page_title: SMS Lützow
section_title: Service
hierarchical_section_title: SMS Lützow / Service
caption_attribution_description: English: Map of the North Sea — in northern Europe including sea depths and the EZZs.
context_page_description: SMS Lützow was the second Derfflinger-class battlecruiser built by the German Kaiserliche Marine before World War I. Ordered as a replacement for the old protected cruiser Kaiserin Augusta, Lützow was launched on 29 November 1913, but not completed until 1916. Lützow was a sister ship to Derfflinger from which she differed slightly in that she was armed with an additional pair of 15 cm secondary guns and had an additional watertight compartment in her hull. She was named in honor of the Prussian general Ludwig Adolf Wilhelm von Lützow who fought in the Napoleonic Wars.
  Lützow was commissioned on 8 August 1915, but did not join I Scouting Group until 20 March due to engine damage during trials. This was after most of the major actions conducted by the German battlecruiser force had taken place. As a result, Lützow saw very little action during the war. She took part in only one bombardment operation: the Bombardment of Yarmouth and Lowestoft on 24–25 April 1916, after which she became Admiral Franz von Hipper's flagship. One month later, the ship was heavily engaged during the Battle of Jutland, on 31 May–1 June.
context_section_description: Lützow was ordered as Ersatz Kaiserin Augusta, to replace the elderly protected cruiser Kaiserin Augusta, which was by then 20 years old. Built by Schichau-Werke in Danzig, her keel was laid down in May 1912, and she was launched on 29 November 1913. Lützow was commissioned on 8 August 1915 for trials, and was sent to Kiel on 23 August. The torpedo boats G192, G194, and G196 provided a screen for hostile submarines that might be operating in the area, the four vessels arriving the next day. There she completed her final fitting out, including her armament. On 13 September, she began her trials, including torpedo firing tests on 15 September and gunnery tests on 6 October. While on trials on 25 October, Lützow's port low-pressure turbine was badly damaged. Repairs were conducted in Kiel until late January 1916, after which the ship underwent further trials. These were finished on 19 February; Lützow was assigned to I Scouting Group on 20 March, and arrived at her new unit four days later.
  The ship's first and only commander was Kapitän zur See Victor Harder. On 24 April, Lützow and the battlecruisers Seydlitz and Moltke made a brief sortie into the North Sea, cruising to the eastern end of the Amrun Bank, since British destroyers had been reported to have been in the area. A second sweep followed two days later, also to the Amrun Bank. While on this operation, a British submarine attempted to torpedo Lützow without success. Konteradmiral (Rear Admiral) Friedrich Boedicker, the deputy commander of I Scouting Group, temporarily raised his flag aboard the ship from 29 March to 11 April. On 21–22 April, Lützow joined the rest of the High Seas Fleet for a sortie into the North Sea that failed to locate any British warships.
caption: The North Sea, where most German naval operations took place
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