Kriegsmarine
38,900 tons full
229.8 m waterline
deck - 95 mm
4 × 2 + 4 × 1 150mm
16 × 37 mm;
10 × 20 mm
Very few sailors volunteered to serve on the Scharnhorst. Most of the crew were transferred from other ships. This was a necessary measure, since the sailors thought that the ship was cursed even during construction. When its hull was being assembled in dry dock, the Scharnhorst collapsed on its side, killing 60 to 70 workers. After that, the mother of one of the killed workers cursed the ship. Subsequent incidents only reinforced this rumor. On the day of launching, the ship fell off the mooring and slipped into the water, where it rammed the cruiser, which was out of action for several months. The incident was never fully investigated. Just a few months before his death, while sailing in one of the Norwegian fjords, the ship's radar could not cope with the thick fog and Scharnhorst rammed a German liner used to transport soldiers. Although myself Scharnhorst almost not suffered, the liner was out of order for several months.
The beginning of the war
Cruiser in 1939
The first combat operation Scharnhorst was patrolling the passage between Iceland and the Faroe Islands at the end of November 1939, together with Gneisenau where they sank an English armed transport. Spring 1940 Scharnhorst and Gneisenau supported the invasion of Norway (Operation Weserübung). On April 9, 1940, near Norway, they met in battle with an English battle cruiser Renown , British and Gneisenau inflicted minor damage to each other, Scharnhorst also suffered from the elements. In the flooded turret "Anton" (1st main caliber) there was a short circuit in the circuits of the electric drives for supplying ammunition, the turret was out of order. In addition, due to the need to keep full speed, the right car was damaged Scharnhorst, but the Germans still managed to break away from the outdated British cruiser. Scharnhorst and Gneisenau sunk a British aircraft carrier Glorious and his escort: destroyers and, on 8 June 1940, about 64 degrees north of Norway. During the fight Scharnhorst was damaged by a torpedo with Acasta, 50 sailors were killed and the left propeller shaft was damaged. Soon, due to flooding, the middle car had to be turned off. The cellars of the Caesar tower (3rd main caliber) were flooded. On June 13 at the harbor Scharnhorst carried out a raid by Blackburn Skua dive bombers from an aircraft carrier Ark royal ... The raid was ineffective: out of 15 aircraft, 8 were shot down, only one bomb hit the target and even it did not explode.
Due to damage received on June 8 Scharnhorst was sent to dry dock in Kiel, where he stayed until the end of 1940.
Late December 1940 Scharnhorst and Gneisenau tried to break through the British blockade and enter the North Atlantic trade routes, but were forced to turn back due to a breakdown Gneisenau.
A page from a US Navy booklet for sailors during World War II describing the cruiser.
Raid to the Atlantic
Main article: Operation Berlin
Breakthrough across the English Channel
While in Brest, German ships became targets of constant air raids. In July 1941, the Scharnhorst moved to the port of La Rochelle, south of Brest. Warned of the Scharnhorst's departure from the port by air reconnaissance and Resistance agents, the Allies were confident that this was another raid. To prevent a raid, they flew 15 heavy bombers. Halifax British Air Force. The damage caused by the bombardment was severe enough to force the Scharnhorst to return to the port of Brest for repairs. Damage from the bombardment, together with those received during the raids, as well as problems with the cooling of the boilers, held the Scharnhorst in port until the end of 1941, when it was decided to send the Scharnhorst and Gneisenau, as well as the heavy cruiser Prince Eugen back to Germany ... Since it was very risky to try to break through the North Atlantic, on February 11-13, three large ships, accompanied by dozens of minesweepers and other auxiliary vessels, made a breakthrough across the English Channel, called Operation Cerberus. The British were not ready for such a decisive and unexpected breakthrough, their coast guard was not ready to stop the breakthrough, and the jamming of British radars by the Germans did not allow an air attack. However, and Scharnhorstand Gneisenau were damaged by mines Scharnhorst two, and Gneisenau one. The fix delayed Scharnhorst at the docks until March, after which he sailed to Norway to meet the battleship Tirpitz and other German ships to attack Arctic convoys heading for the Soviet Union. The next few months were devoted to training and acclimatization, ending with the bombing of Svalbard in conjunction with Tirpitz.
The end of the Scharnhorst
- KzS Fritz Hintze - October 13 - December 26 (deceased)
Notes
Links
- Historic Center, US Navy Department of Official Publications (en).
- History of the battleship Scharnhorst: professionalism versus heroism.
- Royal Navy: World War II 1939-1945 (eng.)
Literature
- Breyer, Siegfried, Battleships and Battlecruisers 1905-1970... (Doubleday and Company; Garden City, New York, 1973) (originally published in Germany under the title Schlachtschiffe und Schlachtkreuzer 1905-1970, J.F. Lehmanns, Verlag, Munchen, 1970). Contains various diagrams and drawings of the ship, how it was planned and how it was built.
- Busch, Fritz-Otto, The Sinking of the Scharnhorst. (Robert Hale, London, 1956) ISBN 0-86007-130-8. The story of the Battle of North Cape, told by a survivor with Scharnhorst
- Claasen, A. R. A., Hitler's Northern War: The Luftwaffe's Ill-Fated Campaign, 1940-1945... Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 2001. pp. 228-234. ISBN 0-7006-1050-2
- Garzke, Willliam H., Jr. and Robert O. Dulin, Jr., Battleships: Axis and Neutral Battleships in World War II... (Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, 1985). Includes stories about the creation of the ship and its combat operations, information about weapons and other statistical information about Scharnhorst
- Alf Jacobsen Battleship "Scharnhorst" \u003d Alf R. Jacobsen "SHARNHORST". - M .: Eksmo, 2005 .-- 304 p. - ISBN 5-699-14578-8
| Kriegsmarine | |
|---|---|
| Commanders | Grand Admiral Erich Raeder Grand Admiral Karl Dönitz Hans Georg von Friedeburg Walter Warzech (liquidator) |
| Large surface ships | |
| Battleships | Type "Bismarck": Bismarck Tirpitz Scharnhorst type: Scharnhorst Gneisenau Type "Deutschland" (battleships): Schlesien Schleswig-Holstein |
| Aircraft carriers | Type "Graf Zeppelin": Graf Zeppelin Aircraft carrier B De Grasse (from cruise ship) Seidlitz (from cruiser) |
German battleship "Scharnhorst" "Scharnhorst"
Laid down: Wilhelmshaven German Navy shipyard 06/15/1935
Launched October 3, 1936
Commissioning 7.1.1939year
Doom 12/26/1943 (battle at the North Cape with the British Navy)
Captains of the battleship "Scharnhorst"
KzS (Kapitän zur See) Otto Ciliax - January 7, 1939 - September 23, 1939
KzS Kurt Caesar Hoffmann - 23 September 1939 - 31 March 1942
KzS / KAdm (Rear Admiral) Friedrich Huffmeier - March 31, 1942 - October 13, 1943
(Promoted to Rear Admiral October 1, 1943.)
KzS Fritz Hintze - 13 October 1943 - 26 December 1943
Design of the battleship "Scharnhorst"
After the end of the First World War Versailles Treaty forbade Germany to build warships with a displacement of over 10,000 tons. Contrary to the expectations of the victorious countries, the designers of the Reichsmarine, approximately within this displacement, were able to create original diesel ships with very powerful armament (6 283 mm guns in two towers and 8 single 150 mm guns). They were stronger than all cruisers except the battle cruisers, and at the same time they were fast enough (26 knots) to get away from any battleship of that time. They made their due impression on naval circles and became known as "pocket battleships", although the Germans themselves officially classified them as "battleships" (panzerschiffe).
Construction of the battleship Scharnhorst at German shipyards.
In response to the "Deutschland" (this name was given to the lead ship of the series) France in the early 1930s. laid down the battle cruiser "Dunkerque" with eight 330-mm guns and a higher speed. Its appearance led to the collapse of the concept, according to which "pocket battleships" were created. The reaction of the commander of the Reichsmarine, Admiral Raeder, to the appearance of the "Dunkerque" was a proposal to make changes to the design of the 4th ("D") and 5th ("E") "battleships" planned for construction: to bring their displacement to 15,000 - 18,000 tons and add a third head caliber turret. A little later, there was a proposal to go along the path of enhancing the reservation while maintaining the existing weapons. In late 1932 - early 1933, various options for armament and booking new ships were discussed. So, on 9/3/1933 it was determined that the new ships needed a level of protection to withstand the "Dunkerque". Initially, it was supposed to bring the side armor to 320 mm (thereby providing protection against 330-mm armor-piercing shells at a distance of over 18,000 m), however, the displacement increased incredibly, and in the final version the belt along the waterline received a thickness of 220 mm, and the deck - 80 mm. In addition, the armor of the upper deck for bomb protection was introduced. In total, three versions of the project were prepared - with a displacement of 18,000, 22,000 tons (both with 9,283 mm guns) and 26,000 tons (with 6 330 mm guns). The latter was chosen for further elaboration. Raising the displacement by another 500 tons, it was planned to increase the number
330-mm guns up to 8 - 9. Work should have been completed by the end of 1934 and the lead ship was laid down at the same time. However, the coming to power of the Nazis in 1933 unexpectedly disrupted Raeder's plans - at first Hitler did not want to quarrel with England (which could see a challenge in the construction of 26,000 ships) and ordered the construction of "battleships" "D" and "E" type of the 3rd ship of the series, "Admiral Graf Spee", with armament from two three-gun 283-mm towers, but with significantly increased armor m (according to the type of 26,000 tons of the project): with a 220-mm belt, 70 - 80-mm main and 35 - 50-mm upper armored decks. The displacement was 19,000 tons, the dimensions were 191x21.7x7 m. In June 1933, such a project was thoroughly reviewed by the naval fleet management, after which a number of additions were made to it: the main battery guns were increased, the auxiliary 150-mm artillery was not located in single deck installations, and in four twin towers, anti-aircraft weapons were reinforced.
Scharnhorst during a military campaign.
The question with the power plant remained open - during the tests of "Deutschland" a strong vibration of the body was revealed when the diesel engines were operating at full power. In addition, the increased size of the new ships required a higher power plant, therefore, in parallel with the diesel, an option with a steam turbine unit with increased steam parameters was being worked out. In the fall of 1933, this project underwent another review, and after some changes were made on October 18, it was decided to issue an order for the construction of two 19,000-ton "battleships", officially passing them off as 10,000-ton followers of "Deutschland". 01/25/1934 the Navy shipyard (Reichsmarinewerft) in Wilhelmshaven and the company "Deutsche Werke" in Kiel received orders for the construction of 18,000-ton "battleships" D and E; their laying took place on February 14 of the same year. In 1934 France announced the laying of a second Dunkerque-class battle cruiser, Strasbourg.
This time Hitler, who had recently opposed an increase in the displacement of new ships, gave the go-ahead for the addition of a third tower and an increase in displacement to 26,000 tons. The construction of the "battleships" was stopped on July 5 and began to redesign. The new requirements included 28-knots. long and 30-knot. full speed, protection of the citadel from 330-m guns, anti-fragmentation protection at the extremities, three main battery towers (one in the bow and two in the stern), four two-gun 150-mm towers in the absence of torpedo tubes.
October 3, 1936: Hitler and his retinue arrive at the naval shipyard in Wilhelmshaven to take part in the launch of the battleship. The hold-keel port is clearly visible; the brake flaps were welded in front to shorten their run into the narrow section of the harbor.
One of the press cards that are issued for a launch, showing a map of the area. The launch of a large warship was, as in other countries, a very festive event, in which the public always takes a keen interest. In the Third Reich, this is even more true as Hitler always attended these events, his first being SCHARNHORST (and later Gneisenau, the heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen and the aircraft carrier GRAF ZEPPELIN in 1938, and the battleships Bismarck and Tirpitz in 1939).
Battleship Scharnhorst just before launching
The unfinished battleship was launched. Now the fun begins.
At the same time, for the first time, a proposal was made to envisage in the project the possibility, after the completion of the construction, of replacing the three-gun 283-mm towers with twin 330-m or 380-m caliber. Soon, the defensive position of the main battery towers was abandoned in favor of the traditional scheme - with two towers in the bow and one in the stern. The power plant was envisaged as a steam turbine, with a high-temperature one and boilers, since it alone provided a speed of 30 knots. In March 1935, when the drawings and specifications were almost ready (approved in May), the question of changing the caliber of the main artillery was discussed. Options were considered from nine 305- or 330-m guns in triple turrets, or six 380-, 350- and 330-mm guns in twin turrets.
This photograph was taken during the completion of the ship, presumably in 1937. The main battery turret "Anton" has already been assembled. Behind you can see the tower "Bruno"
This photo was probably taken towards the end of 1937 - maybe even later. Here, superstructures were installed and mounted 15-cm twin turrets. Behind the already installed catapult, the towers are the shafts for installing the machines and the boiler, this can be seen, they are not yet closed.
The navy favored 350 or 380 mm guns, but Hitler objected to an increase in the main battery due to possible political complications with Britain. It was decided to use the caliber 350 m on the ships of the next series "F" and "G". After the start of construction, in 1936, it became clear that the displacement of 26,000 tons determined in the project would be significantly exceeded. This caused serious concern for the stability, seaworthiness and survivability of ships, since the armored deck was below the waterline. The freeboard height also decreased, which narrowed the stability range. Since the hulls were already on the stocks, only the installation of the boules could radically change the situation, but this was undesirable due to the inevitable loss of speed. The measures taken to save weight due to the widespread use of welding and stricter weight discipline solved the problem only partially - both ships turned out to be "wet", inferior in seaworthiness to almost all battleships of the latest generation.
With the help of tugs, the battleship Scharnhorst goes to the harbor to be moored there. The photo shows how he just passed the Kaiser Wilhelm Bridge.
Early 1939. The future members of the battleship crew with naval bags on their backs board the Scharnhorst.
Formation of sailors at the stern of the battleship. The protection on the armored body is visible.
January 7, 1939: The ship is commissioned by its commander, Otto Ciliax. Here he stands on the podium erected on the Caesar tower and speaks to the crew. A little later, flags and pennants will be raised to the music of the national German anthem.
The design of the battleship Scharnhorst
"Scharnhorst * and" Gneisenau "became the first battleships in the world, built and widely used welding - in particular, their hulls were completely welded, with the exception of the joints of the anti-torpedo bulkhead with bevels and the lower armored deck. The quality of welds was not always high , during torpedo and bomb hits, the welded bulkheads were destroyed, which was explained by the use of poor electrodes, and sometimes by poor quality of work.The battleships had a rather unusual hull shape in the underwater part - instead of a smooth transition of the side to a flat or keeled bottom, the latter in the middle part had a converging there is no horizontal plane at the ends with edges at the transition to the side. Such a bottom greatly facilitated the construction, and in case of damage, accelerated docking and repair. The main armor belt 4.5 m high and about 148 m long had a thickness of 350 mm, thinning towards the lower edge up to 170 mm. In the bow and stern from the barbets of the end towers, it was closed, respectively, 150-mm and 200 mm traverses.
Even unfinished appearance the battleship produced a very impressive picture. This photo was taken on April 18, 1939.
Side view of the battleship Scharnhorst. Artillery of medium caliber 20mm FlaMG C is visible. Searchlights are covered with tarpaulin. Dual 105mm anti-aircraft guns and 150mm cannon are visible.
Spring 1939. The battleship Scharnhorst returns to Kiel after training on the high seas.
The rear of the battleship Scharnhorst
To the extremities from the main belt went a thin anti-splinter belt of the same height, but 70 mm thick in the bow and 90 mm in the stern. The 90-mm belt ended on the stern 150-mm traverse of the steering gear compartment. Above the main one was the upper armor belt of a much smaller thickness - only 45 mm (35 mm at the stern). In the bow, it ended, like the main one, in front of the tower "A", and in the stern it extended much further - to the bulkhead of the steering engine compartment. The main armored deck, 80 mm thick, ran along the entire length of hull a (excluding a few meters at the extremities), and along the boiler rooms, its middle part was raised by 0.6 m. From the traverse in front of the barbet of the tower "A" and to the traverse covering the compartment steering gear in the stern, it had 105-mm bevels with an angle of inclination to the horizontal of 25 degrees. (above the steering gear compartment, - 80 mm), adjacent to the side belt, not reaching 1 m to its lower edge. According to the project, the main armored deck was 0.5 m above the waterline, but in fact it was level with it, and at full displacement it dropped 0.7 m below it.The upper deck 50 mm thick was located two levels above the main deck (5.1 m ) and adjoined the upper edge of the 45 mm upper belt. Reservation of the main battery towers, barbets and the conning tower was carried out using slabs of maximum thickness - up to 360 mm.
VIDEO: German battleship Scharnhorst part 1
The thickness of the barbets varied from 350 to 200 mm (thicker - closer to the side, thinner - to the center plane). The protection of 150-mm artillery turned out to be very unequal. If the turrets of 150-mm guns had 140-mm armor, then the deck installations were protected by only 25-mm shields. The anti-torpedo protection of battleships was designed in such a way as to withstand a contact explosion of a torpedo with a charge of 250 kg of trinitrotoluene (THT). The main element of the PTZ is a 45-mm anti-torpedo bulkhead, located 4.5 m deep into the hull (midships). The space between the bulkhead and the side skin was divided into two chambers - an empty outer, expansion chamber, and an inner one filled with oil, absorbing the rest of the explosion energy due to dispersion. Part of the energy was to be absorbed due to plastic and elastic deformations of the 45-mm anti-torpedo bulkhead, behind which, where possible, there were empty compartments throughout the citadel.
The crew of the Caesar Tower exercise on deck. The photo was taken in the summer of 1939.
Front 28 cm turrets. The left electric rangefinders on the sides of the tower are clearly visible. This photo was taken at the beginning
1940, in heavy ice conditions in Wilhelmshaven. In the background (10 to the right of the large floating crane) is the battleship Gneisenau GNEISENAU at the dock, and to the right is the TANGANJIKA cruise ship used as a barracks ship, and even to the right of the target is the ZAHRINGEN vessel.
The battleship Scharnhorst (SCHARNHORST) (in the foreground) and Gneisenau (Gneisenau) outwardly resembled each other. This photo, taken at Kiel in the spring of 1939, shows the two ships together for the first time. Although the Scharnhorst is still being considered in its original form, Gneisenau is already being rebuilt.
Three 105mm twin aircraft cannons can be seen on this side of the ship, as well as a tender, an anti-aircraft fire device and one of two aircraft cranes. The passage on the right leads to the bridge. This photo was taken in Wilhelmshaven in 1940.
This view, seen from the end of the port of the bridge, is almost the same as the previous one as a mirror image This photo was also taken in early 1940 in icy Wilhelmshaven; Here the battleship is brought to the pier by two tugs. The Kaiser Wilhelm Bridge can be seen in the background.
An aircraft harbor crane lifts a rebuilt Arado 196 on board. The rotating front cover is already equipped with a radar antenna. The battleship Scharnhorst after the restructuring, due to the new demands of the war.
The crew members went out on deck to see something special. Perhaps the battleship is going on a military campaign from the harbor.
The photo was taken in January 1940. The battleship Scharnhorst is at anchor in the ice.
Inner Harbor in Kiel in the summer of 1939: At this time, no one seriously believed that World War II would come. In the foreground is the battleship Scharnhorst, to the left is its brother, the battleship Gneisenau, followed by the K-class cruiser (probably KONIGSBERG) and the pocket battleship ADMIRAL SCHEER. Behind the latter is the light cruiser NURNBERG, on the right - presumably some kind of destroyer.
