Английская Википедия:German cruiser Karlsruhe

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Шаблон:Infobox ship imageШаблон:Infobox ship careerШаблон:Infobox ship characteristics

Шаблон:Lang was a light cruiser, the second member of the Шаблон:Sclass, and served from November 1929 to May 1938, and again from November 1939 to April 1940, seeing action in World War II. She was operated by two German navies, the Шаблон:Lang and the Шаблон:Lang. She had two sister ships, Шаблон:Ship and Шаблон:Ship. Шаблон:Lang was laid down in July 1926 at the Шаблон:Lang shipyard in Kiel, launched in August 1927, and commissioned into the Шаблон:Lang in November 1929. She was armed with a main battery of nine 15 cm SK C/25 guns in three triple turrets and had a top speed of Шаблон:Convert.

Like her sisters, Шаблон:Lang served as a training cruiser for naval cadets throughout the 1930s. During the Spanish Civil War, she joined the non-intervention patrols off the Spanish coast. She was in the process of being modernized at the outbreak of World War II in September 1939, and was therefore not ready for action until November 1939. In April 1940 Шаблон:Lang participated in Operation Weserübung, the invasion of Norway. She landed troops at Kristiansand, but while returning to Germany on 9 April, she was struck by a torpedo from the Royal Navy submarine Шаблон:HMS and severely damaged. Unable to return to port, Шаблон:Lang was scuttled by an escorting German torpedo boat.

Her wreck was discovered in June 2020 in the Norwegian trench, 24 km (13 nm) southeast of Kristiansand at a depth of 490 m (1,610 ft).

Design

Файл:Karlsruhe h98277.jpg

Overhead photo of Шаблон:Lang showing the offset arrangement of the rear main guns

Шаблон:Lang was Шаблон:Convert long overall and had a beam of Шаблон:Convert and a maximum draft of Шаблон:Convert. She displaced Шаблон:Convert at full load. The ship had a forecastle deck that extended for most of the length of the ship, ending just aft of the superfiring rear turret. Her superstructure consisted of a conning tower forward with a heavy, tubular mast and a secondary conning tower further aft. Шаблон:Lang had a crew of 21 officers and 493 enlisted men.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn

Her propulsion system consisted of four steam turbines and a pair of 10-cylinder four-stroke diesel engines. Steam for the turbines was provided by six Marine-type, double-ended, oil-fired water-tube boilers, which were vented through a pair of funnels. The ship's propulsion system provided a top speed of Шаблон:Convert and a range of approximately Шаблон:Convert at Шаблон:Convert.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn

The ship was armed with a main battery of nine [[15 cm SK C/25|Шаблон:Cvt SK C/25]] guns mounted in three triple gun turrets. One was located forward, and two were placed in a superfiring pair aft. The rear gun turrets were offset to increase their arc of fire. They were supplied with 1,080 rounds of ammunition, for 120 shells per gun. The ship was also equipped with two [[8.8 cm SK L/45 naval gun|Шаблон:Cvt SK L/45]] anti-aircraft guns in single mounts; they had 400 rounds of ammunition each. Шаблон:Lang also carried four triple torpedo tube mounts located amidships; they were supplied with twenty-four Шаблон:Convert torpedoes. She was also capable of carrying 120 naval mines. The ship was protected by an armor deck that was Шаблон:Convert thick amidships and an armor belt that was Шаблон:Convert thick. The conning tower had Шаблон:Convert thick sides.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn

Service history

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Шаблон:Lang circa 1930

The new cruiser was ordered as "Cruiser C" and given the temporary name Шаблон:Lang as a replacement for the old cruiser Шаблон:SMS.Шаблон:Sfn Construction of Шаблон:Lang began on 27 July 1926 with her keel laying at the Шаблон:Lang shipyard in Kiel. She was launched on 20 August 1927 and was commissioned into the Шаблон:Lang on 6 November 1929.Шаблон:Sfn Шаблон:Lang completed sea trials in the Baltic Sea after entering service, after which she was assigned to training ship duty. In May 1930, she departed on her first overseas training cruise, to Africa and South America. After returning to Germany, she was modernized late in the year; her foremast was shortened, and her rear superstructure was slightly enlarged. Over the next five years, she embarked on four more world cruises for naval cadets, traveling as far as Japan. Between each cruise, she conducted exercises with the rest of the fleet in German waters. Günther Lütjens served as the ship's commander from September 1934 to September 1935. In 1935, she had more modifications made, including the installation of a pole mast aft of the funnels, along with an aircraft catapult amidships with a crane to handle floatplanes.Шаблон:Sfn

