Leyte is a Philippine island, around which one of the most difficult and large-scale naval battles unfolded.
American and Australian ships began a battle against the Japanese fleet, which, being in a stalemate, carried out an attack from four sides, using kamikaze tactics in its tactics - the Japanese military went to suicide in order to inflict as much damage on the enemy as possible. This is the last major operation for the Japanese, who had already lost their strategic advantage by the time it began. However, the Allied forces were still victorious. On the part of Japan, 10 thousand people were killed, but due to the work of the kamikaze, the Allies also suffered serious losses - 3500. In addition, Japan lost the legendary battleship Musashi and almost lost another - Yamato. At the same time, the Japanese had a chance to win. However, due to the use of a dense smoke screen, the Japanese commanders could not adequately assess the enemy's forces and did not dare to fight "to the last fighter", but retreated.
The Battle of Leyte is one of the most difficult and large-scale naval battles
A turning point for the US Navy in the Pacific. A serious victory against the background of the terrible disaster of the beginning of the war - Pearl Harbor.
Midway is a thousand miles from the Hawaiian Islands. Thanks to the intercepted communications of the Japanese and the intelligence received as a result of the flights of American aircraft, the US command received information in advance about the impending attack. On June 4, Vice Admiral Nagumo sent 72 bombers and 36 fighters to the island. The destroyer of the Americans raised the signal of an enemy attack and, releasing a cloud of black smoke, attacked the aircraft from anti-aircraft guns. The battle has begun. Meanwhile, US aircraft headed for Japanese aircraft carriers, as a result, 4 of them were sunk. Japan also lost 248 aircraft and about 2.5 thousand people. American losses are more modest - 1 aircraft carrier, 1 destroyer, 150 aircraft and about 300 people. The order to terminate the operation was received already on the night of June 5.
The Battle of Midway Atoll is a watershed moment for the US Navy
As a result of the defeat in the 1940 campaign, France entered into an agreement with the Nazis and became part of the occupied territories of Germany with a formally independent, but controlled by Berlin, Vichy government.
The Allies began to fear that the French fleet could cross Germany and already 11 days after the French surrender, they carried out an operation that would become a problem for a long time in the allied relations of Great Britain and that France that resisted the Nazis. She received the name "Catapult". The British seized ships stationed in British ports, expelling French teams by force from them, which was not without clashes. Of course, the Allies took this as a betrayal. Even more terrible pictures unfolded in Oran, an ultimatum was sent to the command of the ships stationed there - to transfer them to the control of the British or sink them. As a result, they were sunk by the British. All of France's newest battleships were put out of action, and more than 1,000 French were killed. The French government broke off diplomatic relations with Britain.
In 1940, the French government became controlled by Berlin
Tirpitz is the second Bismarck-class battleship, one of the most powerful and most intimidating warships of the German forces.
From the moment it was put into service, the British Navy began a real hunt for it. The first time the battleship was discovered in September, and as a result of an attack by British aircraft, it turned into a floating battery, having lost the opportunity to participate in naval operations. On November 12, it was no longer possible to hide the ship, three Tallboy bombs hit the ship, one of which led to an explosion in its gunpowder warehouse. Tirpitz sank off Tromsø just a few minutes after this attack, killing about a thousand people. The elimination of this battleship meant a virtually complete Allied naval victory over Germany, which made it possible to free up naval forces for use in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. The very first battleship of this type, Bismarck, did much more trouble - in 1941, he sank the British flagship and battlecruiser Hood in the Danish Strait. As a result of a three-day hunt for the newest ship, it was also sunk.
"Tirpitz" - one of the most intimidating warships of the German forces
Naval battles of the Second World War differ from the previous ones in that they were no longer a purely naval battle.
Each of them was combined - with serious support from aviation. Part of the ships were aircraft carriers, which made it possible to provide such support. The attack on Pearl Harbor in the Hawaiian Islands was carried out with the help of carrier-based aircraft of the aircraft carrier formation of Vice Admiral Nagumo. In the early hours of the morning, 152 aircraft attacked a US Navy base, taking the unsuspecting military by surprise. Submarines of the Imperial Japanese Navy also took part in the attack. The losses of the Americans were colossal: about 2.5 thousand dead, 4 battleships, 4 destroyers were lost, 188 aircraft were destroyed. The calculation with such a fierce attack was that the Americans would lose heart, and most of the US fleet would be destroyed. Neither happened. The attack led to the fact that there were no doubts for the Americans about participating in World War II: on the same day, Washington declared war on Japan, and in response, Germany, which was allied with Japan, declared war on the United States.
The naval battles of World War II were not purely naval battles.
Well, as always, I again remembered my abandoned LiveJournal after six months. Becoming more disciplined is my biggest challenge right now, and it comes down to little things like doing LiveJournal. But, on the other hand, during these six months, something like this happened ... no, SUCH! However, I will try to tell about this as soon as possible in the next post. In the meantime, I remembered the long-delayed photographs of the naval battles of the Second World War.
There were no less artillery battles of ships in it than in the First, and the photography technique by that time had stepped forward significantly. But ... photos of the battles are still few. Why? The point here, probably, is that the battles themselves became more fleeting and unpredictable, and there was especially no time to prepare for shooting. In rare cases, when specially prepared for this, the result is well known for a long time. The most famous of them is Operation Reinubung, the Bismarck raid. And even then the pictures survived because the material was prudently transferred to the Prinz Eugen, before the German ships separated in the ocean so as not to meet again ... The vicissitudes of war. And the opposite case - the death of the archive of the Japanese Navy in Nagasaki - no one knows how many priceless materials burned in the fire of a nuclear explosion! In general, as you know, most of the photographs of the campaign in the Pacific Ocean were either taken from the air or reflect the battles of ships with an air enemy. And one moment. A lot of photos are… parts of filming. Most often, too, survived.
Let's start, as they say, from the beginning ... From Westerplatte. The first volleys of the war were the volleys of the old battleship "Schleswig-Holstein" on the Polish coastal fortifications. Here the Germans were well prepared, even filming was preserved.The view is almost peaceful, it is not clear what it is, are they shooting? However, that's how it was. 
Is this photo the real color or painted? 
But from the side of the battleship itself:
So the war began. One of the first major operations of the fleet in it was the Norwegian operation, and one of its most dramatic episodes was the feat of the English destroyer Gloworm, which single-handedly grappled with the heavy cruiser Admiral Hipper on April 8, 1940. The photos captured the last moments of the battle, when the destroyer, hiding behind a smoke screen, goes to ram, 
And already sinking:
Through the eyepiece of the Hipper rangefinder:
Meanwhile, other battles were unfolding in Norway. From their photographs, so far I know the pictures of the second battle for Narvik on April 13, taken by the British side:
Warspite firing in Ofutfjord:
Boyesmins, taken from English. Aircraft (something vague, hard to say specifically)
And these photos from the filming show the sinking of the English aircraft carrier Glories by the German battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau in the Norwegian Sea on June 8, 1940. Of course, the German newsreel modestly kept silent about the subsequent attack of the battleships by the destroyers of the Ardent and Akasta escorts, which ended in an unpleasant for the Germans hit by the Akasta torpedo in the stern of the Scharnhorst.
Fire "Scharnhorst"
And Gneisenau:
The destroyers cover the Glories with a smoke screen:
But it doesn't help
"Ardent" sunk ...
And behind him is the Glories itself:
And now - the attack of "Acasta" - its triumph and death:
Now let's move to Africa - to Algeria. Mers-el-Kebir - this name immediately speaks for itself a lot for military historians, lovers of military history ... Most of the pictures of this battle are also newsreels.
