 After Germany's defeat in the war and the signing of the Armistice in November 1918, "Markgraf" and most of the capital ships of the High Seas Fleet were interned by the Royal Navy in Scapa Flow.The ships were disarmed and reduced to skeleton crews while the Allied powers negotiated the final version of the Treaty of Versailles.On 21 June 1919, days before the treaty was signed, the commander of the interned fleet, Rear Admiral Ludwig von Reuter, ordered the fleet to be scuttled to ensure that the British would not be able to seize the ships.