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NAVY.
■261
A. The Fleet. As has been stated above, Marine)!, or the .Navy in
its widest sense, comprises two main divisions, the Fleet and the Coast
Artillery. An account will first be given of the Fleet.
The Swedish fleet consists at present of the following ships, counting those
now being built. The royal yacht, the Drott, 630 tons. War-vessels: 12 already
built first-class ironclads (the Svea, Göta, Thule, Odén, Thor, Niord,
Dristigheten, Äran, Vasa, Tapperheten, Manligheten, and Oscar II), each of from 3 270
to 4 660 tons, and the Sverige (referred to above) now being built, of 6 800
tons; 1 armoured cruiser of 4 800 tons; 3 second-class ironclads of 1 500 tons;
7 third-class ironclads of 460 tons; 5 torpedo cruisers of 840 tons; 4 gun-boats
of from 400 to 600 tons; 8 destroyers (jagare) of 450 tons; 31 first-class torpedo
boats of from 70 to 120 tons; 22 second-class torpedo boats of from 43 to 86
tons; 2 mining vessels and a number of submarines. Further, training ships,
wireless telegraphy ships, works ships, hospital ships, depot and receiving ships,
etc., altogether 20, most of them older ships, revamped for their special purposes.
The total tonnage of the war-ships of the fleet is about 80 000 tons. The
number of guns mounted on the war-ships is somewhat over 500, namely 25
heavy, 132 medium heavy, and the remainder light guns. The total of the
indicated horse-power of the war-ships, is about 250 000.
The first-class ironclads constitute the nucleus and main fighting strength of
the fleet. Having been built during the years from 1886 to 1907, they can
now hardly be considered "up-to-date", even though their guns in proportion to
their calibre are of good quality. The Sverige, referred to above, which is now
being built, will be in all respects far more powerful than the older ironclads.
Her armament will consist of 4 28 cm, 8 15 cm, and 6 7’6 cm guns, as
well as 2 45 cm torpedo tubes; the armour, which at the water-line will reach
near to the stems, will be given a thickness of up to 20 cm. Two enormous
turbine engines will propel the vessel at a speed of over 22 knots an hour. The
crew will probably total somewhat over 400 men. The older first-class ironclads
have an armament of 2 25 cm or 21 cm guns (the Svea, Göta, and Thule
each only one), 4 to 7 medium heavy (12 to 15 cm) and 10 to 11 light guns
(5’7 cm); the armour, which at the waterline extends along somewhat more
than half the length of the vessel, has in general a thickness of from 18 to 29
cm. The torpedoes have a calibre of 45 cm. Two steam engines working
independently, and aggregating 3 600 to 9500 h. p. (in the older ironclads
horizontal compound, in the more modern vertical triple expansion engines) propel
the vessels at a speed of 14 to 18 knots. The chief dimensions are: length
76—96 m, greatest breadth about 15, and depth 5 to 5’6 m (those of the
Sverige 120, 18’6, and 6’4 m respectively). The crews number from 256 to 331
men. All the vessels are built of steel with double bottoms, and are provided
with armoured decks throughout. The armoured cruiser, the Fylgia, launched
in 1907, is for its purpose almost "up-to-date", and is considered to be the
handsomest vessel in the Swedish fleet. The armament consists of 8 15 cm guns,
which, like the heavy and medium heavy guns of the ironclads, are protected
by armour, and 14 5"7 cm guns, and 2 45 cm torpedo tubes. The armour
otherwise consists of 10 cm vertical and 5 cm deck armour at the water line.
The chief dimensions are: length 115, greatest breadth 14’8, and depth 5’9 m.
The maximum speed is 22’7 knots. The second and third class ironclads are
of the well-known Monitor type. They have recently been equipped with modern
guns.
The torpedo cruisers are very similar to the older catchers of the
British fleet. They were originally intended as scouts, but now they are not fast
enough for this purpose (19 to 21 knots). The principal dimensions are: length
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