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SMSThüringen

SMSThüringen[a]was the third vessel of theHelgolandclassofdreadnoughtbattleshipsof the GermanKaiserliche Marine(Imperial Navy}.Thüringen'skeelwas laid in November 1908 at theAG Weserdockyard inBremen.She was launched on 27 November 1909 and commissioned into the fleet on 1 July 1911. The ship was equipped with twelve 30.5 cm (12 in) guns in six twinturrets,and had a top speed of 21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph).Thüringenwas assigned toI Battle Squadronof theHigh Seas Fleetfor the majority of her career, includingWorld War I.

SMSThüringen,probably before the war
History
German Empire
NameThüringen
NamesakeThuringia
BuilderAG Weser,Bremen
Laid down2 November 1908
Launched27 November 1909
Commissioned1 July 1911
Decommissioned16 December 1918
Stricken5 November 1919
FateCeded to France in 1920, later used as target ship and sunk. Broken up for scrap, 1923–33
General characteristics
Class and typeHelgoland-classbattleship
Displacement
Length167.20 m (548 ft 7 in)
Beam28.50 m (93 ft 6 in)
Draft8.94 m (29 ft 4 in)
Installed power
Propulsion
Speed20.8knots(38.5 km/h; 23.9 mph)
Range5,500nautical miles(10,190 km; 6,330 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)
Complement
  • 42 officers
  • 1027 enlisted
Armament
Armor

Along with her threesister ships,Helgoland,Ostfriesland,andOldenburg,Thüringenparticipated in all of the major fleet operations of World War I in theNorth Seaagainst the BritishGrand Fleet.This included theBattle of Jutlandon 31 May and 1 June 1916, the largest naval battle of the war.Thüringenwas involved in the heavy night fighting at Jutland, including the destruction of thearmored cruiserHMSBlack Prince.[1]The ship also saw action against theImperial Russian Navyin theBaltic Sea,where she participated in the unsuccessfulfirst incursion into the Gulf of Rigain August 1915.

After the German collapse in November 1918, most of the High Seas Fleet was interned inScapa Flowduring the peace negotiations. The fourHelgoland-class ships were allowed to remain in Germany and were therefore spared thedestruction of the fleet in Scapa Flow.Thüringenand her sisters were eventually ceded to the victoriousAllied powersaswar reparations;Thüringenwas transferred to France in April 1920 and used as a target ship for the French Navy. She was sunk offGavresand broken upin situin 1923–1933, though some sections of the ship remain.

Design

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Main article:Helgoland-class battleship

Many senior officers in the GermanKaiserliche Marine(Imperial Navy) acknowledged that theNassau-class battleships,armed with 28 cm (11 in) guns, were inferior to their British counterparts that carried 30.5 cm (12 in) guns. They sought to incorporate guns of the latter caliber in the next battleship design, though the significant increase in cost from thepre-dreadnoughtDeutschland-class battleshipsto thedreadnoughtNassauclass precluded another major qualitative increase until the 1908 budget year, two years after the firstNassaus were ordered. The design staff experimented with a variety ofgun turretarrangements, includingsuperfiringlayouts like the AmericanSouth Carolinaclass,but they ultimately settled on the same hexagonal arrangement of theNassaus.[2]

Plan and profile drawing of theHelgolandclass

The ship was 167.2 m (548 ft 7 in) long, had abeamof 28.5 m (93 ft 6 in) and adraftof 8.94 m (29 ft 4 in), anddisplaced24,700metric tons(24,310long tons) atfull load.Thüringenhad aflush deckand minimalsuperstructurethat consisted primarily of a large, armoredconning towerforward and a smaller, secondary conning position further aft. The ship was fitted with a pair of polemasts,which heldspotting topsand positions forsearchlights.She had a crew of 42 officers and 1,071 enlisted men.[3][4]

