The Grand Fleet [2][3] was the main body of the British Home Fleets in 1916, based at Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands and Invergordon on the Cromarty Firth in Scotland. [4] The 24 vessels of 2nd, 4th and 1st Battle Squadrons formed the main body of Fleet, and are listed below order from van to rear following their deployment to engage the German fleet, 6:30pm 31 May 1916. 2nd Battle Squadron, 1st Cruiser Squadron and most of the 11th Destroyer Flotilla were at Invergordon, the remainder at Scapa Flow. It was the only time that the British and German fleets of 'dreadnought' battleships actually came to blows. At 3:40 pm on May 30, 1916, all units of the High Seas Fleet received the executive signal to put this plan into operation. At 7:16 pm, therefore, to cause a diversion and win time, he ordered his battle cruisers and torpedo-boat flotillas to virtually immolate themselves in a massed charge against the British. Some 40 miles (64 km) still separated him from Beatty’s battle cruisers—and how much farther away was the main enemy force? This is the complete order of battle for the Battle of Jutland fought between 31 May and 1 June 1916. The summer of 1916 saw the long-deferred confrontation of Germany’s High Seas Fleet and Great Britain’s Grand Fleet in the. [f] In the First World War, German officers ranks were slightly higher in status: both, Dreadnought and Super-Dreadnought battleships, Sir Frederick Charles Doveton Sturdee, 1st Baronet, the Hon. Two torpedo boats were dispatched to investigate. John Rushworth Jellicoe, 1st Earl Jellicoe. It was this augmented fleet which Scheer now sought to ensnare and destroy before the remainder of the Grand Fleet could sortie south from Scapa to its rescue. As the last battleship turned into line, the murk cleared slightly to reveal the leading ships of the High Seas Fleet heading for the middle of the Grand Fleet. Just before daylight, Jellicoe turned his battleships to search again for the High Seas Fleet, but he was too late. Reginald Aylmer Ranfurly Plunkett, Companion of The Most Honourable Order of the Bath, Companion of The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George, Knight Commander of The Most Honourable Order of the Bath, Knight Commander of The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George, Knight Commander of The Royal Victorian Order, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Order_of_battle_at_Jutland&oldid=998861035, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, 79 × Destroyers (one of them Destroyer-Minelayer), This page was last edited on 7 January 2021, at 10:21. Halbflottille): Lt Georg von Zitzewitz, 14th Half-Flotilla (14. Had Jellicoe ordered the Grand Fleet forward through the Germans’ oncoming screen at that moment, the fate of the High Seas Fleet would have been sealed. 2nd Battlecruiser Squadron To Jellicoe, Goodenough’s signal came as an illuminating surprise, but, unfortunately, it was not sufficiently detailed. While the German main fleet was penned in German ports, this condition was amply fulfilled. The German Navy's torpedo boats were of similar size and function to the destroyers in the Royal Navy, and are often referred as such. Both the method and the moment of deployment were matters of vital importance, and the admiral could make no decision on them until he knew the enemy’s position and course. So long as the German High Seas Fleet was doing no direct harm, the British felt that it was best left alone. Black Panthers: Fifth Platoons 4 March 2021: Black soldiers fought in white divisions in the last days of World War II, as seen in the upcoming Black Panthers. This force would be followed at an interval of about 50 miles (80 km) by the battle squadrons of the High Seas Fleet under Scheer. Unfortunately for Jellicoe, the British Admiralty failed to inform him that Scheer had requested airship reconnaissance of the area around Horns Reef for the following dawn, with the result that the British battleships steamed too far south during the night. 