 Karlsruhe at sea in 1931 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
  Germany | |
| Name | Karlsruhe |
| Namesake | Karlsruhe, Germany |
| Builder | Deutsche Werke,Kiel |
| Laid down | 27 July 1926 |
| Launched | 20 August 1927 |
| Commissioned | 6 November 1929 |
| Out of service | May 1938 |
| Reinstated | November 1939 |
| Fate | Sunk, 9 April 1940 |
| General characteristics[a] | |
| Class and type | Königsberg-classcruiser |
| Displacement | 7,700long tons (7,800 t) |
| Length | 174 m (571 ft) |
| Beam | 15.3 m (50 ft) |
| Draft | 6.28 m (20.6 ft) |
| Installed power |
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| Propulsion |
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| Speed | 32knots (59 km/h; 37 mph) |
| Range | 5,700 nmi (10,600 km; 6,600 mi) at 19 knots (35 km/h; 22 mph) |
| Complement |
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| Armament |
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| Armor |
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Karlsruhe was alight cruiser, the second member of theKönigsberg class, and served from November 1929 to May 1938, and again from November 1939 to April 1940, seeing action inWorld War II. She was operated by two German navies, theReichsmarine and theKriegsmarine. She had twosister ships,Königsberg andKöln.Karlsruhe waslaid down in July 1926 at theDeutsche Werke shipyard inKiel, launched in August 1927, and commissioned into theReichsmarine in November 1929. She was armed with a main battery of nine15 cm SK C/25 guns in three triple turrets and had a top speed of 32knots (59 km/h; 37 mph).
Like her sisters,Karlsruhe served as a training cruiser for naval cadets throughout the 1930s. During theSpanish Civil War, she joined thenon-intervention patrols off the Spanish coast. She was in the process of being modernized at the outbreak of World War II in September 1939, and was therefore not ready for action until November 1939. In April 1940Karlsruhe participated inOperation Weserübung, the invasion of Norway. She landed troops atKristiansand, but while returning to Germany on 9 April, she was struck by a torpedo from theRoyal NavysubmarineHMS Truant and severely damaged. Unable to return to port,Karlsruhe wasscuttled by an escorting Germantorpedo boat. Her wreck was discovered in June 2020.
Karlsruhe was 174 meters (571 ft)long overall and had abeam of 15.2 m (50 ft) and a maximumdraft of 6.28 m (20.6 ft). Shedisplaced 7,700long tons (7,800 t) atfull load. The ship had aforecastledeck that extended for most of the length of the ship, ending just aft of thesuperfiring rear turret. Hersuperstructure consisted of aconning tower forward with a heavy, tubularmast and a secondary conning tower further aft.Karlsruhe had a crew of 21 officers and 493 enlisted men.[1][2]
Her propulsion system consisted of foursteam turbines and a pair of 10-cylinder four-strokediesel engines. Steam for the turbines was provided by six Marine-type, double-ended, oil-firedwater-tube boilers, which were vented through a pair offunnels. The ship's propulsion system provided a top speed of 32 knots (59 km/h; 37 mph) and a range of approximately 5,700nautical miles (10,600 km; 6,600 mi) at 19 knots (35 km/h; 22 mph).[1][2]
The ship was armed with amain battery of nine15 cm (5.9 in) SK C/25 guns mounted in three triplegun turrets. One was located forward, and two were placed in asuperfiring pair aft. The rear gun turrets were offset to increase theirarc of fire. They were supplied with 1,080 rounds of ammunition, for 120 shells per gun. The ship was also equipped with two8.8 cm (3.5 in) SK L/45 anti-aircraft guns in single mounts; they had 400 rounds of ammunition each.Karlsruhe also carried four tripletorpedo tube mounts located amidships; they were supplied with twenty-four 50 cm (20 in)torpedoes. She was also capable of carrying 120naval mines. The ship was protected by an armordeck that was 40 mm (1.6 in) thick amidships and anarmor belt that was 50 mm (2 in) thick. Theconning tower had 100 mm (3.9 in) thick sides.[1][2]
The new cruiser was ordered as "Cruiser C" and given the temporary nameErsatz Medusa as a replacement for the old cruiserMedusa.[3] Construction ofKarlsruhe began on 27 July 1926 with herkeel laying at theDeutsche Werke shipyard inKiel. She was launched on 20 August 1927 and was commissioned into theReichsmarine on 6 November 1929.[2]Karlsruhe completedsea trials in theBaltic Sea after entering service, after which she was assigned totraining ship duty. In May 1930, she departed on her first overseas training cruise, to Africa and South America. After returning to Germany, she was modernized late in the year; her foremast was shortened, and her rearsuperstructure was slightly enlarged. Over the next five years, she embarked on four more world cruises fornaval cadets, traveling as far as Japan. Between each cruise, she conducted exercises with the rest of the fleet in German waters.Günther Lütjens served as the ship's commander from September 1934 to September 1935. In 1935, she had more modifications made, including the installation of a pole mast aft of the funnels, along with anaircraft catapult amidships with a crane to handlefloatplanes.[4]
