German battle cruiser Scharnhorst 1939-1943

Scharnhorst

Bitish King George V-class battleships

Laid down at the Kriegsmarinewerft Wilhemshaven, Germany on 15 June 1935, launched on 3 October 1936, commissioned on 7 January 1939 and sunk while in battle off the North Cape on 26 December 1943  by the British battleship HMS Duke of York (1) with just 36 survivors of a crew of 1,968 men. Her sister ship was the Gneisenau. The Scharnhorst was to replace the old dreadnought Elsass and so she became first know in official documents and newspaper as the Ersatz Elsass and in the contracts as ‘D”.

With a displacement of 32,100 long tons standard and 38,100 long tons full laod were her dimensions 234 (over all)-226 (waterline) x 30 x 9,69 (with a displacement of 37,303 tons) metres or 772-741’5”x 98’4”x 31’9”. The three Germania/Brown, Boveri & Co. geared turbines supplied 151,893 shp allowing a speed of 31 knots. With a speed of 19 knots was her range 7,100 nautical miles. The armour consisted of a 350mm belt, a 50mm deck wile the turrets were protected by 200-360mm and the conning tower by 350mm. The armament consisted of 3x3-28cm guns, 12-15cm guns, 14-10,5cm guns, 16-3,7cm  and 10-2cm anti aircraft guns (later were more added), 6-53,3cm torpedo tubes and she carried with 3 Aradao Ar 196A planes for which she was fitted out with one catapult.

Note
1. King George V-class consisted of the King George V, Prince of Wales, Duke of York, Howe and Anson, preceded by the Nelson-class and succeeded by the Vanguard and by the never realized Lion-class. The armament consisted of 2x4 and 1x2-36cm/14”breech loading Mark VII guns, 16-13,3cm/5.25” quick firing Mk. I DP guns, 64-4cm/1.6” quick firing 2 pd Mk. VIII anti air craft guns, 10-4cm Bofors and in 1945 36-2cm/0.8” Oerlikon anti aircraft guns.