SMS Novara (1912)
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SMS ''Novara'' was a scout cruiser of the
Austro-Hungarian Navy The Austro-Hungarian Navy or Imperial and Royal War Navy (german: kaiserliche und königliche Kriegsmarine, in short ''k.u.k. Kriegsmarine'', hu, Császári és Királyi Haditengerészet) was the naval force of Austria-Hungary. Ships of the A ...
which served during
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. Built by the Danubius shipyard between December 1912 and January 1915, ''Novara'' was the third and final member of her class to enter service, some six months after the start of the war. She was armed with a battery of nine guns and had a top speed of . The ship saw extensive service during World War I, owing to the cautious strategies adopted by the Austro-Hungarian fleet and their opponents in the Triple Entente. ''Novara'' was frequently used to raid enemy shipping and the
Otranto Barrage The Otranto Barrage was an Allied naval blockade of the Otranto Straits between Brindisi in Italy and Corfu on the Greek side of the Adriatic Sea in the First World War. The blockade was intended to prevent the Austro-Hungarian Navy from escapi ...
, including a patrol in November 1915 where she destroyed a stranded French
submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...
. These operations culminated in the Battle of the Strait of Otranto in May 1917, the largest naval battle of the Adriatic Campaign. There, she and her two sisters sank fourteen drifters, though she was badly damaged by a British cruiser and had to be towed back to port. ''Novara'' was involved in the Cattaro Mutiny in January 1918 and led the loyalist vessels to safety. ''Novara'' changed hands several times as the war ended, being transferred first to the
Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 unt ...
, a successor state to Austria-Hungary, and then to France as a
war prize A prize of war is a piece of enemy property or land seized by a belligerent party during or after a war or battle, typically at sea. This term was used nearly exclusively in terms of captured ships during the 18th and 19th centuries. Basis in inte ...
under the terms of the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye. Commissioned into the French fleet as ''Thionville'', the ship served from 1920 to 1932 as a
training ship A training ship is a ship used to train students as sailors. The term is mostly used to describe ships employed by navies to train future officers. Essentially there are two types: those used for training at sea and old hulks used to house classr ...
, and from 1932 to 1941 as a
barracks ship A barracks ship or barracks barge or berthing barge, or in civilian use accommodation vessel or accommodation ship, is a ship or a non-self-propelled barge containing a superstructure of a type suitable for use as a temporary barracks for sai ...
in Toulon before being broken up for scrap.


Design

''Novara'' was
long overall __NOTOC__ Length overall (LOA, o/a, o.a. or oa) is the maximum length of a vessel's hull measured parallel to the waterline. This length is important while docking the ship. It is the most commonly used way of expressing the size of a ship, and ...
, with a
beam Beam may refer to: Streams of particles or energy *Light beam, or beam of light, a directional projection of light energy **Laser beam *Particle beam, a stream of charged or neutral particles **Charged particle beam, a spatially localized grou ...
of and a mean draft of . She displaced at normal load, and up to at
deep load The displacement or displacement tonnage of a ship is its weight. As the term indicates, it is measured indirectly, using Archimedes' principle, by first calculating the volume of water displaced by the ship, then converting that value into wei ...
. Her propulsion system consisted of two sets of
AEG Allgemeine Elektricitäts-Gesellschaft AG (AEG; ) was a German producer of electrical equipment founded in Berlin as the ''Deutsche Edison-Gesellschaft für angewandte Elektricität'' in 1883 by Emil Rathenau. During the Second World War, AEG ...
steam turbine A steam turbine is a machine that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam and uses it to do mechanical work on a rotating output shaft. Its modern manifestation was invented by Charles Parsons in 1884. Fabrication of a modern steam turbin ...
s driving two propeller shafts. They were designed to provide and were powered by 16 Yarrow
water-tube boiler A high pressure watertube boiler (also spelled water-tube and water tube) is a type of boiler in which water circulates in tubes heated externally by the fire. Fuel is burned inside the furnace, creating hot gas which boils water in the steam-gene ...
s. These gave the ship a top speed of . ''Novara'' carried about of coal that gave her a range of approximately at . The ship had a crew of 340 officers and men.Fraccoli, p. 317Gardiner & Gray, p. 336 ''Novara'' was armed with nine 50-
caliber In guns, particularly firearms, caliber (or calibre; sometimes abbreviated as "cal") is the specified nominal internal diameter of the gun barrel Gauge (firearms) , bore – regardless of how or where the bore is measured and whether the f ...
guns in single pedestal mounts. Three were placed forward on the
forecastle The forecastle ( ; contracted as fo'c'sle or fo'c's'le) is the upper deck of a sailing ship forward of the foremast, or, historically, the forward part of a ship with the sailors' living quarters. Related to the latter meaning is the phrase " be ...
, four were located amidships, two on either side, and two were side by side on the
quarterdeck The quarterdeck is a raised deck behind the main mast of a sailing ship. Traditionally it was where the captain commanded his vessel and where the ship's colours were kept. This led to its use as the main ceremonial and reception area on bo ...
. A Škoda /50 K10
anti-aircraft gun Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based, ...
and six
torpedo tube A torpedo tube is a cylindrical device for launching torpedoes. There are two main types of torpedo tube: underwater tubes fitted to submarines and some surface ships, and deck-mounted units (also referred to as torpedo launchers) installed aboa ...
s in twin mounts were added in 1917. The navy planned to remove the guns on the forecastle and quarterdeck and replace them with a pair of guns fore and aft, but nothing was done before the end of the war. The ship was protected by a waterline
armored belt Belt armor is a layer of heavy metal vehicle armor, armor plated onto or within the outer hulls of warships, typically on battleships, battlecruisers and cruisers, and aircraft carriers. The belt armor is designed to prevent projectiles from p ...
that was thick amidships and a thick deck. The
conning tower A conning tower is a raised platform on a ship or submarine, often armored, from which an officer in charge can conn the vessel, controlling movements of the ship by giving orders to those responsible for the ship's engine, rudder, lines, and gro ...
had 60 mm thick sides, and the guns had thick shields.