The 283-mm main battery guns of the SKC / 34 model were an improved version of the SKC / 28 guns mounted on the "battleships" and were housed in the same three-gun turrets of the Drh LC / 28 model (due to their more powerful armor, they are sometimes referred to as Drh LC / 34 or simply C / 34). The towers had horizontal electric drives and vertical guidance hydraulic drives. The maximum elevation angle of the barrels was 40 degrees, which ensured a firing range of 330 kg with a 221 kb projectile. During the design work, Hitler rejected Admiral Raeder's proposal to increase the caliber of the guns to 380 mm. But after the signing of the Anglo-German naval agreement and the beginning of the construction of new French battleships with 380-mm main caliber, the Fuhrer approved such a replacement; it was planned to be produced in the winter of 1940/41, but back in 1936 (for the upcoming rearmament) a contract was signed for the production of 380 mm / 52 guns of the SKC / 34 model. Although the three-gun 283-mm and two-gun 380-mm turrets were similar in size, they significantly differed in the supply of ammunition and loading. For future rearmament, it was necessary to overhaul the drawings of the interior in the area of \u200b\u200bthe barbets.
Routine work on the deck of the battleship SCHARNHORST, which is carried out by sailors. The Caesar tower with the rear catapult design is clearly visible.
A cruise of the battleship Scharnhorst along the icy Kiel Canal during the war winter of 1939-40. In the background is the high bridge at Rendsburg.
Types of an open airplane hangar from different positions. The Arado 196 reconnaissance aircraft has been raised, its wings have already been installed, and will soon be mounted on a catapult that has been deployed and prepared for takeoff. These pictures were taken in Brest in the spring, at the beginning of that time at the shipyard. Upgraded battleship Scharnhorst.
One of the last photographs taken before the war of the battleship Scharnhorst.
View aft from the lower mast. In the foreground on the right is a funnel with an annular platform for searchlights and anti-aircraft guns (upper edge of the image), in the left foreground is an aircraft crane, below it is an anti-aircraft anti-aircraft fire control device after the port. The mainmast and hangar are in the background.
Battleship SCHARNHORST parades in Kiel to welcome the successful cruise of U 27 upon its return from infiltrating the hard-to-reach British naval support area at Scapa Flow. There, the submarine sank the British warship ROYAL OAK with a displacement of 29,150 tons.
Simultaneously with the replacement of guns, it was supposed to correct the situation with stability and seaworthiness by increasing the width of the hull. New drawings of the frames were made, but with the outbreak of World War II, rearmament was abandoned indefinitely. The 150-mm anti-mine artillery received a mixed composition - both in the towers and in deck installations. The latter appeared in the project for two reasons. Firstly, the leadership of the fleet wanted to "attach" ready-made 150-mm single-gun mounts, and secondly, the overload did not allow placing all 150-mm guns in the turrets. Single-gun mounts of the MPL35 type (elevation angle 35 degrees, firing range 45.3 g with a 118 kb projectile) were located side by side in the middle of the hull; towers model LC / 34 (or C / 34, elevation angle 40 °, firing range 124 kbt) - also on the side, closer to the extremities. The combined use of turrets and deck installations caused problems with fire control - mainly due to the different rate of fire (the turrets fired a little faster).
Instructions on the operation of the vessel are given on deck. Obviously, the new members of the engine room crew are getting acquainted with the technical "inner life" of the battleship Scharnhorst. A lot of details can be seen in these images, such as the aft command post, the base of the tripod mast, the plane's catapult and the plane's crane. On the side of the port is the "Tall Henry" - as the largest floating crane in Wilhelmshaven was called - which removes a catapult mounted on the rear 28-centimeter tower. The photo was probably taken in February or March 1940.
The fire control system of the main and auxiliary calibers was carried out by three control gears: in the conning tower, on the bow superstructure, and in the stern, in front of the "C" tower. The KDP was equipped with 10 5th or 6th (in the conning tower) stereo range finders. In addition, each main building tower was equipped with 10.5-m rangefinders. Heavy anti-aircraft armament consisted of 14 105-mm / 65 universal guns of the C / 33 model in two-gun stabilized installations of the LC / 33 model (rate of fire 15-18 rds / min, elevation angle 80 degrees).
Battleship Scharnhorst on the waves of the Atlantic in a military campaign. This photo was taken during Operation Berlin (January-March 1941). Especially clearly visible is the poor drainage capacity of the bow of the battleship SCHARNHORST (the same was with the battleship GNEISENAU). As a result of the large forward weight, the nose took in a lot of water (even in calm weather, the water breaker often flooded the nose). Restructuring has done very little to change the situation. The front tower always bothered him.
The fire of 105-mm anti-aircraft guns was controlled by four stabilized posts in spherical turrets (SL-6 type 33) with 4 rangefinders on the sides of the bow superstructure and tube. Light anti-aircraft armament included 8x 2 37 mm / 83 model SKC / 30 semi-automatic rifles in stabilized LC / 30 mounts (rate of fire up to 80 rds / min). Both ships were equipped with airborne aircraft, two catapults (one between the tube and the aft control tower, the second on the roof of the "C" tower) and hangars of different sizes (on the "Scharnhorst" it was larger). In the power plant "Scharnhorst" and "Gneisenau", units operating on steam with high parameters (58 atm and 450 degrees Celsius) were used, much larger than on most of their contemporaries. The three turbine units developed a total long-term power of 125,000 hp. or for a short period up to 160,080 hp. Each turbine unit consisted of a high, medium and low pressure turbine, cruising and reverse turbines connected to the shaft through a gear reducer (two-stage for high-pressure turbines and one-stage for the rest). The T3A of the middle propeller shaft was in the stern MO, the side ones in the bow, separated by a watertight bulkhead in the center plane. 12 high-pressure boilers "Wagner" stood four in three KOs. Pre-war upgrades During the tests of the "Gneisenau" it turned out that in waves the ship takes water strongly with its bow, especially with a displacement close to full, when the trim on the bow was about 0.8 m. To eliminate this deficiency, the entire bow end at the end of 1938 rebuilt, increasing the camber of the frames and giving the deck of the tank a noticeable rise to the stem. At the same time, the greatest length increased from 229.8 to 234.9 m. The stem changed shape from straight to gracefully curved, known as "Atlantic". In addition, a visor appeared on the chimney to reduce smoke from the bow superstructure.
In the summer of 1939, similar work was done on Scharnhorst, but the volume was somewhat larger. The anchors, previously retracted into the hawses, were moved to the upper deck, and due to the installation of an additional, third, anchor in the stem hawse, the longest length of the Scharnhorst in comparison with the Gneisenau increased by 0.5 m. The hangar was extended by another 8 m, after which it began to accommodate three aircraft. The mainmast, previously located, as on the "Gneisenau", behind the chimney, was moved further to the stern, installed between the aft control tower and the catapult. Wartime modernizations On the "Gneisenau" in October 1939, they added 2 x 1 20-mm machine gun, on the KDP located on the bow superstructure, the "Seetakt" FuMO 22 radar was mounted. At the end of 1939, the anchors were moved to the upper deck, as on "Scharnhorst". In February 1940, the catapult was dismantled from the "C" tower.
Post-command post with rangefinder cover. The Casar / Caesar Tower is visible on the left edge of the photo.
During Operation Juno, the battleship SCHARNHORST received a torpedo attack on the starboard side at the height of the Caesar tower, which killed 48 crew members. The battleship took on board 2500 tons of water, however, the ship reached the port of Trondheim. After temporary repairs there, the battleship Scharnhorst was transferred to the port of Kiel in July 1940 for permanent refurbishment. The photos were taken at the Deutsche Werke floating dock where the two photos were taken. The impact area can be easily seen.
In January 1941, 1 x 4 20-mm "firling" was installed on a temporary lattice platform in the middle of the hull, and the FuMO 22 radar was replaced by a FuMO 27. A little later, the rangefinder was dismantled from the "A" tower, since its lenses were constantly flooded with water and spray. At the beginning of 1948, a second FuMO 27 radar was mounted in Brest on the aft control tower. On the upper deck in the middle of the hull, 2 x 3 533-mm TA (removed from the "Leipzig" KRL) were installed. The aircraft hangar was rebuilt and increased in size, after which it became possible to store two aircraft in it. Added 2x 4 firlings and 2x1 20mm assault rifles. After heavy damage inflicted on 27.2.1942 "Gneisenau" 454-k g bomb, which actually destroyed the tower "A", it was decided to combine the repair with modernization of weapons, replacing the 283-mm guns with 380-mm. The rearmament made the bow of the ship heavier, which was supposed to be compensated for by lengthening the hull by 10 m. Changing the shape of the hull and increasing the length along the waterline, basically, removed the problems of increasing the draft and trim, and the shift of the center of buoyancy to the bow reduced the trim at full load. Even earlier, it was planned to install a tripod mast (like on "Scharnhorst") between the aircraft hangar and the aft control tower, which had already been manufactured in Kiel. The number of 20-mm assault rifles was going to be increased to 32 barrels (6x 4 and 8 x 1). On April 6, the battleship arrived in Gotenhafen (Gdynia), where the damaged bow was cut off along the 185th frame, part of the deck and side armor was removed, as well as anti-torpedo bulkheads in the area of \u200b\u200btower "A". The rest of the towers were also dismantled. At the beginning of 1943, it was already possible to put new towers and the bow of the hull on the ship, but Hitler, enraged by the unsuccessful attack of the surface ships of the allied convoy in the USSR on 12/31/1942, ordered all battleships and the Kriegsmarine cruiser to be scrapped. Work on the battleship was stopped, and all the materials were given for more urgent needs.
On "Scharnhorst" in October 1939, they added 2 x 1 20-mm assault rifle, in the fall on the KDP located on the bow superstructure, they mounted the "Seetakt" FuMO 22 radar. In 1941, the rangefinder was removed from tower "A" because its lenses were constantly flooded with water and spray. At the beginning of 1942, in Brest, instead of FuMO 22, two FuMO 27s were mounted and 4x 4 and 2 x 1 20 mm assault rifles were installed. On the upper deck in the middle of the hull were placed 2 x 3 533-mm TA (removed from the Nurnberg cruise ship). By 1943, the number of 20-mm assault rifles reached 38 barrels (7x 4 "firlings" C / 38 and 10x1), radars FuMB 1, FuMO 3, FuMO 4, FuMO 7 were installed. By 1943 the displacement was: standard - 31 848 tons, full - 38 094 tons and combat overload - 39 019 tons.
