Peral Submarine
Peral in 1888
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| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Peral |
| Builders: | Lt. Isaac Peral |
| Operators: | Spanish Navy |
| Built: | 1888 |
| Completed: | 1 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Submarine |
| Displacement: |
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| Length: | 22 m (72 ft 2 in) |
| Beam: | 2.9 m (9 ft 6 in) |
| Draught: | 2.8 m (9 ft 2 in) |
| Propulsion: | 2 x electric motors, 2 x 30 hp (22 kW), two shaft |
| Speed: |
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| Range: |
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| Armament: | one 14 in (360 mm) torpedo tube (bow; three Schwarzkopf torpedoes) |
Peral was the first electric battery-powered submarine, built by the Spanish engineer and sailor Isaac Peral for the Spanish Navy. The first fully capable military submarine, she was launched 8 September 1888. She had one torpedo tube (and two torpedoes) and an air regeneration system. Her hull shape, propeller, and cruciform external controls anticipated later designs. Her underwater speed was 3 kn (5.6 km/h; 3.5 mph). With fully charged batteries, she was the fastest submarine yet built, with underwater performance levels (except for range) that matched those of First World War U-boats for a very short period, before her batteries began to drain. For example, the SM U-9, a pre-war German U-boat built in 1908, had an underwater speed of 8.1kn, and an underwater range of 150 km (81 nmi) at 5.8kn, before having to resurface to recharge her batteries. In June 1890, Peral's submarine launched a torpedo while submerged. It was also the first submarine to incorporate a fully reliable underwater navigation system. However, conservatives in the Spanish naval hierarchy terminated the project despite two years of successful tests. Her operational abilities have led some to call her the first U-boat.
Peral was first conceived on 20 September 1884, when Lieutenant Isaac Peral y Caballero wrote a paper which would become his Proyecto de Torpedero Submarino ("Project for a submarine torpedo boat").
After several studies and experiments, and having gained support from his superiors and fellow officers, Peral exposed his idea to the Spanish navy staff. He wrote a letter to the Spanish naval minister, Vice Admiral Pezuela y Lobo, in September, 1885. Pezuela called Peral to Madrid to have a personal interview with him. After the interview Pezuela agreed to finance Peral's preliminary studies in Cádiz with an initial budget of 5,000 pesetas, before launching a program to build a full-scale submarine.
The first study consisted of human breath test in an enclosure for several hours. A room of 58 m2 (620 sq ft) square meters was used, with an air storage cell, loaded to 79 atmospheres and a storage capacity of 0.5 m3. In addition to instruments to measure the temperature and moisture, there was a tube to re-oxygenate the air supply to the crew through a 4 mm (0.16 in) waterproof cloak and three water buckets to maintain the moisture. Six people locked themselves inside the room; one had to leave an hour and quarter later, but the rest remained for a total of five hours, and the test was considered a total success.
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