Howaldtswerke Kiel
Type | 209 Shipyard | |
Historical Name of Location | Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany | |
Coordinates | 54.333056000, 10.176111000 |
Contributor: Al Griffis
ww2dbaseIn 1838, engineer August Ferdinand Howaldt and ship owner Johann Schweffel started a multi-faceted business named Schweffel & Howaldt in the Dietrichsdorf district of Kiel, Germany. By 1846, the company employed 120 workers producing high pressure steam engines, steam boilers, pumps and many other items from the agriculture industry to engineering. In 1876, Georg Howaldt, the eldest son of August Howaldt, entered the business; after a four-year apprenticeship, he delivered 25 ships in three years under the name of his own company, Georg Howaldt Kiel Shipyard. When August Howaldt passed away in 1883, George Howaldt took over the company and reorganized it as Gebrüder Howaldt. In the following year, Gebrüder Howaldt established the Schwentine-Dock-Gesellschaft. In 1889, the companies merged to form the corporation Howaldtswerke. Between 1897 and 1906, Howaldtswerke purchased additional land and to expand and modernize the existing shipyard at the mouth of the Schwentine River. In order to compete with the other shipyards in the 20th century major changes were carried out. 113 meters of quay walls were added to the equipping pier, new foundries and boiler shops were built, and 4 new slips were built as the existing 5 slips, the largest of them being 110 meters, were just too small for modern ships. The four new slips would have the familiar awning and ranged in size from 91.5 meters to 152.5 meters with maximum width of 30 meters. New equipment, electrical and hydraulic plants were added and the crane tracks were all redone. Between 1908 and 1911, it built the lead ship of the Helgoland-class battleships. Between 1914 and 1918, it built battleships, cruisers, and submarines for the German war effort in WW1. In Sep 1926, Howaldtswerke was liquidated, and the shipyard continued operations under the name Dietrichsdorier Werft AG. In 1930, it was taken over the German Shipbuilders Ltd. of Vulcan Hamburg, and it was renamed HDW AG Kiel. In 1931, it was renamed yet again, to Howaldtswerke Aktiengesellschaft Kiel and Hamburg. In Apr 1937, the Kiel operations were sold to Deutsche Werke Kiel AG. In Apr 1939, it was nationalized to become the Kriegsmarinewerft Kiel; the company's headquarters relocated to Hamburg, Germany. In Jul 1943, the facilities in Kiel was once again sold, and it became Howaldtswerke Aktiengesellschaft Werft Kiel. During WW2, Howaldtswerke in Kiel built 31 submarines for the war effort.
ww2dbaseThe Howaldtswerke shipyard occupied about 165,400 square meters of land, and employed an average of 3,500 employees.
ww2dbaseAfter WW2, Howaldtswerke remained the only major shipyard in Kiel that was not dismantled. It was very successful during the 1960s. It merged with Deutsche Werft in Hamburg in 1968 and was renamed Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft (HDW). In Jan 2005, it became a subsidiary of ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems.
ww2dbaseNote on Yard Numbers
ww2dbaseYears which yard numbers were allocated to Howaldtswerke: 1865-1940
To Janssen & Schmilinsky: 1929
To Vulcan Hamburg: 1930
To Kriegsmarinewerft: 1941-1944
Last Major Update: Nov 2020
Ships Constructed at Howaldtswerke Kiel
Ship Name | Yard No | Slip/Drydock No | Ordered | Laid Down | Launched | Commissioned |
U-373 | I | |||||
U-382 | VI | |||||
Widder | 695 | 21 Dec 1929 | 1 Mar 1930 | |||
Ostmark | 15 Apr 1936 | 16 May 1936 | ||||
Friesenland | 23 Mar 1937 | 13 May 1937 | ||||
