SMS Goeben
Encyclopedia
SMS
Goeben ("His Majesty's Ship Goeben") was the second of two Moltke-class
battlecruiser
s of the Imperial German Navy, launched in 1911 and named after the German Franco-Prussian War
veteran General August Karl von Goeben
. Along with her sister ship
, Goeben was similar to the previous German battlecruiser design, , but larger and with increased armor protection and two more main guns in an additional turret
. Compared to their British rivals in the Indefatigable class
, Goeben and Moltke were significantly larger and better armored.The Indefatigable-class ships displaced 22100 MT (21,750.9 LT) at full load, compared to 25400 MT (24,998.8 LT) for the Moltke-class. The Indefatigable-class ships had an armored belt between 4–6 in (101.6–152.4 mm), while Moltkes belt was 11–3 in (279.4–76.2 mm) thick. See: Gardiner and Gray, pp. 26, 152
Several months after her commissioning in 1912, Goeben, with the light cruiser
, formed the German Mediterranean Division
and patrolled there during the Balkan Wars
. After the outbreak of World War I
on 28 July 1914, Goeben and Breslau evaded British naval forces in the Mediterranean and reached Constantinople
. The two ships were transferred to the Ottoman Empire
on 16 August 1914, and Goeben became the flagship of the Ottoman Navy
as Yavuz Sultan Selim, usually shortened to Yavuz. In 1936 she was officially renamed TCG Yavuz ("Ship of the Turkish Republic Yavuz"); she carried the remains of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
from Istanbul
to İzmit
in 1938. Yavuz remained the flagship of the Turkish Navy
until she was decommissioned in 1950.
She was scrapped in 1973, after the German government declined an invitation to buy her back from Turkey. She was the last surviving ship built by the Imperial German Navy, and the longest-serving battlecruiser
or dreadnought
-type ship in any navy.
shipyard in Hamburg, under construction number 201. Her keel was laid on 19 August; the hull was completed and the ship was launched on 28 March 1911. Fitting-out
work followed, and she was commissioned into the German Navy on 2 July 1912.
Goeben was 186.6 metre long, 29.4 m (96.5 ft) wide, and had a draft of 9.19 metre fully loaded. The ship displaced
22616 t (22,258.7 LT) normally, and 25300 t (24,900.3 LT) fully loaded. Goeben was powered by four-shaft Parsons
steam turbine
s in two sets and 24 coal-fired Schulz-Thornycroft water-tube boiler
s, which provided a rated 52000 shp and a top speed of 25.5 knots (13.9 m/s). At 14 knots (7.6 m/s), the ship had a range of 4120 nautical miles (7,630.2 km).
The ship was armed with a main battery of ten 28 cm (11 in) guns in five twin gun turrets. Her secondary armament consisted of twelve 15 cm (5.9 in) guns in casemate
s in the central portion of the ship and twelve 8.8 cm (3.5 in) guns in the bow, in the stern, and around the forward conning tower
. She was also equipped with four 50 cm (20 in) submerged torpedo tube
s.
broke out in October 1912, the German General Staff
determined that a naval Mediterranean Division (Mittelmeer-Division) was needed to project German power in the Mediterranean, and thus dispatched Goeben and the light cruiser to Constantinople
. The two ships left Kiel
on 4 November and arrived on 15 November 1912. Beginning in April 1913, Goeben visited many Mediterranean ports including Venice
, Pola
, and Naples
, before sailing into Albanian waters
. Following this trip, Goeben returned to Pola and remained there from 21 August to 16 October for maintenance.
On 29 June 1913, the Second Balkan War
broke out and the Mediterranean Division was retained in the area. On 23 October 1913, Konteradmiral Souchon
assumed command of the squadron. Goeben and Breslau continued their activities in the Mediterranean, and visited some 80 ports before the outbreak of World War I. The navy made plans to replace Goeben with her sister , but the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria
in Sarajevo, Bosnia, on 28 June 1914 and the subsequent rise in tensions between the Great Powers made this impossible.
After the assassination, Admiral Souchon assessed that war was imminent between the Central Powers
and the Triple Entente
, and ordered his ships to make for Pola for repairs. Engineers came from Germany to work on the ship. Goeben had 4,460 boiler tubes replaced, among other repairs. Upon completion, the ships departed for Messina.
(now Skikda, Algeria) for about 10 minutes early on 3 August while Breslau shelled Bône (now Annaba
, on the site of the ancient city of Hippo) in accordance with the Kaiser's order. Admirals Alfred von Tirpitz
and Hugo von Pohl
then transmitted secret orders to Souchon instructing him to sail to Constantinople
, in direct contravention of the Kaiser's instructions and without his knowledge.
Since Goeben could not reach Constantinople without coaling, Souchon headed for Messina. The Germans encountered the British battlecruisers and , but as Germany was not yet at war with Britain, no violence ensued. The British turned to follow Goeben and Breslau, but they were able to outrun the British ships, and arrived in Messina by 5 August. Refueling in Messina was complicated by the declaration of Italian neutrality on 2 August. Under international law, combatant ships were permitted only 24 hours in a neutral port. Sympathetic Italian naval authorities in the port allowed Goeben and Breslau to remain in port for around 36 hours while the ships coaled from a German collier
. Despite the additional time, Goebens fuel stocks were not sufficient to permit the voyage to Constantinople, so Souchon arranged to rendezvous with another collier in the Aegean Sea
. The French fleet remained in the western Mediterranean, since the French naval commander in the Mediterranean, Admiral Lapeyrère
, was convinced the Germans would either attempt to escape to the Atlantic or join the Austrians in Pola.
Souchon's two ships departed Messina early on 6 August through the southern entrance to the strait
and headed for the eastern Mediterranean. The two British battlecruisers were 100 miles away, while a third, , was coaling in Bizerta, Tunisia. The only British naval force in Souchon's way was the 1st Cruiser Squadron, which consisted of the four armored cruisers , , and under the command of Rear Admiral Ernest Troubridge
. The Germans headed initially towards the Adriatic in a feint
; the move misled Troubridge, who sailed to intercept them in the mouth of the Adriatic. After realizing his mistake, Troubridge reversed course and ordered the light cruiser and two destroyers to launch a torpedo attack on the Germans. Breslaus lookouts spotted the ships, and in the darkness, she and Goeben evaded their pursuers undetected. Troubridge broke off the chase early on 7 August, convinced that any attack by his four older armored cruisers against Goeben—armed with her big 28 cm guns—would be suicidal. Souchon's journey to Constantinople was now clear.
Goeben refilled her coal bunkers off the island of Donoussa near Naxos. During the afternoon of 10 August, the two ships entered the Dardanelles
. They were met by an Ottoman picket
boat, which guided them through to the Sea of Marmara
. To circumvent neutrality requirements, Germany transferred the two ships to the Ottoman Navy
on 16 August. On 23 September, Souchon accepted an offer to command the Turkish fleet. Goeben was renamed Yavuz Sultan Selim and Breslau was renamed Midilli; their German crews donned Ottoman uniforms and fezzes.
On 29 October Yavuz bombarded Sevastopol
in her first operation against Imperial Russia, though the Ottoman Empire was not yet at war with the Entente. A 25.4 cm (10 in) shell struck the ship in the aft
er funnel, but it failed to detonate and did negligible damage. Two other hits inflicted minor damage. The ship and her escorts passed through an inactive Russian minefield during the bombardment. As she returned to Turkish waters, Yavuz came across the Russian minelayer Prut which scuttled itself with 700 mines on board. During the engagement the escorting Russian destroyer Leitenant Pushchin was damaged by two of Yavuzs secondary battery 15 cm (5.9 in) shells. In response to the bombardment, Russia declared war on 1 November, forcing the Ottomans into the war. France and Great Britain bombarded the Turkish fortresses guarding the Dardanelles on 3 November and formally declared war two days later. From this engagement, the Russians drew the conclusion that the entire Black Sea Fleet
would have to remain consolidated so it could not be defeated in detail
(one ship at a time) by Yavuz.
Yavuz, escorted by Midilli, intercepted the Russian Black Sea Fleet
17 nautical miles (31.5 km) off the Crimea
n coastline on 18 November as it returned from a bombardment of Trebizond. Despite the noon hour the conditions were foggy and none of the capital ships were spotted initially. The Black Sea Fleet had experimented with concentrating fire from several ships under the control of one "master" ship before the war, and held her fire until , the master ship, could see Yavuz. When the gunnery commands were finally received they showed a range over 4000 yards (3,657.6 m) in excess of Evstafis own estimate of 7700 yards (7,040.9 m), so Evstafi opened fire using her own data before Yavuz turned to fire its broadside
. She scored a hit with her first salvo as a 12-inch shell partially penetrated the armor casemate protecting one of Yavuzs 15 centimetres (5.9 in) secondary guns. It detonated some of the ready-use ammunition, starting a fire that filled the casemate and killed the entire gun crew. A total of thirteen men were killed and three were wounded.
