The ship served with her three sister ships for the majority of World War I. She saw extensive service in the North Sea, where she took part in several fleet sorties. These culminated in the Battle of Jutland on 31May– 1June 1916, where Posen was heavily engaged in night-fighting against British light forces. In the confusion, the ship accidentally rammed the light cruiser SMSElbing, which suffered serious damage and was scuttled later in the night.
The ship also conducted several deployments to the Baltic Sea against the Russian Navy. In the first of these, Posen supported a German naval assault in the Battle of the Gulf of Riga. The ship was sent back to the Baltic in 1918 to support the White Finns in the Finnish Civil War. At the end of the war, Posen remained in Germany while the majority of the fleet was interned in Scapa Flow. In 1919, following the scuttling of the German fleet in Scapa Flow, she was ceded to the British as a replacement for the ships that had been sunk. She was then sent to ship-breakers in the Netherlands and scrapped in 1922.
Plan drawing of a Nassau-class battleship showing the disposition of the main battery
Design work on the Nassau class began in late 1903 in the context of the Anglo-German naval arms race; at the time, battleships of foreign navies had begun to carry increasingly heavy secondary batteries, including Italian and American ships with 20.3cm (8in) guns and British ships with 23.4cm (9.2in) guns, outclassing the previous German battleships of the Deutschland class with their 17cm (6.7in) secondaries. German designers initially considered ships equipped with 21cm (8.3in) secondary guns, but erroneous reports in early 1904 that the British Lord Nelson-class battleships would be equipped with a secondary battery of 25.4cm (10in) guns prompted them to consider an even more powerful ship armed with an all-big-gun armament consisting of eight 28cm (11in) guns. Over the next two years, the design was refined into a larger vessel with twelve of the guns, by which time Britain had launched the all-big-gun battleship HMSDreadnought.[3]
Posen was 146.1m (479ft) long, 26.9m (88ft 3.1in) wide, and had a draft of 8.9m (29ft 2.4in). She displaced18,873t (18,575 long tons) with a standard load, and 20,535t (20,211 long tons) fully laden.[lower-alpha 3] The ship had a crew of 40officers and 968enlisted men. Posen retained three-shafted triple expansion engines with twelve coal-fired water-tube boilers instead of more advanced turbine engines. Her propulsion system was rated at 28,000PS (27,617ihp; 20,594kW) and provided a top speed of 20 knots (37km/h; 23mph). She had a cruising radius of 8,300 nautical miles (15,400km; 9,600mi) at a speed of 12 knots (22km/h; 14mph).[5] This type of machinery was chosen at the request of both Admiral Alfred von Tirpitz and the Navy's construction department; the latter stated in 1905 that the "use of turbines in heavy warships does not recommend itself."[6] This decision was based solely on cost: at the time, Parsons held a monopoly on steam turbines and required a 1million gold mark royalty fee for every turbine engine. German firms were not ready to begin production of turbines on a large scale until 1910.[7]
Posen carried a main battery of twelve 28cm (11in) SK L/45[lower-alpha 4] guns in an unusual hexagonal configuration. Her secondary armament consisted of twelve 15cm (5.9in) SK L/45 guns and sixteen 8.8cm (3.5in) SK L/45 guns, all of which were mounted in casemates.[5] Later in her career, two of the 8.8cm guns were replaced with high-angle Flak mountings of the same caliber for defense against aircraft.[9] The ship was also armed with six 45cm (17.7in) submerged torpedo tubes. One tube was mounted in the bow, another in the stern, and two on each broadside, on either ends of the torpedo bulkhead.[10] The ship's belt armor was 300mm (11.8in) thick in the central citadel, and the armored deck was 80mm (3.1in) thick. The main battery turrets had 280mm (11in) thick sides, and the conning tower was protected with 400mm (15.7in) of armor plating.[5]
Posen was ordered under the provisional name Ersatz Baden, as a replacement for the Baden, one of the elderly Sachsen-class ironclads.[5] She was laid down on 11 June 1907 at the Germaniawerft shipyard in Kiel.[11] As with her sister Nassau, construction proceeded under absolute secrecy; detachments of soldiers guarded the shipyard and also guarded contractors that supplied building materials, such as Krupp.[12] The ship was launched a year and a half later, on 12 December 1908.[11] Wilhelm August Hans von Waldow-Reitzenstein gave a speech at her launching, and Posen was christened by Johanna von Radolin, the wife of Hugo Fürst von Radolin, a German diplomat who hailed from the ship's namesake province.[9] Initial trials were conducted through April 1910, followed by final fitting-out in May. The ship was commissioned into the fleet on 31 May. Sea trials were conducted afterward and completed by 27 August.[1] In total, her construction cost the German government 36,920,000marks.[5]
