Battlecruisers approach battleship power
Eight 38 cm guns would have matched the Bayern class while retaining the speed expected of a fleet scouting and pursuit force.
38000 tMaximum displacement
227,8 mOverall length
27,3 knMaximum speed
1227Complement
Design and service
The story of Ersatz Gneisenau
When Germany learned of the construction of new British battlecruisers with 38,1 guns in 1916 (Renown and Repulse), the three last ships of the Mackensen class were modified to match the new British designs. The then called Yorck class also included 38 cm guns and were the first German capital ships with only one funnel. Besides these differences to the original Mackensen design, the Yorck class was almost identical to them.
Although all three ships - Yorck, Ersatz Gneisenau (Gneisenau replacement) and Ersatz Scharnhorst (Scharnhorst replacement) - were laid down in 1916 only very few construction work was done on these ships. almost two years away from completion, they were all broken down after the war
At a glance
Technical profile
Dimensions, armament, protection and performance.
Dimensions
- Size (Max)
- 38000 t
- Length (Total)
- 227,8 m
- Beam
- 30,4 m
- Draft
- 9,3 m
- Crew
- 1227
Armament
- 38 cm L/45
- 8
- 15 cm L/45
- 12
- 8,8 cm
- 8
- 60cm torpedo tubes
- 3
Armor
- Deck
- 30-90 mm
- Belt
- 300 mm
- Command Tower
- 350 mm
- Turrets
- 300 mm
Machinery
- Shafts
- 4
- Turbines
- 4
- Type
- Marine
Performance
- Total Performance
- 90000 shp
- Speed
- 27,3 kn
- Range
- 5500 sm at 14 kn
Construction record
Ersatz Gneisenau
- Laid down
- Germaniawerft Kiel, 1916