Yavuz returned fire and hit Evstafi in the middle funnel; the shell detonated after it passed through the funnel and destroyed the antennae for the fire-control radio, so that Evstafi could not correct Ioann Zlatousts inaccurate range data. The other Russian ships either used Ioann Zlatousts incorrect data or never saw Yavuz and failed to register any hits. Yavuz hit Evstafi four more times, although one shell failed to detonate, before Rear Admiral
Wilhelm Souchon
decided to break contact after 14 minutes of combat. The four hits out of nineteen 28 cm (11 in) shells fired killed 34 men and wounded 24.
The following month, on 5–6 December, Yavuz and Midilli provided protection for troop transports, and on 10 December, Yavuz bombarded Batum. On 23 December, Yavuz and escorted three transports to Trebizond. While returning from another transport escort operation on 26 December, Yavuz struck a mine that exploded beneath the conning tower, on the starboard side, about one nautical mile outside the Bosphorus. The explosion tore a 50 square metres (538.2 sq ft) hole in the ship's hull, but the torpedo bulkhead held. Two minutes later, Yavuz struck a second mine on the port side, just forward of the main battery wing barbette
; this tore open a 64 square metres (688.9 sq ft) hole. The bulkhead bowed in 30 cm (11.8 in) but retained watertight protection of the ship's interior. However, some 600 tons of water flooded the ship. There was no dock in the Ottoman Empire large enough to service Yavuz, so temporary repairs were effected inside steel cofferdam
s, which were pumped out to create a dry work area around the damaged hull. The holes were patched with concrete, which held for several years before more permanent work was necessary.
. Yavuz then underwent repair work to the mine damage until May.
On 1 April, with repairs incomplete, Yavuz left the Bosphorus in company with Breslau to cover the withdrawal of Hamidiye and the protected cruiser , which had been sent to bombard Odessa. Strong currents, however, forced the cruisers 15 miles (24.1 km) east to the approaches of the Dnieper-Bug Liman
(bay) that led to Nikolayev
. As they sailed west after a course correction, Mecidiye struck a mine and sank, so this attack had to be aborted. After Yavuz and Midilli appeared off Sevastopol and sank two cargo steamers, the Russian fleet chased them all day, and detached several destroyers after dusk to attempt a torpedo attack. Only one destroyer, the Gnevny, was able to close the distance and launch an attack, which missed. Yavuz and Midilli returned to the Bosphorus unharmed.
On 25 April, the same day the Allies landed at Gallipoli, Russian naval forces arrived off the Bosphorus and bombarded the forts guarding the strait. Two days later Yavuz headed south to the Dardanelles
to bombard Allied troops at Gallipoli, accompanied by the pre-dreadnought battleship Turgut Reis
. They were spotted at dawn from a kite balloon as they were getting into position. When the first 15 inches (38.1 cm) round from the dreadnought landed close by, Yavuz moved out of firing position, close to the cliffs, where Queen Elizabeth could not engage her. On 30 April Yavuz tried again, but was spotted from the pre-dreadnought which had moved into the Dardanelles to bombard the Turkish headquarters at Çanakkale
. The British ship only managed to fire five rounds before Yavuz moved out of her line of sight.
On 1 May, Yavuz sailed to the Bay of Beikos in the Bosphorus after the Russian fleet bombarded the fortifications at the mouth of the Bosphorus. Around 7 May, Yavuz sortied from the Bosphorus in search of Russian ships as far as Sevastopol, but found none. Running short on main gun ammunition, she did not bombard Sevastopol. While returning on the morning of 10 May, Yavuz lookouts spotted two Russian pre-dreadnoughts, and , and she opened fire. Within the first 10 minutes she had been hit twice, although she was not seriously damaged. Admiral Souchon disengaged and headed for the Bosphorus, pursued by Russian light forces. Later that month two of the ship's 15 cm guns were taken ashore for use there, and the four 8.8 cm guns in the aft superstructure were removed at the same time. Four 8.8 cm anti-aircraft
were installed on the aft superstructure by the end of 1915.
On 18 July, Midilli struck a mine; the ship took on some 600 long tons (609.6 t) of water and was no longer able to escort coal convoys from Zonguldak
to the Bosphorus. Yavuz was assigned to the task, and on 10 August she escorted a convoy of five coal transports, along with Hamidiye and three torpedo boat
s. During transit, the convoy was attacked by the Russian submarine Tyulen
, which sank one of the colliers. The following day, Tyulen and another submarine tried to attack Yavuz as well, though they were unable to reach a firing position.
Two Russian destroyers, Bystry and Pronzitelni, attacked a Turkish convoy escorted by Hamidiye and two torpedo boats on 5 September. Hamidiyes 15 cm (5.9 in) guns broke down during combat, and the Turks summoned Yavuz, but she arrived too late: the Turkish colliers had already been beached to avoid capture by the Russian destroyers.
On 21 September, Yavuz was again sent out of the Bosphorus to drive off three Russian destroyers which had been attacking Turkish coal ships. Escort missions continued until 14 November, when the submarine Morzh nearly hit Yavuz with two torpedoes just outside the Bosphorus. Admiral Souchon decided the risk to the battlecruiser was too great, and suspended the convoy system. In its stead, only those ships fast enough to make the journey from Zonguldak to Constantinople in a single night were permitted; outside the Bosphorus they would be met by torpedo boats to defend them against the lurking submarines. By the end of the summer, the completion of two new Russian dreadnought battleships, Imperatritsa Mariya and Imperatritsa Ekaterina Velikaya, further curtailed Yavuz activities.
Russian forces were making significant gains into Ottoman territory during the Caucasus Campaign
. In an attempt to prevent further advances by the Russian army, Yavuz rushed 429 officers and men, a mountain artillery battery, machine gun and aviation units, 1,000 rifles, and 300 cases of munitions to Trebizond on 4 February. On 4 March, the Russian navy landed a detachment of some 2,100 men, along with mountain guns and horses, on either side of the port of Atina
. The Turks were caught by surprise and forced to evacuate. Another landing took place at Kavata Bay, some 5 miles east of Trebizond, in June. In late June, the Turks counterattacked and penetrated around 20 miles into the Russian lines. Yavuz and Midilli conducted a series of coastal operations to support the Turkish attacks. On 4 July, Yavuz shelled the port of Tuapse
, where she sank a steamer and a motor schooner
. The Turkish ships sailed northward to circle back behind the Russians before the two Russian dreadnoughts left Sevastopol
to try to attack them. They then returned to the Bosphorus, where Yavuz was docked for repairs to her propeller shafts until September.
The coal shortage continued to worsen until Admiral Souchon was forced to suspend operations by Yavuz and Midilli through 1917. After an armistice between Russia and the Ottoman Empire was signed in December 1917 following the Bolshevik revolution, formalized in the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
in March 1918, coal started to arrive again from eastern Turkey.
and which were at anchor and unsupported by the pre-dreadnoughts that should have been guarding them. Rebeur-Paschwitz then decided to proceed to the port of Mudros; there the British pre-dreadnought battleship was raising steam to attack the Turkish ships. While en route, Midilli struck several mines and sank; Yavuz hit three mines as well. Retreating to the Dardanelles and followed by the British destroyers and , she was intentionally beached near Nagara Point just outside the Dardanelles. The British attacked Yavuz with bombers from No. 2 Wing of the Royal Naval Air Service
while she was grounded and hit her twice, but the bombs from the light aircraft were not heavy enough to do any serious damage. The monitor attempted to shell Yavuz on the evening of 24 January, but only managed to fire 10 rounds before withdrawing to escape the Turkish artillery fire. The submarine was sent to destroy the damaged ship, but was too late; the old ex-German pre-dreadnought Turgut Reis
had towed Yavuz off and returned her to the safety of Constantinople. Yavuz was crippled by the extensive damage; cofferdams were again built around the hull, and repairs lasted from 7 August to 19 October.
Yavuz escorted the members of the Ottoman Armistice Commission to Odessa
on 30 March 1918, after the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
was signed. After returning to Constantinople she sailed in May to Sevastopol where she had her hull cleaned and some leaks repaired. Yavuz and several destroyers sailed for Novorossiysk
on 28 June to intern the remaining Soviet warships, but they had already been scuttled when the Turkish ships arrived. The destroyers remained, but Yavuz returned to Sevastopol. On 14 July the ship was laid up for the rest of the war. While in Sevastopol, dockyard workers scraped fouling from the ship's bottom. Yavuz subsequently returned to Constantinople, where from 7 August to 19 October a concrete cofferdam was installed to repair one of the three areas damaged by mines.
