The Mackensen class was the last class of battlecruisers built by Germany. The lead ship of the class was named for August von Mackensen, a prominent military commander during the war. The design initially called for seven ships, but three of them were redesigned as the Ersatz Yorck class. None were completed, after wartime shipbuilding priorities were redirected towards U-boat.
About Mackensen-class battlecruiser in brief
The Mackensen class was the last class of battlecruisers built by Germany in World War I. The lead ship of the class was named for August von Mackensen, a prominent military commander during the war. The design initially called for seven ships, but three of them were redesigned as the Ersatz Yorck class. None were completed, after wartime shipbuilding priorities were redirected towards U-boat—and the ships were broken up in the early 1920s. In response to the Mackensen-class ships, the British Royal Navy laid down the Admiral-class battlecruiser, all but one of which would eventually be cancelled; the sole survivor, HMS Hood, was completed after the end of the War. The ships were designed to displace 31,000 t t on a standard load, up to 35,300 t t fully laden. The Mackensens were composed of 23,300 laden and 4,300 laden, with a hull of 3 m forward and 4 m aft, and a draft of 9 m m forward and 8 m aft. The final design was approved on 30 September 1912, though the heads of the General Navy Department and Weapons Department had to submit any revisions they deemed necessary. The ship design was finalized on May 1914, and construction began in the 1914 budget year, with the ships due to be completed by the end of the year. They were the last German ships to be built before the outbreak of the First World War in July 1914.
The first ship to be launched was Fürst Bismarck, which was completed in September 1914, but not the second or third, Graf Spee or Prinz Eitel Friedrich, which were completed in May 1915. The last ship to have been completed was the Prinz Fürst Spee, which arrived in May 1916, but was not the last to be finished until July 1917. The new ships were armed with a new, more powerful 35 cm gun, compared to the 30. 5 cm gun of the earlier ships. They also featured more powerful engines that gave the ships a higher top speed and a significantly greater cruising range. The designs provided the basis for the Ersatz Yorck class, armed with 38 cm main-battery guns, after the Battle of Jutland in 1916 made the need for the larger guns clear. The Imperial Naval Office decided the Navy should construct one battleship and one battlecruizer every year between 1913 and 1917, with an additional unit of both types in 1913 and 1916. The question about the main battery for the new ships was the most pressing; the previous Derfflinger class was armed with 30.5-centimeter guns, though some consideration had been given to redesigning the last two ships—SMS Lützow and Hindenburg with 35 cm guns. As a compromise, the new battle Cruisers were to be armed with eight 35-cm guns in twin turrets.
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