List of light cruisers of Germany

File:SMS Frauenlob German cruiser.jpg

{{main|Gazelle-class cruiser}}

The {{lang|de|Gazelle}} class was the first modern light cruiser design of the Imperial Navy.{{sfn|Lyon|p=258}} This new class of ships was the culmination of earlier unprotected cruisers—the {{sclass|Bussard|cruiser|4}}—and several experimental intermediate types, such as {{SMS|Gefion||2}} and {{SMS|Hela||2}}. The Germans intended to use the {{lang|de|Gazelle}}s both as fleet scouts and overseas cruisers.{{sfn|Campbell & Sieche|p=143}} Though they were smaller than their foreign contemporaries, they were strongly built and powerfully armed ships for the period.{{sfn|Lyon|p=249}} As a result, they could effectively perform the two roles envisioned for the design.{{sfn|Campbell & Sieche|p=143}} According to the historian Eric Osborne, "[t]he light cruisers of the {{lang|de|Gazelle}}-class established a trend for future ships of this general design ... [they] carried little or no armor, the chief asset being speed."{{sfn|Osborne|p=55}} Indeed, all future light cruisers built by the Imperial Navy generally followed the same pattern, with few fundamental changes.{{sfn|Herwig|p=28}}

The ten ships served in a variety of roles throughout their career. Before the war, most served on foreign stations or with the main fleet, while {{SMS|Nymphe||2}} and {{SMS|Undine||2}} served as training ships.{{sfn|Gröner|pp=101–102}} Due to their age, the {{lang|de|Gazelles}} had been placed in reserve by 1914, but after the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, they were mobilized for active service.{{sfn|Campbell & Sieche|p=143}} Most were initially used as coastal defense vessels in the Baltic, but {{lang|de|Frauenlob}} and {{lang|de|Ariadne}} remained in service with the fleet.{{sfn|Gröner|pp=101–102}} {{lang|de|Ariadne}} was sunk by several British battlecruisers at the Battle of Heligoland Bight on 28 August 1914.{{sfn|Staff 2011|pp=21–24}} {{lang|de|Frauenlob}} was torpedoed and sunk by {{HMS|Southampton|1912|6}} at the Battle of Jutland on 31 May 1916 with the loss of almost her entire crew.{{sfn|Campbell|pp=392–393}} In the Baltic, {{lang|de|Undine}} was torpedoed and sunk by the British submarine {{HMS|E19||6}} on 7 November 1915.{{sfn|Polmar & Noot|p=45}}

The seven surviving ships were withdrawn from front-line service in 1916 and used for auxiliary purposes. They went on to serve in the new {{lang|de|Reichsmarine}}, with the exception of {{lang|de|Gazelle}}, which was broken up for scrap in 1920. {{lang|de|Niobe}} was sold to Yugoslavia in 1925 and renamed {{lang|sr|Dalmacija}}, while {{lang|de|Nymphe}} and {{lang|de|Thetis}} were scrapped in the early 1930s. {{lang|de|Arcona}}, {{lang|de|Medusa}}, and {{lang|de|Amazone}} were used as barracks hulks for the rest of the 1930s.{{sfn|Campbell & Sieche|p=143}}{{sfn|Gröner|pp=101–102}} After the outbreak of World War II, {{lang|de|Medusa}} and {{lang|de|Arcona}} were converted into floating anti-aircraft batteries and defended German ports from 1940 to the end of the war, when they were scuttled by their crews on 3 May 1945. {{lang|de|Amazone}} meanwhile remained in service as a barracks ship through the end of the war.{{sfn|Gröner|pp=101–102}} {{lang|sr|Dalmacija}} eventually returned to German control in 1943, and she was destroyed in December of that year by British Motor Torpedo Boats.{{sfn|Rohwer|p=294}}

File:SMS Bremen 1907.jpg

{{main|Bremen-class cruiser}}

The {{lang|de|Bremen}} class was an incremental improvement over the earlier {{lang|de|Gazelle}}s, being larger and slightly faster. They were otherwise very similar, and mounted the same main battery of 10.5 cm guns.{{sfn|Lyon|pp=258–259}} One ship, {{SMS|Lübeck||2}}, was fitted with new Parsons steam turbines to evaluate their use in future designs; the other vessels retained proven triple-expansion engines.{{sfn|Lyon|p=259}} The ships' peacetime careers saw them serving in several capacities. {{SMS|Bremen||2}} and {{SMS|Leipzig|1905|2}} served in the East Asia Squadron early in their careers; the other ships, save {{SMS|München||2}}, were assigned to the fleet scouting forces. {{lang|de|München}} was used as a torpedo training ship.{{sfn|Gröner|pp=103–104}}

