List of Battleships of Germany - Deutschland Class

Deutschland Class

The five Deutschland class battleships—Deutschland, Hannover, Pommern, Schlesien, and Schleswig-Holstein—were the last pre-dreadnoughts built by the German navy. They were similar to the Braunschweig class ships, though their armor was thicker. The ships were built despite rumors of the capabilities of the revolutionary HMS Dreadnought. Admiral von Tirpitz insisted on their construction as larger ships would have necessitated widening the Kaiser Wilhelm Canal; this would have put an enormous strain on the naval budget for the year.

Following their commissioning starting in 1906, they were assigned to the new II Battle Squadron; Deutschland replaced Kaiser Wilhelm II as the fleet flagship. During World War I, the ships remained in the II Battle Squadron and saw combat at the Battle of Jutland in 1916. Their slow speed hindered the more modern dreadnoughts of the High Seas Fleet. Early on the second day of the battle, Pommern was sunk by a single torpedo that triggered an ammunition magazine explosion. Following the battle the Deutschlands were withdrawn from fleet duty and ultimately out of service completely in August 1917. Deutschland was broken up in 1920. The three remaining ships saw continued service in the German navy; Hannover was struck in 1935 and eventually broken up in 1944–46. Schlesien and Schleswig-Holstein were both sunk during World War II but later raised. Schlesien was broken up in 1949–70, while Schleswig-Holstein was transferred to the Soviet Navy in 1946.