Altmark | 15 May 1936 | 15 Jun 1936 | 13 Nov 1937 | 14 Nov 1938 | ||
Wilhelm Bauer | 1 Jul 1936 | 12 Aug 1936 | 20 Dec 1938 | 30 Apr 1940 | ||
Waldemar Kophamel | 1 Jan 1937 | 12 Aug 1937 | 15 May 1939 | 21 Oct 1940 | ||
Otto Wünsche | 27 Aug 1938 | 23 Sep 1938 | 23 May 1940 | 8 Nov 1943 | ||
P4 (Planned) | II | 1 May 1940 * | 1 May 1942 * | 1 Oct 1943 * | ||
R (Planned) | I | 8 Aug 1939 | 1 Feb 1941 * | 1 Feb 1943 * | 1 Mar 1944 * | |
SP6 (Planned) | IV | 1 Mar 1942 * | 1 Jun 1943 * | 1 Jan 1945 * | ||
SP7 (Planned) | III | 1 Sep 1942 * | 1 Dec 1943 * | 1 Jun 1945 * | ||
SP8 (Planned) | II | 1 Dec 1942 * | 1 Mar 1944 * | 1 Sep 1945 * | ||
U-1133 | 35 | 2 Jan 1943 | 27 Apr 1943 | |||
U-1134 | 2 Jan 1943 | 30 Apr 1943 | ||||
C (Planned) | I | 1 Apr 1941 | 1 Jun 1943 * | 1 May 1945 * | 1 Sep 1946 * | |
U-1135 | 2 Jan 1943 | 24 Jun 1943 | ||||
SP13 (Planned) | IV | 1 Mar 1944 * | 1 Jun 1945 * | 1 Jan 1947 * | ||
SP14 (Planned) | III | 1 Mar 1944 * | 1 Jun 1945 * | 1 Jan 1947 * | ||
SP15 (Planned) | II | 1 Apr 1944 * | 1 Jul 1945 * | 1 Jan 1947 * | ||
D (Planned) | I | 1 Apr 1941 | 1 Jun 1945 * | 1 May 1947 * | 1 Sep 1948 * | |
O2 (Planned) | III | 1 May 1943 | 1 Sep 1945 * | 1 Mar 1947 * | 1 Mar 1948 * | |
P2 (Planned) | II | 1 Jun 1943 | 1 Dec 1945 * | 1 Aug 1947 * | 1 Aug 1948 * |
* Projected dates; not actual
Slip/Drydock Utilization
[Con]: Construction; [FO]: Fitting Out
Howaldtswerke Kiel Interactive Map
Photographs
Maps
Howaldtswerke Kiel Timeline
1 Oct 1838 | Engineer August Ferdinand Howaldt and ship owner Johann Schweffel started a multi-faceted business named Schweffel & Howaldt in Kiel, Germany. |
12 Aug 1884 | The firm Gebrüder Howaldt established the Schwentine-Dock-Gesellschaft in Kiel, Germany. |
4 May 1889 | In Kiel in northern Germany, Schwentine-Dock-Gesellschaft and Georg Howaldt Kiel Shipyard merged to form the Howaldtswerke corporation. |
15 Sep 1926 | In Kiel, Germany, the firm Howaldtswerke was liquidated, and the shipyarding portion of the business would continue operations under the name Dietrichsdorier Werft AG. |
1 Jan 1930 | German Shipbuilders Ltd. of Hamburg Factory Vulcan took over Dietrichsdorier Werft AG and renamed the company HDW AG Kiel. |
12 Aug 1936 | The keel of Wilhelm Bauer was laid down at the Howaldtswerke shipyard in Kiel, Germany. |
1 Apr 1937 | The Howaldtswerke operations in Kiel, Germany was sold to Deutsche Werke Kiel AG. |
12 Aug 1937 | The keel of Waldemar Kophamel was laid down at the Howaldtswerke shipyard in Kiel, Germany. |
30 Apr 1938 | Wilhelm Bauer was launched at the Howaldtswerke shipyard in Kiel, Germany. |
23 Sep 1938 | The keel of Otto Wünsche was laid down at the Howaldtswerke shipyard in Kiel, Germany. |
1 Apr 1939 | The Deutsche Werke Kiel AG operations in Kiel, Germany and the Kriegsmarinearsenal merged and became Kriegsmarinewerft Kiel. |
15 May 1939 | Waldemar Kophamel was launched at the Howaldtswerke shipyard in Kiel, Germany. |
23 May 1940 | Otto Wünsche was launched at the Howaldtswerke shipyard in Kiel, Germany. |
27 Apr 1943 | The keel of U-1133 was laid down at the Howaldtswerke shipyard in Kiel, Germany. |
1 Jul 1943 | Kriegsmarinewerft Kiel facilities in Kiel, Germany was sold, forming a new company named Howaldtswerke Aktiengesellschaft Werft Kiel. |
30 Sep 1943 | The construction for U-1133 was suspended. |
22 Jul 1944 | The construction for U-1133 was canceled. |
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WW2-Era Place Name | Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany |
Lat/Long | 54.3331, 10.1761 |
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Thomas Dodd, late 1945
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