Service of the battleship Scharnhorst.
These ships spent most of their combat career together. By the beginning of the war, "Gneisenau" was the flagship of the commander of the surface fleet. In the first months of the war, several trips were made; October 23, 1939 between the Faroe Islands and Iceland "Scharnhorst" and "Gneisenau" sank Brit. auxiliary cruiser "Rawalpindi". In April 1940, both battleships took part in Operation Veserubung, providing cover for the Narvik group. On the morning of April 9, near the Lofoten Islands, they fought a battle with the Brit, the battle cruiser "Renown", during which the "Gneisenau" received two hits from 381 mm shells (6 killed, 9 wounded), and on "Scharnhorst" due to the effects of waves the bow turret of the main committee was out of order. Renown received two unexploded ordnance hits. On April 12 "Scharnhorst" and "Gneisenau" returned safely to Kiel. On May 5, "Gneisenau" was blown up by a bottom mine at the mouth of the Elbe, but the damage was minor. June 4 - 8 "Scharnhorst" and "Gneisenau" participated in Operation Uuno. On June 8 they sank the Brit. AB "Glorious", EM "Ardent" and "Acasta", however, "Scharnhorst" was heavily damaged by a torpedo hit from "Acasta" (received 2500 tons of water, the right and central TZA, the main turret and the right stern 150-mm tower, the speed fell to 20 knots, 48 \u200b\u200bpeople died). June 13, located in Trondheim, "Scharnhorst" was attacked by 15 fighter-bombers and "Skewa" with Brit. AB "Ark Royal" and received one hit from a non-exploded 227-kg bomb, after which on June 20 - 22 it moved to Kiel for repairs. "Gneisenau" On June 20, a Brit was torpedoed near the Halten Bank. Submarine "Clyde" and received a through hole in the bow, although in general it was slightly damaged; June 25 - 27 moved to Kiel for repairs. At the crossing, on June 26, in the Stavanger region, the unit was attacked by the British. Submarine "Thames", which sank MM "Luchs" from the escort. Repair of both ships was completed by December 1940. On December 28, Scharnhorst and Gneisenau went to sea for Operation Berlin, a raid against Britons, shipping in the North Atlantic, but returned due to storm damage. On January 22, 1941, another attempt was made to break through, and, despite contact with the British. KRL "Naiad", on February 3, the battleships sailed into the Atlantic through the Danish Strait unnoticed. On February 6, during a storm on the "Gneisenau", 1 person died as a result of an accident. On February 8, convoy NH-106 was discovered, but the presence of the Ramillies LK in its escort forced the attack to be abandoned. On February 22, 500 miles east of Newfoundland, "Gneisenau" sank the transports "Trelawny", "Kantara", "A. D. Huff "and" Harlesden ", a" Scharnhorst "- the tanker" Lustrous ". On March 7, 300 miles northeast of Cape Verde, another convoy, SL-67, was seen, but this time to attack it did not become, as the LK Malaya was seen in escort. On March 9, Scharnhorst sank the Greek steamer Marathon off the coast of Africa. On March 15, several tankers were intercepted: Scharnhorst sank British Strength and Athelfoam, " Gneisenau "-" Simnia "; he also captured" Bianca "," Polykarp "and" San Casimiro "as prizes. The next day" Gneisenau "sank the ships" Empire Industry "," Granli "," Royal Crown "," Myson "," Rio Dorado "," Chilean Reefer ", a" Scharnhorst "-" Mangkai "," Sitvertir "," Sardinian Prince "," Demeterton ". The same evening," Gneisenau "was spotted with British LC" Rodney " but evaded due to superiority in speed. On March 22, 1941, both ships arrived in Brest. During the operation, they sank 22 ships with a total tonnage of 115,335 brt, of which Gneisenau had 14 (66 449 brt), "Scharnhorst" - 8 (48 886 brt). The next 11 months the ships spent in Western France, where they were subjected to numerous raids by Britons and aviation. April 6, 1941 "Gneisenau" is torpedoed by the British torpedo bomber "Beaufort" from the 22nd sqn RAF in the harbor of Brest.
The photo was taken while one of the main battery guns was firing. Waves flood the deck, indicating the high speed of the battleship Scharnhorst.
Meeting in the Atlantic during Operation Berlin. In the foreground is the U 124 submarine, in the background is the battleship Scharnhorst / SCHARNHORST, which shows the EMS cable, added in the fall of 1940. This photo was taken on March 6, 1941.
The outer skin was damaged on an area of \u200b\u200b210 mg, received 3050 tons of water, the internal equipment was seriously damaged. On April 10, the ship docked at the dock came under attack from 47 Britons, bombers and received four direct hits from 227-g bombs (88 killed, 64 wounded). Repair - 4 months. Transferred to La Pallis, "Scharnhorst" was raided by 15 Britons on 24 July. bombers "Halifax" and received five direct hits of 227-kg and 454-kg bombs: through the holes took 3000 tons of water, the electrical equipment was seriously damaged, 2 people died, 15 were injured. Repair - 4 months. By the beginning of 1942, the combat capability of both battleships was restored, and it was decided to transfer them to Norway. 11-13 February "Scharnhorst". "Gneisenau" and KPT "Prinz Eugen", guarded by 6 EVs and 14 MMs, made a breakthrough across the English Channel to Germany (Operation Cerberus), repelling attacks by Britons, torpedo bombers, bombers, TKA and EVs. On February 12, "Scharnhorst" was blown up by two bottom mines: it took about 1500 tons of water, and TZA suffered from the tremors. Repair - 4 months. "Gneisenau" was also blown up by a bottom mine on 12 February and, although slightly damaged, was docked in Kiel. At the same time, the ammunition was not unloaded, which led to serious consequences - on February 26, the battleship was hit by a 454-g aerial bomb, which caused a fire in the bow cellar (112 people died, 21 were injured).
Back in Brest, the battleship SCHARNHORST was docked in one of the large dry docks and covered with camouflage nets to make it impossible to spot from the air. The top photo was taken from a bowl. When the air raid alarm sounds, artificial smoke was immediately released, which was also supposed to prevent the entry of aerial bombs and torpedoes. The picture in the center on the left shows the right-hand left aircraft and on the right one of the consoles installed by the end of 1940 on both sides of the aircraft catapult and on which quad 20mm anti-aircraft guns were installed. The bottom photo shows the stern. Two 20mm FlaMG C 30 guns installed there by walls of sandbags, for which there are holes in camouflage nets, from which the guns can shoot at aircraft flying at low speed. The photos were taken in April 1941.
Mainmast of the battleship Scharnhorst, view from the stern. The pennants on the side members announce the success of Operation Berlin.
The hull in the area of \u200b\u200bthe bow turret suffered so much that the ship required a two-year repair, which it was decided to combine with the replacement of the three-gun 283-mm towers with two-gun 380-mm. On April 4, 1942, the "Gneisenau" was towed to Gotenhafen (Gdynia), but on July 1, it was disarmed and later used as a hulk ship, and on March 27, 1945, when the Soviet troops approached, they were flooded in the fairway. The dismantling of the wreck was completed by September 12, 1951. On September 16, 1942, the Scharnhorst was easily damaged as a result of a collision with the U-523 submarine in Danzig Bay, and at the end of the year the power plant underwent a major overhaul. On January 7 - 11 and 23, 1943, he tried to go to Norway, but was repeatedly ordered to return due to the increased activity of the British aviation. February 10 ran aground, February 24 - 26 was docked. 8-1 March 4, moved from Gotenhafen to Narvik. On September 6-9, together with the Tirpitz aircraft, he took part in the Citronella operation. On the morning of September 8, he fired at the village. Longyearbyen on Spitsbergen. On December 25, 1943, Scharnhorst left Altenfjord accompanied by five EMs (later released due to bad weather) to attack the convoy JW-55B (Operation Ost-Front). On the morning of December 26, I was discovered by Brit. KRL "Belfast", "Sheffield", KPT "Norfolk", in a battle with which it received hits from three 203-mm shells - the nasal radar went out of order. The Norfolk was damaged by return fire. In the evening of the same day, the second Brit, compound (LK "Duke of York", KRL "Jamaica", 4 EM) was discovered. In a battle with superior forces, "Scharnhorst" received numerous hits from 356th shells and 11 torpedoes; at 20.48 \u003d sank in the Barents Sea (72 deg. 16 "N, 28 deg. 41" W). 1932 people died, incl. Rear Admiral Bey and the commander of the ship, Captain 1st Rank Khin-tse; Brit. destroyers rescued 36 people.
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In creating the article, materials from books were used:
- "Battleships of the Second World War" S.A. Balakin, A.V. Dashyan
-Suliga S. V. Battleships "Scharnhorst" and "Gneisenau". - M .: Collection, Yauza, EKSMO, 2006.