She was powered by threetriple-expansion steam engines,which produced a top speed of 21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph). Steam was provided by fifteenwater-tube boilers,which were vented through three closely spacedfunnelsplacedamidships.Thüringenstored up to 3,200 metric tons (3,100 long tons) of coal, which allowed her to steam for 5,500nautical miles(10,200 km; 6,300 mi) at a speed of 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph). After 1915, the boilers were modified to spray oil on the coal to increase its burn rate; the ship could carry up to 197 metric tons (194 long tons) of fuel oil.[5]

Thüringenwas armed with amain batteryof twelve30.5 cm (12 in) SK L/50[b]guns in six twin gun turrets, with one turret fore, one aft, and two on each flank of the ship.[7]The ship'ssecondary batteryconsisted of fourteen15 cm (5.9 in) SK L/45 guns,all of which were mounted incasematesin the side of the upper deck. For defense againsttorpedo boats,she carried fourteen8.8 cm (3.5 in) SK L/45guns.[5]After 1914, two of the 8.8 cm guns were removed and replaced by 8.8 cm anti-aircraft guns.Thüringenwas also armed with six 50 cm (19.7 in) submergedtorpedo tubes;one was in thebow,one in thestern,and two on eachbroadside.

Her mainarmored beltwas 300 mm (11.8 in) thick in the centralcitadel,and was composed ofKrupp cemented armor(KCA). Her main battery gun turrets were protected by the same thickness of KCA on the sides and faces, as well as thebarbettesthat supported the turrets.Thüringen's deck was 63.5 mm (2.5 in) thick.[5]

Service history

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Thüringenwas ordered by the German Imperial Navy (Kaiserliche Marine) under the provisional nameErsatz Beowulf,[c]as a replacement for the oldcoastal defense shipBeowulf.The contract for the ship was awarded to theAG Weserdockyard inBremenunder construction number 166.[5]Work began on 2 November 1908 with the laying of herkeel,and the ship was launched a year later on 27 November 1909.[8]She was christened by DuchessAdelheid von Sachsen-Altenburg,and Grand DukeWilhelm Ernstgave the speech.[9]Fitting-out,including completion of the superstructure and the installation of armament, lasted until June 1911. Following her completion, six pontoon barges were attached to the new battleship to reduce her draft to allow her to be towed down theWeser Riverto theNorth Sea.[1]Thüringen,named forThuringia,a state in central Germany, was commissioned into the High Seas Fleet on 1 June 1911, less than three years after work commenced.[10]

After her commissioning on 1 July 1911,Thüringenconductedsea trials,which were completed by 10 September. On 19 September, she was assigned toI Battle Squadronof theHigh Seas Fleet,alongside her sisters.[1]She then went on to conduct individual ship training exercises, which were followed by I Squadron exercises and then fleet maneuvers in November.[11]The annual summer cruise in July and August, which typically went to Norway, was interrupted by theAgadir Crisis.As a result, the cruise only went into the Baltic.[12]Thüringenand the rest of the fleet then fell into a pattern of individual ship, squadron, and full fleet exercises over the next two years.[1]In October 1913,William Michaelisbecame the ship's commanding officer; he held the post until February 1915.[13]

On 14 July 1914, the annual summer cruise to Norway began.[14]During the last peacetime cruise of the Imperial Navy, the fleet conducted drills offSkagenbefore proceeding to the Norwegian fjords on 25 July. The following day the fleet began to steam back to Germany, as a result of Austria-Hungary'sultimatum to Serbia.On 27 July, the entire fleet assembled offCape Skudenesbefore returning to port, where they remained at a heightened state of readiness.[15]War between Austria-Hungary and Serbia broke out the following day, and within a week all the major European powers had joined the conflict.[16]By 29 JulyThüringenand the rest of I Squadron were back inWilhelmshaven.[17]During the first year of the war, the future anti-NaziLutheranpastorMartin Niemöllerserved aboard the ship as an officer.[18]

World War I

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The High Seas Fleet's disposition on the morning of 16 December 1914, during theraid on Scarborough, Hartlepool and Whitby

