Kaiserliche Werft Danzig was a German

shipbuilding company A shipyard, also called a dockyard or boatyard, is a place where ships are built and repaired. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Dockyards are sometimes more associated with maintenance a ...

founded in 1852 as ''Königliche Werft Danzig'' and renamed ''Kaiserliche Werft'' after the proclamation of the

German Empire The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...

in 1871. Together with

Kaiserliche Werft Kiel Kaiserliche Werft Kiel ("Imperial shipyard Kiel") was a German shipbuilding company founded in 1867, first as Königliche Werft Kiel but renamed in 1871, with the proclamation of the German Empire. Together with Kaiserliche Werft Danzig and ...

and

Kaiserliche Werft Wilhelmshaven Kaiserliche Werft Wilhelmshaven (Wilhelmshaven Imperial Shipyard) was a German shipbuilding company in Wilhelmshaven, founded in 1871 and closed in 1918. Together with Kaiserliche Werft Danzig and Kaiserliche Werft Kiel it was one of three shi ...

it was one of three shipyards responsible for maintenance, repair and construction of

warship A warship or combatant ship is a naval ship that is built and primarily intended for naval warfare. Usually they belong to the armed forces of a state. As well as being armed, warships are designed to withstand damage and are usually faster a ...

s for the

Imperial German Navy The Imperial German Navy or the Imperial Navy () was the navy of the German Empire, which existed between 1871 and 1919. It grew out of the small Prussian Navy (from 1867 the North German Federal Navy), which was mainly for coast defence. Wilhel ...

. ''Kaiserliche Werft Danzig'' closed in 1918 after the end of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, but soon opened when

Danziger Werft Danziger Werft ( en, The International Shipbuilding and Engineering Company Limited, pl, Stocznia Gdańska) was a shipbuilding company, in Danzig (now Gdańsk, Poland), in what was then the Free City of Danzig. It was founded in 1921 on the site ...

was founded on its site in 1919.

History

The history of the Danzig shipyard started 1844 when some area on both sides of the river Tote Weichsel at Danzig became property of the Royal Prussian Government. Named ''Marinedepot'' (1849–54) it was first only used as a depot and anchoring space for the few Prussian warships at the time. At the end of 1853 it became ''Königliche Werft Danzig'' (1854 – 1871), and was subsequently named ''Kaiserliche Werft Danzig'' (1871 – 1918) with the proclamation of the

in 1871. In 1848 when Prussia started to enlarge its navy, own development and construction of warships got higher priority which required greater

shipyard A shipyard, also called a dockyard or boatyard, is a place where ships are built and repaired. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Dockyards are sometimes more associated with maintenance a ...

s for these means. In 1850 additional new grounds were bought, further constructions followed and in the late 1870s once more there was a large extension of the facilities. However, the disadvantage of the KWD was the narrow channel of the river ( Weichsel) as well as some restrictions imposed by the Danzig municipality. This limited, of course, both the quantity and the dimensions of the built. The delivered tonnage of the KWD was only about 60% of that of Imperial Kiel Shipyard (

) and only 40% of that of the Imperial Wilhelmshaven Shipyard (

) in the period 1898 to 1904. The construction of larger warships ended consequently 1909 with the commissioning of the light cruiser . After that time the KWD concentrated the activities on the construction of auxiliary ships and later on submarines/u boats as well as maintenance and repair of warships. Beginning in 1908 parts of the yard were enlarged and more buildings rose on these grounds for

U-boat U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare role ...

construction. The KWD was the only of the three imperial shipyards which built U-boats for the ''Kaiserliche Marine''. Beginning with in 1906–1908 altogether 62 boats were built, but only 44 between 1914 and 1918, which was about 12% of total German submarine production, few compared to privately owned German shipyards at that time. With end of World War I the shipyard was closed but soon after opened again under different names and with different owners. Merged with the former

Schichau-Werft Schichau Seebeckwerft (often abbreviated SSW) was a German shipbuilding company, headquartered in Bremerhaven. The name comes from the 1988 merger of Schichau with Seebeckwerft. History The original company Schichau was founded in 1837 by Fer ...

Danzig, it belongs to

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

today, named ''Stocznia Gdańsk Spółka Akcyjna'' resp. in German ''Werft Danzig AG'' (since 1990).