-WARE AT SEA No. 3 "Battleships of the Kriegsmarine"
Some of the most famous ships of the Second World War, took part in the hostilities in the Atlantic on the trade communications of Britain, Operation Weserubung (invasion of Norway in), Operation Cerberus (breakthrough of German ships from French Brest to Wilhelmshaven). "Gneisenau" soon after the operation was hit by an aerial bomb, was heavily damaged and did not enter service until the end of the war. The Scharnhorst was killed on December 26 in the Battle of the North Cape.
| Scharnhorst-class battleships | |
|---|---|
Performance characteristics and identification parameters of the battleship "Scharnhorst", published by the Naval Intelligence Department of the US Navy |
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| Project | |
| Country | |
| Manufacturers |
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| Operators | |
| Subsequent type | "Bismarck" |
| Built | 2 |
| Losses | 2 |
| Main characteristics | |
| Displacement | 32 100 standard, 38 100 full |
| Length | 235.4 (the largest, Scharnhorst), 234.9 m (maximum, "Gneisenau"), 226 m (between perpendiculars) |
| Width | 30 |
| Draft | 8.2 - 9.9 m |
| Booking | (values \u200b\u200bin mm) chord 350-170 upper chord 45 traverse 150 turrets GK 360 - 90 barbets GK 350-200 turrets SK 140 - 50 gun shields SK 25 deck 50 + (80 - 95, slopes 105) wheelhouse 350-220 torpedo bulkhead - 45 |
| Engines | 3 TZA type "Parsons" (on "Scharnhorst" "Brown Boveri", on "Gneisenau" - "Deshymag", 12 PK Bauer-Wagner |
| Power | 138,000 l. from. , 160,000 l. from. for a short period when forcing |
| Mover | 3 screws |
| Travel speed | 31.5 knots |
| Sailing range | 7100 miles at 19 knots |
| Crew | 1968 people |
| Armament | |
| Artillery | 9 (3 × 3) - 283 mm / 54.5 4 × 2 and 4 × 1 - 150 mm / 55 |
| Flak | 7 × 2 - 105 mm / 65, 8 × 2 - 37 mm / 83, 8 × 1 - 20 mm / 65 |
| Aviation group | 1 catapult, 3 seaplanes |
| Images at Wikimedia Commons | |
History of creation, construction, modernization
The armored ships D - Ersatz Elsass (replacement of the battleship Alsace) and E - Ersatz Hessen (replacement of the battleship Hesse) were laid down at the Wilhelmshaven military shipyard and at the Deutsche Werke shipyard in Kiel on February 14, 1934. On July 5, construction was suspended in connection with the decision to build battle cruisers of much larger sizes. The re-bookmark took place on June 15 and May 6, 1935, respectively. The Scharnhorst was launched on October 3, and the Gneisenau was launched on December 8, 1936. The ships entered service on January 7, 1939 and May 21, 1938, respectively. Voyages "Gneisenau" in stormy weather showed that the depth in the bow is insufficient. As a result, during planned repairs, the bow was altered, increasing the camber of the frames, the inclination and lifting up of the stem. Further sailing practice revealed the shortcomings of the power plant, in particular, boiler tubes, a number of problems in the turbines. Further improvements during the service included the installation of aviation equipment, radars, and the addition of anti-aircraft weapons.
Armament
The main caliber guns of the C / 34 model had a caliber of 283 mm (28 cm) and were an improved version of those mounted on the "Deutschland" type. The difference was a large mass of shells (armor-piercing - 330 kg, high-explosive - 315 kg), an increased firing range (over 40 km), but the design of the towers themselves remained the same, only their armor was strengthened. For the 4th and 5th "pocket" battleships, originally planned for construction, there were single shield mounts of 150-mm guns. They decided to install them on new battleships. They were not a very good addition to the twin turrets (although all the guns belonged to the same C / 28 model). The anti-aircraft armament was very powerful: twin mounts of 105 mm / 65 and 37 mm / 83 guns (stabilized in three planes). Fire control was carried out by three posts of the main and medium caliber and four - anti-aircraft artillery.
Housing and booking
The hull of the Scharnhorst-class battleships was smooth-deck, the main armor belt was external and had no slope. The belt ran from the bow to the stern turrets of the main caliber. Its thickness was 350 mm, decreasing to 170 mm towards the lower edge. Above the main one there was an upper belt with a thickness of 45 mm, reaching the upper deck. Deck armor was represented by 50-mm upper and 80-mm (95-mm above the cellars) main armored decks with 105-mm bevels that did not reach the lower edge of the belt; there was an 80-mm glacis in the KO area. The main towers were also heavily booked: forehead 360 mm, roof 180 mm. Reservation of barbets was differentiated - from 350 mm along the sides to 200 mm in the center plane. The conning tower walls were made of 350 mm thick KS plates. Roof thickness 200 mm. The floor was 70 mm thick. The communication pipe 1 m in diameter had walls 220 mm thick. The anti-torpedo protection had a depth in the middle of the draft at the midsection of 4.5 m, at the towers "A", "B" and "C" - respectively 2.58, 3.35 and 3.74 m. She was separated from the vital parts of the ship by a 45 mm bulkhead. The total weight of the reservation was 14,245 tons (44% of the displacement).
Power plant
Unlike their predecessors - armored ships of the "Deutschland" type, equipped with a diesel power plant, the new battleships received a more traditional steam turbine, but with a couple of high parameters. The composition of the power plant included twelve three-collector boilers with a superheater and an economizer of the Bauer-Wagner type (pressure 58 atmospheres, temperature 450 ° C) and three turbo-gear units from Brown-Boveri at Scharnhorst and Deschimag at Gneisenau ... The cruising range was below the design 8200 (19) miles
Battle cruiser (or is it a battleship?) Shanhorst.
The full displacement is 39 thousand tons. GBP-350mm, deck-95 mm. Max speed - 31.7 knots.
AGK-3х3х280mm,
anti-mine caliber 4x2x150mm, 4x1-150mm.
Air defense artillery:
14-105mm; 16-37mm; 10-20mm.
TA-2х3х533mm
Air group - 3 Arado Ar 196 A-3, one catapult.
There were 2 Gneisenau and Scharnhorst battleships or battle cruisers. For a battleship they have a rather weak AGK-280mm (there were plans to change the AGK to 3x2x380mm). For a battle cruiser, they are too well protected and do not have an overwhelming speed advantage over new battleships, as was the case during WWI (where the speed difference reached 8 knots).
Scharnhorst at sea.
Prince of Wales. Duke of York-Sister Ship One project.
Full displacement 45 thousand tons. The GBP varied not only in length, but also in height, amounting to 152 mm along the lower edge, 356 mm along the waterline and 330 mm along the upper edge in the area of \u200b\u200bthe main caliber (GK) cellars, and 127, 330 and 305 mm in the EI region, respectively.
AGK-2x4x356mm. 1x2x356mm. Mine artillery-8x2x133mm. Air defense Oerlikon-1х18, Bofors-20х2х.
KRL Belfast. Standard English light cruiser.
AGK4х3х152 mm. speed 33 knots, displacement - 13 thousand tons.
The light cruiser Jamaica (crown colony series) is, in principle, a smaller version of Belfast. Full displacement - 11 thousand. tons with the same AGK and speed.
In the second half of 1943, the position of the German army in Russia became critical. As the threat from the German squadron was significantly reduced, the British Admiralty, yielding to the insistent demands of its Russian allies, agreed to resume escorting convoys to Murmansk and Arkhangelsk. Remembering the sad experience of 1942, the British abandoned large convoys of 40 ships, and began to divide them in two. The new cycle began on November 1 with the dispatch from Arkhangelsk of 13 empty ships (RA-54 A), and in a month and a half, three eastern convoys (JW-54 A, JW-54 B, JW-55 A) and two western ( RA-54 A and RA-54 B). The convoys were accompanied by a marching escort of destroyers, frigates and corvettes, which was joined by a local escort at the end of the route. In the most dangerous area - south of Bear Island - they were accompanied by a short cover of cruisers, and a long-range cover, including a battleship, patrolled from 10 miles east to 200 miles northwest of the island, covering both convoys at once, which met as times in the area.
Convoy JW-55 A the Germans discovered, but did not attack, and all 19 ships safely reached the Kola Bay and Arkhangelsk. However, on December 19-20, at a meeting with Hitler, the commander-in-chief of the fleet, Admiral Dönitz, announced that the Scharnhorst and the 4th Flotilla were attacking the next convoy. After a two-day discussion, Hitler authorized the operation, giving the surface ships one last chance to prove themselves. The temporary commander of the strike force, Rear Admiral Erich Bey (in fact, he commanded the destroyers and in this operation replaced the absent Admiral Kummetz), on December 22, he received an order from Grand Admiral Karl Dönitz to switch to a three-hour readiness. For the commander of the Scharnhorst, Captain Zursee Fritz Hintze, this was the first time he went to sea in a new position.
Convoy JW-55 B out of nineteen transports and tankers left Loch Yu on 20 December, guarded by 10 destroyers, 4 corvettes and 3 minesweepers. A convoy came out to meet him RA-55 A, which was escorted by 10 destroyers, 3 corvettes and a minesweeper. In the Barents Sea, both convoys were covered by Compound 1 as part of the cruisers of the 10th squadron of Vice-Admiral R. Bernet: the flagship Belfast, Sheffield and the heavy Norfolk. Formation 2 as part of the battleship "Duke of York" (flag of the Commander of the Metropolitan Fleet Admiral Bruce Fraser), the cruiser "Jamaica" and 4 destroyers were supposed to coverJW-55 B 27 ° to 38 ° E, then return to Scapa Flow, covering RA-55 A... December 22, 400 miles west of the Norwegian port of Tromsø, a convoy JW-55 B discovered by German aircraft. The commander of the "North" group, Admiral Shnivindt, at first decided that a landing in Norway was being prepared, but soon the panic subsided. Two days later, the convoy was again found north of Norway and determined that it was heading for the USSR. On Christmas Day, December 25, around 9.00 a German submarineU-601 reported the exact coordinates of the convoy and Admiral Dönitz ordered to intercept. His order to Admiral Bey contained the following:
“The operation can be interrupted at your discretion. Basically, you must abort the fight if superior forces enemy. The tactical situation should be used with skill and audacity. The fight must not end in stalemate. Every opportunity to attack should be used. The Scharnhorst's superiority in gun power provides the best chance of success, and it must be exploited. Destroyers should be used later. Inform crews accordingly. I am completely confident in your offensive spirit. "
The order was contradictory, since he urged Bey to attack in any case, but also demanded to interrupt the battle when a strongest enemy appeared. Admiral Bey planned to attack the convoy around 10:00 on 26 December, if weather and visibility were favorable and the information on enemy forces was correct. With only six hours of twilight and only 45 minutes of daylight, the battle had to be fought very quickly.