Mers-el-Kebir under the fire of the English squadron:
Explosion of a shell near the Brittany LK
Volleys fall heaps behind the stern of the Provence and Strasbourg, which has already set in motion:
"Strasbourg" leaves the harbor:
Another photo of the exit of "Strasbourg" under fire:
Leaving the harbor, the battleship developed a course and opened fire:
And after him, the destroyers and leaders go for a breakthrough
This photograph is sometimes attributed to "the English battleships Hood and Valiant under return fire from French ships at Mers-el-Kebir". In my opinion, it looks more like a fall of air bombs. If anyone knows, please tell me what exactly this photo shows:
And 6 days after Mers el-Kebir, the first combat clash of the English and Italian linear forces took place - the battle at Cape Punta Stilo. Unremarkable in itself, however, he was honored to be captured by the Italian side on film, which gives us an excellent chance to see the battle of linear forces, as they say, from the inside, through the eyes of its participant. Film shots were distributed in photographs that even got into Soviet books on the history of the Second World War.
Perhaps the most famous of them - "Conte di Cavour" is firing. Taken from the Giulio Cesare:
Again:
And now - on the contrary, "Cesare" from "Cavour":
And - from the side, from the destroyers, prudently keeping aloof from the "battle of the giants":
The failure in this battle led to the loss of dominance by the Italians in their own maritime theater and the loss of morale by the fleet itself. Therefore, they no longer produced such large-scale filming of marine operations. But still filmed. For example, in the battle at Cape Teulada on November 27, 1940.
Italian heavy cruisers under fire:
The heavy cruiser "Fiume" is firing at the British cruisers:
Manchester and Sheffield firing:
"Vittorio Veneto" and "Giulio Cesare" in the battle at Spartivento: 
It was one of those battles of varying success, limiting the initiative of the English fleet in operations in escorting convoys.
The year 1941 came, and the most famous of the battles, including in the plan of interest to us, was Operation Reinubung, the first and only raid of the German battleship Bismarck. Preparations for the raid were thorough in German, and correspondents and cameramen were sent to the battleship. A film was shot, including in the battle in the Danish Strait, but ... Some of the materials were sent to the "Prinz Eugen", and he safely "brought" them to Brest, thanks to which we can now see them. The film materials remained on the Bismarck, and when it became clear that the battleship with disabled rudders would soon be overtaken by the main forces of the English fleet, they tried to send them to France on an airborne seaplane. But the catapult was damaged in battle, which was not immediately noticed, and the Arado fell into the sea.
These photographs, in principle, have already been widely replicated. But there is always something new.
The shells of the "Prince of Wales" began to cover the "Prince Eugen":
And then "Prince Eugen" gave way to "Bismarck" in front: 
English ships under fire (left "Prince of Wales", right - "Hood" under cover): 
The key moment of the battle is the death of Hood: 
Enlarged photo of the ship's agony with details:
The damaged "Bismarck" (the trim on the nose is noticeable) continues to fire at the "Prince of Wales", forcing him to leave the battle:
And on May 27 at 08:00, British battleships and cruisers opened fire on the damaged and almost immovable Bismarck. The photographs of this battle, which actually became the execution of the German battleship, were already taken by the British side, and at a considerable distance, and not from the ships participating in the battle, as was the case with the Germans and Italians. But for sure there are photographs of battles from English ships, this is hardly due to character traits or something like that. As soon as we find such pictures, we will try to publish them.
Splashes from Rodney and King George V shells fall next to the Bismarck:
End of the fight. "Rodney" is firing at the "Bismarck" from a distance of a direct shot:
Burning and sinking "Bismarck":
I did not find photographs of the later major battles in the Euro-Atlantic theater of operations. There are few pictures of artillery battles in the Pacific theater of operations. These pictures are presented by the American side - for obvious reasons. Accordingly, there are no or almost no photographs of the battles at the first stage of the war, when the Japanese owned the initiative. The fact that the Japanese did not film is doubtful (remembering the pictures from the Russo-Japanese War!) Well, the naval battles of the second stage of the war
(until about November 1944) - were fleeting and often unexpected for both sides, sometimes took place at night.
Such was the battle off Savo Island, one of the Eastern Solomon Islands. In August 1942, the Americans and their allies began landing on the islands, and the Japanese took countermeasures. On the night of August 8-9, the Japanese formation entered the strait between the islands and attacked the landing cover formation, as a result, sinking 4 heavy cruisers and damaging one more and two destroyers. In the picture (very famous) - the American heavy cruiser Quincy, burning and plunging into the water, hit by torpedoes and artillery from Japanese cruisers: 
And on this, no less famous, from the cruiser "Chokai" - the cruiser of the allies "Australia", "Canberra", "Chicago", illuminated by Japanese searchlights and lighting bombs, from seaplanes. By the way, here is a photo of the "Tokai" firing - not in that battle, of course, but back in 1933, just the picture came to the place:
From November 12 to 15, 1942, two decisive naval (precisely classic) battles took place off Guadalcanal in this campaign, after which the advantage in it finally leaned towards the Americans and their allies. Both battles took place at night (such was the tactic of the Japanese, who sought to avoid daytime activity due to the superiority of allied aircraft). There are practically no pictures of the battle, except for one - the firing of the Washington missile launcher at the Kirishima in the second battle on the night of November 14-15, as a result of which the Japanese battleship was disabled, and, later, abandoned by the crew and sank.
And, finally, the last major (one might even say, the largest) naval battle to date has been and remains the battle in Leyte Gulf. She herself consisted of several naval battles, including artillery. The photographs are American, although there were also those on the Japanese ships who took photographs. And although there are shots by the Japanese of their ships before the battle, I have not yet seen pictures of the battle by the Japanese themselves. It is unlikely, given the position of the Japanese in this battle, they were before filming.
On the night of October 25, a battle took place in the Surigao Strait, as a result of which Admiral Nishimura's "compound C" was completely destroyed. The battle took place at night and was rather fleeting. There isn't much to see in the photos other than this one:
True, this silhouette is more reminiscent of Ise-class battleships that did not participate in this battle, and it’s hard to say whether it’s still a picture. Taken from Anthony Tully.
And this is a confirmed photo. The battleship "West Virginia" is firing at the Japanese compound:
The fire of the American cruisers of Task Force 77.2:
On the morning of October 25, the main forces of the Japanese fleet entered the battle, led by its flagship, the world's largest battleship Yamato. But his goal was only the escort aircraft carriers White Plains and St. Low. American pilots, attacking the Yamato, took a picture of the Japanese flagship firing:
Covering destroyers counterattacked the enemy, suffering heavy losses (in the picture - "Johnston", "Hoel", "Heerman" under fire:
Meanwhile, the Japanese cruisers, outflanking the American carriers to the north, opened fire, sinking the Gambier Bay and damaging the others. The Japanese cruiser (marked in a circle) shoots the Gambier Bay:
One more picture:
On the left - "Gambier Bay", on the right - "Kitkin Bay" under the fire of Japanese cruisers:
"Gambier Bay" - very close:
The unfortunate Gambier Bay was sunk, but the resistance of the destroyers and pilots from aircraft carriers led to the withdrawal of the main Japanese forces. Of course, the reasons for the withdrawal were not only this, but nevertheless this battle also showed that the battle of aircraft carriers and artillery ships without air cover for the latter is now futile.
The final battle in Leyte Gulf was the battle at Cape Enganyo, in which the last Japanese aircraft carriers in service were destroyed. Since the Americans had complete superiority in forces, especially in the air, the battle turned, in fact, into a hunt for the Japanese ships of the Ozawa formation (not very successful, by the way). In the picture: the fire of the cruiser Mobile on the destroyer Hatsulzuki:
But the battleship "Ise" (in the picture, firing) managed to return to the base almost unscathed:
With this, the era of large-scale naval artillery battles ended. Until the end of the war, and after, such battles still took place. And, perhaps, everything can be in the future - after all, artillery is an indispensable feature of today's ship - a boat, corvette, frigate, destroyer, cruiser ... And its caliber is growing. The most promising ship currently under construction - the American destroyer Zumvolt - is equipped with a 155-mm gun mount with guided projectiles. So naval artillery battles may still take place in the future. Although it would be better if they never happened again. Neither artillery nor missiles. None.
