SMS Odin was the lead ship of her class of coastal defense ships built for the Imperial German Navy. She had one sister ship, Ägir. Odin, named for the eponymous Norse god, was built by the Kaiserliche Werft in Danzig between 1893 and 1896, and was armed with a main battery of three 24-centimeter (9.4 in) guns. She served in the German fleet throughout the 1890s and was rebuilt in 1901–1903. She served in the VI Battle Squadron after the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, but saw no action. Odin was demobilized in 1915 and used as a tender thereafter. After the war, she was rebuilt as a merchant ship and served in this capacity until 1935, when she was broken up for scrap.
A 1902 lithograph of Odin firing a salute
Odin in 1899 before her reconstruction
An unidentified member of the Siegfried or Odin class on patrol during World War I, c. 1915
Odin-class coastal defense ship
The Odin class was a pair of coastal defense ships built for the German Kaiserliche Marine in the late 19th century. The class comprised two ships: Odin, named after the Norse god Odin, and Ägir, named after the Norse god of the same name. The ships were very similar to the preceding Siegfried-class coastal defense ships, and are sometimes considered to be one class of ships.
A 1902 lithograph of Odin firing a salute
Lithograph of Ägir in 1902