QUEENSLAND'S GERMAN CONNECTIONS - PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE

Navy fashionable It was not until 1928 that a German warship came once more to the Fifth Continent, and then the cruiser Berlin visited only Western Australia, staying a fortnight in Fremantle. Her Captain Kolbe wrote: “I think that the ice between the two countries has now been broken and that our warships will be able to call in at Australian ports without further ado in future, and that in this country, the appearance of a cruiser will contribute very much more to the strengthening of the German heritage abroad and to the enhancement of the German Reich’s prestige than anywhere else.” It took five years, however, for this optimistic prediction to be actualised, and it was only after the Reichsmarine began rebuilding out of the constraints of Versailles that two of its new K-class light cruisers began a series of round-the-world training and flag-showing cruises. Many of the goodwill opportunities were rather overshadowed by Hitler’s assumption of power, Köln having to represent the new ‘Third Reich’ in 1933, when she called at Fremantle, Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney. The mixed official and press reactions were, for the most part however, overcome by public interest and the cruiser had attracted an estimated 30,000 to 40,000 visitors before she left Australia. As Köln did not visit Queensland, that omission was made good by the Karlsruhe early in 1934. Steaming east from Calcutta via Surabaya (Java), the cruiser approached Torres Strait and picked up the pilot at Thursday Island in heavy rain squalls at 10.15am on Monday 15 January. Late on the 17th she arrived in Moreton Bay and anchored overnight off the Pile Light. Such was the keen anticipation, The Courier- Mail hired a launch to take reporters out to the roadstead in the hopes of an early feature, but they were not allowed aboard as the cruiser’s late arrival meant quarantine pratique could not be completed until the following morning. That failed to dent the reporter’s determination to get the story, and Brisbane awoke the next morning to the reports of the greetings called across the waters.

The reporters observed “the naval officers, looking sun-browned and fit from their long sea voyage, blue-eyed blonde cadets who are training to be the officers of the future, and naval ratings in shorts and singlets” waving greetings and “those officers who could speak English carried on a cheery discussion with the party on the wave-tossed launch.” The ship’s deputy, Commander Schiller, shouted a memorable quote: ‘Tell the people of Brisbane we are pleased to be here,” he called from the deck, “and that we are looking forward to having a happy stay with them.” “‘We greet the girls,’ called a young blonde rating in shorts. When this was interpreted for the others a merry peal of laughter rang out. ‘Ja, ja,’ they endorsed. There are 119 naval cadets aboard in training to become officers. These are especially picked young men, and the world cruise is chiefly for their instruction,” the report noted, detailing the service histories and decorations of the officers and describing the features of the ship. On the 18th, ABC Radio 4QG broadcast live from 9.45am from the Mercantile Wharf at New Farm to cover the cruiser’s 10am arrival, with another from 8pm that day of a concert by the ship’s band. Karlsruhe was open to the public on Saturday 20th and Tuesday 23rd between 2pm and 5pm. The ship could field several ‘first class’ soccer teams from among its 518-man crew, and Brisbane ‘A’ and ‘B’ teams were organised for exhibition matches. Services for officers and men at the Lutheran Church at South Brisbane, and dinners and tours were also arranged. Despite not being allowed aboard, the enterprising reporters filed a range of interesting stories in the next morning’s edition, which happily coincided with the ship’s berthing upriver and the start of a wide range of civic and social functions during her eight-day stay.

Dimensions: length 174m (571ft), beam 15.2m (50ft), draft 5.7m (19ft) Armament: 9 x 15cm (5.9in) guns, 6 x 88mm AA, 12 x torpedo tubes; twin MAN diesels plus twin turbines. Displacement: 8,100 tons (full load)

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