History has never seen a more tragic and bloody naval battle than the battle of Lepanto. Two fleets participated in it - the Ottoman and the Spanish-Venetian. The largest naval battle took place on October 7, 1571.
The arena of the battle was the Gulf of Prats (Cape Scrof), which is near the Peloponnese - the peninsula of Greece. In 1571, the Union of Catholic States was created, whose activities were aimed at uniting all peoples professing Catholicism in order to repulse and weaken the Ottoman Empire. The Union lasted until 1573. So the largest Spanish-Venetian fleet in Europe, numbering 300 ships, belonged to the coalition.
The clash of the warring parties occurred unexpectedly on the morning of October 7. The total number of ships was about 500. The Ottoman Empire suffered a crushing defeat inflicted by the fleet of the Union of Catholic States. More than 30 thousand people died, the Turks accounted for 20 thousand killed. This largest naval battle showed that the Ottomans were not invincible, as many believed at that time. In the future, the Ottoman Empire was unable to regain its position as the undivided master of the Mediterranean Sea.
History: Battle of LepantoTrafalgar, Graveline, Tsushima, Sinop and Chesme battles are also the largest naval battles in world history.
On October 21, 1805, the battle took place at Cape Trafalgar (Atlantic Ocean). Opponents - the fleet of Great Britain and the combined fleet of France and Spain. This battle led to a series of events that sealed the fate of France. The most surprising thing was that the British did not lose a single ship, unlike France, which suffered twenty-two losses. It took the French more than 30 years after the above events to increase their shipping power to the level of 1805. The Battle of Trafalgar is the largest battle of the 19th century, which practically put an end to the long confrontation between France and Great Britain, which was called the Second Hundred Years' War. And strengthened the naval superiority of the latter.
In 1588, another major naval battle took place - Gravelinsky. According to custom, named after the area in which it happened. This naval conflict is one of the most important events of the Italian war.
History: Battle of Gravelines On June 27, 1588, the British fleet completely defeated the fleet of the Great Armada. She was considered as invincible as later, in the 19th century, the Ottoman Empire would be considered. The Spanish fleet consisted of 130 ships and 10,000 soldiers, while the British fleet consisted of 8,500 soldiers. The battle was desperate on both sides and the British forces pursued the Armada for a long time in order to completely defeat the enemy forces.
The Russo-Japanese War was also marked by a major naval battle. This time we are talking about the Battle of Tsushima, which took place on May 14-15, 1905. A squadron of the Pacific Fleet from the Russian side under the command of Vice Admiral Rozhdestvensky and a squadron of the Imperial Japanese Navy, commanded by Admiral Togo, took part in the battle. Russia in this naval duel suffered a crushing defeat. Of the entire Russian squadron, 4 ships reached their native shores. The prerequisites for this outcome were that the Japanese guns and strategy greatly outnumbered the enemy's resources. Russia was eventually forced to sign a peace agreement with Japan.
History: Sinop naval battle No less impressive and historically important was the Sinop naval battle. However, this time Russia showed itself from a more favorable side. The naval battle took place between Turkey and Russia on November 18, 1853. Admiral Nakhimov commanded the Russian fleet. It took him no more than a few hours to defeat the Turkish fleet. Moreover, Turkey lost more than 4,000 soldiers. This victory brought the Russian fleet the opportunity to dominate the Black Sea.
The Black Sea Fleet was one of the most prepared formations of our army at the beginning of the war. The fleet included about three hundred ships and boats of various classes. Among them are 1 battleship, 6 cruisers, 16 leaders and destroyers, 47 submarines. The Air Force of the Black Sea Fleet included 600 aircraft of various types. The fleet had five bases: Odessa, Nikolaev, Novorossiysk, Batumi and the main one in Sevastopol.
The Chernomorians were among the first to enter the Great Patriotic War. Relying on surprise, at about 3 am on June 22, 1941, enemy aircraft launched a massive air strike on the main base of the fleet - Sevastopol. The hopes of the Germans to take our sailors by surprise did not come true. The fleet was ready, and the ships were in full combat readiness. The attack was repelled.
On June 25, 1941, the Soviet forces of the fleet, together with aviation, carried out a raid operation to bombard Constanta, the main base of the Romanian fleet, which was an ally of the Germans. In total, during the battles on the Black Sea, three such raids were carried out. The second and third were committed in December 1942 and October 1943, respectively.
The fleet showed itself heroically in the defense of Odessa, Sevastopol and Novorossiysk. The Black Sea Fleet and the Azov Flotilla provided fire support to the defending cities, carried out supplies, the transfer of reinforcements, and the evacuation of the wounded. Black Sea sailors joined the ranks of the marines and garrisons defending the cities. For your form and fury in battle the Germans called them the "Black Death". Odessa withstood 73 days of siege. Sevastopol was defended for almost 10 months, taking on significant enemy forces that the enemy could not use at Stalingrad. For comparison, it took the Germans a little over a month to capture France, Belgium and Holland.
The Black Sea Fleet included a unique ship - Anti-aircraft floating battery No. 3. Steel square with cannons and anti-aircraft machine guns.
This unusual ship was invented by Captain 1st Rank Grigory Alexandrovich Butakov. The steel hull of an unfinished battleship was taken as the basis, which the sailors used as a target for training torpedo launches and firing.
The steel box had been stripped of rust, the holes patched up, and painted sea-coloured for camouflage. On a deck of 600 square meters, an observation post was equipped, searchlights were placed and a battery was placed. The Iron Island was armed with three 76mm anti-aircraft guns, four 37mm guns, one quadruple machine gun and two anti-aircraft machine guns. In the compartments below deck, a cockpit, a weapons and an autonomous power plant were equipped. The crew consisted of 120 people. "Iron Island" was towed to the outer roads in front of Sevastopol at a distance of 300 meters from the coast.
On August 3, 1941, the floating battery took over the first duty. The battery was commanded by Lieutenant Commander Moshensky S. Ya.
Our sailors called the ship "Calambina" or according to the first lines of the song invented in the battery - "Don't touch me." The Germans called the battery "death square", "God carry it" or "black square".
During the 9 months of the battery's combat operations, more than 20 downed aircraft were only documented. The battery commander left her only once in all this time in order to receive the “Order of the Red Star”. The end of June 1942 was the most difficult. By the 26th, only half of the crew remained alive, and less than half of the barrels could fire. But the battery held on sailors died right at the guns, fighting until the last seconds of their lives.
On June 27, the battery commander died. The bomb hit exactly at the command post. By that time, there were no more shells, only cartridges for machine guns remained. The next day, the battery was disbanded, and two weeks later, Sevastopol fell, which she defended so courageously.
In this difficult, initial period of the war, the Black Sea Fleet heroically fulfilled the duties assigned to it. Plans for the rapid capture of the Caucasus and Transcaucasia were thwarted: the enemy did not get to Baku oil, important industrial facilities were evacuated, new fleet bases were created in Batumi, Poti, Sukhumi and Tuapse, where the fleet later withdrew. The main bases were lost, the fleet lost many ships, but the enemy failed to destroy (as Hitler planned) the Black Sea Fleet.
The preservation of the combat-ready Black Sea Fleet was of exceptional military importance. The loss of the fleet would mean the loss of the entire Caucasus and Transcaucasia, and possibly defeat in the war. As a result, at the beginning of 1943, most of the Black Sea coast was in the hands of the German army, and from the opposite coast of the Black Sea, the Romanian army threatened the Soviet troops an ally of Germany.