Service history


Construction and early World War I

''Novara'' was
laid down Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship. Keel laying is one o ...
at the Danubius shipyard in
Fiume Rijeka ( , , ; also known as Fiume hu, Fiume, it, Fiume ; local Chakavian: ''Reka''; german: Sankt Veit am Flaum; sl, Reka) is the principal seaport and the third-largest city in Croatia (after Zagreb and Split). It is located in Primor ...
on 9 December 1912, the last member of her class to begin construction. She was launched on 15 February 1913; the ship was still undergoing
fitting-out Fitting out, or outfitting, is the process in shipbuilding that follows the float-out/launching of a vessel and precedes sea trials. It is the period when all the remaining construction of the ship is completed and readied for delivery to her o ...
work when
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
broke out in July 1914. The ship was completed on 10 January 1915 and commissioned into the Austro-Hungarian fleet. The commander of the Austro-Hungarian fleet, Admiral Anton Haus, adopted a cautious strategy to preserve his fleet, since he was outnumbered by the Anglo-French fleets in the
Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...
, and the attitude of Austria-Hungary's erstwhile ally Italy remained unknown. Haus decided the best course of action would be to act as a fleet in being, which would tie down Allied naval forces, while torpedo boats, mines, and raids with fast cruisers like ''Novara'' could be used to reduce the numerical superiority of the enemy fleets before a decisive battle could be fought. In March, after the beginning of the British Dardanelles Campaign against the Ottoman Empire, Germany began to pressure Austria-Hungary to assist their ally; Haus considered sending ''Novara'' with a cargo of munitions. Haus ultimately decided the operation was too risky for what would have been a minimal gain, as the ship would not have been able to carry a particularly large amount. On 2 May, ''Novara'' towed the German
U-boat U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare role ...
from
Pola Pola or POLA may refer to: People *House of Pola, an Italian noble family *Pola Alonso (1923–2004), Argentine actress *Pola Brändle (born 1980), German artist and photographer *Pola Gauguin (1883–1961), Danish painter *Pola Gojawiczyńska (18 ...
out of the
Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to t ...
. They evaded French patrols until 6 May, off
Cephalonia Kefalonia or Cephalonia ( el, Κεφαλονιά), formerly also known as Kefallinia or Kephallenia (), is the largest of the Ionian Islands in western Greece and the 6th largest island in Greece after Crete, Euboea, Lesbos, Rhodes and Chios. It i ...
, they were spotted by a French vessel. ''Novara'' cut the tow and sped north, while ''UB-8'' submerged and evaded the French patrol. Following the Italian declaration of war against the Central Powers on 23 May, the entire Austro-Hungarian fleet sortied to bombard Italian coastal targets. ''Novara'' took part in the operation; along with a
destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in ...
and two torpedo boats, she bombarded
Porto Corsini Porto or Oporto () is the second-largest city in Portugal, the capital of the Porto District, and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto city proper, which is the entire municipality of Porto, is small compared to its metropol ...
near
Ravenna Ravenna ( , , also ; rgn, Ravèna) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire from 408 until its collapse in 476. It then served as the cap ...
. Defensive fire from Italian coastal guns killed six men aboard ''Novara''. By late in the year, the Austro-Hungarian high command decided to begin attacking the ''Entente'' supply shipments being sent to
Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
via
Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...
. The first such raid, conducted by ''Novara''s
sister ship A sister ship is a ship of the same class or of virtually identical design to another ship. Such vessels share a nearly identical hull and superstructure layout, similar size, and roughly comparable features and equipment. They often share a ...
s and , took place on the night of 22–23 November. Haus transferred ''Novara'', ''Helgoland'', and six destroyers to Cattaro at the end of the month to facilitate further attacks. On 5 December, ''Novara'', four destroyers, and three torpedo boats made an attack on the shipping lanes; they sank three transport ships and numerous fishing boats. While on their way back to Cattaro, they spotted the French
submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...
, which had run aground off the mouth of the
Bojana river The Bojana ( cnr, Бојана), also known as the Buna ( sq, Bunë), is a river in Albania and Montenegro which flows into the Adriatic Sea. An outflow of Lake Skadar, measured from the source of the lake's longest tributary, the Morača, t ...
. ''Novara'' and the other vessels took the crew captive and destroyed the submarine. On 29 December, ''Novara'', the cruiser , and the old
coastal defense ship Coastal defence ships (sometimes called coastal battleships or coast defence ships) were warships built for the purpose of Littoral (military), coastal defence, mostly during the period from 1860 to 1920. They were small, often cruiser-sized ...
sortied to support ''Helgoland'' and six destroyers after they had run into a
minefield A land mine is an explosive device concealed under or on the ground and designed to destroy or disable enemy targets, ranging from combatants to vehicles and tanks, as they pass over or near it. Such a device is typically detonated automati ...
, which sank a destroyer and badly damaged another. ''Novara'' and the other vessels did not reach ''Helgoland''s flotilla before they were able to disengage from pursuing Italian warships. On 29 January 1916, ''Novara'' and two destroyers began another raid, this time on the port of Durrazo. While en route, the two destroyers collided and had to return to port, leaving just ''Novara'' to conduct the attack. Upon reaching the target, she encountered the Italian protected cruiser and a French destroyer. After a short engagement, ''Novara'' broke off the action and retreated, since the element of surprise was no longer available. Then-''
Linienschiffskapitän Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The rank is equal to the army rank of colonel and air force rank of group captain. Equivalent ranks worldwide includ ...
'' (Captain) Miklós Horthy, who commanded ''Novara'' at the time, launched an attack on the
Otranto Barrage The Otranto Barrage was an Allied naval blockade of the Otranto Straits between Brindisi in Italy and Corfu on the Greek side of the Adriatic Sea in the First World War. The blockade was intended to prevent the Austro-Hungarian Navy from escapi ...
on 9 July. ''Novara'' sank a pair of drifters, damaged two more, and captured nine British sailors.


