700-45 SMS SCHLESWIG-HOLSTEIN DEUTSCHLAND-CLASS BATTLESHIP 1939 WITH METAL GUN BARRELS

Schleswig-Holstein was a German battleship (the so-called pre-dreadnought), the keel of which was laid in 1905 and launched in December 1906. The battleship entered the rope service of the German Navy (German Kaiserliche Marine) in July 1908. The ship was 128 meters long, 22.2 meters wide, and had a full displacement of 14,900 tons. The maximum speed of Schleswig-Holstein was around 19 knots. The main armament at the time of the launch was 4 280 mm guns in two twin turrets, and the secondary armament included: 14 170 mm guns or 22 88 mm guns. Schleswig-Holstein belonged to the Deutschland battleship type, which consisted of five units. It was the penultimate pre-dreadnought made for the German Navy, and its combat value against the newest British ships as early as 1914 was not the highest, which resulted from the rapid pace of naval armaments on the eve of the First World War. Schleswig-Holstein, however, took part in it, fighting, among others, in the Battle of Jutland in 1916. However, in 1917 it was converted into a residential hulk. After 1918, he could remain in the German Navy, but it was not until 1926 that he re-entered combat service - immediately becoming the flagship of the German navy. In 1936 she was converted into a training ship. The battleship Schleswig-Holstein started World War II in Europe with its volleys directed at Westerplatte. Then, in 1940, it supported the German landings in Norway, and in the period 1941-1944 it served as a training ship and a residential hulk. In 1944, the ship's anti-aircraft weapons were strengthened and Schleswig-Holstein began service as an anti-aircraft defense ship. The battleship sank on December 26, 1944 as a result of a British bombing raid on Gdynia. In 1946 It was lifted from the seabed by the Russians and incorporated into the Baltic Fleet, but the unprofitability of the renovation led to its rapid decommissioning and was used as a target ship until 1966.