The German navy formally transferred ownership of the vessel to the Turkish government on 2 November. According to the terms of the Treaty of Sèvres
between the Ottoman Empire and the Western Allies, Yavuz was to have been handed over to the Royal Navy
as war reparations. After the Turkish War of Independence
, led by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
, the Treaty of Sèvres was discarded, and the Treaty of Lausanne
was signed in its place in 1923. Under this treaty, the new Turkish republic regained possession of much its fleet, including Yavuz.
until 1926, in a neglected state: only two of her boilers worked, she could not steer or steam, and she still had two unrepaired scars from the mine damage in 1918. Enough money was raised to allow the purchase of a new 26000 tonnes (25,589.3 LT) floating dock
from Germany, as Yavuz could not be towed anywhere without risk of her sinking in rough seas. The French company Atelier et Chantiers de St. Nazaire-Penhöet was contracted in December 1926 to oversee the subsequent refit, which was carried out by the Gölcük Naval Shipyard
. Work proceeded over three years (1927–1930); it was delayed when several compartments of the dock collapsed while being pumped out. Yavuz was slightly damaged before she could be refloated and the dock had to be repaired before the repair work could begin. The Minister of Marine, Ihsan Bey (İhsan Eryavuz), was convicted of embezzlement in the resulting investigation. Other delays were caused by fraud charges which resulted in the abolition of the Ministry of Marine. The Turkish Military's Chief of Staff, Marshal Fevzi
, opposed naval construction and slowed down all naval building programs following the fraud charges. Intensive work on the battlecruiser only began after the Greek Navy conducted a large-scale naval exercise off Turkey in September 1928 and the Turkish Government perceived a need to counter Greece's naval superiority. The Turks also ordered four destroyers and two submarines from Italian shipyards. The Greek Government proposed a 10-year "holiday" from naval building modeled on the Washington Treaty
when it learned that Yavuz was to be brought back into service, though it reserved the right to build two new cruisers. The Turkish Government rejected this proposal, and claimed that the ship was intended to counter the growing strength of the Soviet Navy
in the Black Sea.
Over the course of the refit, the mine damage was repaired, her displacement was increased to 23100 t (22,735.1 LT), and the hull was slightly reworked. She was reduced in length by a half meter but her beam increased by 10 cm (4 in). Yavuz was equipped with new boilers and a French fire control system for her main battery guns. Two of the 15 cm guns were removed from their casemate positions. Her armor protection was not upgraded to take the lessons of the Battle of Jutland
into account, and she had only 2 inches (5.1 cm) of armor above her magazines. Yavuz was recommissioned in 1930, resuming her role as flagship
of the Turkish Navy, and performed better than expected in her speed trials; her subsequent gunnery and fire control trials were also successful. The four destroyers, which were needed to protect the battlecruiser, entered service between 1931 and 1932; their performance never met design specifications. In response to Yavuz' s return to service, the Soviet Union transferred the battleship Parizhskaya Kommuna and light cruiser Profintern
from the Baltic in late 1929 to ensure that the Black Sea Fleet retained parity with the Turkish Navy. The Greek Government also responded by ordering two destroyers.
In 1933, she took Prime Minister İsmet İnönü
from Varna
to Istanbul
and carried the Shah of Iran from Trebizond to Samsun
the following year. Yavuz Sultan Selim had her name officially shortened to Yavuz Selim in 1930 and then to Yavuz in 1936. Another short refit was conducted in 1938, and in November that year she carried the remains of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
from Istanbul to İzmit. She and the other ships of the navy were considered outdated by the British Naval Attache by 1937, partly due to their substandard anti-aircraft armament, but in 1938 the Turkish government began planning to expand the force. Under these plans the surface fleet was to comprise two 10,000 ton cruisers and twelve destroyers. Yavuz would be retained until the second cruiser was commissioned in 1945, and the navy expected to build a 23,000 ton ship between 1950 and 1960. The naval building program did not come about, as the foreign shipyards which were to build the ships concentrated on the needs of their own nations leading up to World War II
.
Yavuz remained in service throughout World War II. In November 1939 she and Parizhskaya Kommuna were the only capital ships in the Black Sea region, and Life
magazine reported that Yavuz was superior to the Soviet ship because the latter was in poor condition. In 1941, her anti-aircraft battery was strengthened to four 88 mm (3.5 in) guns, ten 40 mm (1.6 in) guns, and four 20 mm (0.78740157480315 in) guns. These were later increased to twenty-two 40 mm guns and twenty-four 20 mm guns. On 5 April 1946, the American battleship , light cruiser , and destroyer arrived in Istanbul to return the remains of Turkish ambassador Münir Ertegün
. Yavuz greeted the ships in the Bosphorus, where she and Missouri exchanged 19-gun salutes. After 1948, the ship was stationed in either İzmit or Gölcük. She was decommissioned from active service on 20 December 1950 and stricken from the Navy register on 14 November 1954. When Turkey joined NATO in 1952, the ship was assigned the hull number
B70. The Turkish government offered to sell the ship to the West German government in 1963, but the offer was declined. Turkey sold the ship to M.K.E. Seyman in 1971 for scrapping
. She was towed to the breakers on 7 June 1973, and the work was completed in February 1976. By the time of her disposal she was the last dreadnought in existence outside of the United States.
Seiner Majestät Schiff
Seiner Majestät Schiff was the ship prefix used by the Prussian Maritime Enterprise , the Prussian Navy, the Imperial German Navy and the Austro-Hungarian Navy...
Goeben ("His Majesty's Ship Goeben") was the second of two Moltke-class
Moltke class battlecruiser
The Moltke class was a class of two "all-big-gun" battlecruisersThe German navy classified the ships as Großen Kreuzer . These ships differed from older Großen Kreuzer, such as the Roon class, in that they carried a uniform main battery, instead of four large guns and a mixed array of smaller weapons...
battlecruiser
Battlecruiser
Battlecruisers were large capital ships built in the first half of the 20th century. They were developed in the first decade of the century as the successor to the armoured cruiser, but their evolution was more closely linked to that of the dreadnought battleship...
s of the Imperial German Navy, launched in 1911 and named after the German Franco-Prussian War
Franco-Prussian War
The Franco-Prussian War or Franco-German War, often referred to in France as the 1870 War was a conflict between the Second French Empire and the Kingdom of Prussia. Prussia was aided by the North German Confederation, of which it was a member, and the South German states of Baden, Württemberg and...
veteran General August Karl von Goeben
August Karl von Goeben
August Karl von Göben was a Prussian infantry general. He was awarded the Iron Cross for his service in the Franco-Prussian War.-Early career:...
. Along with her sister ship
Sister ship
A sister ship is a ship of the same class as, or of virtually identical design to, another ship. Such vessels share a near-identical hull and superstructure layout, similar displacement, and roughly comparable features and equipment...
, Goeben was similar to the previous German battlecruiser design, , but larger and with increased armor protection and two more main guns in an additional turret
Gun turret
A gun turret is a weapon mount that protects the crew or mechanism of a projectile-firing weapon and at the same time lets the weapon be aimed and fired in many directions.The turret is also a rotating weapon platform...
. Compared to their British rivals in the Indefatigable class
Indefatigable class battlecruiser
The Indefatigable class were the second class built of British battlecruisersThe Indefatigable-class ships were formally known as armoured cruisers until 1911 when they were redesignated as battlecruisers by an Admiralty order of 24 November 1911. Unofficially a number of designations were used...
, Goeben and Moltke were significantly larger and better armored.The Indefatigable-class ships displaced 22100 MT (21,750.9 LT) at full load, compared to 25400 MT (24,998.8 LT) for the Moltke-class. The Indefatigable-class ships had an armored belt between 4–6 in (101.6–152.4 mm), while Moltkes belt was 11–3 in (279.4–76.2 mm) thick. See: Gardiner and Gray, pp. 26, 152
Several months after her commissioning in 1912, Goeben, with the light cruiser
Light cruiser
A light cruiser is a type of small- or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck...
, formed the German Mediterranean Division
Mediterranean Division
The Mediterranean Division was a division consisting of one battlecruiser , one light cruiser , and a yacht of the Kaiserliche Marine. It saw service in the First Balkan War, Second Balkan War, and First World War...
and patrolled there during the Balkan Wars
Balkan Wars
The Balkan Wars were two conflicts that took place in the Balkans in south-eastern Europe in 1912 and 1913.By the early 20th century, Montenegro, Bulgaria, Greece and Serbia, the countries of the Balkan League, had achieved their independence from the Ottoman Empire, but large parts of their ethnic...
