Austro-Hungarian Navy
Encyclopedia
The Austro-Hungarian Navy was the naval force
of Austria-Hungary
. Its official name in German was Kaiserliche und Königliche Kriegsmarine (Imperial and Royal War Navy), abbreviated as k.u.k. Kriegsmarine.
This navy existed under this name after the formation of the Dual Monarchy in 1867 and continued in service until the end of World War I
in 1918. Prior to 1867, the country's naval forces were those of the Austrian Empire
. By 1915 a total of 33,735 naval personnel served in the k.u.k. Kriegsmarine.
Neither Austria nor Hungary had a coast or sea ports after World War I, thus having little or no need for a naval force. The available ports in the Adriatic Sea
became part of Italy
and Yugoslavia
.
Ships of the k.u.k. Kriegsmarine were designated SMS, for
Seiner Majestät Schiff
(His Majesty's Ship).
in the 16th and 17th centuries to fight the Ottoman Empire
, and ships guarding the merchant fleet also operated from the Austrian Netherlands, but these forces were neither under a common command nor did they serve a common purpose. After the Seven Years War Austrian vulnerability to privateers in the Mediterranean Sea
led Count Kaunitz to push for the creation of a small force of frigates. A specific Naval Ensign (Marineflagge) based on the red-white-red colours was introduced only in the reign of Emperor Joseph II.
This situation changed considerably in 1797 with the Treaty of Campo Formio
between France and Austria. Austria ceded to France the Austrian Netherlands and certain islands in the Mediterranean, including Corfu
and some Venetian islands in the Adriatic. Venice
and its territories were divided between the two states, and the Austrian emperor received the city of Venice along with Istria
and Dalmatia
. The Venetian naval forces and facilities were also handed over to Austria and became the basis of the formation of the future Austrian Navy.
, acting in his role as "Inspector General of the Navy" ordered the formation of a naval cadet academy in Venice
(Cesarea regia scuola dei cadetti di marina), which would move to Trieste
in 1848 and eventually - under its later name of "Imperial and Royal Naval Academy" (k.u.k. Marine-Akademie) - to Fiume (now Rijeka
, Croatia
), where it remained until World War I.
The navy gained its first influential supporter when Archduke Charles' third son Archduke Friedrich entered the service in 1837. The young archduke
introduced many modernizing reforms, aiming to make his country's naval force less "Venetian" but more "Austrian". This was considered necessary as it was felt that the force officially styled the "Austrian Navy" was in practice little more than Venetian crews and ships sailing under the Austrian flag. In 1844 Archduke Friedrich was promoted vice-admiral and Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, but died just one year later at the age of twenty-six.
Austrian warships had their first military encounters during the Oriental Crisis of 1840
as a part of a British-led fleet which ousted the Viceroy of Egypt, Muhammad Ali
, from Ottoman Syria
. Archduke Friedrich took part in the campaign personally and was awarded the Military Order of Maria Theresa
for his exceptional leadership.
In 1854 the younger brother of the reigning Emperor Franz Joseph
took office as Commander-in-Chief of the Austrian Navy. Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian
was twenty-two at that time. Archduke Friedrich's distant relative was trained for the navy, and threw himself into this new career with much zeal. He carried out many reforms to modernise the naval forces, and was instrumental in creating the naval port at Trieste
as well as the battle fleet with which admiral Wilhelm von Tegetthoff
would later secure his victories in the Italian War
.
In Venice
the naval shipyard was retained. Here the Austrian screw-driven gunboat Kerka (crew: 100) was launched in 1860 (in service until 1908). The Venice 'lagoon flotilla' of Austrian warships was, in 1864, moored in front of the church of San Giorgio
and included the screw-driven gunboat Ausluger, the paddle-steamer Alnoch, and five paddle-gunboats of the Types 1 to IV.
Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian also initiated a large-scale scientific expedition (1857-1859) during which the frigate
SMS Novara
became the first Austrian warship to circumnavigate
the globe. The journey lasted 2 years and 3 months and was accomplished under the command of Kommodore Bernhard von Wüllerstorf-Urbair
, with 345 officers and crew, and 7 scientists aboard. The expedition was planned by the Imperial Academy of Sciences in Vienna and aimed to gain new knowledge in the disciplines of astronomy
, botany
, zoology
, geology
, oceanography
and hydrography
. SMS Novara sailed from Trieste on 30 April 1857, visiting Gibraltar
, Madeira
, Rio de Janeiro
, Cape Town
, St. Paul Island
, Ceylon, Madras, Nicobar Islands
, Singapore
, Batavia
, Manila
, Hong Kong
, Shanghai
, Puynipet
island, Stuarts, Sydney
(5 November 1858), Auckland
, Tahiti
, Valparaiso
and Gravosa
before returning to Trieste on 30 August 1859.
In 1863 the Royal Navy
's battleship , the flagship of Admiral Fremantle, made a courtesy visit to Pola
, the main port of the Austro-Hungarian Navy.
In April 1864 Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian stepped down as Commander-in-Chief of the Navy and accepted the throne of Mexico
from Louis Napoleon, becoming Maximilian I of Mexico
. He traveled from Trieste
to Veracruz
aboard the SMS Novara
, escorted by the frigate
s (Austrian) and Themis (French), and the Imperial yacht Phantasie led the warship procession from his palace at Schloß Miramar
out to sea. When he was arrested and executed four years later, admiral Wilhelm von Tegetthoff
was sent aboard the Novara to take Ferdinand Maximilian's body back to Austria.
by Prussia and Austria. At that time, The duchies
were part of the Kingdom of Denmark
. Rear-Admiral Wilhelm von Tegetthoff
commanded a small Austrian flotilla which traveled from the Mediterranean Sea
to the North Sea
.
On May 9, 1864, Tegetthoff commanded the Austrian naval forces in the naval action off Heligoland from his flagship, the screw-driven . The action was a tactical victory for the Danish forces. It was also the last significant naval action fought by squadrons of wooden ships and the last significant naval action involving Denmark.
On July 20, 1866, near the island of Vis
in the Adriatic, the Austrian fleet, under the command of Rear-Admiral Wilhelm von Tegetthoff, made its name in the modern era at the Battle of Lissa
during the Third Italian War of Independence
. The battle pitted Austrian naval forces against the naval forces
of the newly created Kingdom of Italy. It was a decisive victory for an outnumbered Austrians over a superior Italian force, and was the first major European sea battle involving ships using iron and steam, and one of the last to involve large wooden battleships and deliberate ramming.
in 1880.
During peace-time Austrian ships visited Asia, North America, South America, and the Pacific Ocean
.
In 1869 Emperor Franz Joseph travelled on board the screw-driven corvette SMS Viribus Unitis (not to be confused with the later battleship of the same name
) to the opening of the Suez Canal
. The ship had been named after his personal motto.
exploration, discovering Franz Josef Land
during an expedition which lasted from 1872 to 1874.
Led by the naval officer Karl Weyprecht
and the infantry officer and landscape artist Julius Payer
, the custom-built schooner
Tegetthoff left Tromsø
in July 1872. At the end of August she got locked in pack-ice north of Novaya Zemlya
and drifted to hitherto unknown polar regions. It was on this drift when the explorers discovered an archipelago which they named after Emperor
Franz Joseph I
.
In May 1874 Payer decided to abandon the ice-locked ship and try to return by sledges and boats. On 14 August 1874 the expedition reached the open sea and on 3 September finally set foot on Russia
n mainland.
, and on January 21, 1897 a Greek
army landed in Crete to liberate the island from the Ottoman Empire
and unite it with Greece
. The European powers, including Austria-Hungary
, intervened, and proclaimed Crete an international protectorate
. Warships of the k.u.k. Kriegsmarine patrolled the waters off Crete in blockade of Ottoman naval forces. Crete remained in an anomalous position until finally ceded to Greece in 1913.
during the Boxer Rebellion
in China
(1899 - 1901). As a member of the Allied nations, Austria sent two training ships and the cruisers , , , and and a company of marines to the North China coast in April 1900, based at the Russia concession of Port Arthur
.
In June they helped hold the Tianjin
railway against Boxer forces, and also fired upon several armed junks
on the Hai River
near Tong-Tcheou. They also took part in the seizure of the Taku Forts
commanding the approaches to Tianjin, and the boarding and capture of four Chinese destroyers by Capt. Roger Keyes of . In all k.u.k. forces suffered few casualties during the rebellion.
After the uprising a cruiser was maintained permanently on the China station, and a detachment of marines was deployed at the embassy in Peking.
Lieutenant Georg Ludwig von Trapp, who would serve as a submarine commander during World War I and become famous in the musical The Sound of Music
after World War II, was decorated for bravery aboard the SMS Kaiserin und Königin Maria Theresia
during the Rebellion.
Austria-Hungary joined Germany
, France
, the United Kingdom
and Italy
in blockading the seaport town of Bar
in the Kingdom of Montenegro
.
Among the many factors giving rise to World War I was the naval arms race
between Great Britain
and Imperial Germany. Germany enhanced her naval infrastructure, building new dry dock
s, and enlarging the Kiel Canal
to enable larger vessels to navigate it. However, that was not the only European naval arms race. Imperial Russia too had commenced building a new modern navy following their naval defeat in the Russo-Japanese War
. The Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Kingdom of Italy
were in a race of their own for domination of the Adriatic Sea
. The k.u.k. Kriegsmarine had another prominent supporter at that time in the face of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand
. Like other imperial naval enthusiasts before him, Franz Ferdinand had a keen private interest in the fleet and was an energetic campaigner for naval matters.
, and it was so advanced that some argued that this rendered all previous battleships obsolete, although Britain and other countries kept pre-dreadnoughts in service.
Austria-Hungary's naval architects
, aware of the inevitable dominance of all big gun dreadnought type designs, then presented their case to the Marinesektion des Reichskriegsministeriums (Naval Section at the War Ministry) in Vienna
, which on October 5, 1908 ordered the construction of their own dreadnought, the first contract being awarded to 'Werft das Stabilimento Tecnico Triestino (STT)', the naval weaponry to be provided by the Škoda Works
in Pilsen. The Marine budget for 1910 was substantially enlarged to permit major refits of the existing fleet and more dreadnoughts. The battleships and were both launched by the Archduke Franz Ferdinand at Trieste, amongst great rejoicing, on June 24, 1911, and March 21, 1912. They were followed by the , and the . These battleships, constructed later than many of the earlier British and German dreadnoughts, were considerably ahead in some aspects of design, especially of both the French and Italian navies, and were constructed with Marconi Wireless rooms as well as anti-aircraft armaments. It is said they were the first battleships in the world equipped with torpedo launchers built into their bows.
Between 22 and 28 May 1914 the Tegetthoff, accompanied by the Viribus Unitis, made a courtesy visit to the British Mediterranean fleet in Malta
.
After the assassination
of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
and his wife in 1914, the Austro-Hungarian Navy honoured them with a lying in state
aboard the SMS Viribus Unitis
.
