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German Auxiliary Cruiser Widder
''Widder'' (HSK 3) was an auxiliary cruiser (''Hilfskreuzer'') of Nazi Germany's '' Kriegsmarine'' that was used as a merchant raider in the Second World War. Her Kriegsmarine designation was Schiff 21, to the Royal Navy she was Raider D. The name ''Widder'' (Ram) represents the constellation Aries in German. Early history Built for HAPAG, the Hamburg America Line, at Howaldtswerke, Kiel, she was launched in 1930 as the freighter ''Neumark''. After an uneventful career she was requisitioned by the '' Kriegsmarine'' for use as a commerce raider. She was converted for this purpose by Blohm & Voss in late 1939, and commissioned as the raider ''Widder'' on 9 December of that year. She sailed on her first and only raiding voyage in May 1940. Raider voyage ''Widder'' sailed as part of the Kriegsmarine's first wave of commerce raiders, sailing on 6 May 1940 under the command of ''Korvettenkapitän'' (later ''Fregattenkapitän'') Helmuth von Ruckteschell. Leaving Germany on 6 May 1940, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated between the Baltic and North seas to the north, and the Alps to the south; it covers an area of , with a population of almost 84 million within its 16 constituent states. Germany borders Denmark to the north, Poland and the Czech Republic to the east, Austria and Switzerland to the south, and France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands to the west. The nation's capital and most populous city is Berlin and its financial centre is Frankfurt; the largest urban area is the Ruhr. Various Germanic tribes have inhabited the northern parts of modern Germany since classical antiquity. A region named Germania was documented before AD 100. In 962, the Kingdom of Germany formed the bulk of the Holy Roman Empire. During the 16th ce ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