. After the outbreak of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
on 28 July 1914, Goeben and Breslau evaded British naval forces in the Mediterranean and reached Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
. The two ships were transferred to the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
on 16 August 1914, and Goeben became the flagship of the Ottoman Navy
Ottoman Navy
The Ottoman Navy was established in the early 14th century. During its long existence it was involved in many conflicts; refer to list of Ottoman sieges and landings and list of Admirals in the Ottoman Empire for a brief chronology.- Pre-Ottoman:...
as Yavuz Sultan Selim, usually shortened to Yavuz. In 1936 she was officially renamed TCG Yavuz ("Ship of the Turkish Republic Yavuz"); she carried the remains of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk was an Ottoman and Turkish army officer, revolutionary statesman, writer, and the first President of Turkey. He is credited with being the founder of the Republic of Turkey....
from Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
to İzmit
Izmit
İzmit is a city in Turkey, administrative center of Kocaeli Province as well as the Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality. It is located at the Gulf of İzmit in the Sea of Marmara, about east of Istanbul, on the northwestern part of Anatolia. The city center has a population of 294.875...
in 1938. Yavuz remained the flagship of the Turkish Navy
Turkish Navy
The Turkish Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the Turkish Armed Forces.- Ottoman fleet after Mudros :Following the demise of the Ottoman Empire in the aftermath of World War I, on November 3, 1918, the fleet commander of the Ottoman Navy, Liva Amiral Arif Pasha, ordered all flags to be...
until she was decommissioned in 1950.
She was scrapped in 1973, after the German government declined an invitation to buy her back from Turkey. She was the last surviving ship built by the Imperial German Navy, and the longest-serving battlecruiser
Battlecruiser
Battlecruisers were large capital ships built in the first half of the 20th century. They were developed in the first decade of the century as the successor to the armoured cruiser, but their evolution was more closely linked to that of the dreadnought battleship...
or dreadnought
Dreadnought
The dreadnought was the predominant type of 20th-century battleship. The first of the kind, the Royal Navy's had such an impact when launched in 1906 that similar battleships built after her were referred to as "dreadnoughts", and earlier battleships became known as pre-dreadnoughts...
-type ship in any navy.
Construction
The Imperial German Navy (Kaiserliche Marine) ordered Goeben, the third German battlecruiser, on 8 April 1909 under the provisional name "H" from the Blohm & VossBlohm + Voss
Blohm + Voss , is a German shipbuilding and engineering works. It is a subsidiary of ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems; there were plans to sell 80% of Blohm + Voss to Abu Dhabi Mar Group, but talks collapsed in July 2011.-History:It was founded on April 5, 1877, by Hermann Blohm and Ernst Voss as a...
shipyard in Hamburg, under construction number 201. Her keel was laid on 19 August; the hull was completed and the ship was launched on 28 March 1911. Fitting-out
Fitting-out
Fitting-out, or "outfitting”, is the process in modern shipbuilding that follows the float-out of a vessel and precedes sea trials. It is the period when all the remaining construction of the ship is completed and readied for delivery to her owners...
work followed, and she was commissioned into the German Navy on 2 July 1912.
Goeben was 186.6 metre long, 29.4 m (96.5 ft) wide, and had a draft of 9.19 metre fully loaded. The ship displaced
Displacement (ship)
A ship's displacement is its weight at any given time, generally expressed in metric tons or long tons. The term is often used to mean the ship's weight when it is loaded to its maximum capacity. A number of synonymous terms exist for this maximum weight, such as loaded displacement, full load...
22616 t (22,258.7 LT) normally, and 25300 t (24,900.3 LT) fully loaded. Goeben was powered by four-shaft Parsons
Parsons Marine Steam Turbine Company
Parsons Marine Steam Turbine Company was a British engineering company based in Wallsend, North England, on the River Tyne.-History:The company was founded by Charles Algernon Parsons in 1897 with £500,000 of capital, and specialised in building the steam turbine engines that he had invented for...
steam turbine
Steam turbine
A steam turbine is a mechanical device that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam, and converts it into rotary motion. Its modern manifestation was invented by Sir Charles Parsons in 1884....
s in two sets and 24 coal-fired Schulz-Thornycroft water-tube boiler
Water-tube boiler
A water tube boiler is a type of boiler in which water circulates in tubes heated externally by the fire. Fuel is burned inside the furnace, creating hot gas which heats water in the steam-generating tubes...
s, which provided a rated 52000 shp and a top speed of 25.5 knots (13.9 m/s). At 14 knots (7.6 m/s), the ship had a range of 4120 nautical miles (7,630.2 km).
The ship was armed with a main battery of ten 28 cm (11 in) guns in five twin gun turrets. Her secondary armament consisted of twelve 15 cm (5.9 in) guns in casemate
Casemate
A casemate, sometimes rendered casement, is a fortified gun emplacement or armored structure from which guns are fired. originally a vaulted chamber in a fortress.-Origin of the term:...
s in the central portion of the ship and twelve 8.8 cm (3.5 in) guns in the bow, in the stern, and around the forward conning tower
Conning tower
A conning tower is a raised platform on a ship or submarine, often armored, from which an officer can con the vessel; i.e., give directions to the helmsman. It is usually located as high on the ship as practical, to give the conning team good visibility....
. She was also equipped with four 50 cm (20 in) submerged torpedo tube
Torpedo tube
A torpedo tube is a device for launching torpedoes. There are two main types of torpedo tube: underwater tubes fitted to submarines and some surface ships, and deck-mounted units installed aboard surface vessels...
s.
Balkan Wars
When the First Balkan WarFirst Balkan War
The First Balkan War, which lasted from October 1912 to May 1913, pitted the Balkan League against the Ottoman Empire. The combined armies of the Balkan states overcame the numerically inferior and strategically disadvantaged Ottoman armies and achieved rapid success...
broke out in October 1912, the German General Staff
German General Staff
The German General Staff was an institution whose rise and development gave the German armed forces a decided advantage over its adversaries. The Staff amounted to its best "weapon" for nearly a century and a half....
determined that a naval Mediterranean Division (Mittelmeer-Division) was needed to project German power in the Mediterranean, and thus dispatched Goeben and the light cruiser to Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
. The two ships left Kiel
Kiel
Kiel is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 238,049 .Kiel is approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the north of Germany, the southeast of the Jutland peninsula, and the southwestern shore of the...
on 4 November and arrived on 15 November 1912. Beginning in April 1913, Goeben visited many Mediterranean ports including Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
, Pola
Pula
Pula is the largest city in Istria County, Croatia, situated at the southern tip of the Istria peninsula, with a population of 62,080 .Like the rest of the region, it is known for its mild climate, smooth sea, and unspoiled nature. The city has a long tradition of winemaking, fishing,...
, and Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
, before sailing into Albanian waters
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
. Following this trip, Goeben returned to Pola and remained there from 21 August to 16 October for maintenance.
On 29 June 1913, the Second Balkan War
Second Balkan War
The Second Balkan War was a conflict which broke out when Bulgaria, dissatisfied with its share of the spoils of the First Balkan War, attacked its former allies, Serbia and Greece, on 29 June 1913. Bulgaria had a prewar agreement about the division of region of Macedonia...
broke out and the Mediterranean Division was retained in the area. On 23 October 1913, Konteradmiral Souchon
Wilhelm Souchon
Wilhelm Anton Souchon was a German and Ottoman admiral in World War I who commanded the Kaiserliche Marine's Mediterranean squadron in the early days of the war...
assumed command of the squadron. Goeben and Breslau continued their activities in the Mediterranean, and visited some 80 ports before the outbreak of World War I. The navy made plans to replace Goeben with her sister , but the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria
Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria
On 28 June 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir presumptive to the Austro-Hungarian throne, and his wife, Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg, were shot dead in Sarajevo, by Gavrilo Princip, one of a group of six Bosnian Serb assassins coordinated by Danilo Ilić...
in Sarajevo, Bosnia, on 28 June 1914 and the subsequent rise in tensions between the Great Powers made this impossible.
After the assassination, Admiral Souchon assessed that war was imminent between the Central Powers
Central Powers
The Central Powers were one of the two warring factions in World War I , composed of the German Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Bulgaria...
and the Triple Entente
Triple Entente
The Triple Entente was the name given to the alliance among Britain, France and Russia after the signing of the Anglo-Russian Entente in 1907....
, and ordered his ships to make for Pola for repairs. Engineers came from Germany to work on the ship. Goeben had 4,460 boiler tubes replaced, among other repairs. Upon completion, the ships departed for Messina.
