astraltrader
19-02-2008, 19:56
28 August 1914
The often overlooked Battle of Heligoland Bight was fought only three weeks after the start of the First World War.
The Admiralty had decided upon a daring raid on German patrols in the area of their base at Heligoland. The Harwich Force comprising the light cruisers Arethusa and Fearless along with two flotillas of destroyers commanded by Commodore R.T.Tyrwhitt were chosen for the task.
Back-up cover was also provided by Vice-Admiral Beattie with his 1st Battlecruiser Squadron along with the 1st light Cruiser Squadron commanded by Commodore Goodenough.
The battle started at dawn when Tyrwhitt entered the Bight and spotted two enemy destroyers, one of which the v187 was sunk.
Then within minutes there appeared out of dense mist no less than six German light cruisers who threatened to overwhelm the Harwich Force. They were the Stettin, Frauenlob, Mainz, Koln, Stralsund and the Ariadne.
Before long HMS Arethusa became quite badly damaged by accurate fire from Frauenlob.
Feeling overwhelmed Tyrwhitt called up firstly Goodenough`s cruisers.
In addition Beatty responded to the call for assistance and his squadron`s appearance was both timely and decisive.
The light cruisers Ariadne, Koln and Mainz were sunk and the other three scuttled back into the mist and escaped.
In this clear cut British victory they lost no ships sunk, although the Arethusa was badly damaged. In all 35 seamen were killed with a similar number of wounded. The Germans on the other hand lost 3 cruisers plus a destroyer with over 1,200 men killed or captured.
The most significant result of the battle was the effect on the attitude of the Kaiser. To preserve his ships the Kaiser determined that the fleet should, "hold itself back and avoid actions which can lead to greater losses." Admiral Pohl, Chief of the German Naval Staff, wired Ingenohl that, "in his anxiety to preserve the fleet [Wilhelm] ... wished you to wire for his consent before entering a decisive action."
Tirpitz was outraged by this decision. He wrote after the war, "The Emperor did not wish for losses of this sort ... Orders [were] issued by the Emperor ... after an audience with Pohl, to which I as usual was not summoned, to restrict the initiative of the Commander-in-Chief of the North Sea Fleet. The loss of ships was to be avoided; fleet sallies and any greater undertakings must be approved by His Majesty in advance. I took the first opportunity to explain to the Emperor the fundamental error of such a muzzling policy. This step had no success, but on the contrary there sprang up from that day forth an estrangement between the Emperor and myself which steadily increased."
In addition the results of this action were far-reaching. Henceforward, the weight of British Naval prestige lay heavily across all German sea enterprise ... The German Navy was indeed "muzzled". Except for furtive movements by individual submarines and minelayers nothing was to be heard from them until the following year.
The often overlooked Battle of Heligoland Bight was fought only three weeks after the start of the First World War.
The Admiralty had decided upon a daring raid on German patrols in the area of their base at Heligoland. The Harwich Force comprising the light cruisers Arethusa and Fearless along with two flotillas of destroyers commanded by Commodore R.T.Tyrwhitt were chosen for the task.
Back-up cover was also provided by Vice-Admiral Beattie with his 1st Battlecruiser Squadron along with the 1st light Cruiser Squadron commanded by Commodore Goodenough.
The battle started at dawn when Tyrwhitt entered the Bight and spotted two enemy destroyers, one of which the v187 was sunk.
Then within minutes there appeared out of dense mist no less than six German light cruisers who threatened to overwhelm the Harwich Force. They were the Stettin, Frauenlob, Mainz, Koln, Stralsund and the Ariadne.
Before long HMS Arethusa became quite badly damaged by accurate fire from Frauenlob.
Feeling overwhelmed Tyrwhitt called up firstly Goodenough`s cruisers.
In addition Beatty responded to the call for assistance and his squadron`s appearance was both timely and decisive.
The light cruisers Ariadne, Koln and Mainz were sunk and the other three scuttled back into the mist and escaped.
In this clear cut British victory they lost no ships sunk, although the Arethusa was badly damaged. In all 35 seamen were killed with a similar number of wounded. The Germans on the other hand lost 3 cruisers plus a destroyer with over 1,200 men killed or captured.
The most significant result of the battle was the effect on the attitude of the Kaiser. To preserve his ships the Kaiser determined that the fleet should, "hold itself back and avoid actions which can lead to greater losses." Admiral Pohl, Chief of the German Naval Staff, wired Ingenohl that, "in his anxiety to preserve the fleet [Wilhelm] ... wished you to wire for his consent before entering a decisive action."
Tirpitz was outraged by this decision. He wrote after the war, "The Emperor did not wish for losses of this sort ... Orders [were] issued by the Emperor ... after an audience with Pohl, to which I as usual was not summoned, to restrict the initiative of the Commander-in-Chief of the North Sea Fleet. The loss of ships was to be avoided; fleet sallies and any greater undertakings must be approved by His Majesty in advance. I took the first opportunity to explain to the Emperor the fundamental error of such a muzzling policy. This step had no success, but on the contrary there sprang up from that day forth an estrangement between the Emperor and myself which steadily increased."
In addition the results of this action were far-reaching. Henceforward, the weight of British Naval prestige lay heavily across all German sea enterprise ... The German Navy was indeed "muzzled". Except for furtive movements by individual submarines and minelayers nothing was to be heard from them until the following year.