''Bremse'' was built as an artillery training ship () of the
Nazi German with a secondary function as a test bed for new marine diesel engines later installed in German . During
World War II, she operated as an escort ship until her sinking in September 1941.
History
''Bremse'' was commissioned on June 14, 1933 and attached to the artillery training school at
Kiel, to replace older predecessors. In 1933 she underwent repairs and a complete refit; her mast was shortened to improve stability and her artillery director was removed.
[
]
In 1939, the ship was used in the film ''
Der letzte Apell'' as the
British scout cruiser ''Amphion''; two additional dummy
funnels were added.
Wartime career
During the
Invasion of Poland in September 1939, ''Bremse'' escorted the auxiliary minelayers and and in October, she escorted troop transports in the
Baltic. She then returned to the artillery school in
Kiel until March 1940.
In April 1940, during
Operation Weserübung, ''Bremse'' participated in the attack on
Bergen. She was shelled by
Norwegian coastal artillery and hit by two 21 cm rounds; she was subsequently repaired in
Stavanger
Stavanger (, , American English, US usually , ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Norway. It is the fourth largest city and third largest metropolitan area in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the a ...
. Later, on November 1 ''Bremse'' was accidentally rammed by the
steamer ''
Donau
Donau may refer to:
*Danube (German: ''Donau''), Europe's second-longest river
*Donau (horse) (1907–1913), American thoroughbred racehorse
* SS ''Donau'', the name of several steamships
*, a modern German replenishment ship
*RC Donau, an Austrian ...
'' off Bergen, suffering minor damage.
In June 1941, ''Bremse'' was sent back to
Kiel for escort duty. On July 30 she was bombed by
British Albacore torpedo bombers and
Fulmar fighters from the aircraft carrier but escaped unharmed.
Sinking
On September 6, 1941, in
Hammerfjord, while escorting the troop transports and ''Barcelona'', ''Bremse'' was intercepted and attacked by the
British cruisers HMS
''Nigeria'' and
''Aurora''. ''Bremse'' was able to draw the cruisers away from the transports, so that they could escape, but she was sunk when rammed by ''Nigeria'' and cut in half.
(Some sources give an alternative outcome, reporting that the ''Nigeria'' was damaged by a
mine and ''Bremse'' sunk by gunfire.
) 160 men, over half of her crew, died.
References
Bremse at german-navy.de
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bremse
Minelayers of the Reichsmarine
Ships of the Reichsmarine
Ships built in Wilhelmshaven
1932 ships
Training ships of the Kriegsmarine
Minelayers of the Kriegsmarine
World War II auxiliary ships of Germany
Maritime incidents in September 1941
World War II shipwrecks in the Arctic Ocean