Pursuit of Goeben and Breslau
Kaiser Wilhelm II had ordered that in the event of war, Goeben and Breslau should either conduct raids in the western Mediterranean to prevent the return of French troops from North Africa to Europe, or break out into the Atlantic and attempt to return to German waters, on the squadron commander's discretion. On 3 August 1914, the two ships were en route to Algeria when Souchon received word of the declaration of war against France. Goeben bombarded PhilippevilleSkikda
Skikda is a city in north eastern Algeria and a port on the Gulf of Stora, the ancient Sinus Numidicus. It was known as Philippeville until the end of the Algerian War of Independence in 1962...
(now Skikda, Algeria) for about 10 minutes early on 3 August while Breslau shelled Bône (now Annaba
Annaba
Annaba is a city in the northeastern corner of Algeria near the river Seybouse. It is located in Annaba Province. With a population of 257,359 , it is the fourth largest city in Algeria. It is a leading industrial centre in eastern Algeria....
, on the site of the ancient city of Hippo) in accordance with the Kaiser's order. Admirals Alfred von Tirpitz
Alfred von Tirpitz
Alfred von Tirpitz was a German Admiral, Secretary of State of the German Imperial Naval Office, the powerful administrative branch of the German Imperial Navy from 1897 until 1916. Prussia never had a major navy, nor did the other German states before the German Empire was formed in 1871...
and Hugo von Pohl
Hugo von Pohl
Hugo von Pohl was a German admiral who during the First World War commanded the German High Seas Fleet from 1915 until shortly before his death from illness in 1916....
then transmitted secret orders to Souchon instructing him to sail to Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
, in direct contravention of the Kaiser's instructions and without his knowledge.
Since Goeben could not reach Constantinople without coaling, Souchon headed for Messina. The Germans encountered the British battlecruisers and , but as Germany was not yet at war with Britain, no violence ensued. The British turned to follow Goeben and Breslau, but they were able to outrun the British ships, and arrived in Messina by 5 August. Refueling in Messina was complicated by the declaration of Italian neutrality on 2 August. Under international law, combatant ships were permitted only 24 hours in a neutral port. Sympathetic Italian naval authorities in the port allowed Goeben and Breslau to remain in port for around 36 hours while the ships coaled from a German collier
Collier (ship type)
Collier is a historical term used to describe a bulk cargo ship designed to carry coal, especially for naval use by coal-fired warships. In the late 18th century a number of wooden-hulled sailing colliers gained fame after being adapted for use in voyages of exploration in the South Pacific, for...
. Despite the additional time, Goebens fuel stocks were not sufficient to permit the voyage to Constantinople, so Souchon arranged to rendezvous with another collier in the Aegean Sea
Aegean Sea
The Aegean Sea[p] is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea located between the southern Balkan and Anatolian peninsulas, i.e., between the mainlands of Greece and Turkey. In the north, it is connected to the Marmara Sea and Black Sea by the Dardanelles and Bosporus...
. The French fleet remained in the western Mediterranean, since the French naval commander in the Mediterranean, Admiral Lapeyrère
Augustin Boué de Lapeyrère
Augustin Manuel Hubert Gaston Boué de Lapeyrère was a French admiral during World War I. He was a strong proponent of naval reform, and is comparable to Admiral Jackie Fisher of the British Royal Navy.-Biography:...
, was convinced the Germans would either attempt to escape to the Atlantic or join the Austrians in Pola.
Souchon's two ships departed Messina early on 6 August through the southern entrance to the strait
Strait of Messina
The Strait of Messina is the narrow passage between the eastern tip of Sicily and the southern tip of Calabria in the south of Italy. It connects the Tyrrhenian Sea with the Ionian Sea, within the central Mediterranean...
and headed for the eastern Mediterranean. The two British battlecruisers were 100 miles away, while a third, , was coaling in Bizerta, Tunisia. The only British naval force in Souchon's way was the 1st Cruiser Squadron, which consisted of the four armored cruisers , , and under the command of Rear Admiral Ernest Troubridge
Ernest Troubridge
Admiral Sir Ernest Charles Thomas Troubridge KCMG, MVO was an officer of the Royal Navy who served during the First World War, later rising to the rank of admiral....
. The Germans headed initially towards the Adriatic in a feint
Feint
Feint is a French term that entered English from the discipline of fencing. Feints are maneuvers designed to distract or mislead, done by giving the impression that a certain maneuver will take place, while in fact another, or even none, will...
; the move misled Troubridge, who sailed to intercept them in the mouth of the Adriatic. After realizing his mistake, Troubridge reversed course and ordered the light cruiser and two destroyers to launch a torpedo attack on the Germans. Breslaus lookouts spotted the ships, and in the darkness, she and Goeben evaded their pursuers undetected. Troubridge broke off the chase early on 7 August, convinced that any attack by his four older armored cruisers against Goeben—armed with her big 28 cm guns—would be suicidal. Souchon's journey to Constantinople was now clear.
Goeben refilled her coal bunkers off the island of Donoussa near Naxos. During the afternoon of 10 August, the two ships entered the Dardanelles
Dardanelles
The Dardanelles , formerly known as the Hellespont, is a narrow strait in northwestern Turkey connecting the Aegean Sea to the Sea of Marmara. It is one of the Turkish Straits, along with its counterpart the Bosphorus. It is located at approximately...
. They were met by an Ottoman picket
Picket (military)
In military terminology, a picket refers to soldiers or troops placed on a line forward of a position to warn against an enemy advance. It can also refer to any unit performing a similar function...
boat, which guided them through to the Sea of Marmara
Sea of Marmara
The Sea of Marmara , also known as the Sea of Marmora or the Marmara Sea, and in the context of classical antiquity as the Propontis , is the inland sea that connects the Black Sea to the Aegean Sea, thus separating Turkey's Asian and European parts. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Black...
. To circumvent neutrality requirements, Germany transferred the two ships to the Ottoman Navy
Ottoman Navy
The Ottoman Navy was established in the early 14th century. During its long existence it was involved in many conflicts; refer to list of Ottoman sieges and landings and list of Admirals in the Ottoman Empire for a brief chronology.- Pre-Ottoman:...
on 16 August. On 23 September, Souchon accepted an offer to command the Turkish fleet. Goeben was renamed Yavuz Sultan Selim and Breslau was renamed Midilli; their German crews donned Ottoman uniforms and fezzes.
1914
Sevastopol
Sevastopol is a city on rights of administrative division of Ukraine, located on the Black Sea coast of the Crimea peninsula. It has a population of 342,451 . Sevastopol is the second largest port in Ukraine, after the Port of Odessa....
in her first operation against Imperial Russia, though the Ottoman Empire was not yet at war with the Entente. A 25.4 cm (10 in) shell struck the ship in the aft
Aft
Aft, in naval terminology, is an adjective or adverb meaning, towards the stern of the ship, when the frame of reference is within the ship. Example: "Able Seaman Smith; lay aft!". Or; "What's happening aft?"...
er funnel, but it failed to detonate and did negligible damage. Two other hits inflicted minor damage. The ship and her escorts passed through an inactive Russian minefield during the bombardment. As she returned to Turkish waters, Yavuz came across the Russian minelayer Prut which scuttled itself with 700 mines on board. During the engagement the escorting Russian destroyer Leitenant Pushchin was damaged by two of Yavuzs secondary battery 15 cm (5.9 in) shells. In response to the bombardment, Russia declared war on 1 November, forcing the Ottomans into the war. France and Great Britain bombarded the Turkish fortresses guarding the Dardanelles on 3 November and formally declared war two days later. From this engagement, the Russians drew the conclusion that the entire Black Sea Fleet
Black Sea Fleet
The Black Sea Fleet is a large operational-strategic sub-unit of the Russian Navy, operating in the Black Sea and the Mediterranean Sea since the late 18th century. It is based in various harbors of the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov....
would have to remain consolidated so it could not be defeated in detail
Defeat in detail
Defeat in detail is a military phrase referring to the tactic of bringing a large portion of one's own force to bear on small enemy units in sequence, rather than engaging the bulk of the enemy force all at once...
(one ship at a time) by Yavuz.
Yavuz, escorted by Midilli, intercepted the Russian Black Sea Fleet
Battle of Cape Sarych
The Battle of Cape Sarych was a naval engagement fought off the coast of Cape Sarych during the First World War. In November 1914, two modern Ottoman warships, a light cruiser and a battlecruiser, under the German Admiral Wilhelm Souchon engaged a Russian fleet including 5 obsolescent...
