Ship, were authorized in 1896, but the weak Danish financial position delayed work on a second vessel—Шаблон:Ship—until 1900 and the third member of the class, Peder Skram, until 1905. Revisions to the design were carried out by the time the last ship was begun, leading to some differences in detail.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn
Characteristics
Peder Skram was Шаблон:Cvt long overall, with a beam of Шаблон:Cvt and an average draft of Шаблон:Cvt. She displaced Шаблон:Cvt at full load. As the ships were intended to operate in Denmark's shallow coastal waters, they had a low freeboard. They had a shore forecastle forward to improve seakeeping. Peder Skram had a fairly large superstructure that included an armored conning tower. Her crew amounted to 257–258 officers and enlisted men.Шаблон:Sfn
The ship's propulsion system consisted of a pair of vertical triple-expansion steam engines that drove a pair of screw propellers. Steam was provided by six water-tube boilers that were vented through a single funnel placed amidships. Her machinery was rated to produce Шаблон:Convert for a top speed of Шаблон:Convert. She carried up to Шаблон:Cvt of coal, which allowed the ship to steam for Шаблон:Convert at an economical speed of Шаблон:Convert.Шаблон:Sfn
The ship's armament was centered on a main battery of two Шаблон:Cvt 43-caliber guns mounted individually in gun turrets, one forward and the other aft. These were supported by a secondary battery of four Шаблон:Cvt 50-caliber guns, which were placed in casemates in the side of the hull. Close-range defense against torpedo boats was provided by a light battery of ten Шаблон:Cvt guns and two Шаблон:Cvt guns. She also carried four Шаблон:Cvt torpedo tubes that were submerged in the hull, one in the bow, one in the stern, and the other two to either broadside.Шаблон:Sfn
Peder SkramШаблон:'s armor belt was Шаблон:Cvt thick, and was connected to the armor deck, which was Шаблон:Cvt thick. Her main battery turrets received Шаблон:Cvt of armor on their faces, Шаблон:Cvt on their sides, and Шаблон:Cvt on their rears. The turrets were supported by barbettes that were Шаблон:Cvt thick. Her casemate battery was covered by Шаблон:Cvt of armor plate, and her conning tower received Шаблон:Cvt plating.Шаблон:Sfn
Service history
Peder Skram was built at the Orlogsværftet shipyard in Copenhagen. She was laid down on 25 April 1905,Шаблон:Sfn and she was launched on 2 May 1908.Шаблон:Sfn After completing fitting out work and initial sea trials in the Skagerrak, the ship was commissioned into active service on 24 September 1909. By 1910, all three of the Herluf Trolle-class ships had been completed, and they operated in the summer training squadron together for the first time that year. In addition to training duties in 1911, Peder Skram visited Bergen, Norway, and Stockholm, Sweden. In May 1912, King Frederik VIII of Denmark died while visiting Germany; Olfert Fischer and Peder Skram were sent to escort the royal yacht, Шаблон:Ship as she carried his remains back to Denmark. In early 1913, Peder Skram visited the Hook of Holland and Rotterdam in the Netherlands, before returning to routine training duties with her two sister ships later in the year.Шаблон:Sfn
World War I
After war broke out in August 1914, Denmark established the Шаблон:Lang (security force) to enforce its neutrality during the conflict. The Danish fleet, which at that time consisted of Peder Skram and her two sisters, fifteen torpedo boats, seven submarines, and six mine-warfare vessels, employed a strategy of laying minefields in its territorial waters to prevent belligerent ships from entering. The surface warships, including Peder Skram, patrolled the narrow and shallow waterways, where they would be difficult to attack in the event that Denmark was brought into the conflict. They were divided into two units: 1st Squadron, which was to defend Copenhagen, and 2nd Squadron, which patrolled the Great Belt. Peder Skram and her sisters alternated between the two units as needed, such as when vessels needed to withdraw for maintenance.Шаблон:Sfn
On the night of 18–19 August 1915, the British submarine Шаблон:HMS attempted to pass through the Danish Strait, but ran aground off Saltholm. At that time, Peder Skram was the flagship of the 1st Squadron, which was anchored some Шаблон:Convert to the north of Saltholm. Initial contact was made by Danish patrol boats, which informed the British that they had twenty-four hours to withdraw before they would be interned. The ships of 1st Squadron were sent south to oversee the British attempts to refloat the submarine and prevent any German naval forces from interfering, which would have been a violation of Denmark's neutrality. At around that time, the German torpedo boats Шаблон:SMS and Шаблон:SMS arrived and began to attack E13. The Danish ships, including Peder Skram, cleared for action, but did not open fire; eventually, the torpedo boat Шаблон:HDMS placed herself between the German vessels and the British submarine and the Germans withdrew. The Danish fleet had proved incapable of enforcing their neutrality.Шаблон:Sfn
Interwar period