During the First World War, the navy saw some action, but prior to the Italian entry spent most of its time in its major naval base at Pola. Following the Italian declaration of war the mere fact of its existence tied up the Italian Navy
and the French Navy
in the Mediterranean for the duration of the war.
On 15 May 1915, when Italy declared war on Austria-Hungary, the Austro-Hungarian navy left their harbors in Pola (today Pula, Croatia)
, Sebenico (today Šibenik, Croatia)
and Cattaro (today Kotor, Montenegro) to bombard the eastern Italian coast between Venice and Barletta
. Main targets were the cities of Ancona
, Rimini
, Vieste
, Manfredonia
, Barletta and bridges and railway tracks along the coast. By 1917 the Austro-Hungarian fleet was as yet largely undamaged.
The presence of three Allied navies in the Mediterranean made any measures of co-ordination and common doctrine extraordinarily difficult. The Adriatic was divided into eleven zones, of which the British naval authorities were responsible for four, the French for four, and the Italians for three. Differing command structures, national pride and the language barrier all contributed to a lack of cohesion in the application of Allied sea power, producing a situation in which German and Austro-Hungarian U-Boat attacks on shipping flourished. An example of the lack of co-ordination was the sinking of the Italian troop transport Minas bound from Italy to Salonika, which was torpedoed in one of the British zones in February 1917 with the loss of 870 lives, a British escort not understanding a message and failing to relieve the Italian destroyer, which turned around at the zone barrier.
n troops evacuating Albania
. After sinking a French submarine and bombarding the town of Durazzo the squadron ran into a minefield, sinking one destroyer and damaging another. The next day the group ran into a squadron of British, French
, and Italian
cruisers and destroyers. The resulting battle left two Austrian destroyers sunk and light damage to another, while dealing only minor damage to the Allied warships and others
A three-power conference on April 28, 1917, at Corfu
, discussed a more offensive strategy in the Adriatic, but the Italians were not prepared to consider any big ship operations, considering the size of the Austro-Hungarian fleet. The British and French seemed reluctant to move alone against the Austro-Hungarians, especially if it meant a full scale-battle. But the Austrians were not inactive either, and even as the Allied conference was in session they were planning an offensive operation against the Otranto Barrage.
Throughout 1917 the Adriatic remained the key to the U-boat war on shipping in the Mediterranean. Cattaro, some 140 miles above the narrow Straits of Otranto, was the main U-Boat base from which almost the entire threat to Mediterranean shipping came.
The Otranto barrage, constructed by the Allies with up to 120 naval drifter
s, used to deploy and patrol submarine nets, and 30 motor launches, all equipped with depth-charges, was designed to stop the passage of U-Boats from Cattaro. However, this failed to do so, and from its inception in 1916, the barrage had caught only two U-Boats, the Austrian and the German UB-44 out of hundreds of possible passages.
However, the barrage effectively meant that the Austro-Hungarian surface fleet could not leave the Adriatic sea
unless it was willing to give battle to the blocking forces. This, and as the war drew on bringing supply difficulties especially coal, plus a fear of mines, limited the Austro-Hungarian navy to shelling the Italian and Serbian coastlines.
There had already been four small-scale Austro-Hungarian attacks on the barrage, on March 11, April 21, and 25, and May 5, 1917, but none of them amounted to anything. Now greater preparations were made, with two U-Boats despatched to lay mines off Brindisi
with a third patrolling the exits in case Anglo-Italian forces were drawn out during the attack. The whole operation was timed for the night of May 14/15, which led to the biggest battle of the Austro-Hungarian navy in World War I, the Battle of the Otranto Straits.
The first Austro-Hungarian warships to strike were the two destroyers, the and . An Italian convoy of three ships, escorted by the destroyer Borea, was approaching Valona
, when, out of the darkness, the Austrians fell upon them. The Borea was left sinking. Of the three merchant ships, one loaded with ammunition was hit and blown up, a second set on fire, and the third hit. The two Austrian destroyers then steamed off northward.
Meanwhile, three Austro-Hungarian cruiser
s under the overall command of Captain Miklós Horthy
, the SMS Novara
, , and , had actually passed a patrol of four French destroyers north of the barrage, and thought to be friendly ships passed unchallenged. They then sailed through the barrage before turning back to attack it. Each Austrian cruiser took one-third of the line and began slowly and systematically to destroy the barrage with their 4-inch guns, urging all Allies on board to abandon their ships first.
During this battle the Allies lost two destroyer
s, 14 drifters
and one glider
while the Austro-Hungarian navy suffered only minor damage (the Novaras steam supply pipes were damaged by a shell) and few losses. The Austro-Hungarian navy returned to its bases up north in order to repair and re-supply, and the allies had to rebuild the blockade.
The mutiny failed to spread beyond Kotor, and within three days a loyal naval squadron had arrived. Together with coastal artillery
the squadron fired several shells into a few of the rebel's ships, and then assaulted them with k.u.k. Marine Infantry in a short and successful skirmish. About 800 sailors were imprisoned, dozens were court-martialed, and four seamen were executed, including the leader of the uprising, Franz Rasch, a Bohemia
n. Given the huge crews required in naval vessels of that time this is an indication that the mutiny was limited to a minority.
A second attempt to force the blockade took place in June 1918 under the command of Rear-Admiral Horthy
. A surprise attack was planned, but an Italian torpedo boat by chance spotted the flotilla and launched two torpedoes, hitting one of the four Austrian dreadnought
s, the . The lost element of surprise made Horthy break off his attack. Huge efforts were made by the crew to save the Szent Istvan, which had been hit below the water-line, and the Tegetthoff took her in tow. However just after 6 a.m., the pumps being unequal to the task, the ship, now listing badly, had to be abandoned, and it sank soon afterwards.
In 1918, in order to avoid having to give the fleet to the victors, the Austrian Emperor gave the entire Austro-Hungarian Navy and merchant fleet, with all harbours, arsenals and shore fortifications to the new State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs
. They in turn sent diplomatic notes to the governments of France, the United Kingdom, Italy, the United States
and Russia, to notify them that the State of SCS was not at war with any of them and that the Council had taken over the entire Austro-Hungarian fleet.
However, the navy was soon attacked at its moorings by the Italian Regia Marina, and the French navy commandeered the new dreadnought Prinz Eugen, which they took to France and later used it for target practice in the Atlantic, where it was destroyed.
Ships lost after World War I:
The home port of the Austro-Hungarian Navy was the Seearsenal (naval base) at Pola (today Pula, Croatia)
, a role it took over from Venice, where the early Austrian Navy had been based. Supplementary bases included the busy port
of Trieste
and the natural harbour of Cattaro (today Kotor, Montenegro) at the most southerly point of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Both Trieste and Pola had major shipbuilding facilities. Pola's naval installations contained one of the largest floating dry-docks in the Mediterranean. The city of Pola was also the site of the central church of the navy "Stella Maris" (k.u.k. Marinekirche "Stella Maris"), of the Austro-Hungarian Naval Observatory and the empire's naval military cemetery (k.u.k. Marinefriedhof). In 1990, the cemetery was restored after decades of neglect by the communist regime in Yugoslavia. The Austro-Hungarian Naval Academy (k.u.k. Marine-Akademie) was located in Fiume (today Rijeka, Croatia)
.
Trieste was also the headquarters of the merchant line Austrian Lloyd
(founded in 1836 and, later, Lloyd Triestino), whose headquarters stood at the corner of the Piazza Grande and Sanita. By 1913 Austrian Lloyd had a fleet of 62 ships comprising a total of 236,000 tons.
In August 1916, the Imperial and Royal Naval Air Corps or K.u.K. Seeflugwesen was established. In 1917 it was rechristened the K.u.K. Seefliegerkorps. Its first aviators were naval officers who received their initial pilot training at the airfields of Wiener Neustadt
in Lower Austria
, where the Theresian Military Academy
is also located. They were first assigned for tours aboard the battleships of the Tegetthoff class
. Later, the k.u.k. Seefliegerkorps also served at the following airfields in Albania and southern Dalmatia
: Berat
, Kavaja, Tirana
, Scutari
and Igalo
. They also had airfields at Podgorica
in Montenegro
.
The following Austrian squadrons served at Feltre
also:
Feltre was captured by Austrian forces on 12 November 1917 after the Battle of Caporetto
. There were two other military airfields nearby, at Arsie
and Fonzaso
. It was the main station for the Austrian naval aviators in that area. The K.u.K. Seeflugwesen used mostly modified German planes, but produced several variations of its own. Notable planes for the service were the following:
One reason was that sea power was never a priority of the Austrian foreign policy and that the Navy itself was relatively little known and supported by the public. Activities such as open days and naval clubs were unable to change the sentiment that the Navy was just something "expensive but far away". Another point was that naval expenditures were for most of the time overseen by the Austrian War Ministry, which was largely controlled by the Army
, the only exception being the period before the Battle of Lissa
.
The Navy was only able to draw significant public attention and funds during the three short periods it was actively supported by a member of the Imperial Family. The Archdukes Friedrich (1821–1847), Ferdinand Maximilian (1832–1867)
and Franz Ferdinand (1863–1914)
each a keen private interest in the fleet, held senior naval ranks and were energetic campaigners for naval matters. However, none lasted long as, Archduke Friedrich died early, Ferdinand Maximilian left Austria to become Emperor of Mexico
and Franz Ferdinand was assassinated before he acceeded the throne.
The Navy's problems were further exacerbated by the eleven different ethnic groups comprising the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Officers had to speak at least four of the languages found in the Empire. Germans
and Czechs generally were in signals and engine room duties, Hungarians became gunners, while Croats
and Italians were seamen or stokers. The Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867 aimed to calm political dissatisfaction by creating the Dual Monarchy
, in which the Emperor of Austria
was also the King of Hungary
. This constitutional change was also reflected in the navy's title, which changed to "Imperial and Royal Navy" (kaiserlich und königliche Kriegsmarine, short K. u K. Kriegsmarine).
Besides problems stemming from the difficulty of communicating efficiently within such a multilingual military, the Empire's warship designs were generally smaller and somewhat less capable than those of other European powers.
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Beginning in the reign of Emperor Joseph II.
, the navy used a flag based on the red-white-red colours, and augmented with a shield of similar colours.
This flag was formally adopted as Naval Ensign (Marineflagge) in 1786. It served the Austrian Navy until 1869 and the Austro-Hungarian Navy between 1869 and 1918. During World War I, Emperor Franz Joseph
approved of a new design, which also contained the Hungarian arms. This flag, officially instituted in 1915, was however little used, and ships continued displaying the old Ensign until the end of the war. Photographs of Austro-Hungarian ships flying the post-1915 form of the Naval Ensign are therefore relatively rare.
Navy
A navy is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake- or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions...
of Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
. Its official name in German was Kaiserliche und Königliche Kriegsmarine (Imperial and Royal War Navy), abbreviated as k.u.k. Kriegsmarine.