17 nautical miles (31.5 km) off the Crimea
Crimea
Crimea , or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea , is a sub-national unit, an autonomous republic, of Ukraine. It is located on the northern coast of the Black Sea, occupying a peninsula of the same name...
n coastline on 18 November as it returned from a bombardment of Trebizond. Despite the noon hour the conditions were foggy and none of the capital ships were spotted initially. The Black Sea Fleet had experimented with concentrating fire from several ships under the control of one "master" ship before the war, and held her fire until , the master ship, could see Yavuz. When the gunnery commands were finally received they showed a range over 4000 yards (3,657.6 m) in excess of Evstafis own estimate of 7700 yards (7,040.9 m), so Evstafi opened fire using her own data before Yavuz turned to fire its broadside
Broadside
A broadside is the side of a ship; the battery of cannon on one side of a warship; or their simultaneous fire in naval warfare.-Age of Sail:...
. She scored a hit with her first salvo as a 12-inch shell partially penetrated the armor casemate protecting one of Yavuzs 15 centimetres (5.9 in) secondary guns. It detonated some of the ready-use ammunition, starting a fire that filled the casemate and killed the entire gun crew. A total of thirteen men were killed and three were wounded.
Yavuz returned fire and hit Evstafi in the middle funnel; the shell detonated after it passed through the funnel and destroyed the antennae for the fire-control radio, so that Evstafi could not correct Ioann Zlatousts inaccurate range data. The other Russian ships either used Ioann Zlatousts incorrect data or never saw Yavuz and failed to register any hits. Yavuz hit Evstafi four more times, although one shell failed to detonate, before Rear Admiral
Rear Admiral
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "flag officers" or "flag ranks"...
Wilhelm Souchon
Wilhelm Souchon
Wilhelm Anton Souchon was a German and Ottoman admiral in World War I who commanded the Kaiserliche Marine's Mediterranean squadron in the early days of the war...
decided to break contact after 14 minutes of combat. The four hits out of nineteen 28 cm (11 in) shells fired killed 34 men and wounded 24.
The following month, on 5–6 December, Yavuz and Midilli provided protection for troop transports, and on 10 December, Yavuz bombarded Batum. On 23 December, Yavuz and escorted three transports to Trebizond. While returning from another transport escort operation on 26 December, Yavuz struck a mine that exploded beneath the conning tower, on the starboard side, about one nautical mile outside the Bosphorus. The explosion tore a 50 square metres (538.2 sq ft) hole in the ship's hull, but the torpedo bulkhead held. Two minutes later, Yavuz struck a second mine on the port side, just forward of the main battery wing barbette
Barbette
A barbette is a protective circular armour feature around a cannon or heavy artillery gun. The name comes from the French phrase en barbette referring to the practice of firing a field gun over a parapet rather than through an opening . The former gives better angles of fire but less protection...
; this tore open a 64 square metres (688.9 sq ft) hole. The bulkhead bowed in 30 cm (11.8 in) but retained watertight protection of the ship's interior. However, some 600 tons of water flooded the ship. There was no dock in the Ottoman Empire large enough to service Yavuz, so temporary repairs were effected inside steel cofferdam
Cofferdam
A cofferdam is a temporary enclosure built within, or in pairs across, a body of water and constructed to allow the enclosed area to be pumped out, creating a dry work environment for the major work to proceed...
s, which were pumped out to create a dry work area around the damaged hull. The holes were patched with concrete, which held for several years before more permanent work was necessary.
1915
Still damaged, Yavuz sortied from the Bosphorus on 28 January and again on 7 February 1915 to help Midilli escape the Russian fleet; she also covered the return of the protected cruiserProtected cruiser
The protected cruiser is a type of naval cruiser of the late 19th century, so known because its armoured deck offered protection for vital machine spaces from shrapnel caused by exploding shells above...
. Yavuz then underwent repair work to the mine damage until May.
On 1 April, with repairs incomplete, Yavuz left the Bosphorus in company with Breslau to cover the withdrawal of Hamidiye and the protected cruiser , which had been sent to bombard Odessa. Strong currents, however, forced the cruisers 15 miles (24.1 km) east to the approaches of the Dnieper-Bug Liman
Liman (landform)
Liman is a name for a lake, bay, or estuary formed at the mouth of a river where flow is blocked by a bar of sediments. Liman can be maritime or fluvial .The name is used for such features found along the western and northern coast of the Black Sea, as well as along...
(bay) that led to Nikolayev
Mykolaiv
Mykolaiv , also known as Nikolayev , is a city in southern Ukraine, administrative center of the Mykolaiv Oblast. Mykolaiv is the main ship building center of the Black Sea, and, arguably, the whole Eastern Europe.-Name of city:...
. As they sailed west after a course correction, Mecidiye struck a mine and sank, so this attack had to be aborted. After Yavuz and Midilli appeared off Sevastopol and sank two cargo steamers, the Russian fleet chased them all day, and detached several destroyers after dusk to attempt a torpedo attack. Only one destroyer, the Gnevny, was able to close the distance and launch an attack, which missed. Yavuz and Midilli returned to the Bosphorus unharmed.
On 25 April, the same day the Allies landed at Gallipoli, Russian naval forces arrived off the Bosphorus and bombarded the forts guarding the strait. Two days later Yavuz headed south to the Dardanelles
Dardanelles
The Dardanelles , formerly known as the Hellespont, is a narrow strait in northwestern Turkey connecting the Aegean Sea to the Sea of Marmara. It is one of the Turkish Straits, along with its counterpart the Bosphorus. It is located at approximately...
to bombard Allied troops at Gallipoli, accompanied by the pre-dreadnought battleship Turgut Reis
SMS Weißenburg
SMS Weissenburg"SMS" stands for "Seiner Majestät Schiff", or "His Majesty's Ship" in German. was one of the first ocean-going battleshipsAt the time, the German navy referred to the ship as a "ship of the line" , instead of "battleship" . of the German Imperial Navy...
. They were spotted at dawn from a kite balloon as they were getting into position. When the first 15 inches (38.1 cm) round from the dreadnought landed close by, Yavuz moved out of firing position, close to the cliffs, where Queen Elizabeth could not engage her. On 30 April Yavuz tried again, but was spotted from the pre-dreadnought which had moved into the Dardanelles to bombard the Turkish headquarters at Çanakkale
Çanakkale
Çanakkale is a town and seaport in Turkey, in Çanakkale Province, on the southern coast of the Dardanelles at their narrowest point. The population of the town is 106,116 . The mayor is Ülgür Gökhan ....
. The British ship only managed to fire five rounds before Yavuz moved out of her line of sight.
On 1 May, Yavuz sailed to the Bay of Beikos in the Bosphorus after the Russian fleet bombarded the fortifications at the mouth of the Bosphorus. Around 7 May, Yavuz sortied from the Bosphorus in search of Russian ships as far as Sevastopol, but found none. Running short on main gun ammunition, she did not bombard Sevastopol. While returning on the morning of 10 May, Yavuz lookouts spotted two Russian pre-dreadnoughts, and , and she opened fire. Within the first 10 minutes she had been hit twice, although she was not seriously damaged. Admiral Souchon disengaged and headed for the Bosphorus, pursued by Russian light forces. Later that month two of the ship's 15 cm guns were taken ashore for use there, and the four 8.8 cm guns in the aft superstructure were removed at the same time. Four 8.8 cm anti-aircraft
Anti-aircraft warfare
NATO defines air defence as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action." They include ground and air based weapon systems, associated sensor systems, command and control arrangements and passive measures. It may be to protect naval, ground and air forces...
were installed on the aft superstructure by the end of 1915.
On 18 July, Midilli struck a mine; the ship took on some 600 long tons (609.6 t) of water and was no longer able to escort coal convoys from Zonguldak
Zonguldak
Zonguldak is a city and the capital of Zonguldak Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey. Its population, according to the 2009 census, was 108,792. It is an important port on the Black Sea because of the coal mining in Zonguldak Province...
to the Bosphorus. Yavuz was assigned to the task, and on 10 August she escorted a convoy of five coal transports, along with Hamidiye and three torpedo boat
Torpedo boat
A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval vessel designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs rammed enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes, and later designs launched self-propelled Whitehead torpedoes. They were created to counter battleships and other large, slow and...
s. During transit, the convoy was attacked by the Russian submarine Tyulen
Morzh class submarine
The Morzh class submarines were built for the Black Sea Fleet of the Imperial Russian Navy shortly before World War I.-Background:The class was constructed as part of an ambitious programme of naval construction devised by the Naval General Staff in 1909. This envisaged, among other things, the...
, which sank one of the colliers. The following day, Tyulen and another submarine tried to attack Yavuz as well, though they were unable to reach a firing position.
Two Russian destroyers, Bystry and Pronzitelni, attacked a Turkish convoy escorted by Hamidiye and two torpedo boats on 5 September. Hamidiyes 15 cm (5.9 in) guns broke down during combat, and the Turks summoned Yavuz, but she arrived too late: the Turkish colliers had already been beached to avoid capture by the Russian destroyers.
