Part of the Dresden-class light cruisers consisting of the Dresden and Emden, both built under the 1905-1906 program, preceded by the Königsberg-class and succeeded by the Kolberg-class.
Building ordered as the Ersatz Pfeil on 6 April 1906, Laid down by the Kaiserliche Werft, Danzig, Germany on 1 November 1906, launched on 26 May 1908, commissioned on 10 July 1909, forced to leave the Dutch East Indies by the Dutch coastal defence ship Hr.Ms. Tromp when she wanted to bunker coals, she acted successful as a commerce raider, destroyed on 27 October at Penang the Russian cruiser Zhemchug and the French destroyer Mousquet, deliberately grounded off Direction Island, Cocos Islands to prevent she sunk after she was heavily damaged in a battle with the Australian cruiser HMAS Sydney on 9 November 1914, wreck torn apart by the tides and broken up in the early 1950s by a Japanese salvaging company.
Displacement 4.268 tons and as dimensions 118,3 (over all) x 13,5 x 5,53 metres or 388.1 x 44.3 x 18.2 feet. The machinery consisted of 2 triple expansion steam engines and 12 coal fired Marine-type water tube boilers supplying 13.315 ihp allowing a speed of 23,5 knots and with a speed of 12 knots and a coal bunker capacity of 860 tons coal was her range of 3,760 nautical miles. Her crew numbered 371 men (included 18 officers). The armour consisted of a 8cm/3.1” thick deck, 5cm/2.0” thick guns shields and with the conning tower protected by 10cm/3.9” thick armour. The armament consisted of 10x1-10,5cm/4”.1” L/40 quick firing guns, 8x1-5,2cm/2.0” L/55 quick firing guns and 2-45cm/17.7” torpedo tubes.
