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  Wörth 1890s

Ships

Name	No	Yard No	Builder	Laid down	Launched	Comp	Fate
Kurfürst Friedrich Wilhelm		13	Wilhelmshaven KW	1890	30.6.1891	29.4.1894	to Turkey 9.1910 (Barbaros Hayreddin)
Brandenburg		198	Vulcan, Stettin	1890	21.9.1891	19.11.1893	barrack ship 1916
Weissenburg		199	Vulcan, Stettin	1890	14.12.1891	14.10.1894	to Turkey 9.1910 (Torgut Reis)
Wörth		52	Germaniawerft, Kiel	1890	6.8.1892	31.10.1893	barrack ship 1915

Technical data

Displacement normal, t	10501
Displacement full, t	10670
Length, m	115.7 oa 113.9 wl
Breadth, m	19.5
Draught, m	7.90
No of shafts	2
Machinery	2 VTE, 12 cylindrical boilers
Power, h. p.	10000
Max speed, kts	16.5
Fuel, t	coal 1050 + oil 110
Endurance, nm(kts)	4300(10)
Armour, mm	Kurfürst Friedrich Wilhelm: belt: 400 - 180 (compound), deck: 60, cupolas: 120, barbettes: 300, battery: 42, CT: 300 Brandenburg: belt: 400 - 180, deck: 60, cupolas: 120, barbettes: 300 (A, B - compound, C - Krupp), battery: 42, CT: 300 Weissenburg: belt: 400 - 180 (compound), deck: 60, cupolas: 120, barbettes: 300 (A, C - compound, B - Krupp), battery: 42, CT: 300 Wörth: belt: 400 - 180, deck: 60, cupolas: 120, barbettes: 300, battery: 42, CT: 300
Armament	2 x 2 - 283/37 MRK L/40 C/90, 1 x 2 - 283/32 MRK L/35 C/90, 6 x 1 - 105/32 SK L/35 C/91, 8 x 1 - 88/27 SK L/30 C/89, 12 x 1 - 7.9/80, 6 - 450 TT (2 bow, 4 beam)
Complement	568

Standard scale images

Graphics

Project history

The Brandenburg class were unusual amongst the pre-dreadnoughts of their era in having two different lengths of gun in their main armament. While the fore and aft turrets were 40 cal, the midship turret had 35 cal guns, to make them short enough to be trained round from one side to the other. This midships mounting proved unsatisfactory—the guns were too near the deck and caused blast damage when fired — and the secondary armament was weak by the standards of the time. However, the Germans were at last building sea-going battleships with a powerful main armament. An extra pair of 105mm guns were added later. These were the first German warships to be fitted with radio.

Ship protection, Kurfürst Friedrich Wilhelm

Mostly Krupp steel armour was used. Main belt (Compound iron-steel armour!) protected full hull length and had 400mm thickness amidships above CWL (backed by 200mm teak), tapered to 200mm below CWL on 400mm wooden backing; ship ends were protected by 300mm above CWL (backed by 300mm teak) tapered to 180mm below CWL backed by 420mm teak. Armoured deck had 60mm thickness. Barbettes were protected by 300mm armour backed by 210mm wood and were closed by 120mm cupolas with 50mm crowns. Battery had 42mm sides. CT had 300mm sides and 30mm roof.

Ship protection, Brandenburg

Mostly Krupp steel armour was used. Main belt protected full hull length and had 400mm thickness amidships above CWL (backed by 200mm teak), tapered to 200mm below CWL on 400mm wooden backing; ship ends were protected by 300mm above CWL (backed by 300mm teak) tapered to 180mm below CWL backed by 420mm teak. Armoured deck had 60mm thickness. Barbettes (A and B barbettes had compound armour, C barbette had Krupp steel) were protected by 300mm armour backed by 210mm wood and were closed by 120mm cupolas with 50mm crowns. Battery had 42mm sides. CT had 300mm sides and 30mm roof.

Ship protection, Weissenburg

Mostly Krupp steel armour was used. Main belt (Compound iron-steel armour!) protected full hull length and had 400mm thickness amidships above CWL (backed by 200mm teak), tapered to 200mm below CWL on 400mm wooden backing; ship ends were protected by 300mm above CWL (backed by 300mm teak) tapered to 180mm below CWL backed by 420mm teak. Armoured deck had 60mm thickness. Barbettes (A and C barbettes had compound armour, B barbette had Krupp steel) were protected by 300mm armour backed by 210mm wood and were closed by 120mm cupolas with 50mm crowns. Battery had 42mm sides. CT had 300mm sides and 30mm roof.

Ship protection, Wörth

Mostly Krupp steel armour was used. Main belt protected full hull length and had 400mm thickness amidships above CWL (backed by 200mm teak), tapered to 200mm below CWL on 400mm wooden backing; ship ends were protected by 300mm above CWL (backed by 300mm teak) tapered to 180mm below CWL backed by 420mm teak. Armoured deck had 60mm thickness. Barbettes were protected by 300mm armour backed by 210mm wood and were closed by 120mm cupolas with 50mm crowns. Battery had 42mm sides. CT had 300mm sides and 30mm roof.

Modernizations

1903, Wörth; 1904, Brandenburg, Weissenburg; 1905, Kurfürst Friedrich Wilhelm: - 4 - 450 TT (2 bow, 2 beam); + 2 x 1 - 105/32 SK L/35 C/91, 1 - 450 TT (stern)

Naval service

In 1910 two of the class went to Turkey. The remaining pair were transferred to coastal defence in 1915, disarmed and used as accommodation ships in 1916, and discarded in 1919. A conversion of Brandenburg to a target ship was never completed.