Kaiser the emperors of the German Empire and the emperors of the Austrian Empire. During the First World War, anti-German sentiment was at its zenith; the term "the Kaiser"—especially as applied to Wilhelm II of Germany—thus gained considerable negative connotations in English-speaking countries. The Holy Roman Emperors (962–1806) called themselves "Kaiser", combining the imperial title with that of "King of the Romans" (assumed by the designated heir before the imperial coronation); they saw their rule as a continuation of that of the Roman Emperors and used the title derived from the title "Caesar" to reflect their supposed heritage. In 1806 the
Kaiser-class ironclad from the naval register in 1906; "Deutschland" was used as a target ship before being sold for scrap in 1908, though "Kaiser" served on as a floating barracks until she was sold in 1920. The "Kaiser"-class design was prepared in 1869 by Sir Edward Reed; their construction was awarded to the Samuda Brothers shipyard in London. The ships were the last German capital ships to be built abroad. All subsequent German capital ships were built by German shipbuilders. "Kaiser" and "Deutschland" were laid down in 1871 and 1872, respectively. "Kaiser" was launched on 19 March 1874 and commissioned into the