# German Kaiserliche Battleships



## Douglas Jr. (Feb 7, 2005)

Hi everybody,

When someone think about the German Navy during the world wars, usually only the U-Boats came to mind. However, I´ve been collecting some images from the Imperial Navy and its pre-Dreadnoughts and Dreadnoughts.

The Kaiserliche Marine had some beautiful vessels, with all those cannons (with that arrangement in mid-ship), and although many had survived the war, most met its end in the infamous "Great Scuttle" in Scapa Flow, while in captivity, in June 1919.

Let´s see some of the monsters.

Hope you enjoy.

Douglas.


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## Douglas Jr. (Feb 7, 2005)

More pictures


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## Douglas Jr. (Feb 7, 2005)

Two pre-Dreadnoughts vessels...


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## Douglas Jr. (Feb 7, 2005)

Some interesting pictures of the SMS Rheinland


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## Nonskimmer (Feb 7, 2005)

The High Sea Fleet had a very short life. Pity.  
From a naval lover's point of view, that is. Nice pics!


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## Medvedya (Feb 7, 2005)

Try this link....

http://atschool.eduweb.co.uk/jralston/rk/scapa/


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## Nonskimmer (Feb 7, 2005)

Ah yes, that's an interesting site!


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## Douglas Jr. (Feb 7, 2005)

This is the vessel which shot the very first shots of World War II: the SMS (later KMS) Schleswig-Holstein. Built in 1906, this pre-Dreadnought was one of the four old battleships that Germany was allowed to keep after the Versailles Treaty.

On September 1s, 1939, this ship was anchonred at Danzig and started to fire over Polish positions at 4:45AM - the first shots of WWII. The ship saw some action during the War and was only put out of action in April, 1945, after soviet aerial attack. Its hull was after used by the Soviets fot firing practice, ending its "career" during the Fifties - a very long combat life.

Douglas.


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## Douglas Jr. (Feb 7, 2005)

Hi,

Thanks for the link and the comments!

Here is one of the wrecks shown in the above site during its glorious days: SMS König.


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## plan_D (Feb 7, 2005)

I don't see anything with the High Seas Fleet having a short life, the Royal Navy sunk it!


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## Nonskimmer (Feb 7, 2005)

Hence the short life.  
Damn British Imperial bast...Uh...that is...Rule Britannia!


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## plan_D (Feb 7, 2005)

We are cruel sods...we let them get their hopes up then BAM!


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## KraziKanuK (Feb 19, 2005)

plan_D said:


> I don't see anything with the High Seas Fleet having a short life, the Royal Navy sunk it!



I did now know that the RN set off the scuttling chargers. Learn something new everyday.


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## Nonskimmer (Feb 20, 2005)

Very clever, those Kippers.


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## trackend (Feb 26, 2005)

Heres one from the Senior Service that the Kaiser wanted too emulate HMS Warspite survived 13 hits at Jutland and saw the demise of the grand fleet. in WW2 Survived Ariel bombing and took on 5000 tons of water scored a remarkable hit on an Italian cruiser at 18 miles, hit a mine was damaged but still put on a show during D-Day
and refused to be scraped in 1946 by breaking her tow on the way to the breakers and running aground


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## Medvedya (Feb 26, 2005)

Nonskimmer said:


> Very clever, those Kippers.



I've been meaning to ask, how did the RCN come up with the name 'Kippers'? It's a cool nickname!


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## Nonskimmer (Feb 26, 2005)

For many years the RCN was little more than a smaller copy of the RN, with many of the same traditions. One of those traditions was having kippers for breakfast aboard ship.  
I guess it's just our way of "thanking" the British for that.


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## Medvedya (Feb 26, 2005)

Not a fan of that breakfast treat then?  

You still have 'Trafalgar Day' though?


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## Nonskimmer (Feb 26, 2005)

No, I can't say that we do. Thankfully, kippers are now only served by individual request. They don't get many. (requests, that is.)


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## trackend (Feb 27, 2005)

Its boot leather streaky bacon with waffles and syrup now then Skim .
At least when I went too Vancouver thats what they all had ,too close too Seattle do you reckon or was it the Canadians who started the trend?


