The German squadron did not suffer losses, and this circumstance caused serious damage to the prestige of the British Royal Navy. German cruisers were able to cross into the South Atlantic, threatening both British trade in that area and troop transports off the coast of South Africa that were being transferred to the European theater.

On the eve of the battle, on 29 October, there was a change of leadership in the British Admiralty. Lord Fisher became the first Sea Lord instead of Prince Louis of Battenberg. The chief of the naval staff under Louis Battenberg was Rear Admiral Doveton Sturdy. He was given primary responsibility for the sinking of the armored cruisers Hog, Aboukir, Cressy by the German U-boat U-9 and the confused instructions, together with the insufficient allocation of forces to Cradock, which led to the defeat at Coronel. Fisher had a difficult relationship with Sturdee, and immediately after his return to the position of First Sea Lord, Fisher began to press for Sturdee's resignation as Chief of Staff. To avoid rekindling old feuds, it was decided to send Sturdy at the head of a squadron to search for and destroy Spee, appointing Rear Admiral Oliver to his post.

Fisher took responsibility for weakening the line forces of the Home Fleet. On November 4, in agreement with the First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill, two battlecruisers were included in the Sturdee squadron - Invincible and Inflexible. The cruisers were ordered to move to Davenport. They were supposed to follow the South Atlantic. Another battlecruiser - "Princess Royal" - went to the Caribbean Sea, in case the Spee squadron broke through the Panama Canal [approx. 3]. November 12 "Princess Royal" left Cromarty (Eng. Cromarty) to Halifax.

This maneuver by the battlecruisers was quite risky, because in the North Sea, as opposed to the four German battlecruisers ("Von der Tann", "Moltke", "Seidlitz" and "Derflinger") there were only three combat-ready British battlecruisers - "Lyon" , "Queen Mary" and "New Zealand". To the fears of the commander of the Grand Fleet battlecruisers, Admiral Beatty, Winston Churchill replied that Derflinger was not yet combat-ready enough, Beatty had at his disposal the recently commissioned Tiger, and the commissioning of the high-speed battleship Queen Elizabeth was expected soon. .

The British Admiralty also redeployed other ships. The allied Japanese squadron, consisting of the armored cruisers Kurama, Tsukuba and Ikoma, each with four 305-mm guns, was moving east from the central Pacific Ocean to the Panama Canal. The British battlecruiser Australia was heading for Cape Horn. The armored cruiser "Defense" was ordered to go to the Cape of Good Hope to connect with the cruisers "Minotaur", "Dartmouth", "Weymouth" and the battleship "Albion". In West African waters were the battleship Vinjens, the armored cruisers Warrior, Black Prince, Donegal and Cumberland, and the cruiser Highflyer. The Caribbean Sea was guarded by the battleship Glory and the armored cruisers Berwick, Lancaster and Conde. The battleship Canopus was sent to guard the base in the Falkland Islands, and off the coast of Brazil, off the reefs of Abrols, the Sturdy squadron was expected by the armored cruisers Defense (awaiting shipment to South Africa), Carnarvon, Cornwall, Kent and light cruisers Glasgow and Bristol. To intercept the German squadron, not counting the French and Japanese ships, the Admiralty had to attract almost 30 ships, 21 of them armored, not counting the auxiliary cruisers involved in reconnaissance.

On November 3, two days after Coronel, Scharnhorst, Gneisenau and Nuremberg came to Valparaiso. International laws forbade more than three ships of any of the warring parties from being in a neutral port, so Dresden and Leipzig were sent to Mas-a-Fuer. In Valparaiso, Spee received information about Japanese ships going to South America with the aim of cutting off the German ships from the Panama Canal. From Berlin came a message with advice to break through home. After standing in Valparaiso for the legally required 24 hours, the German ships reached Mas-a-Fuera.

Spee was in thought. Unlike his journey across the Pacific Ocean, when he did not stay long in ports, the German squadron spent a long time on Mas-a-Fuera. Spee knew that the ring around him was tightening, and Britain would have to send ships to the South Atlantic to capture him. The exact plans of Spee and the course of his reasoning are not known, but presumably he was going to cruise to the last, until he was caught, understanding the difficulty of breaking through to Germany. A possible reason for his delay was the rumors about the alleged breakthrough into the Atlantic "Moltke" and "Seydlitz" with ammunition for the Spee ships. The ships were loaded with coal from transports, and the combat stock on armored cruisers was equalized, as a result of which each had 445 rounds of 210-mm caliber and 1100 of 150-mm rounds. To dispel rumors of the sinking of two German ships under Coronel, the Dresden and Leipzig were sent to Valparaiso.

In response, Spee transmitted a message that his armored cruisers had used up half of their ammunition, and light cruisers even more, and he would be returning home. According to German intelligence, Rear Admiral Stoddart's unit was sent to South Africa to suppress the Boer uprising. Although this was not true, British radio communications in the area had ceased, so Spee believed the report to be true.

On the morning of December 6, at the parking lot at Picton, Spee gathered a meeting on the Scharnhorst flagship, where he brought a plan of further action to his captains. According to intelligence reports, there were no British ships in the Falkland Islands, so the Gneisenau and Nuremberg, under the cover of the rest of the ships, were supposed to destroy the radio station, coal warehouses, and also - as retaliation for capturing and mistreating the governor of Samoa - capture the governor of the island. The operation was scheduled for December 8th. Stanley Harbor harbor consisted of two anchorages, outer - Port William and inner - Port Stanley, connected by a narrow channel. Gneisenau and Nuremberg were to reach Cape Pembroke, located at the entrance to Port William, by 8:30. "Gneisenau" was to deal with the capture of the governor and the destruction of structures in Port William, and "Nuremberg" - in Port Stanley. Both cruisers were supposed to join the squadron no later than 19:30.

The opinions of the officers regarding the proposed plan differed - the chief of staff of the captain-zur-see Filis and the captain of the "Nuremberg" captain-zur-see von Schoenberg advocated the operation, and the captain of the "Gneisenau" captain-zur-see Merker, the captain of the "Dresden" captain-zur See Lüdecke and the captain of the Leipzig, the frigate-captain Haun, considered it strategically correct to bypass the islands. The captain of the Leipzig specifically pointed out that the message about the departure of the British was obviously a provocation and that the best reaction to it would be a passage somewhere 100 miles south of the island and an unexpected appearance near La Plata.

Invincible and Inflexible departed Cromarty on 5 November and arrived at Davenport on 8 November. Before the cruise, the ships were examined in the dock, and it turned out that the Invincible was in need of urgent repairs, which should continue until Friday, November 13, until the laying of jumpers and refractory bricks between the boilers was completed. This date did not suit Fisher, and according to his order, the sea was to take place no later than November 11, and the shipyard workers, if necessary, could continue repairs on board the cruiser after going to sea.

Invincible and Inflexible left Davenport on 11 November 1914 at 16:45. Due to the remoteness of the naval base from crowded areas and censorship of newspapers, their withdrawal remained a secret. On November 17, battlecruisers replenished the supply of coal in St. Vincent, on the Cape Verde Islands. On November 24, a German radio message was intercepted, and it became clear that the Spee squadron was in San Quentin Bay on its way to the South Atlantic. Sturdee was ordered, after linking up with Stoddart's squadron, to go to the Falkland Islands.

The protection of the Falkland Islands by that time was provided only by the obsolete battleship Canopus, located in Port Stanley. Since nothing was known about the exact location of the Spee squadron after the battle at Coronel, the Admiralty believed that there was a high probability of an attack by German cruisers on a base in the Falkland Islands. On 28 November, Sturdee's squadron departed for Port Stanley. Faster colliers were sent to the Falkland Islands to get there on their own, while the rest went to the Falkland Islands under the escort of "Orama". Sturdee intended to fight at long distances, at which the 210-mm shells of the German armored cruisers could not penetrate the side of his cruisers. Therefore, battlecruisers conducted training firing at a distance of 60 cables. "Invincible", firing 32 shells, achieved one hit, "Inflexible", firing 32 shells, - three. On November 29, during firing practice, the Invincible wound a tow cable around its propeller, and the whole day was lost to release it.

For some time, the squadron was distracted by an unsuccessful search for the German auxiliary cruiser Kronprinz Wilhelm. These delays resulted in Sturdee's squadron reaching the Falkland Islands at 10:30 on 7 December instead of the Admiralty's scheduled 3 December.

The battleship Canopus was grounded in Port Stanley on November 16 and turned into a kind of coastal battery. For the ships that came in, there were only three colliers in the Falkland Islands. Carnarvon, Bristol and Glasgow began loading coal. Then the battlecruisers were supposed to load coal, with the expectation of reaching Cape Horn on December 9 to intercept the Spee squadron. "Kent" and "Cornwall" were supposed to be loaded last and then independently catch up with the squadron. According to Sturdee's plan, the Invincible and Inflexible were to take on the German armored cruisers. The slower Carnarvon was to go with the battlecruisers, while the rest of the cruisers were to be taken over by the German light cruisers.

At Bristol, in addition to loading coal, urgent repairs were carried out - a bulkhead of mechanisms. The entire squadron, excluding the Bristol, was supposed to be in two hours of readiness for a 12-knot move, one of the ships was assigned to be on duty with a half-hour readiness to develop a 14-knot move. Until Tuesday, Inflexible was on duty, then Kent was to take over. The auxiliary cruiser "Macedonia" remained on patrol, being 10 miles from the entrance to the harbor.

On Tuesday, December 8 at 6 am, Carnarvon and Glasgow completed loading, and the battlecruisers began loading. Cornwall also began dismantling one of the cars. He, "Kent" and "Macedonia" have not yet started loading coal. In this position, the squadron was caught at 7:50 by a message from an observation post on Mount Sapper Hill that two warships were approaching from the south. Sturdee ordered to stop loading and all ships to go to sea.

The German cruisers sighted the Falkland Islands at 2:30. The day was supposed to be clear and sunny, which is quite a rare occurrence for these places. At 5:30, Spee ordered a combat alarm to be played and the speed increased to 18 knots. The captain of the Gneisenau Merker reported that, due to a navigational error, she would not reach Cape Pembroke until 9:30, an hour later than planned.

At 8:30 a.m., Merker noticed thick smoke over the harbor and assumed that it was the coal depots that had been set on fire. Around 9:00 the Germans saw masts and pipes in the harbor, it became clear that Stoddart's squadron had not left for Africa. Lieutenant Commander Boucher, who was on the fore-Mars, transmitted to the Gneisenau bridge that he saw three-legged masts. Merker did not believe this report and told Spee that there were three armored cruisers, one light cruiser and two large ships like the battleship Canopus in the harbor, continuing to move towards Cape Pembroke.

