Sms Karlsruhe: Bring Deeps, Scapa Flow, Orkney

HY30SW 8006 3151 0082

N58 53.3833 W3 11.3

NLO: Bring Deeps [name centred HY 300 022]

Holm of Houton [name: HY 315 029]

Calf of Cava [name: HY 322 006]

Cava [name: ND 327 995]

Barrel of Butter [name: HY 352 009]

Point of Tuberry (Cava) [name: HY 334 993]

Stromness [name: HY 253 090]

Scapa Flow [name centred HY 36 00].

For other ships within this group, see:

HY30SW 8001 Kaiser (battleship)

HY30SW 8003 Prinzregent Luitpold (battleship)

HY30SW 8005 Kaiserin (battleship)

HY30SW 8013 Konig Albert (battleship)

ND39NW 8106 Derfflinger (battlecruiser)

HY30SE 8006 Baden (battleship: secondary location)

ND39NW 8041 Seydlitz (battlecruiser)

ND39NW 8045 Moltke (battlecruiser)

ND39NW 8049 Hindenburg (battlecruiser)

ND39NW 8050 Von der Tann (battlecruiser)

ND39NW 8051 Nurnberg (cruiser)

Formerly entered as Site no. 8848.

For general plans of High Seas Fleet (Internment Formation) wrecks in Scapa Flow, see Van der Vat 1986 (endpapers), Smith 1989, 4, Macdonald 1998, 19 and George 1999, 35.

KARLSRUHE. The stern lies towards Cava Lighthouse. Source includes illustrations of transits for finding her. The seabed is flat sand and silt. She is starting to collapse.

Source: Butland & Siedecki, BSAC Wreck Register, Scotland 1 1987.

Remains at Scapa Flow.

P L Smith 1989.

[Transits illustrated].

G Ridley 1992.

Horizontal Datum = OGB

General water depth = 22

Orientation of keel/wreck = NWSE

Circumstances of Loss Details

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The German Cruiser KARLSRUHE was scuttled.

Surveying Details

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1919. A dangerous wreck is reported at 58 53 23N, 003 11 18W with a least depth of 8.2 metres. The mast dries to reveal 1.8 metres at west end of the vessel, and a mast dries to reval 0.9 metres at the east end of the wreck.

2 October 1940. The masts have been removed.

Report by the Admiralty.

8 July 1959. The wreck is now charted as having 8.2 metres.

5 April 1961. It is reported by Mr Revill of Bath that the wreck was sold to Metal Industries in 1955.

27 January 1975. The marker buoys are missing but one is to be re-established. The wreck is still largely intact at both ends although the engine-room has been blasted for salvage. The ship's bell was lifted successfully.

Report by RAF Sub Aqua newsletter, issue no.13 August 1974.

15 October 1975. Considerable salvage work has been carried out to the bows and mid sections. The vessel can only be recognised by the stern sections.

Report by CPO Dunford, RAF Lincoln, 15 August 1975.

20 August 1979. The wreck is to be salvaged by Undersea Associates Ltd.

Source: Lloyds List, 15 August 1979.

20 October 1981. The salvage rights have been sold to Clark Diving Services.

Hydrographic Office, 1995.

(Classified as cruiser: date of loss cited as 21 June 1919). [SMS] Karlsruhe: this vessel was scuttled 0.5 mile W of Cava.

Registration: German. 5354 tons displacement. Length: 149m. Beam: 14m.

(Location of loss cited as N58 53.38 W3 11.30).

I G Whittaker 1998.

In July 2000 a side scan sonar survey of the area of Scapa Flow in which the seven wrecks are situated was carried out in conjunction with a bathymetric and seabed classification survey using Echoplous equipment. In addition, detailed sonar images were obtained and geo-referenced so that exact co-ordinates of the extreme ends of each wreck structure could be obtained.

ADU, MS/5450.

Scheduled with SMS Dresden (HY30SW 8002), SMS Brummer (HY30SW 8009) and SMS Koln (HY30SW 8010).

Information from Historic Scotland, scheduling document dated 23 March 2001.

Material reported under RoW amnesty (2001):

A1854 1 valve: from seabed

A1871 1 part turbine blade, 1 lamp, 2 switches or sockets: from seabed

A2455 1 gun breach [breech]: from seabed

A3031 1 lamp, 1 boiler feed: from seabed

A3398 1 'flagpole', 1 'gun wheel winder': from seabed

A4322 1 brass steam valve and whistle: from seabed.

NMRS, MS/829/35.

