Austro-Hungarian Navy
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Austro-Hungarian Navy
Austro-Hungarian Navy
Kaiserliche und königliche Kriegsmarine
Császári és Királyi Haditengerészet
Coat of arms of the Austro-Hungarian Navy.png
Coat of arms of the Austro-Hungarian Navy
Active1786-1867 (as the Austrian Navy)
1867-1918 (as the Austro-Hungarian Navy)
Country Austrian Empire (1786-1867)
 Austria-Hungary (1867-1918)
RoleDefense of Austria-Hungary's naval interests, its merchant marine, and its coastline
20,000 personnel
4 Dreadnoughts
9 Pre-dreadnoughts
3 Coastal defence ships
3 Armoured cruisers
2 Torpedo cruisers
5 Protected cruisers
2 Scout cruisers
18 Destroyers
25 High Seas Torpedo craft
29 Coastal Torpedo craft
6 Submarines
Part ofAustro-Hungarian Armed Forces
Garrison/HQThe Naval Section of the War Ministry
Nickname(s)"Trieste Navy" (18th century)[1]
Motto(s)Indivisibiliter ac Inseparabiliter (Latin: Indivisibly and Inseparably)
Holy Roman Emperor (1786-1804)Joseph II (1786-1790)
Leopold II (1790-1792)
Francis II (1792-1804)
Emperor of Austria (1804-1867)Francis I (1804-1835)
Ferdinand I (1835-1848)
Franz Joseph I (1848-1867)
Emperor of Austria and King of Hungary (1867-1918)Franz Joseph I (1867-1916)
Karl I (1916-1918)
Commander-in-Chief of the Navy (German: Oberkommandant der Marine)Hans Birch Dahlerup (February 1849–August 1851)
Franz Graf Wimpffen (August 1851–September 1854)
Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian of Austria (September 1854–1861)
Ludwig von Fautz (1861–March 1865)
Wilhelm von Tegetthoff (March 1868–April 1871)
Friedrich von Pöck (April 1871–November 1883)
Maximilian Daublebsky von Sterneck (November 1883–December 1897)
Hermann von Spaun (December 1897–October 1904)
Rudolf Montecuccoli (October 1904–February 1913)
Anton Haus (February 1913–February 1917)
Maximilian Njegovan (April 1917–February 1918)
Commander-in-Chief of the Fleet (German: Flottenkommandant)Anton Haus (July 1914–February 1917)
Maximilian Njegovan (February 1917–February 1918)
Miklós Horthy (February 1918–November 1918)
Chief of the Naval Section of the War Ministry (German: Chef der Marinesektion)Ludwig von Fautz (March 1865–April 1868)
Wilhelm von Tegetthoff (March 1868–April 1871)
Friedrich von Pöck (October 1872–November 1883)
Maximilian Daublebsky von Sterneck (November 1883–December 1897)
Hermann von Spaun (December 1897–October 1904)
Rudolf Montecuccoli (October 1904–February 1913)
Anton Haus (February 1913–February 1917)
Karl Kailer von Kaltenfels (February 1917–April 1917)
Maximilian Njegovan (April 1917–February 1918)
Franz von Holub (February 1918–November 1918)
Naval ensign: 1786-1915Austria-Hungary-flag-1869-1914-naval-1786-1869-merchant.svg
The Naval Section of the War Ministry Headquarters

The Austro-Hungarian Navy or Imperial and Royal War Navy (German: kaiserliche und königliche Kriegsmarine sometimes shortened to k.u.k. Kriegsmarine, Hungarian: Császári és Királyi Haditengerészet) was the naval force of Austria-Hungary. Ships of the k.u.k. Kriegsmarine were designated SMS, for Seiner Majestät Schiff (His Majesty's Ship). Existing between 1867 and 1918, the k.u.k. Kriegsmarine came into being after the formation of Austria-Hungary in 1867, and ceased to exist upon the Empire's defeat and subsequent collapse at the end of World War I.

Prior to the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867, the Navy was referred to as the Imperial Austrian Navy or simply the Austrian Navy. It saw action in the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars, the Second Egyptian-Ottoman War, the First and Second Wars of Italian Independence, the Second Schleswig War, and the Seven Weeks War as well as the simultaneous Third War of Italian Independence. Following Austria's defeat by Prussia and Italy during the Seven Weeks War, the Empire reformed itself into a dual monarchy with the Habsburg monarch ruling as Emperor of Austria over the western and northern half of the country that was the Austrian Empire, and as King of Hungary over the Kingdom of Hungary. The Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867 also transformed the Austrian Navy into the Austro-Hungarian Navy.

Largely neglected by the Empire in its early years, the k.u.k. Kriegsmarine grew throughout the late 19th and early 20th centuries to become one of the largest navies in the Adriatic and Mediterranean Seas. By 1914 the k.u.k. Kriegsmarine had a peacetime strength of 20,000 personnel.[2] The k.u.k. Kriegsmarine saw action in the Boxer Rebellion, and the first shots of World War I were fired by the Austrian monitor Bodrog, which bombarded Belgrade on 29 July 1914, the day after Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia.

Participating in both surface and submarine warfare in the Adriatic and Mediterranean Seas during the war, the k.u.k. Kriegsmarine achieved notable victories during the Bombardment of Ancona and the Battle of the Strait of Otranto in 1917. However, the Otranto Barrage - established first by France and eventually maintained by Italy, the United Kingdom, and the United States - largely prevented the k.u.k. Kriegsmarine from participating in many naval engagements after 1915. Largely tasked with defending Austria-Hungary's 1,130 nautical miles (2,090 km; 1,300 mi) of coastline and 2,172.4 nautical miles (4,023.3 km; 2,500.0 mi) of island seaboard for the duration of the war, the k.u.k. Kriegsmarine chose to rely more on Austria-Hungary's U-boats to engage in offensive naval operations rather than risk the destruction of Austria-Hungary's battleships, cruisers, and other surface vessels. In June 1918, the k.u.k. Kriegsmarine attempted to break the Otranto Barrage with a massive naval attack which included four dreadnought battleships, three pre-dreadnoughts, four cruisers, four destroyers, four torpedo boats, and numerous submarines and airplanes, but the attack was called off after the battleship Szent István was sunk by an Italian torpedo boat on 10 June.

Five months later, with the Austro-Hungarian Empire facing collapse and defeat in the war, the Empire decided to transfer most of its navy to the newly-declared State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs on 31 October, effectively bringing the k.u.k. Kriegsmarine to an end. Three days later, the Empire's military authorities signed the Armistice of Villa Giusti, pulling the rapidly disintegrating empire out of the war. With the signing of the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye and the Treaty of Trianon, the First Austrian Republic and the Kingdom of Hungary were treated as the successors to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, whereas the independence of the West Slavs and South Slavs of the Empire as the First Czechoslovak Republic, the Second Polish Republic and the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, respectively, and most of the territorial demands of the Kingdom of Romania were also recognized by the victorious Allies in 1920. As a result, both Austria and Hungary were deprived of their coasts, and the former Empire's most important ports such as Trieste, Pola, Fiume, and Ragusa, were annexed into Italy and Yugoslavia.

The k.u.k. Kriegsmarine's main ships meanwhile were turned over to the Allies where most of them were scrapped throughout the 1920s, though some of its ships remained in use through the 1930s and beyond, such as the Bodrog, which remained in the service of multiple countries until the 1960s and is presently being converted into a museum ship.



An overview of Adriatic ports today

While not formally established until the 18th century, the origins of the k.u.k. Kriegsmarine can be traced back to 1382, with the incorporation of Trieste into the Duchy of Austria. During the 13th and 14th centuries, Trieste became a maritime trade rival to the Republic of Venice which occupied the Adriatic port city during intermittent periods between 1283 and 1372. Under the terms of the Peace of Turin in 1381, Venice renounced its claim to Trieste and the leading citizens of Trieste petitioned Leopold III, Duke of Austria, to make Trieste part of his domains. The agreement incorporating Trieste into the Duchy of Austria was signed at the castle of Graz on 30 September 1382.[3][4]

While Austria had a port with the incorporation of Trieste, the city was granted a large degree of autonomy and successive Dukes of Austria paid little attention to the port or the idea of deploying a navy to protect it. Until the end of the 18th century, there were only limited attempts to establish an Austrian navy.[4] During the Thirty Years War, Generalissimo Albrecht von Wallenstein was awarded the Duchies of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Mecklenburg-Güstrow as well as given the title "Admiral of the North and Baltic Seas" by Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand II in 1628 after scoring several military victories against Denmark-Norway in northern Germany.[5] However, Wallenstein failed to capture Stralsund, which resisted the Capitulation of Franzburg and the subsequent siege with assistance of Danish, Scottish and Swedish troops, a blow that denied him access to the Baltic and the chance of challenging the naval power of the Scandinavian kingdoms and of the Netherlands.[6] Wallenstein's assassination at the hands of his own officers in 1634 prevented the development of any Austrian navy in either the North or Baltic Seas.[4]

The next incursion Austria took into naval affairs occurred on the Danube River rather than at sea. During the Great Turkish War, Prince Eugene of Savoy employed a small flotilla of ships along the Danube to fight the Ottoman Empire, a practice which the House of Habsburg had employed previously during the 16th and 17th centuries to fight during Austria's numerous wars with the Ottomans. These river flotillas were largely manned by crews who came from Austria's coastal ports, and played a significant role in transporting troops across the Danube as well as denying Turkish control over the strategically important river.[4]

Austria remained without a proper seagoing navy however, even after the need for one demonstrated itself with the French Navy bombarding the port of Trieste during the War of Spanish Succession. Lacking any sea power, Austria was unable to protect its coastal cities or project power into the Adriatic or Mediterranean Seas.[4] The war ended with the treaties of Utrecht, Rastatt, and Baden. Under the terms of the Treaty of Rastatt, Austria gained the Spanish Netherlands, the Kingdom of Naples, the Kingdom of Sicily, the Kingdom of Sardinia, and the Duchy of Milan.[7] While Austria's control over Sardinia and Naples was cut short by their loss to Spain in 1734 during the War of Polish Succession,[8] these territories as well as the new Austrian Netherlands gave Austria greater access to the sea than ever before.[9]

Following the War of Spanish Succession, Austria once again developed interest in establishing a proper navy in order to protect its now numerous coastal possessions. This coincided with the majority of European nations' growing interest in mercantilism, the founding and development of colonies, and the chartering of overseas trading companies during the early 18th century. Austria's largest obstacle in engaging in overseas trade and naval enterprises however lay in the country's geography. Despite Austria having a lengthy coastline along the Adriatic Sea, the major ports it possessed along its main coastline were isolated from Vienna by the large Austrian Alps. Furthermore, there were no major rivers linking Austria's Adriatic ports to the interior of the country. Austria also enjoyed three major navigable rivers which flowed through the country, the Elbe, the Oder, and the Danube. However, the Elbe and the Oder flowed through the Kingdom of Prussia before emptying into the North and Baltic Sea respectively, while the mouth of the Danube lay within the territory of the Ottoman Empire. Both of these nations would remain major rivals for Austria throughout the 18th century, preventing the Austrians from using its major rivers to gain access to the sea.[10]

The Ostend Company

Following the War of Spanish Succession, Austria's greatest outlet to the sea lay in the newly-acquired Austrian Netherlands. While non-contiguous with the rest of Austria, the Austrian Netherlands lay within the boundaries of the Habsburg-dominated Holy Roman Empire. The territory also possessed numerous ports with easy access to the Atlantic Ocean, such as Ghent, Antwerp, Bruges, and Ostend. However, the economy of the Austrian Netherlands was very disconnected from the rest of Austria, and most Habsburg rulers paid little attention to the province.[10] Even Prince Eugene of Savoy, upon being appointed Governor-General of the Austrian Netherlands in June 1716, chose to remain in Vienna and direct policy through his chosen representative, Hercule-Louis Turinetti, marquis of Prié.[11]

The success of the Dutch, British and French East India Companies throughout the 17th and early 18th centuries however led the merchants and shipowners of Ostend to want to establish direct commercial relations with the East Indies.[12] In December 1722, Charles VI granted a 30-year charter to the Ostend Company to conduct trade with the East and West Indies, as well as Africa.[13] The Ostend Company proved to be immensely profitable, and between 1724 and 1732, 21 company vessels were sent out to conduct trade in the Caribbean, Africa, and especially Asia. The most profitable voyages of the Ostend Company were to Canton, as rising tea prices resulted in high profits for ships conducting trade with China. Between 1719 and 1728, the Ostend Company transported 7 million pounds of tea from China, roughly half of the total amount brought to western Europe at the time, placing the company on par in the tea trade with the British East India Company.[14] The Ostend Company proved to be short lived however. In the face of British pressure to end the trading company's competition with the British East India Company, and in order to secure British recognition of the Pragmatic Sanction of 1713, Charles VI suspended the charter of the company following the Treaty of Vienna and it ceased operations in 1731.[14][13]

Charles VI and Maria Theresa

Europe in 1740, just before the War of Austrian Succession

Believing that "Navigation and commerce are the foremost pillars of the state,"[10] Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI engaged in other projects beyond the establishment of the Ostend Company in order to increase Austria's merchant marine and establish a proper navy to protect it. This included constructing a new road through the Semmering Pass in order to link Vienna to Trieste, and declaring Trieste and Fiume free ports in 1719.[10] In order to help protect Austrian merchants from piracy in the Adriatic and Mediterranean, Charles VI also purchased the three-decker 80-gun third rate ship of the line Cumberland from the United Kingdom in 1720. The ship was renamed San Carlos and stationed out of Naples.[15]

On the Adriatic, Charles VI constructed even more ships, usually employing Italian and Spanish officers to man them. This Adriatic fleet consisted of three ships of the line, one frigate, and several galleys. In total, this Adriatic fleet had 500 guns and a crew of 8,000 men. Following the end of the Ostend Company however, a committee was set up in 1738 by the Emperor to examine the status of Austria's Adriatic fleet. Its report concluded that the fleet "had little usefulness, caused great expense, and stood in danger of being defeated in case of attack".[13] This report eventually led to Charles VI scrapping his Adriatic fleet and transferring most of officers and crew members to Austria's Danube Flotilla.[13]

Upon the death of Charles VI on 19 October 1740, Saxony, Prussia, Bavaria, and France all repudiated the Pragmatic Sanction of 1713 which had paved the way for Charles' daughter Maria Theresa to succeed him.[16]Frederick II of Prussia almost immediately invaded Austria in December 1740 and took the affluent Habsburg province of Silesia in the seven-year conflict known as the War of the Austrian Succession.[17] This conflict proved to be primarily a land-based war for Austria, which led to naval affairs being neglected by the newly crowned Maria Theresa, who spent the entirety of the war preoccupied with securing her inheritance of the throne of Austria as opposed to rebuilding her father's former fleet in the Adriatic.[13]

By the time the Seven Years' War began in 1756, Austria still lacked a proper navy. English pirates and privateers, as well as Barbary corsairs severely hampered Austria's merchant marine, to the point that most of Austria's sea trade had to be conducted in foreign ships. The lack of any naval force to protect Austria's shipping led Count Kaunitz to push for the creation of a small force of frigates to protect the Adriatic Sea. However, the Seven Years' War forced Vienna to pay much more attention to Austria's land border with Prussia and its coastline along the Adriatic Sea, preventing Kaunitz's program from achieving success.[13]

In 1775, another attempt to formulate an overseas trading company was undertaken with the establishment of the Austrian East India Company. Headed by William Bolts, the company's first voyage to India began on 24 September 1776 with Bolts sailing aboard the Indiaman Giuseppe e Teresa from Livorno in the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, which was ruled by Maria Theresa's son Leopold. Bolts was also granted a 10-year charter to trade under the flag of the Holy Roman Empire with Persia, India, China and Africa.[18]

The Austrian East India Company marked the first attempt by Austria to establish overseas colonies. Within the next two years, Bolts established factories on the Malabar Coast, on the southeastern African coast at Delagoa Bay, and at the Nicobar Islands.[13] These ventures ultimately failed however due to pressure from pressure from other colonial powers such as Portugal and Denmark-Norway, both of which forcefully evicted Bolts and his colonists from Africa and the Bay of Bengal respectively. Furthermore, the Austrian government did not wish to provoke other foreign powers after having to fight two major continental wars in the span of just 20 years. Vienna was also unwilling to lend much monetary support to either the company or towards the creation of a navy sufficiently large enough to protect its interests. This was partially because the Austrian government expected the ports of Trieste and Fiume to bear the cost of constructing and maintaining a fleet.[13]

Establishment of the Austrian Navy

The Ships of the Line Laharpe, Stengel and Beyrand by Alexander Kircher, depicting three Austrian ships of the line after their capture at Ancona

The Austrian Navy was finally established in 1786, with Emperor Joseph II purchasing two cutters in Ostend, each armed with 20 guns, and sending them to Trieste. Joseph II also introduced Austria's Naval Ensign, which consisted of a red-white-red standard with the crown of the Archduchy of Austria on the left. Prior to this, Austrian ships flew the yellow and black flag of the Habsburg Monarchy. Joseph II's Marineflagge would remain the naval ensign of Austria and later Austria-Hungary until the middle of World War I.[19]

The onset of the French Revolution in 1789 and the subsequent French Revolutionary Wars greatly changed the political face of Europe and resulted in the largest expansion of the Austrian Navy up to that point in time. Under Joseph II's successor, Leopold II, the Austrian Navy was formally located out of the port of Trieste. In 1797 with the Treaty of Campo Formio between France and Austria which ended the War of the First Coalition, Austria ceded to France the Austrian Netherlands and certain islands in the Mediterranean, including Corfu and some Venetian-held islands in the Adriatic. The Republic of Venice and its territories were divided between the two states, and Austria received the city of Venice along with Istria and Dalmatia. Venice's naval forces and facilities were also handed over to Austria and became the basis of the formation of the future Austrian Navy.[1]

The Treaty of Campo Formio resulted in Austria becoming the largest, and indeed the only, naval power in the Adriatic. Prior to the incorporation of the remnants of the Venetian navy, the Austrian Navy only consisted of the two cutters purchased in 1786, as well as several armed merchant vessels and gunboats. While Venice had suffered under French occupation, and the ships Austria acquired from the city's annexation allowed the Austrian Navy to grow to some 37 vessels by the start of the War of the Second Coalition in 1799. These ships mostly consisted of small coastal craft, with some 111 guns and 787 crew members between them. This still remained a very small naval force, which with an average of just three guns and 21 crew members per ship, was largely unable to project power outside of the Adriatic or protect Austrian shipping in the Mediterranean. When the Austrian Army took Ancona in 1799, three former Venetian ships of the line, Laharpe, Stengel and Beyrand, were seized by the Austrians. Despite having 74 guns per-ship, far more than any other vessels in the Adriatic, the Austrian government chose to sell the ships for breaking rather than incorporate them into the Navy.[20]

At the end of the 18th century, several new regulations were also imposed regarding naval activity. These included instructing officers to refrain from excessive shouting when giving sailing commands, directing the captains of each ship in the navy not to conduct business transactions on their own behalf, and ordering surgeons to fumigate their ships several times a day in order to prevent the outbreak of any disease. The most notable regulation imposed directed naval officers to learn German. At the time, most Austrian naval officers were Italian or Spanish, and Italian remained the main language of the officer corps until 1848. This policy change however reflected Austria's desire to re-order its multi-ethnic Empire more towards the German states of the Holy Roman Empire.[21]

The Napoleonic Wars

The Austrian Empire following the Treaty of Schönbrunn, which left Austria landlocked and without a navy

On 17 March 1802, Archduke Charles of Austria, acting in his role as "Inspector General of the Navy" ordered the formation of Imperial and Royal Naval Cadet School in Venice, (German: k.u.k. Marine-Kadettenschule).[22] This school would eventually move to Trieste in 1848 and change its name to the "Imperial and Royal Naval Academy" (German: k.u.k. Marine-Akademie).[23]

Austria again fought against France during the Second and Third Coalitions, when after meeting a crushing defeat at Austerlitz, Holy Roman Emperor Francis II had to agree to the Treaty of Pressburg, weakening the Austrian Empire and reorganizing Germany under a Napoleonic imprint that would be called the Confederation of the Rhine.

Believing his position as Holy Roman Emperor to be untenable, Francis abdicated the throne of the Holy Roman Empire on 6 August 1806, and declared the Holy Roman Empire to be dissolved in the same declaration. This was a political move to impair the legitimacy of the Confederation of the Rhine. Two years earlier, as a reaction to Napoleon making himself an Emperor of the French, Francis had raised Austria to the status of an empire. Hence, after 1806, he reigned as Francis I, Emperor of Austria.[24] This move meant that the naval forces under the banner of the Holy Roman Empire were now reconstituted as solely being a part of the Austrian Navy.[25]

Three years later Austria again declared war on France, beginning the War of the Fifth Coalition. Following Austria's defeat at the Battle of Wagram, the Empire sued for peace. The resulting Treaty of Schönbrunn imposed harsh terms on Austria. Austria had to hand over the Duchy of Salzburg to the Kingdom of Bavaria and lost its access to the Adriatic Sea by ceding the Littoral territories of Gorizia and Gradisca and the Imperial Free City of Trieste, together with Carniola, the March of Istria, western Carinthia with East Tyrol, and the Croatian lands southwest of the river Sava to the French Empire. West Galicia was ceded to the Duchy of Warsaw, and Tarnopol was given to the Russian Empire. These terms eliminated Austria's coastline along the Adriatic, thus destroying the Austrian Navy, with its warships being handed over to the French to guard the newly formed the Illyrian provinces. Between 1809 and 1814, there was no Austrian coastline and subsequently no navy to defend it.[25]

Modernising the Navy

The Austrian frigates Augusta and Austria in the port of Trieste prior to the voyage of Maria Leopoldina to Brazil

Following the Congress of Vienna and the 1815 Treaty of Paris, Austria's coastline was restored. Under the conditions of the Congress of Vienna, the former Austrian Netherlands were transferred to the newly created United Kingdom of the Netherlands, while Austria received Lombardy-Venetia as compensation. These territorial changes gave Austria five ships of the line, two frigates, one corvette, and several smaller ships which had been left in Venice by the French during the Napoleonic Wars. The decades of warfare Austria had participated in since 1789 however had left the Empire on the verge of bankruptcy, and most of these ships were sold or abandoned for financial reasons.[25]

By the end of the decade however, the Austrian Navy began to be rebuilt. The growth of the Austrian Navy in the years following the Congress of Vienna were largely driven by political necessities, as well economic conditions. The marriage between Archduchess Maria Leopoldina and Emperor Pedro I of Brazil in 1817 marked the first time a ship from the Austrian Navy crossed the Atlantic Ocean to the Americas, with the Archduchess traveling with the frigates Augusta and Austria to Rio de Janeiro.[25] Three years later, the frigate Carolina escorted Austria's ambassador to Brazil across the Atlantic, before sailing on to China, marking the first time a ship from the Austrian Navy had traveled to East Asia. During the 1820s and early 1830s, Austrian trade along the Danube and within the Mediterranean grew rapidly. In 1830, the Austrian Danube Steam Navigation Company was founded and in 1834, its steamship Marie Dorothee became the first of its kind to travel the Mediterranean on a voyage between Trieste and Constantinople. In 1836, the Austrian Lloyd (German: Österreichischer Lloyd) was established. While Austria's merchant marine grew throughout the 1820s and 1830s, the Austrian Navy grew alongside it in order to provide protection on the high seas.[26]

Archduke Friedrich Leopold became the youngest Commander-in-Chief of the Austrian Navy in history when he was appointed to the office at the age of 23.

During the Greek War of Independence, the Austrian Navy engaged Greek pirates who routinely attempted to attack Austrian shipping in order to help fund the Greek rebellion against Ottoman rule. During the same time period, Barbary corsairs continued to prey upon Austrian shipping in the Western Mediterranean. These two threats greatly stretched the resources of Austria's naval forces, which were still rebuilding after the Napoleonic Wars.[27] In 1829, two Austrian corvettes, a brig, and a schooner under Lieutenant Commander (German: Korvettenkapitän) Franz Bandiera sailed Morocco's Atlantic coast to obtain the release of an Austrian merchant ship which had been captured by pirates.[28] While the mission resulted in the return of the ship's crew, the Moroccans refused to return the ship, resulting in the Austrian bombardment of Larache. This action resulted in Morocco returning the captured Austrian ship, as well as pay damages to Vienna. The bombardment of Larache resulted in the end of North African pirates raiding Austrian shipping in the Mediterranean Sea.[27]

By the 1830s, an attempt to modernize the Navy had begun. The Austrian government granted new funding for the construction of additional ships and the purchasing of new equipment. The most notable change which was undertaken was the incorporation of steamships, with the first such ship in the Austrian Navy, the 500-tonne (492-long-ton) paddle steamer Maria Anna, being constructed in Fiume. Maria Annas first trials took place in 1836.[29] In 1837, Archduke Friedrich Leopold enlisted into the Navy. The third son of Archduke Charles, a famous veteran of the Napoleonic Wars, Friedrich's decision to join the Navy greatly enhanced its prestige among the Austrian nobility and public. During his time in the Navy, Friedrich introduced many modernizing reforms, aiming to make the Austrian Navy less "Venetian" in character and more "Austrian".[30]

Oriental Crisis of 1840

Friedrich and the Austrian Navy had their first major military encounter during the Oriental Crisis of 1840. After his victory over the Ottoman Empire during the First Egyptian-Ottoman War, Muhammad Ali of Egypt conquered large parts of Syria. In 1839, the Ottomans attempted to reclaim these territories but after a decisive defeat at the Battle of Nezib, the Ottoman Empire appeared on the verge of collapse.[31] Through the Convention of London, the United Kingdom, Austria, Prussia, and Russia intervened to save the Ottoman Empire. The Convention offered Muhammad Ali hereditary rule of Egypt while nominally remaining part of the Ottoman Empire if he withdrew from most of Syria. Muhammad Ali hesitated to accept the offer however and in September 1840 the European powers moved to engage Muhammad Ali's forces.

The British and Austrian navies subsequently blockaded the Nile Delta and bombarded Beirut on 11 September 1840. On 26 September, Friedrich, commanding the Austrian frigate Guerriera, bombarded the port of Sidon with British support. The Austrians and British landed in the city and stormed its coastal fortifications, capturing it on 28 September. After capturing Sidon, Austria's naval squadron sailed on to Acre which bombarded the city in November, destroying its coastal fortifications and silencing the city's guns. During the storming of the city, Friedrich personally led the Austro-British landing party and hoisted the Ottoman, British, and Austrian flags over the Acre's citadel upon its capture.[32] For his leadership during the campaign, Archduke Friedrich was awarded the Knight of the Military Order of Maria Theresa. In 1844, Archduke Friedrich was promoted to the rank of Vice-Admiral and become Commander-in-Chief of the Navy at the age of 23, but his tenure as the head of the Austrian Navy ended just three years after his appointment when he died in Venice at the age of 26.[33]

Revolutions of 1848

Map of Europe in 1848-1849 depicting the main revolutionary centers, important counter-revolutionary troop movements and states with abdications

After a successful revolution in France in February 1848 toppled King Louis Philippe I and established a Second French Republic, revolutionary fervor broke out across Europe. In Vienna, Austrian Chancellor Klemens von Metternich resigned his post and leave in exile to London while Emperor Ferdinand I was forced to abdicate the throne in favor of his nephew, Franz Joseph. Across the Austrian Empire, nationalist sentiments among Austria's various ethnic groups led to the revolutions in Austria to take several different forms. Liberal sentiments prevailed extensively among the German Austrians, which were further complicated by the simultaneous events in the German states. The Hungarians within the Empire largely sought to establish their own independent kingdom or republic, which resulted in a revolution in Hungary. Italians within the Austrian Empire likewise sought to unify with the other Italian-speaking states of the Italian Peninsula to form a "Kingdom of Italy".[34]

The revolution in Vienna sparked anti-Habsburg riots in Milan and Venice. Field Marshal Joseph Radetzky was unable to defeat the Venetian and Milanese insurgents in Lombardy-Venetia, and had to order his forces to evacuate western Italy, pulling his forces back to a chain of defensive fortresses between Milan and Venice known as the Quadrilatero. With Vienna itself in the middle of an uprising against the Habsburg Monarchy, the Austrian Empire appeared on the brink of collapse. On 23 March 1848, just one day after Radetzky was forced to retreat from Milan, The Kingdom of Sardinia declared war on the Austrian Empire, sparking the First Italian War of Independence.[35]

First War of Italian Independence

Blockade of Venice by Alexander Kircher, depicting the Austrian Navy blockading the revolutionary Republic of San Marco in 1849

Venice was at the time one of Austria's largest and most important ports, and the revolution which began there nearly led to the disintegration of the Austrian Navy. The Austrian commander of the Venetian Naval Yard was beaten to death by his own men, while the head of the city's Marine Guard was unable to provide any aid to suppress the uprising as most of the men under his command deserted. Vice-Admiral Anton von Martini, Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, attempted to put an end to the rebellion but was betrayed by his officers, the majority of whom were Venetians, and subsequently captured and held prisoner.[36] By the end of March, the Austrian troops in Venice were forced from the city and the Austrian Navy appeared to be collapsing as many of the Austrian sailors and officers were of Italian descent. Fearing mutinies, Austrian officers ultimately relieved of these Italian sailors of their duty and permitted them to return home. While this action left the Navy drastically undermanned, it prevented any wide-scale disintegration within the Navy which the Austrian Army had repeatedly suffered from in Italy.[36]

The loss of so many Italian crew members and officers meant that the remaining ships which did not fall into rebel hands in Venice were lacking many crews. Out of roughly 5,000 men who were members of the Austrian Navy prior to the revolution, only 72 officers and 665 sailors remained. Further complicating matters for the Austrian Navy was the loss of Venice's naval dockyards, warehouses, its arsenal, as well as three corvettes and several smaller vessels to the Venetian rebels.[36] The loss of Vice-Admiral Martini was also a blow to Austrians, as the Navy had gone through no less than four Commanders-in-Chief within three months of the death of Archduke Friedrich in late 1847. Martini's capture left the Navy without a commander for the fifth time in as many months.[36] In the aftermath of the loss of Venice, the Austrian Navy reorganized itself under the temporary command of General Count Franz Gyulai. Gyulai recalled every Austrian ship in the Mediterranean, the Adriatic, and in the Levant. Due to Trieste's close location to the parts of Italy revolting against Austrian rule at the time, Gyulai also chose the small port of Pola as the new base for the Austrian Navy. This marked the first time the city had been used as an Austrian naval base, and from 1848 onward the city would continue to serve as a base for Austrian warships until the end of World War I.[37] In late April, this fleet began a blockade of Venice in order to assist Austria's army currently fighting the Italian nationalists who had seized the city.[38]

Meanwhile, fortunes continued to fade for the Austrians. The Papal States and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies both joined the war on the side of Sardinia,[39][40] the later sending a naval force into the Adriatic in cooperation with Sardinia to help size Venice. This Italian fleet consisted of five frigates and several smaller vessels acquired by the Italian nationalists in Venice. Against this force, the Austrian Navy counted three frigates of 44 to 50 guns, two corvettes of 18 and 20 guns, eight brigs of six to 16 guns, 34 gunboats with three guns each, and two steamers of two guns. Despite its relatively large size for navies in the Adriatic, the Austrian Navy lacked experience against the combined Italian forces and Gyulai decided to withdraw his ships back to Pola.[38] After the Austrians moved back to Trieste due to the fact that Pola's small and undeveloped dockyards could not handle the size of the Austrian fleet, a stalemate ensued in the Adriatic. The Austrian fleet was too small to go on the offensive against the Italians, while the Italian naval commander, Rear Admiral Giovanbattista Albini, was under orders not to attack the port of Trieste as its location within the German Confederation may draw in other powers in central Europe against Sardinia.[41] Austrian efforts to purchase additional warships from the United Kingdom, Russia, the Ottoman Empire, and from Egypt, all ended in failure as the funds to purchase the ships were instead used to fight Austria's many land battles with Hungarian and Italian nationalists, as well as the war with Sardinia. Early experimentation on the use of a self-propelled explosive device--forerunner to the torpedo--to attack the Italian ships also failure due to the technological constraints of the time. Additional proposals to break the Italian fleet by using fire ships was rejected as an "inhumane" way of fighting.[42][a]

Venice under Austrian bombardment, 1849

The stalemate in the Adriatic came to an end as the Papal States and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies pulled out of the war.[39][40] Austrian reinforcements bolstered Radetzky's forces in the Italian peninsula and following the Battle of Custoza in July 1848, the tide of the war turned turned in Austria's favor.[43] On 9 August, an armistice was signed between Sardinia and Austria, and a month later, Admiral Martini was released in a prisoner exchange and returned as head of the Navy. While Martini unsuccessfully lobbied for the purchase of new steam ships to re-establish a blockade of Venice, Sardinia resumed the war with Austria on 12 March 1849. This led to the disastrous Sardinian defeat at the Battle of Novara ten days later. The decisive defeat forced King Charles Albert of Sardinia to abdicate the throne of Sardinia in favor of his son Victor Emmanuel II and brought the First War of Italian Independence to an end in August 1849.[44] Venice would be the last Italian nationalist holdout to fall on 27 August 1849.[45][b]

Aftermath and effects on the Navy

The Revolutions of 1848 marked a turning point in the history of the Austrian Navy. Up until that time, the Navy had been dominated by the Italian language, customs, and traditions. Prior to the revolution, the Austrian Navy was mostly made up of Italian crew members, the Italian language was the primary language, and even Italian ship names were used over German ones, such as Lipsia rather than Leipzig. Indeed, in the years before 1848, the Navy was largely considered to be a "local affair of Venice".[36] In the years after 1848, most of the navy's officers corps hailed from the German-speaking parts of the Empire, while most of the sailors came from Istria and the Dalmatian Coast, leading to Croats, Germans, and even Hungarians to begin to be represented among the ranks of the Austrian Navy.[36]

After retaking Venice, the Austrians acquired several warships which were under construction or already seaworthy. Most of these ships were added to the strength of the Austrian Navy, increasing the size and strength of the Navy considerably by the year 1850.[45] In Venice the naval shipyard was retained. Here the Austrian screw-driven gunboat Kerka (crew: 100) was launched in 1860 (in service until 1908).

Naval strength of the Austrian Empire, January 1850[45]
Type Number Guns Tonnage
Frigates 4 32-42 1,200 tonnes (1,181 long tons)
Corvettes 6 20 800-900 tonnes (787-886 long tons)
Brigs 7 16 500 tonnes (492 long tons)
Miscellaneous sailing ships 10 -- --
Steamers 4 -- --

In the final months of the blockade of Venice, the Danish-born Dane Hans von Dahlerup was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Austrian Navy. Emperor Franz Joseph I selected Dahlerup due to his desire to replace Italian influence within the Navy. Dahlerup introduced many personal reforms, such as reorganizing the command structure of the Navy, establishing new service regulations, and setting up a school for naval officers. He also began the process of replacing Italian with German as the spoken de facto language of the Austrian Navy. However, Dahlerup's command style clashed heavily with the prevailing culture within the Austrian Navy and he resigned after just over two years.[46]

The Ferdinand Max era

Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian of Austria served as Commander-in-Chief of the Austrian Navy throughout the 1850s and early 1860s.

After a two-year interim period in which Lieutenant General Count Franz Wimpffen commanded the Navy, in September 1854 Emperor Franz Joseph I promoted his younger brother, Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian (commonly referred to as Ferdinand Max), to the rank of Rear Admiral and named him Commander-in-Chief of the Austrian Navy. At the age of 22, Ferdinand Max became the youngest Oberkommandant in the history of the Austrian Navy, being a year younger than when Archduke Friedrich of Austria assumed command of the navy ten years earlier.[47]

Despite his age, the fact that he had only been in the Navy for four years, and his lack of experience in battle or command on the high seas, Ferdinand Max would prove to be among the most effective and successful commanders of the Austrian Navy in history. He was described by Lawrence Sondhaus in his book The Habsburg Empire and the Sea: Austrian Naval Policy, 1797-1866 as "the most gifted leader the navy had ever had, or ever would have".[48] Anthony Sokol describes Ferdinand Max in his book The Imperial and Royal Austro-Hungarian Navy as "one of the most talented of the Habsburg princes...He used his prestige, youthful enthusiasm, and love of the Service to promote it in every way possible."[49]

Ferdinand Max worked hard to separate the Austrian Navy from its dependence upon the Austrian Army, which had nominal control over its affairs. On 14 January 1862, Franz Joseph I agreed to establish the Ministry of Marine, which would oversee the affairs of both the Austrian Navy, and the Austrian merchant marine, and named Count Matthais von Wickenburg its head. Under this new system, Ferdinand Max continued to be the Oberkommandant, but he was no longer responsible for the political management of the fleet.[50] In addition to obtaining support for the creation of Ministry of Marine, Ferdinand Max was given great freedom by the Emperor to manage the navy as he saw fit, especially with respect to the construction and acquisition of new warships.[51]

Development of the Austrian Navy: 1854-1860

Ferdinand Max immediately went to work expanding the Austrian Navy. Fears of over-dependence upon foreign shipyards to supply Austrian warships enabled him to convince his brother to authorize the construction of a new drydock at Pola, and the expansion of existing shipyards in Trieste. Furthermore, Ferdinand Max initiated an ambitious construction program in the ports of Pola, Trieste, and Venice, the largest the Adriatic had seen since the Napoleonic Wars.[51] Pola in particular saw a considerable amount of attention as its natural harbor and strategic location along the Adriatic coastline of Austria enabled ships docked there to provide protection for Trieste as well as the Dalmatian Coast. While it had been used as a base for the Navy during the Revolutions of 1848, the small dockyards and port facilities, coupled with surrounding swampland had hindered its development. In addition to Pola's new drydock, Ferdinand Max had the swamps drained and constructed a new arsenal for the city.[49]

By 1855, a screw-powered ship-of-the-line was under construction in Pola after failed bids to construct the ship with British and American shipbuilding firms,[52] while two screw-frigates and two screw-corvettes were being built in Trieste and Venice respectively.[53] Within a year of Ferdinand Max's promotion to Oberkommandant, the Austrian Navy consisted of four frigates, four corvettes, and two paddle steamers in active service in the Mediterranean Sea. Ferdinand Max followed up on this progress however by purchasing the steam frigate Radetzky from the United Kingdom in 1856. Her design was used for the construction of future ships of the Navy, and marked the beginning of Austria's modern shipbuilding industry. From 1856 onward, a majority of Austria's ships were constructed by domestic shipyards.[49] Ferdinand Max's next construction project would be the last Austrian ship-of-the-line, Kaiser. She was commissioned into the Austrian Navy in 1859 after being constructed at the newly-built Pola Navy Yard between 1855 and 1858.[54]

As a result of these construction projects, the Austrian Navy grew to its largest size since the War of Austrian Succession over 100 years prior. Despite these efforts however, the Navy was still considerably smaller than its French, British, or Sardinian counterparts.[55] Indeed, the Austrian Navy was still attempting to catch up to the technological developments which had emerged during the first half of the 19th century with respect to steam power, when the emergence of the French iron-platted floating battery Dévastation gained international attention following its use during the Crimean War in October 1855. Dévastation would signal the beginning of the emergence of ironclad warships over the course of the next decade.[56][57]

Indeed, the French Navy's technological and numerical edge proved to be decisive in driving the Austrian Navy to port shortly after the outbreak of the Second War of Italian Independence.[58] After the failure of the First Italian War of Independence, Sardinia began the search for potential allies. Sardinian Prime Minister Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour, found French Emperor Napoleon III supportive of an alliance with Sardinia following the Crimean War, in which France and Sardinia were allies against the Russian Empire. After the Plombières Agreement of 1858,[59] Napoleon III and Cavour signed a secret treaty of alliance against Austria whereby France would assist Sardinia in return for Nice and Savoy being ceded to France.[60] During the first half of 1859, the Franco-Sardinian forces quickly defeated the Austrians on land, culminating in the Battle of Solferino, while the French Navy blockaded the Adriatic Sea and forced the Austrian Navy to remain in port, preventing its use for the duration of the war.[61] After the defeat at Solferino, Austria ceded most of Lombardy and the city of Milan to France under the Treaty of Zürich, who transferred it to Sardinia in exchange for Savoy and Nice.[62][63]

In response to Austria's quick defeat during the Second War of Italian Independence, Ferdinand Max proposed an even larger naval construction program than the one he had initiated upon his appointment as Oberkommandant. This fleet would be large enough not only to show the Austrian flag around the world, but also to protect its merchant marine as well as thwart any Adriatic ambitions from the growing Kingdom of Sardinia. However, constitutional reforms enacted in Austria after the defeat, as well as the recent introduction of ironclads into the navies of the world, would make the proposal more expensive than he had initially intended.[64] While the Archduke had previously been given free rein over naval affairs, and had enjoyed an unprecedented allocation of new funds to complete his various expansion and modernization projects,[65] Austria's recent military defeats and financial difficulties in the immediate aftermath of the war stalled his plans for further construction projects.[64] Despite these obstacles, the initiation of the Italian ironclad program between 1860 and 1861, coupled with Austrian fears of an Italian invasion or seaborne landing directed against Venice, Trieste, Istria, and the Dalmatian Coast,[66][67] necessitated an Austrian naval response to counter the growing strength of the Italian Regia Marina.[68]

The Austro-Italian ironclad arms race

The Austrian ironclad Drache, lead ship of the Drache class. She and her sister ship Salamander were Austria's first ironclad warships and were intended to counter Italy's own ironclad program.

After the Second War of Italian Independence, Sardinia ordered two small ironclads from France in 1860.[69] While these ships were under construction, the Italian revolutionary Giuseppe Garibaldi began his campaign to conquer Southern Italy in the name of the Kingdom of Sardinia. He quickly toppled the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, the largest state in the region in a matter of months.[70] On 17 March 1861, Victor Emmanuel II was proclaimed King of Italy. With the unification of Italy, the various navies of the former Italian states were merged into a single military force, named the Regia Marina (Royal Navy).[71][72] By the time the two Formidabile-class ironclads had been commissioned, they would form the first broadside ironclads of the Italian Regia Marina.[73]

Following up on these ships, Italy launched a substantial program to bolster the strength of the Regia Marina. The Italians believed that building a strong navy would play a crucial role in making the recently unified kingdom a Great Power.[74] These actions captured the attention of the Austrian Empire, which viewed Italy with great suspicion and worry, as irredentist claims by Italian nationalists were directed at key Austrian territories such as Venice, Trentino, and Trieste.[75][76] In response to the growing strength of the Regia Marina, the Imperial Austrian Navy subsequently ordered two Drache-class ironclads in 1860.[77] In the years immediately after the unification of Italy, Austria and Italy would engage in a naval arms race centered upon the construction and acquisition of ironclads. This arms race between the two nations continued for the rest of Ferdinand Max's tenure as Oberkommandant.[78][79]

Novara Expedition

A commemorative coin of SMS Novara, issued by Austria in 2004


In 1863 the Royal Navy's battleship HMS Marlborough, the flagship of Admiral Charles Fremantle, made a courtesy visit to Pola, the main port of the Austro-Hungarian Navy.[80]


Second Schleswig War


On May 9, 1864, Tegetthoff commanded the Austrian naval forces in the naval action off Heligoland from his flagship, the screw-driven SMS Schwarzenberg.[80] The action was a tactical victory for the Danish forces. It was also the last significant naval action fought by squadrons of wooden ships and the last significant naval action involving Denmark.


Third Italian War of Independence




In 1873 the new sail and steam frigate SMS Laudon (crew 480) was added to the fleet, which took part in the International Naval Review off Gru? in 1880.[80]

During peacetime Austrian ships visited Asia, North America, South America, and the Pacific Ocean.