German connection ("Scharnhorst", destroyers Z-29, Z-30, Z-33, Z-34, Z-38) went out to sea at about 19:00, and at 23:00 the Norwegian coast disappeared over the horizon. Admiral Bey maintained constant contact with the headquarters of the naval group "North" and at 3.19 the fleet command conveyed to him the decision of the German Admiralty to return the destroyers in case of worsening weather and to act on the Scharnhorst alone. The British were able to intercept and decipher this message, and when Bey read the new order, the British admirals Burnet and Fraser were already holding it in their hands. english translation... At 07.03 on December 26, the German unit, located 40 miles south-west of about. Bearish, turned to the point where in the morning twilight - about 10 o'clock - according to calculations, a meeting with the convoy was to take place. The destroyers searched 10 miles southwest of the Scharnhorst, the crews were on full alert from 0300. In the stormy sea, the destroyers had a hard time and their speed had to be reduced to 10 knots.
On a long-range cover formation that left Iceland on December 23, located 270 miles west of Cape Nord-Kap, Admiral Fraser received an intercept from the Ultra that the Scharnhorst rushed towards the convoy. British intelligence was able to decipher the order - “Ostfront (17.00). "Scharnhorst" to go to sea on the 25th at 17 o'clock "- and Admiral Fraser was asked to prepare for action to cut off the German battleship's way back to Norway. By 9:25 am, Fraser's ships were 125 miles southwest of the Scharnhorst, and Admiral Burnet was informed of Fraser's plans and the contents of the Ultra's transcript. Admiral Fraser ordered the 36th destroyer battalion from the escort of the convoy RA-55 A, who was prudently sent north of the intended battle area, to join the convoyJW-55 B (the main goal of the Scharnhorst). Vice Admiral Burnet positioned his formation between the convoy and the eventual direction of the Scharnhorst. The commander of the Soviet Northern Fleet, Admiral A. Golovko, ordered the L-20, K-21 and S-102 submarines to reach the North Cape area and intercept the German raider. At the same time, the destroyers warmed up the turbines at the base, and the aircraft at the airfields were armed with torpedoes and bombs.
When the Belfast radar at 8.40 on 26 December detected the Scharnhorst from a distance of 33,000 m and a bearing of 295 °, a combat alert was played on the ships of the close cover. The German raider at that moment was about 32 miles from the convoy, and three British cruisers began to approach the enemy. The Scharnhorst was not yet aware of the presence of British ships, since for greater stealth it did not turn on its radar. At 09.21 the signalmen of the cruiser "Sheffield" from a distance of 11,000 m along a bearing of 222 ° noticed a German ship, and three minutes later, Belfast opened fire from a distance of 8600 m with lighting shells. At 09.25 the first salvo from the Norfolk cruiser fell just 500 meters from the Scharnhorst, which responded with a salvo from the Caesar tower, and then began to retreat at a 30-knot speed. Belfast and Sheffield used flameless gunpowder, and Norfolk used the older one, which gave strong unmasking flashes. The British used artillery radars and in this they were superior to the enemy, who had an advantage in speed and weapon power. During the 20-minute shootout, the Scharnhorst was hit by three 203-mm shells. The first one hit the upper deck from the port side between the deck 150-mm installation and the torpedo tube and, without exploding, went into the cockpit of the watertight compartmentIX... A small fire that had started there was quickly extinguished. Another shell a few minutes later hit the nasal rangefinders and covered the anti-aircraft artillery servants with shrapnel. Destroyed the antenna of the bow radar, and the debris entered the cabin of the receiving radar station, killing all personnel there. The ship was "blinded" from the bow angles, approximately 69-80 °, since the stern radar, located below the bow, had a limited forward angle of action. The third shell hit the forecastle and exploded in the cockpit.
Trying to get out of the battle, the Scharnhorst changed course several times. At 9.55 Admiral Bay radioed about the battle with the British cruisers, but after a few minutes he was able to break away from the enemy, which in a stormy sea could not give more than 24 knots. With an advantage of 4 - 6 knots, the Scharnhorst quickly increased its distance from its pursuers. At 1030 hours, the 36th Division joined Burnet's cruisers, forming a wake column to the left and in front of the Belfast.
Breaking away from the cruisers, "Scharnhorst" again began to search for the convoy and by 12 o'clock left to the northeast of it. Five minutes later, "Belfast" restored radar contact with the Germans, but only at 12.21 the British cruisers were able to close the distance. At this moment, the Scharnhorst detected them with its stern radar, and then visually. The British fired light rounds, but the battlecruiser quickly opened fire from the bow turrets and again changed course to the northwest, bringing the aft turret into action. This lapel prevented the British destroyers from launching a torpedo attack. Three volleys covered the terminal ship of the 36th battalion "Virago", which had just slipped under the noses of the cruisers.
At 12.23 pm the Norfolk was hit in the area of \u200b\u200bthe stern tube. A few seconds later, the second 283-mm shell hit the barbet of his turret “X", Taking her out of action. To prevent an explosion, the tower cellar had to be flooded. The first hit was more serious. The projectile pierced the superstructure from the starboard side and exploded at the very skin of the left side, tearing it apart over a large area. The fragments completely disabled the radar installation, after which the cruiser could not maintain accurate fire. It turned out to be 7 killed (1 officer) and 5 wounded. Tower B fired 4 more volleys using old data, and then the Norfolk temporarily ceased fire. A few minutes later, the Sheffield was covered with a hail of large debris. The erroneous order of his artillery officer sharply reduced the intensity of the fire - instead of firing with the entire side, the cruiser switched to the turret. At 12.41, when the situation began to develop badly for the British - after all, the Scharnhorst was much stronger than the three cruisers, Admiral Bay changed course and increased speed. He did not want to continue the unpleasant battle with the cruisers, his target was the convoy. After the end of this phase of the battle, the ships of Admiral Fraser approached from the southwest, and the cruiser Burnet continued to keep out of the Scharnhorst's fire, maintaining radar contact and reporting the enemy's coordinates to their battleship.
From the German destroyers we saw the lighting shells that the British cruisers fired in the morning battle, but they were far from the Scharnhorst. Admiral Bey ordered them to march northeast to join the flagship, but at 11.58 sent them west again to search for a convoy. After that, there was no more tactical interaction between the Scharnhorst and the German destroyers. At about 13:00, the destroyers, without knowing it, passed only 15,000 m south of the convoy. Finally, at 13.43, Admiral Bey ordered them to stop searching and return to base. The next day at about 10.00 they returned to the Kaa fiord. Their absence in the final phase of the battle at Cape North Cape proved fatal for the Scharnhorst. Indeed, if its nasal radar failed, the destroyers could timely detect the enemy, help the flagship repel torpedo attacks, and they themselves would pose a serious danger to British ships, having 150-mm guns and 8 torpedo tubes.
The eldest of the surviving members of the Scharnhorst crew, NCO Willie Godde, who was on the bridge according to the combat schedule, described the battle with the cruisers as follows: “Soon after 12.30, I and some others noticed the shadows of three ships ahead, which we immediately reported to the commander. The alarm has already been announced, since a little earlier the enemy was detected by the radar. However, before our guns opened fire, lighting shells exploded over the Scharnhorst. The enemy's volley fell very close. But our first volley from 28-cm guns took the enemy into the fork. I saw that after three or four volleys on one of the cruisers in the area of \u200b\u200bthe stern tube, a strong fire began, the other cruiser blazed strongly in the bow and stern and was enveloped in thick smoke. After the next volleys, I saw hits in the bow of the third cruiser. At one point, a huge tongue of flame shot up into the sky, which then disappeared. Observing thick smoke around the cruiser, I assumed that it was on fire. The enemy fire began to weaken, and when we changed course, the enemy cruisers turned away and hid behind the rain and snow squalls. During this battle, the enemy was in front of both sides. Our turrets "Anton" and "Bruno" fired at these cruisers, which were occasionally joined by two bow 150-mm towers. I have not heard, either on the phone or in any other way, about any hits in us in this phase of the battle. Although the enemy was barely visible during the first contact, this time, in the dusk of the day, we could easily identify that they were cruisers. The distance was also less than in the morning battle. "
At about 1:15 pm, Admiral Bey decided to return to base without expecting any more skirmishes. The crew of the ship, not fed from the very morning, proceeded to lunch, but combat readiness remained. The stern radar was turned off so as not to detect themselves with its work. At 15.25 Bey radioed the estimated time of his return to the headquarters of the "North" group. He did not know that he was going exactly to the intersection of the course of the Duke of York, Jamaica and four destroyers, which were aimed at him by cruisers by radio. With the nasal radar destroyed and the stern radar turned off, moreover unable to search directly along the course, the Scharnhorst went straight into a trap from which there was no way out. At 75 kb from behind (with a visibility of 70), like a flock of hounds, the cruisers Burnet and the 36th division walked in front formation, closed so as not to clog their radar screens with unnecessary marks. This kind of "rut" lasted more than three hours. There was a moment at the beginning of the fifth hour in the afternoon when the situation could change. The Norfolk slowed down to put out the fire, and after 7 minutes the Sheffield dropped to 8 knots, where the left inner propeller shaft bracket broke. But already at 16:17 the search radar of the British battleship detected the enemy at a distance of 225 kbt. The death warrant for the Scharnhorst was signed. Fraser ordered to continue tracking until the ships were within effective range of fire.
At 4:32 pm, a Type 284 artillery radar on the Duke of York groped a 147 kbt (27,200 m) target and 11 minutes later Fraser ordered Belfast, the only Burnet cruiser that could enter the battle, open fire with illuminating shells, - be ready for a torpedo attack at the signal of the admiral. Duke of York and Jamaica went on course 80 to use the aft towers. The German ship was sandwiched between Compounds 1 and 2.
