View source for German cruiser Leipzig

{{Short description|Leipzig-class light cruiser}}
{{For|other German warships with the same name|SMS Leipzig}}
{{Use shortened footnotes|date=October 2022}}
{{Infobox ship
|section1={{Infobox ship/image
| image = Lot-2275-77 (26867167495).jpg
| image_caption = {{lang|de|Leipzig}}, circa 1934
}}
|section2={{Infobox ship/career
| country = [[Nazi Germany|Germany]]
| flag = {{shipboxflag|Weimar Republic|naval}} {{shipboxflag|Nazi Germany|naval}}
| laid_down = 28 April 1928
| launched = 18 October 1929
| commissioned = 8 October 1931
| fate = Scuttled July 1946
| name = {{lang|de|Leipzig}}
| namesake = [[Leipzig]]
}}
|section3={{Infobox ship/characteristics
| class = {{sclass|Leipzig|cruiser|1}}
| displacement = [[Full load]]: {{cvt|8100|MT|lk=on}}
| length = {{convert|177|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
| beam = {{convert|16.3|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
| draft = {{convert|5.69|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
| power =
*6 × [[water-tube boiler]]s
*{{cvt|60000|PS|lk=on}} (turbines)
*{{cvt|12400|PS|lk=in}} (diesels)
| propulsion =
*2 × [[steam turbine]]s
*4 × [[diesel engine]]s
*3 × [[screw propeller]]s
| speed = {{convert|32|kn|lk=in}}
| range = {{convert|3900|nmi|abbr=on|lk=in}} at {{convert|10|kn}}
| complement =
*26&nbsp;officers
*508&nbsp;enlisted men
| armament =
*9 × [[15 cm SK C/25|{{cvt|15|cm}} SK C/25 guns]]
*2 × [[8.8 cm SK L/45 naval gun|{{cvt|8.8|cm}} SK L/45 anti-aircraft guns]]
*12 × {{cvt|50|cm}} [[torpedo tube]]s
| armor =
*[[Belt armor]]: {{cvt|50|mm|0}}
*[[Deck (ship)|Deck]]: {{convert|30|mm|abbr=on}}
*[[Conning tower]]: {{convert|100|mm|abbr=on}}
| aircraft = 2 × [[Arado Ar 196|Arado 196]] [[floatplane]]s
}}
}}

'''{{lang|de|Leipzig}}''' was the [[lead ship]] of [[Leipzig class cruiser|her class]] of [[light cruiser]]s built by the German navy. She had one [[sister ship]], {{ship|German cruiser|Nürnberg||2}}. {{lang|de|Leipzig}} was laid down in April 1928, was launched in October 1929, and was commissioned into the {{lang|de|[[Reichsmarine]]}} in October 1931. Armed with a main battery of nine {{convert|15|cm|abbr=on}} guns in three triple turrets, {{lang|de|Leipzig}} had a top speed of {{convert|32|kn}}.

{{lang|de|Leipzig}} participated in [[Non-intervention in the Spanish Civil War|non-intervention patrols]] during the [[Spanish Civil War]]. In the first year of [[World War II]], she performed escort duties for warships in the Baltic and North seas. While on one of these operations in December 1939, the ship was torpedoed by a British [[submarine]] and badly damaged. Repairs were completed by late 1940, when she returned to service as a training ship. She provided gunfire support to the advancing {{lang|de|[[Wehrmacht]]}} troops as they invaded the Soviet Union in 1941.

In October 1944, {{lang|de|Leipzig}} was accidentally rammed by the heavy cruiser {{ship|German cruiser|Prinz Eugen||2}}; the damage was so severe that the navy decided complete repairs were unfeasible. The ship was patched up to keep her afloat, and she helped to defend [[Gotenhafen]] from the advancing [[Red Army]] in March 1945. She then carried a group of fleeing German civilians, reaching Denmark by late April. After the end of the war, {{lang|de|Leipzig}} was used as a [[barracks ship]] for [[German Mine Sweeping Administration|minesweeping forces]] and was scuttled in July 1946.