This navy existed under this name after the formation of the Dual Monarchy in 1867 and continued in service until the end of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
in 1918. Prior to 1867, the country's naval forces were those of the Austrian Empire
Austrian Empire
The Austrian Empire was a modern era successor empire, which was centered on what is today's Austria and which officially lasted from 1804 to 1867. It was followed by the Empire of Austria-Hungary, whose proclamation was a diplomatic move that elevated Hungary's status within the Austrian Empire...
. By 1915 a total of 33,735 naval personnel served in the k.u.k. Kriegsmarine.
Neither Austria nor Hungary had a coast or sea ports after World War I, thus having little or no need for a naval force. The available ports in the Adriatic Sea
Adriatic Sea
The Adriatic Sea is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges...
became part of Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and Yugoslavia
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a state stretching from the Western Balkans to Central Europe which existed during the often-tumultuous interwar era of 1918–1941...
.
Ships of the k.u.k. Kriegsmarine were designated SMS, for
Seiner Majestät Schiff
Seiner Majestät Schiff
Seiner Majestät Schiff was the ship prefix used by the Prussian Maritime Enterprise , the Prussian Navy, the Imperial German Navy and the Austro-Hungarian Navy...
(His Majesty's Ship).
History
Origins
Until the end of the 18th century there were only limited attempts to establish an Austrian navy. The Habsburgs had employed armed ships sailing the DanubeDanube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
in the 16th and 17th centuries to fight the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
, and ships guarding the merchant fleet also operated from the Austrian Netherlands, but these forces were neither under a common command nor did they serve a common purpose. After the Seven Years War Austrian vulnerability to privateers in the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
led Count Kaunitz to push for the creation of a small force of frigates. A specific Naval Ensign (Marineflagge) based on the red-white-red colours was introduced only in the reign of Emperor Joseph II.
Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor
Joseph II was Holy Roman Emperor from 1765 to 1790 and ruler of the Habsburg lands from 1780 to 1790. He was the eldest son of Empress Maria Theresa and her husband, Francis I...
This situation changed considerably in 1797 with the Treaty of Campo Formio
Treaty of Campo Formio
The Treaty of Campo Formio was signed on 18 October 1797 by Napoleon Bonaparte and Count Philipp von Cobenzl as representatives of revolutionary France and the Austrian monarchy...
between France and Austria. Austria ceded to France the Austrian Netherlands and certain islands in the Mediterranean, including Corfu
Corfu
Corfu is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea. It is the second largest of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the edge of the northwestern frontier of Greece. The island is part of the Corfu regional unit, and is administered as a single municipality. The...
and some Venetian islands in the Adriatic. Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
and its territories were divided between the two states, and the Austrian emperor received the city of Venice along with Istria
Istria
Istria , formerly Histria , is the largest peninsula in the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic between the Gulf of Trieste and the Bay of Kvarner...
and Dalmatia
Dalmatia
Dalmatia is a historical region on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea. It stretches from the island of Rab in the northwest to the Bay of Kotor in the southeast. The hinterland, the Dalmatian Zagora, ranges from fifty kilometers in width in the north to just a few kilometers in the south....
. The Venetian naval forces and facilities were also handed over to Austria and became the basis of the formation of the future Austrian Navy.
The 19th century
In 1802 Archduke Charles of AustriaArchduke Charles, Duke of Teschen
Archduke Charles of Austria, Duke of Teschen was an Austrian field-marshal, the third son of emperor Leopold II and his wife Infanta Maria Luisa of Spain...
, acting in his role as "Inspector General of the Navy" ordered the formation of a naval cadet academy in Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
(Cesarea regia scuola dei cadetti di marina), which would move to Trieste
Trieste
Trieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...
in 1848 and eventually - under its later name of "Imperial and Royal Naval Academy" (k.u.k. Marine-Akademie) - to Fiume (now Rijeka
Rijeka
Rijeka is the principal seaport and the third largest city in Croatia . It is located on Kvarner Bay, an inlet of the Adriatic Sea and has a population of 128,735 inhabitants...
, Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
), where it remained until World War I.
The navy gained its first influential supporter when Archduke Charles' third son Archduke Friedrich entered the service in 1837. The young archduke
Archduke
The title of Archduke denotes a noble rank above Duke and below King, used only by princes of the Houses of Habsburg and Habsburg-Lorraine....
introduced many modernizing reforms, aiming to make his country's naval force less "Venetian" but more "Austrian". This was considered necessary as it was felt that the force officially styled the "Austrian Navy" was in practice little more than Venetian crews and ships sailing under the Austrian flag. In 1844 Archduke Friedrich was promoted vice-admiral and Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, but died just one year later at the age of twenty-six.
Austrian warships had their first military encounters during the Oriental Crisis of 1840
Oriental Crisis of 1840
The Oriental Crisis of 1840 was an armed conflict in the eastern Mediterranean between Egypt and the Ottoman Empire. It was triggered by Wāli Muhammad Ali Pasha's aims to establish a personal empire in the Ottoman province of Egypt.-Origins of the conflict:...
as a part of a British-led fleet which ousted the Viceroy of Egypt, Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali of Egypt
Muhammad Ali Pasha al-Mas'ud ibn Agha was a commander in the Ottoman army, who became Wāli, and self-declared Khedive of Egypt and Sudan...
, from Ottoman Syria
Syrian War
The Syrian War is the name generally given to the war of 1839-40 fought in the Middle East, also known as the Second Syrian War, mainly on territory that is now Lebanon, between the Allied Powers of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Austrian Empire, the Russian Empire and the...
. Archduke Friedrich took part in the campaign personally and was awarded the Military Order of Maria Theresa
Military Order of Maria Theresa
The Military Order of Maria Theresa was an Order of the Austro-Hungarian Empire founded on June 18, 1757, the day of the Battle of Kolin, by the Empress...
for his exceptional leadership.
Modernising the Navy
In 1849 the Dane Hans von Dahlerup was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Austrian Navy. He introduced many personal and other reforms and imposed in the Navy the replacement of the Italian language by the German language. In the following years the strength of the Navy reached 4 frigates, 6 corvettes, 7 brigs, and smaller ships.Franz Joseph I of Austria
Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I was Emperor of Austria, King of Bohemia, King of Croatia, Apostolic King of Hungary, King of Galicia and Lodomeria and Grand Duke of Cracow from 1848 until his death in 1916.In the December of 1848, Emperor Ferdinand I of Austria abdicated the throne as part of...
took office as Commander-in-Chief of the Austrian Navy. Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian
Maximilian I of Mexico
Maximilian I was the only monarch of the Second Mexican Empire.After a distinguished career in the Austrian Navy, he was proclaimed Emperor of Mexico on April 10, 1864, with the backing of Napoleon III of France and a group of Mexican monarchists who sought to revive the Mexican monarchy...
was twenty-two at that time. Archduke Friedrich's distant relative was trained for the navy, and threw himself into this new career with much zeal. He carried out many reforms to modernise the naval forces, and was instrumental in creating the naval port at Trieste
Trieste
Trieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...
as well as the battle fleet with which admiral Wilhelm von Tegetthoff
Wilhelm von Tegetthoff
Wilhelm von Tegetthoff was an Austrian admiral. Considered one of the prominent naval commanders of the 19th century, Tegetthoff was known for his innovative tactics as well as his inspirational leadership....
would later secure his victories in the Italian War
Austro-Prussian War
The Austro-Prussian War was a war fought in 1866 between the German Confederation under the leadership of the Austrian Empire and its German allies on one side and the Kingdom of Prussia with its German allies and Italy on the...
.
In Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
the naval shipyard was retained. Here the Austrian screw-driven gunboat Kerka (crew: 100) was launched in 1860 (in service until 1908). The Venice 'lagoon flotilla' of Austrian warships was, in 1864, moored in front of the church of San Giorgio
San Giorgio
San Giorgio, is the Italian form of Saint George. When used as the name of a person it is frequently contracted to Sangiorgio.-Places:Many town and villages are named after the saint, including the following comuni, or ‘municipalities’:...
and included the screw-driven gunboat Ausluger, the paddle-steamer Alnoch, and five paddle-gunboats of the Types 1 to IV.
Novara Expedition
- Main article: Novara Expedition
Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian also initiated a large-scale scientific expedition (1857-1859) during which the frigate
Frigate
A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...
SMS Novara
SMS Novara (1850)
SMS Novara was a sail frigate of the Austro-Hungarian Navy most noted for sailing the globe for the Novara Expedition of 1857–1859 and, later for carrying Archduke Maximilian and wife Carlota to Vera Cruz in May 1864 to become Emperor and Empress of Mexico.-Service :The SMS Novara was a frigate...
became the first Austrian warship to circumnavigate
Circumnavigation
Circumnavigation – literally, "navigation of a circumference" – refers to travelling all the way around an island, a continent, or the entire planet Earth.- Global circumnavigation :...
the globe. The journey lasted 2 years and 3 months and was accomplished under the command of Kommodore Bernhard von Wüllerstorf-Urbair
Bernhard von Wüllerstorf-Urbair
Baron Bernhard von Wüllerstorf-Urbair, also: von Wüllersdorf-Urbair or von Wüllerstorf und Urbair, was an Austrian vice admiral and, from 1865–1867, Austrian Imperial Minister of Trade...
, with 345 officers and crew, and 7 scientists aboard. The expedition was planned by the Imperial Academy of Sciences in Vienna and aimed to gain new knowledge in the disciplines of astronomy
Astronomy
Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
, botany
Botany
Botany, plant science, or plant biology is a branch of biology that involves the scientific study of plant life. Traditionally, botany also included the study of fungi, algae and viruses...
, zoology
Zoology
Zoology |zoölogy]]), is the branch of biology that relates to the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct...
, geology
Geology
Geology is the science comprising the study of solid Earth, the rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which it evolves. Geology gives insight into the history of the Earth, as it provides the primary evidence for plate tectonics, the evolutionary history of life, and past climates...
, oceanography
Oceanography
Oceanography , also called oceanology or marine science, is the branch of Earth science that studies the ocean...
and hydrography
Hydrography
Hydrography is the measurement of the depths, the tides and currents of a body of water and establishment of the sea, river or lake bed topography and morphology. Normally and historically for the purpose of charting a body of water for the safe navigation of shipping...
. SMS Novara sailed from Trieste on 30 April 1857, visiting Gibraltar
Gibraltar
Gibraltar is a British overseas territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula at the entrance of the Mediterranean. A peninsula with an area of , it has a northern border with Andalusia, Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the major landmark of the region...
, Madeira
Madeira
Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago that lies between and , just under 400 km north of Tenerife, Canary Islands, in the north Atlantic Ocean and an outermost region of the European Union...
, Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
, Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
, St. Paul Island
Île Saint-Paul
Île Saint-Paul is an island forming part of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands in the Indian Ocean, with an area of . It is located about southwest of the larger Île Amsterdam, and south of Réunion...
, Ceylon, Madras, Nicobar Islands
Nicobar Islands
The Nicobar Islands are an archipelagic island chain in the eastern Indian Ocean...
, Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, Batavia
Jakarta
Jakarta is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Officially known as the Special Capital Territory of Jakarta, it is located on the northwest coast of Java, has an area of , and a population of 9,580,000. Jakarta is the country's economic, cultural and political centre...
, Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
, Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
, Puynipet
Pohnpei
Not to be confused with Pompeii, the ancient city destroyed by Vesuvius in AD 79.Pohnpei "upon a stone altar " is the name of one of the four states in the Federated States of Micronesia , situated among the Senyavin Islands which are part of the larger Caroline Islands group...
island, Stuarts, Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
(5 November 1858), Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
, Tahiti
Tahiti
Tahiti is the largest island in the Windward group of French Polynesia, located in the archipelago of the Society Islands in the southern Pacific Ocean. It is the economic, cultural and political centre of French Polynesia. The island was formed from volcanic activity and is high and mountainous...
, Valparaiso
Valparaíso
Valparaíso is a city and commune of Chile, center of its third largest conurbation and one of the country's most important seaports and an increasing cultural center in the Southwest Pacific hemisphere. The city is the capital of the Valparaíso Province and the Valparaíso Region...
and Gravosa
Dubrovnik
Dubrovnik is a Croatian city on the Adriatic Sea coast, positioned at the terminal end of the Isthmus of Dubrovnik. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations on the Adriatic, a seaport and the centre of Dubrovnik-Neretva county. Its total population is 42,641...
before returning to Trieste on 30 August 1859.
In 1863 the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
's battleship , the flagship of Admiral Fremantle, made a courtesy visit to Pola
Pula
Pula is the largest city in Istria County, Croatia, situated at the southern tip of the Istria peninsula, with a population of 62,080 .Like the rest of the region, it is known for its mild climate, smooth sea, and unspoiled nature. The city has a long tradition of winemaking, fishing,...
, the main port of the Austro-Hungarian Navy.
In April 1864 Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian stepped down as Commander-in-Chief of the Navy and accepted the throne of Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
from Louis Napoleon, becoming Maximilian I of Mexico
Maximilian I of Mexico
Maximilian I was the only monarch of the Second Mexican Empire.After a distinguished career in the Austrian Navy, he was proclaimed Emperor of Mexico on April 10, 1864, with the backing of Napoleon III of France and a group of Mexican monarchists who sought to revive the Mexican monarchy...
. He traveled from Trieste
Trieste
Trieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...
to Veracruz
Veracruz, Veracruz
Veracruz, officially known as Heroica Veracruz, is a major port city and municipality on the Gulf of Mexico in the Mexican state of Veracruz. The city is located in the central part of the state. It is located along Federal Highway 140 from the state capital Xalapa, and is the state's most...
aboard the SMS Novara
SMS Novara (1850)
SMS Novara was a sail frigate of the Austro-Hungarian Navy most noted for sailing the globe for the Novara Expedition of 1857–1859 and, later for carrying Archduke Maximilian and wife Carlota to Vera Cruz in May 1864 to become Emperor and Empress of Mexico.-Service :The SMS Novara was a frigate...
, escorted by the frigate
Frigate
A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...
s (Austrian) and Themis (French), and the Imperial yacht Phantasie led the warship procession from his palace at Schloß Miramar
Miramare
The Miramare Castle is a 19th century castle on the Gulf of Trieste near Trieste, northeastern Italy. It was built from 1856 to 1860 for Austrian Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian and his wife, Charlotte of Belgium, later Emperor Maximilian I and Empress Carlota of Mexico, to a design by Carl...
out to sea. When he was arrested and executed four years later, admiral Wilhelm von Tegetthoff
Wilhelm von Tegetthoff
Wilhelm von Tegetthoff was an Austrian admiral. Considered one of the prominent naval commanders of the 19th century, Tegetthoff was known for his innovative tactics as well as his inspirational leadership....
was sent aboard the Novara to take Ferdinand Maximilian's body back to Austria.
Second Schleswig War
The Second Schleswig War was the 1864 invasion of Schleswig-HolsteinSchleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein is the northernmost of the sixteen states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Schleswig...
by Prussia and Austria. At that time, The duchies
Duchy
A duchy is a territory, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess.Some duchies were sovereign in areas that would become unified realms only during the Modern era . In contrast, others were subordinate districts of those kingdoms that unified either partially or completely during the Medieval era...
were part of the Kingdom of Denmark
Kingdom of Denmark
The Kingdom of Denmark or the Danish Realm , is a constitutional monarchy and sovereign state consisting of Denmark proper in northern Europe and two autonomous constituent countries, the Faroe Islands in the North Atlantic and Greenland in North America. Denmark is the hegemonial part, where the...
. Rear-Admiral Wilhelm von Tegetthoff
Wilhelm von Tegetthoff
Wilhelm von Tegetthoff was an Austrian admiral. Considered one of the prominent naval commanders of the 19th century, Tegetthoff was known for his innovative tactics as well as his inspirational leadership....
commanded a small Austrian flotilla which traveled from the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
to the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
.
On May 9, 1864, Tegetthoff commanded the Austrian naval forces in the naval action off Heligoland from his flagship, the screw-driven . The action was a tactical victory for the Danish forces. It was also the last significant naval action fought by squadrons of wooden ships and the last significant naval action involving Denmark.
Third Italian War of Independence
Vis (island)
Vis is the most outerly lying larger Croatian island in the Adriatic Sea, and is part of the Central Dalmatian group of islands, with an area of 90.26 km² and a population of 3,617 . Of all the inhabited Croatian islands, it is the farthest from the coast...
in the Adriatic, the Austrian fleet, under the command of Rear-Admiral Wilhelm von Tegetthoff, made its name in the modern era at the Battle of Lissa
Battle of Lissa (1866)
The Battle of Lissa took place on 20 July 1866 in the Adriatic Sea near the Dalmatian island of Lissa and was a decisive victory for an outnumbered Austrian Empire force over a superior Italian force...
during the Third Italian War of Independence
Third Italian War of Independence
The Third Italian War of Independence was a conflict which paralleled the Austro-Prussian War, and was fought between the Kingdom of Italy and the Austrian Empire.-Background:...
. The battle pitted Austrian naval forces against the naval forces
Regia Marina
The Regia Marina dates from the proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy in 1861 after Italian unification...
of the newly created Kingdom of Italy. It was a decisive victory for an outnumbered Austrians over a superior Italian force, and was the first major European sea battle involving ships using iron and steam, and one of the last to involve large wooden battleships and deliberate ramming.
Peace-time
In 1873 the new sail and steam frigate (crew 480) was added to the fleet, which took part in the International Naval Review off GružGruž
Gruž is modern day neighborhood in the greater city of Dubrovnik, Croatia. The main port for Dubrovnik is in Gruž as well as its largest market and the main bus station "Libertas". Around 15,000 people currently live in Gruž...
in 1880.
During peace-time Austrian ships visited Asia, North America, South America, and the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
.
In 1869 Emperor Franz Joseph travelled on board the screw-driven corvette SMS Viribus Unitis (not to be confused with the later battleship of the same name
SMS Viribus Unitis
SMS Viribus Unitis was the first Austro-Hungarian dreadnought battleship of the . Its name, meaning "With United Forces", was the personal motto of Emperor Franz Joseph I.Viribus Unitis was ordered by the Austro-Hungarian navy in 1908...
) to the opening of the Suez Canal
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
. The ship had been named after his personal motto.
Polar Expedition
Austro-Hungarian ships and naval personnel were also involved in ArcticArctic
The Arctic is a region located at the northern-most part of the Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean and parts of Canada, Russia, Greenland, the United States, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. The Arctic region consists of a vast, ice-covered ocean, surrounded by treeless permafrost...
exploration, discovering Franz Josef Land
Franz Josef Land
Franz Josef Land, Franz Joseph Land, or Francis Joseph's Land is an archipelago located in the far north of Russia. It is found in the Arctic Ocean north of Novaya Zemlya and east of Svalbard, and is administered by Arkhangelsk Oblast. Franz Josef Land consists of 191 ice-covered islands with a...
during an expedition which lasted from 1872 to 1874.
Led by the naval officer Karl Weyprecht
Karl Weyprecht
Karl Weyprecht, also spelt Carl Weyprecht, was an Austro-Hungarian explorer. He was an officer in the Austro-Hungarian Navy. He is most famous as an Arctic explorer, and an advocate of international cooperation for scientific polar exploration...
and the infantry officer and landscape artist Julius Payer
Julius von Payer
Julius Johannes Ludovicus Ritter von Payer was an Austro-Hungarian arctic explorer and an Arctic landscape artist....
, the custom-built schooner
Schooner
A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....
Tegetthoff left Tromsø
Tromsø
Tromsø is a city and municipality in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Tromsø.Tromsø city is the ninth largest urban area in Norway by population, and the seventh largest city in Norway by population...
in July 1872. At the end of August she got locked in pack-ice north of Novaya Zemlya
Novaya Zemlya
Novaya Zemlya , also known in Dutch as Nova Zembla and in Norwegian as , is an archipelago in the Arctic Ocean in the north of Russia and the extreme northeast of Europe, the easternmost point of Europe lying at Cape Flissingsky on the northern island...
and drifted to hitherto unknown polar regions. It was on this drift when the explorers discovered an archipelago which they named after Emperor
Emperor
An emperor is a monarch, usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife or a woman who rules in her own right...
Franz Joseph I
Franz Joseph I of Austria
Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I was Emperor of Austria, King of Bohemia, King of Croatia, Apostolic King of Hungary, King of Galicia and Lodomeria and Grand Duke of Cracow from 1848 until his death in 1916.In the December of 1848, Emperor Ferdinand I of Austria abdicated the throne as part of...
.
In May 1874 Payer decided to abandon the ice-locked ship and try to return by sledges and boats. On 14 August 1874 the expedition reached the open sea and on 3 September finally set foot on Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n mainland.
Crete Rebellion
In late 1896 a rebellion broke out on CreteCrete
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
, and on January 21, 1897 a Greek
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
army landed in Crete to liberate the island from the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
and unite it with Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
. The European powers, including Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
, intervened, and proclaimed Crete an international protectorate
Cretan State
The Cretan State was established in 1898, following the intervention by the Great Powers on the island of Crete. In 1897 an insurrection in Crete led the Ottoman Empire to declare war on Greece, which led the United Kingdom, France, Italy and Russia to intervene on the grounds that the Ottoman...
. Warships of the k.u.k. Kriegsmarine patrolled the waters off Crete in blockade of Ottoman naval forces. Crete remained in an anomalous position until finally ceded to Greece in 1913.