5th Battle Squadron. These did not form part of the line of battle; A typical Destroyer Flotilla (D.F.) ; Chief of Staff : Cdre Edmund Percy Fenwick George Grant; flag lieutenant: Lt Cdr James Buller Kitson The commander of the 5th Battle Squadron was RAdm Hugh Evan-Thomas, M.V.O. In addition, each boat had an initial letter denoting its builder: V for the. For Jellicoe it was a moment of triumph; for Scheer it was one of unparalleled danger. The previous battle of the Zulu War is the Battle of Isandlwana At 2:20 pm, the cause of their meeting forgotten, both forces were signaling “Enemy in sight,” and at 2:28 pm the Galatea fired the first shots of the Battle of Jutland. Ring in the new year with a Britannica Membership, This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/event/Battle-of-Jutland, 1914-1918-online - International Encyclopedia of the First World War - Battle of Jutland, National Records of Scotland - Battle of Jutland 1916, History Learning Site - The Battle of Jutland. Scheer felt that a more aggressive war policy might prove fruitful, and he soon formulated a plan in accordance with that belief. The main German fleet would then close the gap and destroy the British. [k], 4th Destroyer Flotilla [l]: Capt Charles John Wintour †. Halbflottille) [Q]: Lt Wilhelm Rüman, 12th Half-Flotilla (12. Yet the Grand Fleet was still between the High Seas Fleet and the German ports, and this was the situation which Scheer most dreaded. Halbflottille): Lt Gerhard Hoefer, 10th Half-Flotilla (10. At the time of Jutland, British battle cruisers were organized in three squadrons of three ships each, plus a fleet flagship. The Germans, similarly, were well aware of the dangers inherent in a battle with the British Grand Fleet and had no intention of hazarding their ships in such a way. At 2:15 pm the turn commenced, a light-cruiser screen spreading out between the heavy ships and the Helgoland Bight. The British still dominated the North Sea, and the Germans had not inflicted sufficient losses on their adversary to stand any chance of victory in a new action against its main fleet. A wide range of warship types took part in the battle, and each played a different tactical role. In addition there were three light cruiser squadrons and the 13th Destroyer Flotilla assigned (augmented at Jutland by additional attached destroyers). Two squadrons of Armoured Cruisers and one squadron of Light Cruisers were attached to the main body of the Grand Fleet to act as a scouting force. [M], 5th Torpedo-Boat Flotilla (V. Torpedoboots-Flottille): Lt Cdr Oskar Heinecke, 9th Half-Flotilla (9. The German High Seas Fleet hoped to weaken the Royal Navy by launching an ambush on the British Grand Fleet in the North Sea. [13][14], 3rd Battle Squadron (III. 4th Battle Squadron (Battleships): VAdm Sir Frederick Charles Doveton Sturdee, 1st Baronet, K.C.B., C.V.O., C.M.G. Of these, 28 took part, organized into four Battle Squadrons. Geschwader) (Battleships) [A]: RAdm Paul Behncke; flag lieutenant: Lt Cdr Frhr Ernst von Gagern, Fleet Flagship (Flaggschiff der Hochseeflotte) Jellicoe’s battleships, steaming in six columns abeam of each other, would need to be deployed in one line before action. At 3:48 pm Hipper’s flagship, the Lützow, opened fire, which was promptly returned, but during the next 20 minutes the British line suffered severely: the Lion, the Princess Royal, and the Tiger were hit repeatedly, and the Indefatigable, caught by two salvoes from the Von der Tann, capsized and sank. 3rd Division[d]: RAdm Sir Alexander Ludovic Duff, K.C.B., C.V.O., C.M.G. Attached from 3rd Light Cruiser Squadron. At its core were six battlecruisers, accompanied by 13 light cruisers, and escorted by 18 destroyers and an early aircraft carrier. The German designations of ship types, fleets, squadrons and flotillas are given in brackets after the English designation. Boxed games are the heart of the Great War at Sea game system. 2nd Light Cruiser Squadron: Cdre William Edmund Goodenough, M.V.O., AdC. Just before 6:00 pm Jellicoe sighted Beatty’s battle cruisers, now augmented by the 3rd Battle Cruiser Squadron under Rear Adm. Horace Hood. In fact, the British welcomed an engagement on the high seas, as they believed that their superior numbers and firepower would strongly favour them in open water. Alexander-Sinclair, commanding the British 1st Light Cruiser Squadron aboard the Galatea, also saw the Danish ship and steamed off to investigate, accompanied by the light cruiser Phaeton. This was the crisis of the Battle of Jutland. By the time he recovered and regained his position, the High Seas Fleet, believing that a small British force coming from Harwich in the south was the main body of the Grand Fleet, had turned tail and made for home. To Jellicoe it was by no means clear what had taken place. [a], The Grand Fleet had a total of 32 Dreadnought and Super-Dreadnought battleships available for use by the time of Jutland. [t]: RAdm. Both sides claimed victory: Germany because it had destroyed or damaged more ships, Britain because it … consisted of 18 vessels: 16 destroyers (4 divisions of 4 vessels each, forming two half flotillas) plus two leaders (either a Light Cruiser