WesWorld

I have some concerns about German shipbuilding infrastructure.

Historically, Germany had 5 'Type 3' shipyards operational during WW1, yet its infrastructure does not reflect this.

The following units would all require Type 3 slipways and drydocks:

Kiel
- Kaiser, 1911
- Kaiserin, 1911
- Prinzregent Luitpold, 1912
- Kronprinz, 1914
- Bayern, 1915

Hamburg,
- Friedrich der Grosse, 1911
- Grosser Kurfurst, 1913
- Von der Tann, 1909
- Moltke, 1910
- Goeben, 1911
- Seydlitz, 1912
- Derfflinger, 1913
- Maceknsen, 1917
- Ersatz Freya, incomplete

Danzig
- Konig Albert, 1912
- Baden, 1915
- Lutzow, 1913
- Ersatz Graf Spee, 1917

Wilhelmshaven
- Konig, 1913
- Hindenburg, 1915
- Ersatz "A", incomplete

Bremen
- Markgraf, 1913

Conclusions:

1. It is clear from the build dates that Kiel and Hamburg have at least two Type 3 slips and two Type 3 drydocks operational,

2. Bremen and Wilhelmshaven shoud each have a Type 3 building Slip and a Type 3 drydock available.

3. Danzig is going to be a total loss from an infrastructre point of view.

Any comments?

Fair enough, but I know that historically, Hamburg was a viable commercial shipbuilding operation in 1922, building the large passenger liners Bismark (1922, 56,000 tons), Albert Ballin (1923), New York (1927), Kungsholm (192, Europa (1930, 50,000 tons).

Note that the "Bismark" was turned over to Cunard-White Star as the Majestic as part of Germanies War Reparations. The New York and Alber Ballin were not quite so large, but would still have required a Type 3 slip to build.

The 56,000 ton Bismark/Majestic not only continues operation of the yard, but also implies expansion to Type 4 capabilites.

Edit: Bremen also built a sister ship to the "Europa", the Bremen of 1929, also implying expansion of the yards to Type 4 capability as well. Apart from that, Bremen also built the Sardegna (1923) for Italy, the Sierra Cordoba (1924) and the Berlin (1925).

Just doing a little bit of online research and it turns out that the Bismark/Majestic (laid down 1914 incidentally) was 915 ft long, bumping the capacity of Hamburg up to a Type 5. Europa and Bremen are listed at 936 feet, which also bumps the Bremen yard up to a Type 5 rating.

I was thinking that Hamburg and Bremen were kept operational through this entire period. Is it unreasonable to posit that these yards, which were private building yards, not state owned yards, were allowed to keep operating to produce merchant vessels that would be provided to the victors of WW1 as a form of ongoing war reparations?

I can see the deliberate degradation of the state owned naval yards, but the private yards can be exploited by the Entente powers to rebuild the damage Germany caused to the merchant marines' of the Entente powers.

Edit: Merchant construction does not require the heavy armour forging and gun founding facilities. Maybe these two yards were under the admnistrative control of the League of Nations?

Hamburg in the lead up to and during WW1 was the largest single production for Capital ships for the High Seas Fleet, with 7 Battleships and Battlecruisers laid down (6 Launched).

In the 1911-1921 period 14 Battleships and 8 Battlecruisers were either launched or completed, for an infrastructure point total of 220 points, plus the 30 thirty points standard for a total of 250 points.

10 factories and the 22 factories that goes with the capital ships for a total of 32 factories.

The above figures are a rough count, so it might be a little bit less.

Even so, you still have a significant construction capacity that while it does not compare to the British Empire or the United States in total capacity, is greater than that of the other powers, sometimes by a massive margin.

Edit: Done some research on the various yards.

Kiel

2 x Type 3 Docks
2 x Type 2 Docks
2 x Type 1 Docks
3 x Type 4 Slips
7 x Type 3 Slips
6 x Type 2 Slips

Total Infrastructure : 67 (Yes, 67 - I shit you not)
(Incorporates Kiel Naval Base, Krupp Germania, Howaldswerke)

Wilhelmshaven

1 x Type 4 Dock
2 x Type 3 Docks
3 x Type 1 Docks
1 x Type 3 Slip

Total Infrastructure: 22
(Wilhelmshaven Naval Base)

Emden

1 x Type 4 Dock
2 x Type 4 Slips
1 x Type 3 Slip
1 x Type 2 Slip

Total Infrastructure: 18
(Nordseewerke)

Bremen

2 x Type 3 Docks
1 x Type 2 Dock
1 x Type 5 Slip
2 x Type 3 Slips
3 x Type 1 Slips

Total Infrastructure: 31
(Incorporates AG Weser, Vulkan Bremer)

Hamburg

1 x Type 5 Dock
1 x Type 5 Slip
1 x Type 4 Slip
1 x Type 3 Slip
2 x Type 1 Slips

Total Infrastructure: 20
(Incrorporates Blohn & Voss, Vulkan Hamberg)

Overall Infrastructure: 158

Note: This does not include Danzig (effectively does not exist) or a lot of the smaller yards that I didn't have information on.

Note 2: Losing Danzig would reduce Infrastructure to 230 and 30 Factories (assuming Danzig was roughly equivalent of the other "medium" yards), which still leaves 72 points of Infrastructure unaccounted for in the smaller shipyards.

Heh, I've just posted some more detailed figures, not quite as scary.

You can see the difference between the naval base at Wilhelmshaven and the commercial building yards.

But take a look at Kiel! Is there anything else on the planet like it?

And that is with 37% of the Infrastructure unaccounted for or lost due to border changes...

The base figures work out very similarly, but I was taking my information from "Naval Shipbuilders of the World" by Robert I Winklareth.

While the base numbers are fairly similar, there were a huge number of smaller yards that (8 that I don't have precise figures for) which were building the small units.

There are two smaller yards in Hamburg that built submarines and torpedo boats, three smaller yards in Bremen, three small yards scattered along the Baltic coast and another small submarine building yard in Kiel!!!!

This would probably boost Hamburg up to 40 points, Bremen up to 60 points and Kiel up to 75 points!?!?!

It makes you see why Germany made the rest of Europe verrrry nervous.

A 500lb Gorilla with a bad temper.