Chapter 61: The Photo Tour 17

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Entry posted by Dreadnought · November 14, 2025

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IMPERIAL DOCKYARDS: CUXHAVEN

By: Dreadnought & AP

Chapter 61:

THE PHOTO TOUR

THE EAST BASIN 03

This installment begins at the head of “Pier 2”. This pier is constructed with the same 8x1 base lot as the others. The advantage possessed by “Piers 2 through 6” lay in the construction of one long, continuous pier. Any number of ships, of various sizes, could be accommodated along its length. “Pier 1” was the first set of mooring piers constructed, and it was based on a series of individual docks capable of handling only a single vessel. One other point: This installment deals primarily with “heavy cruisers”.

Battle fleets of The Great War Era were composed of battleships, battlecruisers, sometimes armored cruisers, and light cruisers. The Royal Navy continued to deploy armored cruisers with the Grand Fleet in a scouting capacity, even though they were recognized as obsolete. The Kaiserliche Marine, more realistic about the life expectancy of an armored cruiser in a fleet engagement, reassigned them for service in the Baltic Sea. For all practical purposes, “heavy” cruisers did not exist during WW I.

The “heavy cruiser” was, in fact, the offspring of the Washington Naval Treaty of 1922. Both the British and the Americans, to varying degrees, had overseas interests requiring naval support and protection. After the financial strains of The Great War, neither country was particularly interested in sending battleships to such far flung outposts as Dar es Salaam, Sri Lanka, or even Manila. But, by the same token, something with more “muscle” than a light cruiser was required. The answer was not the obsolete armored cruiser or its capital ship replacement, the battlecruiser (limited by the treaty) – but the concept of a modern “heavy cruiser”. The Washington Treaty did not limit total “cruiser tonnage”, but it set an upper limit on ship size – no more than 10,000 tons with guns no larger than eight inch. (A later London Naval Treaty further subdivided cruisers into “heavy” and “light” categories. Light cruisers were approximately 7,000 tons with guns no larger than six inch.) So the heavy cruiser was born between the wars, more out of the need to save money than anything else.

Moored at the head of “Pier 2” is HMS Exeter, the second and last of the York Class heavy cruisers built for the Royal Navy.

Displacement: 8,390 tons – Length 575 feet – 32 knots – 6x8-inch guns – 6x21-inch torpedo tubes – Belt armor 3 inches.

This view shows her long, slender lines which contributed to her speed.

This close-up shows you the marvelous and intricate detailing on the model. The York Class cruisers were handsome and impressive vessels – somewhat unusual for Britain’s peacetime construction. The cruisers were built with the square, block-like forward superstructure that soon became standard on British warships. HMS Exeter put in a dogged performance against KM Admiral Graff Spee at the battle of the River plate in 1939 and was under repair for nearly a year after the battle. In early 1942, she was transferred to the Far East and was sunk by four Japanese cruisers on 1 March 1942, during the Second Battle of the Java Sea. Model courtesy of @Barroco Hispano.

A little further along the pier we see two paddle steam tugs maneuvering a lighter loaded with timber into position against the pier. The towing tug, Esmeralda, holds her position, while the tug Helena nudges the lighter against the dock.

This is another view of the tugs and lighter at work alongside “Pier 2”. @AP has crafted these wonderfully detailed tugs after much research into the type, and the level of detail is truly amazing. You can even see the furled canvas along the yardarms and on the mizzen gaff. If the tug’s engine failed while at sea, they would be able to make port under sail. The timber lighter, alone, is a work of art. You will note Helena is a diagonal model. “AP” made the extra effort to include many diagonal versions of his models for the game. “Grid-busting” is a long and admirable tradition in the SC4 community, and we have tried to add to the realism it brings to the game.

Along with the other traditional naval powers, the United States built “treaty cruisers” between the wars. Here you see USS Northampton, name ship of a class of six heavy cruisers built between 1928 and 1931. Additional ships were originally planned, but budget cuts during The Great Depression killed the overly ambitious program.

Displacement: 9,050 tons – Length 582 feet – Speed 32.5 knots – 9x8-inch guns – 8x5-inch guns – 4 float planes – Belt armor 3.75 inches.

This view shows the clean lines of the fast cruiser. With a 9 to1 length to width ratio, they were fast enough to keep up with the fast carrier battle groups that would eventually dominate WW II in the Pacific, and were prominent in the cruiser/destroyer night actions in the Solomon Islands.

This beautifully detailed model by “Barroco Hispano” shows the midships handling area for her aircraft catapult (port side) and the aircraft hangars beneath the rear superstructure block. The Northamptons were handsome vessels with a long, low profile, a raised forecastle for sea-keeping in rough seas, and a classically beautiful raked “clipper bow”. These cruisers were quite popular among serving officers and were followed by the nearly identical Portland Class heavy cruisers. Three of the Northamptons would be lost in the Pacific war – USS Houston, Northampton, and Chicago.

