Pen Pictures of British Battles

by Various

All through this encounter the battle-cruisers were still pounding one another and rapidly nearing the German Battle Fleet. From 4.15 to 4.43 he reports that the fighting was “of a very fierce and resolute character,” but at 4.18 the third enemy ship was seen to be on fire. The haze had now thickened, and the enemy could only be dimly made out. At 4.38 the German Battle Fleet emerged from the mist to the S.E., and was seen and reported by the Second Light Cruiser Squadron, scouting in advance, to Admiral Beatty, who at 4.42 turned in his course, steaming N.W. instead of S.E., towards Admiral Jellicoe and the British Battle Fleet.

The Germans turned in the same way, their battle-cruisers taking station at the head of the enemy’s line and pursuing Beatty. As they executed this turn, the Fifth Battle Squadron closed them, steaming in the opposite direction, engaged them with all its guns, and then turned and fell in astern of Beatty, who now had eight ships in line, proceeding at a speed of something over 21 knots. The enemy’s battle fleet was in action, and the Germans had concentrated in superior force on a part of the British Fleet.

The range was 14,000 yards and the enemy was getting heavily hit, while he was apparently not making many hits on the British ships. After 5, one of the German battle-cruisers—perhaps the Lutzow, which, according to the enemy, received 15 or 16 heavy shells—left the line damaged. At 5.10 the sixth ship in the German line—a Dreadnought—was reported to have been hit by a torpedo, and it is just possible that she sank, as a huge cloud of smoke and steam was seen just after where she had been. The Germans were now edging off to the E., learning either from Zeppelins or their light cruisers that the British Battle Fleet was coming up to the N.W. Admiral Beatty reports that “probably Zeppelins were present,” though they appear to have been seen only by neutrals in the first stage of the battle.

The head of the German line at this part of the battle was getting severely punished, and a second of the German battle-cruisers had vanished, leaving only three enemy battle-cruisers in line. The first stage of the battle was over. Beatty had led the Germans to the British Battle Fleet, which was sighted at 5.56 10,000 yards away to the N.

The position of the Fleet was as follows:—Beatty, with four battle-cruisers, and astern of him the four fast battleships of the Fifth Battle Squadron, was now turning sharply eastwards to pass across the head of the German Fleet and prevent it from edging E. and getting away in that direction. This movement of his would have enabled him to “cross the T” of the enemy’s line—i.e., to pass at right angles across it, raking the ships as he passed, which is regarded as the most advantageous position that can be obtained in battle—if the enemy had not turned. N. of Admiral Beatty’s ships was the British Battle Fleet, with three battle-cruisers under Hood on one wing, and three or four armoured cruisers under Arbuthnot on the other. On a line generally parallel to Beatty’s was the whole force of German battle-cruisers (3) and battleships (22), slightly astern of him, so that the German ships at the southern end of the line were out of the battle—too distant to fire. The head of the enemy line was some 12,000 yards from him, and about 22,000 yards from the British Battle Fleet.

Beatty’s eastward turn compelled the enemy to turn, and enabled the British Battle Fleet, if it desired, to move in behind the High Sea Fleet and cut it off from its bases. To reinforce Beatty in these critical moments, Hood steamed in fast with his three battle-cruisers, and swung magnificently into position at the head of Beatty’s line. There he received a terrific fire from the enemy, 8,000 yards away, and a few minutes later the Invincible, his flagship, was struck by the combined salvoes of the German Fleet and she sank. Three battle-cruisers were gone, and of their combined crews of 2,500 men a mere handful were saved. Beatty at 6.35, about the time when the Invincible sank, turned S.E. A little earlier, Rear-Admiral Arbuthnot, with three weak armoured cruisers, struck the German Battle Fleet, which was apparently almost hidden in smoke. His intervention prevented a dangerous German torpedo attack on the British battle-cruisers, but in rendering this last service he perished.

The Black Prince was very badly hit. The Warrior was disabled, and in extreme danger. Probably the German ships were attacking these vessels with concentrated salvoes—battleships of the super-Dreadnought class firing at pre-Dreadnought armoured cruisers. The German shooting must have begun to deteriorate, as the Warspite was quickly got under control, and with but slight damage rejoined the Fifth Battle Squadron, which was now taking station astern of Admiral Jellicoe’s Fleet.

At 6.17 this Fleet entered the battle. The First Battle Squadron was the first to engage at 11,000 yards, closing the enemy slowly to 9,000 (which is very short range indeed, and would allow the Germans to use their 6-in. guns). The light was very bad. The Germans were shrouded in haze; their destroyers sent up thick clouds of coal smoke, which obscured an atmosphere already choked with the fumes of bursting shells, and the smoke from the numerous fires in the ships engaged. From the van of the Battle Fleet never more than five German ships could be seen, and from the rear never more than twelve. The British constantly strove to close, but were eluded by the enemy, who utilised destroyer attacks to cover his retreat. But, difficult though it was to shoot with accuracy, Sir J. Jellicoe reports that in this phase of the battle the enemy ships were repeatedly hit, and one at least was seen to sink.

The Marlborough, in the First Battle Squadron, specially distinguished herself, firing seven salvoes (if with all her guns about 70 13·5-in. shell) at a battleship of the Kaiser class; at 6.54 she was so unlucky as to be hit by a torpedo fired from a German light cruiser, which she sank. She was the only British ship to suffer in this way. A great cloud of smoke rose from her and she listed violently, then recovered, and nine minutes later re-opened fire. At 7.12 she poured 14 salvoes with great speed upon a battleship of the König class, and drove her from the line.

The flagship, Iron Duke, at 6.30 engaged a Dreadnought of the König class in the German Fleet, hitting her at the second salvo, which was a remarkable gunnery performance at a range of 12,000 yards and in the clouds of smoke. The enemy turned away and escaped. The other ships of the Fourth Battle Squadron were mainly engaged with the German battle-cruisers. The Second Battle Squadron attacked the German battleships, and also fired at a damaged German battle-cruiser, from 6.30 to 7.20; at 7 p.m. the British Fleet turned S., and shortly afterwards S.W. The battleship engagement closed about 8.20, when the enemy disappeared in the smoke and mist. He lay to the W. of Admiral Jellicoe’s Fleet, and orders were issued to the British torpedo craft to attack him. About 8.20 Beatty pushed W. in support of the light cruisers which had been ordered to locate the enemy’s position, and came upon two battle-cruisers and two battleships, which he attacked at a range of 10,000 yards. The leading German ship was struck repeatedly, and turned away sharply with a very heavy list, emitting flames; the Princess Royal set a three-funnelled battleship (possibly the Helgoland) on fire. A third ship was battered by the Indomitable and New Zealand, and was seen heeling over, on fire, drawing out of the line. Then about 8.38 the mist came down so thickly that the battle was broken off, the enemy fleet being last seen by the larger British ships about 8.38, steaming W.