German dreadnought battleship SMS (ex-Kurfürst Friedrich Wilhelm) Grosser Kurfürst 1911-1919 (1938)

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 Ersatz Kurfürst Friedrich Wilhelm, laid down at the AG Vulkan shipyard, Hamburg, Germany with yard number 4 in October 1911, launched on 5 May 1913, dockyards trials on 15 July 1914, commissioned on 30 July 1914 and scuttled by her own crew at Gutter Sound, Scapa Flow, Orkney Isles, Scotland on 21 June 1919. Raised on 29 April 1938 and sold to be broken up at Rosyth. Building costs 45 million Goldmarks.

Displacement 25.796 (normal)-28.600 (full load) tons and as dimensions 174,5 (over all) x 29,5 x 9,19 metres or 575.6 x 96.9 x 30.2 feet. The machinery consisted of 3 AEG-Vulcan turbines, 2 oil fuelled and 12 coal fuelled Schulz-Thonycroft boilers supplying via 3 shafts 44.483 shp allowing a speed of 21,2 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).