page_title: SMS Admiral Spaun
section_title: Design
hierarchical_section_title: SMS Admiral Spaun / Design
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Hermann Freiherr von Spaun (1833-1919), k. u. k. österreichisch-ungarischer Admiral und Marinekommandant von 1898 bis 1904
context_page_description: SMS Admiral Spaun was a scout cruiser built for the Austro-Hungarian Navy. Named for Admiral and Marinekommandant Hermann von Spaun, Admiral Spaun was constructed shortly before World War I. Laid down at the Pola Navy Yard in May 1908, the cruiser was launched in October 1909. Admiral Spaun was commissioned into the Navy just over a year later, in November 1910. The first ship of the Austro-Hungarian Navy to be constructed with steam turbines, her design later influenced the construction of the Novara-class cruisers.
  Admiral Spaun served as the flotilla leader of the Second Torpedo Flotilla at the outbreak of World War I and was stationed out of the naval base at Cattaro. She saw limited action during the first year of the war, and following Italy's declaration of war on Austria-Hungary in May 1915, the cruiser participated in a bombardment of the Italian coastline. Throughout the rest of 1915, Admiral Spaun engaged in various operations across the Adriatic Sea.
context_section_description: Designed for scouting missions, Admiral Spaun was based on the premise that the theater of operations she would operate in would be largely confined to the Adriatic Sea. She was intended to act as a fast moving scout cruiser capable of conducting hit-and-run missions while also threatening communications and convoy routes. Montecuccoli believed that should Austria-Hungary be drawn into a larger naval conflict encompassing the Mediterranean, Admiral Spaun would still be capable of fulfilling her role successfully and that a class of battlecruisers was not necessary for such a scenario. Following the construction of Admiral Spaun, her design was so well received that she was used to influence the construction of the three Novara-class cruisers which followed her. The similarities between Admiral Spaun and the Novaras were so close that despite being different classes, both contemporary and modern publications occasionally link all four ships together as members of the same class. Admiral Spaun had a crew of 320–327 officers and men.
  Admiral Spaun had an overall length of 130.6 metres (428 ft 6 in). At the waterline, the cruiser had a length of 129.7 metres (425 ft 6 in), while her length between perpendiculars measured 125.2 metres (410 ft 9 in). She had a beam of 12.8 metres (42 ft 0 in) and a mean draft of 5.3 metres (17 ft 5 in) at deep load. She was designed to displace 3,500 tonnes (3,400 long tons; 3,900 short tons) at normal load, but at full combat load she displaced 4,000 tonnes (3,900 long tons; 4,400 short tons). The propulsion systems of the ship consisted of six Parsons steam turbines and four shafts. These turbines were designed to provide 25,130–25,254 shp (18,739–18,832 kW) and were powered by 16 Yarrow water-tube boilers, giving Admiral Spaun a top speed of 27.07 knots (50.13 km/h; 31.15 mph) during her sea trials.
  Admiral Spaun was armed with a main battery of seven 50-caliber 10 cm (3.9 in) guns in single pedestal mounts. Two were placed forward on the forecastle of the ship, four were located amidship, two on either side, and one was located on the quarterdeck. She also possessed a 47 mm (1.9 in) SFK L/44 gun. A Škoda 7 cm (2.8 in)/50 K10 anti-aircraft gun and four 53.3 cm (21.0 in) torpedo tubes in twin mounts were added to Admiral Spaun in 1916. The guns of Admiral Spaun were of a smaller caliber than many other cruisers of the era, which led to plans to remove the guns on the forecastle and quarterdeck of the ship and replace them with a pair of 15-centimetre (5.9 in) guns fore and aft, but these modifications were not able to take place before the war ended. Her smaller armament was due in part because of a desire within the Austro-Hungarian Navy for Admiral Spaun to have a faster speed and greater armour than most other contemporary cruisers of the era. As a result, the armament of the cruiser had to be scaled down.
  Admiral Spaun was protected at the waterline waterline by an armoured belt which measured 60 mm (2.4 in) thick amidship. The guns had 40 mm (1.6 in) thick shields, while the thickness of the deck for the ship was 20 mm (0.79 in). The armour protecting the conning tower was 60 mm (2.4 in).
caption: Admiral Hermann Freiherr von Spaun, former Marinekommandant of the Austro-Hungarian Navy and namesake of the cruiser Admiral Spaun
exif: {}