After completing her trials in August 1910, Posen left Kiel for Wilhelmshaven, where she arrived on 7 September. As the German Imperial Navy had chronic shortages of trained sailors,[13] many of the crew were then assigned to other ships.[1][lower-alpha 5] These crewmembers were replaced with personnel from the old pre-dreadnought battleshipWittelsbach, which was decommissioned on 20 September. After their commissioning, all four Nassau-class ships served as a unit, II Division of I Battle Squadron, with Posen as the flagship.[1]
Posen participated in several training exercises with the rest of the fleet before the outbreak of war.[1] In late 1910 the fleet conducted a training cruise into the Baltic Sea. The following year the fleet conducted maneuvers in May; the annual summer cruise to Norway followed in July. The fleet participated in another round of fleet exercises in the Baltic in September, followed by another set at the end of the year. The next year followed a similar pattern, though the summer cruise to Norway was interrupted by the Agadir crisis; as a result, the summer cruise only went into the Baltic. The September exercises were conducted off Helgoland in the North Sea; another winter cruise into the Baltic followed at the end of the year.[14] The training schedule returned to normal for 1913 and 1914, and the summer cruises again went to Norway. For the 1914 cruise, the fleet departed for Norwegian waters on 14 July, some two weeks after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo. The probability of war cut the cruise short; Posen and the rest of the fleet were back in Wilhelmshaven by 29 July.[15]
At midnight on 4 August, the United Kingdom declared war on Germany.[16]Posen and the rest of the fleet conducted several advances into the North Sea to support Rear Admiral Franz von Hipper's I Scouting Groupbattlecruisers.[1] The battlecruisers raided British coastal towns in an attempt to lure out portions of the Grand Fleet where they could be destroyed by the High Seas Fleet.[17] The first such operation was the raid on Scarborough, Hartlepool and Whitby on 15–16 December 1914.[18] On the evening of 15 December, the German battle fleet of 12 dreadnoughts—including Posen and her three sisters—and eight pre-dreadnoughts came to within 10nmi (19km; 12mi) of an isolated squadron of six British battleships. Skirmishes between the rival destroyer screens in the darkness convinced the German fleet commander, Admiral Friedrich von Ingenohl, that he was faced with the Grand Fleet, now deployed in its battle formation. Under orders from Kaiser Wilhelm II to avoid risking the fleet unnecessarily, Ingenohl broke off the engagement and turned the battlefleet back toward Germany.[19]
In August 1915, a special unit from the German fleet attempted to clear the Russian-held Gulf of Riga in order to assist the German Army, which was planning an assault on Riga. To do so, the German planners intended to drive off or destroy the Russian naval forces in the Gulf, which included the pre-dreadnought battleship Slava and some smaller gunboats and destroyers. The German battle fleet was accompanied by several mine-warfare vessels. These ships were tasked with clearing Russian minefields and laying a series of their own minefields in the northern entrance to the gulf, to prevent Russian naval reinforcements from reaching the area. The assembled German flotilla included Posen and her three sister ships, the four Helgoland-class battleships, the battlecruisers Von der Tann, Moltke, and Seydlitz, and several pre-dreadnoughts, operating under the command of Hipper, now a vice admiral. The eight battleships were to provide cover for the forces engaging the Russian flotilla. The first attempt on 8 August was unsuccessful, as it had taken too long to clear the Russian minefields to allow the minelayer Deutschland to lay a minefield of her own.[20]
On 16 August, Posen and Nassau led a second attempt to breach the defenses of the gulf, with Posen as Admiral Schmidt's flagship.[1] The two dreadnoughts were accompanied by 4light cruisers and 31torpedo boats. On the first day of the assault the Germans broke through the Russian forces, but two German light craft—the minesweeper T46 and the destroyer V99—were sunk.[21]Posen and Nassau engaged a pair of Russian gunboats, Sivuch and Korietz. Sivuch was sunk that day and Korietz was severely damaged; the ship managed to limp away but had to be scuttled the following day.[1] On the 17th, Posen and Nassau engaged Slava at long range; they scored three hits on the Russian ship and forced her to return to port. By 19 August, the Russian minefields had been cleared and the flotilla entered the Gulf. Reports of Allied submarines in the area prompted the Germans to call off the operation the following day.[22] Admiral Hipper later remarked, "To keep valuable ships for a considerable time in a limited area in which enemy submarines were increasingly active, with the corresponding risk of damage and loss, was to indulge in a gamble out of all proportion to the advantage to be derived from the occupation of the Gulf before the capture of Riga from the land side." In fact, the battlecruiser Moltke had been torpedoed that morning.[23] On 21 August, Schmidt had his flag hauled down from Posen and disbanded the special unit.[1]
Return to the North Sea
SMS Westfalen
By the end of August Posen and the rest of the High Seas Fleet had returned to their anchorages in the North Sea. The next operation conducted was a sweep into the North Sea on 11–12 September, though it ended without any action. Another fleet sortie followed on 23–24 October without encountering any British forces. On 4 March 1916, Posen, Nassau, Westfalen, and Von der Tann steamed out to the Amrumbank to receive the auxiliary cruiserMöwe, which was returning from a raiding mission.[24]
Another uneventful advance into the North Sea took place on 21–22 April. A bombardment mission followed two days later; Posen joined the battleship support for Hipper's battlecruisers while they attacked Yarmouth and Lowestoft on 24–25 April.[24] During this operation, the battlecruiser Seydlitz was damaged by a British mine and had to return to port prematurely. Due to the poor visibility, the operation was soon called off, leaving the British fleet no time to intercept the raiders.[25]
Maps showing the maneuvers of the British (blue) and German (red) fleets on 31 May– 1 June 1916
Admiral Reinhard Scheer, who had succeeded Admirals von Ingenohl and Hugo von Pohl as the fleet commander, immediately planned another attack on the British coast. The damage to Seydlitz and condenser trouble on several of the III Battle Squadron dreadnoughts delayed the plan until the end of May.[26] The German battlefleet departed the Jade at 03:30 on 31 May.[27]Posen was assigned to II Division of I Battle Squadron as the flagship of Rear Admiral W. Engelhardt. Posen was the first ship in the division, ahead of her three sisters. II Division was the last unit of dreadnoughts in the fleet; they were followed by only the elderly pre-dreadnoughts of II Battle Squadron.[2]
Between 17:48 and 17:52, Posen and ten other German battleships engaged the British 2nd Light Cruiser Squadron, though the range and poor visibility prevented effective fire.[28] Shortly thereafter, two British destroyers—Nomad and Nestor—came under intense fire from the German line. Posen fired at Nestor with both her main battery and secondary guns. At 18:35, Nestor exploded and sank under the combined fire of eight battleships.[29] By 20:15, the German fleet had faced the Grand Fleet for a second time and was forced to turn away; in doing so, the order of the German line was reversed. Posen was now the fourth ship in the line, astern of her three sisters.[30]
At around 21:20, Posen and her sister ships were engaged by the battlecruisers of the 3rd Battlecruiser Squadron. Posen was the only ship of I Battle Squadron to be able to make out a target, which turned out to be the battlecruisers HMSPrincess Royal and Indomitable. Posen opened fire at 21:28 at a range of 10,000m (11,000yd); she scored one hit on Princess Royal at 21:32 and straddled Indomitable several times, surrounding her with a salvo of shells, before ceasing fire at 21:35.[31]
At about 00:30, the leading units of the German line encountered British destroyers and cruisers. A violent firefight at close range ensued; the leading German battleships, including Posen, opened fire on several British warships. In the confusion, the light cruiser Elbing passed through the German line directly in front of Posen and was rammed. Posen was undamaged, but both of Elbing's engine rooms were flooded and the ship came to a halt.[32] Two and a half hours later, Elbing spotted several approaching British destroyers, and her captain gave the order to scuttle the ship.[33]