Thüringenwas 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.[11]This sortie was the initiation of a strategy adopted by AdmiralFriedrich von Ingenohl,the commander of the High Seas Fleet. Ingenohl intended to use thebattlecruisersofKonteradmiral(Rear Admiral)Franz von Hipper'sI Scouting Groupto raid British coastal towns to lure out portions of the Grand Fleet where they could be destroyed by the High Seas Fleet.[19]Early on 15 December the fleet left port toraid the towns of Scarborough, Hartlepool, and Whitbyon the English coast. That evening, the German battle fleet of some twelve dreadnoughts—includingThüringenand her threesisters—and eight pre-dreadnoughts came to within 10 nmi (19 km; 12 mi) of an isolated squadron of six British battleships. Skirmishes between the rivaldestroyerscreens in the darkness convinced Ingenohl that he was faced with the entire Grand Fleet. Under orders fromKaiser Wilhelm IIto avoid risking the fleet unnecessarily, Ingenohl broke off the engagement and turned the battle fleet back toward Germany.[20]

TheBattle of Dogger Bank,in which Vice AdmiralDavid Beatty's1stand2nd Battlecruiser Squadronsambushed the I Scouting Group battlecruisers, occurred on 24 January 1915.[21]Thüringenand the rest of I Squadron were sortied to reinforce the outnumbered German battlecruisers; I Squadron left port at 12:33CET,[d]along with the pre-dreadnoughts of II Squadron. The High Seas Fleet was too late, so it failed to locate any British forces. By 19:05, the fleet had returned to theSchillig Roadsoutside Wilhelmshaven.[11]In the meantime, thearmored cruiserBlücherhad been overwhelmed by concentrated British fire and sunk, while the battlecruiserSeydlitzwas severely damaged by an ammunition fire. As a result, Wilhelm II removed Ingenohl from his post and replaced him with AdmiralHugo von Pohlon 2 February.[22]

Recognition drawing of aHelgoland-class battleship

The eight I Squadron ships went into the Baltic on 22 February 1915 for unit training, which lasted until 13 March. Following their return to the North Sea, the ships participated in a series of uneventful fleet sorties on 29–30 March, 17–18 April, 21–22 April, 17–18 May, and 29–30 May.Thüringenand the rest of the fleet then remained in port until 4 August, when I Squadron returned to the Baltic for another round of training maneuvers. From there, the squadron was attached to the naval force that attempted to sweep theGulf of Rigaof Russian naval forces in August 1915.[11]The assault force included the eight I Squadron battleships, the battlecruisersVon der Tann,Moltke,andSeydlitz,severallight cruisers,32 destroyers and 13minesweepers.The plan called for channels to be swept in Russian minefields so that the Russian naval presence, which included the pre-dreadnoughtSlava,could be eliminated. The Germans would then lay minefields of their own to prevent Russian ships from returning to the Gulf.[23]Thüringenand the majority of the other big ships of the High Seas Fleet remained outside the Gulf for the entirety ofthe operation.The dreadnoughtsNassauandPosenwere detached on 16 August to escort the minesweepers and to destroySlava,though they failed to sink the old battleship. After three days, the Russian minefields had been cleared, and the flotilla entered the Gulf on 19 August; reports of Allied submarines in the area prompted a German withdrawal from the Gulf the following day.[24]By 26 August, I Squadron had returned to Wilhelmshaven.[11]

