List of Battleships of Germany - Kaiser Friedrich III Class

Kaiser Friedrich III Class

The five Kaiser Friedrich III class ships set the standard for later German pre-dreadnought battleships: they carried smaller main guns than their foreign contemporaries, but a heavier secondary battery. This was in accordance with the "hail of fire" theory, which emphasized smaller, rapid firing guns over larger and slower guns. The ships of the class were also the first German battleships to use three screws, as opposed to two in the Brandenburgs. The class was composed of five ships: Kaiser Friedrich III, Kaiser Wilhelm II, Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse, Kaiser Karl der Grosse, and Kaiser Barbarossa. All of the ships were named for German emperors.

Upon commissioning, the five ships were assigned to the I Squadron of the Home Fleet (Heimatflotte). Kaiser Wilhelm II saw service as the fleet flagship until 1906. After ten years of fleet service, they were replaced with newer ships. They were transferred to the III Squadron of the fleet, which had by then been reorganized as the High Seas Fleet, and placed in reserve. In 1907, all five ships were taken into drydock for significant rebuilding. The funnels were made taller, the superstructure was cut down, and the secondary guns were rearranged; work lasted until 1910. The five ships saw no front-line service during World War I; they were all disarmed and relegated to secondary duties. Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse was used as a torpedo training ship, Kaiser Wilhelm II was used as a headquarters ship, while the other three became prison ships. They were all broken up between 1919 and 1922.