But the Black Sea Fleet and our military presence on the Black Sea were important not only in the military aspect. The fleet played a huge role in the geopolitical issue. There was another power in the Black Sea region - Turkey. Having a serious fleet and a million-strong army right on our border, Turkey's position could play a decisive role. She was ready to take the side of the Axis. But the defeat of the Germans at Stalingrad and the active offensive of our troops on the Caucasian front forced Turkey to remain neutral.
Submarines of the Black Sea Fleet provided invaluable assistance. Acting on the enemy's communications from the first days of the war, they seriously complicated the delivery of cargo, fuel and soldiers. An attempt to arrange the supply of oil and oil products by Italian and Romanian tankers through the Bosphorus was thwarted by our submariners. On September 29, 1941, the crew of the Shch-211 submarine (commander - Lieutenant Commander A.D. Devyatko) distinguished themselves: they managed to sink the Superga tanker. And the submarine under the command of Evgeny Petrovich Polyakov sank as many as four enemy transports. The S-33 submarine was plagued by failures for a long time. She had the most contacts with enemy ships on the Black Sea, but was listed as one of the lagging behind in the fleet. However, on April 20, 1943, luck finally smiled at the crew under the command of Boris Aleksandrovich Alekseev. The submarine attacked the Romanian transport "Suceava" with a displacement of about 7000 tons, which quickly sank.
One of the most famous submariners on the Black Sea was the captain of the 3rd rank Greshilov Mikhail Vasilyevich. On the M-35 submarine, he, together with the team, sank 4 enemy transports. And at the end of 1942, switching to the Shch-215 boat, he added 4 more enemy transports and two barges to his combat account. May 16, 1944 he was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union.
Our submarines patrolled the sea lanes until the very end of hostilities in the Black Sea, causing serious difficulties in supplying the German land group.
The end of 1942 - the beginning of 1943 became a turning point both for the Black Sea theater of operations and for the entire Soviet-German front. The landing on Malaya Zemlya was the first offensive operation of the Black Sea Fleet in 2 years of fighting in this region.
Stronger than armor
The boat of the foreman Moravina was supposed to throw a group of scouts behind enemy lines.
The landing site was already not far away when the Germans noticed the boat. The enemy opened heavy machine-gun and mortar fire. Fire trails rushed to the shore. One enemy machine gun fell silent, another, but the rest continued to shoot. The boat has already received a dozen bullet holes. Water flowed through them. Mattresses flared up in the living quarters from incendiary bullets. Several sailors were wounded. Machine-gunner Zhukov was hit in the leg by a bullet, mechanic Menshikov was wounded in the head.
The Red Navy quickly put out the fire, patched up the largest holes, pumped out water in the cockpits. The wounded did not leave the combat posts. Bleeding, Zhukov continued to fire and suppressed another firing point. Machine gunner Shlykov silenced three enemy firing points. Motorist Menshikov bandaged his wound and continued to keep watch.
Having broken the resistance of the Germans, the boat approached the shore, landed the first batch of scouts, then returned, took the second group and, in the same way, under fire, transferred it to the rear of the enemy.
The crew of the boat under the command of Moravin carried out the combat order brilliantly.
The enemy continued to attack, despite the huge losses in people and equipment. Already hundreds of corpses of fascist soldiers and officers, dozens of burnt tanks and downed aircraft were lying around, but the Germans again and again went forward, urged on by officers.
The company of senior lieutenant Martynov moved imperceptibly at night and occupied the most critical sector of the defense.
Let's congratulate the Fritz on the Black Sea sunrise! - the senior lieutenant passed along the chain.
The Marines waited for the enemy to come closer and boldly entered the battle. With friendly fire, they cut off the German infantry from the tanks, and then began to destroy it with volleys. Several dozen fascists have already sprawled on the ground. But the tanks continued to move towards our positions.
The Red Navy soldier Steinberg, who had previously destroyed several Germans with a machine gun, crawled forward and began to correct the fire on the tanks. The Germans opened heavy mortar fire. Steinberg was killed by a fragment of a mine. Senior Sergeant Vershinin immediately took his place. Artillerymen and armor-piercers, on the instructions of the spotter, knocked out one tank. Gaps began to grow in front of other German machines. The tanks turned back. The enemy infantry, deprived of cover, also withdrew.
In this battle, the division of Senior Lieutenant Martynov destroyed half of the enemy company. The Germans launched several more violent counterattacks, but they were also successfully repulsed with heavy losses for the enemy.
Captain V. Vakulin.
Novorossiysk region.
The only way to supply the bridgehead was the sea. Under heavy artillery fire and continuous air raids, our ships performed their assigned tasks with honor: they brought reinforcements and weapons, and evacuated the wounded.
The success of the offensive operations of the Soviet troops on the North Caucasian front in April-May 1943 led to the fact that on the southern flank of the Soviet-German front the German troops lost most of the land communications. Under these conditions, communication with a group of German troops isolated on the Taman Peninsula became possible only by sea. Therefore, the Germans significantly increased their activity at sea, the intensity of transport traffic increased, additional military boats were deployed to escort cargo and troops. The main directions in which the German ships moved were the routes: Odessa - Sevastopol, Constanta - Sevastopol, Sevastopol - Kerch, Feodosia - Anapa, Kerch - Anapa, Kerch - Taman. In May-June 1943, on average, about 200 convoys per month passed along these routes.
Day raid by torpedo boats
BLACK SEA FLEET. May 17th. (By telegraph from our correspondent). Air reconnaissance reported that self-propelled landing barges, torpedo boats and other small vessels were concentrated in the enemy port. Our torpedo boats were ordered to raid.
Unlike most similar operations, in this case it was necessary to operate during daylight hours.
Having carefully worked out the task and prepared the materiel, the boats left the base. The weather promised to be favorable: there was a calm, a thick fog hung over the sea. But he soon dissipated.
The boats went along the coast occupied by the enemy. Soon the fog again lay in large strips, like smoke screens, over the water. The commander of the lead boat, Senior Lieutenant Smirnov, used this for covert movement.
In time, the ships were already approaching their intended target. This was also evidenced by the discovered anti-boat barrier. Coming out of the fog, the commanders decided on a coastal landmark and headed for the port. Soon they were on the enemy raid. A large barge appeared. A little further along the pier there were many small ships. From a short distance, Smirnov fired a torpedo at the barge. Under its deafening explosion, the next torpedo, fired by Lieutenant Stepanenko, hit the watercraft concentrated there.
Having made a turn, the boats lay down on the retreat course. Only now the enemy came to his senses and opened fire, but the boats left without damage. On the way back, they were fired twice unsuccessfully by coastal artillery.
The next day, the commander of the fleet visited the katernikovs. He highly appreciated the results of the operation and awarded the crews of the boats participating in the daring raid with orders and medals of the Soviet Union. Senior Lieutenant Smirnov was awarded the Order of the Red Banner, Lieutenant Stepanenko - the Order of the Red Star.
Captain I. Vlasov.
Under the circumstances one of the main tasks of the Black Sea Fleet was to disrupt enemy maritime transport. At the same time, the Germans tried in every possible way to protect their communications from the invasion of our forces, for which they used coastal artillery batteries, radar equipment, and mined the approaches to the ports. The movement of transport ships took place in convoys under the cover of aviation and surface ships. In addition, there was a wide network of coastal airfields, so enemy aircraft were able to quickly fly to the target. One of these airfields was located near the village of Su-Psekh near Anapa. According to intelligence data, up to 60 light fighters of the Green Heart squadron and a group of aircraft of the 52nd squadron were based at the airfield. A group of missile boats was given the task of attacking the airfield. These boats, built with the money of employees of vocational schools, for the first time received civilian names - "Moscow Artisan" and "Labor Reserves" (the full name is "Young Patriot of Labor Reserves"). In late May - early June, the armament of torpedo boats was improved with a rocket launcher. The new boats had elongated cabins, on which the Katyusha rocket launcher was mounted.