On 23–24 October, the High Seas Fleet undertook its last major offensive operation under the command of Pohl, though it ended without contact with British forces.[11]By January 1916hepatic cancerhad weakened Pohl to the point where he was no longer able to carry out his duties, and he was replaced by Vice AdmiralReinhard Scheerin January.[25]Scheer proposed a more aggressive policy designed to force a confrontation with the British Grand Fleet; he received approval from the Kaiser in February.[26]Scheer's first operation was a sweep into the North Sea on 5–7 March, followed by two more on 21–22 March and 25–26 March.[11]During Scheer's next operation,Thüringensupporteda raid on the English coaston 24 April 1916 conducted by the German battlecruiser force. The battlecruisers left theJade Estuaryat 10:55 and the rest of the High Seas Fleet followed at 13:40. The battlecruiserSeydlitzstruck a mine while en route to the target, and had to withdraw.[27]The other battlecruisers bombarded the town of Lowestoft unopposed, but during the approach to Yarmouth, they encountered the British cruisers of theHarwich Force.A short gun duel ensued before the Harwich Force withdrew. Reports of British submarines in the area prompted the retreat of I Scouting Group. At this point, Scheer, who had been warned of the sortie of the Grand Fleet from its base in Scapa Flow, also withdrew to safer German waters.[28]

Battle of Jutland

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Main article:Battle of Jutland
Maps showing the maneuvers of the British (blue) and German (red) fleets on 31 May – 1 June 1916

Thüringenwas present during the fleet operation that resulted in the battle ofJutlandwhich took place on 31 May and 1 June 1916. The German fleet again sought to draw out and isolate a portion of the Grand Fleet and destroy it before the main British fleet could retaliate. During the operation,Thüringenwas the second ship in I Division of I Squadron and the tenth ship in the line, directly astern of the squadron flagshipOstfrieslandand ahead of another sisterHelgoland.I Squadron was the center of the German line, behind the eightKönig- andKaiser-classbattleships of III Squadron. The six elderly pre-dreadnoughts of III and IV Divisions, II Battle Squadron, formed the rear of the formation.[29]

Shortly before 16:00, the battlecruisers of I Scouting Group encountered the British 1st Battlecruiser Squadron under the command of David Beatty. The opposing ships began an artillery duel that saw the destruction ofIndefatigable,shortly after 17:00,[30]andQueen Mary,less than half an hour later.[31]By this time, the German battlecruisers were steaming south to draw the British ships toward the main body of the High Seas Fleet. At 17:30, the crew of the leading German battleship,König,spotted both I Scouting Group and the 1st Battlecruiser Squadron approaching. The German battlecruisers were steaming to starboard, while the British ships steamed to port. At 17:45, Scheer ordered atwo-pointturn to port to bring his ships closer to the British battlecruisers, and a minute later, the order to open fire was given.[32][e]

While the leading battleships engaged the British battlecruiser squadron,Thüringenand ten other battleships, too far out of range to attack the British battlecruisers, fired on the British 2nd Light Cruiser Squadron.ThüringenandKronprinzengaged the cruiserDublin,though both ships failed to score a hit.[33]Thüringenfired for eight minutes at ranges of 18,600 to 20,800 yd (17,000 to 19,000 m), expending twenty-nine 30.5 cm shells.[34]The British destroyersNestorandNomad,which had been disabled earlier in the engagement, laid directly in the path of the advancing High Seas Fleet.[35]Thüringenand three other battleships destroyedNestorwith their primary and secondary guns while several III Squadron battleships sankNomad.[36]Shortly after 19:15, the British dreadnoughtWarspitecame into range;Thüringenopened fire at 19:25 with her main and secondary battery guns, at ranges of 10,600 to 11,800 yd (9,700 to 10,800 m). The ship fired twenty-one 30.5 cm and thirty-seven 15 cm shells in the span of five or six minutes, after whichThüringen's gunners lost sight ofWarspite,without scoring any hits. They then shifted fire toMalaya.[37]Thüringenfired twenty main battery rounds atMalaya,also unsuccessfully, over seven minutes at a range of 14,100 yd (12,900 m) before conforming to a 180-degree turn ordered by Scheer to disengage from the British fleet.[38]