Length oa: 497ft (151.4m)

Length wl: 478ft 3ins (145.8m)

Beam: 47ft (14.3m)

Draught: 16ft (4.8m) (also cited as 21ft or 6.32m)

Displacement (standard): 5440t

Displacement (full load): 7125t (also cited as 5300/6150 tons)

Armament: 8 x 15cm (5.9ins: 45 cal: single mountings); 2 x 8.8cm AA (3.4ins: 45 cal: single mountings); 4 x 50cm (19.7ins) torpedo tubes; 120 deck-mounted mines (also cited as having only two torpedo tubes)

Armour: belt 2.5in (64mm); deck 0.75in (19mm); conning tower 3.9 ins (100mm)

Propulsion: ten coal- and two oil-fired Schulz-Thorneycroft boilers; two sets geared steam turbines; two propellers; 45,000 shp; 28.5kts (also cited as 27/28 kts)

Fuel: 1340t coal; 500t oil

Range: 1200 miles at 27 kts

Complement: 475/500

This second class or light cruiser ('Kleiner Kreuzer') of the four-strong Konigsberg II class was built at the Imperial Dockyard, Wilhelmshaven, as part of the 1914-15 programme and as a direct replacement for the Niobe of 1899. She should not be confused with the commerce-raiding cruiser of the same name, which was sunk by accidental explosion of her own magazines, and for which this ship was also a name-replacement.

SMS Karlsruhe was launched on 31 January 1916 (also cited as February 1916) and joined the Second Scouting Group on 15 November 1916, being one of five such ships to join the fleet that year. The Second Scouting Group was usually employed within the German Bight, most commonly protecting minesweepers against British light forces. In August 1917 the Group was deployed in support of major amphibious landings in the Baltic, an observation aircraft being used for the first time to observe and direct naval gunfire support.

Karlsruhe and the three other ships of her class (Emden II, Konigsberg II and Nurnberg II) were a great improvement on their predecessors. They were faster, carried heavier guns, and were fitted with compact but powerful geared steam turbines. These produced 45,000 shp to drive the ship at 28.5kts through two propellers. Ten coal-fired and two oil-fired water-tube boilers were provided, the latter being only used to attain maximum speed. Coal was carried in longitudinal side-bunkers and oil in tanks within the double bottom. The class was approximately equivalent to the British 'Town' class, but were longer, faster and more powerful.

Members of the class were significantly larger than previous light cruisers and had finely-raked bows with a marked flare forward and an uncluttered midships portion. Seven boats were carried, as well as four anchors (two bower and a kedge forward; a stern anchor aft). The officers' accommodation was aft and that for the ratings forward.

Eight 5.9in guns were dispersed in single mountings roughly evenly spaced along each side. Two 3.4in HA guns (also in single mountings) were set on the superstructure deck of the midships deckhouse. Two 50cm torpedo tubes were fitted on the upper deck amidships; a further two were installed underwater. Four powerful carbon-arc searchlights were mounted on platforms on the mast, all being capable of remote operation. The gun rangefinder was mounted on the conning tower, and 120 deck-mounted mines were also carried.

The ship has not been raised, apparently on account of her depth, but some of the hull (both steelwork and non-ferrous metal) has been removed by Nundy (marime Netals) Ltd. She now lies on her starboard side in between 24 and 27m. This vessel is not in as good condition as the other light cruisers; much salvage damage is apparent amidships but the bridge and stern remain intact. Identifiable features and fittings include the conning tower, the starboard forward 5.9in gun, the anchor cables, and the rudder and stern anchor.

This ship may be considered as falling within the Bring Deeps group of heavy ships, which were scuttled within the area defined by Holm of Houton [name: HY 315 029], Calf of Cava [name: HY 322 006] and Green Head (Hoy) [name: ND 303 993]. The wreck is charted [Wk] at the cited location (0.4nm WNW of Calf of Cava light); a depth of 7.9m is charted. It falls within an extensive area of foul ground; the nature of the seabed is not noted locally but there are outcrops of rock to the SW.

Bring Deeps may be understood as a south-eastwards extension of Hoy Sound. It has a generally flat bottom at a charted depth of between 35 and 50m; the seabed type is defined sparingly but is apparently sandy. An area of spoil ground is noted around N58 53.9 W3 12.2 [HY 30 01], and may attest to the former presence of the High Seas Fleet.

(For section and underwater artist's impression, see Macdonald 1998, 96-7).

Information from RCAHMS (RJCM), 6 January 2003.

H M Le Fleming 1961; D Van der Vat 1986; P L Smith 1989; R Macdonald 1998; S C George 1999; [Jane] 2001.

HO Chart 35 (1980, revised 1991).

(Unpaginated annexe) information from Dolphin Scuba Service

NMRS, MS/829/63

Plans and drawings of this vessel are held in the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich.

NMRS, MS/1614.

(Discussed in connection with Scheduling of wrecks in Scapa Flow).

Source: 'Wrecks, divers and scheduling: the case of Scapa Flow, Orkney', article by O Owen in Nautical Archaeology, 2002.3.

MS/2745.