Emden

Emden was a light cruiser built for the German Navy (Reichsmarine) in the early 1920s. She was the only ship of her class and was the first large warship built in Germany after the end of World War I. She was built at the Reichsmarinewerft in Wilhelmshaven; her keel was laid down in December 1921 and her completed hull was launched in January 1925. Emden was commissioned into the fleet in October 1925. Her design was heavily informed by the restrictions of the Treaty of Versailles and the dictates of the Allied disarmament commission. Displacement was capped at 6,000 long tons (6,100 t), though like all German warships built in the period, Emden exceeded the size limitations. She was armed with a main battery of surplus 15 cm (5.9 in) guns left over from World War I, mounted in single gun turrets, as mandated by the Allied powers. She had a top speed of 29 knots (54 km/h; 33 mph).

Emden spent the majority of her career as a training ship; in the inter-war period, she conducted several world cruises to train naval cadets, frequently visiting East Asia, the Americas, and the Indian Ocean region. In 1937 and 1938, she briefly participated in the non-intervention patrols during the Spanish Civil War. At the outbreak of war, she laid minefields off the German coast and was damaged by a British bomber that crashed into her. She participated in the invasion of Norway in April 1940 as part of the force that captured the Norwegian capital at Oslo.