The Boxer Rebellion
Austria-Hungary was part of the Eight-Nation AllianceEight-Nation Alliance
The Eight-Nation Alliance was an alliance of Austria-Hungary, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States whose military forces intervened in China to suppress the anti-foreign Boxers and relieve the siege of the diplomatic legations in Beijing .- Events :The...
during the Boxer Rebellion
Boxer Rebellion
The Boxer Rebellion, also called the Boxer Uprising by some historians or the Righteous Harmony Society Movement in northern China, was a proto-nationalist movement by the "Righteous Harmony Society" , or "Righteous Fists of Harmony" or "Society of Righteous and Harmonious Fists" , in China between...
in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
(1899 - 1901). As a member of the Allied nations, Austria sent two training ships and the cruisers , , , and and a company of marines to the North China coast in April 1900, based at the Russia concession of Port Arthur
Lüshunkou
Lüshunkou is a district in the municipality of Dalian, Liaoning province, China. Also called Lüshun City or Lüshun Port, it was formerly known as both Port Arthur and Ryojun....
.
In June they helped hold the Tianjin
Tianjin
' is a metropolis in northern China and one of the five national central cities of the People's Republic of China. It is governed as a direct-controlled municipality, one of four such designations, and is, thus, under direct administration of the central government...
railway against Boxer forces, and also fired upon several armed junks
Junk (ship)
A junk is an ancient Chinese sailing vessel design still in use today. Junks were developed during the Han Dynasty and were used as sea-going vessels as early as the 2nd century AD. They evolved in the later dynasties, and were used throughout Asia for extensive ocean voyages...
on the Hai River
Hai River
The Hai River , previously called Bai He , is a river in the People's Republic of China which flows through Beijing and Tianjin before emptying into the Yellow Sea at the Bohai Gulf.The Hai River at Tianjin is formed by the confluence of five rivers, the Southern Canal, Ziya...
near Tong-Tcheou. They also took part in the seizure of the Taku Forts
Taku Forts
The Dagu Forts , also called the Peiho Forts are forts located by the Hai River estuary, in Tanggu District, Tianjin municipality, in northeastern China. They are located 60 km southeast of the Tianjin urban center.-History:The first fort was built during the reign of the Ming Jiajing...
commanding the approaches to Tianjin, and the boarding and capture of four Chinese destroyers by Capt. Roger Keyes of . In all k.u.k. forces suffered few casualties during the rebellion.
After the uprising a cruiser was maintained permanently on the China station, and a detachment of marines was deployed at the embassy in Peking.
Lieutenant Georg Ludwig von Trapp, who would serve as a submarine commander during World War I and become famous in the musical The Sound of Music
The Sound of Music
The Sound of Music is a musical by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the memoir of Maria von Trapp, The Story of the Trapp Family Singers...
after World War II, was decorated for bravery aboard the SMS Kaiserin und Königin Maria Theresia
SMS Kaiserin und Königin Maria Theresia
SMS Kaiserin und Königin Maria Theresia was an armoured cruiser used by the imperial Austro-Hungarian Navy from 1895 to 1917. The German name can be translated as "Empress and Queen Maria Theresa".-Construction:...
during the Rebellion.
Montenegro
During the First Balkan WarFirst Balkan War
The First Balkan War, which lasted from October 1912 to May 1913, pitted the Balkan League against the Ottoman Empire. The combined armies of the Balkan states overcame the numerically inferior and strategically disadvantaged Ottoman armies and achieved rapid success...
Austria-Hungary joined Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
in blockading the seaport town of Bar
Bar, Montenegro
Bar is a coastal town in Montenegro. It has a population of 17,727...
in the Kingdom of Montenegro
Kingdom of Montenegro
The Kingdom of Montenegro was a monarchy in southeastern Europe during the tumultuous years on the Balkan Peninsula leading up to and during World War I. Legally it was a constitutional monarchy, but absolutist in practice...
.
European naval arms race
Arms race
The term arms race, in its original usage, describes a competition between two or more parties for the best armed forces. Each party competes to produce larger numbers of weapons, greater armies, or superior military technology in a technological escalation...
between Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
and Imperial Germany. Germany enhanced her naval infrastructure, building new dry dock
Dry dock
A drydock is a narrow basin or vessel that can be flooded to allow a load to be floated in, then drained to allow that load to come to rest on a dry platform...
s, and enlarging the Kiel Canal
Kiel Canal
The Kiel Canal , known as the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Kanal until 1948, is a long canal in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein.The canal links the North Sea at Brunsbüttel to the Baltic Sea at Kiel-Holtenau. An average of is saved by using the Kiel Canal instead of going around the Jutland Peninsula....
to enable larger vessels to navigate it. However, that was not the only European naval arms race. Imperial Russia too had commenced building a new modern navy following their naval defeat in the Russo-Japanese War
Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War was "the first great war of the 20th century." It grew out of rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...
. The Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Kingdom of Italy
Kingdom of Italy (1861–1946)
The Kingdom of Italy was a state forged in 1861 by the unification of Italy under the influence of the Kingdom of Sardinia, which was its legal predecessor state...
were in a race of their own for domination of the Adriatic Sea
Adriatic Sea
The Adriatic Sea is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges...
. The k.u.k. Kriegsmarine had another prominent supporter at that time in the face of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand
Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria
Franz Ferdinand was an Archduke of Austria-Este, Austro-Hungarian and Royal Prince of Hungary and of Bohemia, and from 1889 until his death, heir presumptive to the Austro-Hungarian throne. His assassination in Sarajevo precipitated Austria-Hungary's declaration of war against Serbia...
. Like other imperial naval enthusiasts before him, Franz Ferdinand had a keen private interest in the fleet and was an energetic campaigner for naval matters.
The Dreadnought Era
In 1906 Britain completed the battleship HMS DreadnoughtHMS Dreadnought (1906)
HMS Dreadnought was a battleship of the British Royal Navy that revolutionised naval power. Her entry into service in 1906 represented such a marked advance in naval technology that her name came to be associated with an entire generation of battleships, the "dreadnoughts", as well as the class of...
, and it was so advanced that some argued that this rendered all previous battleships obsolete, although Britain and other countries kept pre-dreadnoughts in service.
Naval architecture
Naval architecture is an engineering discipline dealing with the design, construction, maintenance and operation of marine vessels and structures. Naval architecture involves basic and applied research, design, development, design evaluation and calculations during all stages of the life of a...
, aware of the inevitable dominance of all big gun dreadnought type designs, then presented their case to the Marinesektion des Reichskriegsministeriums (Naval Section at the War Ministry) in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, which on October 5, 1908 ordered the construction of their own dreadnought, the first contract being awarded to 'Werft das Stabilimento Tecnico Triestino (STT)', the naval weaponry to be provided by the Škoda Works
Škoda Works
Škoda Works was the largest industrial enterprise in Austro-Hungary and later in Czechoslovakia, one of its successor states. It was also one of the largest industrial conglomerates in Europe in the 20th century...
in Pilsen. The Marine budget for 1910 was substantially enlarged to permit major refits of the existing fleet and more dreadnoughts. The battleships and were both launched by the Archduke Franz Ferdinand at Trieste, amongst great rejoicing, on June 24, 1911, and March 21, 1912. They were followed by the , and the . These battleships, constructed later than many of the earlier British and German dreadnoughts, were considerably ahead in some aspects of design, especially of both the French and Italian navies, and were constructed with Marconi Wireless rooms as well as anti-aircraft armaments. It is said they were the first battleships in the world equipped with torpedo launchers built into their bows.
Between 22 and 28 May 1914 the Tegetthoff, accompanied by the Viribus Unitis, made a courtesy visit to the British Mediterranean fleet in Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
.
World War I
Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria
On 28 June 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir presumptive to the Austro-Hungarian throne, and his wife, Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg, were shot dead in Sarajevo, by Gavrilo Princip, one of a group of six Bosnian Serb assassins coordinated by Danilo Ilić...
of Archduke Franz Ferdinand
Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria
Franz Ferdinand was an Archduke of Austria-Este, Austro-Hungarian and Royal Prince of Hungary and of Bohemia, and from 1889 until his death, heir presumptive to the Austro-Hungarian throne. His assassination in Sarajevo precipitated Austria-Hungary's declaration of war against Serbia...
and his wife in 1914, the Austro-Hungarian Navy honoured them with a lying in state
Lying in state
Lying in state is a term used to describe the tradition in which a coffin is placed on view to allow the public at large to pay their respects to the deceased. It traditionally takes place in the principal government building of a country or city...
aboard the SMS Viribus Unitis
SMS Viribus Unitis
SMS Viribus Unitis was the first Austro-Hungarian dreadnought battleship of the . Its name, meaning "With United Forces", was the personal motto of Emperor Franz Joseph I.Viribus Unitis was ordered by the Austro-Hungarian navy in 1908...
.
During the First World War, the navy saw some action, but prior to the Italian entry spent most of its time in its major naval base at Pola. Following the Italian declaration of war the mere fact of its existence tied up the Italian Navy
Italian Navy
Italian Navy may refer to:* Pre-unitarian navies of the Italian states* Regia Marina, the Royal Navy of the Kingdom of Italy * Italian Navy , the navy of the Italian Republic...
and the French Navy
French Navy
The French Navy, officially the Marine nationale and often called La Royale is the maritime arm of the French military. It includes a full range of fighting vessels, from patrol boats to a nuclear powered aircraft carrier and 10 nuclear-powered submarines, four of which are capable of launching...
in the Mediterranean for the duration of the war.
On 15 May 1915, when Italy declared war on Austria-Hungary, the Austro-Hungarian navy left their harbors in Pola (today Pula, Croatia)
Pula
Pula is the largest city in Istria County, Croatia, situated at the southern tip of the Istria peninsula, with a population of 62,080 .Like the rest of the region, it is known for its mild climate, smooth sea, and unspoiled nature. The city has a long tradition of winemaking, fishing,...
, Sebenico (today Šibenik, Croatia)
Šibenik
Šibenik is a historic town in Croatia, with population of 51,553 . It is located in central Dalmatia where the river Krka flows into the Adriatic Sea...
and Cattaro (today Kotor, Montenegro) to bombard the eastern Italian coast between Venice and Barletta
Barletta
Barletta is a city and comune located in the north of Apulia in south eastern Italy. Its current population is 94,140.It is famous for the Colossus of Barletta, a bronze statue, representing a Roman Emperor...
. Main targets were the cities of Ancona
Ancona
Ancona is a city and a seaport in the Marche region, in central Italy, with a population of 101,909 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region....
, Rimini
Rimini
Rimini is a medium-sized city of 142,579 inhabitants in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, and capital city of the Province of Rimini. It is located on the Adriatic Sea, on the coast between the rivers Marecchia and Ausa...
, Vieste
Vieste
Vieste is a town and comune in the province of Foggia, in the Apulia region of southeast Italy.thumb|Cathedral of ViesteA marine resort in Gargano, Vieste has received Blue Flags for the purity of its waters from the Foundation for Environmental Education...
, Manfredonia
Manfredonia
Manfredonia is a town and comune of Puglia, Italy, in the province of Foggia, from which it is 35 kilometres northeast by rail. Manfredonia is situated on the coast, facing east, to the south of Monte Gargano, and giving its name to the gulf to the east of it...
, Barletta and bridges and railway tracks along the coast. By 1917 the Austro-Hungarian fleet was as yet largely undamaged.
