Post Description

FOLLOWING THE CONCLUSION of the Great War and the Treaty of Versailles, the German Navy, known then as the Reichsmarine, began a clandestine research and development program to develop an all-weather motor torpedo boat (MTB). Much effort was given to this project due to the fact that the Treaty of Versailles made no provision against Germany developing this type of warship. For this they went to the German firm of Lurssen, a yacht building firm near Bremen, Germany. Lurssen had a round bottomed, all weather motor yacht that he was marketing to wealthy Americans in the mid 1920s that had the characteristics that the Reichsmarine was asking for. The construction of Lurssen's largest yacht consisted of aluminum frames, covered with mahogany planking, enabling the boat to withstand sea states far rougher than any other nations' MTBs. This vessel was 74ft long and could also reach a top speed of 34kts, making it the fastest motor boat of this size in the world. The Reichsmarine awarded Lurssen the contract for one boat of a slightly larger design. This would be the first true MTB for the new German Navy, and the design genesis for all future S-Boats through the Second World War.