Leberecht Maass

In the competition for a new destroyer in 1934, the design submitted by Deutsche Werke prevailed. The lead destroyer of the series, the Z-1 Leberecht Maass, was laid down in October 1934 and entered service in February 1937. During World War II, the destroyer took part in the blockade of the Polish coastline and was involved in laying mines in the North Sea. Tragically, on February 23, 1940, during Operation Viking, the destroyer was mistakenly targeted by Luftwaffe bombers and subsequently sank.