At 09:25, the first volley of 305-mm guns at the Gneisenau was fired by the Canopus, forcing the German ships to turn sharply to the east. Seeing the Kent going out to sea, Merker tried to cut it off from the entrance to the harbor. But then the Gneisenau received an order from Spee to leave at full speed to the northeast. The German transports were ordered to separate and leave to the southeast, and then to Picton Island.

Spee decided not to accept the battle and leave, lining up the entire squadron heading east. By 11:00, the ships were moving in a column in the following order: Gneisenau, Nuremberg, Scharnhorst, Dresden and Leipzig. Meanwhile, the British ships were urgently breeding pairs. The Glasgow weighed anchor at 0945, followed 15 minutes later by Stoddart on the Carnarvon and the battlecruisers. At 10:00 the Germans clearly saw the three-legged masts of the Invincible and Inflexible moving towards the sea. Cornwall came out last. Sturdy gave the signal for general pursuit. The worn-out mechanisms of the German armored cruisers did not allow them to develop a speed of more than 18 knots. Sturdy understood that he had a speed advantage of 4-5 knots and it was a matter of time to catch up with the enemy. Although at 11:00 there were 19 miles between the opponents, in two hours the guns of the battlecruisers would be able to open fire, and there would still be 8 hours before sunset - enough time for a battle.

Meanwhile, the British ships continued to pursue the Spee cruisers. The Glasgow maintained contact with the German cruisers, being three miles ahead and slightly to the left of the Invincible. "Inflexible" followed the flagship's stern to the right. The battlecruisers burned coal and oil in their furnaces, and behind them curled a plume of thick black smoke. At 11:29, Sturdee ordered the speed to be reduced to 20 knots, deciding to assemble the sprawling squadron, lower the smoke, and give the crews time to dine. At 12:20, the speed was again increased and brought to 25 knots. The Carnarvon, which could not give more than 18 knots, the Kent and Cornwall, which made 22 knots, were left behind.

The battlecruisers fired 20 rounds at the German light cruiser. Leipzig began to cover bursts of close gaps. Spee, realizing that it would not be possible to evade the battle, decided to give the light cruisers the opportunity to leave and gave the order to “crumble”. Gneisenau and Scharnhorst turned 6 points (about 68 °), changing course to the northeast. "Nuremberg", "Dresden" and "Leipzig" began to go south. Sturdee provided for this in his instructions, so without a signal, Glasgow, Kent and Cornwall were turned away after the German light cruisers. And the Carnarvon, following the Invincible and Inflexible, continued to chase the armored cruisers Spee. The battle broke up into separate parts.

Some time after 13:20, Invincible fired at the leading Gneisenau, and Inflexible fired at the flagship Spee. During the turn, the Gneisenau slowed down, letting the Scharnhorst go ahead. Following the armored cruisers of Spee, the British battlecruisers also turned 7 points. After rebuilding Spee, Invincible fired at Scharnhorst, and Inflexible fired at Gneisenau. The German ships returned fire at 13:25.

The maximum firing range of the British 305-mm guns was 82.5-85 cables, the distance of actual fire was 60-70 cables. 210-mm German turret guns had a maximum range of 82.5 cables, and two casemates - 67.5 cabs. 150-mm guns had a maximum firing range of 75 cables. However, German 210-mm armor-piercing shells could penetrate the armor of battlecruisers at a distance of only 70 cables, while German ships were hit by 305-mm shells at any distance.

The distance between the opponents at that time was about 70 cables, and the German shells fell short. British ships at that moment could fire from three towers. The distance was closing as Spee turned 4 points (45°) inward. After the distance decreased to 65 cables, the German ships took a parallel course. Despite the huge difference in the weight of the broadside, the battle did not promise to be easy. At 13:44 "Invincible" received the first hit. Sturdee turned two points to the left to increase the distance and give no chance to the enemy. The distance began to increase, and by 14:00, when it reached 80 cables, the fight stopped temporarily.

Shooting at the maximum distance was ineffective, especially at the Inflexible, which was greatly hampered by the smoke from the Invincible's chimneys. Having fired 210 shells in half an hour of battle, the British cruisers achieved two hits each on the Scharnhorst and Gneisenau. The destructive power of 305-mm shells was not as great as expected, and the German cruisers were practically not affected. One of the guns of tower "A" [approx. 7] The Invincible stopped firing due to a bolt malfunction.

To resume the battle, at 14:05 Sturdee's ships turned right 4 points (45 °), then another 4 points. But at that time, the German ships hid in the smoke, and when the smoke cleared, it turned out that Spee had turned and was heading south, increasing the distance to 85 cables. Sturdy increased his speed and turned on the enemy. At 14:45, when the distance was reduced to 75 cables, the British ships lay down on a parallel course and opened fire again. Spee at first followed the same course, but then after 5 minutes he turned 9 points towards the British, obviously wanting to reduce the distance in order to bring medium artillery into action. At 14:59, the distance was reduced to 62.5 cables, and the German cruisers opened fire with 150-mm guns. Sturdy maneuvered to keep a distance of at least 60 cables. The fight reached maximum tension. "Invincible" and "Inflexible" switched to rapid fire, while "Invincible" fired from all guns - the opposite tower fired across the deck.

The difference in the power of the airborne salvo began to affect. By 15:10, the Gneisenau was listing as a result of damage below the waterline, and the Scharnhorst was on fire in several places and lost its rear chimney. At 15:15, when everything was shrouded in smoke, Sturdy was forced to turn back, describing the circulation. The Inflexible became the leader for a while, the smoke no longer interfered with it, and its shooting became more effective.

The flag of Spee was cut off by a fragment, and Gneisenau sent a request: “Why is the admiral's flag lowered? Is he killed? Spee replied that he was in order, and admitted to Merker the error of his decision to go to the Falklands, raising the signal "You were absolutely right."

The shooting of the Germans was accurate, but their hits did little to reduce the combat power of the British battlecruisers. Meanwhile, the Scharnhorst and Gneisenau themselves suffered greatly from the fire of 305-mm guns. Heavy shells pierced the decks of the casemates and caused great damage to the lower compartments. At Gneisenau, casemates of 150-mm guns were badly damaged, boiler room No. 1 was flooded, a leak began in boiler room No. 3, as a result of which the speed dropped to 16 knots. Fires broke out at the bow and stern.

The Scharnhorst's situation was even more difficult. It sank 1 meter, lost the third chimney (No. 3), fires blazed in several places, and its fire noticeably weakened. Many of the casemate guns on the left side of the armored cruisers were damaged, and at 15:30 the German ships turned 10 points, becoming the port side of the enemy, resuming firing from 150-mm guns. But this did not change the situation.

By 16:00 it became clear that the Scharnhorst was dying. He noticeably slowed down, his stern was on fire, only one of the chimneys survived, but he continued to fire. Around this time, the Carnarvon joined the shooting at the Scharnhorst, but this was not for long. At 16:04, the Scharnhorst abruptly ceased fire and, with the flag raised, began to roll. His roll increased, he went on board and sank at 16:17. Since the Gneisenau was still fighting, the British ships did not stop to pick up the drowning people from the water. The water temperature was 6-7 °, and no one survived from the Scharnhorst crew.

The battlecruiser Inflexible during the operation to rescue the crew of the Gneisenau

Going head "Inflexible" tried, firing on the counter-courses on the "Gneisenau", to go behind his stern in order to go to the leeward position. But this maneuver was not supported by the flagship, which continued to go the same course. The British ships lined up in a wake column - in close formation the Invincible was the first, followed by the Inflexible and Carnarvon. The British ships were approaching the Gneisenau, but they were greatly hindered by smoke, and Sturdee had to turn west, while going on diverging courses with the ships of Spee. Particularly poor visibility conditions were at the Inflexible, which, without an order from Sturdee, around 17:00 turned 14 points to the port and broke down, firing under the stern of the Gneisenau. For some time, he continued to fight like that, turning to the enemy with either his right or left side, then he nevertheless returned to the wake of the Invincible.

All this time, Gneisenau fired on the Invincible. Despite the fact that it began to rain and visibility deteriorated, his fate was sealed. Fires raged in the bow and stern of the Gneisenau, its speed decreased to 8 knots, and the firing of the guns gradually subsided. At 17:15, the last hit in the Invincible armor belt was recorded. By 17:30, the German cruiser fired all 210-mm shells, turned towards the Invincible and stopped.

The British ships moved closer. The Gneisenau banked but did not lower the flag. Periodically opening fire, he received volleys from British ships in response. At 17:50 the British ships ceased fire. Gneisenau slowly boarded and capsized, sinking around 18:00. There were about 270-300 people in the water, the British ships approached the place of the death of the German ship and lowered the boats to save the people in the water. The water was very cold, and due to hypothermia and heart failure, even people raised from the water died. In total, about 200 people were raised from the water, but many of them died and were buried with honors the next day. The rescue of the victims continued until 19:30, after which Sturdy radioed for the location of the remaining cruisers, but only the Glasgow responded.

At 13:25, when the German cruisers began to leave to the southeast, the distance between them and the pursuers was 10-12 miles. The maximum speed of Dresden was 24 knots, Nuremberg - 23.5 and Leipzig - 22.4. But the machines of the German cruisers were worn out, and their real speed was less. Dresden gave 22-23 knots, Nuremberg a little less, while Leipzig was the slowest, with difficulty developing 21 knots. The German ships were in bearing formation. In the center of Nuremberg, far ahead of Dresden on the left, Leipzig was on the right.

The fastest of the British ships was the Glasgow, which gave out more than 25 knots on trials. The maximum speed of the "Kent" and the "Cornwall" of the same type with it was about 23 knots. At the same time, the Kent was considered the slowest among the ships of its type. The British armored cruisers were much better armed and armored than the German armored cruisers. The Glasgow was nominally considered stronger than any of the German cruisers.

The first among the British cruisers was the Glasgow. Behind him is "Cornwall", and the closing "Kent". At the suggestion of the captain of the Cornwall, Ellerton, the British ships were to share the targets - he took on the Leipzig, the Kent followed the Nuremberg, the Glasgow was supposed to chase the Dresden. But the captain of the Glasgow Luce, who was the most senior among the British captains in rank, decided to do otherwise. Glasgow left the outgoing Dresden and began to pursue Leipzig [approx. eight] .

At 14:53, being 4 miles ahead of their armored cruisers and 60 cables from Leipzig, Glasgow opened fire from a bow 152-mm gun. "Leipzig" joined the battle and turned to the right, opening fire. It turned out that, unlike the German 105 mm guns, this distance was greater than the firing range of the British 102 mm guns, so the British cruiser could only use one bow 152 mm gun. Glasgow also turned to the right, increasing the distance. The battle stopped temporarily, and the chase continued. Performing a similar maneuver several times, the Glasgow ensured that the Leipzig was overtaken by armored cruisers.

