Deutschland class cruiser
Encyclopedia : D : DE : DEU : Deutschland class cruiser
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| Deutschland class | 
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|---|---|
| General Characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 12,100 t standard; 16,200 t full load |
| Length: | 610 ft (186 m) |
| Beam: | 71 ft (21.6 m) |
| Draft (max.): | 24 ft (7.4 m) |
| Armament: | 6 x 280 mm (11 inch) 8 x 150 mm (5.9 inch) 6 x 105 mm (4.1 inch) 8 x 37 mm 10 x 20 mm 8 x 533 mm (21 inch) |
| Armor: | turret face: (160 mm) belt: (80 mm) deck: 40 mm) |
| Aircraft: | one catapult with Arado 196 seaplane(s) |
| Radar: | From 1937, 60 cm Seetakt FuMO |
| Propulsion: | Eight MAN diesels driving two screws, |
| Power | 52,050 hp (40 MW) |
| Speed: | 28.5 knots (53 km/h) |
| Range: | 8,900 nautical miles at 20 knots (16,500 km at 37 km/h) |
| Crew: | 1,150 |
The Deutschland class was a series of three panzerschiffs, a form of heavily armed cruiser, which served with the Kriegsmarine of Germany during World War II.
Description
The Deutschlands were designed as a capable battlecruiser within the 10,000 ton limit imposed by the Treaty of Versailles on German shipbuilding. The design incorporated a rather heavy gun for the vessel's displacement and machinery that allowed high speeds. To fit within the terms of the treaty, the ships were designated armored ships (Panzerschiff). While treaty writers had envisioned this classification being for coastal defense vessels, the Deutschland was clearly designed for open seas, with a speed of 26 knots and range of 18,650 miles. The final design exceeded treaty limits somewhat at around 12,000 tons despite extensive use of advanced ship construction used to lighten the vessel.
The British began referring to the vessels as "pocket battleships" in reference to the heavy firepower contained in the relatively small vessels. This name has stuck in regards to the Deutschland class.
While the Royal Navy had three modernized battlecruisers that could be effective in pursuing the Deutschlands if they were used as commerce raiders, the announced intention to build six of the class led the French to draw up their own "fast battleship" - the Dunkerque class - specifically against the Deutschlands.
Ships in class
The lead ship of the class, Deutschland was renamed Lützow upon the outbreak of World War II due to fears of the political liability of having a ship named Deutschland (Germany) sunk. She generally remained close to home through the war, doing service in the Baltic in support of German troops.
The most successful commerce raider of the class, Admiral Scheer operated as far as the Indian Ocean during her raiding, eventually being sunk in harbor by British aircraft in 1945.
The Admiral Graf Spee conducted early raiding in the South Atlantic before being engaged in the Battle of the River Plate, after which she was scuttled at Montevideo to keep her out of British hands.
See also
From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.
The most successful commerce raider of the class, Admiral Scheer operated as far as the Indian Ocean during her raiding, eventually being sunk in harbor by British aircraft in 1945.
The Admiral Graf Spee conducted early raiding in the South Atlantic before being engaged in the Battle of the River Plate, after which she was scuttled at Montevideo to keep her out of British hands.
See also
From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.