Shortly before 01:00, the German line engaged a flotilla of British destroyers. Posen spotted the destroyers Fortune, Porpoise, and Garland at very close range; she opened fire on the first two ships at ranges between 800 and 1,600m (870 and 1,750yd), seriously damaging Porpoise. Fortune quickly sank under fire from Posen and several other battleships, but not before firing two torpedoes which Posen had to evade.[34] At 01:25, Westfalen illuminated the destroyer Ardent and opened fire; Posen joined her shortly thereafter and reported several hits at ranges of 1,000 to 1,200m (1,100 to 1,300yd).[35]
Despite the ferocity of the night fighting, the High Seas Fleet punched through the British destroyer forces and reached Horns Reef by 04:00 on 1June.[36] The German fleet reached Wilhelmshaven a few hours later, where Posen and several other battleships from I Battle Squadron took up defensive positions in the outer roadstead.[37] Over the course of the battle, the ship had fired fifty-three 28cm shells, sixty-four 15cm rounds, and thirty-two 8.8cm shells.[38] The ship and her crew emerged from the battle completely unscathed by enemy fire.[24]
Beginning in June 1917, Wilhelm von Krosigk served as the ship's commanding officer; he held this position until the end of the war in November 1918.[9]
Expedition to Finland
A recognition drawing of a Nassau-class battleship
In February 1918, the German navy decided to send an expedition to Finland to support German army units to be deployed there. The Finns were engaged in a civil war; the White Finns sought a conservative government free from the influence of the newly created Soviet Union, while the Red Guards preferred Soviet-style communism. On 23 February, two of Posen's sister ships—Westfalen and Rheinland—were assigned as the core of the Sonderverband Ostsee (Special Unit Baltic Sea).[39] The two ships embarked the 14th Jäger Battalion. They departed for Åland on the following morning. Åland was to be a forward operating base, from which the port of Hanko would be secured. From Hanko, the German expedition would assault the capital of Helsingfors. The task force reached the Åland Islands on 5 March, where they encountered the Swedish coastal defense shipsHSwMSSverige, Thor, and Oscar II. Negotiations ensued, which resulted in the landing of the German troops on Åland on 7 March; Westfalen then returned to Danzig, where Posen was stationed.[40]
On 31 March Posen and Westfalen left Danzig; the ships arrived at Russarö, which was the outer defense for Hanko, by 3 April. The German army quickly took the port. The task force then proceeded to Helsingfors; on 11 April the ship passed into the harbor at Helsingfors and landed the soldiers. This included a detachment from the ship which was landed two days later on 13 April. During the operation, Posen's crew suffered four men killed and twelve wounded. From 18 to 20 April, Posen assisted with the efforts to free Rheinland, which had been grounded. Two days later, Posen struck a sunken wreck in Helsingfors harbor, which caused minor damage. On 30 April the ship was detached from the Sonderverband Ostsee. The ship returned to Germany, reaching Kiel by 3 May, where she entered drydock. Repair work lasted until 5 May.[24]
Later actions in the North Sea
On 11 August 1918, Posen, Westfalen, Kaiser, and Kaiserin sortied from Wilhelmshaven to support torpedo boats on patrol off Terschelling.[40] On 2 October, Posen moved out into the outer roadsteads of the Jade to provide cover for the returning U-boats of the Flanders Flotilla. Posen was to have taken part in the last fleet operation of the war,[24] planned for 30 October. The operation was intended to inflict as much damage as possible on the British navy, in order to retain a better bargaining position for Germany, whatever the cost to the fleet. War-weary sailors mutinied, which led to the operation being canceled. In an attempt to suppress the spread of mutinous sentiments, Admiral Hipper ordered the fleet dispersed.[41]Posen and the other ships of I Battle Squadron were sent out into the roadstead on 3 November, then returned to Wilhelmshaven on 6 November.[24]
Fate
