SMS Kaiserin
Recognition drawing of a Kaiser-class battleship[a]
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History | |
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German Empire | |
Name | Kaiserin |
Namesake | Empress Augusta Victoria |
Builder | Howaldtswerke, Kiel |
Laid down | November 1910 |
Launched | 11 November 1911 |
Commissioned | 14 May 1913 |
Fate | Scuttled at Gutter Sound, Scapa Flow 21 June 1919 |
Notes | Raised and scrapped, 1936 |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Kaiser-class battleship |
Displacement |
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Length | 172.40 m (565 ft 7 in) |
Beam | 29 m (95 ft 2 in) |
Draft | 9.10 m (29 ft 10 in) |
Installed power |
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Propulsion |
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Speed | 22.1 knots (40.9 km/h; 25.4 mph) |
Range | 7,900 nmi (14,600 km; 9,100 mi) at 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph) |
Complement |
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Armament |
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Armor |
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SMS Kaiserin
Along with her four sister ships, Kaiser, Friedrich der Grosse, König Albert, and Prinzregent Luitpold, Kaiserin participated in all of the major fleet operations of World War I, including the Battle of Jutland on 31 May and 1 June 1916. The ship was also involved in Operation Albion, an amphibious assault on the Russian-held islands in the Gulf of Riga, in October 1917. She later saw action during the Second Battle of Heligoland Bight in November 1917.
After Germany's defeat in the war and the signing of the
Design
The ship was 172.40 m (565 ft 7 in) long
Kaiserin was armed with a
Her main
Service history
Ordered under the contract name Ersatz Hagen as a replacement for the obsolete
After joining
Kaiserin was present during the first sortie by the German fleet into the North Sea, which took place on 2–3 November 1914. No British forces were encountered during the operation. A second operation followed on 15–16 December.
Kaiserin went into the Baltic for squadron training from 23 to 29 January 1915. Upon returning to the North Sea, the ship went into drydock in Wilhelmshaven for periodic maintenance, which lasted from 31 January to 20 February.[9] The Kaiser removed Ingenohl from his post on 2 February, following the loss of SMS Blücher at the Battle of Dogger Bank the month before. Admiral Hugo von Pohl succeeded him as the commander of the fleet.[13] Pohl continued the policy of sweeps into the North Sea to destroy isolated British formations. The fleet conducted a series of advances into the North Sea throughout 1915; Kaiserin was present for the sweeps on 17 to 18 May, 29 to 30 May, 10 August, 11 to 12 September, and 23 to 24 October. III Squadron completed the year with another round of unit training in the Baltic from 5 to 20 December.[9]
Pohl's tenure as fleet commander was brief; by January 1916
Battle of Jutland
Kaiserin was present during the fleet operation that resulted in the battle of
Shortly before 16:00, the battlecruisers of I Scouting Group encountered the British 1st Battlecruiser Squadron under the command of Vice Admiral
At approximately 17:40, the British light cruiser Nottingham fired a single torpedo at Kaiserin at the extreme range of at least 16,500 yd (15,100 m), which failed to find its target.[23] After Scheer ordered the fleet to open fire, Kaiserin briefly engaged the battlecruiser New Zealand; Kaiserin failed to score a hit and by 17:54 New Zealand and the rest of the British battlecruisers had increased speed and moved out of range.[24] The British destroyers Nestor and Nomad, which had been disabled earlier in the engagement, lay directly in the path of the advancing High Seas Fleet.[25] Kaiserin and her three sisters fired on Nomad with their secondary guns while the I Squadron battleships dispatched Nestor.[26] At around 19:00, the German battle line came into contact with the 2nd Light Cruiser Squadron; Kaiserin fired three salvos from her main battery at an unidentified four-funneled cruiser but made no hits.[27]