Ships built by Kaiserliche Werft Danzig (selection)

*1871, Gun boat *1872, Corvette *1875, Armoured corvette *1877, Corvette *1896, Armoured ship , first , total two units *1890, Unprotected cruiser , first of six equal type ships *1899, Protected cruisers und *1906, Light cruiser *1908, Light cruiser *1908 – 1918, total 46 U-boats of different types completed, additional 27 planned but not completed ** Type U-2: SM U-2 ** Type U-3: SM U-3, SM U-4 ** Type U-9:

SM U-9 SM ''U-9'' was a German Type U 9 U-boat. She was one of 329 submarines serving in the Imperial German Navy, and engaged in commerce raiding (''Handelskrieg'') during World War I. Construction Her construction was ordered on 15 July 1908 and h ...

, SM U-10, SM U-11, SM U-12 ** Type U-13:

SM U-13 SM ''U-13'') and combined with the ''U'' for ''Unterseeboot'' would be translated as ''His Majesty's Submarine''., group=Note was one of the 329 submarines serving in the Imperial German Navy in World War I. ''U-13'' was engaged in the naval wa ...

, SM U-14, SM U-15 ** Type U-17: SM U-17, SM U-18 ** Type U-19: SM U-19, SM U-20, SM U-21, SM U-22 ** Type U 27: SM U-27, SM U-28, SM U-29, SM U-30 ** Type U 43: SM U-43, SM U-44, SM U-45,

SM U-46 SM ''U-46'' was one of the 329 submarines serving in the Imperial German Navy in World War I. ''U-46'' was engaged in the Naval warfare of World War I, combat during World War I and took part in the First Battle of the Atlantic. After the war, s ...

, SM U-47,

SM U-48 SM ''U-48'') and combined with the ''U'' for ''Unterseeboot'' would be translated as ''His Majesty's Submarine''., group=Note was one of the 329 submarines serving in the Imperial German Navy in World War I. ''U-48'' was engaged in the naval w ...

, SM U-49, SM U-50 ** Type UE 1: SM U-73, SM U-74 ** Type U 87: SM U-87, SM U-88, SM U-89,

SM U-90 SM ''U-90'' was a Type U-87 U-boat of the Imperial German Navy during World War I. Its commander Walter Remy made regular stops at remote island North Rona for provisions such as fresh mutton. On 15 May 1918, ''U-90'' shelled the Hirta wireless ...

, SM U-91, SM U-92 ** Type U-127: SM U-135,

SM U-136 SM ''U-136'') and combined with the ''U'' for ''Unterseeboot'' would be translated as ''His Majesty's Submarine''., group=Note was one of the 329 submarines serving in the Imperial German Navy in World War I. ''U-136'' was engaged in the naval wa ...

, SM U-137, SM U-138 ** Type UC II: SM UC-55, SM UC-56, SM UC-57, SM UC-58, SM UC-59, SM UC-60 ** Type UC III: UC 80 - UC 86, UC 139- UC 152 (never completed) ** Type Mittel U: U 213-218 (never completed)

Aircraft

Kaiserliche Werft Danzig 404 __NOTOC__ Numbers 404 and 405 were the sole two examples of a unique seaplane design produced for the flying service of the Imperial German Navy during the First World War.Nowarra 1966, p.78Gray & Thetford 1962, p.450Kroschel & Stützer 1994, p. ...

Kaiserliche Werft Danzig 467 __NOTOC__ Numbers 467 to 470 were four examples of a unique seaplane design produced for the flying service of the Imperial German Navy during the First World War.Nowarra 1966, p.78Gray & Thetford 1962, p.450Kroschel & Stützer 1994, p.154Taylor ...

Kaiserliche Werft Danzig 1105 __NOTOC__ Imperial German Navy seaplanes numbers 1105 and 1106 were the only examples of a unique design produced for the navy's flying service during the First World War.Nowarra 1966, p.78Gray & Thetford 1962, p.450Kroschel & Stützer 1994, p.1 ...

Kaiserliche Werft Danzig 1650 __NOTOC__ Number 1650 was the sole example of a unique seaplane design produced for the flying service of the Imperial German Navy during the First World War.Nowarra 1966, p.78Gray & Thetford 1962, p.450Kroschel & Stützer 1994, p.165 From 1916 o ...

References

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External links

Summary of Kaiserliche Werft Danzig's U-boats
{{Authority control Shipbuilding companies of Germany German companies established in 1852 Defunct companies of Germany History of Gdańsk Companies based in Gdańsk Companies of Prussia 1852 establishments in Prussia