By 16:00, Glasgow approached Leipzig at a distance of 45 cables to bring 102-mm artillery into action. At 16:15, the British armored cruisers opened fire, but their firing range was still not enough. Kent and Cornwall shared goals. "Kent" left behind "Nuremberg", which deviated to the left, and "Cornwall" hurried to the aid of "Glasgow". The Dresden, left unattended, went to the right and soon disappeared from sight. "Leipzig" at the beginning of the battle fired at the "Glasgow". Soon the Glasgow leaned to the right, crossed the wake of the Leipzig and joined the Cornwall, firing at the German cruiser with her port side. "Leipzig" transferred the fire to the "Cornwall". The battle was fought at distances of 35-50 cables. The captain of the Cornwall maneuvered, going in relation to the Leipzig, either converging or diverging courses, in order to use the onboard guns.

The Leipzig suffered greatly from the crossfire of the British cruisers. By 18:00, it began to rain, and Cornwall, in order to speed things up, went to rapprochement and switched to liddite shells [approx. nine] . "Leipzig" caught fire, but continued to fight. By 19:30 it ran out of shells and ceased fire. At 19:50-19:55, he fired three torpedoes at the approaching British cruisers, but they did not even notice it.

The British cruisers, which had temporarily ceased fire, resumed it at 19:50, as the Leipzig had not lowered the flag. By this time, by order of the commander of the German cruiser, the kingstones were opened, and the crew gathered on deck, preparing to leave the ship. The fire of the British ships caused heavy casualties among the unarmored crew.

At 20:30 the British ships ceased fire and at 20:45 they lowered their lifeboats to remove the crew of the Leipzig. The German cruiser slowly sank to port, rolled over and sank at 21:23. The water was icy, and only a few of the escaping German sailors were able to fish out of it. As the Glasgow was lifting the last boat, Sturdee's signal reached her. After numerous course changes, the Glasgow was unable to report its coordinates, just as it could not say anything about the fate of the Kent and Nuremberg.

Damage to the armored cruiser Kent received during the Battle of Falklands

In the process of chasing the Nuremberg, the Kent squeezed everything they could out of their cars. Having reached, according to the readings of the instruments, a power of 5000 liters. with. - more than on trials - he had to go at a speed of 24-25 knots. In order to keep the pressure of the steam, additional people were involved in the work in the boiler rooms, and even the peeled wood had to be burned in the furnaces. At 17:00 "Kent" opened fire on the "Nuremberg", but its volleys fell short.

At 17:35 the situation changed dramatically. Due to wear and tear, two boilers failed at the Nuremberg, and its speed dropped to 19 knots. The distance began to shrink rapidly, and a heated battle broke out. Unlike the Cornwall, the Kent approached the German cruiser, and the distance was quickly reduced to 30 cables. When it was reduced to 15 cables, Nuremberg tried to increase it, but by this time it had already practically lost its course, and Kent overtook it, passing in front of its nose, covering Nuremberg with a longitudinal volley from a distance of 17.5 cables. By 18:25 Nuremberg had completely lost its course. Since the flag was not lowered, "Kent" opened fire from a distance of 15 cables.

By 19:00 the flag was lowered, and the Kent ceased fire, lowering the two surviving lifeboats. "Nuremberg" at 19:30 lay down on the starboard side, rolled over and sank. The search for drowning people continued until 21:00, but not everyone was saved. During the battle on the Kent, the radio room was damaged, so he could not report on the results of the battle by radio. Sturdee did not learn of the Kent's fate until the next day, when she anchored at Port Stanley at 15:30.

The fate of the auxiliary German courts was decided even earlier. "Bristol" and "Macedonia", having passed Port Pleasant and not finding transports there, went further. After 14:00 they found the Baden and the Santa Isabella at anchor. The Seydlitz, which kept closer to its squadron, was able to escape in a south-westerly direction. The Bristol overtook the Baden and the Santa Isabella and forced them to stop with shots. Fulfilling Sturdee's last order, the Bristol removed their crews and sank the ships. As it turned out later, this was a mistake, as the order was interpreted by them too formally, and Sturdee's original instructions called for the delivery of transports to Port Stanley.

In total, Invincible fired 513 305-mm shells - 128 armor-piercing, 259 semi-armor-piercing and 126 high-explosive. "Inflexible" fired 75% of the ammunition - 661 shells, including 157 armor-piercing, 343 semi-armor-piercing and 161 high-explosive. "Carnarvon" fired 85 190-mm and 60 152-mm shells. The exact number of hits on the German cruisers is not known, but it was estimated that there were about 40 each [approx. ten] .

On both battlecruisers, before the battle, they did not have time to install central guidance artillery fire control devices. Despite a fairly high percentage of hits (6-8%), the consumption of shells needed to sink two armored cruisers was enormous. For example, during the Battle of Tsushima, 4 Togo battleships used up only 446 305-mm shells. By the end of the battle, the Invincible even began to feel a shortage of shells. After the battle, only 257 shells remained on it - 12 shells in the tower "A", 112 in "P", 104 in "Q" and 29 in "X".

In total, 22 hits were recorded in Invincible - twelve 210-mm, six 150-mm and four shells of an unknown caliber. Two bow compartments and a coal pit at the P turret were flooded, which led to a list of 15 ° to the port side. 11 hits fell on the deck, two of them completely turned the wardroom, 4 hit the armor belt, four hit the unprotected side, one hit hit the "A" turret between the guns, without penetrating the armor, one hit the starboard anchor, one hit the forefoot tripod -masts, and one of the shells cut off the barrel of a 102-mm gun. Only one sailor was injured.

The Inflexible received only three hits, damaging the 102mm guns on the A and X turrets. One sailor was killed and three wounded. No hits on Carnarvon were recorded. No one escaped from the Scharnhorst crew. A total of 187 people were rescued from the Gneisenau crew - 10 officers and 52 sailors were taken aboard the Inflexible, 17 people were raised on the Carnarvon, and the rest were saved by the Invincible.

Glasgow had 2 hits, one person was killed and four wounded. 18 hits were recorded in Cornwall, while there was not a single wounded or killed. From the Leipzig crew, 7 officers and 11 sailors were rescued [approx. eleven] .

12 people were picked up from Nuremberg, but only 7 of them survived. The Kent expended 646 shells, receiving the most severe damage among British ships. He was hit by 38 shells, killing four and injuring 12 people.

Among the dead German sailors were Admiral Spee and his two sons, one of whom served on the Scharnhorst, and the second on the Nuremberg.

The Falklands battle has always been seen in British historiography as a retribution for the defeat at Coronel. Churchill, like the British public, praised Sturdee's actions and the results of the battle:

The consequences were far-reaching and affected our situation literally around the world. The general tension subsided. All our activities, both military and commercial, were now carried out without the slightest interference. Within a day, we were able to recall dozens of ships to domestic waters.

The success of Sturdy was also noted by the King of England George V, who congratulated the admiral, officers and sailors on their victory. For this battle, Sturdy, the first of the naval officers in the last 100 years, was granted a title of nobility - received a baronetcy.

Fisher and other critics of Sturdee blamed him for overly cautious tactics that led to huge overruns of shells. But, as the experience of the Battle of Jutland showed, in which three British battlecruisers took off into the air after an explosion of ammunition, a rapprochement "in the spirit of Nelson" with excellent-shooting German cruisers at a distance where their 210-mm shells could penetrate the side armor of the battlecruisers could have fatal consequences. At the same time, an increased combat distance was noted, significantly exceeding pre-war expectations. The high consumption of shells at distances of the order of 12,000 m was the result of a lack of experience in such firing and revealed the imperfection of artillery fire control devices.

The British noted the high survivability of German warships and the fact that their ammunition did not explode, as happened on the Cradock cruisers at Coronel. However, the British did not attach much importance to the poor quality of their shells. When falling into the water and hitting the hull, they often did not break, which reduced their combat effectiveness.

The actions of Glasgow captain Luce were criticized, including by Sturdee himself. Due to the fact that the Dresden got away from the chase, the British victory was not complete. The German cruiser had to arrange a new hunt. On March 14, 1915, it was discovered by the Glasgow and the Kent in the Cumberland harbor of Mas a Tierra and the Revenge class in battlecruisers. The Repulses and Rinaun that entered service, although they had high speed and powerful weapons from 381-mm guns, but, as the experience of the Battle of Jutland showed, during which three British battlecruisers took off into the air, they had too thin armor and dubious combat value. In further hostilities, the Rinaun and Repulses were used with caution by the Admiralty, and the commander of the battlecruisers, Admiral Beatty, declared that he refused to lead them into battle.

After the battle, many were puzzled as to why Admiral Spee decided to attack the Falklands base. Official British and German documents do not give an answer to this question. Kaiser Wilhelm II asked this question. German Naval Minister Tirpitz wrote in his memoirs:

It may be asked: what made this fine admiral go to the Falkland Islands? The destruction of the English radio stationed there would not have been of much use, for by reporting that "the German squadron is here," it would have completely fulfilled its purpose. Perhaps this undertaking was due to the fact that brave sailors, unaware of the state of affairs, feared that the war would end before they could again prove themselves. The victory at Coronel made our German countrymen all over the world even more proud of their origin, and the death of the crews of the ships, which, led by Count Spee and his two sons, refused to surrender, filled all hearts with respect and regret.

In 1933, a former German military intelligence officer who moved to Britain (English ) in 1915. According to this source, the reason for Spee's actions was a direct order from Berlin. The fake telegram was encoded in German naval code and sent by a British intelligence officer from the Berlin telegraph office.. In this telegram, the admiral allegedly ordered to destroy the radio station and capture the governor in the Falkland Islands. The deciphering of the German secret codes became possible thanks to the receipt of a signal book from the German light cruiser Magdeburg, which landed on stones near the island of Odensholm at the mouth of the Gulf of Finland. Documents found by Russian divers were handed over to the British Allies.

The Dark Invader. Wartime Reminiscences of a German Naval Intelligence Officer

However, this version contains a number of flaws, which some historians draw attention to, for example Yezhov M. Yu. First, there are inconsistencies in time. The secret department of the British Admiralty, the so-called "room 40", was organized only on November 8, 1914. It took Russian specialists about a month to decipher the code. Approximately the same time should have been needed for British specialists. And the telegram had to be sent before December 6th. At the same time, it still took some time to bring the agent to Germany. Therefore, there was simply not enough time to decrypt the code and send a telegram. An indirect sign is also called the fact that the first decrypted telegram is considered to be the decoding on December 14 of the message about the departure of German battlecruisers to shell the British coast, which was already after the Falkland battle.