Polar Expedition




Between the centuries

Crete Rebellion


The Boxer Rebellion







European naval arms race

Scale drawing of a Radetzky-class semi-dreadnought.


The dreadnought era


Dreadnought SMS Tegetthoff, named after Admiral von Tegetthoff



Submarine fleet


The U-3-class was an improved version of Germaniawerft's design for the Imperial German Navy's first U-boat, U-1,[86] and featured a double hull with internal saddle tanks. The Germaniawerft engineers refined the design's hull shape through extensive model trials.[87]

U-3 and U-4 were both laid down on 12 March 1907 at Germaniawerft in Kiel and were launched in August and November 1908, respectively.[87][88] After completion, each was towed to Pola via Gibraltar,[87] with U-3 arriving in January 1909 and U-4 arriving in April.[88]

The U-5 class was built to the same design as the C-class for the US Navy[89] and was built by Robert Whitehead's firm of Whitehead & Co. under license from Holland and his company, Electric Boat.[87] Components for the first two Austrian boats were manufactured by the Electric Boat Company and assembled at Fiume, while the third boat was a speculative private venture by Whitehead that failed to find a buyer and was purchased by Austria-Hungary upon the outbreak of World War I.[89]

The U-5-class boats had a single-hulled design with a teardrop shape that bore a strong resemblance to modern nuclear submarines.[90] The boats were just over 105 feet (32 m) long and displaced 240 tonnes (260 short tons) surfaced, and 273 tonnes (301 short tons) submerged.[87] The torpedo tubes featured unique, cloverleaf-shaped design hatches that rotated on a central axis.[87] The ships were powered by twin 6-cylinder gasoline engines while surfaced, but suffered from inadequate ventilation which resulted in frequent intoxication of the crew.[85] While submerged, they were propelled by twin electric motors.[87] Three boats were built in the class: U-5, U-6, and U-12.

World War I

Austro-Hungarian dreadnoughts at Pola
Austro-Hungarian fleet manoeuvres in February 1913
Austro-Hungarian Naval Budget: 1901-1914
(in millions of Austro-Hungarian krone)[91]



Following the declaration of war in August 1914 the French and Montenegrin forces attempted to cause havoc at Cattaro, KuK Kriegsmarine's southernmost base in the Adriatic. Throughout September, October and November 1914 the navy bombarded the Allied forces resulting in a decisive defeat for the latter, and again in January 1916 in what was called the Battle of Lov?en, which was instrumental in Montenegro being knocked out of the war early.

On 23 May 1915, when Italy declared war on Austria-Hungary, the Austro-Hungarian navy left their harbors in Pola (today Pula, Croatia), Sebenico (today ?ibenik, Croatia) and Cattaro (today Kotor, Montenegro) to bombard the eastern Italian coast between Venice and Barletta. Main targets were the cities of Ancona, Rimini, Vieste, Manfredonia, Barletta and bridges and railway tracks along the coast. Until 1917 the Austro-Hungarian fleet was as yet largely undamaged.


Battle at Durazzo



Battle of the Otranto Straits

SMS Novara after the Battle of Otranto Straits
Monument for the "Heroes of Otranto Battle" on the Prevlaka in Croatia







During this battle the Allies lost two destroyers, 14 drifters and one glider while the Austro-Hungarian navy suffered only minor damage (Novaras steam supply pipes were damaged by a shell) and few losses. The Austro-Hungarian navy returned to its bases up north in order to repair and re-supply, and the allies had to rebuild the blockade.

Cattaro Mutiny



Late World War I



On 1 November 1918 two sailors of the Italian Regia Marina, Raffaele Paolucci and Raffaele Rossetti, rode a primitive manned torpedo (nicknamed the Mignatta or "leech") into the Austro-Hungarian naval base at Pola. Using limpet mines, they then sank the anchored Viribus Unitis, with considerable loss of life, as well as the freighter Wien.[92] The French navy commandeered the new dreadnought Prinz Eugen, which they took to France and later used it for target practice in the Atlantic, where it was destroyed.[82]

Ships lost

Ports and locations

Austro-Hungarian naval yard at Pula; ca. 1890

The home port of the Austro-Hungarian Navy was the Seearsenal (naval base) at Pola (now Pula, Croatia); a role it took over from Venice, where the early Austrian Navy had been based. Supplementary bases included: the busy port of Trieste and the natural harbour of Cattaro (now Kotor, Montenegro). Both Trieste and Pola had major shipbuilding facilities.[80] Pola's naval installations contained one of the largest floating drydocks in the Mediterranean. The city of Pola was also the site of the central church of the navy "Stella Maris" (k.u.k. Marinekirche "Stella Maris"), of the Austro-Hungarian Naval Observatory and the empire's naval military cemetery (k.u.k. Marinefriedhof).[97] In 1990, the cemetery was restored after decades of neglect by the communist regime in Yugoslavia. The Austro-Hungarian Naval Academy (k.u.k. Marine-Akademie) was located in Fiume (now Rijeka, Croatia).


Naval aviation: the k.u.k. Seefliegerkorps

k.u.k hydroaircraft salvaged at Grado, Italy

In August 1916, the Imperial and Royal Naval Air Corps or k.u.k. Seeflugwesen was established. In 1917 it was rechristened the k.u.k. Seefliegerkorps. Its first aviators were naval officers who received their initial pilot training at the airfields of Wiener Neustadt in Lower Austria, where the Theresian Military Academy is also located. They were first assigned for tours aboard the Tegetthoff-class battleships. Later, the k.u.k. Seefliegerkorps also served at the following airfields in Albania and southern Dalmatia: Berat, Kavaja, Tirana, Scutari and Igalo. They also had airfields at Podgorica in Montenegro.

  • Flik 1 - Igalo from June - November 1918
  • Flik 6 - Igalo from November 1915 - January 1916
    • - Scutari from January 1916 - June 1917
    • - Tirana from July 1917 - June 1918
    • - Banja from June - July 1918
    • - Tirana from July - September 1918
    • - Podgorica from September - November 1918
  • Flik 13 - Berat from August - September 1918
    • - Kavaja from September - October 1918

The following Austrian squadrons served at Feltre also:

  • Flik 11 - from February 1918
  • Flik 14 - from June 1918 to November 1918
  • Flik 16 - from November 1917 - October 1918
  • Flik 31 - from June - July 1918
  • Flik 36 - from June - July 1918
  • Flik 39 - from January - May 1918
  • Flik 45 - during April 1918
  • Flik 56 - during December 1917
  • Flik 60J - from March - September 1918
  • Flik 66 - from January 1918 - November 1918
  • Flik 101 - during May 1918

Feltre was captured by Austrian forces on 12 November 1917 after the Battle of Caporetto. There were two other military airfields nearby, at Arsie and Fonzaso. It was the main station for the Austrian naval aviators in that area. The k.u.k. Seeflugwesen used mostly modified German aircraft, but produced several variations of its own. Notable aircraft for the service were the following:

Problems affecting the navy



The Navy was only able to draw significant public attention and funds during the three short periods it was actively supported by a member of the Imperial Family. The Archdukes Friedrich (1821-1847), Ferdinand Maximilian (1832-1867) and Franz Ferdinand (1863-1914) each a keen private interest in the fleet, held senior naval ranks and were energetic campaigners for naval matters. However, none lasted long as, Archduke Friedrich died early, Ferdinand Maximilian left Austria to become Emperor of Mexico and Franz Ferdinand was assassinated before he acceded the throne.



