KMS Deutschland
Panzerschiffe (armored ship) pocket battleships
The Deutschland class armored ship were popularly called "pocket battleships". These three vessels had cruiser-type hulls, and armor protection, but carried heavier guns (eleven-inch) than contemporary foreign cruisers. It was expected that they could outgun almost any opponent that could not be outrun, though with a maximum speed (about 29 knots) that was somewhat slower than most cruisers. In the 1920s the Germans were planning for a war with France only. The pocket battleships could have been very effective, either as commerce raiders or to secure the Baltic (where the French could be expected not to venture) in the event of a war pitting Germany against France plus either one of Czechoslovakia or Poland. Only naval forces could assure lines of communication with East Prussia, separated from the rest of Germany by the Polish Corridor.
Construction of this new ship would mean German domination of the Baltic Sea, though they were propelled by diesel engines that provided extraordinarily long range unrelated to Baltic operations. The French had no battlecruisers, and later built both Dunkerques as a specific reply to the Deutschlands. Only later did they acquire the role of oceanic commerce raiders against British shipping, which placed a premium on their extraordinarily long range.
When the infant Deutsche Kriegsmarine (DKM, German Navy) designed their first heavy units, the focus was on creating the most powerful warship within the treaty limitations on the size and types of ship Germany was permitted to build. New, more modern production methods, where welded construction prevailed over the older riveting process, were combined with modern diesel engines capable of fast speeds and a very powerful armament, creating a ship superior to that on any enemy cruisers.
When the German Social Democratic Party campaigned for election to the Reichstag in May 1928 its candidates swore to oppose the construction of an armored cruiser which had been approved by the outgoing Reichstag. When the Social Democrats got the highest vote in the election, and thus became the dominant element in the coalition government headed by Hermann Mueller. The leaders of the Social Democrats found they could not resist the pressure of their partners in the coalition, and agreed to proceed with the construction of the cruiser. Communist Party leaders in the Reichstag announced that they would collect signatures to a petition for the enactment of a "law forbidding the construction of armored cruisers and other warships." Although many Social Democrats were opposed to their leaders' betrayal of their campaign pledges, the CP petition campaign was a failure, collecting only 1,200,000 names, which was two million less than the CP voting members.
The completion of the "pocket battleship" Deutschland by the Germans in 1932 was the first trespasses against the arms limitation treaties. This vessel did not fit any category laid down by the naval treaties of Washington (1922) or London (1930). The displacement was that of a heavy cruiser), but were armed with guns larger than the heavy cruisers of other nations. German capital ships were restricted by the Treaty of Versailles to a displacement of 10,000 tons for armored ships.
There was unhesitating cooperation among the foreign warships during the refugee crisis at the outset of the Spanish Civil War, as they evacuated refugees regardless of nationality who could somehow make it "pier side." navies became rapidly involved with ships "pier side"including the Italians on 20 July 1936, the French on 21 July 1936, followed by the Germans and the Americans. The number of German and Italian ships involved in evacuating refugees wassignificant. The Germans deployed a large portion of their Navy, including the "pocket battleships" Deutschland and Admiral Scheer, the cruiser Köln, plus six torpedo boats. The Germans and Italians maintained a significant naval presence in Spanish waters for the remainder of the war and would periodically rotate their ships through for training. The refugee crisis acted as a false front while the German and Italian Navies protected their merchant shipping. The merchant ships that were protected delivered critical war material to the Nationalists that eventually allowed them to win. Germany never had less than 50 percent of her Navy in Spanish waters supporting Franco. Germany had typically two of her three "pocket battleships," four of six cruisers, one torpedo boat flotilla and as many as four submarines deployed to support the war.
The Deutschland operated against merchant ships in the Atlantic and, renamed Lutzow, undertook anti-convoy operations in the Arctic before being scuttled in 1945 to prevent her falling into the hands of the Soviets. The Admiral Scheer raided the South Atlantic and was then relegated to the Baltic before serving as floating artillery against the Red Army in 1945. The Admiral Graf Spee had the most dramatic career of the class, raiding the South Atlantic before being scuttled off Montevideo.
The Lützow Class was comprised of three battleships of which the flagship was first called the Deutschland. Because Hitler was fearful of the lessening morale on Germans and the political boasting of the enemy if any ship called "Deutschland" should be sunk or captured, he ordered that KMS Deutschland be renamed to KMS Lützow in early 1940. The Deutschland/Lutzow sister ships were Admiral Scheer and Admiral Graf Spee. The class of three ships was commissioned 1933 to 1936. Because there was an early class of WWI circa dreadnaughts called the "Deutschland Class" we prefer to not refer to the WWII circa Deutschland by its original name but rather call the ship and its sisters the "Lutzow Class". Note: There was another WWII circa battleship also called "Lützow" which was of the Admiral Hipper Class, but that ship was never completed. The Lützow Class ships were smaller than heavy cruisers but were designated "Panzerschiff" (battleship) because their main armament was 11-inch (280mm) guns. Because of their small size, they are referred to as "Pocket Battleships". All three ships were somewhat different in beam and displacement. The flagship Deutschland (renamed Lützow later) was build with a slender forward superstructure while the following two ships were built with a thick "pagoda style" forward structure. The first to be lost in action was the Admiral Graf Spee which was scuttled off Montevideo, Uruguay in late 1939 after being trapped by British warships in the River Plate. Both surviving pocket battleships were extensively converted in late 1939 to early 1940 which saw them lengthened overall by 2 meters and the "pagoda style" superstructure on Admiral Scheer replaced by the more slender structure that the Deutschland had originally been built with. Additionally the three twin 88mm guns were exchanged for the same number of 105mm heavy flak guns. About this time the two surviving ships were re-classified as heavy cruisers in an attempt to confuse Allied intelligence. Lützow was damaged by RAF bombers numerous times and was often in dry-dock for repair until a successful attack on April 16th, 1945 resulted in her being scuttled May 4th in shallow water near Swinemünde in Poland. Two years later she was re-floated and permanently sunk in deeper water. Admiral Scheer was also extensively attacked by the RAF and was capsized on April 9th, 1945 in shallow water within Emden Port, Germany. Admiral Scheer specifications (as built) Length 610 ft (616 ft after 1939 conversion) Beam 70 ft Displacement 13,660 tons; 15,180 tons fully loaded Power Plant 8 Wagner boilers, 2 screws, 186,000 shp Speed/Range 28 knots / 17,400 miles @ 13 knots Armament 2 triple 11", 8 single 5.9", 3 twin 88mm (replaced by 105mm), 4 twin 37mm AA, 8 single 20mm, 2 quad torpedo launchers Aircraft 2 Heinkel He60D, later Arado Ar196A3 Before Admiral Graf Spee was given her official name, she was referred to as Panzerschiff C and Ersatz Braunschweig, as she would be replacing the old battleship Braunschweig in the fleet inventory. She was considered the most advanced and improved of her class of ships. It cost 82 million Reichsmarks to build. Much weight was saved by using electric arc welding instead of rivets.
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