SM U-10 or U-X was the lead boat

Lead ship

The lead ship or class leader is the first of a series or class of ships all constructed according to the same general design. The term is applicable military ships and larger civilian craft.-Overview:...

 of the U-10 class

U-10 class submarine

The U-10 class was a class of five submarines or U-boats of the Austro-Hungarian Navy during World War I. The class was similar to the German Type UB I submarine of the German Imperial Navy ; the first two boats delivered to Austria-Hungary had previously been commissioned in Kaiserliche...

 of submarine

Submarine

A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...

s for the Austro-Hungarian Navy

Austro-Hungarian Navy

The Austro-Hungarian Navy was the naval force of Austria-Hungary. Its official name in German was Kaiserliche und Königliche Kriegsmarine , abbreviated as k.u.k. Kriegsmarine....

  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...

. She was originally a German

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 Type UB I

German type UB I submarine

The Type UB I was a class of small coastal submarines built in Germany at the beginning of the First World War. Twenty boats were constructed, most of which went into service with the German Imperial Navy. Boats of this design were also operated by the Austro-Hungarian Navy and the Bulgarian...

 submarine commissioned

Ship commissioning

Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service, and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to the placing of a warship in active duty with its country's military...

 into the German Imperial Navy  as SM UB-1.

SM UB-1 was constructed in Germany and shipped by rail to Pola

Pula

Pula is the largest city in Istria County, Croatia, situated at the southern tip of the Istria peninsula, with a population of 62,080 .Like the rest of the region, it is known for its mild climate, smooth sea, and unspoiled nature. The city has a long tradition of winemaking, fishing,...

 where she was assembled and launched in January 1915. She was commissioned into the German Imperial Navy later that same month and sank an Italian 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...

 in June. The boat was handed over to Austria-Hungary

Austria-Hungary

Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...

 and commissioned as SM U-10 in July. In May 1917, U-10 was fired upon by a British submarine, but both of the torpedoes that were launched missed. In July 1918, U-10 hit a mine

Naval mine

A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, an enemy vessel...

 and was beached with heavy damage. She was towed to Trieste

Trieste

Trieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...

 for repairs which remained unfinished at the war's end. U-10 was handed over to Italy as a war reparation and scrapped in 1920.

Design and construction

U-10 was a small, coastal submarine that displaced 125.5 long tons (127.5 t) surfaced and 140.25 long tons (142.5 t) submerged. She featured a single shaft, a single 60 bhp Daimler diesel engine

Diesel engine

A diesel engine is an internal combustion engine that uses the heat of compression to initiate ignition to burn the fuel, which is injected into the combustion chamber...

 for surface running, and a single 120 shp electric motor for submerged travel. U-10 was capable of up to 6.5 knots while surfaced and 5.5 knots while submerged at a diving depth of up to 50 metres (164 ft). She was designed for a crew of 17 officers and men.

U-10 was equipped with two 45 cm (17.7 in) torpedo tubes located in the front and carried a complement of two torpedoes. German Type UB I submarines were additionally equipped with a 8 mm (0.31496062992126 in) machine gun

Machine gun

A machine gun is a fully automatic mounted or portable firearm, usually designed to fire rounds in quick succession from an ammunition belt or large-capacity magazine, typically at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute....

, but it is not clear from sources if U-10, as a former German boat, was either equipped with one or, if so, retained it in Austro-Hungarian service. In October 1916, U-10s armament was supplemented with a 37-mm/23 (1.5 in) quick-firing

Quick-firing gun

A quick-firing gun is an artillery piece, typically a gun or howitzer, which has several characteristics which taken together mean the weapon can fire at a fast rate...

 (QF) gun. This gun was replaced by a 47-mm/23 (1.9 in) QF gun in November 1917.

