- Yes
- No
CLASS: 2nd class gunboats after rebuild 2nd class minelayer
TYPE: Gunboat
BUILDING SITE: Karljohansværns Værft, Horten
NAVY SHIP LIST NUMBER: Serial number 64
BUILD NUMBER: 67
CONSTRUCTION COST: 366.500 Norwegian Kroner included weapons
LAUNCHED: 16 March 1887
HOIST COMMAND: 1887
ARMAMENT
1889 AS GUBOAT
Spoiler
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1x 260mm Krupp rifled breech lading cannon
-Caliber: 26cm L/30 NO2
-Weitght: 25.200 Kilograms
-Placement: Bow gun
-Mount: Fixed in sled footing without protection
-Manufacturer: Krupp -
1x 57mm Hotchkiss rapid firing cannon
-Caliber: 57mm L/40
-Placement: stern in shield of 16mm special steel
-Armor: 16mm cannon shield with 16mm Special steel
-Manufacturer: Hotchkiss -
2x 37mm Hotchkiss Revolvercannons
-Caliber: L/20
-Barrels: 5x
-Placement/mount: Placed on the bridge wings in shields of 5mm special steel
-Armor: 5mm shield with special steel
-Manufacturer: Hotchkiss -
1x 35.6cm Underwater torpedotube
-Torpedo: Whitehead Torpedo Mk.II class 1d
-Diameter: 35.6 Centimeter
-Lenght: 4.42 Meter
-Weight: 275 Kilograms
-Explosive charge: 30 Kilograms of Wet Nitrocellulose
-Travelling ranges
–400 Meter at 27 Knots (50.01 Km/h)
–800 Meter at 21.5 Knots (39.81 Km/h)
-storage 4x ca
1914 AS MINELAYER
Spoiler
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1x 120mm Armstrong rapid firing cannon
-Caliber: 12cm L/44
-Serial Number: 9058
-Placement: Bow, replaced the older 260mm Krupp cannon
-Manufacturer: Armstrong -
1x 76mm Armstrong rapid firing cannon
-Caliber: 76mm L/40
-Serial number: 8918
-Placement: Stern gunner
-Manufacturer: Armstrong -
2x 37mm Hotchkiss Revolvercannons
-Caliber: L/20
-Barrels: 5x
-Placement/mount: Placed on the bridge wings
-Manufacturer: Hotchkiss
-Serial Numbers: 2704, 2705 -
SEA MINES OPTIONAL
-55x pendulum mine M/1911
- 60Kilogram
-55x pendulum mine M/1913
-55x swing arm mines M/1915
- 1x 35.6cm Underwater torpedotube
-Torpedo: Whitehead Torpedo Mk.II class 1d
-Diameter: 35.6 Centimeter
-Lenght: 4.42 Meter
-Weight: 275 Kilograms
-Explosive charge: 30 Kilograms of Wet Nitrocellulose
-Travelling ranges
–400 Meter at 27 Knots (50.01 Km/h)
–800 Meter at 21.5 Knots (39.81 Km/h)
-storage 4x ca
1918 AS MINELAYER
Spoiler
-
1x 120mm Armstrong rapid firing cannon
-Caliber: 12cm L/44
-Serial Number: 9058
-Placement: Bow, replaced the older 260mm Krupp cannon
-Manufacturer: Armstrong -
1x 76mm Armstrong rapid firing cannon
-Caliber: 76mm L/40
-Serial number: 8918
-Placement: Stern gunner
-Manufacturer: Armstrong -
2x 37mm Hotchkiss Revolvercannons
-Caliber: L/20
-Barrels: 5x
-Placement/mount: Placed on the bridge wings
-Manufacturer: Hotchkiss
-Serial Numbers: 2704, 2705 -
SEA MINES OPTIONAL
-55x pendulum mine M/1911
- 60Kilogram
-55x pendulum mine M/1913
-55x swing arm mines M/1915
TECHNICAL DATA
Displacement: 294 Metric tons fully loaded
length: 31.8 Meter
Width: 8.5 Meter
Depth: 2.2 Meter
MACHINERY
2x Horizontal compound machines with surface densities of 420 Indicated Hortsepowers
6x Cylindrical tube boilers- Working pressure: 4.2 kg per kilovolts per centimeter
