Kaiser Max-class ironclad (1862)

Photo of Prinz Eugen before 1867
Class overview
Operators	Austro-Hungarian Navy
Preceded by	Drache class
Succeeded by	Erzherzog Ferdinand Max class
Built	1861–1863
In commission	1863–1873
Completed	3
Scrapped	3
General characteristics
Type	Ironclad warship
Displacement	3,588 long tons (3,646 t)
Length	70.78 m (232 ft 3 in) pp
Beam	10 m (32 ft 10 in)
Draft	6.32 m (20 ft 9 in)
Installed power	1,926 indicated horsepower (1,436 kW)
Propulsion	1 × marine steam engine 1 × screw propeller
Speed	11.4 knots (21.1 km/h; 13.1 mph)
Crew	386
Armament	16 × 48-pounder guns 15 × 24-pounder guns 1 × 12-pounder gun 1 × 6-pounder gun
Armor	Belt: 110 mm (4.3 in)

The Kaiser Max class of broadside ironclads was a group of three vessels built for the Austro-Hungarian Navy in the 1860s. The class consisted of Kaiser Max, the lead ship, Prinz Eugen, and Don Juan d'Austria. They were an improved version of the preceding Drache class, being larger, carrying a larger gun battery, and having more powerful engines. The three ships were all laid down in 1861, launched in 1862, and completed in 1863.

Don Juan d'Austria took part in the Second Schleswig War in 1864 but did not see combat. Two years later, Austria was attacked by Prussia and Italy in the Seven Weeks' War; a major naval engagement was fought against Italy at the Battle of Lissa in July 1866, where all three ships saw action. After the war, they were modernized, but did not see further active service. In poor condition by 1873, the Navy decided to discard the ships. But because parliament refused to budget funds to build replacements, the commander of the Navy, Friedrich von Pöck requested permission to "rebuild" the three Kaiser Maxes, which was granted. In fact, the three ships were broken up, with only their engines, armor plate, and some other equipment being reused in the new ships.