She was one of three ships on the far eastern route between bremen and yokohama. On may 27, 1941, the british navy sinks the german battleship bismarck in the north atlantic near france. Love the history of a ship that few people know about. Apr 09, 2020 scharnhorst wwii german warship in our continuing series of history articles that we are presenting, our historians are writing on a range of subjects. During operations off norway, the two ships engaged the battlecruiser hms renown and sank the aircraft carrier hms gloriousin the engagement with glorious, scharnhorst achieved one of the longestrange naval gunfire hits in history. She was named after prince eugene of savoy, an 18thcentury. More about the battleship scharnhorstclass battleship. The german battleship scharnhorst schiffer military history. On 12 january 1942, the german naval command, in a conference with hitler, made the decision to return scharnhorst, gneisenau, and the heavy cruiser prinz eugen to germany. The german battleship scharnhorst by siegfried breyer. German battleship bismarck, scharnhorst class battleship, german battleship scharnhorst, bismarck class battleship, german battleship gneisenau, german battleship tirpitz, deutschland class battleship, sms schleswigholstein, sms schlesien.
German battleship scharnhorst battleship era world of. Wwii german warships and the prussian general staff. Admiral scheer, and admiral graf spee, along with the battleship scharnhorst. Scharnhorst ever most quick that gnienesau on speed scharnhorst top speed test trials 31,8. Scharnhorst was one of several german warships that took part in the dash to safe ports in northern germany, accompanied by an aerial escort of luftwaffe planes. Scharnhorst was a battleshipbattlecruiser that served with nazi germanys kriegsmarine during world war ii. The warships of the world war ii german navy are among the most popular subjects in naval history, and one of the best collections is the.
In 1935 the only ship named scharnhorst was an 18,000ton cruise liner used by the third reich for workers and military men and their families on holiday voyages. German battleship scharnhorst in port, circa 19391940. On 15th march, the scharnhorst sank a total of 27,277 tons of shipping after a skirmish with a british convoy in the midatlantic. The accompanying despatch was submitted on the 28th january, 1944, to the lords commissioners of the admiralty by admiral sir bruce a. Scharnhorst and her twin sister gneisenau were a pair of rather odd ducks.
The warships of the world war ii era german navy are among the most popular subject in naval history with an almost uncountable number of books devoted to them. Bismarck class battleships, gneisenau class battlecruisers, hclass battleships, german battleship bismarck, scharnhorst class battleship, german battleship scharnhorst, german battleship gneisenau, german battleship tirpitz, sms schleswig. Scharnhorst achieved one of the longestrange naval gunfire hits in history. Overshadowed by the big battleships of the bismark class, the sister ships scharnhorst and gneisenau proved to be just as valuable to the german navy in wwii. Scharnhorst vs gneisenau opinions german battleships. The two bismarck class battleships followed in 1936. Completed in may 1938, the ship was armed with a main battery. Previous german battleships were classified as linienschiffe ships of the.
In the late 1920s, debate ensued within germany regarding the size and place of the nations navy. In our continuing series of history articles that we are presenting, our historians are writing on a range of subjects. Since at least the 1980s, the books by the late gerhard koop he died in 2005, originally published in germany as hardcovers, were universally respected and considered excellent technical reference books. Commissioned in 1939, the ship mounted a main armament of nine 11inch guns and was capable of 31 knots. Scharnhorst was a german capital ship, alternatively described as a battleship and battlecruiser, of the german kriegsmarine. Among these was the battlecruiser scharnhorst, one of nazi germanys new generation of fighting ships that were too fast to be kept bottled up. The scharnhorst class were the first capital ships, referred to as either battleships or.
Are the german scharnhorst class considered battleships. Wwii german warships and the prussian general staff stephen. Scharnhorst presented an imposing silhouette, with three triple turrets, a heavy bridge superstructure, and a single large stack. Scharnhorst was a german capital ship, alternatively described as a battleship or battlecruiser. These concerns were heightened by new shipbuilding in france and the soviet union which led to the reichsmarine planning for new warships. She was the first big passenger liner built by the third reich. German battleship scharnhorst underway as seen in us navy booklet a503 fm3050 for warship identification. Nov 12, 20 on december 20th, scharnhorst made what would be her final sortie, being sent to intercept convoy jw 55b, thanks to british inteligence breaking german naval codes, the royal navy was able to move the convoys distant cover, three cruisers and the king george v class battleship duke of york, which was over two hundred miles away initially and. However, for a concise but authoritative summary of the design history and careers of the major surface ships it is difficult to beat a series of six volumes written by gerhard koop and. Thriftbooks sells millions of used books at the lowest everyday prices. Mar 21, 2012 scharnhorst german battle cruiser of ww2. The ship was laid down in april 1936, launched in august 1938, and entered service after the outbreak of war, in august 1940. The scharnhorst was a heavily armed ship of 26,000 tons standard displacement.