At around 23:30, the German fleet reorganized into the night-cruising formation.Thüringenwas the seventh ship, stationed toward the front of the 24-ship line.[39]An hour later, the leading units of the German line encountered British light forces and a violent firefight at close range ensued. Sometime around 01:10, the armored cruiserBlack Princestumbled into the German line.Thüringenilluminated the vessel with her spotlights and poured salvos of 30.5 cm rounds into the ship at point-blank range. The first salvo struck nearBlack Prince's rear gun turret, which appears to have been blown overboard.Thüringenfired a total of ten 30.5 cm, twenty-seven 15 cm, and twenty-four 8.8 cm shells. She was joined by three other battleships, andBlack Princewas soon destroyed by a huge ammunition explosion.[40]Around a half an hour later,Thüringenspotted what appeared to be aBirkenhead-class cruiser.She fired astar shellto illuminate the British cruiser and opened fire with her secondary guns. The ship was actually the destroyerTurbulent.Thüringenfired eighteen 15 cm and six 8.8 cm shells before launching another star shell.Turbulentappeared to be capsized to starboard, though she remained afloat and was dispatched later by the cruiserRegensburgand the destroyersV71andV73.[41]

Despite the ferocity of the night fighting, the High Seas Fleet punched through the British destroyer forces and reachedHorns Reefby 04:00 on 1 June.[42]A few hours later, the fleet arrived in the Jade;Thüringen,Helgoland,Nassau,andWestfalentook up defensive positions in the outerroadsteadand four undamaged III Squadron ships anchored just outside the entrance locks to Wilhelmshaven. The remaining eight dreadnoughts entered port, where those that were still in fighting condition restocked ammunition and fuel.[43]In the course of the engagement,Thüringenhad fired one-hundred and seven 30.5 cm, one-hundred and fifteen 15 cm, and twenty-two 8.8 cm shells,[44]while she and her crew emerged from the battle unscathed.[1]

Subsequent operations

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On 18 August, Admiral Scheer attempted to repeat the 31 May operation. The two serviceable German battlecruisers (MoltkeandVon der Tann), supported by three dreadnoughts, would bombardSunderlandin an attempt to draw out and destroy Beatty's battlecruisers.[f]The rest of the fleet, includingThüringen,would trail behind and provide cover. British signals intelligence informed Jellicoe of the German departure later in the day, and he sent the Grand Fleet out to intercept the Germans.[47]On the approach to the English coast during theaction of 19 August 1916,Scheer turned north after receiving a false report from azeppelinabout a British unit in the area.[48]As a result, the bombardment was not carried out, and by 14:35 on 19 August, Scheer had been warned of the Grand Fleet's approach and so turned his forces around and retreated to German ports.[49]

On 25–26 September,Thüringenand the rest of I Squadron covered an advance conducted by the second commander of the torpedo-boat flotillas (IIFührer der Torpedoboote) to theTerschellingBank.[50]Scheer conducted another fleet operation on 18–20 October in the direction of the Dogger Bank, though rudder damage preventedThüringenfrom participating.[51]For the majority of 1917,Thüringenwas assigned to guard duty in theGerman Bight.DuringOperation Albion,the amphibious assault on the Russian-held islands in the Gulf of Riga,Thüringenand her three sisters were moved to theDanish straitsto block any possible British attempt to intervene. On 28 October the four ships arrived inPutzig Wiek,and from there steamed toArensburgon the 29th. On 2 November the operation was completed andThüringenand her sisters began the voyage back to the North Sea. A final abortive fleet sortie took place on 23–24 April 1918.[50]Thüringen,Ostfriesland,andNassauwere formed into a special unit forOperation Schlußstein,a planned occupation ofSt. Petersburg.The three ships reached the Baltic on 10 August, but the operation was postponed and eventually canceled.[11]The special unit was dissolved on 21 August and the battleships were back in Wilhelmshaven on the 23rd.[52]