Secondly, as Winston Churchill noted, knowledge of the German naval cipher was one of the most closely guarded secrets of the British Admiralty. In order not to show the enemy that the code was deciphered, the British Admiralty did not even pay attention to some of the operations of the German fleet. The operation in the minor theater that was the Battle of Falklands was not worth the risk of the enemy realizing that his code had been deciphered. Thirdly, the Admiral Staff gave Spee greater freedom of action, as early as November 8, allowing Spee to act at his own discretion. Therefore, a direct indication of the commission of a risky action could arouse the suspicions of the German admiral.

In German and British historiography, the version that Spee was misled by incorrect intelligence data, showing that there were no British ships in Stanley, is the most widespread version. The British historian Wilson believes that information about the capture of the German governor in Samoa could have influenced Spee's decision, and therefore, in retaliation, he decided to capture the governor of the Falkland Islands. German Rear Admiral Raeder also points out that at least the first impetus for the decision to attack the Falkland Islands was the message that an English squadron was sent to South Africa, and the message from the Amasis steamer received before moving to Picton, confirming it, most likely became decisive . Although this operation was not optimal in terms of causing maximum damage to the British (compared to a covert passage to La Plata and a subsequent attack on English merchant ships), however, Count Spee, like his chief of staff, Captain zur See Filis, considered it necessary use every opportunity to win a military victory in order to provide the squadron with an honorable part of the success of the fleet. In the light of the situation on the ocean fronts and the prospects for further supply of coal and ammunition to his cruisers, Spee was quite critical of the remaining viability of his cruisers and, accordingly, the possibility of a long cruising war or a successful return to the North Sea. He expressed this point of view in informal conversations to the commanders of his ships, which is confirmed by both survivors - the captain of the Dresden, captain zur see Ludeke and the captain of the Prinz Eitel Friedrich, Korvettenkapitan Tirichens.

In favor of the version of the accidental meeting of both squadrons near the Falkland Islands, the fact that the Sturdee squadron was supposed to leave for Cape Horn the next day also speaks. And the Spee squadron, according to the original plans, was supposed to approach the Falkland Islands a few days earlier, and only an unforeseen delay at Picton Island for refueling with coal led to the attack on Port Stanley on December 8th.

December 8 was declared a public holiday in the Falkland Islands. Every year on this day there is a grand parade and ceremony, which includes a demonstration of the air force and the navy. On February 26, 1927, a memorial dedicated to the Falklands battle, built with funds raised, was opened in Port Stanley on Ross Road. On June 30, 1934, while launching, Spee's daughter, Countess Hubert, broke the traditional bottle of champagne on board. Designed specifically for raider operations, Graf Spee was also in the spring of 1945, and Scharnhorst took part in attacks on Arctic convoys going to the Soviet Union, and during one of them was sunk in December 1943 in

In April 1982, an armed conflict broke out between two independent UN member states, which was closely watched by the whole world. The "hot spot" was not Southeast Asia and the Middle East - the center of events was a small archipelago in the southwestern part of the Atlantic. Great Britain, which calls the archipelago the Falkland Islands, entered into battle with Argentina, which calls it the Malvinas Islands.

The Falkland Islands are only 463 kilometers from the continental coast of Argentina, and 12,000 kilometers from the UK.

There are a lot of controversial moments in the history of the Falkland Islands, starting with their discovery. Great Britain adheres to the version that the archipelago was discovered in 1592 by an English navigator John Davies. According to an alternative version, the honor of discovery belonged to the Spaniards.

The first settlement in the Falklands was founded only in 1764 by a French navigator Louis Antoine de Bougainville. The settlement on the island of East Falkland was named Port Saint-Louis - today it is the capital of the archipelago and its largest settlement Port Stanley.

Captain John Byron. Portrait of artist Joshua Reynolds Photo: Public Domain

In 1765 an English captain John Byron, not bothering to make sure whether people live on the archipelago, declared it the property of the English crown. A year later, the first English settlement was established on Saunders Island.

Both the French and the British were attracted by the main advantage of the Falkland Islands - they can act as an excellent staging post on the way from the Atlantic and to the Pacific Ocean, and also be a stronghold for control over the South Atlantic.

England dictates its own rules

In 1766 France ceded the islands to Spain. The Spaniards, not wanting to tolerate the presence of the British, tried to expel them by force, but in the end an agreement was reached according to which both British and Spanish settlements remained on the archipelago. At the same time, both Spain and Great Britain did not give up their claims to full control over the islands.

In the last quarter of the 18th century, the British left the islands as the empire's resources were focused on waging war against the North American colonists. On the islands, the British left only a sign that recorded the rights of Great Britain to manage the Falklands. The Spaniards, in turn, also leaving the tablet, left the islands in 1811. With the independence of Argentina, it was this country that claimed its rights to the archipelago instead of the Spaniards.

In 1832, Argentina tried to strengthen its own "vertical of power" on the islands by appointing its own governor. The official, however, was killed during a mutiny of local residents, who quickly got used to an almost independent existence. In 1834, the British, once again assessing the strategic importance of the disputed territory, put an end to the freemen of the Falkland Islands - January 10, 1834 Lieutenant of Her Majesty's Navy Henry Smith raised the flag of Great Britain over the city of Port Louis.

Argentine claims

The Argentines did not have the opportunity to interfere with the British, but the islands were not abandoned. In the 1940s, at the time of the signing of the UN Charter, the British representative was surprised to learn from an Argentine diplomat that the Falkland Islands should come under the control of Buenos Aires.

But during the century of English domination, the small population of the islands (less than 3,000 people) became English-speaking, and did not seek to join Argentina. The locals were engaged in sheep breeding, supplying wool to the UK, and did not want to change anything.

Sluggish negotiations between the two countries lasted almost 40 years, but did not lead to anything.

By the early 1980s, Argentina was ruled by a military junta, and in 1981 General Leopoldo Galtieri. The dictator received the support of the United States, but in the country itself the power of the military was losing credibility. And then the general decided to play on patriotic feelings by returning the Malvinas Islands to Argentina.

Operation Rosario

On March 19, 1982, several dozen Argentine workers landed on the uninhabited island of South Georgia, administered from the Falkland capital Port Stanley and located 800 miles from the archipelago, under the pretext that they needed to dismantle an old whaling station. They raised the Argentine flag on the island.

Representatives of Great Britain considered this an encroachment on their territory, and sent a small detachment of the military to expel the workers. General Galtieri responded by sending the Argentine military to protect the workers.

The reason for the invasion was found. On April 2, 1982, the Argentine army carried out Operation Rosario - special forces and marines landed on the Falklands, and after a short battle captured the capital of the islands, Port Stanley. The Argentines lost one man killed and three wounded. No British were killed, but 114, including 70 Marines, were taken prisoner.

Argentina announced the return of the Malvinas Islands. On April 3, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 502, which demanded the withdrawal of Argentine forces from the islands. The resolution received 10 votes in favor and 1 vote against (Panama), 4 countries abstained (including the USSR).

Argentine landing on the islands. Photo: www.globallookpress.com

The Iron Lady goes to war

The world asked the question - is the UK able to respond to force with force? Skeptics were even on the Foggy Albion itself. However, the prime minister Margaret Thatcher did not hesitate, ordering the military to prepare for an operation to regain control of the islands.

On April 7, 1982, the British Minister of Defense announced the establishment of a blockade of the Falkland Islands from April 12, 1982 and the establishment of a 200-mile zone around the islands, while staying within which the ships of the Argentine Navy and merchant fleet would be sunk. In response, the Argentine government imposed a ban on making payments to British banks.

English submarines went on the hunt for Argentine ships. The British surface fleet set off on a campaign to the coast of Argentina, carrying ground forces with them.

On April 25, 1982, British soldiers landed on the island of South Georgia, from which the conflict began. The Argentines on the island surrendered without a fight.

Big victims of a small war

On May 2, 1982, the British submarine Conqueror torpedoed the Argentine cruiser General Belgrano. The submarine commander received the sanction for the attack personally from Margaret Thatcher. Together with the cruiser, 323 Argentine soldiers were killed.

This blow forced the Argentine command to withdraw its fleet. It was decided to focus on air strikes from bases on the mainland. The calculation was that in this way it would be possible to inflict unacceptable damage on the British.

On May 4, the Super Etandar attack aircraft of the Argentine Air Force hit the newest British destroyer Sheffield with an Exocet anti-ship missile. A fire broke out on board, killing 20 sailors. The destroyer sank a week later.

There was a pause. The British were preparing for the landing and cleared the approaches to the islands. British "commandos" successfully carried out sabotage, and attempts by the Argentine Air Force to deliver air strikes turned into aircraft losses.

Negotiations on a cessation of hostilities mediated by the UN have yielded nothing. The British were confident of military success, the Argentines did not lose hope of fighting back.

The wreckage of an Argentine Air Force aircraft. Photo: www.globallookpress.com

The triumph of the pilot Kurilovich and the shame of Lieutenant Colonel Piaggi

On the night of May 21, 1982, the British 3rd Marine Brigade began landings in San Carlos Bay. The operation began successfully, but in the morning the area was attacked by the Argentine Air Force. The British lost the frigate Ardent, and a number of ships were damaged.

However, the pilots make a mistake - the blows mainly fell on the covering ships, and not on the landing force, which allowed the British to develop the operation on land.

On May 25, 1982, the Argentines achieved one of the biggest gains of the conflict. Argentine pilot Roberto Kurilovich hit the Atlantic Conveyor container ship, which sank with helicopters and equipment to create an airfield in the captured bridgehead.

The English infantry lost their main means of transportation on the island, where there were practically no roads. We had to advance on Port Stanley on foot. However, the destruction of the container ship could not radically change the balance of forces.

On May 28, the British units won a land battle for the village of Goose Green. Having lost 47 men killed and almost 150 wounded, without receiving reinforcements, the Argentine Lieutenant Colonel Italo Piaggi ordered his subordinates to lay down their arms. For this decision, upon returning to Argentina, he was demoted and dismissed from the army in disgrace.

Argentine magazine cover featuring Margaret Thatcher as a pirate. Photo: www.globallookpress.com

The defeat of Argentina turned into the collapse of the military junta

On June 8, the Argentine Air Force launched an airstrike on two British landing craft left without cover. About 50 British were killed, and the landing ship "Sir Galahad" subsequently had to be flooded due to the damage it received.

However, two days later, British units blocked the Argentines in Port Stanley.

During June 12-14, the British stormed all the dominant heights in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe main city of the Falkland Islands. The Argentine command on the islands, finding itself in a hopeless situation, capitulated.

On June 20, 1982, the British landed on the South Sandwich Islands, finally completing the operation.

During the conflict, Argentina lost 649 people killed and missing, 11,000 were registered as prisoners of war. About 100 planes and helicopters, a cruiser, a submarine, and 4 transport ships were lost.

Britain lost 258 people killed. Fleet losses amounted to 2 frigates, 2 destroyers, 1 landing ship, 1 container ship, 24 helicopters and 10 aircraft.