Shortly after 19:00, a shell from the British battlecruiser Invincible disabled the German cruiser Wiesbaden; Rear Admiral Behncke in König attempted to maneuver III Squadron to cover the stricken cruiser.[28] Simultaneously, the British 3rd and 4th Light Cruiser Squadrons began a torpedo attack on the German line; while advancing to torpedo range, they smothered Wiesbaden with fire from their main guns. The eight III Squadron battleships fired on the British cruisers, but even sustained fire from the battleships' main guns failed to drive off the British cruisers.[29] The armored cruisers Defence, Warrior, and Black Prince joined in the attack on the crippled Wiesbaden.[30] Between 19:14 and 19:17, several German battleships and battlecruisers opened fire on Defence and Warrior.[31] Kaiserin initially engaged one of the battleships in the British 5th Battle Squadron and scored a hit; according to Kaiserin's logs, the ship in question was Malaya.[32] After three minutes firing at Malaya, Kaiserin shifted fire to Defence.[31] In short succession, the German dreadnoughts hit Defence with several heavy caliber shells. One salvo penetrated the ship's ammunition magazines and, in a tremendous explosion, destroyed the cruiser.[33] After Defence exploded, Kaiserin shifted her fire to a target believed to be the battlecruiser Tiger. Heavy haze forced Kaiserin to check fire after two salvos.[34]
By 20:00, Scheer ordered the German line to complete a 180-degree turn eastward to disengage from the British fleet.[35] The maneuver, conducted under heavy fire, caused disorganization in the German fleet. Kaiserin had come too close to Prinzregent Luitpold and was forced to haul out of line to starboard to avoid a collision. The latter vessel came up alongside Kaiserin at high speed. As a result, Kaiserin had to remain out of line and could not return to her assigned position.[36] The turn reversed the order of the German line; Kaiserin was now the seventh ship from the rear of the German line.[37] At around 23:30, the German fleet reorganized into the night cruising formation. Kaiserin was the eleventh ship, in the center of the 24-ship line.[38]
After a series of night engagements between the leading battleships and British destroyers, the High Seas Fleet punched through the British light forces and reached
Subsequent operations
In early August, Kaiserin and the rest of the operational III Squadron units conducted divisional training in the Baltic.
Another fleet advance followed on 18 to 20 October, though it ended without encountering any British units. Two weeks later, on 4 November, Kaiserin took part in an expedition to the western coast of Denmark to assist two U-boats, U-20 and U-30, that had become stranded there. The fleet was reorganized on 1 December;[9] the four König-class battleships remained in III Squadron, along with the newly commissioned Bayern, while the five Kaiser-class ships, including Kaiserin, were transferred to IV Squadron.[46] While transiting the Kaiser Wilhelm Canal on 14 March 1917, Kaiserin became grounded. One of her bilge keels was damaged and some 280 t (280 long tons; 310 short tons) of water entered the ship. Repairs were conducted at the Imperial Dockyard in Kiel from 15 to 18 March. Kaiserin returned to the North Sea on 30 March and remained there on guard duty until 8 June. On 9 June, she went to the Baltic for a month-long series of exercises, which were completed on 2 July. She resumed guard duties in the German Bight on 3 July and continued in this role until 11 September, when Kaiserin was detached to join the special unit assigned to Operation Albion.[9]
Operation Albion
In early September 1917, following the German conquest of the Russian port of
The operation began on the morning of 12 October, when Moltke and the III Squadron ships engaged Russian positions in Tagga Bay while Kaiserin and the rest of IV Squadron shelled Russian gun batteries on the
On the night of 15 October, Kaiserin and König Albert were sent to replenish their coal stocks in
Final operations
