Wilhelm II, German Emperor after his consent had been gained that major changes to the high command could be effected. Wilhelm was in favour of the dismissal of Helmuth von Moltke the Younger in September 1914 and his replacement by Erich von Falkenhayn. In 1917, Hindenburg and Ludendorff decided that Bethman-Hollweg was no longer acceptable to them as Chancellor and called upon the Kaiser to appoint somebody else. When asked whom they would accept, Ludendorff recommended Georg Michaelis, a nonentity whom he barely knew. The Kaiser did not know Michaelis, but accepted the suggestion. Upon hearing in July 1917 that his cousin George V
King George V-class battleship (1939) of Hamamatsu on 29 July and 30 July 1945. "Duke of York" and "Anson" were also dispatched to the Pacific, but arrived too late to participate in hostilities. On 15 August "Duke of York" and "Anson "accepted the surrender of Japanese forces occupying Hong Kong and along with "King George V" were present for the official Japanese surrender in Tokyo Bay. Following the end of World War II, the ships were phased out of service and by 1957 all of the ships had been sold off for scrap, a process that was completed by 1958. The "King George V" class