GERMAN NAVAL BASES
KIEL
Kiel, in spite of the growing importance of Wilhelmshaven, still retains
its position as Germany’s premier “Reichskriegshafen,” or Imperial War
Port. Its superb harbour, and the international regatta, known as the
“Kieler Woche,” which is held each June, have made Kiel one of the best
known ports of Europe. This year’s regatta, it will be remembered, was
rendered memorable by the presence of the British Second Battle Squadron
and some of our light cruisers. The Imperial Dockyard at Kiel is said to
be one of the best-equipped establishments of its kind in the world.
It has two large building slips, on one of which the Dreadnought
battleship “Kaiser” was constructed, and there are other slips for the
building of smaller vessels. Of the six graving docks, two are large
enough for Dreadnoughts. There is also a mammoth floating dock capable
of raising vessels up to 39,500 tons, and five other pontoon docks for
ships of smaller dimensions. Upwards of 10,500 officials and hands are
employed at the yard, which specialises in repair and refitting work,
though a good deal of new construction is also undertaken.
Kiel is the official residence of Prince Henry of Prussia, the Kaiser’s
brother, who is Inspector-General of the Fleet. Some four miles down the
harbour is Holtenau and the locks of the Kaiser Wilhelm Canal. Kiel is
very strongly defended against both land and seaward attack. The harbour
entrance is guarded by the batteries of Friedrichsort on the west, and
those of Laboe and Möltenort on the east. At Friedrichsort the fairway
is less than 1,000 yards wide, so that ships attempting to force an
entrance would have to run the gauntlet of the heavy fortress guns at
almost point-blank range. Friedrichsort is the home of the State torpedo
factory, which supplies practically the entire navy with these weapons.
In normal times the Second and Third Battle Squadrons are based in Kiel,
which is also the base for the Baltic Reserve Squadron, the First
Torpedo Division, and the submarine flotillas. Besides the State yard,
there is the immense shipbuilding and engineering establishment known as
the Germania Yard, owned by Krupp, and the Howaldt Yard, both of which
construct warships of the largest size. Hence the building and repairing
facilities at Kiel are very extensive, and they pass automatically under
State control in wartime. Kiel itself is a large and thriving city, with
a population of 180,000. Its growth dates from 1866, when it was wrested
from Denmark by Prussia, with the whole of the Schleswig-Holstein
province.
HELIGOLAND.
Heligoland is the most remarkable of Germany’s naval strongholds. This
island, it will be remembered, was ceded to Germany by us in 1890. At
that date the sea had made such inroads on the soft cliffs that the
complete disappearance of Heligoland at no very distant date was freely
predicted.
With characteristic thoroughness the Germans took measures to preserve
their new acquisition. Immensely strong breakwaters and sea-walls were
built all round the coast, but violent gales demolished much of the
work, which had to be replaced at great expense, and it is only in
recent years that the ravages of the sea have been completely checked.
Simultaneously with this work a good deal of land reclamation went on,
with the result that the area of the island has been greatly increased.
A large harbour for torpedo-boats and submarines has been enclosed by
two long moles. Inside there is a miniature dockyard, with repair shops,
magazines, stores, &c. Outside this harbour there is a safe anchorage
for warships of great size. It is estimated that from beginning to end
the naval works at Heligoland have cost Germany something like
£10,000,000 sterling.
Fortifications of remarkable strength have been erected. These consist
chiefly of heavy guns, mounted in steel turrets, well concealed from the
view of an enemy at sea, and so placed that every approach to the island
is swept by their fire. As these guns are mounted on the plateau they
have a high command, and attacking ships would have to encounter a
plunging fire.
Numerous bomb-proof control stations and magazines have been excavated.
It is understood that, given an ample supply of ammunition and
provisions, Heligoland is in a position to resist attack by the
strongest naval force for an indefinite period.
There is a powerful wireless station, a naval flying depot, and a large
naval hospital. The garrison consists in the main of four companies of
seamen gunners. The commandant is Rear-Admiral Jacobson.