On 21 September, Yavuz was again sent out of the Bosphorus to drive off three Russian destroyers which had been attacking Turkish coal ships. Escort missions continued until 14 November, when the submarine Morzh nearly hit Yavuz with two torpedoes just outside the Bosphorus. Admiral Souchon decided the risk to the battlecruiser was too great, and suspended the convoy system. In its stead, only those ships fast enough to make the journey from Zonguldak to Constantinople in a single night were permitted; outside the Bosphorus they would be met by torpedo boats to defend them against the lurking submarines. By the end of the summer, the completion of two new Russian dreadnought battleships, Imperatritsa Mariya and Imperatritsa Ekaterina Velikaya, further curtailed Yavuz activities.
1916–17
Admiral Souchon sent Yavuz to Zonguldak on 8 January to protect an approaching empty collier from Russian destroyers in the area, but the Russians sank the transport ship before Yavuz arrived. On the return trip to the Bosphorus, Yavuz encountered Imperatritsa Ekaterina. The two ships engaged in a brief artillery duel, beginning at a range of 18,500 meters. Yavuz turned to the southwest, and in the first four minutes of the engagement, fired five salvos from her main guns. Neither ship scored any hits, though shell splinters from near misses struck Yavuz. Though nominally much faster than Imperatritsa Ekaterina, the Turkish battlecruiser's bottom was badly fouled and her propeller shafts were in poor condition. This made it difficult for Yavuz to escape from the powerful Russian battleship, which was reported to have reached 23.5 kn (12.8 m/s).Langensiepen and Güleryüz make no mention of this engagement.Russian forces were making significant gains into Ottoman territory during the Caucasus Campaign
Caucasus Campaign
The Caucasus Campaign comprised armed conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and the Russian Empire, later including Azerbaijan, Armenia, Central Caspian Dictatorship and the UK as part of the Middle Eastern theatre or alternatively named as part of the Caucasus Campaign during World War I...
. In an attempt to prevent further advances by the Russian army, Yavuz rushed 429 officers and men, a mountain artillery battery, machine gun and aviation units, 1,000 rifles, and 300 cases of munitions to Trebizond on 4 February. On 4 March, the Russian navy landed a detachment of some 2,100 men, along with mountain guns and horses, on either side of the port of Atina
Pazar
Pazar is a town and district of Rize Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey, 37 km east of the city of Rize.-Etymology:The town was formerly named Atina and was renamed Pazar 'market' in 1928.-Geography:...
. The Turks were caught by surprise and forced to evacuate. Another landing took place at Kavata Bay, some 5 miles east of Trebizond, in June. In late June, the Turks counterattacked and penetrated around 20 miles into the Russian lines. Yavuz and Midilli conducted a series of coastal operations to support the Turkish attacks. On 4 July, Yavuz shelled the port of Tuapse
Tuapse
Tuapse is a town in Krasnodar Krai, Russia, situated on the northeast shore of the Black Sea, south of Gelendzhik and north of Sochi. It serves as the administrative center of Tuapsinsky District, although administratively it is separate from it...
, where she sank a steamer and a motor schooner
Schooner
A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....
. The Turkish ships sailed northward to circle back behind the Russians before the two Russian dreadnoughts left Sevastopol
Sevastopol
Sevastopol is a city on rights of administrative division of Ukraine, located on the Black Sea coast of the Crimea peninsula. It has a population of 342,451 . Sevastopol is the second largest port in Ukraine, after the Port of Odessa....
to try to attack them. They then returned to the Bosphorus, where Yavuz was docked for repairs to her propeller shafts until September.
The coal shortage continued to worsen until Admiral Souchon was forced to suspend operations by Yavuz and Midilli through 1917. After an armistice between Russia and the Ottoman Empire was signed in December 1917 following the Bolshevik revolution, formalized in the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was a peace treaty signed on March 3, 1918, mediated by South African Andrik Fuller, at Brest-Litovsk between Russia and the Central Powers, headed by Germany, marking Russia's exit from World War I.While the treaty was practically obsolete before the end of the year,...
in March 1918, coal started to arrive again from eastern Turkey.
1918
On 20 January 1918, Yavuz and Midilli left the Dardanelles under the command of Vice Admiral Rebeur-Paschwitz, who had replaced Souchon the previous September. Rebeur-Paschwitz's intention was to draw Allied naval forces away from Palestine in support of Turkish forces there. Outside the straits, in the course of what became known as the Battle of Imbros, Yavuz surprised and sank the monitorsMonitor (warship)
A monitor was a class of relatively small warship which was neither fast nor strongly armoured but carried disproportionately large guns. They were used by some navies from the 1860s until the end of World War II, and saw their final use by the United States Navy during the Vietnam War.The monitors...
and which were at anchor and unsupported by the pre-dreadnoughts that should have been guarding them. Rebeur-Paschwitz then decided to proceed to the port of Mudros; there the British pre-dreadnought battleship was raising steam to attack the Turkish ships. While en route, Midilli struck several mines and sank; Yavuz hit three mines as well. Retreating to the Dardanelles and followed by the British destroyers and , she was intentionally beached near Nagara Point just outside the Dardanelles. The British attacked Yavuz with bombers from No. 2 Wing of the Royal Naval Air Service
Royal Naval Air Service
The Royal Naval Air Service or RNAS was the air arm of the Royal Navy until near the end of the First World War, when it merged with the British Army's Royal Flying Corps to form a new service , the Royal Air Force...
while she was grounded and hit her twice, but the bombs from the light aircraft were not heavy enough to do any serious damage. The monitor attempted to shell Yavuz on the evening of 24 January, but only managed to fire 10 rounds before withdrawing to escape the Turkish artillery fire. The submarine was sent to destroy the damaged ship, but was too late; the old ex-German pre-dreadnought Turgut Reis
SMS Weißenburg
SMS Weissenburg"SMS" stands for "Seiner Majestät Schiff", or "His Majesty's Ship" in German. was one of the first ocean-going battleshipsAt the time, the German navy referred to the ship as a "ship of the line" , instead of "battleship" . of the German Imperial Navy...
had towed Yavuz off and returned her to the safety of Constantinople. Yavuz was crippled by the extensive damage; cofferdams were again built around the hull, and repairs lasted from 7 August to 19 October.
Yavuz escorted the members of the Ottoman Armistice Commission to Odessa
Odessa
Odessa or Odesa is the administrative center of the Odessa Oblast located in southern Ukraine. The city is a major seaport located on the northwest shore of the Black Sea and the fourth largest city in Ukraine with a population of 1,029,000 .The predecessor of Odessa, a small Tatar settlement,...
on 30 March 1918, after the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was a peace treaty signed on March 3, 1918, mediated by South African Andrik Fuller, at Brest-Litovsk between Russia and the Central Powers, headed by Germany, marking Russia's exit from World War I.While the treaty was practically obsolete before the end of the year,...
was signed. After returning to Constantinople she sailed in May to Sevastopol where she had her hull cleaned and some leaks repaired. Yavuz and several destroyers sailed for Novorossiysk
Novorossiysk
Novorossiysk is a city in Krasnodar Krai, Russia. It is the country's main port on the Black Sea and the leading Russian port for importing grain. It is one of the few cities honored with the title of the Hero City. Population: -History:...
on 28 June to intern the remaining Soviet warships, but they had already been scuttled when the Turkish ships arrived. The destroyers remained, but Yavuz returned to Sevastopol. On 14 July the ship was laid up for the rest of the war. While in Sevastopol, dockyard workers scraped fouling from the ship's bottom. Yavuz subsequently returned to Constantinople, where from 7 August to 19 October a concrete cofferdam was installed to repair one of the three areas damaged by mines.
The German navy formally transferred ownership of the vessel to the Turkish government on 2 November. According to the terms of the Treaty of Sèvres
Treaty of Sèvres
The Treaty of Sèvres was the peace treaty between the Ottoman Empire and Allies at the end of World War I. The Treaty of Versailles was signed with Germany before this treaty to annul the German concessions including the economic rights and enterprises. Also, France, Great Britain and Italy...
between the Ottoman Empire and the Western Allies, Yavuz was to have been handed over to the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
as war reparations. After the Turkish War of Independence
Turkish War of Independence
The Turkish War of Independence was a war of independence waged by Turkish nationalists against the Allies, after the country was partitioned by the Allies following the Ottoman Empire's defeat in World War I...
, led by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk was an Ottoman and Turkish army officer, revolutionary statesman, writer, and the first President of Turkey. He is credited with being the founder of the Republic of Turkey....
, the Treaty of Sèvres was discarded, and the Treaty of Lausanne
Treaty of Lausanne
The Treaty of Lausanne was a peace treaty signed in Lausanne, Switzerland on 24 July 1923, that settled the Anatolian and East Thracian parts of the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire. The treaty of Lausanne was ratified by the Greek government on 11 February 1924, by the Turkish government on 31...
was signed in its place in 1923. Under this treaty, the new Turkish republic regained possession of much its fleet, including Yavuz.
