World War II Database

Contributor: Al Griffis

ww2dbaseIn Jan 1805, Johann Lange began to build various vessels in Vegesack district in northern Bremen, Germany. In Sep of the same year, the city's senate authorized him to establish the J. Lange Shipyard at the harbor entrance; J. Lange Shipyard's first ship, Die Weser, was launched in 1816. In Feb 1817, the first German River Steamboat, Weser, entered service. In 1893, the company was reorganized into Bremer Vulkan Schiffbau und Maschinen Fabrik AG, a limited company. In 1895, it purchased an additional 100,000 square meters of land for building four slips of varying dimensions. Between Sep 1896 and Oct 1899, the firms North German Lloyd and Hamburg-American issued building orders, necessitating Bremer Vulkan to modernize and expand even further; work done during this time included the upgrading of existing slips, the addition of two new slips (completed in 1902), the addition of 225,000 square meters of land purchased to expand the shipyard which expanded the waterfront to about 1,500 meters in length, and the building of new shops including iron working, copper smiths, foundries, machine shops, and finally the addition of the most modern electrically operated cranes. Between 1908 and 1910, business slowed, and the work force was reduced from 2,400 to 800 and production was reduced by about 75%. Business turned for the better in 1911, however, as the naval race with the United Kingdom translated to new contracts for Bremer Vulkan. By 1913, the number of employees reach 3,600, and Bremer Vulkan passed AG Vulcan Stettin as Germany's top shipyard. In 1914, the 14,167 gross registered tonnage passenger ship Zeppelin, the largest ship built to date, was launched. In 1915, the German Navy placed an order for 11 minesweepers; seven to be built in 1916 and four in 1918. Bremer Vulkan also partnered with Germaniawerft of Kiel, Germany to build a number of submarines. In 1917, Hamburg-American placed orders for 12 steamers. In 1928, the shipyard launched the C. O. Stillman, the world's largest tanker to date. Between 1934 and 1945, the shipyard had plans to build one to two Type IA submarines a month, but several factors, not least of them being the Anglo-German Naval Agreement, precluded their construction. By the end of 1938, over 70% of new orders were coming from abroad. In Apr 1939, the cancellation of the Anglo-German Naval Agreement gave Germany a free reign in developing and building warships, and Bremer Vulkan would receive orders for the building of Type VII submarines (two of which were actually built before the agreement's cancelation). During the war, Bremer Vulkan's subsidiary Vegesackerwerft GmbH would build 74 Type VII submarines in total, with the final boat delivered to the German Navy in May 1944. In Mar 1943, USAAF bombers raided Bremen; although most of the bombs missed and struck civilian buildings instead, it nevertheless shut down submarine production for a number of weeks. Bremer Vulkan made used of forced laborer from concentration camps during the war. At its largest size during WW2, Bremer Vulkan occupied about 332,000 square meters of land. After the war, the shipyard was allowed to resume production in 1949. The company began to reach its zenith in the 1970s, and in the 1980s it merged with other shipbuilders to become a major shipbulider in the world. After the East-West German reunification, it grew even larger as it acquired shipyards in the former East Germany. Mismanagement, however, led to the company's bankruptcy in 1997, leading to its break up.

Ships Constructed at Bremer Vulkan AG

* Projected dates; not actual

Slip/Drydock Utilization

[Con]: Construction; [FO]: Fitting Out

Bremer Vulkan AG Interactive Map

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Bremer Vulkan AG Timeline