On 17 November 1917, Kaiserin and Kaiser were assigned to provide cover for II Scouting Group while it conducted a minesweeping operation in the North Sea. Significant British forces, including five battlecruisers and several light cruisers, attacked II Scouting Group; the two battleships immediately steamed to their assistance. In the ensuing Second Battle of Heligoland Bight, Kaiserin scored a hit on the light cruiser Caledon.[57] The battlecruiser Repulse briefly engaged the German dreadnoughts, but both forces withdrew.[58] After the action, Rear Admiral Ludwig von Reuter criticized Kaiserin's commander, KzS Kurt Graßhoff, for lagging too far behind the minesweepers to provide adequate protection. He was subsequently relieved of command of the ship.[59] Kaiserin went into drydock for maintenance on 22 December, and work lasted until 5 February 1918. The ship participated in the fruitless advance to Norway on 23–25 April 1918, which had been intended to intercept a heavily defended convoy between Britain and Norway; faulty German intelligence prevented the Germans from catching the convoy.[60] After returning to port, she resumed guard duties in the German Bight. IV Squadron undertook another training exercise in the Baltic from 18 June to 13 August. A final round of drills took place on 22–28 October.[57]
Fate
Kaiserin and her four sisters were to have taken part in a
Following the capitulation of Germany in November 1918, the Allies interned most of the High Seas Fleet, under the command of Rear Admiral Ludwig von Reuter, in the British naval base in Scapa Flow.[63] Prior to the departure of the German fleet, Admiral Adolf von Trotha made clear to Reuter that he could not allow the Allies to seize the ships, under any circumstances.[65] The fleet rendezvoused with the British light cruiser Cardiff, which led the ships to the Allied fleet that was to escort the Germans to Scapa Flow. The massive fleet consisted of some 370 British, American, and French warships.[66] Once the ships were interned, their guns were disabled through the removal of their breech blocks, and their crews were reduced to 200 officers and enlisted men.[67]
The fleet remained in captivity during the negotiations that ultimately produced the
Notes
Endnotes
- ^ The foremast illustrated here is the heavy tubular type fitted only to Kaiser and Friedrich der Grosse. Kaiserin was equipped with a standard pole mast. See Gröner, p. 26.
- Seiner Majestät Schiff" (German: His Majesty's Ship).
- ^ In Imperial German Navy gun nomenclature, "SK" (Schnelladekanone) denotes that the gun is quick loading, while the L/50 denotes the length of the gun. In this case, the L/50 gun is 50 calibers, meaning that the gun is 45 times as long as it is in bore diameter.[2]
- ^ The hexagonal arrangement was inefficient, as the main battery of twelve guns was limited to a broadside of eight guns. See Hore, p. 67. Kaiserin's broadside was two guns heavier, despite the fact that she carried two fewer guns than the ships of the Helgoland class. See Hore, p. 69.
- ^ German warships were ordered under provisional names. For new additions to the fleet, they were given a single letter; for those ships intended to replace older or lost vessels, they were ordered as "Ersatz (name of the ship to be replaced)".
- Arabic numerals.
- ^ The compass can be divided into 32 points, each corresponding to 11.25 degrees. A two-point turn to port would alter the ships' course by 22.5 degrees.
Citations
- ^ a b c d e Gröner, p. 26.
- ^ Grießmer, p. 177.
- ^ Staff, Battleships, p. 4.
- ^ Staff, Battleships, p. 6.
- ^ Campbell & Sieche, p. 147.
- ^ a b c Staff, Battleships, p. 18.
- ^ Hildebrand, Röhr, & Steinmetz, p. 70.
- ^ Staff, Battleships, pp. 14, 18.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Staff, Battleships, p. 19.
- ^ Herwig, p. 144.
- ^ Herwig, pp. 149–150.
- ^ Tarrant, pp. 31–33.
- ^ Tarrant, pp. 43–44.
- ^ Herwig, p. 161.
- ^ Tarrant, p. 50.
- ^ Staff, Battleships, pp. 32, 35.
- ^ Scheer, p. 137.
- ^ Tarrant, p. 286.
- ^ Tarrant, pp. 94–95.
- ^ Tarrant, pp. 100–101.
- ^ Campbell, p. 36.
- ^ Tarrant, p. 110.
- ^ Campbell, p. 53.
- ^ Campbell, p. 54.
- ^ Tarrant, p. 114.
- ^ Campbell, p. 101.
- ^ Campbell, p. 111.
- ^ Tarrant, p. 137.
- ^ Tarrant, p. 138.
- ^ Tarrant, p. 139.
- ^ a b Campbell, p. 152.
- ^ Campbell, p. 154.
- ^ Tarrant, p. 140.
- ^ Campbell, p. 153.
- ^ Tarrant, p. 169.
- ^ Campbell, pp. 200–201.
- ^ Tarrant, p. 172.
- ^ Campbell, p. 275.
