Imperial German Navy: Deutschland Class Battleships

	Deutschland Class Battleships

GENERAL INFORMATION FOR CLASS

Displacement: 12,982 tons/design, 13,993 tons/maximum
Length: 125.9 m. Beam: 22.2 m. Draught: 8.2 m.

Main Armament:	Four 28 cm. quick firing guns of 40 calibres length, in two double turrets, one each fore and aft.
Secondary and Tertiary Armaments:	Fourteen 17 cm. quick firing guns of 40 calibres length, in casemates. Twenty 88 mm. quick firing guns of 35 calibres length. Six 45 cm. torpedo tubes, arranged two each port and starboard, one bow, one stern on starboard side.
Armor:	Armoured bulkhead: 170mm...Side armour: 100mm stern, 240 sides/tapered towards waterline to 140mm, 100mm bow...Horizontal armour: 40mm armoured deck, 67-97mm incline armour...Heavy gun turrets: 280mm front, 50mm tops... Casemates 160-170mm...Conning tower: 300mm forward, 140mm after part.
Machinery:	Twelve coal-fired naval boilers feeding three triple expansion reciprocating engines, developing 20,000 i.h.p. at 18.0 knots. Supplimental oil firing installed from 1915. Three propellers, one midships rudder. Trial performances were, DEUTSCHLAND 18.2 kn/18,500 ihp; HANNOVER 18.6 kn/19,620 ihp; POMMERN 18.9 kn/20,540 ihp; SCHLESIEN 19.1 kn/21,818 ihp; SCHLESWIG-HOLSTEIN 19.2 kn/ 23,456 ihp.

Fuel reserves: 836 tons coal/normal, 1693 tons coal/maximum.
Radius of action: 4800 nautical miles at 12 knots.
Additional General Information for Class:
These five sisters, the final flowering of the pre-dreadnaught Imperial Navy, were similar in general type to the Braunschweig class immediately preceding them, although the Deutschlands were more heavily armoured. The practice of fitting a type of intermediate calibre artillery common in other powers' navies was not followed in the German Navy due to the difficulty in controlling the firing and in spotting the fall of shot from three different sizes of guns.

SHIPS IN CLASS

S.M.S. Deutschland
Budget year: 1904 Builders: Friedrich Krupp, Germaniawerft, Kiel Laid down: Jun.20.03 Launched: Nov.19.04 Completed: Aug.3.06
Ship's History:
Served as fleet flagship until 1912...May.31.16 at battle of Jutland...became barrack ship 1917...deleted from Navy List Jan.25.20...scrapped at Wilhelmshaven 1920-22.

S.M.S. Pommern
Budget year: 1904 Builders: AG Vulcan, Stettin Laid down: Apr.04 Launched: Dec.2.05 Completed: Aug.6.07
Ship's History:
May.31/Jun.1.16 battle of Jutland during which action she was sunk by torpedo attack launched from British destroyers. 839 men lost.

S.M.S. Hannover
Budget year: 1904 Builders: Kaiserliche Werft, Wilhelmshaven Laid down: Nov.04 Launched: Sep.29.05 Completed: Oct.1.07
Ship's History:
May.31.16 battle of Jutland...from 1917 guardship in Sound...returned to active service through 1935...deleted from Navy List but held for possible conversion to aircraft target ship (not carried out)...scrapped in Bremerhaven 1944-46.

S.M.S. Schlesien
Budget year: 1904 Builders: F. Schichau, Danzig Laid down: 1905 Launched: May.28.06 Completed: May.5.08
Ship's History:
May.31.16 battle of Jutland...exercise ship from 1917...cadet training ship from 1918...served in German Navy through the second war, scuttled off Swinemünde May.4.45 having been struck by mines and bombs.

S.M.S. Schleswig-Holstein
Budget year: 1904 Builders: Fredrich Krupp, Germaniawerft, Kiel Laid down: Aug.05 Launched: Dec.7.06 Completed: Jul.6.08
Ship's History:
May.31.16 battle of Jutland...from 1917 depot ship at Bremerhaven...from 1918 barrack ship at Kiel...returned to active service and with German Navy through the second war...Sep.1.39 fired on Polish fortifications on the Westerplatte near Danzig, which hostile action was the first of that war...Dec.18.44 burned out following bombing at Gotenhaven, scuttled there Mar.21.45.

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