In the aftermath of World War I, the Danish naval budget was significantly reduced, which kept much of the fleet laid up due to a lack of funds. Peder Skram was commissioned in October 1920 to serve as the command ship during training exercises with the fleet's torpedo boats and submarines. In November, Peder Skram and the rest of the squadron visited Gothenburg, Sweden. After returning to Denmark, Peder Skram was decommissioned again in February 1921. She was reactivated in August for another round of training exercises, which lasted until January 1922. Later that year, she embarked on a cruise to visit Stockholm and Danzig, Germany. Olfert Fischer joined her for the trip, and the two ships carried an Orlogsværftet H-Maskinen HM-1 aircraft for evaluation. Further budget reductions curtailed the ship's activity even further, and from 1922 to 1929, she did not go to sea at all.Шаблон:Sfn
In 1929, Peder Skram was recommissioned to serve as a training ship in company with the training vessel Шаблон:HDMS, but this period of training naval reserve officers lasted just a few months, and by late 1929, she was again laid up in reserve. She remained out of service for another five years, which was interrupted by a short period in commission in August and September 1934. She was recommissioned again in May 1935, this time to join the escort for the new royal yacht, also named Шаблон:Ship, to Stockholm for the marriage of Princess Ingrid of Sweden to the Danish crown prince, Frederik. The Danish naval budget was so tight that Peder Skram proceeded most of the way on her own at the economical speed of Шаблон:Convert to save coal. On the way home, she was again detached very soon after leaving Stockholm, again steaming at 8 knots. After arriving home, she was laid up once more, and remained out of service for the next four years. With tensions in Europe again on the rise by 1939, Peder Skram was recommissioned in May to form the core of a training squadron along with Niels Juel. On 7 July, Peder Skram was laid up again at the Holmen Naval Base.Шаблон:Sfn
World War II
In the early hours of 1 September 1939, Germany invaded Poland, starting World War II. The Danish Navy ordered Peder Skram to begin embarking ammunition and stores, and placed her on a 48-hour notice for steam, though she was not formally recommissioned until 20 September. At that point, she was assigned to the reconstituted Шаблон:Lang, though she and Niels Juel were the only major warships still in the fleet's inventory. They were joined by six torpedo boats and five submarines, along with several smaller vessels. The Danish government had signed a non-aggression pact with Germany in May 1939, and so adopted a passive stance once the war began. When Germany invaded Denmark on 9 April 1940, Peder Skram was based in Frederikshavn, and saw no action before the Danish government surrendered, some six hours after the invasion began.Шаблон:Sfn
The German occupation initially permitted the Danish government to remain in power, albeit under German direction; this included the Danish fleet. But by 1943, the Danish Resistance had increased its overt acts against the occupiers, prompting the Germans to launch Operation Safari to neutralize the Danish armed forces and seize military and naval equipment. Vice Admiral A. H. Vedel, the commander in chief of the Danish fleet, had already issued secret orders that all ships should either attempt to reach neutral Sweden or to scuttle their ships if Germany attempted to seize them. To this end, many ships of the fleet were secretly supplied with scuttling charges, but Peder Skram had been decommissioned and employed as a stationary command ship in Copenhagen, so she was not provisioned with explosives. The Germans carried out Operation Safari on 29 August 1943, but the Danes were able to scuttle all of the ships in Copenhagen, including Peder Skram, before the Germans could stop them. Peder Skram took on a list of 20 degrees to starboard and sank to the harbor bottom, though most of her superstructure remained above the water.Шаблон:Sfn
The Germans later raised Peder Skram, since she had not been significantly damaged in the scuttling. Her 150 mm guns were removed for use as a coastal artillery battery on the island of Fanø. Later in 1943, she was towed to Kiel, Germany, for a refit that included the installation of a few Шаблон:Cvt anti-aircraft guns. She was recommissioned under the name Adler for use as a floating anti-aircraft battery in the Kieler Förde off Friedrichsort in 1944. The Germans planned a more extensive refit that year that included the installation of heavy Шаблон:Cvt anti-aircraft guns, medium Шаблон:Cvt guns, and additional lighter 20 mm guns, but the work was never carried out. British RAF reconnaissance aircraft spotted the ship off Friedrichsort in January 1945, and she was damaged in a bombing raid in April that forced her crew to run her aground to avoid sinking. She was discovered in that condition by occupying forces in May, following Germany's surrender.Шаблон:Sfn
With the war over, the Danish salvage company Em. Z. Svitzer sent the salvage ship Garm to recover Peder Skram in August 1945. The crew worked for three days to seal the hull and refloat the ship, before towing her back to Holmen Naval Base in Copenhagen. She remained there for the next few years, waiting to be scrapped. Her armored conning tower was removed between late 1948 and early 1949, being placed first at the Danish naval academy and then later moved to Risø in 1961. In the meantime, Peder Skram was sold to the ship breaking company H. J. Hansen on 1 April 1949, and she was broken up at their facility at Odense later that year. The ship's foremast was preserved, and remains at their facility.Шаблон:Sfn
Notes
References
Шаблон:Herluf Trolle-class coastal defence ships