Battle of the Strait of Otranto

In February 1917, Horthy began preparations for a major raid on the drifters; he planned to use ''Novara'' and both of her sisters, which he modified to look like large British destroyers by cutting down their mainmasts. Each of the ships also received a 7 cm anti-aircraft gun, and their engines were thoroughly cleaned and repaired. While the preparations were being made in late April and early May, destroyers made several sweeps down to the coast of Albania to reconnoiter the ''Entente'' defenses in the area; they found none. On 13 May, '' Konteradmiral'' (Rear Admiral) Alexander Hansa issued the order to begin the operation the following morning. The three cruisers steamed south to the drifter line, arriving after night fall; at the same time, a pair of destroyers, and , mounted a diversionary attack off the coast of Albania. At around 03:30 on 15 May, ''Novara'' and the other cruisers opened fire on the drifters, sinking fourteen and damaging four more before they broke off the attack and withdrew, hoping to return to port before ''Entente'' forces could react. At 06:45, the British cruisers and and five Italian destroyers sortied to intercept ''Novara'', ''Helgoland'', and ''Saida''. By 09:00, the faster British cruisers had caught up to the Austro-Hungarian vessels, and both sides called for reinforcements; a flotilla centered on the armored cruiser was sent to assist Horthy's cruisers. ''Dartmouth'' opened fire first and scored a hit on ''Novara'', and the three Austro-Hungarian cruisers laid smoke screens and turned back toward their pursuers, scoring several hits on ''Dartmouth'' in the process. ''Novara'' was hit several more times, and her main feed pumps and starboard auxiliary steam pipe were damaged, which caused the ship to begin losing speed. Horthy was badly injured as well, though he remained in command. At 11:05, the ''Entente'' commander, Admiral
Alfredo Acton Alfredo Acton, 1st barone Acton (12 September 1867 – 26 March 1934) was an Italian admiral, politician and Chief of Staff of the ''Regia Marina'' (Italy's Royal Navy). He was born in Castellammare di Stabia, a descendant of the Acton famil ...
, turned away in an attempt to separate ''Saida'' from ''Novara'' and ''Helgoland''. At this point, ''Sankt Georg'' was approaching the scene, which prompted Acton to temporarily withdraw to consolidate his forces. This break in the action was enough time for the Austro-Hungarians to save the crippled ''Novara''; ''Saida'' took the ship under tow while ''Helgoland'' covered them. Unaware that ''Novara'' had been disabled, and fearing that his ships would be drawn too close to the Austrian naval base at Cattaro, Acton broke off the pursuit. The destroyer ''Acerbi'' misread the signal, and attempted to launch a torpedo attack, but was driven off by the combined fire of ''Novara'', ''Saida'', and ''Helgoland''. At 12:05, Acton realized the dire situation ''Novara'' was in, but by this time, the ''Sankt Georg'' group was too close. The ''Sankt Georg'' group rendezvoused with ''Novara'', ''Saida'', and ''Helgoland'', and ''Csepel'' and ''Balaton'' reached the scene as well. The entire group returned to Cattaro together.


