Private company

Deutsche Werke

Logo: Holger.Ellgaard, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons³

German shipbuilding company

Deutsche Werke Kiel AG was a German shipbuilding company that was founded in 1925 when Kaiserliche Werft Kiel and other shipyards were merged. It came as a result of the Treaty of Versailles after World War I that forced the German defense industry to shrink. The company was owned by the government of the Weimar Republic and its headquarters was in Berlin while the manufacturing location was in Kiel.² It ceased to exist in 1945.¹ Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 21, 2026.

Overview

1925Founded¹

Industrybuilding of ships and floating structures, industrial manufacturing, machinery industry and plant construction, vehicle construction, weapons industry¹
HeadquartersBerlin¹
Legal formjoint-stock company¹

See how the biggest companies compare on our leaderboards

The story

Besides shipbuilding, Deutsche Werke also produced firearms. Especially well-known are the so-called Ortgies pistols, which were particularly popular in the United States. The pistols were developed by Heinrich Ortgies. Deutsche Werke started building merchant ships, but when the Nazi Party gained power in 1933 the production was changed to naval ships.

During World War II the company expanded to Gdynia in German-occupied Poland, establishing Deutsche Werke Gotenhafen. The Polish resistance conducted espionage of the Deutsche Werke in Gdynia.

Deutsche Werke facilities and infrastructure were destroyed during World War II by bombing raids. Parts of the works were reorganised as Maschinenbau Kiel.

In 1955 the shipyard areas were bought by Howaldtswerke.

From Wikipedia’s article on Deutsche Werke, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.⁴

Products and brands

German submarine U-15
German submarine U-458
U-1
U-13
U-137
U-138
U-139
U-14
U-140
U-141
U-142
U-143
U-144
U-145
U-146
U-147
U-148
U-149
U-150
U-151
U-152
U-16
U-2
U-3
U-4
U-451
U-452
U-453
U-454
U-455
U-456
U-457
U-459
U-460
U-461
U-462
U-463
U-464
U-465
U-466
U-467
U-468
U-469
U-470
U-471
U-472
U-473
U-474
U-475
U-476
U-477
U-478
U-479
U-480
U-481
U-482
U-483
U-484
U-485
U-486

Listed on Wikidata.¹

Timeline

1945Dissolved Dissolved¹
1925Founded Founded¹

Sources

The numbers on this page point here. Each one links to the record it came from.

1
WikidataDeutsche Werke on Wikidata
2
WikipediaDeutsche Werke on Wikipedia
3
Wikimedia CommonsDeutsche Werke logo by Holger.Ellgaard, CC BY-SA 4.0
4
WikipediaDeutsche Werke on Wikipedia (revision used)

Overview

The story

Products and brands

Timeline

Links

Sources