Battle of Jutland: The Greatest Naval Battle of World War I
The Battle of Jutland (31 May to 1 June 1916) was by far the largest naval battle of the First World War (1914-18). The only time the bulk of the British and German fleets faced each other, the battle occurred in the North Sea south of Norway. The last great naval battle in history that involved only surface vessels, Jutland involved around 250 ships. The battle ended in a draw, although Germany claimed victory since it had lost fewer ships and men. In contrast, Britain claimed a strategic victory since the German High Seas Fleet never again posed a serious threat to British waters during WWI.
Two Great Fleets
Various types of ships were employed by both sides in the Battle of Jutland. Battleships had the biggest guns and thickest armour plating. Battlecruisers were as well armed as battleships but faster since they carried less armour plating. Light cruisers were typically used as a protective escort for the slower battleships. Destroyers were the least well-armed ships and had little or no armour, but they could fire torpedoes and outpace any other category of ship, advantages which made them a serious threat to the battleships.
The British Grand Fleet, the Royal Navy's principal fleet, was based at Scapa Flow in the Scottish Orkneys. In 1916, the Grand Fleet consisted of around 100 ships, of which 24 were dreadnoughts, the newer class of battleships. The overall command was in the hands of Admiral John Jellicoe (1859-1935), a popular leader but one adverse to delegating tasks to others and known for being ultracautious. Jellicoe's flagship was the battleship HMS Iron Duke. The German High Seas Fleet, Germany's main naval fleet, was based at Wilhelmshaven. The German Imperial Navy was the second largest in the world after the Royal Navy, and, in 1916, the High Seas Fleet boasted around 100 ships, 22 of which were battleships (16 of those being dreadnoughts). Overall command, from January 1916, was in the hands of Admiral Reinhard Scheer (1863-1928). The admiral's flagship was the battleship Friedrich der Grosse. Notwithstanding Kaiser Wilhelm's desire to preserve his navy intact, Scheer was determined to try and lure the British Grand Fleet out of the safety of its home base and into open waters where he believed he could strike a blow that would prevent the enemy from continuing its distant but highly effective blockade of Germany. The very real danger in such a plan was that the British fleet was the more powerful of the two, thanks to its greater number of battleships.
Read More
⇒ Battle of Jutland: The Greatest Naval Battle of World War I