Fate

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Main article:Kiel mutiny

Thüringenand her three sisters were to have taken part in afinal fleet actionat the end of October 1918, days before theArmisticewas to take effect. The bulk of the High Seas Fleet was to have sortied from their base in Wilhelmshaven to engage the British Grand Fleet; Scheer—by now theGrand Admiral(Großadmiral) of the fleet—intended to inflict as much damage as possible on the British navy, to improve Germany's bargaining position, despite the expected casualties. But many of the war-weary sailors felt that the operation would disrupt the peace process and prolong the war.[53]On the morning of 29 October 1918, the order was given to sail from Wilhelmshaven the following day. Starting on the night of 29 October, sailors onThüringenand then on several other battleshipsmutinied.[54]Stokers turned off the boilers and refused to work. The following day, the torpedo boatsB110andB112came alongside and theU-boatU-135pointed her guns at the ship. A significant portion of the crew, 314 sailors and 124 stokers, were arrested and taken off the ship. This was not enough to stop the mutiny, which quickly spread throughout the fleet.[51]The unrest ultimately forced Hipper and Scheer to cancel the operation.[55]Informed of the situation, the Kaiser stated "I no longer have a navy".[56]

Following the capitulation of Germany in November 1918, most of the High Seas Fleet, under the command of Rear AdmiralLudwig von Reuter,was interned in the British naval base inScapa Flow.[55]Thüringenand her three sisters, along with the fourNassau-class battleships, were permitted to remain in Germany during the peace negotiations.[57]On the morning of 21 June, the British fleet left Scapa Flow to conduct training maneuvers, and in their absence Reuter ordered the crews toscuttlethe ten battleships and five battlecruisers interned at Scapa Flow.[58]Thüringenwas decommissioned on 16 December 1918 and used as a barracks ship while she remained in Germany.[51]She was stricken from the naval register on 5 November 1919 and placed out of commission.[10]The fate of the eight remaining German battleships was determined in theTreaty of Versailles,which stated that the ships were to be disarmed and surrendered to the governments of the principal Allied powers.[59]Thüringenwas surrendered to the French Navy on 29 April 1920 under the name"L".A skeleton crew took the ship toCherbourgfor the official transfer.[10]Thüringenwas briefly used as a target ship by the French Navy before sinking offGavres.The ship was partially broken upin situin 1923–1933, though significant portions of the ship remain off the French coast.[10][51]

Notes

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Footnotes

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  1. ^"SMS" stands for "Seiner Majestät Schiff"(German:His Majesty's Ship).
  2. ^In Imperial German Navy gun nomenclature, "SK" (Schnelladekanone) denotes that the gun is quick firing, while the L/50 denotes the length of the gun. In this case, the L/50 gun is 50calibers,meaning that the gun is 50 times as long as its diameter.[6]
  3. ^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)".
  4. ^The Germans were on Central European Time, which is one hour ahead ofUTC,the time zone commonly used in British works.
  5. ^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.
  6. ^DerfflingerandSeydlitzhad been seriously damaged at the Battle of Jutland, andLützowhad been sunk.[45][46]

