German dreadnought battleship SMS (ex-“S”) König 1911-1919

Kaiser-class

König-class

Bayern-class

Part of the König-class consisting of the König, Grosser Kurfürst, Markgraf and Kronprinz. Preceded by the Kaiser-class and succeeded by the Bayern-class. Building ordered as the “S”, laid down at the Kaiserliche Werft, Wilhelmshaven, Germany with yard number 33 in October 1911, launched on 1 March 1913, commissioned on 9 August 1914, sea trials completed on 23 November 1914 and scuttled by her own crew at Gutter Sound, Scapa Flow, Orkney Isles, Scotland on 21 June 1919. Never raised. Building costs 45 million Goldmarks.

Displacement 25.796 (normal)-28.600 (full load) tons and as dimensions 174,5 x 29,5 x 9,19 metres or 575.6 x 96.9 x 30.2 feet. The machinery consisted of 3 Parsons turbines, 2 oil fuelled and 12 coal fuelled Schulz-Thonycroft boilers supplying via 3 shafts 42.708 ship allowing a speed of 21 knots and with a speed of 12 knots a range of 8.000 nautical miles. Her crew numbered 1.136 men. The Krupp cemented armour consisted of a 35cm/14” thick belt, a 3cm/1,2” thick deck, the gun turrets 11cm/4.3” (roofs)-30cm/12” (sides), 15cm guns mounted in casemates protected by 17cm/6.7”armour and 8cm/3.1” splinter gun shields, forward conning tower protected by 15cm/5.9” (roof)-30cm/12” (sides) and rear conning tower 5cm/2.0“(roof)-20cm/7.9“ (sides). The armament consisted of 5x2-30,5cm/12” L/45 quick firing guns, 14x1-15cm/5.9” L/45 quick firing guns, 6x1-8,8cm/3.5” L/45 quick firing guns and 5-50cm/19.7” submerged torpedo tubes(1xbow, 2 each side).