This is yet another of the several old, wooden landings provided by “AP”. Instead of raising the landing up to the top of the seawall, this one lowers the dock closer to the water and includes stairs. Just one more example of the variety found in such a simple prop. The landing has been “dressed-out” with a wide selection of “AP’s” sailors and small boats. Contrary to what you might think, it is not possible in these large harbors to row a boat up and step ashore wherever you please. “Landing piers” are found in many locations in a harbor, but because they are relatively scarce, each one becomes a focal point of activity. Here you see personnel coming and going, some boats loading small quantities of supplies, others carrying mail, etc, etc.

This is HMS Devonshire, one of 13 County Class heavy cruisers built between 1928 and 1930. This large class of ships was typical of the “treaty cruisers” Britain built between the wars. Large and sturdy, they were multi-purpose vessels designed to handle commerce protection and colonial support. Due to the large number of ships in the class, there were minor design changes made during construction, but they generally conformed to certain particulars:

Displacement: 9,840 tons – Length: 595 feet – Speed 32.25 knots – 8x8-inch guns – 8x4-inch guns – 8x21-inch torpedo tubes – Belt armor 3.5 inches.

HMS Devonshire is high-sided with enough freeboard to stay at sea and – if need be – to fight in heavy sea states. Her three funnels indicate a large number of boilers to generate high speed. The County Class heavy cruisers were considered good sea boats and performed well under wartime conditions. HMS Norfolk and Suffolk detected KM Bismarck passing through the Denmark Strait in May 1941, and HMS Dorsetshire fired the last four torpedoes into the German battleship. Later, Dorsetshire and HMS Cornwall were lost to Japanese carrier aircraft in April 1942, while HMAS Canberra was sunk in the night action off Savo Island in August 1942. Highly detailed model of Devonshire provided by “Barroco Hispano”.

Here is a close-up view of the individual docks used to construct the “Pier 1” facilities. There are four 12x3 docks – each one lotted differently -- and spaced-out along the quayside to handle a heavy cruiser. These docks are different from my usual dock pattern in that they do not have “WMP Seawalls” fitted as “bumpers”. The idea was to show these births as the oldest in the harbor, and therefore less modern. The dockside cranes are by “AP” with various props used to dress-out the dock itself. The five red-roofed warehouses on the right are from the “PEG SNM Naval Series”, while the black-roofed warehouses on the right are from the “NOB 1905 Naval Series”. Each dock is separated from its neighbor by a 3x2 lot with storage tanks, fronted by a 1x1 water tower and two 1x1 lots with parked trucks or trailers.

Across the road from the dock area are the trackside loading docks. These 3x2 dock pieces were repurposed directly from the “PEG CDK Industrial Docks Series” without any modifications. Upon reflection, I should have re-lotted them and “dressed” them with props suitable to the pre-WW I era. Unfortunately, this part of the map was put together early in the process and then largely overlooked (note the ubiquitous shipping containers). The 3x2 space between the two docks was filled-in with a combination of 1x1 and 1x2 modular lots. The trackside crane here is borrowed from the “PEG SNM Dry Dock Lot”.

Above you see the heavy cruiser RM Zara moored at her berth. The Zara Class comprised four heavy cruisers – Zara, Fiume, Pola, and Gorizia -- built for the Italian Regia Marina (RM or “Royal Navy”) between 1929 and 1932. They were a substantial improvement over the preceding class of cruisers with much improved belt armor. The Zara’s were, in fact, among the most heavily armored “treaty cruisers” built between the wars. It is not commonly known that the Italians were only able to achieve acceptable guns, armor, and speed by deliberately violating the Washington Treaty limits.

Displacement: 11,326 tons – Length” 589 feet – 32 knots – 8x8-inch guns – 16x3.9-inch guns – 34 AA guns – 2 seaplanes – Belt armor 5.9 inches.

With an 8 to 1 length to width ratio, the Zara Class ships were a bit wider in the beam than most foreign cruisers, which would have provided a more stable gun platform. But even with the wider beam and heavier armor, they still exceeded their rated 32 knots. You can see the hull lines are smooth and graceful, with a widely flared bow and raised forecastle deck to keep her “dry” at high speeds.

The Zara Class heavy cruisers were among the most handsome cruisers ever built – as “Barroco Hispano’s” superbly detailed model clearly demonstrates. The raised forecastle forward, steps down to the main deck level abaft the bridge structure and runs “flush” to the stern. The cruisers are long, and low with sharp “raked” bows designed to slice through the waves. The four cruisers served well during the early years of WW II, but Gorizia is the only one to survive the conflict. Pola, Zara, and Fiume were all sunk at the Battle of Cape Matapan, in a night action against the British battleships Barham, Valiant, and Warspite (27-29 March 1941).