Under the german merchant flag, she was the second liner named after general gerhard j. L ike the royal navys illfated hood, the scharnhorst was technically a battlecruiser, but is generally called a battleship. May 15, 2014 scharnhorst and gneisenau were the products of a long, involved, and politicallydetermined design process that witnessed this class of battleships develop from an improved pocket battleship to what many described as a battlecruiser. She served with nazi germanys kriegsmarine during world war ii. They were pursued by the two fierce battleships, king george v and rodney, but the scharnhorst and gneisenau were too fast, and successfully evaded the british in a squall. Each book contains an account of the development of a particular class. This week, james arnold, who is the author of more than thirty military history books, discusses two prominent prussian military officers who fought in the 19th century napoleonic wars. German battleship scharnhorst battleship era world. Since at least the 1980s, the books by the late gerhard koop he died in 2005, originally published in germany as hardcovers, were universally respected and considered excellent technical reference books on the kriegsmarine.
Both displaced 32,100 long tons standard or 38,100 lt fully loaded. Battleship scharnhorst conway maritime modellers by gerhard koop, klauspeter schmolke paperback 56 pages november motorbooks international. Battleships of the scharnhorst class kindle pen and sword books. During the early years of the war, scharnhorst supported operations against norway as well as raided allied convoys in the north. Covers the activities and design specifics of the battle. In that engagement scharnhorst achieved one of the longest range naval gunfire hits in history. On december 20th, scharnhorst made what would be her final sortie, being sent to intercept convoy jw 55b, thanks to british inteligence breaking german naval codes, the royal navy was able to move the convoys distant cover, three cruisers and the king george v class battleship duke of york, which was over two hundred miles away initially and. Gneisenau was a german capital ship, alternatively described as a battleship and battlecruiser, of the german kriegsmarine. Sep 23, 2015 the battleship book, to be published by wildside books in september, 2015 battleship bookrobertmfarleydp1479405566. The sinking of the german battlecruiser scharnhorst. Scharnhorst and gneisenau participated in operation weserubung, the german invasion of norway. The german battleship scharnhorst schiffer military history by siegfried breyer author visit amazons siegfried breyer page. Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from wikipedia or other free sources online.
Space battleship scharnhorst and the library of doom an old guycybertank adventure. The battle of the north cape was a second world war naval battle which occurred on 26 december 1943, as part of the arctic campaign. Click to read more about the german battleship scharnhorst schiffer military history by siegfried breyer. Or buy the book directly from the sites listed below.
The german battleship scharnhorst schiffer military history siegfried breyer. Published in supplement to the london gazette, thrusday, 7 august 1947 sinking of the german battlecruiser scharnhorst on the 26th december, 1943. The battleship bismarck german navy at war, vol 3 by ulrich e. Ss scharnhorst was a norddeutscher lloyd ocean liner, launched in 1934, completed in 1935 and made her maiden voyage on 8 may 1935. This week of boxing day marks the anniversary of the sinking by hms duke of york of the german battleship scharnhorst which became operational in 1939. The german battleship scharnhorst schiffer military history paperback february 1, 1991 by siegfried breyer author visit amazons siegfried breyer page. The german battleship scharnhorst schiffer military history breyer, siegfried on. This is a good, concise history of the ships of the bismarck class bismarck and tirpitz.
It did great damage to allied shipping in northern waters during world war ii before it was sunk by the british battleship duke of york on dec. The german battleship scharnhorst, on an operation to attack arctic convoys of war materiel from the western allies to the ussr, was brought to battle and sunk by the royal navy the battleship hms duke of york with cruisers and destroyers including an. Scharnhorst was a german capital ship, alternatively described as a battleship or battlecruiser, of nazi germanys kriegsmarine. Pdf battleships of the scharnhorst class download full.
Navy archive compiled during wwii, and acquired by periscope film. You play schar and 19k and dont sunk any ship poor accurate. The ship was built at the kriegsmarinewerft dockyard in wilhelmshaven. Discover delightful childrens books with prime book box, a subscription that. Gerhard koop, klauspeter schmolke battleship scharnhorst siegfried breyer, miroslaw skwiot german capital ships of the second world war. The warships of the world war ii german navy are among the most popular subjects in naval history, and one of the best collections is the concise but authoritative six volume series written by gerhard koop and illustrated by klauspeter schmolke. German battleship gneisenau wikimili, the best wikipedia. The sinking of the scharnhorst was an enormous psychological blow for the german nation, at the height of world war two. In favourable weather scharnhorst succeeds in breaking out and is finally trasferred from germany to narvik where she is to join the battleship tirpitz and the heavy cruiser lutzow exdeutschland. The german battleship, escaping, turned south toward the oncoming duke of york. Gneisenau was a german capital ship, alternatively described as a battleship and battlecruiser, of nazi germanys kriegsmarine.