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## Douglas Jr. (Feb 27, 2005)

Hi,

I found a few more pictures in my file:

*SMS PRIZREGENT LUITPOLD*


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## Douglas Jr. (Feb 27, 2005)

*SMS OLDENBURG*


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## Douglas Jr. (Feb 27, 2005)

*SMS NASSAU*


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## Douglas Jr. (Feb 27, 2005)

*SMS OSTFRIESLAND* SMS *KÖNIG ALBERT*


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## Nonskimmer (Feb 27, 2005)

trackend said:


> Its boot leather streaky bacon with waffles and syrup now then Skim .
> At least when I went too Vancouver thats what they all had ,too close too Seattle do you reckon or was it the Canadians who started the trend?


Probably us. Those west coasters do some weird things. 

Great pics, Douglas! 8)


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## trackend (Feb 27, 2005)

its amazing Douglas how even though the submarine was relatively a new type of vessel compared to surface raiders the threat they posed look at all the anti torpedo netting these ships carried


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## delcyros (Mar 21, 2005)

These nets have been removed after Jutland (they proved to have no or little effect and they increased weight and reduced speed). They have not been added because of the subs but because of the torpedoboats, which have been fielded by both, Royal Navy and High Sea Fleet in large numbers...


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## HealzDevo (May 24, 2005)

These are nice pictures of WW1 Ships. I like them. Yes, as said earlier, shame about the German High Seas Fleet, but then it had to be defeated for Britain to get victory in WW1.


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## maxim kaloshkin (Jul 13, 2006)

Hello!
does anybody know where to get in the net good (really good) photos of the german WW-1 warships? here in Russia we have few really good sites with lots of pics related to misc navies - anything similar?
thanks to all!
max


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## Joe2 (Oct 28, 2006)

KraziKanuK said:


> I did now know that the RN set off the scuttling chargers. Learn something new everyday.



WRONG!!! the german sailors sunk their ships in 1918 as they could not live with the dishonor of being captured.


the just left the doors open as they had no explosives


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## DerAdlerIstGelandet (Oct 28, 2006)

Joe2 said:


> WRONG!!! the german sailors sunk their ships in 1918 as they could not live with the dishonor of being captured.
> 
> 
> the just left the doors open as they had no explosives



WRONG!!! There was no dishonor in being captured in Germany. The German culture is not like the Japanese Culture. First of all the scuttling happened in 1919 at Scapa Flow and not in 1918. German officers did not want the High Seas Fleet to be taken over and used by the Royal Navy, it had nothing to do with being captured.

I a relative in the Kaiserliche Marine in WW1 and he has some interesting pictures of the Scapa Flow incident. My grandmother has them, when I go and visit her the next time I will ask if I can have them to scan so that I can post them on here.

Interesting fact is the Kaiserliche Marine was never fully defeated going into Scapa Flow. She had actually met the Royal Navy on equal terms during the war and neither side had a full victory over the other. The RN would have a decisive victory which in turn was met with a decisive victory by the High Seas Fleet.

Interesting feats of the German Navy of WW1.

Inflicted the first major defeat that the Royal Navy suffered in 100 years at the Battle of Coronel on 14 November 1914 of the Coast of Chili. In the Battle the Germans sunk Cruisers, killing 1654 men with only 3 wounded German sailors.

Sunk more British Ships than lost at the Battle of Jutland from May 31, 1916 to June 1, 1916. In this battle the British lost 3 battlecruisers, 3 armoured cruisers and 8 destroyers with 6,094 killed, 510 wounded and 177 captured. The Germans lost 1 battlecruiser, 1 pre-dreadnought, 4 light cruisers and 5 torpedo-boats with a loss of 2,551 killed and 507 wounded.


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## Patoruzu (Jun 13, 2008)

"Adler Ich warte noch auf deine Mutters Aufnahmen."
Adler Iam still waiting about those photos from your Mother


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## Patoruzu (Jun 13, 2008)

[QUOTE=I a relative in the Kaiserliche Marine in WW1 and he has some interesting pictures of the Scapa Flow incident. My grandmother has them, when I go and visit her the next time I will ask if I can have them to scan so that I can post them on here.


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## renrich (Jun 13, 2008)

The High Seas Fleet did win the battle of "who lost how many" at Jutland, but a week after the battle Scheer's fleet was not fit for battle and the Grand Fleet was. Those WW1 capital ships certainly look like proper warships, not like the stuff we have today(not many guns.) Remember, the Ostfriesland(BB) survived the war and was used as a target ship by Billy Mitchell.


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