SMS Königsberg (1915)

SMS "Königsberg" was the lead ship of the "Königsberg class" of light cruisers, built for the German Imperial Navy. She was named after the earlier "Königsberg", which had been severely damaged and forced to scuttle in the Battle of Rufiji Delta in 1915.

Design

Dimensions and machinery

"Königsberg" was 145.8 m at the waterline and 151.4 m overall. She had a beam of 14.2 m, a draught of 6.14 m, and displaced 5,440 tons with a normal load, and 7,125 tons carrying a full load. The ship was propelled by 2 shaft Navy turbines that produced 31,000 shp and a top speed of 27.5 knots

Armor

"Königsberg" had the same armor layout as the preceding "Wiesbaden" class cruisers, comprised of an armored belt that was 2.5 inches thick at its strongest point, and tapered to .5 inches towards the bow and stern. The deck had between 1 and 2.5 inches of armor protection.

Armament

"Königsberg" also had the same armament scheme as the previous class. The primary armament consisted of eight 150mm (5.9 inch) guns in single turrets, along with two 88mm (3.4 inch) guns also in single mounts. The ship was also armed with four 500mm (19.7 inch) torpedo tubes, as well as 200 mines.

ervice history

"Königsberg" served in the II Scouting Group during World War I. She engaged British cruisers during the Second Battle of Heligoland Bight on 17 November 1917. Following the German defeat in 1918, "Königsberg" was ceded to France. The ship was ultimately scrapped in 1936.

External links

* [http://www.worldwar1.co.uk/cruisers/sms-konigsberg-ii.html World War I Naval Combat]