On her last training cruise in 1936, Шаблон:Lang was badly damaged by a tropical storm in the Pacific Ocean.Шаблон:Sfn Structural weaknesses in her mostly-welded hull plating caused significant damage, and the cruiser was forced to put into San Diego in April for repairs. There, her hull was repaired and strengthened, which increased her displacement and beam slightly.Шаблон:Sfn She returned to Germany in June 1936, and immediately went into drydock for more permanent repairs and a major overhaul. During this period in dockyard hands, she had her two single-mount 8.8 cm anti-aircraft guns replaced with three twin-mounts. Fire control directors were also installed for these guns. After emerging from this refit, she conducted sea trials and then joined the non-intervention patrols during the Spanish Civil War, though she only remained off Spain for a few months.Шаблон:Sfn

World War II

After returning to Germany, she resumed training duties in the Baltic. She was withdrawn from service in May 1938 for a major modernization. The funnels were modified with raked caps and searchlight platforms on their sides. The ship's 8.8 cm anti-aircraft guns were replaced with more powerful 10.5 cm guns. Work lasted until November 1939, shortly after the outbreak of World War II. She spent the next several months on trials and training maneuvers.Шаблон:Sfn On 4 January, Шаблон:Lang and the minelayer Шаблон:Lang were sent to intercept the Swedish steamer Шаблон:Lang, which was transporting Polish refugees from Riga to Sweden. Шаблон:Lang caught the Swedish vessel, declared it a prize, and sent it and the 41 Poles aboard to Memel.Шаблон:Sfn She was not ready for combat operations by the start of Operation Weserübung, so she was used as a troop transport for the attack on Kristiansand. The attack force also included an E-boat tender, four large torpedo boats, and several E-boats.Шаблон:Sfn

Файл:Kreuzer Karlsruhe 1934.JPG

in San Diego in 1934

The invasion force departed Bremerhaven early on 8 April 1940 with Шаблон:Lang Friedrich Rieve aboard Шаблон:Lang commanding. When it arrived at Kristiansand, heavy fog covered the area, making the passage of the fjord outside the harbor very hazardous. As a result, the German ships had to wait until the morning of 9 April to begin the attack. As Шаблон:Lang entered the fjord, she came under heavy fire from the Norwegian coastal guns at Odderøya Fortress. The cruiser turned in the fjord to bring her full broadside into action; the artillery duel lasted for about two hours before heavy fog again covered the port, forcing both sides to cease fire. The Norwegians surrendered an hour later, and the German ships landed their embarked troops.Шаблон:Sfn

Шаблон:Lang then left Kristiansand on the evening of 9 April with three of the torpedo boats as escorts. The British submarine Шаблон:HMS was positioned outside the fjord, and when her crew spotted the German ships, she fired a spread of torpedoes.Шаблон:Sfn Шаблон:Lang took evasive action, but one torpedo struck her on the starboard side amidships, blasting a large hole in the hull and allowing thousands of tons of water to flood in. The flooding disabled her engines and electrical generators, which cut off power to the pumps that were trying to keep pace with the incoming water. With those pumps inoperable, Rieve decided there was no hope of saving Шаблон:Lang and issued the order to abandon ship two hours after the attack. The torpedo boat Шаблон:Ship took off her crew and fired two more torpedoes into Шаблон:Lang to scuttle her.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn

Rieve and his executive officer were severely criticized in an investigation into the sinking for failing to take all possible steps to save Шаблон:Lang. The report concluded that since the ship was still afloat after two hours, and two additional torpedoes were required to sink her, it might have been possible to take her under tow back to Kristiansand or another port. In addition, the forward pumps still had power, and so the flooding could have been slowed enough to permit a return to a safe harbor.Шаблон:Sfn

The wreck

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Processed survey data showing the wreck of Karlsruhe

Шаблон:Lang sank in deep water, and the exact position of the wreck remained unknown for more than 80 years. The Norwegian power grid operator Statnett conducted a sonar survey in April 2017 that located the wreck but did not identify it at the time. The vessel lies upright on the sea floor, Шаблон:Cvt from the submerged power line between Denmark and Norway, operated by Statnett. Шаблон:LangШаблон:'s bow is no longer attached to the vessel. The wreck is some Шаблон:Cvt off the Norwegian coast, at a depth of about Шаблон:Cvt. Stattnet sent another expedition on 30 June 2020 with the survey vessel Olympic Taurus to conduct an investigation of the wreck using remotely operated underwater vehicles after a severe storm, to confirm that the cable had not been damaged. The company confirmed in September that it was Шаблон:Lang.Шаблон:Sfn

References

• Шаблон:Cite book
• Шаблон:Cite book
• Шаблон:Cite book
• Шаблон:Cite book
• Шаблон:Cite journal

Further reading

• Шаблон:Cite book
• Шаблон:Cite book
• Шаблон:Cite book