The high strategical importance of Heligoland is self-evident. Its
position, some thirty-five miles from the mainland, is that of a strong
outpost, defending the estuaries of the Elbe and Weser. A flotilla of
destroyers or submarines based on the island could make things very
uncomfortable for a fleet endeavouring to blockade the German coast, and
it was the recognition of this fact which led to the construction of the
new torpedo harbour.
Thanks to the wireless station, communication can always be maintained
with the mainland, and also by means of aircraft.
In common with most military nations, Germany appears to place undue
reliance on fixed defences as an element of sea power, but it is
obvious, from the vast sums of money she has spent on its development,
that Heligoland plays a leading part in the German plan of naval
strategy.
BORKUM.
The island of Borkum came into prominence a few years ago as the result
of an alleged case of espionage, in which two young British naval
officers were concerned.
Borkum is the first German island of the Frisian group. It commands the
approach to the Ems, and would offer a convenient _point d’appui_ for
naval operations against the German coast. This, apparently, explains
why it has been strongly fortified by the Germans.
Its guns are said to be numerous, and are well placed among the lofty
sand dunes which are a feature of the island. The garrison is supplied
by the army, and includes some batteries of field artillery and machine
guns.
The experience gained during naval manœuvres has shown that Borkum would
be a difficult place to surprise. According to report, some of the guns
in position are powerful enough to inflict serious damage on the largest
warships.
EMDEN.
Emden, the southernmost port of Germany on the North Sea, has of late
years acquired considerable naval importance. There have been frequent
reports of the pending establishment of a State dockyard there, in
connection with the Ems-Jade canal, which was to be deepened
sufficiently to allow fairly large warships to traverse it. So far,
however, this project has not been carried out.
Two years ago Emden became a mine station, and the headquarters of the
“Arkona,” a light cruiser converted into a mine-layer. Harbour works on
a grand scale have lately been completed at Emden. There is a commodious
basin fronted by wharves and warehouses, and fitted with up-to-date
coaling plant. The canal which connects the port with the river is deep
enough to allow the largest ships to come up.
During the present war it is probable that Emden is being used both as a
mine and torpedo base. It relies for its defence on the batteries at
Borkum, some miles out at sea, as ships entering the River Ems are
compelled to pass close to this island.
The railway connections of Emden are very good, so good, in fact, that
they are believed to have been dictated by strategical considerations.
Emden has often been spoken of by German writers as a sally port, and as
a convenient point of assembly and embarkation for an army of invasion.
WILHELMSHAVEN.
Wilhelmshaven ranks officially as Germany’s second war harbour, though
its strategical position makes it, in fact, the principal base of a
German fleet operating in the North Sea. It began its career as a naval
station as late as 1869, since when enormous sums of money and infinite
labour have been expended on its development.
In area the dockyard is almost four times as large as that of Kiel, and
it is even more modern in equipment. It contains a bewildering number
of docks and basins, together with building slips, repair shops, depots,
and store-houses. There are three Dreadnought graving docks and four
smaller ones, and five floating docks, of which the latest can raise
vessels up to 39,500 tons.
Only one of the building slips is available for constructing
Dreadnoughts, but a second is being lengthened sufficiently for this
purpose. The total number of officials and workmen is about 10,500 under
peace conditions. At Wilhelmshaven were built the Dreadnought
battleships “Nassau,” “Ostfriesland,” and “König,” and at the present
moment the battle-cruiser “Ersatz Hertha” is building there.
The terminus of the Ems-Jade Canal is inside the dockyard, but so far as
is known this waterway is too shallow to permit the passage of any class
of warship.
The Jade Channel, which leads to Wilhelmshaven, is exceedingly difficult
to navigate, owing to the innumerable and constantly shifting shoals
with which it is infested. To keep this channel clear elaborate dredging
operations have to be carried on throughout the year, as otherwise it
would speedily silt up and become impassable. Access to the harbour is
gained through huge locks, most of which can be used, if necessary, as
emergency docks for repairing damaged ships. When these locks are closed
the harbour is entirely cut off from the sea, thus affording the ships
inside complete security against torpedo attack.