The link, which included the boat "Moscow craftsman" under the command of V. Pilipenko and "Labor reserves", captained by V. Kvartsov, was supposed to launch a missile attack from the sea on a ground airfield located at an altitude of 30 meters. On May 29, 1943, under the cover of night, the boats approached the coast of Anapa and brought down the hurricane fire of their Katyushas on the enemy airfield. The enemy was completely unprepared for such a turn of events: not only was the attack on the airfield delivered from the sea, but also with the use of rocket launchers. As a result, the airfield and dozens of enemy aircraft were put out of action for a long time, many aircraft were destroyed.
Later, the crew under the command of Vladimir Stepanovich Pilipenko proved that rocket fire could be used not only against ground targets, but also to destroy enemy aircraft and surface ships. The crew of the boat was repeatedly awarded, and the commander was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.
Another task of the Black Sea Fleet at that time was to provide sea transportation to supply our troops with equipment, food, ammunition and manpower. These transportations were carried out from the ports of Batumi, Poti, Sukhumi, Tuapse and were of exceptional importance for ensuring the vital activity of the coastal group of our troops.
Military convoys did not always end well. On May 22, 1943, at 9:45 am, the Soviet transport "International" left Tuapse in the direction of the port of Gelendzhik. It was guarded by two base minesweepers "Harpoon" and "Mina" and a sea hunter "SKA-041". On the way, the convoy was attacked by a group of 17 enemy bombers and 7 fighters. The International was hit by two bombs, resulting in damage to the undercarriage and a fire. The crew coped with the fire, but lost 3 sailors. The minesweeper "Mina" was pierced through by a bomb weighing half a centner, which exploded already in the water. There was a huge hole measuring 2 × 2.3 meters, a fire started, the telegraph and machine gun on the starboard side stopped functioning, and the left side machine gun was washed overboard along with its calculation. Nevertheless, the crew of the Mina, having lost two, managed to put out the fire and keep the ship afloat by restoring the work of the fire pumps and repairing the hole. Thanks to their heroic efforts, the crippled ship was still able to return under its own power to the port of Tuapse at two o'clock in the afternoon. Sea hunter "SKA-041" suffered the saddest fate. Yu-87 dived onto the ship and dropped three bombs that sank it. Together with the ship, 18 crew members were killed, six managed to escape. As it turned out later, the sea hunter, already on a mission, had problems with the propulsion system: two of his motors did not work, which made it impossible for him to quickly maneuver and avoid deadly air strikes.
To save the transport from Tuapse, the patrol ships "Storm" and "Shkval", the sea hunter "SKA-105" and the tugboat "Petrash" came to the rescue. Ten of our Yak-1 planes fought off air attacks on the convoy. By joint efforts at 18 hours 50 minutes the transport "International" was delivered to the port of Tuapse.
Author Kharlamov Vitaly Borisovich Volgograd. In short, but there are not just a lot of letters, but a lot.
When on May 31, 1916, the captain of the English light cruiser (*) "Galatea" ordered to open fire on German destroyers (2 *), he had no idea that these volleys would be the first in the largest naval battle in the history of mankind. On this day, in the North Sea, two of the most powerful fleets of their time, the British Grand Fleet and the German High Seas Fleet, met. We met to put an end to the dispute: whose fleet dominates the sea. And as a result, it flared up:
By the spring of 1916, the land front had finally stabilized. Turning land battles into "giant meat grinders" that did not justify the hopes placed on them. And the submarine war unleashed by Germany could not bring her a quick victory. The war turned more and more into a war of resources. In a war of attrition. Which could not bring victory to Germany, with its limited capabilities. And then the German command decided to use the last "trump card" remaining in Germany. Her second-largest line fleet in the world. With the help of which the German General Staff hoped to win the long-awaited victory at sea. And thereby withdraw England from the war. The strongest coalition opposing Germany.
The High Seas Fleet is on the march.
For which it was necessary to lure part of the English fleet out of the bases and try to destroy it with a blow from the main forces. To do this, the German cruisers were sent on a raid to the shores of England. In the hope that after this, part of the forces of the Grand Fleet will be relocated from Scapa Flow to the south. They succeeded. Under the influence of public opinion, the Grand Fleet was divided into 4 squadrons. Based at various bases along the east coast of England. But the intensification of the actions of the main forces of the German fleet alerted the British. After the raid of the German battlecruisers on Lowston, they expected a second sortie. Intending, using a scenario similar to the German one, to lure part of the German fleet under the muzzles of the heavy guns of the Grand Fleet. And thus finally establish their dominance at sea. Thus, two huge fleets put to sea. And their admirals had no idea what forces they would face. As a result, the collision of the fleets turned out to be purely accidental. Not provided for by any plan of the warring parties.
Grand Fleet at sea.
Prelude to battle.
The German fleet left the main fleet base at 1 am on 31 May. And he headed north, towards the Skagerrak Strait. At the forefront of the fleet were 5 battlecruisers (3 *) of Vice Admiral Hipper supported by 5 light cruisers and 33 destroyers. With the task of directing part of the forces of the Grand Fleet to the entire High Seas Fleet. Light cruisers and destroyers walked in a semicircle ahead of the battlecruisers at a distance of 7-10 miles. Behind the ships of the squadron of Admiral Hipper, after 50 miles, were the main forces of the German fleet.
The High Seas Fleet from a Zeppelin.
But even earlier, 16 submarines were sent to the sea. Which were supposed to take positions near the British bases. And stay on them from May 24 to June 1. Which predetermined the exit of the Germans, to the sea, on May 31. Despite the weather. Moreover, most of the submarines, 7 units, were deployed against the Firth of Forth, where the fleet of battlecruisers was based. One was located at the exit from Cromary Bay, where the 2 squadron of battleships was located. Two submarines deployed against Scapa Flow, where the main forces of the English fleet were located. The remaining submarines were deployed along the east coast of England. The main task of these submarines was reconnaissance. However, they were supposed to set up minefields on the intended routes for the movement of English ships. And in the future, and attack the ships leaving the bases. Airships were supposed to carry out direct reconnaissance on the battlefield. But 5 German airships that took off at noon on May 31, due to unsuccessfully assigned routes, did not find anything. They were not even above the battlefield.
Torpedo compartment of a German submarine.
The Grand Fleet went to sea before the German fleet. As soon as undercover intelligence and radio interception reported that large ships of the High Seas Fleet were preparing to go to sea. Safely avoiding the curtain of German submarines. Although, from some ships, erroneous signals were received about the detection of German submarines.
4th Grand Fleet Dreadnought Squadron (Iron Duke, Royal Oak, Superb, Canada) in the North Sea
However, in order to gather into a single fist that came out of different bases, the ships needed time. So the 2nd squadron of battleships (4 *) was able to join the main forces of the British fleet only at 11 o'clock. And Admiral Beatty's squadron was still south of Admiral Jellicoe's ships. It was not until about 2 pm that Admiral Beatty ordered to turn north. Intending to go to connect with his fleet. The trap set by Admiral Jellicoe for the German fleet was about to be slammed shut. When suddenly the unexpected happened.
2 squadron of battleships of the German High Seas Fleet.
Random meeting.