On her last training cruise in 1936,Karlsruhe was badly damaged by atropical storm in the Pacific Ocean.[5] Structural weaknesses in her mostly-welded hull plating caused significant damage, and the cruiser was forced to put intoSan Diego in April for repairs. There, her hull was repaired and strengthened, which increased her displacement and beam slightly.[2] She returned to Germany in June 1936, and immediately went intodrydock for more permanent repairs and a major overhaul. During this period in dockyard hands, she had her two single-mount 8.8 cm anti-aircraft guns replaced with three twin-mounts. OneSL-1 stabilized fire control director was also installed for these guns. After emerging from this refit, she conducted sea trials and then joined thenon-intervention patrols during theSpanish Civil War, though she only remained off Spain for a few months.[4]
After returning to Germany, she resumed training duties in the Baltic. She was withdrawn from service in May 1938 for a major modernization. The funnels were modified with raked caps and searchlight platforms on their sides. The ship's 8.8 cm anti-aircraft guns were replaced with more powerful 10.5 cm guns. Work lasted until November 1939, shortly after the outbreak ofWorld War II. She spent the next several months on trials and training maneuvers.[5] On 4 January,Karlsruhe and the minelayerSchiff 23 were sent to intercept the Swedish steamerKonung Oscar, which was transporting Polish refugees fromRiga to Sweden.Karlsruhe caught the Swedish vessel, declared it aprize, and sent it and the 41 Poles aboard toMemel.[6] She was not ready for combat operations by the start ofOperation Weserübung, so she was used as a troop transport for the attack onKristiansand. The attack force also included anE-boat tender, four largetorpedo boats, and several E-boats.[4]
The invasion force departedBremerhaven early on 8 April 1940 withKapitän zur See Friedrich Rieve aboardKarlsruhe commanding. When it arrived at Kristiansand, heavy fog covered the area, making the passage of thefjord outside the harbor very hazardous. As a result, the German ships had to wait until the morning of 9 April to begin the attack. AsKarlsruhe entered the fjord, she came under heavy fire from the Norwegian coastal guns atOdderøya Fortress. The cruiser turned in the fjord to bring her fullbroadside into action; the artillery duel lasted for about two hours before heavy fog again covered the port, forcing both sides to cease fire. The Norwegians surrendered an hour later, and the German ships landed their embarked troops.[7]
Karlsruhe then left Kristiansand on the evening of 9 April with three of the torpedo boats as escorts. The BritishsubmarineHMS Truant was positioned outside the fjord, and when her crew spotted the German ships, she fired a spread of torpedoes.[7]Karlsruhe took evasive action, but one torpedo struck her on thestarboard sideamidships, blasting a large hole in the hull and allowing thousands of tons of water to flood in. The flooding disabled her engines and partially her electrical generators, which cut off power to some of the pumps that were trying to keep pace with the incoming water. With those pumps compromised, Rieve decided there was no hope of savingKarlsruhe and issued the order to abandon ship two hours after the attack. The torpedo boatGreif took off her crew and fired two more torpedoes intoKarlsruhe to scuttle her.[2][8]
Rieve and his executive officer were severely criticized in an investigation into the sinking for failing to take all possible steps to saveKarlsruhe. The report concluded that since the ship was still afloat after two hours, and two additional torpedoes were required to sink her, it might have been possible to take her under tow back to Kristiansand or another port. In addition, the forward pumps still had power, and so the flooding could have been slowed enough to permit a return to a safe harbor.[8]
Karlsruhe sank in deep water, and the exact position of the wreck remained unknown for more than 80 years. The Norwegian power grid operatorStatnett conducted asonar survey in April 2017 that located the wreck but did not identify it at the time. The vessel lies upright on the sea floor, 15 m (49 ft) fromthe submerged power line between Denmark and Norway, operated by Statnett.Karlsruhe's bow is no longer attached to the vessel. The wreck is some 13 nmi (24 km; 15 mi) off the Norwegian coast, at a depth of about 490 m (1,610 ft).[9] Stattnet sent another expedition on 30 June 2020 with the survey vesselOlympic Taurus to conduct an investigation of the wreck usingremotely operated underwater vehicles after a severe storm, to confirm that the cable had not been damaged. The company confirmed in September that it wasKarlsruhe.[10][11][12][13]
Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in April 1940 | |
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| Shipwrecks |
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| Other incidents |
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58°04′N8°04′E / 58.067°N 8.067°E /58.067; 8.067
Authority control databases: National |
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