Did the SMS Seydlitz sink?
1086719#53
Salvaging "Seydlitz" also proved difficult, as the ship sank again during the first attempt to raise her, wrecking most of the salvage equipment. Undaunted, Cox tried again, ordering that when she was next raised, news cameras would be there to capture him witnessing the moment. The plan nearly backfired when "Seydlitz" was accidentally refloated while Cox was holidaying in Switzerland. Cox told the workers to sink her again, then returned to Britain to be present as "Seydlitz" was duly refloated a third time.
SMS Seydlitz
1086719#52
The fleet remained in captivity during the negotiations that ultimately produced the Treaty of Versailles. Reuter believed that the British intended to seize the German ships on 21 June 1919, which was the deadline for Germany to have signed the peace treaty. Unaware that the deadline had been extended to the 23rd, Reuter ordered the ships to be sunk at the next opportunity. On the morning of 21 June, the British fleet left Scapa Flow to conduct training maneuvers, and at 11:20 Reuter transmitted the order to his ships. "Seydlitz" slipped beneath the surface at 13:50. On her side and on the bottom in twelve fathoms of water the wreck was frequently mistaken for a small island, and was sold in this condition as scrap to the salvage firm of Cox and Danks, led by Ernest Cox, along with a battleship and twenty-six destroyers. The ship was raised on 2 November 1928, and while still inverted was towed south to be scrapped in Rosyth by 1930. "Seydlitz"s bell is on display at the Laboe Naval Memorial.
SMS Seydlitz