It was a prolonged yet terrible encounter. The British fleet, advancing in line ahead in double columns, suffered severely as they received the concentrated fire of the hostile ships. It was a running fight at this stage, for Admiral Bloch's main division, relying on its superior numbers, was slowly retiring so as to subject its pursuers to a heavy cannonade at long range ere the second division, fresh for action, converged upon the flank of the British fleet.
In twenty minutes the British Orion and Thunderer were sunk, while the Princess Royal, Vanguard, Inflexible, and Foudroyant had fallen out of line. In spite of their complicated system of water-tight doors they were leaking badly, their powerful centrifugal pumps being barely sufficient to cope with the inrush of water. The Foudroyant in particular was in a deplorable condition, being battered entirely out of recognition.
The "lame ducks" must go. Admiral Hobbes could not hazard the rest of his fleet by standing by. The cripples were ordered to make their way as best they might for Haulbowline, trusting to luck to avoid the detached armoured cruisers of the hostile fleet.
In this running fight the enemy possessed a decided advantage in the fact that both torpedoes and mines could be employed, whereas the pursuing vessels were unable to use either.
Nor had they suffered lightly. The huge 20,000-ton battleship Kronprinz Gustave, her armoured sides shattered by the 13in. projectiles of the King George V., was slowly settling down by the head. The Askoldin and Trodet—both regarded as formidable vessels—had already disappeared, while the Styx, Vonderflack, and Gelion had dropped astern hopelessly crippled. These three vessels, finding themselves overhauled by the British fleet, surrendered at discretion. But Admiral Hobbes was not in a position to take possession of the disabled ships; all he could hope was that his own "lame ducks" would be able to complete the surrender.
Then with a terrific roar a small cruiser steaming about two cables' length on the quarter of the Donetz—Bloch's flagship—burst into a thousand fragments. Admiral Hobbes hailed this success with as much delight as if it had been the sinking of one of the enemy's super-Dreadnoughts, for the vessel had been recognised as the Hekla, a mine-layer of the most aggressive type.
Thus the losses on the side of the Triple Alliance outnumbered those of the British by one. This, Admiral Hobbes knew, was good, but not good enough. Should the action be continued with the same proportion of losses the allies would come out with a balance of eleven ships to the good—and that without taking into consideration the as yet invisible division of Vice-Admiral Neboff.
By noon the rival fleets, covering a front of eleven miles, were in the vicinity of the Lizard. The British commander hoped that some of the units left at Devonport might make a flank attack on the enemy. His wireless gear had been swept away, and consequently he was cut off from communication with the shore.
Then instead of the expected reinforcement one of the scouts came within signalling distance with the grave news that another hostile division was closing in on the British starboard quarter.
Half an hour later Admiral Neboff's division opened fire.