The Flag of the USE Navy
The USE Navy was the Navy of the United States of Europe.
History[]
What would become the USE Navy was created on the initiative of Eddie Cantrell in 1632. It was created as the navy of the New United States, and was effectivly the navy of the Confederated Principalities of Europe. It became a USE service when the USE was created. The first Navy shipyard was located on the Elbe river, just outside of Magdeburg. The first (and, so far, only) commander of the USE Navy was Admiral John Chandler Simpson.
The Navy saw its first action during the Ostend War, which was largely a naval conflict. The ironclads and timberclads of the USE Navy were far superior to the wooden warships of the League of Ostend.
The USE Navy defeated Danish fleets at the Battle of Luebeck Bay and the Battle of Copenhagen in 1634, forcing King Christian of Denmark to surrender.
The Navy was officially neutral in the USE civil conflict of late 1635-early 1636. However, Admiral Simpson allowed Kristina and Ulrik to stay at the USE naval base in Luebeck, on the grounds that Prime Minister Wettin had no authority over the heir apparent and Axel Oxenstierna had no authority over Kristina outside of Sweden.
In the mid-1630s, the ships of the USE Navy were, on an individual basis, the most powerful in Europe – and possibly in the world. While they carried fewer guns than was usual for 17th century warships, the ones they had could shoot farther and more accurately, fired a heavier shot, and fired exploding shells. However, the USE Navy as a force was limited by having originally been designed as a "brown water" force for use on Germany's major rivers. While the ironclads and timberclads could and did operate in the Baltic and the English Channel if the water wasn't too rough, they were not noted for being particularly seaworthy.
By late 1635, the USE Navy had added the Wild-class courier schooners to its fleet[1], which did have deep-sea capability, but were not combat vessels. By mid-1635, the Navy had a few first-generation ocean-going combat vessels.[2] These were sailing ships with auxiliary steam engines for use in combat. They carried carronades, but their main guns were eight-inch breechloaders in tub mounts; destroyers carried one and cruisers carried two. These guns could be swiveled through 270 degrees, and could fire much farther and more accurately than broadside-mounted guns. However, that made them more sensitive to a ship's motion. They were also less effective at night, since they had to be aimed at targets that could be seen.
[]
The SSIM Constitution, one of the first ironclads of the USE Navy
- SSIM Ajax
- SSIM Achates
- SSIM Achilles
- SSIM Constitution
- SSIM President
- SSIM United States
- SSIM Monitor
- SSIM Lawrence Wild
- SSIM Bjorn Svedberg
- SSIM Intrepid
- SSIM Resolve
- SSIM Anneke van Ruyper[3]
Ships of the USE Navy are designated SSIM, for Schiff seiner imperialen Majestät, which is German for "His Imperial Majesty's Ship".[4]
[]
- John Chandler Simpson, USE Navy Admiral
- Richard Henderson, USE Navy Commodore
- Franz Halberstat, captain of the SSIM Constitution
- Wolfgang Mülbers, captain of the SSIM Ajax
- C.H. Baumgartner, captain of the SSIM Achates
- Edward "Eddie" Cantrell, USE Navy Commodore[2]
- Franz-Leo Chomse, USE Navy Captain (as of August 1636)
- Kjell Halvorsen, USE Navy Ensign
- Claus Brockman, USE Navy Lieutenant
- Bjorn Svedberg, USE Navy Gunners Mate
References[]
- ↑ A Friend In Need, Jack Carroll, Grantville Gazette, Volume 27
- ↑ 1636: Commander Cantrell in the West Indies
- ↑ In Remembrance, Jack Carroll, Grantville Gazette, Volume 42
- ↑ At the end of ch. 42 of 1636: Commander Cantrell in the West Indies, Eddie Cantrell refers to the "USS Resolve". If this was not simply a proofreading error, it is not clear if it was meant as an unconscious slip into up-time usage or a deliberate reminder that the Resolve was a USE ship.