==Design==
{{main|Leipzig-class cruiser|l1=''Leipzig''-class cruiser}}
[[File:Leipzig 07a.jpg|thumb|left|{{lang|de|Leipzig}} recognition chart]]

{{lang|de|Leipzig}} was {{convert|177|m|sp=us}} [[length overall|long overall]] and had a [[beam (nautical)|beam]] of {{convert|16.3|m|abbr=on}} and a maximum [[draft (hull)|draft]] of {{convert|5.69|m|abbr=on}} forward. She [[displacement (ship)|displaced]] {{convert|8100|t|sp=us|lk=on}} at [[full load]]. {{lang|de|Leipzig}} had a crew of 26&nbsp;officers and 508&nbsp;enlisted men.{{sfn|Sieche|p=231}}{{sfn|Gröner|p=122}}

Her propulsion system consisted of two [[steam turbine]]s and four 7-cylinder [[MAN SE|MAN]] [[two-stroke]] [[double-acting cylinder|double-acting]] [[diesel engine]]s,{{sfn|Sieche|p=231}} which were the basis for the unsuccessful US Navy [[Hooven-Owens-Rentschler]] design.{{sfn|Friedman|p=264}} Steam for the turbines was provided by six Marine-type, double-ended, oil-fired [[water-tube boiler]]s. The ship's propulsion system provided a top speed of {{convert|32|kn|lk=in}} and a range of approximately {{convert|3900|nmi|lk=in}} at {{convert|10|kn}} using only the diesel engines.{{sfn|Gröner|p=122}}

The ship was armed with a [[main battery]] of nine [[15 cm SK C/25|{{cvt|15|cm}} SK C/25]] guns mounted in three triple [[gun turret]]s. One was located forward, and two were placed in a [[superfire|superfiring pair]] aft, all on the [[centerline (nautical)|centerline]]. They were supplied with between 1,080 and 1,500 rounds of ammunition, for between 120 and 166 shells per gun.{{sfn|Gröner|pp=120, 122}} It had originally been intended to equip the cruiser with an anti-aircraft battery of two twin [[8.8 cm SK L/45 naval gun|{{cvt|8.8|cm}}]]&nbsp;[[8.8 cm SK C/25 naval gun|SK C/25 guns]]. But as this gun proved to be unsatisfactory during tests and its replacement the [[8.8 cm SK C/31 naval gun|8.8 cm SK C/31 gun]] was not yet ready, the ship was equipped with two obsolete [[8.8 cm SK L/45 naval gun|8.8 cm SK L/45]] anti-aircraft guns in single mounts;{{Sfn|Breyer||p=9}} they had 400&nbsp;rounds of ammunition each. {{lang|de|Leipzig}} also carried four triple {{convert|50|cm|abbr=on}} [[torpedo tube]] mounts located amidships; they were supplied with twenty-four [[torpedo]]es. She was also capable of carrying 120 [[naval mine]]s. The ship was protected by an armored deck that was {{convert|30|mm|abbr=on}} thick amidships and an [[belt armor|armor belt]] that was {{cvt|50|mm|0}} thick. The [[conning tower]] had {{convert|100|mm|abbr=on}} thick sides.{{sfn|Gröner|pp=120, 122}}

==Service history==
[[File:Leipzig Image1.jpg|thumb|left|{{lang|de|Leipzig}} in 1937]]

{{lang|de|Leipzig}} was laid down at the {{lang|de|[[Kriegsmarinewerft Wilhelmshaven|Reichsmarinewerft]]}} shipyard in [[Wilhelmshaven]] on 28 April 1928 and launched on 18 October 1929. She was commissioned into the {{lang|de|Reichsmarine}} on 8 October 1931.{{sfn|Sieche|p=231}} The ship trained extensively in the [[Baltic Sea]] throughout 1932 and 1933, and also made several goodwill cruises overseas. In 1934, she and the cruiser {{ship|German cruiser|Königsberg||2}} made the first goodwill visit to the United Kingdom since the end of World War I. In late 1934, {{lang|de|Leipzig}} went into drydock for modifications. An [[aircraft catapult]] was installed on the aft [[superstructure]] and a crane for handling [[float plane]]s replaced one of her boat derricks.{{sfn|Williamson|pp=35–36}} The 50&nbsp;cm torpedo tubes were replaced with {{convert|53.3|cm|abbr=on}} ones. On the aft superstructure a SL-1 [[Stabilisierter Leitstand|stabilized director post]] for the anti-aircraft guns was installed, and two more single-mount 8.8&nbsp;cm anti-aircraft guns were added.{{Sfn|Breyer||pp=9-10}} {{lang|de|Leipzig}} was the first ship of the [[Kriegsmarine]] to receive anti-aircraft fire control.{{Sfn|Schmalenbach||p=116}} These modifications were made in [[Kiel]]. In early 1935, {{lang|de|Leipzig}} joined the old [[pre-dreadnought battleship]] {{SMS|Schlesien||2}}, the new heavy cruiser {{ship|German cruiser|Deutschland||2}}, and the light cruiser {{ship|German cruiser|Köln||2}} for major fleet exercises.{{sfn|Williamson|pp=35–36}}