Citations

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  1. ^abcdeStaff (Volume 1),p. 44.
  2. ^Dodson,p. 80.
  3. ^Gröner,pp. 24–25.
  4. ^Dodson,pp. 83–84.
  5. ^abcdGröner,p. 24.
  6. ^Grießmer,p. 177.
  7. ^Campbell & Sieche,p. 146.
  8. ^Staff (Volume 1),p. 36.
  9. ^Hildebrand, Röhr, & Steinmetz,p. 231.
  10. ^abcdGröner,p. 25.
  11. ^abcdefghStaff (Volume 1),pp. 43–44.
  12. ^Staff (Volume 1),p. 8.
  13. ^Hildebrand, Röhr, & Steinmetz,p. 230.
  14. ^Staff (Volume 1),p. 11.
  15. ^Staff (Volume 2),p. 14.
  16. ^Heyman,p. xix.
  17. ^Staff (Volume 1),pp. 11, 43.
  18. ^Garland & Garland,p. 669.
  19. ^Herwig,pp. 149–150.
  20. ^Tarrant,pp. 31–33.
  21. ^Tarrant,p. 38.
  22. ^Tarrant,p. 43.
  23. ^Halpern,p. 196.
  24. ^Halpern,pp. 197–198.
  25. ^Herwig,p. 161.
  26. ^Tarrant,p. 50.
  27. ^Tarrant,p. 53.
  28. ^Tarrant,p. 54.
  29. ^Tarrant,p. 286.
  30. ^Tarrant,pp. 94–95.
  31. ^Tarrant,pp. 100–101.
  32. ^Tarrant,p. 110.
  33. ^Campbell,p. 54.
  34. ^Campbell,p. 99.
  35. ^Tarrant,p. 114.
  36. ^Campbell,p. 101.
  37. ^Campbell,p. 154.
  38. ^Campbell,p. 155.
  39. ^Campbell,p. 275.
  40. ^Campbell,p. 290.
  41. ^Campbell,p. 293.
  42. ^Tarrant,pp. 246–247.
  43. ^Tarrant,p. 263.
  44. ^Tarrant,p. 292.
  45. ^Gröner,pp. 56–57.
  46. ^Tarrant,p. 277.
  47. ^Massie,p. 682.
  48. ^Staff (Volume 2),p. 15.
  49. ^Massie,p. 683.
  50. ^abStaff (Volume 1),pp. 43, 46.
  51. ^abcdStaff (Volume 1),p. 46.
  52. ^Staff (Volume 1),pp. 44, 46.
  53. ^Tarrant,pp. 280–281.
  54. ^Tarrant,pp. 281–282.
  55. ^abTarrant,p. 282.
  56. ^Herwig,p. 252.
  57. ^Staff (Volume 1),pp. 26–46.
  58. ^Herwig,p. 256.
  59. ^ Treaty of VersaillesSection II: Naval Clauses, Article 185.

References

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  • Campbell, John (1998).Jutland: An Analysis of the Fighting.London: Conway Maritime Press.ISBN978-1-55821-759-1.
  • 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.ISBN978-0-85177-245-5.
  • Dodson, Aidan(2016).The Kaiser's Battlefleet: German Capital Ships 1871–1918.Barnsley: Seaforth Publishing.ISBN978-1-84832-229-5.
  • Garland, Henry B. & Garland, Mary (1986).The Oxford Companion to German Literature.Oxford: Oxford University Press.ISBN978-0-19-866139-9.
  • 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.ISBN978-3-7637-5985-9.
  • Gröner, Erich(1990).German Warships: 1815–1945.Vol. I: Major Surface Vessels. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press.ISBN978-0-87021-790-6.
  • Halpern, Paul G. (1995).A Naval History of World War I.Annapolis: Naval Institute Press.ISBN978-1-55750-352-7.
  • Herwig, Holger (1998) [1980]."Luxury" Fleet: The Imperial German Navy 1888–1918.Amherst: Humanity Books.ISBN978-1-57392-286-9.
  • Heyman, Neil M. (1997).World War I.Westport: Greenwood Publishing Group.ISBN978-0-313-29880-6.
  • 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. 7. Ratingen: Mundus Verlag.ISBN978-3-7822-0267-1.
  • Massie, Robert K.(2003).Castles of Steel: Britain, Germany, and the Winning of the Great War at Sea.New York: Ballantine Books.ISBN978-0-345-40878-5.
  • Staff, Gary (2010).German Battleships: 1914–1918.Vol. 1: Deutschland, Nassau and Helgoland Classes. Oxford: Osprey Books.ISBN978-1-84603-467-1.
  • Staff, Gary (2010).German Battleships: 1914–1918.Vol. 2: Kaiser, König And Bayern Classes. Oxford: Osprey Books.ISBN978-1-84603-468-8.
  • Tarrant, V. E. (2001) [1995].Jutland: The German Perspective, a New View of the Great Battle, 31 May 1916.London: Cassell Military Paperbacks.ISBN978-0-304-35848-9.

Further reading

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  • Dodson, Aidan; Cant, Serena (2020).Spoils of War: The Fate of Enemy Fleets after the Two World Wars.Barnsley: Seaforth Publishing.ISBN978-1-5267-4198-1.
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