SMS Schleswig - Holstein SMS " Schleswig - Holstein " was the last of the five s built by the German Kaiserliche Marine . The ship , named for the province of Schleswig - Holstein , was laid down in the Germaniawerft dockyard in Kiel in August 1905 and commissioned into the fleet nearly three years later . The ships of her class were already outdated by the time they entered service , being inferior in size , armor , firepower and speed to the new generation of dreadnought battleships . " Schleswig - Holstein " fought in both World Wars . During World War I , she saw front - line service in the II Battle Squadron of the High Seas Fleet , culminating in the Battle of Jutland on 31 May – 1 June 1916 . " Schleswig - Holstein " saw action during the engagement , and was hit by one large - caliber shell . After the battle , " Schleswig - Holstein " was relegated to guard duties in the mouth of the Elbe River before being decommissioned in late 1917 . As one of the few battleships permitted for Germany by the terms of the Treaty of Versailles , " Schleswig - Holstein " was again pressed into fleet service in the 1920s . In 1935 , the old battleship was converted into a training ship for naval cadets . " Schleswig - Holstein " fired the first shots of World War II when she fired at the Polish base at Westerplatte in the early morning hours of 1 September 1939 . The ship was used as a training vessel for the majority of the war , and was sunk by British bombers in December 1944 . " Schleswig - Holstein " was subsequently salvaged and then beached for use by the Soviet Navy as a target . As of 1990 , the ship ' s bell was on display in the Bundeswehr Military History Museum in Dresden . Construction . " Schleswig - Holstein " was laid down on 18 August 1905 at the Germaniawerft dockyard in Kiel . She was launched on 17 December 1906 , the last pre - dreadnought battleship of the German navy . The British battleship — armed with ten 12 - inch ( 30 . 5 cm ) guns — had already been commissioned earlier that month , with a revolutionary design that rendered every ship of the German navy obsolescent , including " Schleswig - Holstein " . At " Schleswig - Holstein " s launching ceremony , she was christened by Augusta Victoria of Schleswig - Holstein , the German Empress ; Wilhelm II was also in attendance . Ernst Gunther , the Duke of Schleswig - Holstein , gave the commissioning speech . " Schleswig - Holstein " had a length of , a beam of , a draft of , and a full - load displacement of . She was equipped with three - shaft triple expansion engines and twelve coal - fired water - tube boilers that produced a rated and a top speed of . In addition to being the fastest ship of her class , " Schleswig - Holstein " was the second most fuel efficient . At a cruising speed of , she could steam for . She had a standard crew of 35 officers and 708 enlisted men . The ship ' s primary armament consisted of four 28 cm SK L / 40 gun s in two twin turrets ; one turret was placed forward and the other aft . She was also equipped with fourteen guns mounted in casemates and twenty guns in pivot mounts . The ship was also armed with six torpedo tubes , all submerged in the hull . One was in the bow , one in the stern , and four on the broadside . Her armored belt was thick amidships , and she had a thick armored deck . The main battery turrets had thick sides . Service history . Upon completion , " Schleswig - Holstein " was commissioned for sea trials on 6 July 1908 . Her crew largely came from her sister ship . On 21 September the ship was assigned to the II Battle Squadron of the High Seas Fleet , alongside her sister ships . In November , fleet and unit exercises were conducted in the Baltic Sea . The training regimen in which " Schleswig - Holstein " participated followed a similar pattern over the next five years . Fleet maneuvers were conducted in the spring , followed by a summer cruise to Norway , and additional fleet training in the fall . This included another cruise into the Atlantic , from 7 July to 1 August 1909 . Starting in September 1910 , Friedrich Bödicker took command of the ship , a position he held for the next three years . On 3 October 1911 , the ship was transferred back to the II Squadron . Due to the Agadir Crisis in July , the summer cruise only went into the Baltic . In 1913 , she won the Kaiser ' s " Schiesspreis " ( Gunnery Award ) . On 14 July 1914 , the annual summer cruise to Norway began , but the threat of war in Europe cut the excursion short ; within two weeks " Schleswig - Holstein " and the rest of the II Squadron had returned to Wilhelmshaven . World War I . At the outbreak of war in July 1914 , " Schleswig - Holstein " was assigned to guard duty in the mouth of the Elbe River while the rest of the fleet mobilized . In late October , she and her sisters were sent to Kiel to have improvements made to their underwater protection system to make them more resistant to torpedoes and mines , after which the II Battle Squadron rejoined the fleet . The main battle fleet covered Rear Admiral Franz von Hipper ' s battlecruiser s of the I Scouting Group while they bombarded Scarborough , Hartlepool , and Whitby on 15 – 16 December 1914 . During the operation , the German battle fleet of some 12 dreadnoughts and 8 pre - dreadnoughts came to within of an isolated squadron of six British battleships . However , skirmishes between the rival destroyer screens convinced the German commander , Admiral Friedrich von Ingenohl , that he was confronted with the entire Grand Fleet , and so he broke off the engagement and turned for home . In April 1916 , the ship had two of her 8 . 8 cm guns removed and replaced with 8 . 8 cm Flak guns . " Schleswig - Holstein " then participated in a fleet advance to the Dogger Bank on 21 – 22 April 1915 . On 11 – 12 September , the II Reconnaissance Group conducted a minelaying operation off the Swarte Bank with the II Squadron in support . This was followed by another sweep by the fleet on 23 – 24 October that ended without result . The II and III Battle Squadron dreadnoughts conducted an advance into the North Sea on 5 – 7 March 1916 ; " Schleswig - Holstein " and the rest of the II Squadron remained in the German Bight , ready to sail in support . They then rejoined the fleet during the operation to bombard Yarmouth and Lowestoft on 24 – 25 April . During this operation , the battlecruiser was damaged by a British mine and had to return to port prematurely . Visibility was poor , so the operation was quickly called off before the British fleet could intervene . Battle of Jutland . The commander of the High Seas Fleet , Admiral Reinhard Scheer , immediately planned another advance into the North Sea , but the damage to " Seydlitz " delayed the operation until the end of May . As the last ship assigned to the IV Division of the II Battle Squadron , the rearmost German formation , " Schleswig - Holstein " was the last battleship in the line . The II Battle Squadron was commanded by Rear Admiral Franz Mauve . During the " Run to the North , " Scheer ordered the fleet to pursue the retreating battleships of the British 5th Battle Squadron at top speed . " Schleswig - Holstein " and her sisters were significantly slower than the dreadnoughts and quickly fell behind . During this period , Admiral Scheer directed to place herself behind " Schleswig - Holstein " so he would have a flagship on either end of the formation . By 19 : 30 , the Grand Fleet had arrived on the scene and confronted Admiral Scheer with significant numerical superiority . The German fleet was severely hampered by the presence of the slower " Deutschland " - class ships ; if Scheer ordered an immediate turn towards Germany , he would have to sacrifice the slower ships to make his escape . Admiral Scheer decided to reverse the course of the fleet with the " Gefechtskehrtwendung " , a maneuver that required every unit in the German line to turn 180° simultaneously . Having fallen behind , the ships of the II Battle Squadron could not conform to the new course following the turn , and fell to the disengaged side of the German line . Admiral Mauve considered moving his ships to the rear of the line , astern of the III Battle Squadron dreadnoughts , but decided against it when he realized the movement would interfere with the maneuvering of Hipper ' s battlecruisers . Instead , he attempted to place his ships at the head of the line . But by the time the II Squadron reached its position at the head of the line , Scheer had ordered another " Gefechtskehrtwendung " , which placed them at the rear of the German fleet . By 21 : 00 , Scheer had turned the fleet around a third time , but the slow speed of " Schleswig - Holstein " and her squadron mates caused them to fall out of position , to the disengaged side of the fleet . Later on the first day of the battle , Hipper ' s badly damaged battlecruisers were being engaged by their British rivals . " Schleswig - Holstein " and the other so - called " five - minute ships " came to their aid by steaming in between the opposing battlecruiser squadrons . These ships were very briefly engaged , owing in large part to the poor visibility . Indeed , the visibility was so bad , the gunners aboard " Schleswig - Holstein " could not make out a target , and she did not fire her main guns . At 21 : 35 a heavy caliber shell struck the ship on the port side , punching a hole approximately 40 cm ( 16 in ) wide before exploding against the inner casemate armor . It tore apart of the superstructure deck and disabled one of the port side casemate guns . Three men were killed and nine were wounded . Admiral Mauve halted the fight against the much more powerful battlecruisers and ordered an 8 - point turn to starboard . Late on the 31st , the fleet reformed for the night voyage back to Germany , with " Schleswig - Holstein " towards the rear of the line , ahead of , " Hannover " , and the battlecruisers and . Around 03 : 00 , British destroyers conducted a series of attacks against the fleet , some of which were directed towards " Schleswig - Holstein " . Shortly thereafter , " Pommern " was struck by at least one torpedo from the destroyer ; the hit detonated an ammunition magazine , destroying the ship in a tremendous explosion . During the attack , " Schleswig - Holstein " was forced to turn away to avoid the destroyers ' torpedoes . Shortly after 05 : 00 , " Hannover " and several other ships fired repeatedly at what they falsely believed to be British submarines . Despite the ferocity of the night fighting , the High Seas Fleet punched through the British destroyer forces and reached Horns Reef by 4 : 00 on 1 June . The German fleet reached Wilhelmshaven a few hours later , where the undamaged dreadnoughts of the and es took up defensive positions . Over the course of the battle , " Schleswig - Holstein " had fired only twenty 17 cm rounds . Later actions . " Schleswig - Holstein " was put into dock for repairs 10 – 25 June 1916 . The Navy then decided to withdraw the four remaining " Deutschland " - class ships , owing to their obsolescence and vulnerability to underwater attacks , as demonstrated by the loss of " Pommern " . Thereafter , the ship was used as a target for U - boats , except during 12 – 23 February 1917 when she was used as a guard ship . In April " Schleswig - Holstein " was sent to Altenbruch at the mouth of the Elbe ; here she was decommissioned on 2 May . " Schleswig - Holstein " was then disarmed and assigned to the 5th U - boat Flotilla to be used as a barracks ship in Bremerhaven . In 1918 the ship was moved to Kiel , where she remained for the rest of the war . Inter - war years . Following the German defeat in World War I , the German navy was reorganized as the Reichsmarine according to the Treaty of Versailles . The new navy was permitted to retain eight pre - dreadnought battleships under — two of which would be in reserve — for coastal defense . " Schleswig - Holstein " was among the ships that were retained , along with her sisters " Hannover " and " Schlesien " and several of the " Braunschweig " - class battleships . " Schleswig - Holstein " was recommissioned as the new fleet flagship on 31 January 1926 following an extensive refit , with new fire controls and an enlarged aft superstructure for the admiral ' s staff . The secondary 17 cm guns were replaced with pieces and four 50 cm torpedo tubes were fitted in main deck casemates fore and aft , replacing the submerged tubes . " Schleswig - Holstein " and her sister " Hannover " went on a training cruise into the Atlantic that lasted from 14 May to 17 June 1926 ; while on the cruise , she visited Palma de Mallorca in the Mediterranean on 22 to 30 May . She stopped in Barcelona with on 1 to 7 June , and then proceeded to Vigo from 12 to 14 June , where she joined " Hessen " , " Elsass " , and " Hannover " . There , the chief of the fleet , Vice Admiral Konrad Mommsen , met with King Alfonso XIII . " Schleswig - Holstein " went on another training cruise between 30 March and 14 June 1927 into the Atlantic . She visited a series of Iberian ports , including Lisbon , Portugal , where Mommsen was greeted by Óscar Carmona , the president of Portugal . In December 1927 " Schleswig - Holstein " went back into dock , re - emerging in January 1928 with her forefunnel trunked back into the second and both remaining funnels heightened , as had previously been done with her sister " Schlesien " . With the delivery of the new " Panzerschiffe " ( armored ships ) beginning in 1933 , the older battleships were gradually withdrawn from front - line service . In May 1935 , the Reichsmarine was reorganized as the Kriegsmarine by the reforms instituted by Adolf Hitler that created the Wehrmacht . " Schleswig - Holstein " ceased to be fleet flagship on 22 September 1935 , and was refitted as a cadet training ship during January – March and May – July 1936 . The changes included removing her remaining upper deck 15 cm guns and her torpedo tubes , and her two aft boiler rooms were converted to oil - firing models , although the forward boilers remained coal - fired . The ship ' s standard complement was also reduced from 35 officers and 708 enlisted men to 31 officers and 565 sailors . The crew was supplemented by 175 cadets , who were taken on long cruises in " Schlesien " and " Schleswig - Holstein " , the latter sailing in October 1936 on a six - month voyage to South America and the Caribbean . The following year , her cruise took her around Africa , and the 1938 – 39 cruise went back to South American and Caribbean waters . Gustav Kieseritzky served as the ship ' s commander from June 1938 until April 1939 . In the mid - 1930s , Hitler began pursuing an increasingly aggressive foreign policy ; in 1936 he re - militarized the Rhineland , and in 1938 completed the Anschluss of Austria and the annexation of Czechoslovakia . He then demanded German control over the city of Danzig , which had become a free city after World War I . World War II . Early on 1 September 1939 , Germany launched an attack against Poland . " Schleswig - Holstein " had been positioned in the port of Danzig on what had been called a ceremonial visit in August . The ship was moored close to the Polish fortress at Westerplatte ; at 04 : 47 on 1 September , " Schleswig - Holstein " opened fire with her main battery at the Polish positions on the Westerplatte , and in doing so fired the first shots of World War II . A force of German marines was landed to take the fortress . The Poles managed to hold off the Germans until they were forced to surrender on 8 September at 10 : 30 . The German military then turned its attention westward , and in April 1940 , invaded Denmark . " Schleswig - Holstein " was assigned to the naval component of the invasion force . During the invasion , the ship was briefly grounded off the Danish coast . Following the operation , she was transferred back to training duties , as the flagship of the Chief of Training Units . At the end of 1943 , the reactivation of " Schleswig - Holstein " was once again contemplated . In her favor was the fact that she retained some coal - fired boilers , given the ever - worsening oil - supply situation . Thus , on 1 February 1944 she was once again recommissioned , at first taking up her old role as a cadet training ship , then later in the year docking at Gotenhafen for a refit . She was to be converted into a convoy escort ship with a greatly enhanced anti - aircraft armament , but after being hit three times by Royal Air Force bombers on 18 December 1944 , she eventually foundered in shallow water . As the ship was now permanently disabled , her crew was sent ashore to assist in the defense of Marienburg . Following the Soviet capture of that city , the remaining crew detonated scuttling charges in the wreck on 21 March to further destroy the ship . After the war , the ship was raised during 1945 / 1946 by the Soviet Navy and transferred to Tallinn . Although reference books long stated that she was scrapped there or in Marienburg , in actuality she was towed out in 1948 and beached for long - term use as a target in shallow water off the island of Osmussaar in the Gulf of Finland . Last used for target practice around 1966 , the remains are now submerged . Her bell was held in the collection of the Military History Museum of the Bundeswehr in Dresden as of 1990 . References . Online sources