On 11 November 1918, the Armistice took effect; according to its terms, eleven battleships and five battlecruisers were to be interned in Scapa Flow for the duration of negotiations for the peace treaty.[42]Posen was not among the ships interned, and she was instead decommissioned on 16 December. The ships in Scapa Flow were scuttled by their crews on 21 June 1919 to prevent them from being seized by the Allies. As a result, Posen and the other battleships that remained in Germany were seized as replacements for the ships that had been lost. On 5 November, Posen was stricken from the German navy list to be handed over to Great Britain. The ship was transferred on 13 May 1920; on 1 November 1920, she was driven ashore at Hawkcraig, Fife, Scotland.[43] The British subsequently sold Posen to ship-breakers in the Netherlands.[24] She was broken up in Dordrecht in 1922.[44]
Notes
Footnotes
↑ Each eight-ship battle squadron had a flagship that also functioned as the flagship of the first four-ship division; a second command flagship served as the leader of the second division in each squadron. At the Battle of Jutland, Posen served as the second command flagship, flying the flag of Rear Admiral Walter Engelhardt.[2]
↑ According to Erich Gröner, this figure is calculated as "25 to 50 percent full load...and [was] used in the German navy since 1882 as a basis for performance and speed calculations."[4]
↑ In Imperial German Navy gun nomenclature, "SK" (Schnelladekanone) denotes that the gun is quick firing, while "L/45" provides the length of the gun in terms of the diameter of the barrel. In this case, the L/45 gun is 45 calibers, which means that the gun is 45times as long as its diameter.[8]
↑ Of the problem, Admiral Oldekop stated in November 1912: "There is almost no more personnel on land. Garrison watch duty can no longer be conducted according to regulations...The Navy units [in Kiel] are equally exhausted as in Wilhelmshaven. Complaints concerning lack of personnel on land are the same."[13]
SMS Kaiser was the lead ship of the Kaiser class of dreadnought battleships of the Imperial German Navy. Kaiser was built by the Imperial Dockyard at Kiel, launched on 22 March 1911 and commissioned on 1 August 1912. The ship was equipped with ten 30.5-centimeter (12 in) guns in five twin turrets, and had a top speed of 23.4 knots. Kaiser was assigned to III Battle Squadron of the High Seas Fleet for the majority of World War I.
SMS König was the first of four König-class dreadnought battleships of the Imperial German Navy during World War I. König was named in honor of King William II of Württemberg. The battleship was armed with ten 30.5-centimeter (12 in) guns in five twin turrets and could steam at a top speed of 21 knots. Laid down in October 1911, the ship was launched on 1 March 1913. The construction of König was completed shortly after the outbreak of World War I; she was commissioned into the High Seas Fleet on 9 August 1914.
SMS Helgoland, the lead ship of her class, was a dreadnought battleship of the German Imperial Navy. Helgoland's design represented an incremental improvement over the preceding Nassau class, including an increase in the bore diameter of the main guns, from 28 cm (11 in) to 30.5 cm (12 in). Her keel was laid down on 11 November 1908 at the Howaldtswerke shipyards in Kiel. Helgoland was launched on 25 September 1909 and was commissioned on 23 August 1911.
SMS Nassau was the first dreadnought battleship built for the Imperial German Navy, a response to the launching of the British battleship HMS Dreadnought. Nassau was laid down on 22 July 1907 at the Kaiserliche Werft in Wilhelmshaven, and launched less than a year later on 7 March 1908, approximately 25 months after Dreadnought. She was the lead ship of her class of four battleships, which included Posen, Rheinland, and Westfalen.
SMS Kronprinz was the last dreadnought battleship of the four-ship König class of the German Imperial Navy. The battleship was laid down in November 1911 and launched on 21 February 1914. She was formally commissioned into the Imperial Navy on 8 November 1914, just over 3 months after the start of World War I. The name Kronprinz refers to Crown Prince Wilhelm, and in June 1918, the ship was renamed Kronprinz Wilhelm in his honor. The battleship was armed with ten 30.5-centimeter (12 in) guns in five twin turrets and could steam at a top speed of 21 knots.
The Kaiser class was a class of five dreadnought battleships that were built in Germany prior to World War I and served in the Kaiserliche Marine during the war. They were the third class of German dreadnoughts, and the first to feature turbine engines and superfiring turrets. The five ships were Kaiser, Friedrich der Grosse, Kaiserin, Prinzregent Luitpold, and König Albert. As was usual for German battleships of the period, the Kaiser class mounted main guns that were smaller than those of their British rivals: 30.5 cm (12 in), compared to the 34.3 cm (13.5 in) guns of the British Orion class.
