HDMS Dannebrog

The Danish ironclad Dannebrog was an armored frigate of the Royal Danish Navy that was originally built as an 80-gun ship-of-the-line by Andreas Schifter was launched in 1850[1][Note 1] but was reconstructed into a steam-powered ironclad in the early 1860s. She had an uneventful career before the ship was stricken from the navy list in 1875. The ship was converted into an accommodation ship that same year and served until she became a target ship in 1896. Dannebrog was broken up in 1897.

Not to be confused with HDMS Dannebroge.
Illustration of the Dannebrog after her conversion, in an article published on 10 April 1864 in the magazine Illustreret Tidende
History
Denmark
NameDannebrog
NamesakeDannebrog
BuilderNaval Dock Yard, Copenhagen
Laid down28 April 1848
Launched25 September 1850
Commissioned17 May 1853
Decommissioned2 February 1875
Refit21 May 1862–30 March 1864
Stricken30 May 1896
FateScrapped, 1897
General characteristics (after reconstruction)
TypeArmored frigate
Displacement3,057 long tons (3,106 t)
Length214 ft 10 in (65.5 m) (p/p)
Beam50 ft 10 in (15.5 m)
Draft23 ft 3 in (7.1 m)
Installed power1,150 ihp (860 kW)
Propulsion1 shaft, 1 steam engine
Sail planBarque-rigged
Speed8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph)
Complement350
Armament16 × 60-pounder guns
Armor

Description after conversion

Dannebrog was 214 feet 10 inches (65.5 m) long between perpendiculars, had a beam of 50 feet 10 inches (15.5 m) and a draft of 23 feet 3 inches (7.1 m). The ship displaced 3,057 long tons (3,106 t). She had a single steam engine that drove her propeller. The engine, built by Baumgarten & Burmeister, produced a total of 1,150 indicated horsepower (860 kW) which gave the ship a speed of 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph). For long-distance travel, Dannebrog retained her three masts and was barque rigged. Her crew numbered 350 officers and crewmen.[2]

Sources disagree about the ship's armament; naval historians Paul Silverstone and Robert Gardiner say that she had sixteen 60-pounder guns,[2][3] but Johnny E. Balsved shows her with a dozen 60-pounder, 88-cwt.,[Note 2] guns, two 60-pounder, 150-cwt. guns, and three 18-pounder guns immediately after her conversion. All of these were rifled muzzle-loading (RML) guns. Balsved then shows that she was rearmed with six 60-pounder, 150-cwt. and eight 24-pounder guns, all RMLs, after 1865[4] while Silverstone gives her a later armament of six 8-inch (203 mm) and ten 6-inch (152 mm) RML guns. Dannebrog had a wrought-iron waterline armor belt 4.5 inches (110 mm) thick and her battery was protected by armor plates of the same thickness.[2]

Construction and career
HDMS Dannebrog under construction at Holmen seen on a daguerreotype from 1849. It is the oldest photograph of a Danish naval ship.
On the deck of GDMS Dannebroge, 24 May 1853

Dannebrog, named after the Danish national flag,[2] was built by the Royal shipyard in Copenhagen as a 72-gun sail ship of the line. She was laid down on 28 April 1848, launched on 25 September 1850, and commissioned on 17 May 1856.[4] The ship began conversion into an armored frigate on 21 May 1862 and the conversion was completed on 30 March 1864.[2] On 14 July 1864, she ran aground off Aarhus. She was refloated the next day.[5] Dannebrog had an uneventful career before the ship was stricken from the Navy List on 15 February 1875. The ship was converted into an accommodation ship that same year and served until she became a target ship on 30 May 1896. Dannebrog was broken up in 1897.[2][6]

Commemoration
The figurehead of Dannebrog on display in Copenhagen

The figurehead of HDMS Dannebrog is now on display at the entrance to Marinestation København on Nyholm in Copenhagen. It has previously been on display in another location on the adjacent isle of Frederiksholm.

Notes
  1. Design plans and models of this ship can be viewed by clicking "vis" at this reference.
  2. "Cwt" is the abbreviation for hundredweight, 88 cwt referring to the weight of the gun.

References
  1. Royal Danish Naval Museum - Dannebrog
  2. Silverstone, p. 55
  3. Gardiner, p. 364
  4. Balsved
  5. "Germany and Denmark". The Times. No. 24929. London. 20 July 1864. col A-C, p. 10.
  6. Balsved, Johnny (24 February 2005). "Figurehead". Navalhistory (in Danish). Retrieved 2 January 2017.

Citations
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