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Kaiser-class battleship
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Kaiser-class battleship
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 (Imperial Navy) 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.
All five ships saw action in the North Sea during the war; they served together as VI Division of III Battle Squadron. Four were present during the Battle of Jutland; König Albert was in dock at the time. Of the four ships that took part in the battle, only Kaiser was damaged, being struck by two heavy-caliber shells. The ships also took part in Operation Albion in the Baltic Sea; during the operation they were reorganized as IV Battle Squadron, under the command of Vice Admiral Wilhelm Souchon.
At the end of the war, all five ships were interned at the British naval base in Scapa Flow. On 21 June 1919, they were scuttled to prevent their seizure by the Royal Navy. The ships were subsequently raised and broken up for scrap between 1929 and 1937.
The Kaiser-class ships were ordered under the same Second Naval Law as the preceding Helgoland-class battleships. The law provided that the life expectancy of capital ships was to be reduced from 25 to 20 years, a measure designed to necessitate construction of newer battleships. This meant the six Siegfried-class coastal defense ships, the two Odin-class coastal defense ships, as well as the four Brandenburg-class battleships would have to be replaced. The five Kaisers were to replace the remaining three Siegfried-class ships: Hildebrand, Heimdall, and Hagen, as well as the two Odin-class ships: Odin and Ägir.
The ships of the Kaiser class were 171.8 m (563 ft 8 in) long at the waterline, and 172.4 m (565 ft 7 in) long overall. The ships had a beam of 29 m (95 ft 2 in), a draft of 9.1 m (29 ft 10 in) forward and 8.8 m (28 ft 10 in) aft. They displaced 24,724 metric tons (24,334 long tons; 27,254 short tons) as designed and up to 27,000 t (26,570 long tons; 29,760 short tons) at full load. The ships had a double bottom for 88 percent of the length of the hull and 17 watertight compartments. The ships had a crew of 41 officers and 1,043 seamen. While serving as squadron flagship, the ships had an additional 14 officers and 80 men, and as the second command flagship, the ships' usual complement was augmented by another 2 officers and 23 men.
The Kaiser-class ships were excellent sea boats, but were very stiff, suffering a slight loss of speed in heavy swells. They were responsive to commands from the helm; they turned quickly initially, but suffered from severe torque at a hard rudder. With the rudder hard over, the ships would lose up to 66 percent of their speed and heel over as much as 8 degrees. The Kaiser-class ships had a transverse metacentric height of 2.59 m (8.5 ft).
The Kaiser-class ships were the first German battleships to be powered by turbines. They used turbines from several different manufacturers as the Reichsmarineamt (RMA) and German shipyards attempted to find an alternative to a Parsons turbine monopoly. Nevertheless, Kaiser and Kaiserin were both equipped with three sets of Parsons turbines. Friedrich der Grosse had three sets of AEG-Curtis turbines, while König Albert was powered by Schichau turbines. The turbines drove three-bladed screws that were 3.75 m (12.3 ft) in diameter, providing a design speed of 21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph). The ships had two rudders.
Prinzregent Luitpold was equipped with two sets of Parsons turbines on the outer shafts. It was intended that a single 12,000 bhp Germania 6-cylinder 2-stroke diesel engine would drive the center shaft. However, the diesel power plant was not ready in time to be installed in Prinzregent Luitpold, so the ship sailed with only two shafts. On trials, Prinzregent Luitpold was approximately one half knot slower than her sisters.
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Kaiser-class battleship
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 (Imperial Navy) 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.
All five ships saw action in the North Sea during the war; they served together as VI Division of III Battle Squadron. Four were present during the Battle of Jutland; König Albert was in dock at the time. Of the four ships that took part in the battle, only Kaiser was damaged, being struck by two heavy-caliber shells. The ships also took part in Operation Albion in the Baltic Sea; during the operation they were reorganized as IV Battle Squadron, under the command of Vice Admiral Wilhelm Souchon.
At the end of the war, all five ships were interned at the British naval base in Scapa Flow. On 21 June 1919, they were scuttled to prevent their seizure by the Royal Navy. The ships were subsequently raised and broken up for scrap between 1929 and 1937.
The Kaiser-class ships were ordered under the same Second Naval Law as the preceding Helgoland-class battleships. The law provided that the life expectancy of capital ships was to be reduced from 25 to 20 years, a measure designed to necessitate construction of newer battleships. This meant the six Siegfried-class coastal defense ships, the two Odin-class coastal defense ships, as well as the four Brandenburg-class battleships would have to be replaced. The five Kaisers were to replace the remaining three Siegfried-class ships: Hildebrand, Heimdall, and Hagen, as well as the two Odin-class ships: Odin and Ägir.
The ships of the Kaiser class were 171.8 m (563 ft 8 in) long at the waterline, and 172.4 m (565 ft 7 in) long overall. The ships had a beam of 29 m (95 ft 2 in), a draft of 9.1 m (29 ft 10 in) forward and 8.8 m (28 ft 10 in) aft. They displaced 24,724 metric tons (24,334 long tons; 27,254 short tons) as designed and up to 27,000 t (26,570 long tons; 29,760 short tons) at full load. The ships had a double bottom for 88 percent of the length of the hull and 17 watertight compartments. The ships had a crew of 41 officers and 1,043 seamen. While serving as squadron flagship, the ships had an additional 14 officers and 80 men, and as the second command flagship, the ships' usual complement was augmented by another 2 officers and 23 men.
The Kaiser-class ships were excellent sea boats, but were very stiff, suffering a slight loss of speed in heavy swells. They were responsive to commands from the helm; they turned quickly initially, but suffered from severe torque at a hard rudder. With the rudder hard over, the ships would lose up to 66 percent of their speed and heel over as much as 8 degrees. The Kaiser-class ships had a transverse metacentric height of 2.59 m (8.5 ft).
The Kaiser-class ships were the first German battleships to be powered by turbines. They used turbines from several different manufacturers as the Reichsmarineamt (RMA) and German shipyards attempted to find an alternative to a Parsons turbine monopoly. Nevertheless, Kaiser and Kaiserin were both equipped with three sets of Parsons turbines. Friedrich der Grosse had three sets of AEG-Curtis turbines, while König Albert was powered by Schichau turbines. The turbines drove three-bladed screws that were 3.75 m (12.3 ft) in diameter, providing a design speed of 21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph). The ships had two rudders.
Prinzregent Luitpold was equipped with two sets of Parsons turbines on the outer shafts. It was intended that a single 12,000 bhp Germania 6-cylinder 2-stroke diesel engine would drive the center shaft. However, the diesel power plant was not ready in time to be installed in Prinzregent Luitpold, so the ship sailed with only two shafts. On trials, Prinzregent Luitpold was approximately one half knot slower than her sisters.
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