Construction of UB-1 was started on 1 November 1914 at Germaniawerft

Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft

Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft was a German shipbuilding company, located in the harbour at Kiel, and one of the largest and most important builders of U-boats for the Kaiserliche Marine in World War I and the Kriegsmarine in World War II.-History:The company was founded in 1867 by Lloyd Foster, as...

 in Kiel

Kiel

Kiel is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 238,049 .Kiel is approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the north of Germany, the southeast of the Jutland peninsula, and the southwestern shore of the...

. After her assembly was complete UB-1 was launched

Ship naming and launching

The ceremonies involved in naming and launching naval ships are based in traditions thousands of years old.-Methods of launch:There are three principal methods of conveying a new ship from building site to water, only two of which are called "launching." The oldest, most familiar, and most widely...

 on 22 January 1915.

After extended negotiations between Austro-Hungary and Germany, in March 1915 it was decided for Germany to supply five submarines of the UB I type. This model was familiar to the Austro-Hungary Navy since the Imperial German Navy had reassembled UB3, UB 8, and UB 9 at the Pola factory. The first boat was bought on April 4, 1915, a "sample" UB 1 boat. This submarine was shipped by rail in sections to Pola

Pula

Pula is the largest city in Istria County, Croatia, situated at the southern tip of the Istria peninsula, with a population of 62,080 .Like the rest of the region, it is known for its mild climate, smooth sea, and unspoiled nature. The city has a long tradition of winemaking, fishing,...

, where the sections were riveted together. Though there is no record of how long it took for UB-1s parts to be assembled, a sister boat, UB-3, shipped from Germany in mid-April 1915, was assembled in about two weeks.

Operational history

SM UB-1 was commissioned into the German Imperial Navy under the command of Oberleutnant zur See Franz Wäger on 29 January. An Austro-Hungarian Navy officer was assigned to the boat for piloting and training purposes. On 26 June 1915, UB-1 sank an Italian 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...

 Torpediniere 5 Pn in the Gulf of Venice

Gulf of Venice

The Gulf of Venice is a gulf that borders modern day Italy, Slovenia and Croatia, and is at the far north of the Adriatic Sea between the delta of the Po river in northern Italy and the Istria peninsula in Croatia.- Geography :...

.

On 4 June 1915, after being disassembled into three sections and transported by rail to Pola

Pula

Pula is the largest city in Istria County, Croatia, situated at the southern tip of the Istria peninsula, with a population of 62,080 .Like the rest of the region, it is known for its mild climate, smooth sea, and unspoiled nature. The city has a long tradition of winemaking, fishing,...

 for reassembling, UB-1 was handed over to the Austro-Hungarian Navy and commissioned as U-10 under the command of Linienschiffsleutnant Karl Edler von Unczowski.

British submarine had an encounter with U-10 on 11 May 1917. While cruising off Pola, H4 came across U-10 and fired a spread of two torpedoes at the submarine. The torpedoes were aimed to be 5° apart at a distance of 365 metres (399.2 yd) which was apparently too wide, because the captain of H4 observed the torpedoes miss just ahead and just astern of U-10.

On 9 July 1918, U-10 hit an Italian mine

Naval mine

A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, an enemy vessel...

 near Caorle

Caorle

Caorle is a coastal town in the province of Venice, Veneto, Italy, located between the estuaries of the Livenza and Lemene rivers. It is situated on the Adriatic Sea between two other famous touristic towns, Eraclea and Bibione.-History:...

  in the northern Adriatic Sea

Adriatic Sea

The Adriatic Sea is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan peninsula, and the system of the Apennine Mountains from that of the Dinaric Alps and adjacent ranges...

 at position 45°30′N 13°00′E, and was beached with heavy damage. Although she was looted by Austro-Hungarian Army

Austro-Hungarian Army

The Austro-Hungarian Army was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint army , the Austrian Landwehr , and the Hungarian Honvédség .In the wake of fighting between the...

 troops, she was later towed to Trieste

Trieste

Trieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...

 for repairs, which remained unfinished at war's end; all of the 13 crew personnel were saved. U-10 was handed over to Italy as a war reparation and scrapped at Pola by 1920. U-10 sank no ships in her Austro-Hungarian service.