The ships saw extensive action during the war. {{lang|de|Leipzig}} fought with the East Asia Squadron at the Battle of Coronel and was sunk at the subsequent Battle of the Falkland Islands in late 1914.{{sfn|Staff 2008|pp=34–37, 74–76}} {{lang|de|München}} was moderately damaged at Jutland,{{sfn|Tarrant|p=296}} and {{lang|de|Bremen}}, {{lang|de|Lübeck}}, and {{SMS|Danzig|1905|2}} engaged Russian forces at the Battle of the Gulf of Riga and during Operation Albion in 1915 and 1917, respectively.{{sfn|Halpern|pp=191–192}}{{sfn|Staff 2008|p=4}} {{SMS|Berlin||2}} and {{lang|de|München}} were withdrawn from service in 1916, the latter after being badly damaged by a mine. Only {{lang|de|Berlin}} and {{SMS|Hamburg||2}} were retained after the war; the other surviving ships were seized by Britain as war prizes and scrapped in the early 1920s. Both were used as training cruisers in the 1920s and then as barracks ships from the 1930s.{{sfn|Gröner|pp=103–104}} {{lang|de|Hamburg}} was sunk by British bombers in 1944 during World War II,{{sfn|Rohwer|p=264}} and {{lang|de|Berlin}} was loaded with chemical weapons and scuttled in the Skaggerak in 1947 to dispose of the munitions.{{sfn|Gröner|pp=103–104}}

File:Bundesarchiv Bild 105-DOA3002, Deutsch-Ostafrika, Kreuzer Königsberg.jpg]]

{{main|Königsberg-class cruiser (1905)}}

The {{lang|de|Königsberg}} class continued the general trend of slightly larger and faster German light cruiser designs. Like the {{lang|de|Bremen}}s, one member of the new class—{{SMS|Stettin||2}}—was equipped with turbines for testing purposes. They retained the same armament and armor protection of the {{lang|de|Bremen}} class.{{sfn|Lyon|p=259}}{{sfn|Campbell & Sieche|p=157}} All four ships were employed with the High Seas Fleet after they were commissioned, though {{SMS|Nürnberg|1906|2}} was deployed to Asia in 1910,{{sfn|Gray|p=184}} and {{SMS|Königsberg|1905|2}} was sent to East African waters in 1914.{{sfn|Farwell|p=128}}

All four ships saw major action during the war. {{lang|de|Königsberg}}, based in Dar es Salaam at the outbreak of war, began a short and unsuccessful commerce raiding career in the region,{{sfn|Halpern|p=77}} though she did destroy the British cruiser {{HMS|Pegasus|1897|6}}.{{sfn|Farwell|p=133}} She eventually became trapped in the Rufiji River and was later destroyed by a pair of British monitors in 1915.{{sfn|Bennett|pp=132–134}} The war was not over for the vessel, however, as her guns were removed and used extensively in Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck's East African Campaign.{{sfn|Herwig|pp=154–155}} {{lang|de|Nürnberg}} participated in the battles at Coronel and the Falkland Islands, where she was sunk.{{sfn|Bennett|p=125}} {{lang|de|Stettin}} saw action at the Battle of Heligoland Bight in August 1914.{{sfn|Staff 2011|pp=7–11}} Both she and {{SMS|Stuttgart||2}} also participated in the Battle of Jutland.{{sfn|Tarrant|p=62}} {{lang|de|Stettin}} was used as a training ship after 1917, and {{lang|de|Stuttgart}} was converted into a seaplane tender in 1918. Both were seized by Britain as war prizes and scrapped in the early 1920s.{{sfn|Gröner|p=105}}

