The Hildur-class monitors were designed by Lieutenant John Christian d'Ailly, from a proposal by John Ericsson, for the defense of Lake Mälaren and the Stockholm archipelago. The ships were 39.78m (130.51feet) long overall and had a beam of 8.72m (28.61feet). They had a draft of 2.7m (08.9feet) and displaced 460t. Her crew numbered 48 officers and men. The ship had rudders at bow and stern.[1]
The Hildurs had a pair of two-cylinder horizontal-return connecting-rod steam engines, each driving a single propeller using steam from two cylindrical boilers. The engines produced a total of 155ihp which gave the monitors a maximum speed of 8kn.[2] The ships carried 23- of coal.[3]
The monitors were equipped with one 240mm M/69 rifled breech loader, mounted in a long, fixed, oval-shaped gun turret. The gun weighed 14670kg (32,340lb) and fired projectiles at a muzzle velocity of 397m/s. At its maximum elevation of 7.5° it had a range of 3500m (11,500feet).[4] The Hildurs also mounted two 75mm guns. They were rearmed with a 120mm quick-firing gun as well as three 57mm quick-firing guns sometime in the 1890s or the early 1900s.[1]
The Hildur class had a complete waterline armor belt of wrought iron that was 761NaN1 thick with a 19mm deck. The face of the gun turret was protected by 4181NaN1 of armor, while its sides were 356sp=usNaNsp=us thick. The conning tower protruded from the top of the turret and was protected by 2540NaN0 of armor.[5]
Sölve, named after Sölve, a semi-legendary King of Sweden, was launched in 1875 by Motala Verkstad at Norrköping.[3] She was decommissioned in 1919 and was converted into an oil barge after she was sold. The ship was acquired by the Gothenburg Maritima Centrum from Mobiloil in 1992.[5] It has been partially restored and is currently moored at the Maritiman marine museum in Gothenburg.[6]