SMS Medusa
Medusa passing under the Levensau High Bridge in the Kiel Canal
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| History | |
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  German Empire
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| Name: | Medusa |
| Laid down: | 1900 |
| Launched: | 5 December 1900 |
| Commissioned: | 26 July 1901 |
| Struck: | 27 March 1929 |
| Fate: | Scrapped, 1948–1950 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Gazelle-class light cruiser |
| Displacement: | 2,972 tonnes (2,925 long tons) |
| Length: | 105.1 m (344.8 ft) overall |
| Beam: | 12.2 m (40.0 ft) |
| Draft: | 4.84 m (15.9 ft) |
| Installed power: | 8,000 ihp (6,000 kW) |
| Propulsion: | 2 shafts, 2 Triple-expansion steam engines |
| Speed: | 21.5 knots (39.8 km/h; 24.7 mph) |
| Range: | 3,560 nmi (6,590 km; 4,100 mi) at 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph) |
| Complement: |
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| Armament: |
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| Armor: | Deck: 20 to 25 mm (0.79 to 0.98 in) |
SMS Medusa was the seventh member of the ten-ship Gazelle class, built by the Imperial German Navy. She was built by the AG Weser dockyard in Bremen, laid down in early 1900, launched in December 1900, and commissioned into the High Seas Fleet in July 1901. Armed with a main battery of ten 10.5 cm (4.1 in) guns and two 45 cm (18 in) torpedo tubes, Medusa was capable of a top speed of 21.5 knots (39.8 km/h; 24.7 mph).
Medusa served in all three German navies over the span of over forty years. She served as a fleet scout in the period before World War I, and during the first two years of the conflict, she was used as a coastal defense ship. She was one of six cruisers Germany was allowed to keep by the Treaty of Versailles, and she served in the early 1920s in the Reichsmarine. She was withdrawn from service in 1924 and used in secondary duties, but in 1940, the Kriegsmarine converted Medusa into a floating anti-aircraft battery. She defended the port of Wilhelmshaven until the closing days of the war, when she was scuttled by her crew. The wreck was ultimately broken up for scrap in 1948–1950.
Medusa was ordered under the contract name "E" and was laid down at the AG Weser shipyard in Bremen in early 1900 and launched on 5 December 1900, after which fitting-out work commenced. She was commissioned into the High Seas Fleet on 26 July 1901. The ship was 104.8 meters (344 ft) long overall and had a beam of 12.2 m (40 ft) and a draft of 4.84 m (15.9 ft) forward. She displaced 2,972 t (2,925 long tons; 3,276 short tons) at full combat load. Her propulsion system consisted of two triple-expansion engines. They were designed to give 8,000 shaft horsepower (6,000 kW), for a top speed of 21.5 knots (39.8 km/h; 24.7 mph). The engines were powered by ten coal-fired Marine-type water-tube boilers. Medusa carried 560 tonnes (550 long tons) of coal, which gave her a range of 3,560 nautical miles (6,590 km; 4,100 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph). She had a crew of 14 officers and 243 enlisted men.
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