File:SMS Dresden 1909 LOC det 4a16116.jpg

{{main|Dresden-class cruiser}}

The two cruisers ordered in the 1905–1906 program represented a continuation in the slow, upward trend in displacement, though the two ships had the same top speed as the earlier {{lang|de|Königsberg}}-class ships. Like the preceding classes, one ship was equipped with turbine engines, and one with reciprocating machinery; this was to be the last time a German cruiser utilized the older triple-expansion engines. All subsequent designs adopted steam turbines universally.{{sfn|Campbell & Sieche|pp=157–163}} {{lang|de|Dresden}} and {{lang|de|Emden}} had very active and short careers. Both vessels served on foreign stations for the majority of their careers; {{lang|de|Emden}} was assigned to the East Asia Squadron after she entered service,{{sfn|Forstmeier|pp=2–4}} and {{lang|de|Dresden}} spent much time off the North American Atlantic coast.{{sfn|Delgado|pp=169–170}}

{{lang|de|Dresden}} initially operated as a commerce raider in the Atlantic after the outbreak of war in 1914, before steaming around South America to join von Spee's squadron as it approached the continent.{{sfn|Halpern|pp=79–80}} She took part in the battles of Coronel and the Falkland Islands, and she was the only German cruiser to escape destruction at the latter.{{sfn|Staff 2011|pp=34–35, 73}} She was later trapped by British cruisers at Más a Tierra in March 1915.{{sfn|Mueller|pp=16–17}} After a short bombardment from the British ships, {{lang|de|Dresden}}{{'}}s crew scuttled her in the harbor.{{sfn|Delgado|pp=168–169}} {{lang|de|Emden}}, meanwhile, had been detached from the East Asia Squadron to act as an independent raider in the Indian Ocean. She had a successful career hunting Allied merchant ships in the area, and also sank the Russian protected cruiser {{ship|Russian cruiser|Zhemchug||2}} in Penang harbor.{{sfn|Forstmeier|pp=10–14}} Shortly thereafter, the Australian light cruiser {{HMAS|Sydney|1912|6}} caught {{lang|de|Emden}} off the Cocos Islands and inflicted serious damage, forcing her to beach on the island of North Keeling.{{sfn|Forstmeier|pp=16–19}}

File:SMS Mainz illustration by Parkes.jpg, 1910]]

{{main|Kolberg-class cruiser}}

The {{lang|de|Kolberg}} class represented the first major improvement in combat power for German light cruisers, both qualitatively and quantitatively. They were armed with the longer-barrel 10.5 cm SK L/45 gun, which had a higher muzzle velocity and thus greater range than the earlier L/40 weapon. In addition, they carried an extra pair of guns, which strengthened their broadside. This was on a displacement of over a thousand tons greater than the preceding {{lang|de|Dresden}} class. All four ships were also powered by turbines, which granted them a significant increase in speed over the earlier vessels.{{sfn|Campbell & Sieche|pp=140, 157–159}}

All four ships saw major action during the war. {{lang|de|Augsburg}} fired the first shots of the war against Russia on 2 August.{{sfn|Halpern|p=184}} {{lang|de|Mainz}} and {{lang|de|Cöln}} were sunk at the Battle of Heligoland Bight in the first month of the war.{{sfn|Staff 2011|pp=19, 21}} {{lang|de|Kolberg}} saw action at the Battle of Dogger Bank in January 1915 and scored the first hits of the engagement. Both {{lang|de|Kolberg}} and {{lang|de|Augsburg}} participated in the Battle of the Gulf of Riga in August 1915,{{sfn|Halpern|pp=45, 197–198}} and Operation Albion in October 1917.{{sfn|Staff 2008|p=60}} After the end of the war, {{lang|de|Kolberg}} was seized by France as a war prize and commissioned into the French Navy as {{lang|fr|Colmar}};{{sfn|Gröner|p=107}} she served for only a few years and was scrapped in 1929.{{sfn|Smigielski|p=201}} {{lang|de|Augsburg}} was surrendered to Japan, which broke her up for scrap in 1922.{{sfn|Gröner|p=107}}

File:Bundesarchiv Bild 146-2007-0221, Kleiner Kreuzer Magdeburg.jpg

{{main|Magdeburg-class cruiser}}

The {{lang|de|Magdeburg}} class introduced several significant improvements over earlier designs, including a more effective bow shape that improved seakeeping and a cut-down quarterdeck that allowed for more efficient handling of the ships' mines. Perhaps most importantly, a waterline armored belt was added to improve the defensive capabilities of the new ships. They also had much more powerful turbines, and as a result, a higher top speed. All following light cruisers adopted these innovations.{{sfn|Campbell & Sieche|p=159}}

