SMS Nürnberg (1916)

SMS Nürnberg was a Königsberg class light cruiser built during World War I by Germany for the Imperial Navy. The ship was named after the previous light cruiser Nürnberg, which had been sunk at the Battle of the Falkland Islands.

Construction

Nürnberg was ordered under the contract name "Ersatz Thetis" and was laid down at the AG Weser shipyard in Bremen in 1915. She was launched on 14 April 1916, after which fitting-out work commenced. She was commissioned into the High Seas Fleet on 15 February 1917. The ship was 151.4 meters (497 ft) long overall and had a beam of 14.2 m (47 ft) and a draft of 5.96 m (19.6 ft) forward. She displaced 7,125 t (7,012 long tons; 7,854 short tons) at full combat load. Her propulsion system consisted of two sets of steam turbines powered by ten coal-fired and two oil-fired Marine-type boilers. These provided a top speed of 27.5 kn (50.9 km/h; 31.6 mph) and a range of 4,850 nautical miles (8,980 km; 5,580 mi) at 12 kn (22 km/h; 14 mph).^[1]

The ship was armed with eight 15 cm SK L/45 guns in single pedestal mounts. Two were placed side by side forward on the forecastle, four were located amidships, two on either side, and two were arranged in a super firing pair aft.^[2] They were supplied with 1,040 rounds of ammunition, for 130 shells per gun. Nürnberg also carried two 8.8 cm (3.5 in) L/45 anti-aircraft guns mounted on the centerline astern of the funnels. She was also equipped with a pair of 60 cm (24 in) torpedo tubes with eight torpedoes in deck-mounted swivel launchers amidships. She also carried 200 mines. The ship was protected by a waterline armored belt that was 60 mm (2.4 in) thick amidships. The conning tower had 100 mm (3.9 in) thick sides, and the deck was covered with 60 mm thick armor plate.^[1]

Service history

Upon commissioning in 1917, Nürnberg was assigned to the II Scouting Group of the High Seas Fleet. At the end of the war, Nürnberg was interned at Scapa Flow, where the ship was scuttled by her crews alongside the rest of the High Seas Fleet held there. Quick action by British sailors allowed the ship to be beached to avoid sinking.^[3] Nürnberg was ultimately handed over to France, as war reparations, and used as a gunnery target. She was eventually sold for scrapping in 1926.

Notes

References

• Gardiner, Robert; Gray, Randal, eds (1984). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships: 1906–1922. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0870219073. 
• Gröner, Erich (1990). German Warships: 1815–1945. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-790-9. 
• Herwig, Holger (1980). "Luxury" Fleet: The Imperial German Navy 1888–1918. Amherst, New York: Humanity Books. ISBN 1-57392-286-2.