In the UK, the victory caused a national upsurge - the inhabitants of Foggy Albion once again felt like citizens of the “mistress of the seas”.

In Argentina, the defeat led to the fall of the regime of General Galtieri, who was arrested and put on trial.

British soldiers on the islands. Photo: www.globallookpress.com

The war is over, the dispute remains

Immediately after the war, Great Britain took up the development of the infrastructure of the island - the construction of roads and a modern airfield. This was done primarily to meet military needs, so that new attempts to seize the archipelago by force were nipped in the bud.

In March 2013, the UK held a referendum in the Falkland Islands, but the question was: "Do you want the Falkland Islands to retain their political status as an overseas territory of the United Kingdom?"

1517 of the 1672 islanders with the right to vote participated in the will. In favor of maintaining the current situation, against - only three people.

However, Argentina did not give up its claims to the Malvinas Islands. The official Buenos Aires said that the referendum did not change the point of view of Argentina.

In 2012, on the eve of the Summer Olympics in London, Argentine athletes semi-underground filmed a commercial in the main city of the Falkland Islands, Port Stanley.

Such visual agitation caused delight in Argentina and anger in Great Britain.

The history of military confrontation manifests itself in the most unexpected way. So, at the 1986 FIFA World Cup in the Argentina-England match, the Argentinean Diego Maradona scored a goal with a handball. The judge did not notice this, Argentina won, and in the jubilant country, many regarded the victory as "revenge for the islands."

March of Argentine war veterans in 1982. Photo: www.globallookpress.com

In 2014, Argentine veterans of the 1982 war nearly lynched the crew of the popular British show Top Gear. Leading Jeremy Clarkson attached to his car license plates "H982 FKL", which the Argentines took as a mocking allusion to the war for the Falklands. And although the British assured that this was a pure coincidence, they had to urgently leave the country.

Since 2001, Argentina has celebrated the "Day of Veterans and Fallen in the Malvinas War" on April 2 every year. On this day, the Argentines remember the dead and pay tribute to the living participants in the battles. Argentina continues to believe that its flag will be flown over Port Stanley.

The Falklands War is a confrontation between England and Argentina for control of the Falkland Islands. Interestingly, neither Argentina nor Great Britain formally declared war on each other, from the point of view of both sides, the hostilities represented the restoration of control over their legal territory.

On the night of May 21, 1982, British ground forces landed in San Carlos Bay, where the Argentines least expected an enemy landing attack. Almost a month later, the war ended. The victory was won by Great Britain, which controls the islands to this day.

We present you a small photo chronicle of this confrontation.

Tens of thousands of Argentines gathered at the Plaza de Mayo in Buenos Aires to show their support for President Leopoldo Galtieri on April 10, 1982.

On March 19, 1982, several dozen Argentine workers landed on the uninhabited island of South Georgia, administered from the Falkland capital Port Stanley, on the pretext that they needed to dismantle an old whaling station. They raised the Argentine flag on the island. English soldiers tried to expel the Argentines, but troops came to the aid of the workers.

Aftermath of the Battle of Goose Green, Falkland Islands

On April 2, 1982, Argentine troops landed on the islands and, after a short battle, forced the capitulation of the small garrison of British marines stationed there. After that, a large British naval formation was immediately sent to the South Atlantic with the aim of returning the islands.

Argentine soldiers make military deliveries shortly after the invasion of the Falklands, April 13, 1982.

On April 7, 1982, the British Minister of Defense announced the establishment of a blockade of the Falkland Islands from April 12, 1982 and the establishment of a 200-mile zone around the islands, while staying within which the ships of the Argentine Navy and merchant fleet would be sunk. In response, the Argentine government imposed a ban on making payments to English banks, and in response to economic sanctions from the West, Buenos Aires banned Lufthansa, Air France, KLM and a number of other airlines from flying to the country.

The Argentine cruiser General Belgrano is wrecked after being hit by a torpedo from the British nuclear submarine HMS Conqueror on May 1, 1982. Argentine and Chilean courts managed to save 770 people while 323 were killed

Helicopter delivers ammunition to the British Army

On April 25, British forces landed on the island of South Georgia. The Argentine garrison capitulated without putting up any resistance.

British frigate HMS Antelope after being hit by an Argentine missile

Argentine soldiers take up positions near the San Carlos Strait in May 1982.

The Argentine-British conflict lasted 74 days. The decisive battle took place on May 2, 1982, when a British nuclear submarine sank the Argentine cruiser General Belgrano. 323 people died. After that, the Argentine navy capitulated.

An Argentine army general who was considered governor in Stanley during the 73 days of the war addresses his troops in Darwin, May 25, 1982.

Gunsmiths prepare torpedoes on the British aircraft carrier HMS Hermes, while Sea King helicopters monitor the possible appearance of Argentine submarines, May 26, 1982

Thick smoke rises from the British frigate HMS Antelope in Ajax Bay on May 24, 1982. Four Argentine A-4B Skyhawks attacked a British frigate the day before. During the attack, a bomb was dropped on the ship, which British technicians unsuccessfully tried to neutralize. It exploded, starting a fire and killing 2 crew members.

Argentine military patrol the Falkland Islands, the city of Port Stanley

Hundreds of Argentines gathered outside a store in Buenos Aires to get the latest military news, May 21, 1982.

On June 14, 1982, Argentina capitulated (the war officially ended on June 20). During the conflict, 258 Britons (including three islanders) and 649 Argentines died.

Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher

The Falklands War led to a surge in Margaret Thatcher's popularity and her re-election as prime minister in 1983.

Argentine POWs at Port Stanley, June 17, 1982. By the end of the conflict, over 11,000 Argentines had been taken prisoner.

British flag near Ajax bay

In March 2013, the Falkland Islanders took part in a referendum on the political affiliation of the archipelago. 99.8% of those who voted were in favor of retaining the status of a British Overseas Territory for the Falklands

falkland_battle

Painting by W. L. Wylie “The death of the Scharnhorst and Gneisenau”

Opponents

Side force commanders

Side forces

Battle of the Falkland Islands- Naval battle of the First World War, held on December 8, 1914 between the German cruiser squadron of Vice Admiral Maximilian von Spee and the British squadron of Vice Admiral Doveton Sturdy near the Falkland Islands. As a result of the battle, the German squadron was almost completely destroyed, more than 2,000 German sailors died, about 200 were taken prisoner. The British forces were victorious without losing a single ship.

background

Admiral John Fisher, organizer of the hunt for the German squadron

Sturdee was also held responsible for vague instructions and the weakening of Cradock's forces, which led to the defeat at Coronel. After taking office as First Sea Lord, Fisher began to seek Sturdee's resignation from his position. To avoid the renewal of the old enmity, it was decided to send Sturdy at the head of the squadron to search for and destroy Spee. The position of Chief of the Naval Staff was taken over by Rear Admiral Oliver.

Realizing that by allocating ships to search for the Spee squadron, the strength of the Home Fleet is decreasing, Fischer took full responsibility for this decision. After agreement with the First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill, on November 4, battlecruisers were included in the Sturdee squadron and . The cruisers went to Devonport, after which they were supposed to follow to the South Atlantic. In the event of Spee breaking through the Panama Canal, a battlecruiser was sent to the Caribbean HMS Princess Royal.

After such rotations in the North Sea against four German battlecruisers SMS Von der Tann, SMS Moltke, SMS Seydlitz and SMS Derfflinger only three British battlecruisers remained on alert: HMS Lion, HMS Queen Mary and HMS New Zealand. In response to the concerns of the commander of the Grand Fleet, Admiral David Beatty, Winston Churchill noted that a new battleship was included in the Grand Fleet HMS Tiger, and the battleship is expected to be commissioned soon HMS Queen Elizabeth.

Under the leadership of the British Admiralty, the redeployment of other ships, including allied Japanese ships, was also carried out. Japanese armored squadron consisting of cruisers IJN Kurama, IJN Tsukuba and IJN Ikoma moved from the Central Pacific to the Panama Canal.

A British battlecruiser was heading towards Cape Horn. HMAS Australia, and the armored cruiser HMS Defense- to the Cape of Good Hope, where he was supposed to meet with cruisers HMS Minotaur, HMS Dartmouth, HMS Weymouth and an armadillo HMS Albion. At that time, an armadillo was located off the coast of West Africa. HMS Vengeance, armored cruisers HMS Warrior, HMS Black Prince, HMS Donegal and HMS Cumberland and cruiser HMS Highflyer. An armadillo was on duty in the Caribbean HMS Glory and armored cruisers HMS Berwick, HMS Lancaster and Conde. The defense of the base in the Falkland Islands is entrusted to the battleship , and off the coast of Brazil, the Sturdy squadron was expected by armored cruisers HMS Defense, , , and light cruisers and HMS Bristol. In total, the Admiralty involved more than 30 ships, not counting the Japanese and French, to intercept the German squadron.

Movements of German ships

Maximilian Spee - commander of the German cruiser squadron

Two days after the battle of Coronel, on November 3, the German ships of the Spee squadron arrived in Chile. , and anchored in the port of Valparaiso, and and in connection with the ban on more than three ships in a neutral port, they went to the island of Mas a Fuera in the Juan Fernandez archipelago. During the stay, Spee received intelligence about the Japanese squadron heading to South America, cutting off the German ships from the Panama Canal. Having received recommendations from Berlin to return to Germany, 24 hours later, Spee's ships left Valparaiso, heading for Mas a Fuera.

Being at a considerable distance from Europe, Spee received incomplete and untimely information about the deployment of British ships and their allies. However, the vice admiral understood that the leadership of the British fleet would send ships to the South Atlantic to intercept him and was aware of the difficulty of breaking through to Germany. Spee lingered near Mas-a-Fuer, hoping for a possible breakthrough into the Atlantic SMS Moltke and SMS Seydlitz with ammunition for his ships. During the stay, the Spee squadron replenished its coal reserves from transports, and the ammunition was divided equally between the ships. As a result, each ship had 445 rounds of 210-mm caliber and 1,100 rounds of 150-mm caliber.

Light cruisers sent to Valpariso and , November 8 they returned, delivering new instructions from Berlin. Given the circumstances, the presence of British forces in the Atlantic, as well as the difficulty of supply, the German squadron was ordered to interrupt cruising operations and break through to Germany. In this case, Spee had to notify the Admiral Staff of the decision in advance so that the High Seas Fleet could assist him. Having made the decision to return home, Spee transmitted a message about his decision. Also, the Vice Admiral received erroneous intelligence about the sending of Rear Admiral Stoddart's formation to South Africa and considered the way home free.

