HNoMS Lyn - or just Lyn in Norwegian

Norwegian language

Norwegian is a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Norway, where it is the official language. Together with Swedish and Danish, Norwegian forms a continuum of more or less mutually intelligible local and regional variants .These Scandinavian languages together with the Faroese language...

 - was the lead ship of a class of 27 torpedo boat

Torpedo boat

A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval vessel designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs rammed enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes, and later designs launched self-propelled Whitehead torpedoes. They were created to counter battleships and other large, slow and...

s built between 1892 and 1912. The name means Lightning. By today's standards, she was extremely lightly armed with just one 'quick fire' 37 mm cannon and a single, fixed torpedo tube

Torpedo tube

A torpedo tube is a device for launching torpedoes. There are two main types of torpedo tube: underwater tubes fitted to submarines and some surface ships, and deck-mounted units installed aboard surface vessels...

, but in her time she did pack a punch. Later boats of her class carried heavier armament. Lyn was later renamed Od, before she and most of her class were scrapped in 1920, long after they were obsolete.

Small, nimble and fast craft for their time, the class provided much of the backbone for the Royal Norwegian Navy

Royal Norwegian Navy

The Royal Norwegian Navy is the branch of the Norwegian Defence Force responsible for naval operations. , the RNoN consists of approximately 3,700 personnel and 70 vessels, including 5 heavy frigates, 6 submarines, 14 patrol boats, 4 minesweepers, 4 minehunters, 1 mine detection vessel, 4 support...

 in the time leading up to Norwegian independence in 1905, and also during World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

. The class was often referred to as cigar

Cigar

A cigar is a tightly-rolled bundle of dried and fermented tobacco that is ignited so that its smoke may be drawn into the mouth. Cigar tobacco is grown in significant quantities in Brazil, Cameroon, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Indonesia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Philippines, and the Eastern...

s due to their shape as seen on the photos. These qualities made them excellent torpedo boats - small size and low freeboard - but also made them very uncomfortable boats to crew, with cramped quarters and not very seaworthy.

Over the 30 years the class was built, the size increased steadily, as well as the armament. The last boats in the class had a displacement almost twice that of Lyn, and two fixed torpedo tubes instead of just one. The class was in the later years of their service referred to as 2. klasse (2nd class) torpedo boats, to differentiate them from the larger 1. klasse (1st class) torpedo boats, which had one or two moveable torpedo launchers on deck.