or. Corrections? Halbflottille)[L]: Lt Cdr Theodor Riedel † Beatty immediately withdrew northward to lure the enemy toward the rest of the Grand Fleet, the 5th Battle Squadron covering the withdrawal. Halbflottille)[J]: Lt Conrad Albrecht, 3rd Torpedo-Boat Flotilla (III. The commander of the Naval Airship Section was Lt Cdr Peter Strasser, and they flew from bases at Nordholz and Hage in north-west Germany and Tondern (then part of Schleswig; the town became part of Denmark in 1920). [B], 1st Battle Squadron (I. Geschwader) (Battleships) In late spring 1916, after months of calm in the North Sea following the naval action at the Dogger Bank, the main British and German fleets met in a face-to-face encounter for the first time. Attached to the 2nd Scouting Group for tactical purposes. It was the bloodiest day in British naval history, and the triumphant publication of such figures in the German press gave a worldwide impression that the Royal Navy had suffered a serious reverse. 2nd Cruiser Squadron (Armoured Cruisers)[h]: RAdm Herbert Leopold Heath, M.V.O. The Battle of Jutland (31 May - 1 June 1916) was the largest naval battle of the First World War. Geschwader) (Battleships) This chance meeting was extremely fortunate for the Germans, for Jellicoe’s battle squadrons were still 65 miles (105 km) to the north. 12th Destroyer Flotilla[o]: Capt Anselan John Buchanan Stirling, first half-flotilla/12th D.F. By 1:30 pm on May 31, the rival fleets were approaching each other, but each was unaware of the other’s presence. Jellicoe, unaware that the transference of this call from ship to shore was a normal practice when the High Seas Fleet put to sea, believed that the main body of that fleet was still in German waters. 1st Battlecruiser Squadron : RAdm Osmond de Beauvior Brock, C.B. It was the most vital decision of the battle, and it was taken not a moment too soon. Sailing into the submarine and torpedo-boat trap of German home waters, however, was obviously not to be recommended. Torpedoboots-Flottille): Lt Cdr Wilhelm Hollmann, 5th Half-Flotilla (5. Imperial War Museums - What Was The Battle of Jutland? The Battle of Jutland was a naval encounter between the Royal Navy's Grand Fleet under Admiral Sir John Jellicoe and the Imperial German Navy's High Seas Fleet under Vice-Admiral Reinhard Scheer on 31st May to 1st June 1916. By signing up for this email, you are agreeing to news, offers, and information from Encyclopaedia Britannica. Scheer, did, however, have one more card up his sleeve which he sought to play in 1916. While this action was in progress, British Commodore W.E. Torpedoboots-Flottille): Lt Cdr Max Schultz, 11th Half-Flotilla (11. Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. 1st Light Cruiser Squadron: Cdre Edwyn Sinclair Alexander-Sinclair, M.V.O. The following submarines were deployed to attack the Grand Fleet in the North Sea during the period of the Battle of Jutland On receipt of the signals from their light cruisers, both Beatty and Hipper turned and raced toward the sound of gunfire, and at 3:20 pm the two opposing lines of battle cruisers were in sight of each other, maneuvering for position. 1st Battle Squadron (Battleships)[e]: VAdm Sir Cecil Burney, K.C.B., K.C.M.G. Attached to the 4th Scouting Group for tactical purposes. The U-boats’ sinking of the Nottingham contributed unwittingly to the German failure to lure the bigger game into their trap. Four destroyers detached from the 4th and 12th Destroyer Flotillas as escorts for the 2nd Cruiser Squadron. The 5th Battle Squadron (left behind by the faster battle cruisers) now joined the British line, and its heavy guns caused such damage to Hipper’s battle cruisers that the German torpedo-boat screen moved in to launch a torpedo attack. 53. †. The boats were given numbers sequentially based on the order in which they were built. Paradoxical as it may seem, it was no accident that the navies had avoided a direct confrontation until then. Torpedoboots-Flottille): Cdr Heinrich Schuur, 3rd Half-Flotilla (3. The battle involved 250 warships of the British and German navies, and, in terms of combined tonnage of vessels engaged, was the largest naval battle in history. Halbflottille) They did not meet again, and, when darkness descended, Jellicoe faced the task of covering Scheer’s possible escape routes—southward directly to the Jadebusen or southeastward to the Horns Reef and then home. The Battle Cruiser Fleet was based at. However in both earlier and later editions of the Navy List, in his service record, as well as in some (but not all) earlier editions of the London Gazette list him as Arthur Cloudesly Shovel