Karlsruhe (ship, 1927)

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Karlsruhe
Karlsruhe h99643.jpg
Ship data
flag German EmpireGerman Empire (Reichskriegsflagge) German Empire German Empire
German EmpireGerman Empire (Reichskriegsflagge) 
Ship type Light cruiser
class Koenigsberg class
Shipyard German works , Kiel
Build number 207
building-costs 36,000,000 marks
Launch August 20, 1927
Commissioning November 6, 1929
Whereabouts Sunk on April 9, 1940
Ship dimensions and crew
length
174.0 m ( Lüa )
169.0 m ( KWL )
width 15.2 m

after renovation 16.6 m

Draft Max. 6.28 m

after conversion 6.20 m

displacement Standard : 6,650 ts
Construction: 7,510 t
Maximum: 8,130 ts

after conversion Standard : 6,730 ts
Maximum: 8,350 ts

 
crew 514 to 850 men
Machine system
machine 6 steam boilers
4 sets of steam turbines
2 MAN 10-cylinder diesel
Machine
performance
68,200 hp

March diesel 1,800 hp

Top speed after conversion 30.0 kn (56 km / h)
Top
speed
32.1 kn (59 km / h)
propeller 2 three-leaf 4.1 m
Armament
  • 9 × Sk 15 cm L / 60 (1,080 shots)
  • Initially: 2 × Flak 8.8 cm L / 45 in single mounts (800 rounds)

from 1934: 3, then 4 × Flak 8.8 cm L / 45 in single mounts from 1935: 6 × Flak 8.8 cm L / 76 in double mounts (2,400 rounds)

from 1934 additionally:

  • 8 × Flak 3.7 cm in double mounts (9,600 rounds)
  • 4 × Flak 2.0 cm in single mounts
  • from 1935: 1 catapult, 2 He 60 aircraft
Armor

The light cruiser Karlsruhe was a German warship that was built for the Reichsmarine of the Weimar Republic and later used by the Kriegsmarine in World War II . She was the second of three Königsberg- class ships built . The ship was named after the city of Karlsruhe .

history

Construction and commissioning

The aerial photo of Karlsruhe from 1934 clearly shows the two laterally offset rear turrets
Light cruiser Karlsruhe on March 28, 1934 off San Diego (USA)

After the Königsberg and before the Köln , the third warship named Karlsruhe was launched on August 20, 1927 . The baptismal address was given by the Lord Mayor of Karlsruhe , Finter, while the actual baptism act was performed by Mrs. Köhler, the widow of the commander of the SMS Karlsruhe , frigate captain Erich Köhler , who fell on November 4, 1914 . The shipyard test drives were completed with the transfer trip from Kiel to Wilhelmshaven on October 15, 1929 under the shipyard flag. The commissioning of the Karlsruhe took place on November 6, 1929 in Wilhelmshaven under the command of frigate captain Lindau.

The main difference between the Karlsruhe and its sister ships was the two- storey Vormars control station; it served to train artillery officers.

Time as a training ship

The cruiser was used from May 1930 to June 1936 for the inspection of the naval education system almost exclusively as a training ship for officer cadets on five extended voyages through all the world's oceans. On the fifth training voyage from 1935 to 1936, during a multi-day hurricane on the crossing from Japan to the United States , the ship had to call into a repair dock in San Diego at the beginning of April 1936 . With this trip, the service as a training ship for the Karlsruhe ended. With effect from July 1, 1936, the ship was assigned to the reconnaissance forces and thus to its actual purpose. During the Spanish Civil War , the Karlsruhe was ordered to operate in Spanish waters in January / February and June 1937. She patrolled the coastal waters of Spain and Portugal , otherwise these two voyages remained without special events.

The modification

Even with earlier small conversions, u. a. Deckhouses changed several times, the front mast removed and replaced by a rod at the top of the battle mast (1931), the antenna spars on both sides of the rear funnel replaced by a telescopic mast (1935).

In order to improve structural defects and the resulting poor sea ​​behavior , she was temporarily decommissioned on May 20, 1938 and then rebuilt in the Wilhelmshaven Navy shipyard . The ship was widened by 1.60 m and more armored. The foremars control room lost one floor, the chimneys were given caps, the rear one was shortened and received a three-legged mast, and new cranes were installed. The side pillars at the level of the rear chimney, to which the four large spotlights were attached, were removed, and the Marseilles spotlights on both chimneys were moved. When the war broke out, the renovation work was not yet finished, and it was not until November 13, 1939 that the Karlsruhe could be put back into service, initially to carry out tests.

Deployment and demise

With a new and insufficiently trained crew, the ship then took part in the Weser exercise in April 1940 . Under the command of Captain Rieve, the cruiser had the task of securing the landing of German troops in Kristiansand .

On the march back in the Skagerrak on April 9 at around 7:58 p.m., the British submarine Truant was hit by a torpedo . Both machines, the electrical system, the rudder and the bilge were put out of operation. The ship was quickly flip side and began to sink. At around 9 p.m. the crew climbed onto the torpedo boats Luchs and Seeadler . When the ship until the Schanz was weggesackt, Captain Rieve gave the torpedo boat Greif to sink the cruiser by torpedo the command. This order was carried out at 10:50 p.m., two torpedoes were shot down and hit the Karlsruhe , which sank at position 58 ° 4 '  N , 8 ° 4'  E near Kristiansand.

Commanders

November 6, 1929 to September 25, 1931 Frigate captain / sea ​​captain Eugen Lindau
September 26, 1931 to December 8, 1932 Frigate captain / sea captain Erwin Waßner
December 9, 1932 to September 15, 1934 Frigate Captain Wilhelm Freiherr Harsdorf von Enderndorf
September 16, 1934 to September 23, 1935 Sea captain Günther Lütjens
September 24, 1935 to September 28, 1937 Frigate captain / sea captain Leopold Siemens
September 29, 1937 to May 20, 1938 Sea captain Erich Förste
November 13, 1939 to April 10, 1940 Sea captain Friedrich Rieve

Known crew members

literature

  • Gröner, Erich / Dieter Jung / Martin Maass: The German warships 1815-1945 . tape 1 : Armored ships, ships of the line, battleships, aircraft carriers, cruisers, gunboats . Bernard & Graefe Verlag, Munich 1982, ISBN 3-7637-4800-8 , p. 147-149 .
  • Ulrich Elfrath u. a., The German Kriegsmarine 1935-1945 , 1998, parts 1 and 4, ISBN 3-8289-5314-X

Web links

Commons : Karlsruhe  - Collection of images, videos and audio files