On November 15, 1914, the Spee squadron left Mas-a-Fuera, only an armed steamer remained in the parking lot. SS Prinz Eitel Friedrich, having received the task of broadcasting, creating the impression of the presence of German ships in the Pacific Ocean. Three auxiliary vessels also left with the cruisers: transports SS Baden and SS Santa Isabel, as well as a hospital ship SS Seydlitz. From November 21 in San Quentin Bay (Spanish. Bahia San Quintin) (46.8167°S sh. 74.55°W d.) the squadron replenished coal supplies from transports for five days, the fuel should have been enough until the next load in Santa Elena, in Argentina. After leaving the bay, the squadron got into a strong storm, so they rounded Cape Horn only on the night of December 1. From the cruiser reported that coal reserves might not be enough to reach Santa Elena. The squadron captured the barque Drummuir, with 2800 tons of coal and the cruiser squadron reloaded fuel until December 6th.

On the morning of December 6 on the cruiser SMS Scharnhorst a meeting was held where Spee presented a plan of further actions to the commanders of the ships of the squadron. According to intelligence data, there were no British ships in the Falkland Islands, so it was planned by cruiser forces and under the cover of the rest of the ships, destroy the radio station, warehouses with coal and capture the governor of the island. The start of the operation was scheduled for December 8. The time allotted for the operation was from 8:30 to 19:30. and should have gone to Cape Pembroke, was supposed to capture the governor and destroy the structures in Port William, and - bombard Port Stanley.

November 11 at 16:45 and left Davenport. Due to the remoteness of the naval base from densely populated areas, their exit remained a secret. On November 17, the ships replenished the supply of coal in St. Vincent, on the Cape Verde Islands. On November 24, a German radio transmission was intercepted from which the location of the Spee squadron and the direction of its movement became known. After linking up with Stoddart's squadron, Sturdee is ordered to head for the Falkland Islands.

On November 26, 30 km from the coast of Brazil, cruisers under the command of Stoddart joined the Sturdee squadron: armored cruisers and light cruisers , HMS Bristol and auxiliary cruiser HMS Orama. Armored cruiser from Stoddart's squadron HMS Defense, sent to the Cape of Good Hope, his radio station was transmitted to . With the help of this radio station, Sturdee kept in touch with the Admiralty. Off the coast of Brazil, the squadron stayed until 28 November.

Vice Admiral Frederick Doveton Sturdy

By that time, the protection of the Falkland Islands was provided by only one battleship. , on November 16, he was grounded in Port Stanley and was a kind of coastal battery. After the battle of Coronel, there was no information about the exact location of Spee's squadron, but the Admiralty assumed a high probability of a German squadron attacking a base in the Falklands. On November 28, the Stardee squadron set off for the Falkland Islands, and on November 29, training firing was carried out on the ships of the squadron at a distance of 60 cables. fired 32 shots, achieving one hit, out of 32 shots hit the target three times. During firing practice, the propeller got tangled in the tow rope, and it took almost the whole day to free the propeller.

The squadron lost part of the time en route to the unsuccessful search for the German auxiliary cruiser SS Kronprinz Wilhelm, instead of the planned December 3, the squadron arrived at the Falklands only on December 7. The squadron was expected by three coal transports, the first to start reloading fuel and HMS Bristol. After them, it was planned to load the battlecruisers with coal. Sturdy expected to go to Cape Horn on December 9 to intercept Spee's squadron. Should have loaded last and , and then independently catch up with the squadron. Sturdy suggested that and and will fight with German armored cruisers, and the rest of the cruisers - with light German cruisers.

In addition to loading coal on HMS Bristol mechanisms were urgently overhauled. The rest of the squadron was in two-hour readiness for a 12-knot move, one of the ships was assigned to be on duty, with a half-hour readiness for a 14-knot move. First appointed to duty , then it had to be replaced . An auxiliary cruiser was on patrol 10 miles from the harbor entrance. SS Makedonia.

On December 8, at 6:00 a.m., the loading of coal onto and , began loading on battlecruisers. On the repair of mechanisms also began. At this time, a lookout on Sapper Hill reported two warships approaching from the south. Sturdee ordered all ships to stop loading and put to sea.

Side forces

Ship		Type	Year of construction	Displacement, t	Maximum test speed, knots	Armament
British ships
		Battlecruiser type Invincible	1909	17 526	26	4×2×305mm; 16×1×102mm
		Battlecruiser type Invincible	1908	17 526	26	4×2×305mm; 16×1×102mm
		Armored cruiser type Devonshire	1905	10 850	22	4x1 190mm; 6x1 152mm
		Armored cruiser type Monmouth	1903	9800	23,6	2x2 and 10x1 152mm
		Armored cruiser type Monmouth	1903	9800	22,4	2x2 and 10x1 152mm
	HMS Bristol	light cruiser type town, subtype Bristol	1910	4800	26,8	2x1 152mm, 10x1 102mm
		light cruiser type town, subtype Bristol	1910	4800	25,3	2x1 152mm, 10x1 102mm
		Battleship type Canopus	1899	12 950	18	2×2 305 mm; 12x1 152mm
German ships
		Armored cruiser type Scharnhorst	1907	11 420	23,2
		Armored cruiser type Scharnhorst	1908	11 420	23,5	2x2 and 4x1 210mm; 6x1 150mm
		light cruiser type Bremen	1906	3200	22,4	10x1 105mm
		light cruiser type Konigsberg	1908	3400	23,5	10x1 105mm
		light cruiser type Dresden	1908	3520	24	10x1 105mm

The course of the battle

The beginning of the battle

From the German ships they saw the Falkland Islands at 2:30. At 5:30, Spee announced a combat alert and ordered the speed to be increased to 18 knots. From the cruiser it was reported that, due to a navigational error, he would not reach the set point until 09:30, an hour later than planned.

Schematic of the Falklands Battle

Commander , Merker noticed thick smoke over the harbor and concluded that the coal depots were on fire. However, at 09:00, the Germans saw masts and pipes in the harbor and realized that the British squadron had not left for Africa. Having transmitted a message to the flagship about the sighted objects, continued on to Cape Pembroke.

At 9:25 fired the first salvo from its 305-mm guns at , forcing the German ships to turn sharply to the east. Went out to sea from the harbor and tried to cut it off from the harbor entrance. However, Spee ordered to leave at full speed to the northeast, and the transports to separate and leave to the southeast, then to Picton Island. Spee did not want to accept the battle and decided to leave the entire squadron to the east. At 11:00, the German squadron was heading east in the following order: and .

British ships at this time urgently bred pairs. Were anchored at 09:45 followed 15 minutes later by and battlecruisers. Started moving at 10:00 and , last started moving . Sturdy gave the order to pursue the German squadron. He knew that the German ships would not be able to reach speeds of more than 18 knots, so the British had a speed advantage of 4-5 knots. Despite the distance of 19 miles between the opponents by 11:00, after two hours the guns of the battlecruisers were already able to fire, and there was still enough time to fight before dark.

At 11:00 anchored HMS Bristol, at the same time, German transports were seen near Port Pleasant. Fearing an amphibious landing, Spee ordered the cruisers HMS Bristol and HMS Macedonia destroy cargo ships.

The cruiser was the first in the line of pursuers , three miles behind him followed , on the right behind his stern walked . At 11:29 Sturdee ordered the speed to be reduced to 20 knots in order to collect the sprawling squadron and give the teams an opportunity to dine. At 12:20 the ships again increased their speed to 25 knots, however and could develop a speed of only 22 knots, so they lagged behind. Also left behind , not being able to accelerate more than 18 knots.

At 12:47 Sturdee raised the signal to "Open fire and fight". The first at 12:57 opened fire , firing a volley from 14,8 km to , but at 12:58 he fired a volley and . All projectiles did not reach the target. The opponents were moving to the southeast, parallel to each other, the British squadron was slightly to the left of the German one. In this position, the battlecruisers could only use two towers. At the same time, the British were on the windward side, so the smoke from the chimneys made it difficult to see. Sighting was carried out with shots of two shells, the range and observation conditions made it possible to shoot only after 20 minutes.

Battlecruisers released by cruiser 20 shells. Spee realized that it would not be possible to escape the battle and ordered the light cruisers to leave in different directions at maximum speed. and changed course to 68 ° and took the direction to the northeast. and went south. Sturdee provided for such a maneuver, so without waiting for an order, and followed the German light cruisers. and continued to pursue the armored cruisers Spee. From that moment on, the battle broke up into two separate parts.

Battle of the main forces

A few minutes after 13:20 fired at the head , a coming second . Performing a turn maneuver slowed down and skipped ahead . Following the German ships, the British battlecruisers also made a turn of 7 points. After the restructuring fired , and by - . The German ships returned fire at 13:25.

The sinking of the cruiser Scharnhorst. Painting by Thomas Jacques Somerscale

British 305-mm guns had a maximum firing range of 82.5-85 cables, the distance of actual fire was 60-70 cables. German 210-mm guns could hit targets at a distance of 75 cables, while the effective firing distance against British battlecruisers was 70 cables. British 305-mm shells pierced German armor at any distance.

The distance between the opponents was 70 cables and the German shells fell short. British cruisers fired from only three towers. After reducing the distance to 65 cables, the German ships took a parallel course. Despite the clear superiority of the British in firepower, the battle did not promise to be easy. At 13:44 received the first hit and Sturdee ordered his ships to turn two points to port in order to increase the distance and make the shooting of the German ships ineffective. By 14:00, the distance between the opponents reached 80 cables and the skirmish temporarily stopped.

It turned out that the British ships also could not fire at maximum range with full efficiency. smoke from chimneys interfered with the gunners conduct aimed fire. For half an hour of battle, 210 shells were fired by British ships, while they achieved only two hits on and , German ships were almost not affected. Due to a malfunction of the shutter, one of the guns of the "A" turret stopped firing on .

In order to reduce the distance again and resume the battle, at 14:05 Sturdy turned to the right 4 points, then another 4. At this time, the German ships disappeared from view, their location was hidden by dense smoke. When visibility was restored, it turned out that Spee's ships were heading south, the distance increased to 85 cables. Sturdy turned on the enemy and ordered to increase the move. By 14:45, the distance was reduced to 75 cables, the British ships laid down on a parallel course and opened fire again. Spee also turned towards the British, wanting to close the distance and bring medium artillery into action. When the distance was reduced to 62.5 cables and the German 150-mm guns opened fire, Sturdy maneuvered, keeping a distance of at least 60 cables. and fired rapidly fired from all guns, the tower of the opposite side fired across the deck.

The advantage of the British ships became clearer, received several hits below the waterline, at 15:10 she began to list. burned in several places, its chimney was destroyed. At 15:15 the German ships were shrouded in smoke and Sturdee ordered them to reverse course. This time became the lead ship, the smoke no longer interfered with it, and the shooting became more effective. On the a shell fragment knocked down the admiral's flag and asked: “Why is the admiral's flag half-mast? Is he killed?" Spee replied that everything was in order with him and admitted to Merker the mistake of his decision to go to the Falklands.