{{lang|de|Magdeburg}}{{'}}s career was cut short on 26 August 1914, when she ran aground while operating against Russian forces in the Baltic. The Russians seized code books from the wreck and gave copies to the British; this was to have a major effect on the outcome of the naval war in the North Sea.{{sfn|Herwig|p=150}} {{lang|de|Breslau}} was assigned to the Mediterranean Division along with the battlecruiser {{SMS|Goeben||2}};{{sfn|Halpern|p=15}} at the outbreak of war, they steamed to Constantinople where they were sold to the Ottoman Navy. They were instrumental in bringing the Ottoman Empire into the war on the side of Germany.{{sfn|Halpern|pp=51–58}} {{lang|de|Breslau}}, renamed {{lang|tr|Midilli}}, was eventually sunk by British mines during the Battle of Imbros in January 1918.{{sfn|Hownam-Meek, et al.|p=95}}

The other two ships, {{lang|de|Strassburg}} and {{lang|de|Stralsund}}, remained with the High Seas Fleet for the duration of their careers. They saw action at the major engagements, including Heligoland Bight and Dogger Bank, though neither ship was present at Jutland.{{sfn|Bennett|pp=145–150}}{{sfn|Campbell|p=23}} Both ships survived the war; {{lang|de|Strassburg}} was surrendered to Italy and renamed {{lang|it|Taranto}}. She served through World War II and was sunk by Allied bombers in 1944.{{sfn|Fraccaroli|p=264}} {{lang|de|Stralsund}} became the French {{lang|fr|Mulhouse}}, though she served for only a few years and was withdrawn from service by 1925 and scrapped a decade later.{{sfn|Smigielski|p=201}}

File:Bundesarchiv DVM 10 Bild-23-61-01, Kleiner Kreuzer "Karlsruhe".jpg

{{main|Karlsruhe-class cruiser}}

These two ships were a minor improvement over the {{lang|de|Magdeburg}} class. They were significantly larger, slightly faster, and had a more raked hull, but carried the same main battery and had identical armor protection.{{sfn|Gröner|pp=107–109}} They were also the last cruisers to enter service before the outbreak of World War I.{{sfn|Campbell & Sieche|pp=160–161}} {{lang|de|Karlsruhe}} was assigned to replace {{lang|de|Dresden}} in the Caribbean in mid-1914, and shortly after her arrival in late July 1914, hostilities opened in Europe. {{lang|de|Karlsruhe}} thereafter operated as a commerce raider; she captured or sank some sixteen ships off the coast of Brazil before an accidental explosion destroyed the ship and killed most of her crew.{{sfn|Halpern|p=79}}{{sfn|Bennett|p=131}}

{{lang|de|Rostock}}, meanwhile, remained with the High Seas Fleet. She saw action at Dogger Bank, the bombardment of Yarmouth and Lowestoft in April 1916, and at Jutland the following month. There, she assisted in the destruction of a pair of British destroyers.{{sfn|Tarrant|pp=38–42, 53–54, 114, 287}} In the ferocious night fighting on the night of 31 May – 1 June, {{lang|de|Rostock}} was torpedoed and disabled by British destroyers. The following morning, she was scuttled to avoid capture when the British cruiser {{HMS|Dublin|1912|6}} arrived on the scene.{{sfn|Campbell|pp=291, 295, 316}}

File:SMS Regensburg as in 1918.svg

{{main|Graudenz-class cruiser}}

The {{lang|de|Graudenz}}-class cruisers were very similar to the preceding {{lang|de|Karlsruhe}} class, being of similar size, mounting an identical main battery, and having a comparable speed. They could be visually differentiated by the number of funnels; {{lang|de|Graudenz}} and {{lang|de|Regensburg}} returned to the three-funnel arrangement of the earlier light cruisers.{{sfn|Gröner|pp=109–110}} Both ships served in the reconnaissance forces of the High Seas Fleet. {{lang|de|Graudenz}} was present during the raid on Scarborough, Hartlepool and Whitby in December 1914 and the Battle of the Gulf of Riga in August 1915. She was damaged by a mine in mid-1916, and was in dock for repairs during Jutland. {{lang|de|Regensburg}} was present for the battle, where she led the torpedo boat flotillas screening the I Scouting Group battlecruisers. She emerged from the battle completely undamaged, despite having led several torpedo attacks against British formations.{{sfn|Tarrant|pp=62, 130–131, 186–187, 292}}