Shortly before Admiral Beatty's ships turned north, smoke was noticed from the German light cruiser Elbing. And 2 of the destroyers accompanying the cruiser were sent to inspect the sighted ship. It turned out to be the neutral Danish steamer "En. G. Fjord." But fate wanted the Danish steamer to be discovered simultaneously with the Germans by the English light cruiser Galatea. Guarded by Admiral Beatty's squadron. And as a result, at 14 hours 28 minutes, "Galatea", together with the light cruiser "Phaeton" that approached her, opened fire on German destroyers. Who hurried to retreat from the battlefield. However, "Elibing" soon joined the destroyers and the battle broke out with renewed vigor. At 1445 hours, a seaplane was lifted from the Engadain aircraft. Which at 15 hours 08 minutes discovered 5 enemy battlecruisers. The pilot tried three times to get in touch with his command and provide information. Which never reached Admiral Beatty.
English battlecruiser Lion.
At this time, both squadrons laid down on a new course. And at full speed, cutting the waves with stems, they rushed to meet each other. Thus, by chance, the British battlecruisers met the enemy in isolation from their main forces. They had only to act according to the previously planned plan. And try to bring the enemy ships to the main forces of your fleet.
Deployment of Admiral Beatty's squadron before the battle.
At 1530 hours both squadrons entered visual contact. And seeing the advantage of the British in forces, Admiral Hipper turned his ships to connect with the main forces of the High Seas Fleet. However, the battlecruisers of Admiral Bitte, using their advantage in speed, began to gradually overtake the German ships. But the British, who had more long-range artillery, did not open fire. Due to an error in determining the distance to the target. The Germans, on the other hand, were silent, waiting for the British to come closer in order to conduct more effective fire from their smaller guns. In addition, the 5th British battleship squadron was still out of sight from the German ships. And without receiving an order from Admiral Beatty to change course, she continued to go east for some time. Moving away from the battlefield.
The development of the battle from 15-40 to 17-00.
Free cheese without a mousetrap.
Only at 15 hours 50 minutes, being at a distance of 80 cables (5 *), the battlecruisers of both squadrons opened fire. By order of the admirals, the ships of both sides fired at the corresponding enemy ship in the ranks. But the British made a mistake and the German battlecruiser "Derflinger" at the beginning of the battle was not fired at all by anyone. The distance between the squadrons continued to decrease and by 15 hours 54 minutes it had reached 65 cables. Anti-mine artillery entered the battle. The ships were surrounded by columns of water from continuously falling shells. By that time, the squadrons had rebuilt and rushed south.
"Derflinger".
At about 4 p.m., Admiral Beatty's flagship Lion was hit by a shell that almost became fatal to him. The shell hit the third turret, pierced the armor and exploded under the left gun. All the servants of the guns perished. And only the courage of the mortally wounded tower commander, Major Harvey, saved the ship from destruction. However, the cruiser was forced out of action. This allowed his enemy, the German battlecruiser Derflenger, to transfer fire to the battlecruiser Queen Mary. On which the Seydlitz also fired.
The battlecruiser Queen Mary.
At 1602 hours, the battlecruiser Indefatigable, which was the end of the British column, hit a volley from the battlecruiser Von der Tann, which was firing at it. And hid in smoke and flames. Most likely, the shell pierced the deck and hit the artillery cellar of the aft tower. The Indefatigable, sinking astern, rolled out of action. But the next salvo also covered the dying ship. A terrible explosion shook the air. The cruiser lay on the port side, rolled over and disappeared. The agony of "Indefatigable" lasted only about 2 minutes. Of the huge crew, only four managed to escape.
Battlecruiser Invincible.
But the fight wore off. Seeing the difficult situation of his linear forces, Admiral Beatty at 16 hours and 10 minutes launched the 13th destroyer flotilla to attack the Germans. To meet them, crossing the course of the battlecruisers, 11 German destroyers headed by the light cruiser "Regensburg" advanced. And they entered the battle, covering their ships. When the formations of the destroyers dispersed, they missed 2 destroyers. The Germans "V-27" and "V-29", and the British "Nomat" and "Nestor". And if the "Germans" died directly during the battle. Moreover, “V-27” was sunk by a torpedo from the destroyer “Petard”, and “V-29” was killed by artillery fire. Then the “English” lost their course, but remained afloat. And they were finished off by German battleships. Having had time before death, launch torpedoes at the battleships of the High Seas Fleet. True, to no avail, the torpedoes did not hit the target.
British destroyer "Abdiel" at the side of the light cruiser.
At this time, the battlecruiser "Lion" again took its place in the ranks. But the Derflinger continued to fire on the Queen Mary. Until the second tragedy broke out at 16:26. 11 volley "Deflenger" struck "Queen Mary" (6 *). The explosion of ammunition so blew the ship apart that the next Tiger in the ranks was bombarded with debris. But when, a few minutes later, the Tiger passed through the site of the sinking of the Queen Mary, he did not find any traces of the dead battlecruiser. And the column of smoke from the explosion of the Queen Mary shot up half a kilometer. Within 38 seconds, 1266 English sailors died (7*). But, despite such heavy losses, the British continued to fight. And even increased their strength. The 5th squadron of battleships joined the English battlecruisers.
Meanwhile, torpedo attacks from both sides followed one after another. At 16 hours 50 minutes, 6 German destroyers attacked to no avail, English ships were turning around. None of the 7 torpedoes fired hit the target. On the other hand, 4 British destroyers attacked the battlecruiser Seydlitz. Of the torpedoes fired by the destroyers, one nevertheless hit the bow of the German ship.
At the same time, the main forces of the German fleet appeared on the horizon. Admiral Beatty turned north. The German ships, repelling the attacks of the English destroyers, followed the enemy in front formation. The German fleet had an overwhelming superiority in everything except speed. Taking advantage of this, Admiral Beatty withdrew his battlecruisers from enemy fire.
Battlecruiser Indefatigable
And the battleships of the 5th squadron began to bring the enemy to the squadron of Admiral Jillicoe, firing at the lead ships of the German fleet. In which hit from 5 to 10 381 mm shells. But the British ships also received significant damage. Battleship "Warepite" received 13 hits, and having a damaged steering gear, was forced to leave the battlefield. The battleship "Malaya" received 8 shells. At the same time, one of them pierced the armor of the anti-mine artillery casemate, caused a cordite fire, the flame from which shot up to the level of the masts, disabled all the starboard artillery and 102 people from the crew. Battleship "Barham" received 6 shells.
Battleship Malaya.
Fighting continued between the light forces of the fleets. At 1736 hours there was a 19 minute battle between the cruisers of both sides. Moreover, due to reduced visibility, German light cruisers came under fire from British armored cruisers (8*). They were part of the vanguard of the main forces of the Grand Fleet. As a result, the German light cruisers Wiesbaden and Pillau were damaged. Moreover, the Wiesbaden, which received damage to the cars, lost its course. And the ships of the English 3rd squadron of battlecruisers that appeared from behind the haze turned the Wiesbaden into a blazing fire. At this time, an attack by 23 German destroyers on the English 4 destroyers and the light cruiser Canterbur followed. As a result of this battle, the English destroyer Shark was sunk, and the rest of the British ships received significant damage. The British destroyers responded by successfully attacking the Lutzow battlecruiser with torpedoes. This German cruiser fired back from the enemy ships surrounding it until 19:00. So far, the torpedo of the English destroyer Defenger has not finished off the Wiesbaden. And the waves of the North Sea did not close over it. The crew of the Wiesbaden perished along with their ship. Only one person managed to escape.
Battlecruiser Lützow.
At the same time, carried away by the shooting of German light cruisers, the British armored cruisers came too close to the German battlecruisers. As a result, having received 2 volleys from the "Luttsov", the armored cruiser "Defens" exploded. And after 4 minutes, the depths of the sea swallowed up the ship, along with 903 crew members and the commander of the 1st squadron of armored cruisers, Admiral Arbuthnot.
