PANCERNIK RADETZKY

SMS Radetzky was an Austro-Hungarian battleship (so-called pre-dreadnought or pre-dreadnought) from the First World War. The keel for this unit was laid in 1907, the launch took place in July 1909, and the entry into service in the Kaiserliche und Königliche Kriegsmarine - in 1911. The length of the ship was 139 meters and 25 meters wide. The displacement reached approx. 14,500 tons and the maximum speed - approx. 20 knots. The deck armament, at the time of the launch, consisted, among others, of: 4 305 mm guns placed in two turrets of two guns, 8 240 mm guns and 20 100 mm guns. SMS Radetzky was the leading unit of the battleship class of the same name - the Radetzky. In total, three ships of this type were built. The original designs of this class involved the creation of a battleship with eight 305 mm guns and a dozen (from 14 to 18) 100 mm guns. Ultimately, however, due to the conservative attitude of the Austro-Hungarian admiralty, it was decided to introduce a much more conventional solution. Despite decent top speed, Radetzky-class units were kept out of the dreadnoughts commissioned by other powers, both in terms of firepower and armor. SMS Radetzky was built in the shipyard in Stabilimento Tecnico Triestino in Trieste. In the period 1911-1914, they made several courtesy voyages, including to Great Britain. At the beginning of August 1914, the battleship was to support the escape of the German ships SMS Goeben and SMS Breslau to Turkey. In the summer of 1915, the unit took part in shelling the Italian coast. Later, until the end of the war, it moored in the port of Pola. During the last hours of World War I SMS Radetzky fell under the American flag, and in November 1920, the battleship went to Italy, where it was scrapped in 1926.