When the shells of the first salvo exploded in the sky at 4:47 pm, the British were surprised to find that on the Scharnhorst the main battery turrets were deployed to the stowed position. A minute later, the Duke of York opened fire with illuminating 133-mm shells, and two more later began firing volleys from a distance of 11,000 m. At 4:52 pm, the cruiser Jamaica joined it from a distance of 12,000 m, having achieved coverage with a third salvo (one hit ). Although the Scharnhorst was caught unawares, after the bursting of the lighting shells, it quickly returned fire and, without a moment's hesitation, turned north. The duel between him and the battleship Duke of York was unequal - German 283-mm shells could not penetrate the thick armor that protected the vital parts of the British battleship. At 16.55 a 356-mm shell from the first salvo hit the starboard side of the Scharnhorst opposite the Anton tower. The turret jammed with raised guns, the horizontal and vertical aiming drives were out of order. A fire started in the cellars from the red-hot shrapnel, and the shrapnel also broke through the flame-tight door to the cellar of the Bruno tower. The cellars of both towers had to be flooded, but under the Bruno tower they were drained so quickly that this had almost no effect on its rate of fire. The serving servant worked waist-deep in icy water, trying to save at least some of the ammunition. Despite the damage, the ship maintained a high speed. The second shell damaged the ventilation duct of the Bruno turret, which caused its fighting compartment to fill with gases and smoke after each opening of the gun lock. Another shell hit near the Caesar tower and punched a hole 0.5 m in diameter in the battery deck. The hole was quickly repaired, but the compartments where the shell exploded were flooded with water and not drained. Shrapnel riddled two aircraft, smashed several anti-aircraft guns, destroying most of their servants. After that, the captain zur see Hintze ordered the survivors to take cover.
These hits have not yet posed a threat to the Scharnhorst. The main thing is that he retained the advantage in speed and began to break away from the enemy. Only the destroyer "Savage" could follow him, which the Germans could not throw off "from the tail", although the shells fell from it only 20 meters away. The destroyer came so close that he was forced to turn away without receiving the order for a torpedo attack. Having come under fire from "Belfast" and "Norfolk", "Scharnhorst" turned east and quickly increased the distance with a 30-knot speed. Fraser ordered the destroyers to attack, but they could not get close to the target. "Savage" and "Somarets" kept to the left behind, and "Stord" and "Scorpio" - to the right behind from the pursued enemy. At 17.42, due to the increased distance, the Jamaica ceased fire and only Fraser's flagship continued to methodically fire volleys at the retreating Scharnhorst.
Fortunately for the British, the Duke of York's shooting was accurate. One after another, gun turrets came out on a German ship, fragments of heavy shells even penetrated the cellars, knocking out the servants who worked on the supply. And at about 18.00, a shell hit the starboard side, piercing the thin belt of the upper citadel (45 mm) and the battery deck, ricocheting along the 80-mm lower armored deck, piercing the glacis of the same thickness over boiler room No. 1, exploding in the latter. At first it seemed on the ship that it was a torpedo hit - the impact and explosion were so strong. Bursting many steam lines of four boilers in this compartment. Shell fragments pierced the double bottom, causing the compartment to flood to the level of the flooring. The ship's speed dropped to 8 knots. Emergency measures were taken quickly and efficiently, but when watertight doors and hatches were battened down
25 people were locked up in the boiler room. The steam pressure was increased, and the chief mechanic of the frigatten-captain Otto Koenig reported to the bridge: "I can move 22 knots," to which the ship commander Hintze replied: "Bravo, hold him!" The Scharnhorst fired from a distance of 15,000 - 20,000 m and covered the Duke of York with several volleys, the side of which was covered with shrapnel, and a direct hit into the foremast blew one of its supports overboard and temporarily disabled an artillery radar of the type 284. Lieutenant Bates, who climbed onto the mast, managed to fix the broken cable between the antenna and the radar screen, and the fire was continued with the same efficiency. The rest of the damage on the English battleship turned out to be from its own fire: demolished ventilation fungi, a damaged deck, broken boats.
The artillery duel had already lasted almost 90 minutes, and the Scharnhorst suffered significant damage. Its superstructures were in many places pierced by shrapnel, and in some places destroyed by direct hits of 152-mm, 203-mm and 356-mm shells. Fires began, sometimes accompanied by explosions. Under these conditions, the crew continued to professionally and calmly do their job. The fire in the hangar, which destroyed two seaplanes, was extinguished after 10 minutes, but the attempt to launch the remaining aircraft from the catapult failed, as it destroyed the supply of compressed air. Destroyed or disabled almost all artillery installations and a torpedo tube on the left side. The surviving servants were ordered to take cover and fight the fires. At 17.30, 356-mm shells hit both bow 150-mm turrets: the right one was completely destroyed, and all the people in the turret and in the feed were killed, and the left one was jammed. But after 10 minutes she was completely out of order.
The torpedo officer, under stormy fire, bravely rushed to the port's torpedo tube even before the latter was disabled. He was able to deploy the apparatus and fired two torpedoes, and the third was jammed in the tube. According to eyewitnesses, this officer was killed by fragments of a shell that exploded nearby or by a shell hitting a jammed torpedo, which detonated in the vehicle. A shell hitting the forecastle broke the chain of the right anchor, which fell into the sea with the remnants of the chain. Soon the same happened with the bow anchor.
Rear Admiral Bey now knew for sure that he had been cornered and at 18.24 ordered to send the last radiogram to Hitler: "We will fight to the last shell."
At 18.42, the Duke of York ceased fire, firing 52 volleys, of which 31 covered and gave at least 13 direct hits. These shells and shells from cruisers killed and wounded a large number of people on board the Scharnhorst, and disabled almost all of the 150-mm guns. However, the Scharnhorst was still at high speed, and Admiral Fraser, fearing that the enemy would be able to escape, ordered the destroyers to launch a torpedo attack.
Thanks to the drop in speed of the Scharnhorst, destroyers of theS”From Compound 2 managed to approach it by 60 cables. The German ship no longer had the means of repelling such attacks, which allowed the destroyers to approach the distance of a torpedo salvo with almost no opposition. At about 18.50 "Stord" and "Scorpion" on the right circulation, being on both cramps of their victim, fired 8 torpedoes each from a distance of 1650 and 1900 m. The Scharnhorst turned sharply to the right, but three torpedoes nevertheless reached the target. With this turn, he substituted the board for the destroyers "Savage" and "Somarets". The first fired eight torpedoes, and the second, approaching 1600 m, came under fire from the few surviving small guns on the starboard side and one turret of the main battery of the German ship. The shells pierced the director and the rangefinder on the destroyer, fragments riddled the side and superstructures, its speed dropped to 10 knots. An officer and 10 sailors were killed on the ship, 11 people were injured. Somehow they recruited people to calculate one torpedo tube, the second was still defeated. Having fired four torpedoes, the Somarets turned away, setting up a smoke screen. They even set fire to a smoke buoy at the stern, after which the team, deciding that the destroyer was on fire, flooded the stern cellars.
Torpedo damage ... The available information on torpedo damage is very sketchy. One torpedo exploded from the starboard side opposite the Bruno tower, jamming the horizontal and vertical aiming drives, as well as the main entrance hatch, so that the servants could not get out on deck for a long time. The flooding of the cellars began. Another torpedo hit the left side boiler room and caused some flooding behind the anti-torpedo bulkhead. The third struck in the stern from the left side to the place where several compartments had already been flooded, and damaged the propeller shaft. The fourth torpedo hit the nose from the same side. All torpedoes had a 340-kg charge.
Analyzing the damage to the Scharnhorst and Gneisenau from torpedoes in previous battles, it is safe to assume that in this case there were also significant flooding of internal volumes. Obviously, the torpedo hit in the area of \u200b\u200bthe Bruno tower was very dangerous. It caused not only a powerful blow, but also destroyed the PTZ, leading to huge flooding. The underwater protection system in this place was especially vulnerable, not having sufficient width due to the sharp contours of the hull. The 340-kg charge of the British torpedo was also enough to destroy the protection in the area of \u200b\u200bthe boiler room. The damage there would be more significant if the layer of empty compartments in the anti-torpedo protection system, which absorbed most of the flooding, turned out to be filled with water.
As a result of torpedo hits, the Scharnhorst's speed dropped to 12 knots, although the chief mechanic reported that he was ready to keep 22 knots. "Duke of York" was able to get close again, now at the "pistol" distance for 356-mm shells 9100 m. The final execution of the German ship began, which could not even adequately respond: two of its bow towers jammed, and the third was experiencing a shortage of shells. All free crew members (probably servants of 105-mm guns) worked on transferring ammunition from the cellars of the Bruno tower to the Caesar tower, which resumed fire a few minutes later.
As the hull was filled with water, the Scharnhorst's speed dropped to 5 knots and he almost did not obey the steering wheel. Even after the battle with the Bismarck, the British realized that it was impossible to sink a large German ship with artillery alone. Therefore, Admiral Fraser ordered the cruisers to finish off the Scharnhorst with torpedoes.
At 19.25 "Jamaica", which had previously fired 22 side salvoes at the enemy, fired two torpedoes from the left vehicle (the third tube turned out to be faulty). Two minutes later, Belfast released three more. Then "Jamaica" turned around and, approaching 3500 m, 10 minutes later fired three torpedoes from the other side. The hits were impossible to distinguish because of the smoke and fog. The cruisers left the battle arena, which was entered by the destroyers of the 36th division. “Masketir”, having passed 900 meters from the “Scharnhorst”, crawling at 3-knot speed, fired 4 torpedoes on the starboard side at 19.33 and saw three explosions between the pipe and the mainmast. A minute later, Matchless tried to do this, but a huge wave, covering the ship, damaged the aiming mechanisms of the vehicles. The second wave, which flooded the bridge, disabled the in-ship communication devices, so that the order to turn the devices to the right did not reach the torpedo officer. Matchless had to return to attack with her port side. The Opportunity discharged one of 19.31 from a distance of 1900m, the other two minutes later from 2300m, and its observers clearly saw one hit from each salvo on the starboard side of the battle cruiser between the mainmast and the chimney. The effect of their explosion was insignificant, since the Scharnhorst was already deep in the water, and the torpedoes hit the main armor belt. At 19.34 from a distance of 2500 m, seven torpedoes were fired by "Virago", also claiming two hits. After these attacks, the German ship practically stopped, enveloped in thick smoke and steam. From the British ships little could be made out - a dull glow could be seen, deaf explosions were heard. The veil of smoke was so dense that neither the beams of the searchlights nor the shells of light could pierce it.