British armored cruiser "Defens"
The cruiser "Warrior" was threatened with the same account. But it was blocked by the battleship Worspite. As a result of damage to the rudders received in a battle with German battleships, he rolled out of action. And accidentally ended up between the Warrior and the German cruisers. And he took the hit. True, as a result of mutual maneuvers, both the Warrior and Waspite collided several times and, due to the damage received, were forced to leave the battlefield.
Light cruiser "Wiesbaden"
And not slammed "mousetrap".
At 6:14 p.m., the main body of the British fleet emerged majestically from the haze. The High Seas Fleet was still trapped. On the lead German ships, fire was concentrated on 4 English ships. Hits followed one after another. But the German gunners did not remain in debt. A salvo from the battlecruiser Derflanger proved fatal to the English battlecruiser Invincible. At 18:31, shells ripped open the board in the area of the middle towers. The Invincible split in half. Taking with him almost the entire crew into the depths of the sea, and Admiral Hood, commander of the 3rd squadron of battlecruisers. Only 6 people were saved. But it was a major last success for the German fleet. The British proceeded to methodically shoot their opponents.
The development of the battle from 17-00 to 18-00.
Gradually fell silent "Luttsov". The bow of the battlecruiser was engulfed in flames, the superstructures were destroyed, the masts were knocked down. Admiral Hipper left the Lützow, which had lost its combat value, and switched to the destroyer G-39. Intending to transfer to another battlecruiser. But during the day he did not succeed and the captain of the Derflinger commanded the battlecruisers. But the Derflinger itself was a pitiful sight. 3 towers out of 4 were destroyed. Columns of fire from the gunpowder burning in the towers rose above the masts. In the bow of the cruiser, at the waterline, English shells opened a hole measuring 5 by 6 meters. The ship received 3359 tons of water. The crew lost 154 men killed and 26 wounded (9*). The Seydlitz also looked no less terrible.
All that remains of the battlecruiser Invincible.
Seeing such a deplorable state of his fleet, Admiral Scheer ordered to turn "all of a sudden" with the entire fleet and go back on course. And he sent the 3rd destroyer flotilla to attack the enemy. Hoping in this way to get out from under the fire. The destroyer attack was successful. At 18:45, the battleship Marlboro was torpedoed. But the ship retained 17 knots and did not leave the battlefield. True, a day later, having settled almost 12 meters, with a roll to the starboard side, the battleship barely reached the base. The torpedo was launched by the destroyer "V-48". Succeeded at the cost of his own death. This destroyer was chalked up to the Marlboro gunners.
British armored cruiser Warrior.
There are two points of interest at this point in the battle. The first point is that the Germans claim that a 381-mm projectile hit the main armor belt of the Derflinger. Allegedly, the projectile casually hit the armor and ricocheted. But the English battleships opposing the Germans at that moment had only 305 mm and 343 mm guns. And ships with 381-millimeter guns were on the flanks of the English column. And the Germans did not fire on the battlecruisers. The second point is to refer to the only, in the entire history of the ship, a full broadside salvo, the only one in the world, the seven-turreted battleship "Egincourt". From this volley, the ship tilted dangerously and there was a danger of capsizing the ship. Because of this, such volleys were never fired again. And on the neighboring ships, seeing columns of flame and smoke that enveloped the Egincourt, they decided that another English ship had exploded. And the British officers barely managed to prevent the panic that was brewing on the ships of the Grand Fleet.
And Erin too. But in the background, and so "Edzhikort"
The British fire weakened, but continued to disturb the German ships. Therefore, about 19 hours, Admiral Scheer turned his fleet back on course, again giving the order to raise the signal "all of a sudden." Admiral Scheer intended to attack the end of the British ships and slip under the stern of the Grand Fleet. But the German ships again found themselves under the concentrated fire of the English battleships. The thickened haze more and more interfered with the conduct of aimed fire. In addition, the English ships were on the dark side of the horizon. And they had an advantage over the German ships. Their silhouettes stood out clearly against the background of the setting sun.
English battleship "Iron Duke"
At this critical moment of the battle, seeing that he was being tried from the bases, Admiral Scheer sent all the remaining destroyers to attack. The attack was led by badly damaged battlecruisers. Battlecruisers approached the enemy up to 8000 meters, and destroyers at 6000-7000 meters. At 19:15, 31 torpedoes were fired. And although none of the torpedoes hit the target. And the destroyer "S-35" was sunk by the British. This attack succeeded. Forcing the English ships to change course. What saved the High Seas Fleet. Which, with the start of the destroyer attack, again turned "all of a sudden" and began to quickly leave the battlefield. And at 19 hours 45 minutes, having escaped from the ring of British ships, the German fleet headed south.
Airship L-31 over the battleship "Ostfriesland"
But the fight isn't over yet. At 20:23, British battlecruisers suddenly emerged from the haze. And they opened fire on the German battlecruisers, which had greatly annoyed them. Clearly intending to settle accounts with them. But at this difficult moment, for the ships of Admiral Hipper, help came to him. The obsolete battleships (10 *) of the 2nd squadron, which turned out to be ahead of the entire squadron, obviously taken into battle, for the number, were just rebuilding. To take a more appropriate place for them, at the end of the column.
As a result, these battleships ended up east of the other German battleships. And changing course, they were able to shield their battlecruisers, taking over the blow. This bold attack, supported by the destroyers, caused the English ships to turn and flee into the dusk. More and more the night came into its own. The night, which allowed the British to somewhat brighten up, bleak for them, the result of the battle.
The development of the battle from 18-15 to 21-00
Flames in the middle of the night.
The sun disappeared behind the horizon. The sky was getting darker. But at 20 hours 58 minutes the horizon was again illuminated by the fire of shots. In the beams of searchlights, one could see the German and British light cruisers leading each other in a fire duel. As a result of this battle, several cruisers on both sides were damaged, and the German light cruiser Fraenlob, damaged in the daytime battle, was sunk.
German battleship Prince Regent Luitpold
A little later, the English 4th destroyer flotilla attacked the German battleships. At the same time, the destroyer Tyupperer was sunk, and the destroyer Speedfire was damaged. The attack was unsuccessful, but while performing an anti-torpedo maneuver, the Posen battleship rammed the light cruiser Elbing. The British only managed to damage the destroyer "S-32". Which lost its course, but was taken in tow and brought to the base.
At 2240 hours, a torpedo from the British destroyer Contest hit the light cruiser Rostok, heavily damaged in previous battles. During this attack by the English 4th destroyer flotilla, the English destroyers Sparrowhevie and Brook were damaged. At 2300, the 4th flotilla attacked the German ships for the third time, though unsuccessfully. At the same time, the destroyer "Fortuna" was sunk, and the destroyer "Roproid" was damaged. At 2340 hours, another British torpedo attack followed. 13 destroyers, from different fleets, unsuccessfully attacked the German battleships. And the destroyer Turbulent added to the list of losses of the Grand Fleet.
"Deutschland" from 2 squadron
Around this time, the High Seas Fleet crossed the course of the Grand Fleet. Located at a distance of about two miles from the last battleship of the Grand Fleet. And from the battleships of the 5th squadron they saw the attacks of the destroyers. And on one of the battleships they even identified the enemy. But during the battle, the commander of the Grand Fleet, Admiral Jellicoe, did not find out either about the battles of the light forces of the fleet with German battleships, or about the fact that these same battleships passed by the guns of the battleship entrusted to him. And literally at a distance of a direct shot. Pointlessly continuing the search for the German fleet. From now on, only moving away from the High Seas Fleet.
