SMS Friedrich der Grosse (1911)

SMS Friedrich der Grosse

SMS Friedrich der Grosse underway
History
German Empire
Name	Friedrich der Grosse
Namesake	King Frederick II of Prussia
Builder	AG Vulcan, Hamburg
Laid down	26 January 1910
Launched	10 June 1911
Commissioned	15 October 1912
Fate	Scuttled at Gutter Sound, Scapa Flow 21 June 1919
Notes	Raised and broken up for scrapping 1936–1937
General characteristics
Class and type	Kaiser-class battleship
Displacement	Normal: 24,724 t (24,334 long tons) Full load: 27,000 t (27,000 long tons)
Length	172.40 m (565 ft 7 in)
Beam	29 m (95 ft 2 in)
Draft	9.10 m (29 ft 10 in)
Installed power	16 × water-tube boilers 27,617 ihp (20,594 kW)
Propulsion	3 × steam turbines 3 × screw propellers
Speed	22.4 knots (41.5 km/h; 25.8 mph)
Range	7,900 nmi (14,600 km; 9,100 mi) at 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph)
Crew	41 officers 1,043 enlisted
Armament	10 × 30.5 cm (12 in) guns 14 × 15 cm (5.9 in) guns 12 × 8.8 cm (3.5 in) guns 5 × 50 cm (19.7 in) torpedo tubes
Armor	Belt 350 mm (13.8 in) Conning tower: 400 mm (15.7 in) Turrets: 300 mm (11.8 in)

SMS Friedrich der Grosse^[a] was the second vessel of the Kaiser class of dreadnought battleships of the German Imperial Navy. Friedrich der Grosse's^[b] keel was laid on 26 January 1910 at the AG Vulcan dockyard in Hamburg, her hull was launched on 10 June 1911, and she was commissioned into the fleet on 15 October 1912. The ship was equipped with ten 30.5-centimeter (12 in) guns in five twin turrets, and had a top speed of 23.4 knots (43.3 km/h; 26.9 mph). Friedrich der Grosse was assigned to III Battle Squadron of the High Seas Fleet for the majority of World War I, and served as fleet flagship from her commissioning until 1917.

Along with her four sister ships, Kaiser, Kaiserin, König Albert, and Prinzregent Luitpold, Friedrich der Grosse participated in all the major fleet operations of World War I, including the Battle of Jutland on 31 May – 1 June 1916. Toward the center of the German line, Friedrich der Grosse was not as heavily engaged as the leading German ships, such as the battleships König and Grosser Kurfürst and the battlecruisers of I Scouting Group—Friedrich der Grosse emerged from the battle completely unscathed. In 1917, the new battleship Baden replaced Friedrich der Grosse as the fleet flagship.

After Germany's defeat in the war and the signing of the Armistice in November 1918, Friedrich der Grosse and most of the capital ships of the High Seas Fleet were interned by the British Royal Navy in Scapa Flow. The ships were disarmed and reduced to skeleton crews while the Allied powers negotiated the final version of the Treaty of Versailles. On 21 June 1919, days before the treaty was signed, the commander of the interned fleet, Rear Admiral Ludwig von Reuter, ordered the fleet to be scuttled to ensure that the British would not be able to seize the ships. Friedrich der Grosse was raised in 1936 and broken up for scrap metal. Her bell was returned to Germany in 1965 and is now located at the Fleet Headquarters in Glücksburg.
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