The presence of three Allied navies in the Mediterranean made any measures of co-ordination and common doctrine extraordinarily difficult. The Adriatic was divided into eleven zones, of which the British naval authorities were responsible for four, the French for four, and the Italians for three. Differing command structures, national pride and the language barrier all contributed to a lack of cohesion in the application of Allied sea power, producing a situation in which German and Austro-Hungarian U-Boat attacks on shipping flourished. An example of the lack of co-ordination was the sinking of the Italian troop transport Minas bound from Italy to Salonika, which was torpedoed in one of the British zones in February 1917 with the loss of 870 lives, a British escort not understanding a message and failing to relieve the Italian destroyer, which turned around at the zone barrier.
Battle at Durazzo
In December 1915 a k.u.k. Kriegsmarine cruiser squadron attempted to make a raid on the SerbiaSerbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
n troops evacuating Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
. After sinking a French submarine and bombarding the town of Durazzo the squadron ran into a minefield, sinking one destroyer and damaging another. The next day the group ran into a squadron of British, French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, and Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
cruisers and destroyers. The resulting battle left two Austrian destroyers sunk and light damage to another, while dealing only minor damage to the Allied warships and others
A three-power conference on April 28, 1917, at Corfu
Corfu
Corfu is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea. It is the second largest of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the edge of the northwestern frontier of Greece. The island is part of the Corfu regional unit, and is administered as a single municipality. The...
, discussed a more offensive strategy in the Adriatic, but the Italians were not prepared to consider any big ship operations, considering the size of the Austro-Hungarian fleet. The British and French seemed reluctant to move alone against the Austro-Hungarians, especially if it meant a full scale-battle. But the Austrians were not inactive either, and even as the Allied conference was in session they were planning an offensive operation against the Otranto Barrage.
Battle of the Otranto Straits
The Otranto barrage, constructed by the Allies with up to 120 naval drifter
Naval drifter
A naval drifter is a boat built along the lines of a commercial fishing drifter but fitted out for naval purposes. The use of naval drifters is paralleled by the use of naval trawlers....
s, used to deploy and patrol submarine nets, and 30 motor launches, all equipped with depth-charges, was designed to stop the passage of U-Boats from Cattaro. However, this failed to do so, and from its inception in 1916, the barrage had caught only two U-Boats, the Austrian and the German UB-44 out of hundreds of possible passages.
However, the barrage effectively meant that the Austro-Hungarian surface fleet could not leave the Adriatic sea
Adriatic Sea
The Adriatic Sea is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges...
unless it was willing to give battle to the blocking forces. This, and as the war drew on bringing supply difficulties especially coal, plus a fear of mines, limited the Austro-Hungarian navy to shelling the Italian and Serbian coastlines.
There had already been four small-scale Austro-Hungarian attacks on the barrage, on March 11, April 21, and 25, and May 5, 1917, but none of them amounted to anything. Now greater preparations were made, with two U-Boats despatched to lay mines off Brindisi
Brindisi
Brindisi is a city in the Apulia region of Italy, the capital of the province of Brindisi, off the coast of the Adriatic Sea.Historically, the city has played an important role in commerce and culture, due to its position on the Italian Peninsula and its natural port on the Adriatic Sea. The city...
with a third patrolling the exits in case Anglo-Italian forces were drawn out during the attack. The whole operation was timed for the night of May 14/15, which led to the biggest battle of the Austro-Hungarian navy in World War I, the Battle of the Otranto Straits.
The first Austro-Hungarian warships to strike were the two destroyers, the and . An Italian convoy of three ships, escorted by the destroyer Borea, was approaching Valona
Vlorë
Vlorë is one of the biggest towns and the second largest port city of Albania, after Durrës, with a population of about 94,000 . It is the city where the Albanian Declaration of Independence was proclaimed on November 28, 1912...
, when, out of the darkness, the Austrians fell upon them. The Borea was left sinking. Of the three merchant ships, one loaded with ammunition was hit and blown up, a second set on fire, and the third hit. The two Austrian destroyers then steamed off northward.
Meanwhile, three Austro-Hungarian cruiser
Cruiser
A cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period...
s under the overall command of Captain Miklós Horthy
Miklós Horthy
Miklós Horthy de Nagybánya was the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary during the interwar years and throughout most of World War II, serving from 1 March 1920 to 15 October 1944. Horthy was styled "His Serene Highness the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary" .Admiral Horthy was an officer of the...
, the SMS Novara
SMS Novara (1912)
SMS Novara was a Novara class light cruiser of the Austro-Hungarian Navy which served during World War I.-Construction:In 1912, the cruiser Novara was constructed for the Austro-Hungarian Navy, of the improved Spaun class design...
, , and , had actually passed a patrol of four French destroyers north of the barrage, and thought to be friendly ships passed unchallenged. They then sailed through the barrage before turning back to attack it. Each Austrian cruiser took one-third of the line and began slowly and systematically to destroy the barrage with their 4-inch guns, urging all Allies on board to abandon their ships first.
During this battle the Allies lost two destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
s, 14 drifters
Naval drifter
A naval drifter is a boat built along the lines of a commercial fishing drifter but fitted out for naval purposes. The use of naval drifters is paralleled by the use of naval trawlers....
and one glider
Glider aircraft
Glider aircraft are heavier-than-air craft that are supported in flight by the dynamic reaction of the air against their lifting surfaces, and whose free flight does not depend on an engine. Mostly these types of aircraft are intended for routine operation without engines, though engine failure can...
while the Austro-Hungarian navy suffered only minor damage (the Novaras steam supply pipes were damaged by a shell) and few losses. The Austro-Hungarian navy returned to its bases up north in order to repair and re-supply, and the allies had to rebuild the blockade.
The Mutiny of 1918
In February 1918 a mutiny started in the 5th Fleet stationed at the Gulf of Kotor naval base. Sailors on up to 40 ships joined the mutiny over demands for better treatment and a call to end the war.The mutiny failed to spread beyond Kotor, and within three days a loyal naval squadron had arrived. Together with coastal artillery
Coastal artillery
Coastal artillery is the branch of armed forces concerned with operating anti-ship artillery or fixed gun batteries in coastal fortifications....
the squadron fired several shells into a few of the rebel's ships, and then assaulted them with k.u.k. Marine Infantry in a short and successful skirmish. About 800 sailors were imprisoned, dozens were court-martialed, and four seamen were executed, including the leader of the uprising, Franz Rasch, a Bohemia
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
n. Given the huge crews required in naval vessels of that time this is an indication that the mutiny was limited to a minority.
Late World War I
Miklós Horthy
Miklós Horthy de Nagybánya was the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary during the interwar years and throughout most of World War II, serving from 1 March 1920 to 15 October 1944. Horthy was styled "His Serene Highness the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary" .Admiral Horthy was an officer of the...
. A surprise attack was planned, but an Italian torpedo boat by chance spotted the flotilla and launched two torpedoes, hitting one of the four Austrian dreadnought
Dreadnought
The dreadnought was the predominant type of 20th-century battleship. The first of the kind, the Royal Navy's had such an impact when launched in 1906 that similar battleships built after her were referred to as "dreadnoughts", and earlier battleships became known as pre-dreadnoughts...
s, the . The lost element of surprise made Horthy break off his attack. Huge efforts were made by the crew to save the Szent Istvan, which had been hit below the water-line, and the Tegetthoff took her in tow. However just after 6 a.m., the pumps being unequal to the task, the ship, now listing badly, had to be abandoned, and it sank soon afterwards.
In 1918, in order to avoid having to give the fleet to the victors, the Austrian Emperor gave the entire Austro-Hungarian Navy and merchant fleet, with all harbours, arsenals and shore fortifications to the new State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs
State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs
The State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs was a short-lived state formed from the southernmost parts of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy after its dissolution at the end of the World War I by the resident population of Slovenes, Croats, and Serbs...
. They in turn sent diplomatic notes to the governments of France, the United Kingdom, Italy, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Russia, to notify them that the State of SCS was not at war with any of them and that the Council had taken over the entire Austro-Hungarian fleet.
However, the navy was soon attacked at its moorings by the Italian Regia Marina, and the French navy commandeered the new dreadnought Prinz Eugen, which they took to France and later used it for target practice in the Atlantic, where it was destroyed.
Ships Lost
Ships lost in World War I:- 1914: (Siege of Tsingtao, 1914),
- 1915: , , ,
- 1916: ,
- 1917: , ,
- 1918: , , , , ,
Ships lost after World War I:
- 1919:
Ports and locations
Pula
Pula is the largest city in Istria County, Croatia, situated at the southern tip of the Istria peninsula, with a population of 62,080 .Like the rest of the region, it is known for its mild climate, smooth sea, and unspoiled nature. The city has a long tradition of winemaking, fishing,...
, a role it took over from Venice, where the early Austrian Navy had been based. Supplementary bases included the busy port
Port
A port is a location on a coast or shore containing one or more harbors where ships can dock and transfer people or cargo to or from land....
of Trieste
Trieste
Trieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...
and the natural harbour of Cattaro (today Kotor, Montenegro) at the most southerly point of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Both Trieste and Pola had major shipbuilding facilities. Pola's naval installations contained one of the largest floating dry-docks in the Mediterranean. The city of Pola was also the site of the central church of the navy "Stella Maris" (k.u.k. Marinekirche "Stella Maris"), of the Austro-Hungarian Naval Observatory and the empire's naval military cemetery (k.u.k. Marinefriedhof). In 1990, the cemetery was restored after decades of neglect by the communist regime in Yugoslavia. The Austro-Hungarian Naval Academy (k.u.k. Marine-Akademie) was located in Fiume (today Rijeka, Croatia)
Rijeka
Rijeka is the principal seaport and the third largest city in Croatia . It is located on Kvarner Bay, an inlet of the Adriatic Sea and has a population of 128,735 inhabitants...
.
Trieste was also the headquarters of the merchant line Austrian Lloyd
Austrian Lloyd
Austrian Lloyd Ship Management is a shipping company based in Limassol, Cyprus with shipping emphasis on bulk carriers, car carriers, container ships, and reefers. It is the flagship company of the Österreichischer Lloyd Group founded in 1991 by Hans-Georg Wurmböck and Eberhard Koch...
(founded in 1836 and, later, Lloyd Triestino), whose headquarters stood at the corner of the Piazza Grande and Sanita. By 1913 Austrian Lloyd had a fleet of 62 ships comprising a total of 236,000 tons.
Austrian Naval Air Arm
Wiener Neustadt
-Main sights:* The Late-Romanesque Dom, consecrated in 1279 and cathedral from 1469 to 1785. The choir and transept, in Gothic style, are from the 14th century. In the late 15th century 12 statues of the Apostles were added in the apse, while the bust of Cardinal Melchior Klesl is attributed to...
in Lower Austria
Lower Austria
Lower Austria is the northeasternmost state of the nine states in Austria. The capital of Lower Austria since 1986 is Sankt Pölten, the most recently designated capital town in Austria. The capital of Lower Austria had formerly been Vienna, even though Vienna is not officially part of Lower Austria...
