laststandonzombieisland

Here at LSOZI, we are going to take out every Wednesday for a look at the old steampunk navies of the 1866-1938 time period and will profile a different ship each week.

– Christopher Eger

Warship Wednesday,  May 16

Here we have the SMS Seydlitz

She was a 25,000-metric ton battlecruiser of the Kaiserliche Marine, built in Hamburg. She was ordered in 1910 and commissioned in May 1913, the fourth battlecruiser built for the High Seas Fleet of Kaiser Willy II.

(Deviant Art)

Commissioned just 16 months before the start of WWI, Seydlitz was a slugger during the War but got as good as she gave. Seydlitz participated in many of the large fleet actions during the First World War, including the battles of Dogger Bank and Jutland in the North Sea. The ship suffered severe damage during both of these engagements; during the Battle of Dogger Bank, a 13.5 in (34.3 cm) shell from the British battlecruiser Lion struck Seydlitz’s rearmost turret and nearly caused a magazine explosion that could have destroyed the ship.

SMS Seydiltz after Jutland….

At the Battle of Jutland she was hit 21 times by heavy caliber shells, one of which penetrated the working chamber of the aft superfiring turret. Although the resulting fire destroyed the turret, the safety measures put in place after the battle of Dogger Bank prevented a worse catastrophe. The ship was also hit by a torpedo during the battle, causing her to take in over 5,300 metric tons of water, and her freeboard was reduced to 2.5 m. She had to be lightened significantly to permit her crossing of the Jade Bar. The ship inflicted severe damage on her British opponents as well; early in the battle, salvos from both Seydlitz and Derfflinger destroyed the battlecruiser Queen Mary in a matter of seconds.

Repaired she returned to service only to be interned with the rest of the Kaiser’s fleet after the war then scuttlled to prevent her seizure. She was raised on 2 November 1928, and scrapped by 1930 in Rosyth.

Displacement:     24,988 metric tons normal
28,550 metric tons loaded
Length:     200.6 m (658 ft)
Beam:     28.5 m (94 ft)
Draft:     9.29 m (30.5 ft)
Propulsion:     4 screws, Parsons turbines, 63,000 shp (47 MW)
Speed:     26.5 knots (49.1 km/h)
Endurance:     4,700 nautical miles @ 14 knots (8,700 km @ 26 km/h)
Complement:     1,068
Armament:

10 × 28 cm (11 in) / 50 guns (5 × 2)
12 × 150 mm (5.9 in) guns
12 × 88 mm (3.45 in) guns
Motto:     Always forward