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Deutschland Class. The last German pre-Dreadnought battleships, distinguishable form the Braunschweig class by having an all casemate mounted secondary armament rather than than having some of them turret mounted. Like many of the last generation of pre-Dreadnoughts they were completed after HMS Dreadnought and unlike many foreign final pre-Dreadnoughts lacked a heavy intermediate gun battery. |
SMS Deutschland
Built Germania, Kiel, laid down July 1903, completed October 1906, cost 24,481,000 Marks.
SMS Pommern
Built A G Vulcan, Stettin, laid down March 1904, completed August 1907, cost 24,624,000 Marks.
SMS Hannover
Built Wilhelmshaven Navy Dockyard, laid down November 1904, completed October 1907, cost 24,253,000 Marks
SMS Schlesien
Built Schichau, Danzig, laid down November 1904, completed May 1908, cost 24,920,000 Marks
SMS Schleswig-Holstein
Built Germania, Kiel, laid down June 1904, completed July 1908, cost 24,972,000 Marks.
Size:
Length 413 feet waterline 418 feet 8 inches overall, beam 73 feet, draught 27 feet, displacement 13,993 tons deep load.
Propulsion:
3 shaft Triple Expansion, 19,000 ihp, 18 knots
Trials:
Deutschland 16,900 ihp = 18.6 knots
Pommern 17,691 ihp = 18.7 knots
Hannover 17,768 ihp = 18.5 knots
Schlesien 18,923 ihp = 18.5 knots
Schleswig-Holstein 19,330 ihp = 19.1 knots
Armour:
9-4in belt, 11in turrets, 3in decks
Armament:
4 x 11in 40cal (2 x 2), 14 x 6.7in (14 x 1), 22 x 3.4in (22 x 1), 6 x 17.7in TT
Comments:
Incremental improvements on the Braunschweig class with similar armament and speed and a slight improvement in
protection. Crew 745.
World War 1 Service:
Deutschland
II Squadron High Seas Fleet.
31 May-1 June1916 Battle of Jutland.
August 1917 became a barrack ship.
1922 scrapped.
Pommern
II Squadron High Seas Fleet.
31 May-1 June1916 sunk at the Battle of Jutland.
Hannover
II Squadron High Seas Fleet.
31 May-1 June1916 Battle of Jutland.
1917 guard ship for the Danish Belt.
1944 scrapped.
Schlesien
II Squadron High Seas Fleet.
31 May-1 June1916 Battle of Jutland.
1917 became training ship.
4 May 1945 scuttled.
Schleswig-Holstein
II Squadron High Seas Fleet.
31 May-1 June1916 Battle of Jutland.
1917 accommodation ship.
18 December1944 sunk by British aircraft.
| SMS Hannover, one of three ships of the class that survived World War 1 and were retained by the German Navy. Two of the class actually served in World War 2, Schleswig-Holstein being credited with firing the first shots of that conflict, although both surviving ships were eventually sunk by Allied aircraft. |
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