, where the Theresian Military Academy
Theresian Military Academy
The Theresian Military Academy is an academy, where the Austrian Armed Forces train their officers. The Academy is located in the castle of Wiener Neustadt in Lower Austria.- History :...
is also located. They were first assigned for tours aboard the battleships of the Tegetthoff class
Tegetthoff class battleship
The Tegetthoff-class was the sole class of dreadnought battleship built for the Austro-Hungarian Navy. Four ships were built, SMS Viribus Unitis, SMS Tegetthoff, SMS Prinz Eugen and SMS Szent Istvan...
. Later, the k.u.k. Seefliegerkorps also served at the following airfields in Albania and southern Dalmatia
Dalmatia
Dalmatia is a historical region on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea. It stretches from the island of Rab in the northwest to the Bay of Kotor in the southeast. The hinterland, the Dalmatian Zagora, ranges from fifty kilometers in width in the north to just a few kilometers in the south....
: Berat
Berat
Berat is a town located in south-central Albania. As of 2009, the town has an estimated population of around 71,000 people. It is the capital of both the District of Berat and the larger County of Berat...
, Kavaja, Tirana
Tirana
Tirana is the capital and the largest city of Albania. Modern Tirana was founded as an Ottoman town in 1614 by Sulejman Bargjini, a local ruler from Mullet, although the area has been continuously inhabited since antiquity. Tirana became Albania's capital city in 1920 and has a population of over...
, Scutari
Shkodër
Shkodër , is a city located on Lake of Shkoder in northwestern Albania in the District of Shkodër, of which it is the capital. It is one of the oldest and most historic towns in Albania, as well as an important cultural and economic centre. Shkodër's estimated population is 90,000; if the...
and Igalo
Igalo
Igalo is a town next to Herceg-Novi which is accessible via the E65/E80 North headed to Dubrovnik, Croatia. According to the 2003 Census, it has a population of 3,754...
. They also had airfields at Podgorica
Podgorica
Podgorica , is the capital and largest city of Montenegro.Podgorica's favourable position at the confluence of the Ribnica and Morača rivers and the meeting point of the fertile Zeta Plain and Bjelopavlići Valley has encouraged settlement...
in Montenegro
Montenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
.
- Flik 1 - Igalo from June - November 1918
- Flik 6 - Igalo from November 1915 - January 1916
- - Scutari from January 1916 - June 1917
- - Tirana from July 1917 - June 1918
- - Banja from June - July 1918
- - Tirana from July - September 1918
- - Podgorica from September - November 1918
- Flik 13 - Berat from August - September 1918
- - Kavaja from September - October 1918
The following Austrian squadrons served at Feltre
Feltre
Feltre is a town and comune of the province of Belluno in Veneto, northern Italy. A hill town in the southern reaches of the province, it is located on the Stizzon River, about 4 km from its junction with the Piave, and 20 km southwest from Belluno...
also:
- Flik 11 - from February 1918
- Flik 14 - from June 1918 to November 1918
- Flik 16 - from November 1917 - October 1918
- Flik 31 - from June - July 1918
- Flik 36 - from June - July 1918
- Flik 39 - from January - May 1918
- Flik 45 - during April 1918
- Flik 56 - during December 1917
- Flik 60J - from March - September 1918
- Flik 66 - from January 1918 - November 1918
- Flik 101 - during May 1918
Feltre was captured by Austrian forces on 12 November 1917 after the Battle of Caporetto
Battle of Caporetto
The Battle of Caporetto , took place from 24 October to 19 November 1917, near the town of Kobarid , on the Austro-Italian front of World War I...
. There were two other military airfields nearby, at Arsie
Arsiè
Arsiè is a comune in the Province of Belluno in the Italian region Veneto, located about 80 km northwest of Venice and about 40 km southwest of Belluno...
and Fonzaso
Fonzaso
Fonzaso is a comune in the Province of Belluno in the Italian region Veneto, located about 80 km northwest of Venice and about 35 km southwest of Belluno. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 3,412 and an area of 27.5 km².Fonzaso borders the following municipalities:...
. It was the main station for the Austrian naval aviators in that area. The K.u.K. Seeflugwesen used mostly modified German planes, but produced several variations of its own. Notable planes for the service were the following:
- Fokker A.III
- Fokker E.IIIFokker E.III|-See also:...
- Hansa-Brandenburg B.IHansa-Brandenburg B.I|-See also:-External links:*...
- Hansa-Brandenburg D.IHansa-Brandenburg D.I|-See also:-Bibliography:*Angelucci, Enzo . World Encyclopedia of Military Aircraft. London: Jane's, 1981. ISBN 0 7106 0148 4.*Gray, Peter and Thetford, Owen. German Aircraft of the First World War. London: Putnam, 1962....
- Aviatik D.IAviatik D.I-References / external links:* Munson, Kenneth - Fighters, Attack and Training Aircraft 1914-19 ISBN 0-7537-0916-3* *-See also:...
- Albatros D.IIIAlbatros D.IIIThe Albatros D.III was a biplane fighter aircraft used by the Imperial German Army Air Service and the Austro-Hungarian Air Service during World War I. The D.III was flown by many top German aces, including Manfred von Richthofen, Ernst Udet, Erich Löwenhardt, Kurt Wolff, and Karl Emil Schäfer...
- Phönix D.IPhönix D.I-Bibliography:...
- Fokker D.VIIFokker D.VIIThe Fokker D.VII was a German World War I fighter aircraft designed by Reinhold Platz of the Fokker-Flugzeugwerke. Germany produced around 3,300 D.VII aircraft in the summer and autumn of 1918. In service, the D.VII quickly proved itself to be a formidable aircraft...
- Lohner L
Problems affecting the Navy
When it came to its financial and political position within the Empire, the Austrian (and later Austro-Hungarian) Navy was a bit of an afterthought for most of the time it existed.One reason was that sea power was never a priority of the Austrian foreign policy and that the Navy itself was relatively little known and supported by the public. Activities such as open days and naval clubs were unable to change the sentiment that the Navy was just something "expensive but far away". Another point was that naval expenditures were for most of the time overseen by the Austrian War Ministry, which was largely controlled by the Army
Military history of Austria
The Military Frontier was an important way in which Austria defended itself against the Ottomans.The following shown below is a history of the Austrian military history....
, the only exception being the period before the Battle of Lissa
Battle of Lissa (1866)
The Battle of Lissa took place on 20 July 1866 in the Adriatic Sea near the Dalmatian island of Lissa and was a decisive victory for an outnumbered Austrian Empire force over a superior Italian force...
.
The Navy was only able to draw significant public attention and funds during the three short periods it was actively supported by a member of the Imperial Family. The Archdukes Friedrich (1821–1847), Ferdinand Maximilian (1832–1867)
Maximilian I of Mexico
Maximilian I was the only monarch of the Second Mexican Empire.After a distinguished career in the Austrian Navy, he was proclaimed Emperor of Mexico on April 10, 1864, with the backing of Napoleon III of France and a group of Mexican monarchists who sought to revive the Mexican monarchy...
and Franz Ferdinand (1863–1914)
Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria
Franz Ferdinand was an Archduke of Austria-Este, Austro-Hungarian and Royal Prince of Hungary and of Bohemia, and from 1889 until his death, heir presumptive to the Austro-Hungarian throne. His assassination in Sarajevo precipitated Austria-Hungary's declaration of war against Serbia...
each a keen private interest in the fleet, held senior naval ranks and were energetic campaigners for naval matters. However, none lasted long as, Archduke Friedrich died early, Ferdinand Maximilian left Austria to become Emperor of Mexico
Emperor of Mexico
The Emperor of Mexico was the head of state and ruler of Mexico on two non-consecutive occasions in the 19th century....
and Franz Ferdinand was assassinated before he acceeded the throne.
The Navy's problems were further exacerbated by the eleven different ethnic groups comprising the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Officers had to speak at least four of the languages found in the Empire. Germans
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
and Czechs generally were in signals and engine room duties, Hungarians became gunners, while Croats
Croats
Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
and Italians were seamen or stokers. The Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867 aimed to calm political dissatisfaction by creating the Dual Monarchy
Dual monarchy
Dual monarchy occurs when two separate kingdoms are ruled by the same monarch, follow the same foreign policy, exist in a customs union with each other and have a combined military but are otherwise self-governing...
, in which the Emperor of Austria
Emperor of Austria
The Emperor of Austria was a hereditary imperial title and position proclaimed in 1804 by the Holy Roman Emperor Francis II, a member of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine, and continually held by him and his heirs until the last emperor relinquished power in 1918. The emperors retained the title of...
was also the King of Hungary
King of Hungary
The King of Hungary was the head of state of the Kingdom of Hungary from 1000 to 1918.The style of title "Apostolic King" was confirmed by Pope Clement XIII in 1758 and used afterwards by all the Kings of Hungary, so after this date the kings are referred to as "Apostolic King of...
. This constitutional change was also reflected in the navy's title, which changed to "Imperial and Royal Navy" (kaiserlich und königliche Kriegsmarine, short K. u K. Kriegsmarine).
Besides problems stemming from the difficulty of communicating efficiently within such a multilingual military, the Empire's warship designs were generally smaller and somewhat less capable than those of other European powers.
Famous personnel
- Archduke Charles Stephen of AustriaArchduke Charles Stephen of AustriaArchduke Charles Stephen of Austria was a member of the House of Habsburg and a Grand Admiral in the Austro-Hungarian Navy.-Family:Charles Stephen was born in Židlochovice the son of Archduke Karl Ferdinand of Austria and of his wife Archduchess Elisabeth Franziska of Austria...
, grand admiralGrand AdmiralGrand admiral is a historic naval rank, generally being the highest such rank present in any particular country. Its most notable use was in Germany — the German word is Großadmiral.-France:...
and Inspector of the Navy (Marineinspekteur). - Gottfried von BanfieldGottfried von BanfieldFreiherr Gottfried von Banfield was the most successful Austro-Hungarian naval aeroplane pilot in the First World War. He was known as the 'Eagle of Trieste' and was the last person in history to wear the Military Order of Maria Theresa...
, Austria-Hungary's most successful naval aviator in World War I. Later a businessman in Trieste. - Miklós HorthyMiklós HorthyMiklós Horthy de Nagybánya was the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary during the interwar years and throughout most of World War II, serving from 1 March 1920 to 15 October 1944. Horthy was styled "His Serene Highness the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary" .Admiral Horthy was an officer of the...
, admiral in World War I and last commander of the Austro-Hungarian fleet. Later Regent of HungaryKingdom of Hungary (1920–1946)The Kingdom of Hungary also known as the Regency, existed from 1920 to 1946 and was a de facto country under Regent Miklós Horthy. Horthy officially represented the abdicated Hungarian monarchy of Charles IV, Apostolic King of Hungary...
until 1944. - Ludwig von HöhnelLudwig von HöhnelLudwig Ritter von Höhnel was an Austrian naval officer and explorer. He was trained at the naval academy in Rijeka.- Journey with Teleki 1887-1888 :...
