THE BATTLE OF JUTLAND

In 1916 occurred the one important naval engagement of the Great War. On May 31, the British Grand Fleet was sweeping in two sections through the North Sea. It was cruising south, having left the waters off the southwestern coast of Norway, and had reached the waters of the Skagger Rack, the channel between Norway and Denmark which is the western connecting link between the North and the Baltic Seas. The first section consisted of the so-called Fast Battle Fleet, under the command of Vice-Admiral Sir David Beatty, and the Fifth Battle Squadron, with some squadrons of destroyers and several light battleships, under Rear-Admiral Thomas. Beatty's command comprised the battle cruisers Queen Mary, Princess Royal, Tiger, Lion, New Zealand and Indefatigable. The heaviest ships of Thomas's command were the fast battleships Warspite, Valiant, Barnham and Malaya. This advance guard of the Grand Fleet was some fifty miles south of the main section, under Admiral Jellicoe, which contained the great dreadnaughts, with other battleships and cruisers.

Germany's fleet was also in the custom of cruising through the North Sea, although never as far from the land as the British, for the Germans were too conscious of the numerical superiority of the British to attempt anything but flight if the two main fleets should come into contact. Germany's hope was to encounter a mere section of the British fleet, so that the odds would be in favor of the Germans, or, at best, would be even. The German High Seas Fleet had also put to sea on May 31, sailing north to the Skagger Rack from Helgoland. The advance guard of the German fleet, under Admiral von Hipper, consisted of five battle cruisers, the Derfflinger, Lützow, Moltke, Seydlitz and Von der Tann, with a number of light cruisers and destroyers. It was closely followed by the main German Battle Fleet, under Admiral von Scheer. The purpose of the Germans is unknown. It may have been to meet only a section of the British

fleet of equal or of less strength. It may have been to induce the British fleet to pursue the Germans into mine fields. It may have been another raid upon the British coast. It may have been an attempt to

THE BATTLE OF JUTLAND (after Buchan)

get at the Russian fleet in the Baltic. It may have been a cover under which one or two cruisers could slip away from the British screen and get into the open Atlantic, where they could play havoc with merchant shipping.

At noon on May 31, Beatty had turned to the north, in order to keep more closely in touch with Jellicoe as the two sections of the

British Grand Fleet approached the waters in which enemy vessels. might be expected. The weather was clear and the water was smooth, but clouds were rolling up from the horizon and a haze overhung the surface of the ocean, making for a condition of "low visibility." At 2:20 P. M., the Galatea, the first of the light cruisers, reported the presence of enemy vesseis to the east. Beatty at once turned to the east and then to the south, in order to cut off the enemy from his base. Further reports, including one from a sea-plane, showed that the enemy was in force and as Beatty made for von Hipper's five battle cruisers he prepared for action. The British formation was one in which the light cruisers were spread out before the battle cruisers. The British had six battle cruisers and four heavy battleships as against the German five battle cruisers, but the odds would be in favor of Germany if von Scheer should join von Hipper before Jellicoe could come up. Nevertheless, Beatty closed in at once upon the German vessels and prepared to give battle.

Confronted by overwhelming superiority in numbers, in guns and in speed, von Hipper turned to the south and made all haste to regain von Scheer before the British could get his range. Both squadrons were thus sailing at full speed south-south-east. As Beatty's vessels were faster than Jellicoe's, the two portions of the British Grand Fleet were drawing farther and farther apart. At 3:48 P. M. the ten large British ships opened fire at the same time as the five large German, the range being about ten miles and the visibility for the moment good, and the battle was on.

The first loss was Beatty's and hence the first palm for accurate gunnery went to the Germans. Around four o'clock a shell penetrated to a vital spot in the Indefatigable and the battle cruiser sank at once after a heavy explosion. Less than half an hour afterwards, Beatty suffered an even more depressing loss when a German shell blew up the Queen Mary. By this time, however, at least one of the heavy German ships was on fire and the heavy haze which now descended made it impossible for the British to see the effects of their own fire. The destroyers had also engaged, and the Germans lost two of these subsidiary craft, although several of the British destroyers were also punished severely. German submarines were attacking the heavy

British ships without effect, but several of the British destroyers scored against the German battle cruisers. At 4:40 P. M., the situation suddenly changed with the appearance on the scene of the main German Battle Fleet. Beatty was now outnumbered as he had outnumbered von Hipper, and it was now his turn to retrace his course and to flee for the support of his own main battle fleet.

From 4:45 to 6, the ships under the command of Beatty fled to the north, pursued by the combined German fleets of von Hipper and von Scheer. The Germans evidently suspected that they had achieved their purpose of catching an isolated section of the British Grand Fleet; at all events, they followed Beatty in steaming northward toward the main British fleet. In the pursuit one of the German battle cruisers fell out of action, and others showed signs of injury; the British were getting revenge for the loss of the Queen Mary and the Indefatigable. Shortly before six o'clock Jellicoe was sighted and Beatty at once closed in on the Germans again. It was once more the Germans' turn to make for the south.

The struggle now became sharp. One of the heaviest of Jellicoe's® fleet, the Invincible, was sunk. Soon afterward, a German light cruiser disappeared under the waves. The destroyers were engaged in fierce struggle, with losses on both sides, although the British losses were the heavier. At 6:05, the British destroyer Onslow was disabled and had to be towed off the scene by the Defender, itself crippled in the process of rescue. By seven o'clock the British as well as the German ships were now in one fleet. Beatty had been to the west of von Hipper, but had crossed over to the east in order to join Jellicoe, and the German fleet was now to the west of the British. The light was failing and the mist was heavy, and the Germans were making good their retreat to the southwest, by the process of covering their manoeuvres by torpedo attacks from their destroyers. In vain the British commander tried to bring about a general action. From seven to eight, as the fog lifted in spots, the British planted shell after shell upon the retiring German ships while the two fleets made all speed to the southwest. A number of German ships were seen to be on fire and at least one heavy explosion through the mist revealed that one of the German battle cruisers or heavy battleships had blown up. But

the Germans were using smoke also to escape detection and by nine o'clock contact between the two fleets was lost. The main fighting had been done by Beatty's advance squadron and the heavier vessels of Jellicoe had not been able to make themselves effective for more than a few minutes.

During the night, only the British destroyers and light cruisers managed to find traces of the German High Seas fleet. From time to time a German warship would be located in the fog and would be attacked, sometimes with effective results, sometimes with disastrous results. Because of the danger from submarines, Jellicoe was compelled to keep his heaviest vessels in back of his destroyers and light cruisers, but he continued to drive ahead until near dawn in the hope of cutting off the Germans from their bases. However, when dawn broke, no traces of von Scheer's ships were visible; a further British pursuit would have brought Jellicoe's vessels dangerously near the German mine fields; the British fleet therefore returned to the scene of the battle; and in the afternoon of June I the British Grand Fleet left the scene of the battle and proceeded with its task of patrolling the North Sea.

The British losses were officially stated as follows: