Trygg class torpedo boat
Encyclopedia
The Trygg class was the third and last class of torpedo boat
s to be built for the Royal Norwegian Navy
. The three Trygg ships were constructed from 1919 to 1921 at Moss Verft
in Moss
(Trygg) and Horten
naval yard (Snøgg and Stegg).
Though much larger and better armed than its predecessors, the cigar-shaped 1.
and 2.
class torpedo boats, the Trygg class was far from modern when it was called upon during the Norwegian Campaign
in 1940.
The class was named after its first ship, the Trygg - "trygg" is Norwegian for rugged, safe, stable, secure, dependable.
autocannon
for anti-aircraft
defence, as well as two twin 45 cm torpedo tube
s. Combined with a reasonable speed of 25 knots (46 km/h) and excellent manoeuvrability this enabled the Trygg class vessels to operate effectively both in cooperation with other naval units and on their own. Their operations were however limited mostly to coastal waters as they were not very seaworthy or stable platforms, having been constructed for operations close to land. In the fighting that followed the German invasion
on 9 April 1940 the Trygg class would see first line action as these ships were often all that was available to the Norwegian forces.
In 1932, the Norwegian Labour Party
made public a proposal crafted by Fredrik Monsen, that the armed forces be dissolved entirely and replaced by a "civil guard". The civil guard would include 18 Trygg class vessels, with the armament of two 76 mm main guns and two twin 45 cm torpedo tubes retained. Olaf Kullmann
and Erik Anker Steen
had contributed to the "civil guard" concept with advice from a naval perspective.
, one while in Norwegian service and two after having been pressed into service as Torpedoboot Ausland
by their German
captors.
The German names for Trygg and Snøgg were basically word play, especially when seen together: Zick and Zack means 'Zigzag
' in German
.
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 to be built 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...
. The three Trygg ships were constructed from 1919 to 1921 at Moss Verft
Moss Verft
Moss Verft was a shipyard in Jeløya, Moss, Norway. For most of its existence, it was owned by a company of the same name . Locally, it was nicknamed Værven.-History:...
in Moss
Moss, Norway
is a coastal city and a municipality in Østfold county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Moss. The city of Moss was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838...
(Trygg) and Horten
Horten
is a town and municipality in Vestfold county, Norway—located along the Oslofjord. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Horten. The municipality also includes the villages of Borre, Åsgårdstrand, Skoppum, and Nykirke....
naval yard (Snøgg and Stegg).
Though much larger and better armed than its predecessors, the cigar-shaped 1.
1. class torpedo boat
The 1. class torpedo boat was a designation in the Scandinavian countries for a type of fast steam ships on more than 80 tons .-Royal Danish Navy:* 1879 Torpedobaad Nr. 4* 1880 Torpedobaad Nr. 5* 1881 Torpedobaad Nr...
and 2.
2. class torpedo boat
The 2. class torpedo boat was a designation in the Scandinavian countries for a type of fast steam ships between 40 tons and 80 tons .-Royal Danish Navy:* 1882 Torpedobaad Nr. 2* 1882 Torpedobaad Nr. 3* 1882 Torpedobaad Nr. 4* 1882 Torpedobaad Nr. 5...
class torpedo boats, the Trygg class was far from modern when it was called upon during the Norwegian Campaign
Norwegian Campaign
The Norwegian Campaign was a military campaign that was fought in Norway during the Second World War between the Allies and Germany, after the latter's invasion of the country. In April 1940, the United Kingdom and France came to Norway's aid with an expeditionary force...
in 1940.
The class was named after its first ship, the Trygg - "trygg" is Norwegian for rugged, safe, stable, secure, dependable.
Capabilities
The Trygg class had a fairly substantial armament for being small ships of relatively early design. Each carried two 76 mm main guns, an Oerlikon 20mmOerlikon 20 mm cannon
The Oerlikon 20 mm cannon is a series of autocannons, based on an original design by Reinhold Becker of Germany, very early in World War I, and widely produced by Oerlikon Contraves and others...
autocannon
Autocannon
An autocannon or automatic cannon is a rapid-fire projectile weapon firing a shell as opposed to the bullet fired by a machine gun. Autocannons often have a larger caliber than a machine gun . Usually, autocannons are smaller than a field gun or other artillery, and are mechanically loaded for a...
for anti-aircraft
Anti-aircraft warfare
NATO defines air defence as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action." They include ground and air based weapon systems, associated sensor systems, command and control arrangements and passive measures. It may be to protect naval, ground and air forces...
defence, as well as two twin 45 cm 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...
s. Combined with a reasonable speed of 25 knots (46 km/h) and excellent manoeuvrability this enabled the Trygg class vessels to operate effectively both in cooperation with other naval units and on their own. Their operations were however limited mostly to coastal waters as they were not very seaworthy or stable platforms, having been constructed for operations close to land. In the fighting that followed the German invasion
Operation Weserübung
Operation Weserübung was the code name for Germany's assault on Denmark and Norway during the Second World War and the opening operation of the Norwegian Campaign...
on 9 April 1940 the Trygg class would see first line action as these ships were often all that was available to the Norwegian forces.
In 1932, the Norwegian Labour Party
Norwegian Labour Party
The Labour Party is a social-democratic political party in Norway. It is the senior partner in the current Norwegian government as part of the Red-Green Coalition, and its leader, Jens Stoltenberg, is the current Prime Minister of Norway....
made public a proposal crafted by Fredrik Monsen, that the armed forces be dissolved entirely and replaced by a "civil guard". The civil guard would include 18 Trygg class vessels, with the armament of two 76 mm main guns and two twin 45 cm torpedo tubes retained. Olaf Kullmann
Olaf Kullmann
Olaf Bryn Kullmann was a Norwegian naval officer and peace activist.-Early life and career:He was born in Stord in the county of Hordaland, Norway. He was a son of vicar and school manager Jakob Kullmann and Ingeleiv Kristine Mæland...
and Erik Anker Steen
Erik Anker Steen
Erik Anker Steen was a Norwegian naval officer and historian.He is best known for writing the seven-volume Norges sjøkrig . The work first saw publicity in 1954, when Steen published volume two, Det tyske angrep i Oslofjorden og på Norges sørkyst. Volume one followed in the same year, then volume...
had contributed to the "civil guard" concept with advice from a naval perspective.
Fates
All three Trygg vessels were lost during the Second World WarWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, one while in Norwegian service and two after having been pressed into service as Torpedoboot Ausland
Torpedoboot Ausland
The Torpedoboot Ausland were small destroyers or large torpedo boats captured by Nazi Germany and incorporated into the Kriegsmarine. They were assigned a number beginning with TA-TA 1 to TA 6:...
by their German
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
captors.
- Trygg (launched 31 May 1919), commanded by lieutenant Frantz W. Munster, played an instrumental part in the defence of the RomsdalsfjordRomsdalsfjordRomsdalsfjord is the ninth longest fjord in Norway. It is long and located in the Romsdal district of Møre og Romsdal county. It flows through the municipalities of Midsund, Haram, Vestnes, Molde, Nesset, and Rauma...
area in northern Vestlandet. She defended ship traffic and supported alliedAllies of World War IIThe Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...
landings in the MoldeMoldeis a city and municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is part of the Romsdal region. The municipality is located on the Romsdal Peninsula, surrounding the Fannefjord and Moldefjord...
- ÅndalsnesÅndalsnesis a town in the municipality of Rauma in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. Åndalsnes is the administrative center of Rauma. The town has a population of 2,207...
area (Battle of ÅndalsnesBattle of ÅndalsnesThe Battle of Åndalsnes took place in Åndalsnes in Romsdal, Norway in 1940 during the Norwegian Campaign of World War II.After the German invasion of Norway in April 1940, British troops landed in Åndalsnes as part of a pincer movement to take mid-Norwegian city Trondheim...
) until being hit by a German bomb on 25 April 1940, sinking in shallow waters the next day. Trygg was salvaged by the Germans in the fall of 1940 and put into service as the patrol boat Zick. The Zick was sunk off BergenBergenBergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....
on 23 October 1944 by BritishUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
planes.
- Snøgg (launched 2 September 1920), commanded by captain N. H. Simensen, operated out of FlorøFlorøis a town and the administrative centre of Flora municipality in the county of Sogn og Fjordane, Norway. It is also a former municipality that existed for just over 100 years. The town was founded on the Florelandet island between the Botnafjorden and Solheimsfjorden by royal decree in 1860. In...
during the Norwegian Campaign and was captured there on 5 May. As the Germans approached the town they made threats to bomb it to the ground should the Royal Norwegian Navy vessels there try to escape. After being taken over by the Germans she was renamed Zack and put into KriegsmarineKriegsmarineThe Kriegsmarine was the name of the German Navy during the Nazi regime . It superseded the Kaiserliche Marine of World War I and the post-war Reichsmarine. The Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches of the Wehrmacht, the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany.The Kriegsmarine grew rapidly...
service as a patrol boat in occupied NorwayOccupation of Norway by Nazi GermanyThe occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany started with the German invasion of Norway on April 9, 1940, and ended on May 8, 1945, after the capitulation of German forces in Europe. Throughout this period, Norway was continuously occupied by the Wehrmacht...
. On 1 September 1943 Zack ran aground in the Alverstraumen narrows off Bergen and sank during salvage attempts five days later. The wreck was later raised and scrappedShip breakingShip breaking or ship demolition is a type of ship disposal involving the breaking up of ships for scrap recycling. Most ships have a lifespan of a few decades before there is so much wear that refitting and repair becomes uneconomical. Ship breaking allows materials from the ship, especially...
.
- Stegg (launched 16 June 1921), commanded by lieutenant H. M. Hansen, had a brief and intense service in the Norwegian Campaign. She operated in the HardangerfjordHardangerfjordWith a length of , the Hardangerfjord in the county of Hordaland in Norway is the third largest fjord in the world and the second largest in Norway. The surrounding district is called Hardanger....
, defending it against enemy forces and taking two German merchants as prizesPrize (law)Prize is a term used in admiralty law to refer to equipment, vehicles, vessels, and cargo captured during armed conflict. The most common use of prize in this sense is the capture of an enemy ship and its cargo as a prize of war. In the past, it was common that the capturing force would be allotted...
on 12 and 17 April. Being the most capable allied warship in her area of operation she was constantly racing back and forth patrolling the fjord and responding to reports, mostly unfounded, of hostile activity. The end for Stegg came on 20 April when she was engaged by two Kriegsmarine warships while anchored at Herøysund, blowing up as flames reached her munitions at 0630hrs. She was a total loss, but only formally stricken and sold for scrapping 24 June 1949.
The German names for Trygg and Snøgg were basically word play, especially when seen together: Zick and Zack means 'Zigzag
Zigzag
A zigzag is a pattern made up of small corners at variable angles, though constant within the zigzag, tracing a path between two parallel lines; it can be described as both jagged and fairly regular....
' in German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
.