Panther-class cruiser

The Panther-class consisted of two cruisers, SMS Panther (1885) and SMS Leopard, built for the Austro-Hungarian Navy in the 1880s.

Design
The Austro-Hungarian Navy Commander (Marinekommandant), Vice Admiral Maximilian Daublebsky von Sterneck, outlined in a memorandum of 8 September 1884 the requirements for a torpedo ram cruiser. Such a vessel should have a reinforced bow for ramming as well as torpedoes for attacks on larger warships. The cruisers would also be small and fast enough to undertake patrol and reconnaissance duties. The ships were ordered from the British Armstrong shipyard in part because Armstrong could build the ships more cheaply, but also to gain experience building modern small cruisers. In fact, Panther and Leopard provided the basis for the follow-on design, SMS Tiger (1887), which was a slightly enlarged version of the earlier ships. They were originally classified as "torpedo ships" (Torpedoschiff), equivalent of a torpedo cruiser in other navies. In 1903 they were reclassified as 3rd Class Cruisers, then in 1909 as small cruisers (Kleine Kreuzer).

Characteristics
The Panther-class cruisers were 69 m long between perpendiculars, 71.38 m long at the waterline, and 73.19 m long overall. They had a beam of 10.39 m and a draft of 4.28 m. They displaced 1557 MT. Their crew numbered 186 officers and men, though this later increased to 198.

The ships' propulsion system consisted of a pair of two-cylinder vertical compound steam engines. Steam was provided by six cylindrical fire-tube boilers that were trunked into two funnels. The engines were rated at 6000 ihp for a top speed of 18 kn. On trials, Panther reached a speed of 18.4 kn from 5940 ihp, slightly slower than her sister ship SMS Leopard, which made 18.7 kn from 6380 ihp. The ships had a cruising radius of 2800 nmi at a more economical speed of 10 kn. Unlike earlier cruising ships of the Austro-Hungarian Navy, Panther and Lussin did not carry a sailing rig to supplement their steam engines.

Panther and Leopard were armed with two 12 cm 35-caliber (cal.) guns manufactured by Krupp in single mounts, which were sponsoned abreast of the funnels. These were supported by a battery of four 47 mm quick-firing guns and six 47 mm revolver cannon. They were also armed with four 14 in torpedo tubes. The torpedo tubes were located singly, in the bow, stern, and at either beam. In June 1909, Panther was rearmed with four 66 mm 45-cal. guns and ten 47 mm QF guns, along with her original torpedo tubes. Leopard was similarly reequipped the following year. The Panther-class ships were protected with a thin 12 mm armored deck. The hatches above the engine room were 50 mm thick.