SMS Rheinland was one of four Nassau-class battleships, the first dreadnoughts built for the German Imperial Navy. Rheinland mounted twelve 28 cm (11 in) main guns in six twin turrets in an unusual hexagonal arrangement. The navy built Rheinland and her sister ships in response to the revolutionary British HMS Dreadnought, which had been launched in 1906. Rheinland was laid down in June 1907, launched the following year in October, and commissioned in April 1910.
SMS Westfalen was one of the Nassau-class battleships, the first four dreadnoughts built for the German Imperial Navy. Westfalen was laid down at AG Weser in Bremen on 12 August 1907, launched nearly a year later on 1 July 1908, and commissioned into the High Seas Fleet on 16 November 1909. The ship was equipped with a main battery of twelve 28 cm (11 in) guns in six twin turrets in an unusual hexagonal arrangement.
The Nassau class was a group of four dreadnought battleships built for the German Kaiserliche Marine in the early 1900s. The class comprised Nassau, the lead ship, Rheinland, Posen, and Westfalen. All four ships were laid down in mid-1907, and completed by late 1910. Though commonly perceived as having been built in response to the British Dreadnought, their design traces its origin to 1903; they were in fact a response to Dreadnought's predecessors of the Lord Nelson class. The Nassaus adopted a main battery of twelve 28 cm (11 in) guns in six twin-gun turrets in an unusual hexagonal arrangement. Unlike many other dreadnoughts, the Nassau-class ships retained triple-expansion steam engines instead of more powerful steam turbines.
The Helgoland class was the second class of dreadnought battleships to be built for the German Kaiserliche Marine. Constructed from 1908 to 1912, the class comprised four ships: Helgoland, the lead ship; Oldenburg; Ostfriesland; and Thüringen. The design was a significant improvement over the previous Nassau-class ships; they had a larger main battery—30.5 cm (12 in) main guns instead of the 28 cm (11 in) weapons mounted on the earlier vessels—and an improved propulsion system. The Helgolands were easily distinguished from the preceding Nassaus by the three funnels that were closely arranged, compared to the two larger funnels of the previous class. The ships retained the hexagonal main battery layout of the Nassau class.
SMS Hannover was the second of five Deutschland-class pre-dreadnought battleships of the German Imperial Navy. Hannover and the three subsequently constructed ships differed slightly from the lead ship Deutschland in their propulsion systems and slightly thicker armor. Hannover was laid down in November 1904, launched in May 1905, and commissioned into the High Seas Fleet in October 1907. The ship was armed with a battery of four 28 cm (11 in) guns and had a top speed of 18 knots. The ships of her class were already outdated by the time they entered service, being inferior in size, armor, firepower, and speed to the revolutionary new British battleship HMS Dreadnought.
SMS Deutschland was the first of five Deutschland-class pre-dreadnought battleships built for the German Kaiserliche Marine. The ship was armed with a main battery of four 28 cm (11 in) guns in two twin turrets. She was built at the Germaniawerft shipyard in Kiel, where she was laid down in June 1903 and launched in November 1904. She was commissioned on 3 August 1906, a few months ahead of HMS Dreadnought. The latter, armed with ten large-caliber guns, was the first of a revolutionary new standard of "all-big-gun" battleships that rendered Deutschland and the rest of her class obsolete.
SMS Markgraf was the third dreadnought battleship of the four-ship König class. She served in the Imperial German Navy during World War I. The battleship was laid down in November 1911 and launched on 4 June 1913. She was formally commissioned into the Imperial Navy on 1 October 1914, just over two months after the outbreak of war in Europe. Markgraf was armed with ten 30.5-centimeter (12 in) guns in five twin turrets and could steam at a top speed of 21 knots. Markgraf was named in honor of the royal family of Baden. The name Markgraf is a rank of German nobility and is equivalent to the English Margrave, or Marquess.