Later in 1935, [[Adolf Hitler]] visited the ship during training maneuvers with the rest of the fleet. The ship joined her sister {{ship|German cruiser|Nürnberg||2}} and {{lang|de|Köln}} for exercises in the Atlantic Ocean in early 1936.{{sfn|Otte & Pagedas|p=144}} In February 1936 the obsolete single mount anti-aircraft guns were finally replaced by three twin [[8.8 cm SK C/32 naval gun|8.8 cm SK C/32 naval guns]].{{Sfn|Breyer||pp=9, 29}} In August, {{lang|de|Leipzig}} took part in the [[non-intervention in the Spanish Civil War|non-intervention patrols]] off Spain during the [[Spanish Civil War]]. She conducted several patrols between August 1936 and June 1937,{{sfn|Williamson|p=36}} and in late June, she was allegedly attacked with torpedoes; this prompted Germany and Italy to withdraw from the non-intervention patrols.{{sfn|Otte & Pagedas|p=144}} She thereafter returned to Germany and went into the Baltic Sea for training, which lasted through 1938. In March 1939, she participated in the annexation of [[Klaipėda|Memel]] which [[1939 German ultimatum to Lithuania|Germany had demanded]] from [[Lithuania]]. The following month, she joined the [[battleship]] {{ship|German battleship|Gneisenau||2}}, the cruiser {{lang|de|Deutschland}}, and several destroyers and [[U-boat]]s for major exercises in the Atlantic. Additional maneuvers were conducted through the middle of 1939.{{sfn|Williamson|p=36}}

===World War II===
====1939–1940====
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 101II-MN-1578-26, Kaiser-Wilhelm-Kanal, leichter Kreuzer.jpg|thumb|{{lang|de|Leipzig}} in the [[Kaiser Wilhelm Canal]] in 1939]]

At the outbreak of [[World War II]] in September 1939, {{lang|de|Leipzig}} was assigned to the blocking force that was intended to prevent the escape of the Polish Navy from the Baltic; they were unsuccessful. {{lang|de|Leipzig}} thereafter went to the North Sea, where she and the other light cruisers laid a series of defensive minefields. This task lasted through the end of the month, after which she returned to the Baltic for training maneuvers.{{sfn|Williamson|p=36}} On 17&ndash;19 November, {{lang|de|Leipzig}} covered a minelaying operation in the North Sea. She joined {{lang|de|Deutschland}}, {{lang|de|Köln}}, and three [[torpedo boat]]s for a sweep in the [[Skagerrak]] for Allied shipping on 21&ndash;22 November. {{lang|de|Leipzig}} was tasked with escorting the battleships {{ship|German battleship|Scharnhorst||2}} and {{lang|de|Gneisenau}} through the Skagerrak, and with covering their return on the 27th.{{sfn|Rohwer|p=9}}

