U-1-class submarine (Austria-Hungary)

The U-1 class was a class of two submarines or U-boats built for and operated by the Austro-Hungarian Navy. The boats were built to an American design at the Pola Navy Yard after domestic design proposals failed to impress the Navy. Both submarines were launched in 1909 and served as training boats through 1914. Declared obsolete in January 1918, both submarines were relegated to secondary duties. Following the Armistice of Villa Giusti in November 1918, the submarines were seized by Italian forces and subsequently granted to the Kingdom of Italy under the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye in 1920.

About U-1-class submarine (Austria-Hungary) in brief

The U-1 class was a class of two submarines or U-boats built for and operated by the Austro-Hungarian Navy. The boats were built to an American design at the Pola Navy Yard after domestic design proposals failed to impress the Navy. Both submarines were launched in 1909 and served as training boats through 1914, though they were mobilized briefly during the Balkan Wars. Safety and efficiency problems related to the gasoline engines of both submarines led to the Navy to purchase new propulsion systems prior to World War I. Declared obsolete in January 1918, both submarines were relegated to secondary duties. Following the Armistice of Villa Giusti in November 1918, the submarines were seized by Italian forces and subsequently granted to the Kingdom of Italy under the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye in 1920. Italy scrapped the submarines at Pola later that year. The submarines were intended to displace 134 5 metric tons when surfaced, when the Navy decided to use them as part of a public competition as a result of a lack of interest in submarine development. The design of the U-2 class has been described by naval historians as a failure, being rendered obsolete by the time they were commissioned in 1911. Despite this, tests of their design provided information that the Navy used to construct subsequent submarines. In early 1904, after allowing the navies of other countries to pioneer submarine developments, Constructor General Siegfried Popper ordered the Naval Technical Committee to produce a submarine design.

Vice-Admiral Rudolf Montecuccoli drafted his first proposal for a modern Austrian fleet in early 1905. It was to consist of 12 battleships, 4 armored cruisers, 8 scout cruisers,. 18 destroyers, 36 high seas torpedo craft, and 6 submarines. The MTK design called for a single-hull boat with a waterline length of 22 meters, a beam of 3.6 meters, and a draught of 4 meters. As a result, all proposals were rejected by the Navy as impracticable. The Naval Section of the War Ministry remained skeptical about the seaworthiness of this design and decided to reject it as well as a number of other designs that were submitted by the public. In January 1905, MTK submitted its specifications for a submarine on 17 meters, with a beam of 3.5 meters, a beam of 6 meters, and a draught of 1.7 meters. The Navy decided that this design was not suitable for the Navy and rejected it as a part of the public competition. In February 1905, the Navy began an expansion program befitting a Great Power. This included the development of a submarine fleet and encouraged the further development of the Navy’s naval expansion plan. In September 1904, Vice-admiral Montec Buccoli was appointed to the posts of Commander-in-Chief of the. Navy and Chief of the Naval Section. He pushed for a greatly expanded and modernized navy and pushed for the creation of the Austrian Naval League.

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