SMS Grosser Kurfürst was the second dreadnought battleship of the four-ship König class. Grosser Kurfürst served in the Imperial German Navy during World War I. The battleship was laid down in October 1911 and launched on 5 May 1913. She was formally commissioned into the Imperial Navy on 30 July 1914, days before the outbreak of war between Germany and the United Kingdom. Her name means Great Elector, and refers to Frederick William I, the Prince-elector of Brandenburg. Grosser Kurfürst was armed with ten 30.5-centimeter (12 in) guns in five twin turrets and could steam at a top speed of 21 knots.
SMS Friedrich der Grosse was the second vessel of the Kaiser class of dreadnought battleships of the German Imperial Navy. Friedrich der Grosse's keel was laid on 26 January 1910 at the AG Vulcan dockyard in Hamburg, her hull was launched on 10 June 1911, and she was commissioned into the fleet on 15 October 1912. The ship was equipped with ten 30.5-centimeter (12 in) guns in five twin turrets, and had a top speed of 23.4 knots. Friedrich der Grosse was assigned to III Battle Squadron of the High Seas Fleet for the majority of World War I, and served as fleet flagship from her commissioning until 1917.
SMS Kaiserin was the third vessel of the Kaiser class of dreadnought battleships of the Imperial German Navy. Kaiserin's keel was laid in November 1910 at the Howaldtswerke dockyard in Kiel. She was launched on 11 November 1911 and was commissioned into the fleet on 14 May 1913. The ship was equipped with ten 30.5-centimeter (12 in) guns in five twin turrets, and had a top speed of 22.1 knots. Kaiserin was assigned to III Battle Squadron and later IV Battle Squadron of the High Seas Fleet for the majority of her career, including World War I.
SMS Prinzregent Luitpold was the fifth and final vessel of the Kaiser class of dreadnought battleships of the Imperial German Navy. Prinzregent Luitpold's keel was laid in October 1910 at the Germaniawerft dockyard in Kiel. She was launched on 17 February 1912 and was commissioned into the navy on 19 August 1913. The ship was equipped with ten 30.5-centimeter (12 in) guns in five twin turrets, and had a top speed of 21.7 knots.
SMS Ostfriesland was the second vessel of the Helgoland class of dreadnought battleships of the Imperial German Navy. Named for the region of East Frisia, Ostfriesland's keel was laid in October 1908 at the Kaiserliche Werft dockyard in Wilhelmshaven. She was launched on 30 September 1909 and was commissioned into the fleet on 1 August 1911. The ship was equipped with twelve 30.5 cm (12 in) guns in six twin turrets, and had a top speed of 21.2 knots. Ostfriesland was assigned to the I Battle Squadron of the High Seas Fleet for the majority of her career, including World War I.
SMS Oldenburg was the fourth vessel of the Helgoland class of dreadnought battleships of the Imperial German Navy. Oldenburg's keel was laid in March 1909 at the Schichau-Werke dockyard in Danzig. She was launched on 30 June 1910 and was commissioned into the fleet on 1 May 1912. The ship was equipped with twelve 30.5 cm (12 in) guns in six twin turrets, and had a top speed of 21.2 knots. Oldenburg was assigned to I Battle Squadron of the High Seas Fleet for the majority of her career, including World War I.
SMS Thüringen was the third vessel of the Helgoland class of dreadnought battleships of the German Kaiserliche Marine (Imperial Navy}. Thüringen's keel was laid in November 1908 at the AG Weser dockyard in Bremen. 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 guns in six twin turrets, and had a top speed of 21 knots. Thüringen was assigned to I Battle Squadron of the High Seas Fleet for the majority of her career, including World War I.
Ganz, A. Harding (April 1980). "The German Expedition to Finland, 1918". Military Affairs. 44 (2): 84–91. doi:10.2307/1986604. JSTOR1986604.
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.
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.6. Ratingen: Mundus Verlag. ISBN978-3-7822-0237-4.
Staff, Gary (2010). German Battleships: 1914–1918. Vol.1: Deutschland, Nassau and Helgoland Classes. Oxford: Osprey Books. ISBN978-1-84603-467-1.
Tarrant, V. E. (2001) [1995]. Jutland: The German Perspective. London: Cassell Military Paperbacks. ISBN978-0-304-35848-9.
Further reading
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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