On 13 December, {{lang|de|Leipzig}} was tasked with escorting a flotilla of destroyers and other small vessels as they proceeded through the Skagerrak to lay a minefield. While en route, the British [[submarine]] {{HMS|Salmon|N65|6}} attacked the German warships, and at 11:25, hit {{lang|de|Leipzig}} with a torpedo. The torpedo hit {{lang|de|Leipzig}} just below the waterline, where a bulkhead separated two of the ship's three [[Engine room|boiler rooms]]. The explosion bent her armored deck and damaged her [[keel]]; some {{convert|1700|MT|abbr=on}} of water flooded the ship, and the damage cut electrical power to the ship's pumping system. The two boiler rooms were flooded, steam lines were damaged, and the port turbine was shut down. At around the same time, her sister {{lang|de|Nürnberg}} was also torpedoed. A pair of destroyers arrived to escort the damaged cruisers back to port; an hour after {{lang|de|Leipzig}} was torpedoed, one of the escorting destroyers was also torpedoed, just outside the mouth of the [[Elbe]]. Another torpedo passed just ahead of {{lang|de|Leipzig}}, nearly hitting the damaged cruiser.{{sfn|Williamson|pp=36–37}}

While en route back to Germany on 14 December, {{lang|de|Nürnberg}} and {{lang|de|Leipzig}} came under attack from the British [[Royal Air Force]] (RAF).{{sfn|Prien|p=118}} Approximately 20 [[Vickers Wellington]] bombers from [[No. 99 Squadron RAF|No. 99 Squadron]] were intercepted by fighters from II. {{lang|de|[[Organization of the Luftwaffe (1933–45)#Gruppe|Gruppe]]}} (2nd group) of {{lang|de|[[Jagdgeschwader 77]]}} (JG&nbsp;77—77th Fighter Wing) under the leadership of {{lang|de|Oberstleutnant}} [[Carl-Alfred Schumacher]] in the vicinity of [[Spiekeroog]] and [[Wangerooge]]. The RAF bombers failed to further damage the cruisers as JG&nbsp;77 pilots claimed seven and one probable bomber shot down, including one claimed by {{lang|de|Unteroffizier}} [[Herbert Kutscha]]. RAF records indicate that six bombers were lost in the attack.{{sfn|Weal|p=12}}{{sfn|Prien|p=121}} After safely returning to port in Kiel, {{lang|de|Leipzig}} was taken into the {{lang|de|[[Deutsche Werke]]}} shipyard for repairs. She was decommissioned while under repair and reclassified as a training ship. To accommodate additional training crews, four of the ship's boilers were removed. She returned to service in late 1940.{{sfn|Williamson|p=37}}

====1941–1946====
In March 1941 the two aft triple torpedo tubes were removed and installed on {{lang|de|Gneisenau}}. The aircraft catapult was also removed though the aircraft crane was kept onboard.{{Sfn|Breyer||p=29}} In early June, she escorted the heavy cruiser {{lang|de|Lützow}} (formerly {{lang|de|Deutschland}}) to Norway. After she returned to the Baltic, she and the cruiser {{ship|German cruiser|Emden||2}} provided artillery support to advancing German ground forces during [[Operation Barbarossa]], the invasion of the Soviet Union.{{sfn|Williamson|p=38}} In September, she supported the invasion of the Baltic islands in the [[West Estonian archipelago]]. While bombarding Soviet positions on [[Muhu|Moon Island]], {{lang|de|Leipzig}} was attacked unsuccessfully by the Soviet submarine {{ship|Soviet submarine|Shch-317||2}}. In late September, the ship joined the German Baltic Fleet, centered on the battleship {{ship|German battleship|Tirpitz||2}}; the fleet was tasked with blocking a possible Soviet attempt to break out of the Baltic.{{sfn|Rohwer|pp=99, 102–103}} {{lang|de|Leipzig}} returned to Kiel in October, and conducted maneuvers with the heavy cruiser {{ship|German cruiser|Admiral Scheer||2}}. {{lang|de|Leipzig}} became the [[flagship]] of the training fleet in 1942; she spent the year performing training duties.{{sfn|Williamson|p=38}}