Notable personnel

Ranks and rates of the Navy (in English)

Rank insignia of the Austro-Hungarian Navy in 1898

Enlisted ratings

Officer cadets

  • Sea aspirant
  • Sea cadet
  • Sea ensign


Senior leadership

Commanders-in-Chief of the Navy




(in German Flottenkommandant)

Heads of the Naval Section at the War Ministry

(in German Chef der Marinesektion at the Kriegsministerium)

Constructors General

(in German Generalschiffbauingenieur)

Naval ensign

Austro-Hungarian naval ensign, 1786-1915


See also



  1. ^ 16 years later, the torpedo was invented by former Austrian naval officer Giovanni Luppis and British engineer Robert Whitehead.
  2. ^ The first attempt in history to conduct an aerial bombardment took place during the siege of Venice. Lieutenants Josef and Franz von Uchatius suggested that the Austrian Navy employ hot air balloons carrying bombs which would be dropped on the city. The Austrians ultimately launched some 200 incendiary balloons, each carrying a 11-to-13-kilogram (24 to 29 lb) bomb that was to be dropped from the balloon with a time fuse over the besieged city. The balloons were launched from land-based forces as well as from the Austrian warship SMS Vulcano, which acted as a balloon carrier.


  1. ^ a b Sokol 1968, pp. 7, 9.
  2. ^ Sokol, p. 164.
  3. ^ Thaller 2009, p. 191.
  4. ^ a b c d e Sokol 1968, p. 3.
  5. ^ Wedgwood 2005, p. 219.
  6. ^ Wedgwood 2005, p. 220.
  7. ^ Frey 1995, pp. 374-375.
  8. ^ Anderson 1995, pp. 7-11.
  9. ^ Sokol 1968, pp. 3-4.
  10. ^ a b c d Sokol 1968, p. 4.
  11. ^ McKay 1977, p. 180.
  12. ^ Butel 1997, p. 197.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h Sokol 1968, p. 6.
  14. ^ a b Butel 1997, p. 198.
  15. ^ Lavery 1983, p. 130.
  16. ^ Anderson 1995, pp. 7-9.
  17. ^ Anderson 1995, p. 59.
  18. ^ Bolts 1787, pp. 45-49.
  19. ^ Sokol 1968, p. 7.
  20. ^ Sokol 1968, p. 9.
  21. ^ Sokol 1968, pp. 9-10.
  22. ^ Salcher 1902, p. 8.
  23. ^ Salcher 1902, pp. 18-22.
  24. ^ Reich 1905, p. 622.
  25. ^ a b c d Sokol 1968, p. 10.
  26. ^ Sokol 1968, pp. 10-11.
  27. ^ a b Sokol 1968, p. 12.
  28. ^ Sondhaus 2002, p. 7.
  29. ^ Sokol 1968, pp. 12-13.
  30. ^ Sokol 1968, p. 13.
  31. ^ Sokol 1968, p. 14.
  32. ^ Sokol 1968, pp. 14-15.
  33. ^ Sokol 1968, p. 15.
  34. ^ Sokol 1968, p. 17.
  35. ^ Sokol 1968, pp. 18-19.
  36. ^ a b c d e f Sokol 1968, p. 19.
  37. ^ Sokol 1968, pp. 19-20.
  38. ^ a b Sokol 1968, p. 20.
  39. ^ a b Giglio 1948, p. 179.
  40. ^ a b Pieri 1962, p. 451.
  41. ^ Sokol 1968, pp. 20-21.
  42. ^ Sokol 1968, p. 21.
  43. ^ Pieri 1962, pp. 246-247.
  44. ^ Clark 2013, p. 55.
  45. ^ a b c Sokol 1968, p. 23.
  46. ^ Sokol 1968, pp. 25-26.
  47. ^ Sondhaus 1989, pp. 180-181.
  48. ^ Sondhaus 1989, p. 181.
  49. ^ a b c Sokol 1968, p. 26.
  50. ^ Wagner 1961, pp. 29, 32.
  51. ^ a b Sondhaus 1989, p. 182.
  52. ^ Lambert 1984, p. 114.
  53. ^ Handel-Mazzetti & Sokol 1952, pp. 14-15, 217-219.
  54. ^ Gardiner 1979, p. 270.
  55. ^ Sondhaus 1989, p. 184.
  56. ^ Lambert 1984, pp. 44-45.
  57. ^ Baratelli 1983, p. 41.
  58. ^ Sokol 1968, pp. 26-27.
  59. ^ Trevelyan 1909, p. 76-77.
  60. ^ Trevelyan 1909, p. 169.
  61. ^ Sokol 1968, p. 27.
  62. ^ Trevelyan 1909, pp. 108-110.
  63. ^ Sondhaus 1989, p. 201.
  64. ^ a b Sondhaus 1989, p. 200.
  65. ^ Sondhaus 1989, pp. 185-186.
  66. ^ Ordovini, Petronio & Sullivan 2014, p. 328.
  67. ^ Gardiner 1979, p. 335.
  68. ^ Sondhaus 1989, pp. 200, 206.
  69. ^ Gabriele & Fritz 1982, pp. 12-15.
  70. ^ Trevelyan 1909, p. 312.
  71. ^ Sondhaus 1989, p. 205.
  72. ^ Gabriele & Fritz 1982, pp. 117-118, 123-124.
  73. ^ Gabriele & Fritz 1982, p. 89.
  74. ^ Sondhaus 1989, pp. 206, 219.
  75. ^ Sondhaus 1989, pp. 200-203.
  76. ^ Tamborra 1957, pp. 813-814.
  77. ^ Sondhaus 1989, p. 209.
  78. ^ Sondhaus 1989, p. 225.
  79. ^ Gabriele & Fritz 1982, pp. 139-140.
  80. ^ a b c d e Hubmann, Franz, & Wheatcroft, Andrew (editor), The Habsburg Empire, 1840-1916, London, 1972, ISBN 0-7100-7230-9
  84. ^ Vego, Milan N (1996). Austro-Hungarian Naval Policy 1904-1914. London: Frank Cass. pp. 35-46. ISBN 0 7146 4209 6.
  85. ^ a b Gardiner, p. 340.
  86. ^ a b Gibson and Prendergast, p. 384.
  87. ^ a b c d e f g Gardiner, p.342.
  88. ^ a b Sieche, p. 19.
  90. ^ Sieche, p. 21.
  91. ^ Vego 1996, p. 185.
  92. ^ Warhola, Brian (January 1998). "Assault on the Viribus Unitis". Old News. Retrieved 2010.
  93. ^ Dario Petkovi?: Ratna mornarica austro-ugarske monarhije, Pula 2004, Page 86, ISBN 953-6250-80-2
  94. ^ Angus Konstam, Gunboats of World War I, p. 29
  96. ^ Mark Axworthy, Cornel I. Scafe?, Cristian Cr?ciunoiu, Third Axis, Fourth Ally: Romanian Armed Forces in the European War, 1941-1945, p. 327
  97. ^ Naval cemetery - a walk through the history of Pula


Literary Fiction


  • The Emperor's Coloured Coat: In Which Otto Prohaska, Hero of the Habsburg Empire, Has an Interesting Time While Not Quite Managing to Avert the First World War
  • The Two-Headed Eagle: In Which Otto Prohaska Takes a Break as the Habsburg Empire's Leading U-boat Ace and Does Something Even More Thanklessly Dangerous

External links




Music Scenes