Brummer Class Cruiser - Design and Construction

Design and Construction

In 1914, AG Vulcan in Stettin was building two sets of high-powered steam turbines for the Russian Navy for use in their new battlecruiser Navarin, then under construction in Russia. After the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, which saw Germany and Russia on opposing sides, the German government seized the turbines. At that time, the Kaiserliche Marine possessed only two cruisers equipped for mine-laying operations, the cruisers Nautilus and Albatross. The Kaiserliche Marine ordered AG Vulcan to split Navarin's propulsion system in half and to design a pair of cruiser hulls around the engines. The ships were to be fast mine-layers, capable of mining an area under cover of darkness and quickly returning to port before they could be intercepted. They were designed to resemble the British Arethusa class cruisers to aid in their ability to operate off the British coast.

Design work on the ships was completed quickly in 1914. Brummer was laid down at the AG Vulcan shipyard in Stettin in early 1915. Work proceeded quickly, and the ship was launched on 11 December 1915. After the completion of fitting-out work, the ship was commissioned into the High Seas Fleet on 2 April 1916. Bremse followed her sister the same year at AG Vulcan. She was launched on 11 March 1916 and completed in less than four months; the ship was commissioned into the fleet on 1 July 1916. During construction, the shape of their bow and its resemblance to British cruisers was covered by sheet metal.