Despite the accuracy of the German ships, the hits did not affect the combat capability of the British battlecruisers. In the same time and received heavy damage from the fire of 305-mm guns. The shells pierced the decks of the casemates and created destruction in the lower compartments. received heavy damage to the casemates of 150-mm guns, flooded boiler room No. 1, water began to flow into boiler room No. 3. The ship's speed dropped to 16 knots. Fires started at the bow and stern.

The battlecruiser HMS Invincible during the chase

He was in an even more difficult situation, he sank 1 meter, lost the third chimney, several fires broke out. Artillery fire noticeably weakened, many casemate guns on the port side were damaged. At 15:30, the German cruisers turned to starboard towards the enemy, again opening fire from 150-mm guns. This maneuver had no effect on the situation.

At 16:00 it became clear that perishes. Its speed dropped noticeably, a strong fire spread in the stern, only one chimney survived. At this time by opened fire and . At 16:04 suddenly ceased fire and began to roll. Without lowering the flag, at 16:17 he went on board and sank. British ships did not stop to save drowning people, because was still fighting. The water temperature was 6-7 ° and none of the crew survived.

The British ships sailed in a wake column, the first to go , behind him and . When approaching British ships were severely hampered by smoke. Sturdee turned west, moving away from . In the worst visibility conditions was , he tried to pass behind the stern of the German ship, at 17:00 he failed without an order. Firing at the stern , for some time it turned to the enemy either on the left or on the starboard side, then returned to the wake column.

Whole fight fired at . It was raining and visibility was getting worse. Fires spread on the bow and stern of the German ship. The course of the ship decreased to 8 knots, the guns gradually ceased fire. At 17:15, the last hit was recorded in . At 17:30, the German ship ran out of all 210-mm shells, she turned to the side and stopped. British ships began to approach , which still hasn't lowered the flag. Sometimes a German cruiser opened fire on the British, receiving volleys in response. At 17:50 the British ships ceased fire. AT 18:00 slowly lay on board and turned over, sank.

British ships approached the place of death and lowered lifeboats to save people. The water had a very low temperature, due to hypothermia and heart failure, even people raised from the water died. In total, about 200 people were raised from the water, but many of them died, their funeral took place the next day. At 19:30, the search for the victims was completed and Sturdee requested the location of the remaining cruisers by radio, but only responded .

Battle of the main forces
Ship	hits	Killed	Wounded	prisoners	Onboard weight volley, kg
	22	0	1		3084
	3	1	2		3084
	0	0	0		408
TOTAL	25	1	3		6576
	40	860			886
	30	680		187	886
TOTAL	70	1540		187	1772

Light forces fight

When the German light cruisers began to leave at 13:25 in a southeasterly direction, they were 10-12 miles from their pursuers. Max speed was 24 knots, - 23.5 and - 22.4. But the depreciation of the machines did not allow in practice to develop such a speed, could develop 22-23 knots, a little less could develop only 21 knots. German ships moved in the bearing formation - in the center was , far left , went to the right .

The British had the fastest , which showed more than 25 knots in tests. Same type and developed speed up to 23 knots. The British armored cruisers were better armed and armored than the German armored cruisers.

The pursuit of the German light forces was led by , followed him , closed the chase . Commander offered to share goals - he had to take over would pursue , a - . But the commander , senior in rank among all the commanders of the British group, decided to pursue not , a .

Combat of SMS Leipzig with HMS Glasgow and HMS Cornwall

Picture of the Falklands battle. Presumably - the death of SMS Leipzig

Having reduced the gap to 60 cables, opened fire on from a 152 mm bow gun, the British cruisers were 4 miles behind. turned right and returned fire. The British 102 mm guns could not fire at such a distance, unlike the German 102 mm guns. turned to the right, increasing the distance. He opened fire several more times with a 152-mm gun, forcing make a turn and return fire. As a result, a number of similar maneuvers allowed the rest of the British cruisers to overtake .

Around 16:00 approached at a distance of 45 cables and opened fire from 102-mm guns. At 16:15, the rest of the British cruisers also opened fire, but the shells fell short. turned left chasing , a concentrated fire on . At the start of the fight fired at , which soon deviated to the right and crossed the wake and joined , firing from the port side. moved the fire to . The distance between the opponents was 35-50 cables. Captain maneuvered, giving the opportunity to fire onboard guns.

Under the crossfire of British cruisers received multiple injuries. AT 18:00 went to approach the enemy and began to use liddite shells. As a result of several hits on a fire broke out, but the ship continued to fight. At 19:30, the German cruiser ran out of shells, at 19:50-19:55 three torpedoes were fired at the British cruisers, which missed their targets. Around the same time the commander ordered the kingstones to be opened and the crew gathered on deck, about to leave the ship. Since the flag is on was not launched, the British ships continued to fire, which caused mass casualties among the crew.

At 20:30 the fire was ceased and at 20:45 boats were lowered from the British ships to evacuate the German crew. slowly lay down on the port side, capsized and sank at 21:23. Only a few German sailors were able to escape on British boats, many drowned and died from hypothermia. When on lifted the last boat out of the water, a radio signal was received from Sturdee. Due to frequent exchange rate changes could not determine his coordinates, also could not provide information about the fate and .

The battle with British cruisers
Ship	hits	Killed	Wounded	prisoners	Onboard weight volley, kg
	2	1	4		161
	18	0	0		408
TOTAL	20	1	4		569
	20	280		18	79

Battle of HMS Kent and SMS Nürnberg

While chasing went full steam ahead and his cars gave out 5000 hp. more power than on tests. With such power, its speed was 24-25 knots. To keep the steam pressure so high, more people worked in the boiler rooms than usual. At 17:00 tried to hit with fire , but the shells fell short.

At 17:35 due to wear and tear on two boilers failed, the speed dropped to 19 knots. The distance between the opponents quickly decreased and soon a mutual firefight began. went to approach the enemy and approached him at 30 cables, and then at 15. By that time almost lost momentum and was able to get around him from the nose, making a longitudinal volley at the enemy from 17 cables. At 18:25 finally stopped, but did not lower the flag. Within half an hour fired while did not lower the flag at 19:00.

Ceased fire and lowered the two surviving boats, at 19:30 landed on the starboard side, capsized and sank. They searched for drowning people until 21:00, but they could not save everyone. During the battle, the radio room was damaged , so he was unable to relay information about the outcome of the fight to Sturdee. Only the next day, when at 15:30 dropped anchor at Port Stanley, the events of the day before became known.

The battle and
Ship	hits	Killed	Wounded	prisoners	Onboard weight volley, kg
	38	4	12		408
	?	290		7	79

Collisions with other ships

Auxiliary German ships SS Baden and SS Santa Isabel were at anchor when they were discovered at 14:00 with HMS Bristol and HMS Macedonia. SS Seydlitz was able to move in a southwesterly direction. HMS Bristol shots forced to stop trying to escape SS Baden and SS Santa Isabel, removed their crews, and flooded the ships themselves. It turned out that the commander HMS Bristol Sturdee misunderstood the order and the captured ships should have been brought to Port Stanley.

Battle statistics

Damage to HMS Kent during the Battle of Falklands

During the fight made 513 shots with 305-mm shells - 128 armor-piercing, 259 semi-armor-piercing and 126 high-explosive. spent 75% of the ammunition - 661 shells, including 157 armor-piercing, 343 semi-armor-piercing and 161 high-explosive. spent 85 shells of 190-mm caliber and 60 shells of 152-mm caliber. The exact number of hits on the German cruisers is unknown, but according to rough estimates, their number was about 40 each.

Both battlecruisers did not have artillery fire control devices, so the share of hits was 6-8%. Although this was considered a good indicator, the amount of shells spent to sink the German cruisers was excessive. At the end of the battle only 12 shells remained in turret A, and 29 shells in turret X. The other two turrets had just over 100 shells each.

By 22 hits were recorded - twelve from 210-mm guns, six from 150-mm and four hits of an unknown caliber. Two bow compartments and a coal pit near the P turret were flooded, as a result the ship received a list of 15 ° to the port side. Of the eleven hits on the deck, two shells destroyed the wardroom. The armored belt received four hits, the same number of hits fell on the unarmored side. One shell hit turret A, between the guns without penetrating the armor, another one hit the starboard anchor, one hit the foremast tripod. A projectile hit cut off the barrel of a 102-mm gun. On the only one sailor was injured.

Received only three hits, 102-mm guns on turrets A and X were damaged. One sailor was killed and three wounded. didn't get a single hit. From the crew not a single person was saved. With rescued 187 people.

Glasgow received two hits in which one person was killed and four wounded. received 18 hits, but no one was injured among the crew members. With 7 officers and 11 sailors were saved, with - 12 sailors, of whom only seven survived.

Of the British ships most affected , he received 38 hits, four were killed, twelve people were injured.

Among the dead sailors were Admiral Spee and his two sons, who served alone on , second on .

Results and consequences

In British history, the Battle of Falklands is treated as revenge for the defeat at Coronel. Churchill praised Sturdee's actions and the outcome of the battle:

SMS Dresden before self-flooding

King George V of England also congratulated the admiral, officers and sailors on their victory. For this battle, Sturdy, the first naval officer in 100 years, was granted a baronetcy.

As a result of the British victory, the only strong German cruiser squadron was destroyed, which created a threat on sea routes. As a raider, only the one who escaped could act , but he did not pose a serious threat and for his capture it was not necessary to allocate a powerful fleet and it was possible to return most of the ships to the Metropolis.

The actions of the commander were criticized during the fight, because of his actions was able to get away from the chase, he had to organize a new hunt. March 14, 1915, during the battle of Mas-a-Tierra, she was sunk by cruisers and in Cumberland Bay.

Contemporaries called the Battle of Falklands "a battle between giants and dwarfs", as it took place between ships of unequal class. The advantage of the British battlecruisers over the German armored cruisers in speed, salvo weight and armor was obvious. However, only thanks to Churchill and Fisher, who were able to competently redistribute the forces of the fleet and organize the transfer of battlecruisers to the South Atlantic, the success of this battle became possible.

Scharnhorst (1936)

In honor of the victory of the British squadron, December 8 is declared a public holiday in the Falkland Islands. Every year on this day there is a parade and a demonstration of the air force and navy. In 1927, a memorial dedicated to the Falklands battle was opened in Port Stanley with funds from donations. In honor of the battlecruisers of the British squadron, the mountains in the Canadian part of the Rocky Mountains are named - Inflexible (height 3000 m) and Invincible (height 2670 m).

