SMS Preussen was an ironclad turret ship built for the German Kaiserliche Marine (Imperial Navy). The ship was built by the AG Vulcan shipyard in Stettin in 1871–1876; she was commissioned into the fleet in July 1876. She was the first large warship of the German navy built by a private shipyard; all previous vessels had been ordered abroad or built by Royal or Imperial dockyards. Her main battery of four guns was mounted in a pair of twin gun turrets amidships. Preussen served with the fleet from her commissioning until 1891, though she was frequently placed in reserve throughout her career. She cruised the Mediterranean Sea several times during her service, including during a mission in 1877 after unrest in the Ottoman Empire threatened German citizens living there. The ship was withdrawn from service at the end of 1891 and used as a harbor guard ship until 1896, when she was relegated to being a supply ship in Wilhelmshaven. She ended her career as a coal hulk for torpedo boats. In 1903, she was renamed Saturn so her name could be reused. The ship was ultimately sold to shipbreakers in 1919. Design The three Preussen-class ironclads were authorized under the naval program of 1867, which had been approved by the (Imperial Diet) to strengthen the North German Federal Navy in the wake of the Second Schleswig War, when the weak, then-Prussian Navy had been unable to break the blockade imposed by the Danish Navy. Initially ordered as casemate ships, the vessels were re-designed as turret ships; they were the first uniform class of ironclads built by for the German fleet. The ship was long overall and had a beam of and a draft of forward. Preussen was powered by one 3-cylinder single-expansion steam engine, which drove a single screw propeller. Steam was supplied by six coal-fired transverse trunk boilers, which were vented into a single funnel. The ship's top speed was , at . She was also equipped with a full ship rig. Her standard complement consisted of 46 officers and 454 enlisted men. She was armed with a main battery of four L/22 guns mounted in a pair of gun turrets placed on the centerline amidships. As built, the ship was also equipped with two L/25 chase guns, one in the bow and one in the stern. After being rebuilt in 1888–1890, her armament was increased by six