Both ships survived the war. {{lang|de|Graudenz}} became the Italian {{lang|it|Ancona}} and served until 1937, when she was sold for scrapping.{{sfn|Fraccaroli|p=264}} {{lang|de|Regensburg}} was surrendered to France and commissioned as {{lang|fr|Strasbourg}}; she served in the French fleet until 1936, when she was reduced to a barracks ship. She served in this capacity through the German occupation of the country, and was eventually scuttled to protect the U-boat pens in Lorient in 1944.{{sfn|Smigielski|p=201}}

File:SMS Pillau.jpg

{{main|Pillau-class cruiser}}

The two {{lang|de|Pillau}}-class ships were originally ordered by the Russian Navy under the names {{lang|ru|Maraviev Amurskyy}} and {{lang|ru|Admiral Nevelskoy}}; they were approaching completion when war broke out in August 1914. The German navy therefore seized the ships and completed them as {{lang|de|Pillau}} and {{lang|de|Elbing}}. They were the first completed German light cruisers armed with {{convert|15|cm|abbr=on|0}} guns, which marked a significant increase in their combat power. But since they were built originally for the Russians, they lacked the belt armor that had become standard in German cruiser designs.{{sfn|Campbell & Sieche|p=161}} {{lang|de|Pillau}} took part in the Battle of the Gulf of Riga,{{sfn|Halpern|p=197}} and both ships were heavily engaged at Jutland. {{lang|de|Elbing}} was accidentally rammed and disabled by the battleship {{SMS|Posen||2}} in the confused night fighting,{{sfn|Tarrant|pp=62, 220}} and her crew was ultimately forced to abandon the wreck.{{sfn|Campbell|p=295}} {{lang|de|Pillau}} survived the war and was ceded to Italy; she was commissioned as {{lang|it|Bari}} and served into World War II until she was sunk by American bombers in 1943.{{sfn|Fraccaroli|p=265}}

File:SMS Frankfurt.jpg service]]

{{main|Wiesbaden-class cruiser}}

The {{lang|de|Wiesbaden}} class was the first German light cruiser design to mount 15 cm guns, though the {{lang|de|Pillau}} class was completed with guns of this caliber first. The {{lang|de|Wiesbaden}}-class ships were otherwise very similar to the preceding {{lang|de|Graudenz}} class; they were slightly larger, but had the same speed and identical armor protection.{{sfn|Campbell & Sieche|pp=161–162}}

{{lang|de|Wiesbaden}} only participated in one major battle: Jutland. Early in the engagement, the ship was badly damaged by gunfire from the battlecruiser {{HMS|Invincible|1907|6}}. Immobilized between the two battle fleets, {{lang|de|Wiesbaden}} became the center of a hard-fought action that saw the destruction of two British armored cruisers.{{sfn|Tarrant|pp=127–141}} {{lang|de|Wiesbaden}} remained afloat until the early hours of 1 June and sank sometime between 01:45 and 02:45.{{sfn|Campbell|pp=294–295}} {{lang|de|Frankfurt}} was also present at Jutland, where she traded blows with {{HMS|Chester|1915|6}}.{{sfn|Tarrant|pp=62, 127–128}}{{sfn|Campbell|p=149}} She also saw action during Operation Albion in October 1917,{{sfn|Staff 2008|pp=3–4}} and the Second Battle of Heligoland Bight in November of that year. {{lang|de|Frankfurt}} survived the war and was interned at Scapa Flow; her crew was unsuccessful in their attempt to scuttle her,{{sfn|Woodward|pp=90, 183}} and she was ultimately surrendered to the United States and expended as a target in 1921.{{sfn|Gröner|p=112}}

File:SMS Karlsruhe in Scapa Flow 1919.jpg in 1919]]

{{main|Königsberg-class cruiser (1915)}}

The second {{lang|de|Königsberg}} class was authorized in 1913 and laid down starting in 1914. They were named for cruisers that had been sunk in the early months of the war. They were an incremental improvement over the {{lang|de|Wiesbaden}} class, being some five hundred tons heavier. They carried the standard eight 15 cm guns, the forward wing mounts were placed a deck higher to improve their firing arc. They were otherwise identical to the preceding light cruiser designs.{{sfn|Campbell & Sieche|p=162}}

