SMS Bayern (1878)

Illustration of the Sachsen-class ships

The Sachsen class was the first group of capital ships built under the tenure of General Albrecht von Stosch, the first Chief of the Imperial Admiralty. Stosch favored a coastal defense strategy for the German fleet, and the Sachsens were intended to operate from fortified ports, from which they could sortie to attack blockading fleets. They proved to be controversial in service, as critics pointed out their poor seakeeping, tendency to roll in heavy seas, and low speed compared to earlier armored frigates.[1]

The ship was 98.2 m (322 ft 2 in) long overall and had a beam of 18.4 m (60 ft 4 in) and a draft of 6.32 m (20 ft 9 in) forward.[2] Bayern was powered by two 3-cylinder single-expansion steam engines, which were supplied with steam by eight coal-fired Dürr boilers. The ship's top speed was 13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph), at 5,600 metric horsepower (5,500 ihp).[3] Her standard complement consisted of 32 officers and 285 enlisted men, though while serving as a squadron flagship this was augmented by another 7 officers and 34 men.[2]

She was armed with a main battery of six 26 cm (10.2 in) guns, two of which were single-mounted in an open barbette forward of the conning tower and the remaining four mounted amidships, also on single mounts in an open barbette. As built, the ship was also equipped with six 8.7 cm (3.4 in) L/24 guns and eight 3.7 cm (1.5 in) Hotchkiss revolver cannons for defense against torpedo boats.[2][4]

Bayern's armor was made of wrought iron, and was concentrated in an armored citadel amidships.[5] The armor ranged from 203 to 254 mm (8 to 10 in) on the armored citadel, and between 50–75 mm (2–3 in) on the deck. The barbette armor was 254 mm of wrought iron backed by 250 mm of teak.[6]

SMS Bayern circa 1893

Bayern was ordered by the Imperial Navy under the contract name "A," which denoted that the vessel was a new addition to the fleet. She was built at the Imperial Dockyard in Wilhelmshaven; her keel was laid down in 1874 under yard number 3.[3] The ship was launched on 13 May 1878 and was commissioned into the German fleet on 4 August 1881.[2] Along with her three sisters, Bayern was the first large, armored warship built for the German navy that relied entirely on engines for propulsion.[5] After her commissioning, Bayern was placed in reserve. She was not activated for service with the fleet until 1884; this in part had to do with the poor performance of her sister Sachsen in the fleet maneuvers of 1880.[7] Among the problems associated with the Sachsen-class ships was a tendency to roll dangerously due to their flat bottoms, which greatly reduced the accuracy of their guns. The ships were also poorly armored, compared to their contemporaries. In addition, they were slow and suffered from poor maneuverability.[8] Nevertheless, Bayern and her three sisters served as I Division in the 1884 fleet maneuvers, under the command of Rear Admiral Alexander von Monts.[7]

Bayern remained with the fleet for the 1885 maneuvers, though she was joined only by the older ironclads Friedrich Carl and Hansa. The maneuvers were begun with a visit to Ålesund, Norway, after which the fleet went to the Baltic Sea for training exercises.[9] Bayern was demobilized at the close of maneuvers. In October 1885, August von Thomsen, who had been appointed chief gunner, set up the first long range gunnery experiments on Bayern. He went on to gain fame as "the father of German naval artillery."[10] Bayern's three sisters and the new ironclad Oldenburg comprised the training squadron for 1886.[11] In 1887, she was present for the ceremonies marking the beginning of construction of the Kaiser Wilhelm Canal, which was to link the Kiel with the North Sea.[12] Bayern returned to active duty in 1888, when she participated in a tour of the Baltic by the newly crowned Kaiser Wilhelm II. The fleet stopped in St. Petersburg, Stockholm, and Copenhagen on the seventeen-day cruise.[13]

The German fleet at anchor in 1896; the four Sachsen-class ironclads are at right

Bayern participated in the ceremonial transfer of the island of Helgoland from British to German control in the summer of 1890. She was present during the fleet maneuvers in September, where the entire eight-ship armored squadron simulated a Russian fleet blockading Kiel.[14] She remained with I Division in 1891; the year's maneuvers simulated a two-front war against Russia and either France of Denmark. Bayern participated in the 1892 fleet maneuvers as well. Three separate simulations were conducted, which included French blockades of the German North Sea coast and a Russian attack on Kiel.[15] Vice Admiral Wilhelm Schröder commanded the fleet maneuvers of 1893, which simulated a protracted campaign against a superior French fleet.[16] Bayern and her three sisters served as the Russian Baltic Fleet during the 1894 maneuvers.[17]

The four Sachsen-class ships were transferred to II Division before the winter cruise of 1894–1895, following the completion of the four Brandenburg-class battleships. The German fleet now possessed two homogenous squadrons of four ships each. The two divisions steamed to Orkney and the Shetland Islands in the spring of 1895.[18] Bayern joined a massive fleet review on 21 July 1895 for the opening of the Kaiser Wilhelm Canal, which connected Kiel to the North Sea.[19] The Autumn 1895 maneuvers simulated a high-seas battle between I and II Divisions in the North Sea, followed by combined maneuvers with the rest of the fleet in the Baltic.[20]

After the conclusion of the 1895 maneuvers, Bayern was taken into drydock at the Schichau-Werke in Danzig for reconstruction.[2] The ship's old wrought iron and teak armor was replaced with new Krupp nickel-steel armor.[21] The four funnels were trunked into a single large funnel and new engines were also installed,[4] which increased the ship's speed to 15.4 kn (28.5 km/h; 17.7 mph). The ship's 8.7 cm guns were replaced with quick-firing 8.8 cm (3.5 in) SK L/30 guns and four 3.7 cm (1.5 in) autocannons. Work was completed in 1898. Bayern's three sisters were similarly modified between 1896 and 1899.[2] Bayern remained with the fleet until 19 February 1910, when the ship was stricken from the naval register. She was converted into a target ship for the fleet and served in this capacity off Stollergrund after 1911. On 5 May 1919, Bayern was sold for scrapping and was broken up in Kiel.[2]

• Dodson, Aidan (2016). The Kaiser's Battlefleet: German Capital Ships 1871–1918. Barnsley: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-229-5.
• Friedman, Norman; W. J. Jurens; A. D. Baker (2008). Naval Firepower: Battleship Guns and Gunnery in the Dreadnought Era. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-59114-555-4.
• Gardiner, Robert, ed. (1979). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905. Greenwich: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 978-0-8317-0302-8.
• Gröner, Erich (1990). German Warships: 1815–1945. Vol. I: Major Surface Vessels. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-0-87021-790-6.
• Hovgaard, William (1971). Modern History of Warships. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 978-0-85177-040-6.
• Sondhaus, Lawrence (1997). Preparing for Weltpolitik: German Sea Power Before the Tirpitz Era. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-55750-745-7.