In Chile, in the city of Punta Arenas, a memorial sign was erected in memory of Maximilian Spee and his squadron. In Germany, the name of Vice Admiral Maximilian von Spee was planned to be given to a battlecruiser of the type Mackensen but the ship never entered service. In 1934, during the launch of a battleship of the type

At the end of 1914, a difficult situation arose in ocean communications. The von Spee squadron (two of the same type armored cruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau and three light cruisers - Emden, Nuremberg and Leipzig) could destroy all English shipping in the South Atlantic. Under the threat of death were numerous transports with troops, who were at that moment off the coast of South Africa. On November 4, the order came for Invincible and Inflexible to take on a full supply of coal and proceed to Burhaven, as "they are urgently required for overseas service." Fisher decided to send them to the Falkland Islands. Vice-Admiral Sturdy was appointed commander of the formation, who was thus given the opportunity to correct the mistakes he had made as chief of the naval general staff.

At that moment, current repairs were underway on the British cruisers. Sturdee reported to Fisher on November 9th that the earliest time his ships could set sail was November 13th, Friday. The workers will not have had time to finish laying the refractory brick lintels between the Invincible boilers before then. Report this to an old school sea dog! You have to be a complete idiot to sail on the 13th, and even on Friday! The order of the first sea lord followed: the squadron to depart on Wednesday the 11th. Together with the team, a team of workers went to Invincible, who were supposed to complete repairs on the way. At the same time, Fischer sent the battlecruiser Princess Royal to the Caribbean in case von Spee decided to turn back and pass the Atlantic through the Panama Canal. By making this decision, Fischer took a big risk. According to Professor A.D. Marder, after the death of the Odessa and the dispatch of 3 battlecruisers to the South Atlantic in the first half of November 1914, the German High Seas Fleet had the best opportunity in the entire war to face off against the British fleet in the most favorable conditions for themselves.

Beatty was extremely concerned about this weakening of his squadron. On November 13, he sent a memorandum to Jellicoe, in which he pointed out the inadmissibility of such a division of forces. In the waters of the mother country, the British fleet now had only 3 fully combat-ready battlecruisers (Lyon, Queen Mary, New Zealand), which were opposed by 4 German battlecruisers, reinforced by Blucher. True, there was also Tiger, but he had just joined the fleet and was not ready to participate in hostilities. The fleet commander fully shared Beatty's concerns. He had previously sent a report to the First Sea Lord: "I believe that the decision to allocate another battlecruiser from the fleet should be reconsidered." However, the first sea lord remained adamant, and subsequent events confirmed his correctness and the justification for the risk he took.

The stubborn Sturdee did not consider it necessary to exactly fulfill the order of the Admiralty: "to follow the Falkland Islands with all possible haste." Instead of December 3, according to the calculations of the Sea Lords, Invincible and Inflexible did not arrive at Port Stanley until 10.30 am on the 7th. Before starting the search for the German squadron, the battlecruisers had to urgently replenish their fuel supplies. Early on the morning of December 8, the collier was brought in for Invincible and she began to load. Following him, Inflexible began loading.

Meanwhile, von Spee's squadron, having defeated the Cradock formation, continued to slowly move south. Along the way, the Germans captured a Canadian steamer with a cargo of Cardiff coal, which came in very handy. Having escorted the Canadian to a secluded bay of Tierra del Fuego, the coal was loaded onto German cruisers. This took several days, and until December 6, von Spee could not continue sailing. Chance delayed him just long enough for the British to reach the area of ​​operations.

During a meeting of the officers of the German squadron regarding a plan for further action, the commander put forward an attack on the Falkland Islands with the aim of destroying the British base at Port Stanley as a priority. Some officers, including Gneisenau commander Merker, thought it would be wiser to avoid the Falkland Islands, but von Spee insisted on his rash decision. The operation was entrusted to Gneisenau and Nuremberg.

At 8.30 am, two German cruisers, approaching Port Senley, saw low hills fringing the harbor from the south, and smoke rising. As they approached, the smoke grew thicker and thicker, so that a black mist hung over the entire harbor. This circumstance did not alarm the Germans: they attributed it to the fact that the British were destroying fuel depots. At 0925, as the Gneisenau approached within firing range, two columns of water sprang up in front of it, and the roar of heavy gunfire came from the harbour. This opened fire "Canopus". Merker, who believed that he was dealing only with an old, slow-moving battleship, was not at all embarrassed. However, a few minutes later, the Germans saw the "fatal" tripod masts of battlecruisers moving in the harbor towards the sea. The German flagship raised a signal: do not engage in battle and leave to the northeast at full speed.

As soon as Sturdy was informed of the approach of two enemy cruisers to Port Stanley, he immediately gave the order to stop loading coal, prepare for battle and raise anchors. At the beginning of the 11th hour, both battlecruisers had already left the harbor. Visibility was amazing; the sea is calm and dazzling blue; a light northwest wind was blowing. At 10.20 on the flagship raised the signal "general pursuit". It took the British battlecruisers some time before they were able to develop their course to full speed and get close to the German ships at a distance of artillery fire. At about 1300, the twelve-inch Invincible barked. From a distance of 14.5 km, he fired several shells at the Leipzig, which closed the German wake column. Von Spee then ordered his light cruisers to disperse and withdraw. Nuremberg, Leipzig and Dresden turned west and went full speed ahead. The English light cruisers Kent and Cornwell immediately set off in pursuit of them. From that moment on, the battle broke up into several pockets.

The German admiral decided to fight only with his armored cruisers. Since the Scharnhorst and Gneisenau could not develop more than 18 knots, it was impossible to avoid a battle. Sturdee did not immediately advance to the distance of a decisive battle, at which the consumption of ammunition would be the least and which would provide him with a quick victory. He was aware of the high artillery reputation of his two opponents and wanted to avoid even the slightest damage to his battlecruisers. There was no risk to Sturdee's ships in a battle at extreme range, but the expenditure of shells would almost certainly have been enormous.

At first, Invincible fired at the Gneisenau and Inflexible fired at the Scharnhorst, switching targets when the German ships changed their positions. The gunners of the Scharnhorst hit Invincible from the third salvo. When the distance decreased to 11 km, the Germans brought 152-mm guns into action. Sturdee increased the distance to 14 km, and then went beyond the artillery fire. Around 2:00 pm, both sides stopped firing. Von Spee tried to save his ships for the last time: he turned sharply south, heading for waters where fog, squalls and overcast weather could be expected. In the first phase of the battle, the British firing was exceptionally poor. Scharnhorst and Gneisenau received only two hits each, and neither was seriously damaged. The destructive power of the British 305-mm shells turned out to be much less than might have been expected.

About an hour later the British approached again and resumed firing. The battle became hot, the distance again decreased to 11 km. The Gneisenau, which had lost only 1 killed and 10 wounded in the initial period of the battle, was now suffering severely. His entire corps trembled from the impact of heavy shells, fires blazed in several places at the same time. Soon the roll to the port side became clearly visible. The Scharnhorst also suffered from fire. Huge columns of water from 305-mm shells falling into the water flooded the holes in the sides of the German cruisers, preventing the fires from completely engulfing them. The British shooting would have been more accurate if Sturdee had not kept Inflexible in the thick smoke of the flagship.

At the beginning of the 4th, it became clear that the Scharnhorst was coming to an end: it had sunk heavily, and flames were raging on the upper deck. Nevertheless, the German flag fluttered on it, and he continued to fire vigorously with the surviving artillery. The British were amazed at the stamina of the Germans, the regularity and speed of the volleys. At 1600, Spee, in the heat of battle, managed to signal to Merker that the latter was right in speaking out against the attack on the Falkland Islands, and ordered the Gneisenau to leave if he could. After that, the admiral turned his flagship and went to the British. Only one of the four tubes of the Scharnhorst survived, it had a large and increasing list to starboard, its stern was engulfed in flames. At 16.04, having fired the last volley from the bow turret, it began to slowly roll over, lay on board for a short period of time with rotating propellers, and finally disappeared under the water nose first.

As the battle continued, the British cruisers were unable to assist the Scharnhorst crew. In addition, the water was so cold that it was hardly possible for the German sailors to be helped in any way, even if there was no Gneisenau nearby. Such is the law of naval warfare - first destroy the enemy and only after that save people. The end of the Gneisenau was no less tragic. The British were already calm, measured shooting, reminiscent of aimed fire at targets. Soon, one of the hits damaged the steering gear, and the Gneisenau began to describe the circulation. His resistance to terrifying fire was amazing. It should be especially noted that none of the German cruisers experienced an explosion of ammunition. Around 17.30, it was still floating on the water in the form of a broken skeleton, most of its stokers were flooded, all the guns, except for one, were rendered unusable, the ammunition was almost exhausted, and fires raged on the deck. About 600 people from the Gneisenau team were killed.

The British ceased fire and began to approach the Gneisenau slowly and carefully, as the German war flag still fluttered on it. At 17.40, the survivors gathered on a pile of scrap iron - all that was left of the superstructures and the deck of the German cruiser. In the silence that followed the roar of the battle, a three-fold "cheers" sounded and the Gneisenau's hull began to capsize to starboard. Merker gave the order to open the kingstones and sink the ship. The Gneisenau lay keel up for some time, and then disappeared, sinking stern first.

Although it was summer in the southern hemisphere, the water in this region of the Atlantic is strongly cooled by icebergs and cold currents coming from Antarctica. Its temperature did not exceed 6 degrees above zero. Not a single person from the Gneisenau team escaped. The total losses of the German squadron amounted to 2000 sailors and officers. Among the dead were von Spee and one of his sons (the other died on the Nuremberg) and both commanders of German armored cruisers. Shortly before the Gneisenau began to sink, the weather changed - it began to rain. If it had started two or three hours earlier, perhaps the German cruisers would have been able to get away. This fact shows the danger of delaying a decisive blow, which the English admiral allowed. As you know, Sturdy, starting the chase early in the morning, at 11.00 ordered to slow down and the team to start breakfast.

As for the light cruisers, the British, after a chase lasting several hours, overtook and sank the Leipzig and Nuremberg. The Dresden managed to escape. In the end, he was caught by two British cruisers in a secluded bay on the Chilean coast and destroyed. But this happened only on March 14, 1915. The light cruiser Bristol and the armed steamer Macedonia received an order from Sturdi to sink the transports that accompanied von Spee's squadron. English ships quickly discovered two German auxiliary ships - Baden and Santa Isabel - with a cargo of oil, coal and various supplies. All this would have been very useful to Sturdee, but the senior of the British commanders did not report anything to the flagship and thoughtlessly carried out the order, sinking both of these valuable prizes. Thus ended a day marked by great British success.

Subsequently, many naval historians will argue that the battle of the Falklands was the biggest victory of the British fleet since the Battle of Trafalgar. It was probably the last battle of surface ships of the 20th century, most reminiscent of Nelson's time: its outcome from beginning to end was decided by naval artillery, without the use of torpedoes, sea mines, aircraft or submarines.