Brummer - class cruiser The " Brummer " class consisted of two light mine - laying cruiser s built for the Imperial German Navy in World War I : and . When the war broke out , the Germans had only two older mine - laying cruisers . Although most German cruisers were fitted for mine - laying , a need for fast specialized ships existed . The Imperial Russian Navy had ordered a set of steam turbines for the " Navarin " from the AG Vulcan shipyard in Stettin . This machinery was confiscated on the outbreak of war and used for these ships . Both vessels were built by AG Vulcan . The two ships laid a series of minefields during their career , though their most significant success came in October 1917 , when they attacked a British convoy to Norway . They sank two escorting destroyer s and nine of the twelve merchant ships from the convoy . They escaped back to Germany without damage . The two ships were interned at Scapa Flow after the end of the war , and were subsequently scuttled by their crews on 21 June 1919 . " Brummer " was sunk in deep water and was never raised , but " Bremse " was brought up in 1929 and broken up for scrap in 1932 – 1933 . Design and construction . In 1914 , AG Vulcan in Stettin was building two sets of high - powered steam turbines for the Russian Navy for use in their new battlecruiser " Navarin " , then under construction in Russia . After the outbreak of World War I in August 1914 , which saw Germany and Russia on opposing sides , the German government seized the turbines . At that time , the " Kaiserliche Marine " possessed only two cruisers equipped for mine - laying operations , the cruisers and . The " Kaiserliche Marine " ordered AG Vulcan to split " Navarin " s propulsion system in half and to design a pair of cruiser hulls around the engines . The ships were to be fast mine - layers , capable of mining an area under cover of darkness and quickly returning to port before they could be intercepted . They were designed to resemble the British " Arethusa " class cruisers to aid in their ability to operate off the British coast . Design work on the ships was completed quickly in 1914 . " Brummer " was laid down at the AG Vulcan shipyard in Stettin in early 1915 . Work proceeded quickly , and the ship was launched on 11 December 1915 . After the completion of fitting - out work , the ship was commissioned into the High Seas Fleet on 2 April 1916 . " Bremse " followed her sister the same year at AG Vulcan . She was launched on 11 March 1916 and completed in less than four months ; the ship was commissioned into the fleet on 1 July 1916 . During construction , the shape of their bow and its resemblance to British cruisers was covered by sheet metal . General characteristics . " Brummer " and " Bremse " were long at the waterline and long overall . They had a beam of and a draft of forward and aft . The ships had a designed displacement of , and at full combat load , they displaced . Their hulls were built with longitudinal steel frames . The hulls were divided into twenty - one watertight compartments and incorporated a double bottom that extended for forty - four percent of the length of the keel . " Brummer " differed slightly , as she had a row of porthole s amidships that her sister " Bremse " did not have . " Brummer " and " Bremse " were fitted with masts similar to the British " Arethusa " class cruisers , and similarly to the British ships , the masts could be lowered and stored on the superstructure deck . Their bow was also modeled on the " Arethusa " class ships to further disguise the vessels . The ships had a complement of 16 officers and 293 enlisted men . They carried several smaller vessels , including one picket boat , one barge , and two dinghies . The German Navy regarded the ships as excellent sea boats , having gentle motion . The ships were highly maneuverable and had a tight turning radius , and only lost slight speed in a head sea . In hard turns , they lost up to sixty percent speed . They were very crank , however . Machinery . The two ships ' propulsion systems consisted of two turbines powered by two coal - fired Marine Doppelkessel double - ended boilers and four oil - fired Öl - Marine double - ended boilers . The turbines drove a pair of three - bladed screws , which were in diameter . The engines were rated at for a top speed of . On trials , " Brummer " reached while " Bremse " made ; they averaged a top speed of with a light load . The ships were capable of speeds up to , though only in short bursts . Coal storage was as designed , though up to could be carried . Fuel oil was initially , and could be similarly increased to . At a cruising speed of , the ships could steam for . At a higher speed of , the range fell considerably , to . Electrical power was provided by two turbo generators and one diesel generator . Steering was controlled by a single , large rudder . Armament and armor . The ships were armed with four 15 cm SK L / 45 guns in single pedestal mounts ; all four were placed on the centerline so all four guns could fire on the broadside . One was placed forward on the forecastle , a second was located between the first and second funnel and two were arranged in a superfiring pair aft . These guns fired a shell at a muzzle velocity of . The guns had a maximum elevation of 30 degrees , which allowed them to engage targets out to . They were supplied with 600 rounds of ammunition , for 150 shells per gun . " Brummer " and " Bremse " also carried two L / 45 anti - aircraft guns mounted on the centerline astern of the funnels . These guns fired a shells at a muzzle velocity of . The ships were also equipped with a pair of torpedo tube s with four torpedoes in a swivel mount amidships . Designed as mine - layers , they carried up to 450 mines , depending on the type . Two rails ran down the main deck to the stern to allow the mines to be dropped behind the ship . The " Brummer " - class cruisers ' armor was fabricated from Krupp cemented steel . The ships were protected by a waterline armored belt that was thick amidships ; the bow and stern were not armored . The deck was covered with thick armor plate . Gun shields thick protected the 15 cm gun battery crews . The conning tower had thick sides and a thick roof . Atop the conning tower was the bridge , which included a splinter - proof chart house . All three funnels were equipped with a steel glacis for splinter protection . Service . After their commissioning , " Brummer " and " Bremse " served with the High Seas Fleet , including on a sortie into the North Sea in October 1916 . The ships laid a minefield off Norderney in January 1917 and guarded minesweepers between March and May that year . In October 1917 , Admiral Reinhard Scheer sent the two ships to attack a British convoy to Norway to divert forces protecting convoys in the Atlantic . Scheer chose " Brummer " and " Bremse " because of their high speed and large radius of action . Shortly after dawn on 17 October , the two cruisers attacked the convoy , which consisted of twelve merchant ships , two destroyer s , and two armed trawler s . The German ships quickly sank the escorting destroyers and nine of the twelve cargo vessels . The British Admiralty was not informed of the attack until " Brummer " and " Bremse " were safely steaming back to Germany . Along with the most modern units of the High Seas Fleet , " Brummer " and " Bremse " were included in the ships specified for internment Scapa Flow by the victorious Allied powers . The ships steamed out of Germany on 21 November 1918 in single file , commanded by Rear Admiral Ludwig von Reuter . Reuter believed that the British intended to seize the German ships on 21 June 1919 , and so he ordered the ships to be sunk at the next opportunity . On the morning of 21 June , the British fleet left Scapa Flow to conduct training maneuvers , and at 11 : 20 Reuter transmitted the order to scuttle his ships . " Brummer " sank at 13 : 05 ; she was never raised for scrapping and remains on the bottom of Scapa Flow . " Bremse " sank at 14 : 30 and was ultimately raised on 27 November 1929 and broken up for scrap in 1932 – 1933 in Lyness .