, Austrian naval officer and explorer of Africa. - Maximilian von SterneckMaximilian Daublebsky von SterneckMaximilian Daublebsky Freiherr von Sterneck zu Ehrenstein was an Austrian admiral who served as the chief administrator of the Austro-Hungarian Navy from 1883 until his death.-Biography:...
, admiral. Fought at LissaBattle of Lissa (1866)The Battle of Lissa took place on 20 July 1866 in the Adriatic Sea near the Dalmatian island of Lissa and was a decisive victory for an outnumbered Austrian Empire force over a superior Italian force...
, was a benefactor of the city of PolaPulaPula is the largest city in Istria County, Croatia, situated at the southern tip of the Istria peninsula, with a population of 62,080 .Like the rest of the region, it is known for its mild climate, smooth sea, and unspoiled nature. The city has a long tradition of winemaking, fishing,...
and Commander-in-Chief of the Navy. - Wilhelm von TegetthoffWilhelm von TegetthoffWilhelm von Tegetthoff was an Austrian admiral. Considered one of the prominent naval commanders of the 19th century, Tegetthoff was known for his innovative tactics as well as his inspirational leadership....
, admiral of the mid-19th century, known for his role in the Battle of Lissa (1866)Battle of Lissa (1866)The Battle of Lissa took place on 20 July 1866 in the Adriatic Sea near the Dalmatian island of Lissa and was a decisive victory for an outnumbered Austrian Empire force over a superior Italian force...
. He was probably the most famous Austrian sailor, later also Commander-in-Chief of the Navy. - Georg Ludwig von Trapp, Austrian submarine officer in World War I. Later a businessman and head of the Von Trapp Family SingersVon TrappVon Trapp could refer to:* Georg Ludwig von Trapp and Maria von Trapp of the Trapp family * The von Trapp Children, great-grandchildren of Georg and Maria von Trapp...
made famous in the musical The Sound of MusicThe Sound of MusicThe Sound of Music is a musical by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the memoir of Maria von Trapp, The Story of the Trapp Family Singers...
. - Julius von Wagner-JaureggJulius Wagner-JaureggJulius Wagner-Jauregg was an Austrian physician, Nobel Laureate, and Nazi supporter.-Early life:...
, physician and officer in the Austro-Hungarian Naval Reserve. Later awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1927. - Karl WeyprechtKarl WeyprechtKarl Weyprecht, also spelt Carl Weyprecht, was an Austro-Hungarian explorer. He was an officer in the Austro-Hungarian Navy. He is most famous as an Arctic explorer, and an advocate of international cooperation for scientific polar exploration...
, Arctic explorer. One of the leaders of the Austro-Hungarian North Pole ExpeditionAustro-Hungarian North Pole ExpeditionThe Austro-Hungarian North Pole Expedition was an expedition that ran from 1872–74 and discovered Franz-Josef Land. According to Julius von Payer, one of the leaders, the journey was to find the north-eastern passage. It actually explored the area northwest of Novaya Zemlya. According to the...
from 1872 to 1874. - Bernhard von Wüllerstorf-UrbairBernhard von Wüllerstorf-UrbairBaron Bernhard von Wüllerstorf-Urbair, also: von Wüllersdorf-Urbair or von Wüllerstorf und Urbair, was an Austrian vice admiral and, from 1865–1867, Austrian Imperial Minister of Trade...
, admiral. Leader of the Novara Expedition from 1857 to 1859, later Imperial Minister of Trade.
Commanders-in-Chief of the Navy
(in German Oberkommandant der Marine. From March 1868 the incumbents of this position were styled Marinekommandant)- Hans Birch Dahlerup, VAdm.(February 1849-August 1851)
- Franz Graf WimpffenFranz Graf WimpffenH.E. Franz Emil Lorenz Heeremann Graf von Wimpffen KSMOM was an Austrian General and Admiral who served as Administrative Head of the Austro-Hungarian Navy from 1851 to 1854.-Military career:...
, VAdm,(August 1851-September 1854) - Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian of AustriaMaximilian I of MexicoMaximilian I was the only monarch of the Second Mexican Empire.After a distinguished career in the Austrian Navy, he was proclaimed Emperor of Mexico on April 10, 1864, with the backing of Napoleon III of France and a group of Mexican monarchists who sought to revive the Mexican monarchy...
, Adm.(September 1854-April 1864) - Archduke Leopold Ludwig of AustriaArchduke Leopold Ludwig of AustriaArchduke Leopold Ludwig of Austria Archduke Leopold Ludwig of Austria (German: Leopold Ludwig Maria Franz Julius Estorgius Gerhard Erzherzog von Ósterreich) Archduke Leopold Ludwig of Austria (German: Leopold Ludwig Maria Franz Julius Estorgius Gerhard Erzherzog von Ósterreich) (b. Milan 6 June...
, Adm. (April 1864-March 1868) - Wilhelm von Tegetthoff, VAdm.(March 1868-April 1871)
- Friedrich von Pöck, Adm.(April 1871-November 1883)
- Maximilian Daublebsky von SterneckMaximilian Daublebsky von SterneckMaximilian Daublebsky Freiherr von Sterneck zu Ehrenstein was an Austrian admiral who served as the chief administrator of the Austro-Hungarian Navy from 1883 until his death.-Biography:...
, Adm.(November 1883-December 1897) - Hermann von SpaunHermann von SpaunHermann Freiherr von Spaun was a admiral in the Austro-Hungarian Navy. He was the Commanders-in-Chief of the Austro-Hungarian Navy from December 1897 to October 1904.-Background:...
, Adm.(December 1897-October 1904) - Graf Rudolf MontecuccoliRudolf MontecuccoliRudolf, graf Montecuccoli degli Erri was chief of the Austro-Hungarian Navy from 1904 to 1913 and largely responsible for the modernization of the fleet before the First World War.- Overview :...
, Adm.(October 1904-February 1913) - Anton HausAnton HausAnton Haus was an Austrian naval officer. Despite his German surname, he was born to a Slovenian-speaking family in Tolmein . Haus was fleet commander of the Austro-Hungarian Navy in World War I and was the Navy's Grand Admiral from 1916 until his death.-Biography:Haus entered the Navy in 1869...
, Adm./GAdm.(February 1913-February 1917) - Maximilian NjegovanMaximilian NjegovanMaksimilijan Njegovan was a Croatian admiral in the Austro-Hungarian Navy. He was the Navy's senior administrator as well as its fleet commander in 1917-18.-Background:Njegovan was born in 1858 in Agram...
, Adm.(April 1917-February 1918)
Commanders-in-Chief of the Fleet (1914-1918)
(in German Flottenkommandant)- Anton HausAnton HausAnton Haus was an Austrian naval officer. Despite his German surname, he was born to a Slovenian-speaking family in Tolmein . Haus was fleet commander of the Austro-Hungarian Navy in World War I and was the Navy's Grand Admiral from 1916 until his death.-Biography:Haus entered the Navy in 1869...
, Adm./GAdm(July 1914-February 1917) - Maximilian NjegovanMaximilian NjegovanMaksimilijan Njegovan was a Croatian admiral in the Austro-Hungarian Navy. He was the Navy's senior administrator as well as its fleet commander in 1917-18.-Background:Njegovan was born in 1858 in Agram...
, Adm.(February 1917-February 1918) - Miklós HorthyMiklós HorthyMiklós Horthy de Nagybánya was the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary during the interwar years and throughout most of World War II, serving from 1 March 1920 to 15 October 1944. Horthy was styled "His Serene Highness the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary" .Admiral Horthy was an officer of the...
, KAdm./VAdm.(February 1918-November 1918)
Heads of the Naval Section at the War Ministry
(in German Chef der Marienesektion at the Kriegsministerium)- Wilhelm von Tegetthoff, VAdm.(March 1868-April 1871)
- Friedrich von Pöck, Adm.(October 1872-November 1883)
- Maximilian Daublebsky von SterneckMaximilian Daublebsky von SterneckMaximilian Daublebsky Freiherr von Sterneck zu Ehrenstein was an Austrian admiral who served as the chief administrator of the Austro-Hungarian Navy from 1883 until his death.-Biography:...
, Adm.(November 1883-December 1897) - Hermann von Spaun, Adm.(December 1897-October 1904)
- Graf Rudolf Montecuccoli, Adm.(October 1904-February 1913)
- Anton Haus, Adm./GAdm.(February 1913-February 1917)
- Karl Kailer von Kaltenfels, VAdm.(February 1917-April 1917)
- Maximilian Njegovan, Adm.(April 1917-February 1918)
- Franz von Holub, VAdm.(February 1918-November 1918)
Naval flags
Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor
Joseph II was Holy Roman Emperor from 1765 to 1790 and ruler of the Habsburg lands from 1780 to 1790. He was the eldest son of Empress Maria Theresa and her husband, Francis I...
, the navy used a flag based on the red-white-red colours, and augmented with a shield of similar colours.
This flag was formally adopted as Naval Ensign (Marineflagge) in 1786. It served the Austrian Navy until 1869 and the Austro-Hungarian Navy between 1869 and 1918. During World War I, Emperor Franz Joseph
Franz Joseph I of Austria
Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I was Emperor of Austria, King of Bohemia, King of Croatia, Apostolic King of Hungary, King of Galicia and Lodomeria and Grand Duke of Cracow from 1848 until his death in 1916.In the December of 1848, Emperor Ferdinand I of Austria abdicated the throne as part of...
approved of a new design, which also contained the Hungarian arms. This flag, officially instituted in 1915, was however little used, and ships continued displaying the old Ensign until the end of the war. Photographs of Austro-Hungarian ships flying the post-1915 form of the Naval Ensign are therefore relatively rare.
See also
- List of ships of the Austro-Hungarian Navy
- List of Austro-Hungarian U-boats
- The Adriatic Campaign of World War I
- Mediterranean naval engagements during World War IMediterranean naval engagements during World War IThere was sporadic naval warfare in the Mediterranean during World War I between the Central Powers' navies of Austria-Hungary, Germany and the Ottoman Empire and the Allied navies of Italy, France, Greece, Japan, America and the British Empire....
Literature
- Kemp, Peter, The Otranto Barrage, in History of the First World War, vol.6, no.1, BPC Publishing Ltd., Bristol, England, 1971, pps: 2265 -2272.
External links
- The Genesis of the Austrian Navy - A Chronology
- k.u.k. Kriegsmarine - Austro-Hungarian Navy officer rank insignia
- Society for Research of the imperial and royal navy (k.u.k. Marine) "Viribus unitis" - Pula
- Austro-Hungarian Navy in World War 1, 1914-18 including ship losses
- Austro-Hungarian Navy Deployment, 1914
- Austro-Hungarian Danube Flotilla 1914
- The Austro-Hungarian Submarine Force
- Viribus Unitis
- K.u.K. Kriegsmarine Dinnerware and Tableware