- ^ Tarrant, pp. 246–247.
- ^ Campbell, p. 320.
- ^ Tarrant, p. 263.
- ^ Tarrant, p. 292.
- ^ Massie, p. 682.
- ^ Staff, Battleships, p. 15.
- ^ Massie, p. 683.
- ^ Halpern, p. 214.
- ^ Halpern, p. 213.
- ^ Halpern, pp. 214–215.
- ^ Staff, Battle for the Baltic Islands, p. 4.
- ^ a b Halpern, p. 215.
- ^ Staff, Battle for the Baltic Islands, pp. 20–21.
- ^ Staff, Battle for the Baltic Islands, p. 67.
- ^ Staff, Battle for the Baltic Islands, pp. 70–72.
- ^ Staff, Battle for the Baltic Islands, p. 81.
- ^ Staff, Battle for the Baltic Islands, p. 140.
- ^ Staff, Battle for the Baltic Islands, p. 145.
- ^ a b c Staff, Battleships, p. 20.
- ^ Konstam, p. 35.
- ^ Hildebrand, Röhr, & Steinmetz, p. 71.
- ^ Halpern, pp. 418–419.
- ^ Tarrant, pp. 280–281.
- ^ Tarrant, pp. 281–282.
- ^ a b Tarrant, p. 282.
- ^ Herwig, p. 252.
- ^ a b Herwig, p. 256.
- ^ Herwig, pp. 254–255.
- ^ Herwig, p. 255.
References
- Campbell, John (1998). Jutland: An Analysis of the Fighting. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 978-1-55821-759-1.
- Campbell, N. J. M. & Sieche, Erwin (1986). "Germany". In Gardiner, Robert & Gray, Randal (eds.). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. London: Conway Maritime Press. pp. 134–189. ISBN 978-0-85177-245-5.
- Grießmer, Axel (1999). Die Linienschiffe der Kaiserlichen Marine: 1906–1918; Konstruktionen zwischen Rüstungskonkurrenz und Flottengesetz [The Battleships of the Imperial Navy: 1906–1918; Constructions between Arms Competition and Fleet Laws] (in German). Bonn: Bernard & Graefe Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7637-5985-9.
- ISBN 978-0-87021-790-6.
- Halpern, Paul G. (1995). A Naval History of World War I. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-55750-352-7.
- Herwig, Holger (1998) [1980]. "Luxury" Fleet: The Imperial German Navy 1888–1918. Amherst: Humanity Books. ISBN 978-1-57392-286-9.
- Hildebrand, Hans H.; Röhr, Albert & Steinmetz, Hans-Otto (1993). Die Deutschen Kriegsschiffe: Biographien – ein Spiegel der Marinegeschichte von 1815 bis zur Gegenwart [The German Warships: Biographies − A Reflection of Naval History from 1815 to the Present] (in German). Vol. 5. Ratingen: Mundus Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7822-0456-9.
- Hore, Peter (2006). Battleships of World War I. London: Southwater Books. ISBN 978-1-84476-377-1.
- Konstam, Angus (2003). British Battlecruisers 1939–45. Oxford: Osprey Books. ISBN 978-1-84176-633-1.
- ISBN 978-0-345-40878-5.
- Scheer, Reinhard (1920). Germany's High Seas Fleet in the World War. London: Cassell and Company. Archived from the original on 16 September 2008. Retrieved 17 December 2012.
- Staff, Gary (2010). German Battleships: 1914–1918. Vol. 2: Kaiser, König And Bayern Classes. Oxford: Osprey Books. ISBN 978-1-84603-468-8.
- Staff, Gary (2008) [1995]. Battle for the Baltic Islands 1917: Triumph of the Imperial German Navy. Barnsley: Pen & Sword Maritime. ISBN 978-1-84415-787-7.
- Tarrant, V. E. (2001) [1995]. Jutland: The German Perspective. London: Cassell Military Paperbacks. ISBN 978-0-304-35848-9.
Further reading
- Dodson, Aidan; Cant, Serena (2020). Spoils of War: The Fate of Enemy Fleets after the Two World Wars. Barnsley: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-5267-4198-1.