Klaipėda & Curonian Spit · Lithuania · Wreck
SMS Friedrich Carl
A First World War warship with the Imperial Eagle plaque still on its bow
SMS Friedrich Carl was the second ship of the Prinz Adalbert class, a German armored cruiser that ran onto Russian mines off Klaipėda early in the First World War, capsized and sank. Swedish divers found the wreck far out in the Baltic, and technical divers now make the long boat trip to see a warship that is not overgrown and still carries its guns.
Also known as Friedrich Carl.
Where it is and how deep
55.7100° N, 20.1500° EApproximate position — the dashed circle shows where the site lies; your operator's briefing has the mooring.
The dive
The warship rests on its starboard side, its upper edge at 72 m and the seabed at 82 m, so the whole dive is spent at technical depth along the hull. The forward part of the ship is undamaged: portholes, cannons and the bow plaque bearing the German Imperial Eagle are still in their original places. Towards the stern the wreck is completely destroyed, and the seabed is so soft that about half of the hull is buried in it. Visibility on the wreck is usually very good.
The wreck
- Vessel
- SMS Friedrich Carl
- Type
- Prinz Adalbert-class armored cruiser
- Cause
- Ran onto Russian mines off Klaipėda during an attack on Libau, capsized and sank
- Lies
- On its starboard side in soft seabed, from 72 m at the upper edge to 82 m
The Friedrich Carl accompanied Kaiser Wilhelm II on voyages to Spain and the Mediterranean, later served as a training and torpedo test ship, and spent one winter as an icebreaker in the Baltic. Assigned to the Baltic fleet at the start of the First World War, she joined an attack on the Russian naval base at Libau and struck mines off Klaipėda. The crew evacuated before she capsized, but men in the stern torpedo room were killed.
Marine life and season
The sources we used don't single out particular species here.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair | Fair | Good | Good | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Good | Good | Good | Fair |
Season follows Klaipėda & Curonian Spit: July and August bring the warmest water; winter is the coldest stretch, with the sea averaging about 5 °C.
Sources
- Wreck Diving in Lithuania — X-Ray Mag
- SMS Friedrich Carl (1902) — Wikipedia
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