In january of 1936 a new scharnhorst was launched as a battlecruiser along with her sister ship, kms gneisenau. We deliver the joy of reading in 100% recycled packaging with free standard shipping on u. Feb 17, 2011 the sinking of the scharnhorst was an enormous psychological blow for the german nation, at the height of world war two. Scharnhorst by siegfried breyer 1991, paperback at the best online prices at ebay. Scharnhorst, german battle cruiser completed in 1939. Herzog, ulrich elfrath listed under battleship bismarck.
She was the lead ship of her class, which included one other ship, gneisenau. The german battleship scharnhorst schiffer military. Scharnhorst unlike bismarck was no one hit wondershe successfully sank british merchant shipping including the gallant. Find all the books, read about the author, and more. With shoot to 24k most long history and with blast attack. The wreck has recently been discovered on the sea bed, giving us new. German battleship scharnhorst military wiki fandom. We personally assess every books quality and offer rare, outofprint treasures. Search the history of over 424 billion web pages on the internet. The intention was to deploy the vessels to norway to interdict allied convoys to the soviet union. Dec 16, 2018 in this wartime painting, flares illuminate the night sky on the day after christmas 1943, as elements of the british royal navy led by the battleship duke of york surround and overwhelm the german battlecruiser scharnhorst, sending her to a watery grave in what came to be known as the battle of the north cape. The scharnhorst class battleship gneisenau was badly damaged in 1942 as the result of an air raid, and sunk as a block ship as germany faltered in 1945. Complete operational history of the german battleship scharnhorst, kriegsmarine warship sunk after battle with hms duke of york during world war ii.
Scharnhorst presented an imposing silhouette, with three triple turrets, a heavy bridge superstructure, and a single. The warships of the world war ii german navy are among the most popular subjects in naval history, and one. Completed in may 1938, the ship was armed with a main battery of. German battleship scharnhorst wikimili, the free encyclopedia. She was the second vessel of her class, which included one other ship, scharnhorst. This book provides many excellent photographs and technical drawings for all aspects of these ships their hull design, weapon mounts, radar systems, camouflage schemes, refits during the war, and even a brief history of the men whos names were given to these ships. Speed and strength scharnhorst german battleship with. Bismarck was completed in 1940 and tirpitz in 1941. The battleship scharnhorstclasspage contains all related products, articles, books, walkarounds and plastic scale modeling projects dedicated to this ship. The scharnhorst was a heavily armed ship of 26,000 tons standard displacement, carrying a 1,400 man crew and four aircraft and armed with nine 11inch, twelve 5. British battleships in world war ii, stackpole military history. Dec 26, 2015 this week of boxing day marks the anniversary of the sinking by hms duke of york of the german battleship scharnhorst which became operational in 1939.
Scharnhorst and her sister were enlarged versions of the preceding roon class. Scharnhorst was launched first, and is considered to be the lead ship by some sources. Sep 23, 2015 the battleship book, to be published by wildside books in september, 2015 see. During the early years of the war, scharnhorst supported operations against norway as well as raided allied convoys in the north atlantic. Though restricted by the treaty of versailles that ended world war i to building warships. They had a displacement of 38,000 long tons at full load, less than the bismarcks 50,000 long ton displacement, but they were slightly faster, with a top speed of 31 knots. Scharnhorst was a battleship battlecruiser that served with nazi germanys kriegsmarine during world war ii. She was the lead ship of her class, which included sms gneisenau.
Scharnhorst was in the lead, and on her bridge ciliax noted with little surprise the absence of hostile aircraft in. The backbone of the german surface forces at the outbreak of war. Shortly after noon, the allied cruisers again sighted the scharnhorst and opened fire at 11,000 yards, scoring hits. Therere much more images in my latest page, plus images of my artists model builders, and link to mm annual report 2012. Librarything is a cataloging and social networking site for booklovers. We personally assess every book s quality and offer rare, outofprint treasures. They marked the beginning of german naval rearmament after the treaty of versailles. Battle film with sound from aboard the german battleship battlecruiser kms scharnhorst as she and kms gneisenau engage in the sinking of the aircraft carrier hms glorious and her. Completed in january 1939, the ship was armed with a main battery of nine 28 cm c34 guns in three triple turrets.