SMS Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse " For the liner of the same name , see " SMS " Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse " ( " HMS Emperor William the Great " ) was a German pre - dreadnought battleship of the , built around the turn of the 20th Century . The ship was one of the first battleships built by the German Imperial Navy ( Kaiserliche Marine ) as part of a program of naval expansion under Kaiser Wilhelm II . " Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse " was built in Kiel , at the Germaniawerft shipyard . She was laid down in 1898 and completed in May , 1901 . The ship was armed with a main battery of four guns in two twin gun turret s . " Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse " served in the active fleet for ten years , during which time she participated in a number of the fleet ' s training maneuvers . By the early 1910s , however , the new dreadnought battleship s had begun to come into service . As a result , the ship was decommissioned and placed in reserve . At the outbreak of World War I in 1914 , the battleship and her sisters were placed back in active service as the V Battle Squadron of the High Seas Fleet and tasked with coastal defense . In 1915 , the ships were again withdrawn from service and relegated to secondary duties . " Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse " was used as a depot ship in Kiel and eventually a torpedo target ship . After the end of the war , the vessel was sold for scrapping to a German company and broken up in 1920 . Construction . Kaiser Wilhelm II , the emperor of Germany , believed that a strong navy was necessary for the country to expand its influence outside of continental Europe . As a result , he initiated a program of naval expansion in the late 1880s ; the first battleships built under this program were the four ships . These were immediately followed by the five s , of which " Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse " was a unit . Her keel was laid in 1895 , at the Kaiserliche Werft in Wilhelmshaven , under construction number 22 . She was ordered under the contract name " Ersatz König Wilhelm " , to replace the obsolete armored frigate . " Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse " was launched on 1 June 1899 and commissioned on 5 May 1901 . The ship was long overall and had a beam of and a draft of forward and aft . She was powered by three 3 - cylinder vertical triple expansion engines that drove three screws . Steam was provided by four naval and eight cylindrical boilers . " Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse " s powerplant was rated at , which generated a top speed of . " Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse " s armament consisted of a main battery of four 24 cm ( 9 . 4 in ) SK L / 40 guns in twin gun turret s , one fore and one aft of the central superstructure . Her secondary armament consisted of eighteen 15 cm ( 5 . 9 inch ) SK L / 40 guns and twelve 8 . 8 cm ( 3 . 45 in ) SK L / 30 quick - firing guns . The armament suite was rounded out with six 45 cm torpedo tube s , all in above - water swivel mounts . Service history . After commissioning in 1901 , the ship joined her sister - ships in the I Squadron of the " Heimatflotte " ( Home Fleet ) . After her sister had to be docked for repairs , " Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse " replaced her as the I Squadron flagship , which was commanded by Prince Heinrich . In late August through mid September , " Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse " conducted extensive training exercises with the rest of the German fleet . That year , Erich Raeder — who would go on to command the Kriegsmarine in World War II , was promoted to serve as the watch officer aboard her . On 31 August 1902 , the fleet conducted the annual summer training maneuvers . " Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse " was assigned to the " hostile " force , as were several of her sister - ships . The " hostile " force was first tasked with preventing the " German " squadron from passing through the Great Belt in the Baltic . " Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse " and several other battleships were then tasked with forcing an entry into the mouth of the Elbe River , where the Kaiser Wilhelm Canal and Hamburg could be seized . The " hostile " flotilla accomplished these tasks within three days . In 1903 , the fleet , which was composed of only one squadron of battleships , was reorganized as the " Active Battle Fleet . " " Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse " remained in the I Squadron along with her sisterships and the newest s , while the older ships were placed in reserve in order to be rebuilt . In October 1905 , the " Heimatflotte " was again reorganized ; " Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse " was reassigned to the I Division of the II Squadron , alongside her sister - ship " Kaiser Friedrich III " and the older battleship . The balance of the " Heimatflotte " consisted of another division of three battleships in the I Squadron and two more three - ship divisions in the II Squadron . This was supported by a cruiser division , composed of two armored cruiser s and six protected cruiser s . In 1907 , the newest s were coming into service ; along with the s , these provided enough modern battleships to create two full battle squadrons . As a result , the " Heimatflotte " was renamed the " Hochseeflotte " ( High Seas Fleet ) . " Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse " was extensively modernized in 1908 – 1910 at the Kaiserliche Werft shipyard in Kiel . During the refit , four of the ship ' s 15 cm guns and the stern - mounted torpedo tube were removed . Two 8 . 8 cm guns were added and the arrangement of the tertiary battery was modified . Her superstructure was also cut down to reduce the ship ' s tendency to roll excessively . The ship ' s funnels were also lengthened . After she emerged from the reconstruction , the ship was moved to the III Squadron , along with her sister - ships . However , in 1910 , the new dreadnought battleship s were beginning to come into service with the fleet . Thoroughly obsolete compared to the new " all - big - gun " battleships , " Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse " was then decommissioned and placed into reserve . World War I . At the outbreak of World War I in August 1914 , " Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse " and her sisters were brought back to active service and mobilized as the V Battle Squadron . They were assigned to coastal defense in the Baltic , though they served in this capacity for a very short time . In February 1915 , they were again withdrawn from service and placed in reserve . In 1916 , " Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse " was employed as a depot ship in Kiel . The following year , the ship was used as a torpedo target ship . According to of the Treaty of Versailles , signed on 28 June 1919 , Germany was permitted to retain only six battleships of the " or " Lothringen " types . " On 6 December 1919 , the vessel was struck from the naval list and sold to a shipbreaking firm based in Berlin . The following year , " Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse " was broken up for scrap metal in Kiel - Nordmole . Notes . Footnotes Citations References . Books Journals