Post-war service
During the 1920s, a commitment to refurbish Yavuz as the centerpiece of the new country's fleet was the only constant element of the various naval policies which were put forward. The battlecruiser remained in İzmitIzmit
İzmit is a city in Turkey, administrative center of Kocaeli Province as well as the Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality. It is located at the Gulf of İzmit in the Sea of Marmara, about east of Istanbul, on the northwestern part of Anatolia. The city center has a population of 294.875...
until 1926, in a neglected state: only two of her boilers worked, she could not steer or steam, and she still had two unrepaired scars from the mine damage in 1918. Enough money was raised to allow the purchase of a new 26000 tonnes (25,589.3 LT) floating dock
Floating dock
A floating dock is a platform or ramp supported by pontoons. It is usually joined to the shore with a ramp that rests upon the dock on rollers, to adjust for the vertical movement of the dock...
from Germany, as Yavuz could not be towed anywhere without risk of her sinking in rough seas. The French company Atelier et Chantiers de St. Nazaire-Penhöet was contracted in December 1926 to oversee the subsequent refit, which was carried out by the Gölcük Naval Shipyard
Gölcük Naval Shipyard
Gölcük Naval Shipyard is a naval shipyard of the Turkish Navy within the Gölcük Naval Base on the east coast of the Sea of Marmara in Gölcük, Kocaeli. Established in 1926, the shipyard serves for the building and the maintenance of military vessels...
. Work proceeded over three years (1927–1930); it was delayed when several compartments of the dock collapsed while being pumped out. Yavuz was slightly damaged before she could be refloated and the dock had to be repaired before the repair work could begin. The Minister of Marine, Ihsan Bey (İhsan Eryavuz), was convicted of embezzlement in the resulting investigation. Other delays were caused by fraud charges which resulted in the abolition of the Ministry of Marine. The Turkish Military's Chief of Staff, Marshal Fevzi
Fevzi Çakmak
Mustafa Fevzi Çakmak was a Turkish soldier , politician. Minister of War of the Ottoman Empire, National Defence Minister, Prime minister of Ankara government, the second Chief of the General Staff of the Army of the Grand National Assembly and the first Chief of the General Staff of the Republic of...
, opposed naval construction and slowed down all naval building programs following the fraud charges. Intensive work on the battlecruiser only began after the Greek Navy conducted a large-scale naval exercise off Turkey in September 1928 and the Turkish Government perceived a need to counter Greece's naval superiority. The Turks also ordered four destroyers and two submarines from Italian shipyards. The Greek Government proposed a 10-year "holiday" from naval building modeled on the Washington Treaty
Washington Naval Treaty
The Washington Naval Treaty, also known as the Five-Power Treaty, was an attempt to cap and limit, and "prevent 'further' costly escalation" of the naval arms race that had begun after World War I between various International powers, each of which had significant naval fleets. The treaty was...
when it learned that Yavuz was to be brought back into service, though it reserved the right to build two new cruisers. The Turkish Government rejected this proposal, and claimed that the ship was intended to counter the growing strength of the Soviet Navy
Soviet Navy
The Soviet Navy was the naval arm of the Soviet Armed Forces. Often referred to as the Red Fleet, the Soviet Navy would have played an instrumental role in a Warsaw Pact war with NATO, where it would have attempted to prevent naval convoys from bringing reinforcements across the Atlantic Ocean...
in the Black Sea.
Over the course of the refit, the mine damage was repaired, her displacement was increased to 23100 t (22,735.1 LT), and the hull was slightly reworked. She was reduced in length by a half meter but her beam increased by 10 cm (4 in). Yavuz was equipped with new boilers and a French fire control system for her main battery guns. Two of the 15 cm guns were removed from their casemate positions. Her armor protection was not upgraded to take the lessons of the Battle of Jutland
Battle of Jutland
The Battle of Jutland was a naval battle between the British Royal Navy's Grand Fleet and the Imperial German Navy's High Seas Fleet during the First World War. The battle was fought on 31 May and 1 June 1916 in the North Sea near Jutland, Denmark. It was the largest naval battle and the only...
into account, and she had only 2 inches (5.1 cm) of armor above her magazines. Yavuz was recommissioned in 1930, resuming her role as flagship
Flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...
of the Turkish Navy, and performed better than expected in her speed trials; her subsequent gunnery and fire control trials were also successful. The four destroyers, which were needed to protect the battlecruiser, entered service between 1931 and 1932; their performance never met design specifications. In response to Yavuz
Soviet cruiser Krasnyi Krym
Krasnyi Krym was a light cruiser of the Soviet Navy. She was laid down in 1913 as Svetlana for the Imperial Russian Navy, the lead ship of the . She was built by the Russo-Baltic Yard in Tallinn, Estonia and launched in 1915. Her hull was evacuated to Petrograd when the Germans approached the port...
from the Baltic in late 1929 to ensure that the Black Sea Fleet retained parity with the Turkish Navy. The Greek Government also responded by ordering two destroyers.
In 1933, she took Prime Minister İsmet İnönü
Ismet Inönü
Mustafa İsmet İnönü was a Turkish Army General, Prime Minister and the second President of Turkey. In 1938, the Republican People's Party gave him the title of "Milli Şef" .-Family and early life:...
from Varna
Varna
Varna is the largest city and seaside resort on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast and third-largest in Bulgaria after Sofia and Plovdiv, with a population of 334,870 inhabitants according to Census 2011...
to Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
and carried the Shah of Iran from Trebizond to Samsun
Samsun
Samsun is a city of about half a million people on the north coast of Turkey. It is the provincial capital of Samsun Province and a major Black Sea port.-Name:...
the following year. Yavuz Sultan Selim had her name officially shortened to Yavuz Selim in 1930 and then to Yavuz in 1936. Another short refit was conducted in 1938, and in November that year she carried the remains of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk was an Ottoman and Turkish army officer, revolutionary statesman, writer, and the first President of Turkey. He is credited with being the founder of the Republic of Turkey....
from Istanbul to İzmit. She and the other ships of the navy were considered outdated by the British Naval Attache by 1937, partly due to their substandard anti-aircraft armament, but in 1938 the Turkish government began planning to expand the force. Under these plans the surface fleet was to comprise two 10,000 ton cruisers and twelve destroyers. Yavuz would be retained until the second cruiser was commissioned in 1945, and the navy expected to build a 23,000 ton ship between 1950 and 1960. The naval building program did not come about, as the foreign shipyards which were to build the ships concentrated on the needs of their own nations leading up to World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Yavuz remained in service throughout World War II. In November 1939 she and Parizhskaya Kommuna were the only capital ships in the Black Sea region, and Life
Life (magazine)
Life generally refers to three American magazines:*A humor and general interest magazine published from 1883 to 1936. Time founder Henry Luce bought the magazine in 1936 solely so that he could acquire the rights to its name....
magazine reported that Yavuz was superior to the Soviet ship because the latter was in poor condition. In 1941, her anti-aircraft battery was strengthened to four 88 mm (3.5 in) guns, ten 40 mm (1.6 in) guns, and four 20 mm (0.78740157480315 in) guns. These were later increased to twenty-two 40 mm guns and twenty-four 20 mm guns. On 5 April 1946, the American battleship , light cruiser , and destroyer arrived in Istanbul to return the remains of Turkish ambassador Münir Ertegün
Münir Ertegün
Mehmet Münir Ertegün was a Turkish legal counsel in international law to the "Sublime Porte" of the late Ottoman Empire and a diplomat of the Turkish Republic during its early years...
. Yavuz greeted the ships in the Bosphorus, where she and Missouri exchanged 19-gun salutes. After 1948, the ship was stationed in either İzmit or Gölcük. She was decommissioned from active service on 20 December 1950 and stricken from the Navy register on 14 November 1954. When Turkey joined NATO in 1952, the ship was assigned the hull number
Hull number
Hull number is a serial identification number given to a boat or ship. A lower number implies an older vessel. The precise usage varies by country and type....
B70. The Turkish government offered to sell the ship to the West German government in 1963, but the offer was declined. Turkey sold the ship to M.K.E. Seyman in 1971 for scrapping
Ship breaking
Ship breaking or ship demolition is a type of ship disposal involving the breaking up of ships for scrap recycling. Most ships have a lifespan of a few decades before there is so much wear that refitting and repair becomes uneconomical. Ship breaking allows materials from the ship, especially...
. She was towed to the breakers on 7 June 1973, and the work was completed in February 1976. By the time of her disposal she was the last dreadnought in existence outside of the United States.