End of the war

By early 1918, the long periods of inactivity had begun to wear on the crews of several warships at Cattaro, primarily those of the little-used armored cruisers. On 1 February, the Cattaro Mutiny broke out, starting aboard ''Sankt Georg''. They then rapidly gained control of the cruiser and most of the other major warships in the harbor. The crews of ''Novara'' and ''Helgoland'' resisted the mutiny, with the latter preparing their ship's torpedoes but ''Sankt Georg''s gunners aimed their guns at ''Helgoland'', which convinced them to back down. ''Novara''s commander,
Prince Johann of Liechtenstein A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...
, initially refused to allow a rebel party to board his vessel, but after ''Kaiser Karl VI'' trained her guns on ''Novara'', he relented and let the crew fly a
red flag Red flag may refer to: * Red flag (idiom), a metaphor for something signalling a problem ** Red flag warning, a term used by meteorologists ** Red flag (battle ensign), maritime flag signaling an intention to give battle with no quarter (fight to ...
in support of the mutiny. Liechtenstein and Erich von Heyssler, the commander of ''Helgoland'', plotted overnight how to extricate their vessels, their crews having abstained from actively supporting the rebels. The following day, many of the mutinous ships abandoned the effort and rejoined loyalist forces in the inner harbor after shore batteries opened fire on the rebel guard ship . Liechtenstein tore down the red flag before ordering his ship to escape into the inner harbor; they were joined by the other scout cruisers and most of the torpedo boats, followed by several of the other larger vessels. There, they were protected by shore batteries that opposed the rebellion. By late in the day, only the men aboard ''Sankt Georg'' and a handful of destroyers and torpedo boats remained in rebellion. The next morning, the s arrived from Pola and put down the uprising. On 3 November 1918, the Austro-Hungarian government signed the Armistice of Villa Giusti with Italy, ending their participation in the conflict. Following the armistice, the entire Austro-Hungarian fleet was transferred to the newly formed
Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
.


French service

In 1920, under the terms of the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye, ''Novara'' and the rest of the fleet was surrendered to the Allied powers as war prizes; ''Novara'' was awarded to France in the post-war distribution of ships. She sprang a leak in the Adriatic and put into
Brindisi Brindisi ( , ) ; la, Brundisium; grc, Βρεντέσιον, translit=Brentésion; cms, Brunda), group=pron is a city in the region of Apulia in southern Italy, the capital of the province of Brindisi, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. Histo ...
,
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
, where she sank on 29 January 1920. She was refloated in early April 1920. The ship was renamed ''Thionville'' and incorporated into the French fleet after repairs. ''Thionville'' was assigned to the torpedo school for use as a
training ship A training ship is a ship used to train students as sailors. The term is mostly used to describe ships employed by navies to train future officers. Essentially there are two types: those used for training at sea and old hulks used to house classr ...
, a role she filled until 1 May 1932.Jordan & Moulin, p. 167 The ship was then disarmed and converted into a
barracks ship A barracks ship or barracks barge or berthing barge, or in civilian use accommodation vessel or accommodation ship, is a ship or a non-self-propelled barge containing a superstructure of a type suitable for use as a temporary barracks for sai ...
based in
Toulon Toulon (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Tolon , , ) is a city on the French Riviera and a large port on the Mediterranean coast, with a major naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and the Provence province, Toulon is th ...
. She remained there until 1941, when she was broken up for scrap.


Notes


References

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Further reading

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Novara (1913) Novara-class cruisers Ships built in Fiume 1913 ships World War I cruisers of Austria-Hungary Maritime incidents in 1920