{{lang|de|Königsberg}} and {{lang|de|Nürnberg}} both saw action at the Second Battle of Heligoland Bight, where the former was slightly damaged.{{sfn|Halpern|p=377}} All four members of the class participated in Operation Albion in the Baltic.{{sfn|Staff 2008|p=152}} The cruisers, save {{lang|de|Emden}}, were also assigned to the planned final fleet action in October 1918,{{sfn|Woodward|p=116}} but mutiny among the German capital ships forced the cancellation of the plan.{{sfn|Tarrant|pp=281–282}} {{lang|de|Karlsruhe}}, {{lang|de|Emden}}, and {{lang|de|Nürnberg}} were interned with the fleet in Scapa Flow, while {{lang|de|Königsberg}} remained in Germany. The three cruisers were scuttled, though only {{lang|de|Karlsruhe}} actually sank. {{lang|de|Emden}} and {{lang|de|Nürnberg}} were beached by British sailors and were seized as war prizes by France and Britain, respectively. {{lang|de|Emden}} was scrapped in 1926 and {{lang|de|Nürnberg}} was sunk as a target in 1922. {{lang|de|Königsberg}}, meanwhile, was surrendered to France in 1920 and renamed {{lang|fr|Metz}};{{sfn|Gröner|p=113}} she was ultimately scrapped in 1936.{{sfn|Smigielski|p=201}}

File:SMS Brummer.jpg at the end of World War I]]

{{main|Brummer-class cruiser}}

The two {{lang|de|Brummer}} class cruisers were designed in 1914, when the turbines being built by AG Vulcan for the Russian light cruiser {{ship|Russian cruiser|Svetlana||2}} became available owing to the state of war between Germany and Russia. The German navy instructed AG Vulcan to divide the turbines in half and design a pair of cruiser-minelayers around the propulsion system.{{sfn|Dodson & Nottelmann|pp=186, 190–192}}{{efn|A long-standing myth surrounds the origins of the turbines for the Brummer class. Many authors have repeated the claim that the turbines in question had been ordered for the {{sclass|Borodino|battlecruiser}} Navarin,{{sfn|Gröner|p=112}}{{sfn|Campbell & Sieche|p=162}}{{sfn|Novik|p=185}} but according to the historians Dodson & Nottelmann, this is impossible from an engineering standpoint, as Navarin received Parsons style turbines, which used sets of high- and low-pressure turbines to drive different screw propellers, which would have been impossible to divide between two ships. They point out that the Brummers received Curtis-style turbines, which combined high- and low-pressure turbines on each propeller shaft. Moreover, according to surviving records, Dodson & Nottelmann point out that Navarin{{'}}s turbines had been ordered from the Franco-Russian Works in Saint Petersburg, not AG Vulcan.{{sfn|Dodson & Nottelmann|p=190}}}} As a result of their need for high speed, they were lightly armed, with only four 15 cm guns. And to further aid them in their offensive minelaying role, they were designed to resemble British cruisers to help conceal their identity.{{sfn|Novik|p=185}}

{{lang|de|Brummer}} and {{lang|de|Bremse}} typically operated together throughout the war. They participated in numerous minelaying operations in 1916 and 1917.{{sfn|Novik|p=188}} The two cruisers devastated a British convoy to Norway in October 1917, sinking the two escorting destroyers and most of the transports.{{sfn|Halpern|p=376}} Both were interned at Scapa Flow at the end of the war; they were successfully scuttled in June 1919. {{lang|de|Brummer}} remains on the bottom of the harbor, but {{lang|de|Bremse}} was raised for scrapping in 1929 and broken up in the early 1930s.{{sfn|Gröner|p=113}}

File:SMS Cöln (1916).jpg

{{main|Cöln-class cruiser}}

By 1916, Germany had lost thirteen light cruisers in the conflict; ten new light cruisers were ordered to a design based on the preceding {{lang|de|Königsberg}} class.{{sfn|Herwig|p=205}} The new, larger design added a third {{convert|8.8|cm|abbr=on}} anti-aircraft gun, along with much more powerful {{convert|60|cm|abbr=on}} torpedo tubes, compared to the {{convert|50|cm|abbr=on}} type used in earlier classes. They were otherwise very similar, with the same top speed and armor protection.{{sfn|Campbell & Sieche|pp=162–163}}

