AUSTRO-HUNGARIAN CRUISERS IN WORLD WAR ONE

Because of stringent economizing the Austro-Hungarian Imperial and Royal Navy did not  follow all trends in cruiser development, but it had in its inventory small torpedo cruisers or torpedo ships, ram-cruisers, two generations of armored cruisers (with three vessels in total), older light cruisers and fast scout cruisers. In the period before 1914 Austro-Hungarian cruisers were ploughing the oceans, taking part in numerous training, diplomatic and “peace-keeping” missions all over the world. After the war broke out, the program for the already-approved new scout cruisers was shelved, and the most successful cruisers in the war in the Adriatic were the scouts of Spaun and Saida classes, which had adequate armament, good speed, and were even protected by an armored belt.