Nassau-class battleship

The Nassau class was a group of four dreadnought battleships built for the German Kaiserliche Marine, comprising Nassau, Westfalen, Rheinland and Posen. All four were laid down in mid-1907 and completed by late 1910, and they were Germany's first dreadnought class. Their main battery was twelve 28 cm guns in six twin turrets arranged in an unusual hexagonal pattern. Unlike many other dreadnoughts they kept vertical triple-expansion steam engines rather than turbines, a choice the source ties to the cost of the Parsons turbine royalty. Rheinland was built by AG Vulcan at Stettin; the sister ships came from Wilhelmshaven, Bremen and Kiel. The ships served as the II Division of the I Battle Squadron of the High Seas Fleet for their whole careers.