Only two ships of the ten were completed: {{lang|de|Cöln}} and {{lang|de|Dresden}}. Five other ships were launched, but not completed—these ships received names—and the remaining three had only had some work done to their keels before work ceased. These latter three ships were known only by their contract names.{{sfn|Gröner|pp=114–115}} {{lang|de|Cöln}} and {{lang|de|Dresden}} had very limited careers, since they were completed so late in the war. They both participated in a fleet sortie into the northern North Sea that attempted to intercept a heavily escorted convoy from Britain to Norway.{{sfn|Woodward|p=116}}{{sfn|Halpern|pp=418–419}} And they were assigned to the abortive final sortie in October 1918.{{sfn|Woodward|p=116}} Both cruisers were interned in Scapa Flow and scuttled there in June 1919, and both remain on the bottom of Scapa Flow.{{sfn|Gröner|pp=114–115}}{{sfn|Wille|p=392}}

{{main|German FK cruiser designs}}

The German navy proposed a series of fleet cruiser designs—designated {{lang|de|Flottenkreuzer}}—in 1916 to follow the {{lang|de|Cöln}} class. The design, which emphasized the reconnaissance role and high speed over combat power, was based on the British {{sclass2|C|cruiser|1}}s at the request of Kaiser Wilhelm II. As a result, the initial design was much smaller than the {{lang|de|Cöln}} design, and it carried only five 15 cm guns, but had a top speed of {{convert|32|kn}}. Four modified designs followed, with each one increasing in size and armament, until the final design, "FK 4", had returned to the size and armament of the earlier light cruisers. They were design studies only,{{sfn|Gröner|pp=116–117}} and Germany's deteriorating wartime situation in the final two years of the war forced the Navy to all but abandon construction of surface warships in favor of U-boats.{{sfn|Weir|p=179}}

File:Light Cruiser Emden in China 1931 crop.jpg

{{main|German cruiser Emden}}

{{lang|de|Emden}} was the first new cruiser designed by the re-formed {{lang|de|Reichsmarine}} in the early 1920s. According to the terms of the Treaty of Versailles, new designs could only be {{convert|6000|LT}}.See: Treaty of Versailles Section II: Naval Clauses, Articles 181 and 191 The design borrowed heavily from the late-World War I cruisers. Though the Germans wanted to use twin gun turrets for the ship's main battery of 15 cm guns, the Naval Inter-Allied Commission of Control rejected the design and forced the designers to adopt single turrets in order to weaken the design.{{sfn|Williamson|p=9}}{{sfn|O'Brien|p=112}} The design nevertheless included several innovations, including the large-scale use of welding rather than rivets to save weight.{{sfn|Gröner|p=118}}

During World War II, she was used to lay mines in the North Sea,{{sfn|Rohwer|p=2}} to provide gunfire support to ground troops, and as a convoy escort and training ship for cadets. She participated in Operation Weserübung, the invasion of Norway in April 1940. Her wartime career ended in Kiel in April 1945, when British bombers badly damaged the ship while she was in dock for repairs. Her crew ran her aground to prevent her from sinking, and ultimately blew her up with demolition charges to prevent the Allies from capturing her in May.{{sfn|Williamson|pp=11–13}} The wreck was eventually scrapped in the late 1940s.{{sfn|Gröner|p=118}}

File:Bundesarchiv DVM 10 Bild-23-63-35, Leichter Kreuzer der "K-Klasse".jpg

{{main|Königsberg-class cruiser (1927)}}

The third class of cruisers named after the capital of East Prussia marked a radical divergence from earlier cruiser designs.{{efn|This class is sometimes referred to as the K class, because all three vessels' names start with that letter.{{sfn|Sieche|p=230}}}} A new triple gun turret was adopted for the main battery, with one forward and two aft in a superfiring pair, offset from the centerline. And new, longer C/25 model guns were used. Major use of welding was also a feature of this class of cruisers, and diesel engines were used in combination with the turbines to increase their cruising radius, though only one set of engines could be run at one time.{{sfn|Sieche|p=230}}