Propellers: 2x
Bunker: 22 Metric tons of coal
Speed: 10.5 Knots (19.44 Km/h)
ARMOR
Hull material: Steel
1889
57mm Cannon: 16mm cannon shield with 16mm Special steel
37mm revolvercannons on brigde wings: 5mm shield with special steel
1918
Uncertain if the armored shield on the revolvercannons were removed
CREW
Estimated crew: 44 Men
The size of the crew varied between 32 and 45 men during the various voyages
TIMELINE OF IMPORTANT EVENTS
1911: Squadron tour 1911, -12, -13
1913: Converted to a minelayer
1940: Laid mines south of Bergen on 9 April which sank 3 German ships on 10 April
1940: Taken over by German forces 20 April at Uskedal in Kvinnherad
1945: Returned and taken out of service
1946: Heavy lift ship for PR Tyr, Bergen
1949: Sold to Brødrene Wilhelmsen and converted to the car ferry MF Bjørn West
1971: Bergen-Nordhordland Traffic Association
1974: Bergen-Nordhordland Route team
1980: AS Sahi, Bergen and converted to heavy transport
1988: Rolf Wee Transport, Haugesund
1995: Rong Laks AS, Rong, and used at aquaculture facilities in Øygarden
2007: Still exist
HISTORY
the monitors were something new and unforeseen that all seafaring nations simply had to have. our construction of these thus meant a breach of the fleet plan of 1859 and in 1872 a new construction program for naval vessels was therefore drawn up. we were in the initial phase of the struggle for parliamentarism and the initiative for the new program was taken by the civilian navy minister Broch. he distinguished himself both by accepting his position in relation to the Storting and by investing in younger and innovative officers in leading positions. it was his chosen successor, Admiral Jakob Lerche Johansen, who in 1877 had this program adopted as a plan for the Norwegian navy’s development over the next 15 years. Rather than continuing to invest in the large ocean-going vessels, or the more stationary monitors, one would now invest in the construction of steam gunboats of 3 different classes, as far as possible with armour-piercing protection. This shift towards a strengthened archipelago defence, which to some extent was to be distributed along the coast, was perceived from a political point of view as a more national defence. the plan was therefore well received and to a greater extent followed up with grants than many previous plans, although this time we also did not come close to the number the plan had adopted. When rebuilding old rock cannons, we also got 16 cannon boats of 3rd class.
second-class gunboats were to be relatively short and wide so that they could withstand the weight of a 27cm Armstrong cannon of 20 tonnes in the bow. with such a large cannon it was believed that they would be able to threaten even larger battleships. they were supposed to have double propellers to ensure good manoeuvrability, but self-protection was given a lower priority. it was bet that they would hide behind the archipelago’s islets and reefs, and partly that they constituted a small target in themselves. speed could not be prioritized either, which a top speed of 8 knots should emphasize.