Commodious as the harbour is, however, it is not large enough to contain
the whole fleet, and consequently extra moorings were recently laid
outside for cruisers and other small craft. The locks are designed on so
large a scale, and are so efficiently operated that several squadrons of
big ships can be passed through in a few hours.
Wilhelmshaven is the base of the First Battle Squadron, the Scouting
Squadron (_i.e._, all the battle-cruisers and other cruisers of the High
Sea Fleet), the 2nd Torpedo Division, and of a submarine flotilla. It is
very heavily fortified.
The approach to the Jade Channel is commanded by the batteries of
Wangerooge, an island garrisoned by seamen gunners, and said to have
very powerful guns. There is a flying station at Wilhelmshaven, with
hangars for a dozen seaplanes.
CUXHAVEN
Cuxhaven has lately become an important German naval base. Situated as
it is at the extreme entrance of the Elbe estuary, it commands the
approach to the great commercial port of Hamburg, seventy miles up the
river.
Cuxhaven has no dockyard of its own, but it possesses a harbour large
enough to accommodate great ships of war, and certain facilities for
carrying out repairs are provided by the depot of the Hamburg-Amerika
Line, of which it is the headquarters.
A mile or two west of the harbour are the batteries of Döse, mounting a
number of heavy guns and quick-firers. These defences are controlled by
the navy, and are garrisoned by five companies of seamen gunners.
Although the mouth of the Elbe is wide, only a narrow channel is
available for vessels of moderate draught, and the defences have
consequently been designed to bring an overwhelming fire to bear on
hostile vessels using this navigable approach.
For some years Cuxhaven has been the principal mine station of the
German navy. It is the base for the mine-laying and mine-sweeping
divisions, composed of special ships and a large number of old
torpedo-boats equipped for the work. This station is responsible for the
observation mine-fields which close the Elbe to hostile ships in war. It
contains an artillery depot, a powerful wireless station, and barracks
for a large contingent of seamen gunners and marines.
Cuxhaven, moreover, is the principal base of the German air fleet. An
immense shed, 590-ft. long, 98-ft. high, and capable of sheltering two
of the largest dirigibles, is approaching completion. This structure is
of the revolving type, thus permitting airships to dock or emerge
without being exposed to the wind. It rests in an excavation. When the
shed is lowered the roof is on a level with the surrounding country, and
by this means the location of the shed is hidden from hostile aircraft.
Near at hand there are permanent hangars for a number of seaplanes, with
workshops for repairing and fitting aircraft of every description.
The German authorities are credited with the intention of gradually
developing Cuxhaven into a first-class naval base, in order to relieve
the congestion at Wilhelmshaven.
BRUNSBÜTTEL.
Brunsbüttel is the western terminus of the Baltic-North Sea canal. It is
situated about ten miles up the River Elbe, on the Schleswig-Holstein
shore. Some batteries are believed to exist at this point, armed with
guns powerful enough to repel torpedo craft, but the real defences of
the canal locks are the forts at Cuxhaven, at the mouth of the river.
The widening of the canal, which is now practically completed,
necessitated the construction of new locks on a gigantic scale at each
end. Those at Brunsbüttel were completed early this year, in advance of
the locks at the Kiel end.
Brunsbüttel has a harbour nearly 1,700-ft. long and 680-ft. wide. Large
supplies of coal and oil are kept here, and there is a well-equipped
coaling plant which enables vessels to coal with great rapidity. The
canal locks are of such massive construction that it is doubtful whether
they could be seriously damaged by torpedo attack.
[Illustration]
_Moltke._
_Photo: Central News._
=MOLTKE CLASS.=
MOLTKE AND GOEBEN (slight differences).
Displacement: 23,000 tons.
Speed: 28 knots; Guns: 10 11in., 12 6in., 12 24pdrs.; Torpedo tubes:
4.
[Illustration]
Astern fire: Broadside: Ahead fire:
8 11in. 10 11in. 6 11in.
2 6in. 6 6in. 2 6in.