The three ships all participated in the non-intervention patrols during the Spanish Civil War in 1936–1939. After the outbreak of war, they were used to lay defensive minefields along with {{lang|de|Emden}},{{sfn|Williamson|pp=14–24}} and in April 1940, participated in the invasion of Norway.{{sfn|Rohwer|p=18}} Two of the three cruisers, {{lang|de|Karlsruhe}} and {{lang|de|Königsberg}}, were sunk during the invasion; {{lang|de|Karlsruhe}} was torpedoed by a British submarine off Kristiansand and {{lang|de|Königsberg}} was sunk by British divebombers in Bergen.{{sfn|Williamson|pp=17, 21}} {{lang|de|Köln}} was used in a variety of roles after the conclusion of the campaign, including as a testbed for operating the Flettner Fl 282 helicopter at sea. She was bombed and sunk by American heavy bombers in Wilhelmshaven in March 1945, though she sank in shallow water on an even keel, which allowed her guns to provide gunfire support to German troops until the end of the war.{{sfn|Williamson|pp=33–34}}{{sfn|Rohwer|p=404}}

File:Bundesarchiv DVM 10 Bild-23-63-69, Leichter Kreuzer "Nürnberg".jpg

{{main|Leipzig-class cruiser}}

{{lang|de|Leipzig}} and {{lang|de|Nürnberg}} were the follow-on class to the three {{lang|de|Königsberg}}-class ships.{{efn|These vessels are sometimes treated as unique ships, rather than as members of a class due to their slightly dissimilar designs.{{sfn|Sieche|p=231}}}} They were built to a modified design, which included returning the aft turrets to the centerline. Another major change was a new gear system that allowed the diesel and turbine engines to run at the same time, which permitted a lighter propulsion system to reach the same speed of the earlier ships.{{sfn|Sieche|pp=230–231}} They were also fitted with bulbous bows to improve their hydrodynamic efficiency.{{sfn|Whitley, No. 1|p=235}} The two cruisers were not identical: {{lang|de|Leipzig}} had a superstructure similar to the {{lang|de|Königsberg}}s, while {{lang|de|Nürnberg}} was built with a much larger structure. {{lang|de|Nürnberg}} was also completed with a much stronger anti-aircraft battery.{{sfn|Sieche|p=231}}

Both {{lang|de|Leipzig}} and {{lang|de|Nürnberg}} were deployed to the non-intervention patrols in Spanish waters in the late 1930s.{{sfn|Williamson|p=36}}{{sfn|Whitley, No. 2|p=250}} The British submarine {{HMS|Salmon|N65|6}} managed to torpedo both cruisers on 13 December 1939, though both ships made it back to port for repairs.{{sfn|Rohwer|pp=10–11}} The two cruisers were withdrawn from front-line service thereafter and used as training ships.{{sfn|Williamson|p=37}}{{sfn|Whitley, No. 2|pp=252–254}} In October 1944, {{lang|de|Leipzig}} was rammed and badly damaged by the heavy cruiser {{ship|German cruiser|Prinz Eugen||2}}; repairs were deemed to be uneconomical, and the crippled ship was used to provide gunfire support to retreating German forces around Gotenhafen (Gdynia) in March 1945. She was used as a barracks ship after the war and scuttled in July 1946.{{sfn|Williamson|pp=38–39}} {{lang|de|Nürnberg}}, meanwhile, was seized by the Soviet Union as a war prize and commissioned into the Soviet Navy as {{lang|ru|Admiral Makarov}}; she served in the Baltic Fleet until the late 1950s, and was broken up for scrap sometime around 1960.{{sfn|Whitley, No. 2|pp=254–255}}

File:MclassCruiser2Dmap5-eBigFlagalt.jpg

{{main|M-class cruiser}}

The M class was authorized by Plan Z in 1939, though design work started as early as 1936; these ships were intended to serve as the reconnaissance units for the commerce raiding squadrons envisioned in the plan.{{sfn|Zabecki|p=901}}{{sfn|Gröner|p=124}} The Navy placed very high requirements for long range, heavy armament, armor proof against guns of the ships' caliber, and high speeds, which forced the designers to compromise crucial aspects of the design, including the armor and armament, both of which were too weak. This led the design staff to rework the plans for the last two ships to rectify some of these flaws. Work began on the first two ships in 1938, but the outbreak of war in September 1939 forced the Navy to abandon work on warships that could not be completed quickly. As a result, those two ships were scrapped and the remaining four were never laid down.{{sfn|Gröner|pp=124–125}}

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{{German cruisers}}

{{German Navy ship types}}

*

Cruisers, light

German light cruisers

Light cruisers