in the first instance, the gunboats “vale 1874” and “uller 1876” were built. later followed “nor 1878”, “brage 1878” and “vidar 1880” which were also iron boats, while “gor 1884” and “tyr 1887” were steel boats, which, unlike their sister ships, got a 26cm breech-loading cannon. with the development of the torpedo, Nor, Gor and Tyr also got a built-in torpedo launch tube in the bow. in 1894, after the 1877 plan had been replaced by the concerned defense friends’ needs analysis of 1891, but still before the seriousness had dawned on the anti-Union left-sided, with Ææger we secured yet another vessel in this class. It was somewhat larger than its sister ships and distinguished itself, among other things, by having armored decks and a special waterline protection (cellulose belt), and also a 21cm breech-loading cannon in a 40mm shield as bow gun
investment in defense was, as mentioned, not a high priority and until 1895 the training budgets were very tight. Several years could therefore pass between each piece of equipment. once equipped, they practiced in smaller groups together with the monitors, but they maintained the assumption of a certain spread of activity along the coast
They undoubtedly received the most attention in the spring of 1893, when the tension between the king and the Storting over the appointment of a new government was at its peak. then the supposedly king-friendly commanding admiral Koren was accused of having equipped some of the gunboats in great haste and on his own initiative, with the aim that they could be sent to Oslo and used to support King Oscar II. This revelation led to ever-long investigations and open hearings in the Storting, and it meant that the choir had to resign. at one point in the process he gave a slightly disappointed expression that people did not understand how little a gunboat like Tyr could do in relation to a possible rebellion against the king
After an ever-increasing number of exercises, as is well known, the union battle culminated in a mobilization in 1905. There, the second-class gunboats were distributed respectively Hvaler (Æger, Tyr and Gor), Karljohansvern -Nor, Trønsberg Brage and Vidar and the mountains Uller and Vale, but the dispute was resolved as is known, without fighting taking place
When peace had subsided again and the concept of invasion defense had taken a long step in the direction of minesweepers as the good solution for poor nations, the need and usefulness of converting the solid gunboats into minesweepers was seen. during this rebuilding between 1911 and 1914, they switched from large and or slow-firing guns to smaller and faster guns. thus, there was room for around 50 mines, and little by little the torpedo equipment was also removed.
All 2 class gunboats served in the Neutrality Guard and most of the First World War. Vale and Uller did their service in the west, while the others stayed around melomsvik/tønsberg or Hvaler. their task was partly to lay and remove mines. it was a relatively undramatic service, but with so much sailing they were naturally exposed to some accidents, while on a number of occasions they provided assistance to other vessels with problems. Uller also participated in putting out a city fire in Bergen in January 1916. Towards the end and a little after the war, the task became to a greater extent to neutralize mines that had drifted into Norwegian waters, and this was not a risk-free task. the last and somewhat larger Æger had not been rebuilt and it was used as a flagship for the Hvaler department, until it was decommissioned in 1932.
In the inter-war period, the equipment became rarer and when these vessels were re-equipped, except the barge, for neutrality guard in 1939, following the pattern from the previous war, barges Vale, Uller, Tyr had been in stock since the First World War. They didn’t make a big effort during the battles in Norway either, and they were all taken over by the Germans. Some had gotten mines on board without having to lay them, while others didn’t get that far. throughout, the captains believed that the vessels were so old and vulnerable that their voluntary surrender to the Germans was no great problem. an exception was Tyr, which had mines laid in both Lerøyosen and in Vatlestraumen, which later sank several German ships. but Tyr was also eventually taken over by the Germans. after the war, the Germans returned the vessels in a different condition, but they were soon scrapped and disposed of. Tyr was the longest-lived vessel. First as a well-known car ferry in western Norway, before it has had other services in the farming industry until quite recently
the vessel is still seaworthy today! even if it bears the mark of many years without care and use
this vessel has been living a long life, even my father, grandfather and great grandfather has travelled with this afterit got transferred to a ferry, they have also been teached it’s history at school!
AS GUNBOAT
BLUEPRINTS - DRAWINGS
-More of an univrsal drawing, the vessels in this class is very simlar
MINELAYING SYSTEM
HNoMS TYR AFTER MILITARY SERVICE AS A HEAVY LIFT VESSEL
TYR SEEN FROM ABOVE 1912 AS GUNBOAT
TYR ON LAND DURING REMODELING
-This is taken most likely before 1914. here we see the torpedotube clearly!
57mm Hotchkiss rapid firing cannon
-This is the EXACT same cannon but the mounting is NOT the same!
PENDULUM MINE M/1911
PICTRUES
Spoiler
SOURCES
Spoiler
MAIN SOURCE (LIMITED ACESS)
Nasjonalbiblioteket
OTHER
https://www.antikvariat.net/sv/ada18406-90-ar-under-rent-norsk-orlogsflagg-thomassen-marius-adamstuen-antikvariat
Norske marinefartøy - samtlige norske marinefartøy 1814-2008 og marinens flygevåpen 1912-1944 | ARK Bokhandel
Fylkesbaatane – Om saluttkanoner - Kulturhistorisk leksikon
90 år under rent norsk orlogsflagg - Deichman.no
Warthunder_Norway