Hughes D'Aeth; the probate records for England and Wales (reporting his death on 23 August 1956) list him as Arthur Cloudesley Shovell Hughes D'Aeth; his obituary in. 3rd Light Cruiser Squadron: RAdm Trevylyan Dacres Willes Napier, M.V.O. Miraculously, there were no collisions. Jutland: Battle of Dogger Bank, Part Three 5 March 2021: We resume our multi-part study of the Battle of Dogger Bank, seen in Jutland and Dogger Bank. Jutland Battle Analysis Jutland: Dogger Bank Prizes of War Rise of the Dragon Secret Treaties Zeppelins. The Lützow, the Derfflinger, and the battleship König led the line and were under broadside fire from 10 or more battleships, yet their main armament remained undamaged, and they fought back to such effect that one of their salvoes fell full on the Invincible (Hood’s flagship), causing an explosion which tore the ship in half and killed all except six of the crew. The significant fact, however, was that despite these losses the balance of power in European waters was not essentially changed. Scheer had turned again after nightfall and crossed astern of Jellicoe’s battle squadrons, resolutely brushing aside the British rearguard of light cruisers and destroyers in a series of sharp actions which caused losses on both sides. This was a special unit of fast Queen Elizabeth-class battleships, intended to act as the vanguard of the main battle line. [b], 2nd Battle Squadron (Battleships) 1st Half-Flotilla (1. Hipper’s fleet was to steam north from Wilhelmshaven to a point off the Norwegian coastline. It was hoped that the presence of the scouting group in waters so far from its base would lure the southern section of the Grand Fleet into a pursuit. Also known at different times during the war as Cruiser Force A, and the Battle Cruiser Force. The Grand Fleet was ordered south to intercept, and a British force of submarines was amassed off various ports of the North Sea. [I] [c]: VAdm Thomas Henry Martyn Jerram, K.C.B. Horace Lambert Alexander Hood K.C.B., D.S.O., M.V.O. Beatty’s battle cruisers, with the 5th Battle Squadron in attendance 5 miles (8 km) astern, were reaching the eastern limit of their sweep and would soon turn northward to meet Jellicoe’s force at the rendezvous point. The Baltic and North seas and the English Channel. Scheer reached the security of the Horns Reef minefields at about 3:00 am on June 1. Jellicoe was informed, and by 10:30 pm—before even the German scouting group had left the Jadebusen (Jade Bay)—the entire British Grand Fleet was at sea, Jellicoe’s force making for a rendezvous with Beatty’s near the entrance to the Skagerrak, fairly across the planned route of the German fleet. Torpedoboots-Flottille): Lt Cdr Gottlieb von Koch, 13th Half-Flotilla (13. Did not sail: German torpedo boat flotillas typically comprised two half-flotillas of five vessels each, plus an additional vessel for the flotilla commander. [w] The commander of the 5th Battle Squadron was RAdm Hugh Evan-Thomas, M.V.O. The High Seas Fleet was the main body of the German surface navy, principally based at Wilhelmshaven, on the Jade River in North-West Germany. : Cdr Norton Allen Sulivan, This squadron, temporarily attached to the Grand Fleet from the Battle Cruiser Fleet, was stationed ahead of the main body, with the intention that it join Beatty when the action began. It was a clear, calm spring day. As the German battle cruisers and torpedo boats steamed gallantly forward, the battleships astern became confused in their endeavour to turn away. As it turned out, the submarines failed in this function, and the policy was modified to take into account the possibility of attacking the Grand Fleet in separate parts. Goodenough’s 2nd Light Cruiser Squadron was patrolling south of Beatty’s main force, and at about 4:40 pm Goodenough reported having sighted the main body of the High Seas Fleet. Please select which sections you would like to print: While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Only German U-boats (submarines) were capable of jeopardizing the safety of the British merchant fleet, and their success was limited at this stage of the war. The British sustained greater losses than the Germans in both ships and men: three battle cruisers, three cruisers, and eight destroyers had been sunk against one battleship, one battle cruiser, four light cruisers, and five torpedo craft lost by the Germans; 6,768 British officers and men had been killed or wounded, against 3,058 officers and men killed or wounded in the High Seas Fleet. Podcast on the Battle of Rorke’s Drift in the Zulu War: the iconic defence on 22 nd January 1879 of the mission station in Natal by a small force of British and colonial troops; winning a record number of Victoria Crosses and inspiring Victorian Britain: John Mackenzie’s britishbattles.com podcasts. [s]. Halbflottille): Lt Friedrich Klein, 7th Torpedo-Boat Flotilla (VII. By 6:45 pm contact with the Germans had been lost, and an unnatural silence descended. The British were not averse to a clash with their German opponents. Abbreviations for Officers’ Ranks (German ranks translated according to current NATO practice)[R]: Ships sunk during the action are indicated thus: * ; officers killed in action thus: † . William Christoper Pakenham, C.B., M.V.O. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. Hipper led his group to sea at 1:00 am on May 31—the van of a fleet of 100 ships manned by approximately 45,000 officers and men. The call sign of the German flagship was, in fact, still being heard from the Jadebusen. Had the N.J. Fjord not attracted so much attention, Hipper’s scouting group would inevitably have led the High Seas Fleet toward the Grand Fleet when the latter was fully concentrated under Jellicoe’s command. The bombardment of Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth, England, by German cruisers on April 25 was intended to lure one part of the British fleet south into a position where the High Seas Fleet could attack it. Halbflottille) [K]: Lt Theophil Gautier, 6th Half-Flotilla (6. Then at 6:55 pm he ordered another 180° turn, possibly in the hope that he would pass astern of the main British line. The scheme worked: Adm. Sir John Jellicoe, commander in chief of the Grand Fleet, sent the 5th Battle Squadron south from the main British base at Scapa Flow, Scotland, to augment Vice Adm. Sir David Beatty’s 1st and 2nd Battle Cruiser Squadrons at Rosyth. At this moment another British battle cruiser, the Queen Mary, blew up with a shattering explosion, having been hit in a main magazine. [N]: Lt Cdr Hermann Cordes, 1st Scouting Group (I. Aufklärungsgruppe): VAdm Hipper, 2nd Scouting Group (II. Unfortunately for Scheer, this signal was intercepted by British listening stations, and, though its exact details were not completely understood, it was obvious from its wide distribution that a large-scale movement by the High Seas Fleet was imminent. German Section At the Battle of Jutland, it operated with the Battlecruiser Fleet, and was escorted by the 1st Destroyer Flotilla. The commander of the 3rd Battle Cruiser Squadron was RAdm the Hon. Halbflottille): Lt Cdr Heinrich Boest, 4th Half-Flotilla (4. Grand Fleet battleships were permanently assigned to Battle Squadrons of eight ships, divided into two divisions of four ships each. The Battle of Jutland—or the Battle of the Skagerrak, as it was known to the Germans—engaged a total of 100,000 men aboard 250 ships over … Visibility had worsened, and smoke lay thick over the seas. Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. Placing full reliance in the seamanship of his captains, Scheer at 6:36 pm ordered a 180° turn for all ships together (the last ship becoming the leader), and, as the battleships and cruisers steered away in retreat, torpedo boats draped thick smoke screens across their rear. Updates? Attached from 5th Light Cruiser Squadron of the. For their part, the British were inclined to believe that another fruitless sweep to find the Germans had taken place and that they would soon return to their respective bases. As it was, the British trap was sprung prematurely. The German plan was simple. In addition a light cruiser accompanied the squadron to repeat visual signals (made by Morse lamp, flags or semaphore), to ensure that the commanding Admiral could stay in touch with all vessels without the use of wireless transmissions (which could betray the presence of the squadron to an enemy). In the years after the French and Indian War, Parliament attempted to levy taxes, such as the Stamp Act and Townshend Acts, on the colonies to aid in covering the cost of maintaining the empire. [7], second half-flotilla/12th D.F. Off Terschelling: Off the Pentland Firth (between the Orkneys and the Scottish mainland): During the battle the Germans used the Zeppelin airships of the Naval Airship Section (Marine Luftschiff Abteilung) for scouting, although in the prevailing overcast conditions they were not particularly successful. Getty Images. In mid-January 1916 Vice Adm. Reinhard Scheer replaced cautious Adm. Hugo von Pohl as commander in chief of the High Seas Fleet. Jellicoe, not knowing whether a mine or a torpedo had been responsible for the sinking, turned north and for two hours steamed away from the enemy.