{{lang|de|Leipzig}} was decommissioned briefly in March 1943, and recommissioned on 1 August. She was in need of an overhaul, however, and the work significantly delayed her return to operational status. Furthermore, an outbreak of [[meningitis]] killed two crewmen and created an additional delay. {{lang|de|Leipzig}} returned to escort duties in the Baltic in mid-September 1944. Her first operation covered troop transports between [[Gotenhafen]] and [[Swinemünde]] in company with {{lang|de|Admiral Scheer}}. On 14 October, {{lang|de|Leipzig}} departed Gotenhafen, bound for Swinemünde, to take on a load of mines. In a heavy fog, she was involved in a collision with the heavy cruiser {{ship|German cruiser|Prinz Eugen||2}}, which was steaming at {{convert|20|kn}}. At the time of collision, {{lang|de|Leipzig}} was switching from her diesel cruise engines to her steam turbine main engines, a process of first uncoupling the diesels from the shafts and then coupling turbines to the shafts, which left the ship temporarily without propulsion, drifting out of her [[Fairway (navigation)|fairway]] into the path of {{lang|de|Prinz Eugen}} which was moving the opposite direction. {{lang|de|Prinz Eugen}} struck {{lang|de|Leipzig}} on her port side, just forward of her funnel, cutting her nearly in half - the forward point of the clipper bow of {{lang|de|Prinz Eugen}} actually stuck out beyond the starboard side of {{lang|de|Leipzig}}. The collision destroyed the number 3 (port) engine room, flooded a second engine room and killed or wounded 39&nbsp;crewmen. The ships remained stuck fast for over a day, after which {{lang|de|Leipzig}} was towed back to Gotenhafen.} The damage was so severe that repairs were deemed impractical, especially considering Germany's pressing military situation by late 1944. Only repairs to keep her afloat in the harbor were effected.{{sfn|Busch|pp=195–199}}{{sfn|Williamson|pp=38–39}}

{{lang|de|Leipzig}} provided fire support to the defending German forces in March 1945, while Soviet [[Red Army]] forces advanced on the city. On 24 March, {{lang|de|Leipzig}} was moved to [[Hel, Poland|Hela]], laden with refugees; she was capable of steaming at only {{convert|6|kn}}. She was repeatedly attacked by Soviet aircraft, and Allied submarines attempted to torpedo her twice. She nevertheless safely reached Denmark on 29 April. Due to her poor state following the end of the war, she was used as a [[barracks ship]] for the men of the [[German Mine Sweeping Administration]], tasked with clearing mines off the German coast. The battered ship was eventually towed out and scuttled in July 1946.{{sfn|Williamson|p=39}}

==Footnotes==
{{Commons category}}
{{Reflist|20em}}

==References==
* {{Cite book |last=Breyer |first=Siegfried |title=Kreuzer "Nürnberg" und "Leipzig" |publisher=Podzun-Pallas-Verlag |year=1994 |isbn=978-3-7909-0507-6 |location= |language=de |trans-title=Cruisers "Nürnberg" and "Leipzig" |ref={{sfnref|Breyer}}}}
* {{cite book
  |last=Busch
  |first=Fritz-Otto
  |authorlink = Fritz-Otto Busch
  |title=Prinz Eugen
  |publisher=Futura Publications
  |location=London
  |year=1975
  |isbn=978-0-86007-233-1
  |ref={{sfnref|Busch}}
  }}
* {{cite book
  |last=Friedman
  |first=Norman
  |author-link = Norman Friedman
  |title=US Submarines through 1945: An Illustrated Design History
  |publisher=Naval Institute Press
  |location=Annapolis
  |year=1995
  |isbn=978-1-55750-263-6
  |ref={{sfnref|Friedman}}
  }}
* {{cite book
  | last = Gröner
  | first = Erich
  |author-link=Erich Gröner
  | year = 1990
  | title = German Warships: 1815–1945
  | volume = I: Major Surface Vessels
  | publisher = Naval Institute Press
  | location = Annapolis
  | isbn = 978-0-87021-790-6
  | ref ={{sfnRef|Gröner}}
  }}
* {{cite book
  | editor1-last=Otte
  | editor1-first=Thomas G.
  | editor2-last=Pagedas
  | editor2-first=Constantine A.
  | title=Personalities, War and Diplomacy: Essays in International History
  | publisher=F. Cass
  | year=1997
  | isbn=978-0-7146-4818-7
  | location=London
  | ref = {{sfnref|Otte & Pagedas}}
  }}
* {{cite book
  |last=Prien
  |first=Jochen
  |year=1992
  |title=Geschichte des Jagdgeschwaders 77—Teil 1—1934–1941
  |trans-title=History of Jagdgeschwader 77—Volume 1—1934–1941
  |language=German
  |location=Eutin
  |publisher=Struve-Druck
  |isbn=978-3-923457-19-9
  |ref={{sfnref|Prien}}
  }}
* {{cite book
  |last=Rohwer
  |first=Jürgen
  |author-link = Jürgen Rohwer
  |title=Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two
  |publisher=Naval Institute Press
  |location=Annapolis
  |year=2005
  |edition=Third Revised
  |isbn=978-1-59114-119-8
  |ref={{sfnref|Rohwer}}
  }}
* {{Cite book |last=Schmalenbach |first=Paul |title=Die Geschichte der deutschen Schiffsartillerie |publisher=Koehler |year=1993 |isbn=978-3-7822-0577-1 |edition=3rd |location=Herford |language=de |trans-title=The history of German naval artillery |ref={{sfnref|Schmalenbach}}}}
* {{cite book
  | last = Sieche
  | first = Erwin
  | chapter = Germany
  | pages = 218–254
  | editor-last1 = Gardiner
  | editor-first1 = Robert
  | editor-last2 = Chesneau
  | editor-first2 = Roger
  | year = 1992
  | title = Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946
  | publisher = Conway Maritime Press
  | location = London
  | isbn = 978-0-85177-146-5
  | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=bJBMBvyQ83EC
  | ref = {{sfnRef|Sieche}}
  }}
* {{cite book
  |last=Weal
  |first=John
  |year=1996
  |title=Bf 109D/E Aces 1939–41
  |location=London
  |publisher=[[Osprey Publishing]]
  |isbn=978-1-85532-487-9
  |ref={{sfnref|Weal}}
  }}
* {{Cite book
  |last=Williamson
  |first=Gordon
  | author-link = Gordon Williamson (writer)
  |title=German Light Cruisers 1939–1945
  |year=2003
  |publisher=Osprey Publishing
  |isbn=978-1-84176-503-7
  |location=Oxford
  |ref={{sfnref|Williamson}}
  }}

==Further reading==
* {{cite book
  | last1 = Hildebrand
  | first1 = Hans H.
  | last2 = Röhr
  | first2 = Albert
  | last3 = Steinmetz
  | first3 = Hans-Otto
  | year = 1993
  | title = Die Deutschen Kriegsschiffe: Biographien – ein Spiegel der Marinegeschichte von 1815 bis zur Gegenwart	
  | trans-title=The German Warships: Biographies − A Reflection of Naval History from 1815 to the Present
  | volume = 5
  | language=de
  | publisher = Mundus Verlag
  | location = Ratingen
  | isbn=978-3-7822-0456-9
  | ref = {{sfnRef|Hildebrand, Röhr, & Steinmetz}}
  |name-list-style=amp
  }}
* {{cite book
  |last1=Koop
  |first1=Gerhard
  |last2=Schmolke
  |first2=Klaus-Peter
  |title=German Light Cruisers of World War II: Emden, Königsberg, Karlsruhe, Köln, Leipzig, Nürnberg
  |year=2002
  |location=Annapolis
  |publisher=Naval Institute Press
  |isbn=978-1-55750-310-7
  }}
*{{cite book |last1=Latkin |first1=Andrei|last2=Trubitsyn|first2=Sergei |editor1-last=Jordan |editor1-first=John |title=Warship 2021 |date=2021 |publisher=Osprey Publishing |location=Oxford|isbn=978-1-4728-4779-9 |chapter=Attack on the Cruiser ''Leipzig'' on 26 March 1945|pages=191–194}}
* {{cite book
  |last=Whitley
  |first=M. J.
  |title=German Cruisers of World War Two
  |year=1987
  |location=Annapolis
  |publisher=Naval Institute Press
  |isbn=978-0-87021-217-8
  }}

{{Leipzig class cruiser}}
{{October 1944 shipwrecks}}
{{1946 shipwrecks}}

{{good article}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leipzig}}
[[Category:Leipzig-class cruisers]]
[[Category:Ships built in Wilhelmshaven]]
[[Category:1929 ships]]
[[Category:Shipwrecks in the North Sea]]
[[Category:World War II cruisers of Germany]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in October 1944]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1946]]
[[Category:Military units and formations of Nazi Germany in the Spanish Civil War]]
[[Category:Scuttled vessels of Germany]]