At about 7 pm the Scharnhorst commander ordered to burn all secret documents. Since all the other guns were already silent, he told the servants of the 150-mm turret No. 4: "... everything depends on you." The ship heeled to starboard and sank forward. The last turret of 150 mm guns fired until its ammunition lift jammed. The 20-mm gun on the roof of the Bruno tower continued to fire. By 19.40 the roll increased greatly, and the bow almost went under water. All hatches and watertight doors were reinforced to contain flooding and give the crew more time to escape. However, torpedo damage deprived the ship of most of its buoyancy. At 19.45 the Scharnhorst sank into the water with its propellers slowly rotating. For some time a strong rumble was heard from under the water. The British recorded a strong explosion before the flooding, attributing it to the cellars. "Belfast" at 19.48 intended to conduct a second attack with torpedoes, but the target disappeared. Match-less also did not find the Scharnhorst and, together with the Scorpion, began to pick up people who were floundering in the icy water. Until 20.40 the destroyers "Belfast" and "Norfolk" were looking for survivors. "Scorpion" picked up 30 people, and at one time the commander of the ship Hintze and the senior officer of the frigate-captain F. Dominik were seen from it. But Hintze died before help came, and Dominik, although he had time to grab onto the thrown line, could not climb it to the deck; he was raised already dead. Only 36 of the crew were saved in 1968.
During the sinking of the Scharnhorst, the British used up 446 356-mm shells, 161 203-mm, 974 152-mm, 531 133-mm (plus 155 lighting) and 83 102-mm, as well as 55 torpedoes, of which 11 hit the target: Jamaica and Virago scored 2 hits each, Masketir and Savage scored 3 each and Scorpio 1 each. When firing a large caliber, there were some difficulties with the failure of materiel. Because of this, for example, in the bow tower "Duke of York" with 77 of these volleys, one gun fired 71 shells, and the remaining 47, 6 (!) And 64.
Admiral Fraser was struck by the heroic actions of the German crew. On the way back to Scapa Flow from Murmansk, when the Duke of York was passing the site of the Scharnhorst's death, he ordered to throw a wreath into the water in memory of the German sailors who had fulfilled their military duty.
The Germans themselves attributed the death of the Scharnhorst to the absence of escort destroyers and the superiority of British radars. After the war, Admiral Karl Dönitz wrote: “... The operation undertaken by the battle cruiser Scharnhorst and a group of destroyers in December, after a successful covert start, seemed to have every chance of success, given the enemy's location and weather conditions. But it failed, apparently due to an underestimation of the local situation, and the Scharnhorst was lost ... "
As we now know, the operation did not have a hidden beginning, since the "Ultra" decrypted the German codes. The commanders of both British battle groups were reasonably well informed about the planned movements of the Scharnhorst and in such conditions could prepare their response.
Either way, the Scharnhorst was the last Kriegsmarine ship to take offensive action. His death put an end to the threat posed by the German surface fleet and seriously shaken Germany's position in Norway.
The end of Gneisenau is less sad, but still indicative.
On the night of February 27, 1942, the Gneisenau, which had just arrived in Kiel, was struck by a British 454-kg armor-piercing bomb in the area of \u200b\u200bthe first tower. The explosion caused enormous destruction and fire (230 gunpowder charges of the main caliber burst out at once). 112 sailors were killed, 21 were wounded. The battleship was towed to Gotenhafen (Gdynia) for repairs. In the course of the latter, by the way, it was planned to replace the main artillery with six 380-mm guns. Alas, these plans remained on paper. In January 1943, all work was stopped.
Py.sy. The shameful death of the pride of the Reich, the death of 1,467 crew members pissed off Hitler. Furiously, he blurted out: “No funeral arrangements are needed! This is the lot of traitors unworthy to be Aryans! "
All the same, Adolf Alozievich was a rare bitch.
On December 26, 1943, during the Second World War, a naval battle took place in the Barents Sea near North Cape (Magerø Island in northern Norway), which is considered the northernmost naval battle in history. During this battle, the German battleship Scharnhorst was sunk by the ships of the British Navy.
The battleship "Scharnhorst" was launched on October 3, 1936 and became operational on January 7, 1939. Named after the general and reformer of the Prussian army Gerhard von Scharnhorst and in memory of the WWI cruiser Scharnhorst, sunk in the Battle of the Falkland Islands in December 1914.
As part of the German Navy (Kriegsmarine), the ship was sometimes designated as a battle cruiser due to the caliber of the guns, which did not reach the classic battleship. However, this disadvantage was compensated for by the high speed, despite the increased booking.
After the outbreak of World War II, the Scharnhorst, together with her twin brother, Gneisenau, became a real scourge for British sea communications. It was their reprisals against defenseless transports that led to the formation of the first sea convoys.
These two German battleships provided for the landing of German troops in Norway in the spring of 1940, and on June 8, 1940, in the Norwegian Sea, the Scharnhorst and Gneisenau sank the British aircraft carrier Glories and its escort, the destroyers Akasta and Ardent.
On Christmas Day 1943, the Scharnhorst and several German destroyers under the command of Rear Admiral Erich Bay went to sea to attack the northern convoys JW 55B and RA 55A.
The next day, December 26, due to bad weather conditions, Bay was unable to locate the convoy and sent destroyers south to search for the convoy, leaving the Scharnhorst alone. Less than 2 hours later, the ship came across convoy cruisers Belfast, Norfolk and Sheffield.
Covering the convoy, the British approached the Scharnhorst, made eye contact and opened fire. Bay tried to obey the order and break through to the convoy's transport ships, breaking away from the advancing cruisers. These maneuvers took several hours and became fatal for the Scharnhorst - the British battleship Duke of York approached the battlefield.
At about 16:50, he approached the German and opened fire on him from a short distance. The Scharnhorst almost immediately lost its two main caliber turrets, as well as the speed advantage due to a shell hitting the boiler room.
Having lost speed and, having lost most of the artillery, the German battleship became vulnerable to destroyers who carried out several successful torpedo attacks. The "Duke of York" approached the pistol range, firing at the immobilized German battleship from all guns, which is called "point blank".
At 19:45, the torn apart Scharnhorst went under water. After diving from British ships, powerful underwater explosions were heard. Of the entire crew in 1968, only 36 sailors and not a single officer were saved. The survivors were picked up by British destroyers.
On October 3, 2000, the sunken Scharnhorst was discovered nearly 130 kilometers north-north-east of the North Cape and was photographed at a depth of about 300 meters by the Norwegian Navy. The battle cruiser is keel up. The bow part to the very bridge was destroyed by the explosion of the ammunition storage. The end of the stern is also missing.
The damned battleship Scharnhorst?
The ultra-modern German battleship Scharnhorst for its time, being only half completed, for some mysterious reason overturned in a dry dock. At the same time, more than a hundred workers were crushed to death and about two hundred were seriously injured. The Scharnhorst was returned to its original position, chained and reinforced with beams. Every detail was checked by a dozen masters, but they could not avoid further troubles. Frames bent in incredible ways, beams and rigging tore off and cripple people. The leaders of the shipyard were even forced to raise the salaries of shipbuilders so that they would not run away, and those who were not seduced by high wages were forced to continue working at gunpoint.
On the day the battleship was launched, Adolf Hitler himself arrived in the harbor. In his presence, a symbolic bottle of champagne was broken on board the Scharnhorst, the orchestra played a bravura march, chief Engineer was already preparing to receive congratulations from the Fuhrer. And then, unexpectedly, a seven-inch cable burst, and the Scharnhorst collapsed on two coastal barges, one of which, together with the crew, immediately went to the bottom, and on the other, almost the entire crew, who had gathered on the deck and watched the descent of the battleship, died.
Hitler, who immensely believed in all kinds of signs, after this horrific tragedy, wanted to immediately give the order to send the ill-fated ship for scrap. However, the less superstitious generals dissuaded him from such a hasty, in their opinion, decision.
Despite its excellent sailing characteristics and super armament, the Scharnhorst managed to sink only two auxiliary British ships during all the years of its short service. And secondly, he was disastrously unlucky: misfortunes continued to haunt him literally with devilish constancy.
So, during shelling from the sea of \u200b\u200bDanzig, in the bow tower of the battleship it is not clear why an explosion occurred, which killed and injured twenty people. A day later, the air supply system in the second bow tower went out of order, which caused another twelve sailors to suffocate in the powder gases.
A year later, the battleship participated in the shelling of Oslo, was itself attacked and torpedoed. Following for repairs, at the wide mouth of the Elbe, he collided with the civilian transatlantic liner "Bremen", which as a result ran aground and was soon shot by British bombers.
After many months of repairs, as soon as the Scharnhorst began combat duty off the Norwegian coast, the radar on it - the eyes of any ship - went out of order. While it was being put in order, under cover of darkness, the Hitlerite battleship was surrounded by a whole squadron of British ships, which began to shoot the Scharnhorst literally point-blank.
It is amazing, but true: the commander of the Scharnhorst did not accept the battle and decided to simply flee, breaking through the encirclement. But as a result of the attack of the British torpedo bombers, it lost its speed and caught fire. In just a few minutes, the fire reached the artillery cellar, and a terrifying explosion practically broke the Scharnhorst in half.
On December 26, 1943, one of the most powerful ships of the German fleet disappeared into the waves northeast of the North Cape. From the two thousandth crew, only 36 people were saved. However, two of them died already on the shore under incredible circumstances. Deciding to make themselves lunch, they lit a primus from the emergency kit. And either they did something wrong, or the curse hanging over the Scharnhorst was still in effect, but the apparatus exploded, pouring gasoline on both sailors, and they burned to death ...