Construction
Bayern was ordered with the provisional name "T" in 1912, under the fourth and final Naval Law, which was passed that year. Work began at the Howaldtswerke Dockyard in Kiel under construction number 590. The ship was laid down in 1913 and launched on 18 February 1915. After fitting-out and sea trials, the ship was commissioned into service on 15 July 1916, a month and a half too late for her to participate in the Battle of Jutland. She had cost the Imperial German Government 49 million Goldmarks. Bayern would later be joined in service by one sister ship, Baden. Two other ships of this class, Sachsen and Württemberg, were canceled before they were completed.
Bayern was 179.4 m (589 ft) long at the waterline, and an even 180 m (590 ft) long overall. She had a beam of 30 m (98 ft 5 in) and a draft of 9.3–9.4 m (30.5–30.8 ft). Bayern displaced 28,530 metric tons (28,080 long tons; 31,450 short tons) at a normal displacement; at full combat load, she displaced up to 32,200 t (31,700 long tons; 35,500 short tons). Bayern was powered by three Parsons steam turbines rated at 35,000 shaft horsepower (26,000 kW) and three oil-fired and eleven coal-fired Schulz-Thornycroft boilers, and on trials achieved 55,967 shp (41,735 kW); she had a maximum speed of 22 knots (41 km/h; 25 mph). The ship could carry up to 3,400 t (3,300 long tons; 3,700 short tons) of coal and 620 t (610 long tons; 680 short tons) of fuel oil, which provided a maximum range of 5,000 nmi (9,300 km; 5,800 mi) at a cruising speed of 12 kn (22 km/h; 14 mph).
The ship was the first German warship armed with eight 38 cm (15 in) guns. The primary battery guns were arranged in four twin gun turrets: two superfiring turrets each fore and aft. Her secondary armament consisted of sixteen 15 cm (5.9 in) guns, six 8.8 cm (3.45 in) guns and five 60 cm (23.6 in) underwater torpedo tubes, one in the bow and two on each beam. Upon commissioning, she carried a crew of 42 officers and 1,129 enlisted men.
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