The Seeadler was the most famous German auxiliary cruiser in World War I. The former British sailing ship Pass of Balmaha was captured in July 1915 by U 36 . In early 1916 it was considered to use this ship as an auxiliary cruiser and it was equipped with guns and other equipment. Camouflaged as a Norwegian ship, it left German in December 1916. In the following 10 months, the Seeadler was able to capture or sink 14 ships, mainly sailing ships. On 02.08.1914, the ship beached at the Island of Mopelia near Tahiti. During its operations, the Seeadler sunk a total of 14 ships.