Gedenkstätte SMS Cöln

This memorial commemorates the light cruiser SMS Cöln, which was sunk by the British Navy on 28 August 1914. A wrecked cutter from the cruiser recovered after the battle is part of the memorial.

The city of Cologne has been the eponym of naval ships since 1909. One of these was the small cruiser SMS Cöln, commissioned on June 16, 1911. She was short-lived, as more than three years later, on August 28, 1914, the Cöln was sunk during a battle with the Royal Navy at Heligoland. Of the 505 crew, about 200 were floating in the sea, who could possibly have been rescued, but could not be found due to thick fog. Only 1 man, Obermatrose Adolf Neumann, managed to reach the island of Norderney in a battered cutter, a dinghy of the cruiser. This cutter is now included in the moment. Furthermore, an anchor and bow emblem of the frigate Köln F220, which was decommissioned in 1982, can be seen. The sixth vessel named Köln is now under construction and will be delivered in 2023.

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Source

• Text: Kaj Metz & Maurice Laarman
• Photos: Maurice Laarman