German light cruiser "Ariadne" of the same type with the cruiser "Fraenlob"
At 0007 hours, the English armored cruiser Black Prince and the destroyer Adent approached the German battleships at a distance of 1000 meters and were fired upon. A few minutes later, the ships engulfed in fire lost their course. A huge fire that raged on the deck of the cruiser illuminated the sides of the passing German battleships and cruisers. Until there was an explosion and the Black Prince plunged into the sea. Somewhat earlier than the cruiser, the Adent sank.
But the British quickly got even for this loss. At 0045 hours, the 12th destroyer flotilla, led by the scout (11 *) "Iturling", went on the attack. After 20 minutes, one of the fired torpedoes hit the obsolete battleship Pomern. The explosion detonated the ammunition and the ship almost instantly disappeared in a huge cloud of smoke. Together with the ship, its crew - 840 people - also died. This was the heaviest loss of the German Navy in the Battle of Jutlan. In addition to the battleship, in this last clash of fleets, the German destroyer "V-4" was lost, with the entire crew.
The explosion of the battleship "Pomern"
The death of the destroyer "V-4" has become one of the mysteries of the Battle of Jutland. The ship was guarding the German fleet from the opposite side of the clash. There were no submarines or minefields in this place either. The destroyer just exploded.
German destroyers searched for the English ships throughout the night. But only the cruiser "Champion" was discovered and unsuccessfully attacked. German torpedoes passed by.
According to the plan, the high-speed mine layer "Abdiel" on the night of May 31, to June 1 renewed minefields, on the way to the German bases. Exhibited by him a little earlier. On one of these mines, at 5 hours 30 minutes, the battleship Ostfriesland was blown up. But the ship retained its combat capability and returned to base.
Damage to the light cruiser "Pillau" after the Battle of Jutland
According to the plan, the British covered the approaches to enemy bases with submarines. On May 31, 3 English submarines E-26, E-55 and D-1 took up positions. But they had orders to attack enemy ships only from 2 June. Therefore, when the German ships returned to their bases, passing over the heads of the British submariners, they lay quietly on the seabed. Waiting for the time
Battleship Posen
German submariners also did not distinguish themselves. At 10 o'clock, the damaged Marlboro was attacked by 2 submarines. Went to base. But the attacks were unsuccessful. The Warspite was also attacked by a single German submarine. But the ship, which had a course of 22 knots, not only dodged torpedoes. But he even made an attempt to ram the enemy
German submarine UC-5
But the ships continued to sink. At 1:45 a.m., the battlecruiser Lützow was abandoned by the crew and sunk by a torpedo from the destroyer G-38. In the daytime battle, he received 24, only large-caliber ones, a shell and a torpedo. The bow of the cruiser was almost completely destroyed, about 8,000 tons of water entered the hull. The pumps could not cope with such an amount of water, and the propellers were exposed from the ever-increasing trim on the nose. It was impossible to continue the journey. And the command of the High Seas Fleet decided to sacrifice the ship. The surviving 960 crew members switched to destroyers.
At 02:00 on June 1, the light cruiser Elbing sank. The cause of the death of the cruiser was the destroyer Sparrowheavy. Damaged during the night battle and deprived of the stern. At 2 o'clock in the morning, the sailors of the Sparrowheavy saw a German light cruiser emerging from the fog and prepared for the last battle. But the German ship, without firing a single shot, suddenly began to sink and disappeared under water. This was Elbing. After the collision, the cruiser lost speed and was abandoned by most of the crew. But the cruiser captain and several dozen volunteers remained on the ship. Aiming with the help of wind and currents to go into neutral waters. But at dawn they saw an English destroyer and hurried to scuttle the ship. Following the "Elbing", at 4 hours 45 minutes, the German light cruiser "Rostok" followed to the bottom of the North Sea. The crew, which led the fight for the life of the ship until the last minute. The British armored cruiser Warrioror sank at 7 o'clock, having received 15 heavy and 6 medium shells in a daytime battle. And at 8 hours 45 minutes, the Sparrowheavy was finished off by the fire of its ships, after the crew was removed from it.
Personally, the commander of the Grand Fleet was never able to find the German fleet. And at 4 hours and 30 minutes, the British ships headed for the base. Not knowing that his fleet was discovered by one of the five that took off to replace the first five, German zeppelins. And the German commander had all the information received by his subordinates.
The development of the situation from 21-00 until the end of the battle.
The last feat of Jutland.
The gun salvos died down, but the battle was not over yet, the battlecruiser Seydlitz still remained at sea. In battle, the ship received 21 shells with a caliber of 305-381 mm, not counting smaller shells and a torpedo in the bow. The destruction on the ship was terrible. 3 of the 5 towers were destroyed, the bow generators failed, the electricity went out, the ventilation did not work, the main steam line was broken. From a strong blow, the body of one turbine burst, the steering gear jammed. The crew lost 148 men killed and wounded. All bow compartments were flooded with water. The stem is almost completely hidden under water. To equalize the trim, the aft compartments had to be flooded. The weight of the water that got inside the hull reached 5329 tons. Already at dusk, the oil filters failed, the last boilers went out. The ship completely lost its combat value and swayed helplessly on the waves. All the mechanical means of fighting for the ship's survivability were out of order. Admiral Scheer has already included the Seydlitz in the list of battle casualties. And leaving the ship that had lost its course, the German fleet went south. Shooting back from British destroyers. Which, carried away by the pursuit, did not notice the stopped Seidlitz.
"Seidlitz"
But the crew continued to fight. Buckets, vetoes, blankets were used. The mechanics, in complete darkness, were able to climb under the foundation of the boilers, change the filters and start some of the boilers. The cruiser came to life and crawled stern forward to his native shores. But on top of all the troubles, during the battle on the ship, all sea charts were destroyed, the gyrocompass failed. Therefore, at 1 hour 40 minutes, the Seydlitz ran aground. True, not for long. The crew managed to bring the ship to clean water. At dawn, the light cruiser Pillau and destroyers came to the aid of the battlecruiser. But at 8 o'clock the unmanaged Seydlitz was again aground. And when, a few hours later, by the incredible efforts of the crew, the cruiser was removed from the shoal, a storm broke out. Pillau's attempts to take the Seydlitz in tow were unsuccessful. And "Seidlitz" once again was on the verge of death. But the wayward Fortune remained favorable to the crew of the ship. And late in the evening on June 2, the ship anchored at the mouth of the Yade River. Thus, putting an end to the Jutlan battle.
Pyrrhic victory.
Historians are still debating. Finding out the winner in the battle of Jutlan. Fortunately, both commanders reported the victory to their admiralties. And at first glance, Admiral Scheer was right in his report. The Grand Fleet lost 6,784 killed, wounded and captured. Of its composition, 3 battleships, 3 armored cruisers and 8 destroyers were lost (a total of 111,980 tons of displacement). And the High Seas Fleet lost 3029 people and lost an obsolete battleship, a battleship, 4 light cruisers and 5 destroyers (62233 tons of displacement). And this, despite the one and a half times superiority of the British. So if you look from the tactical side, then the victory remained with the Germans. The Germans also won a moral victory. They were able to sow fear in the hearts of English sailors (12 *). The Germans were also able to demonstrate the superiority of their technology over the English (13 *). But then why, after Jutland, the German fleet entered the North Sea only at the end of 1918? When, under the terms of the truce, he went to surrender to the main base of the Grand Fleet.
"Westfalen"
The answer is simple. The High Seas Fleet did not fulfill the task assigned to it. He was unable to defeat the English fleet, win dominance at sea and withdraw England from the war. And the Grand Fleet, in turn, maintained its superiority at sea. Even despite the very heavy losses. And for another quarter of a century, the English fleet was considered the greatest fleet in the world. But Jutland was a "pyrrhic victory," a victory on the verge of defeat. And that is why the British Navy does not have a ship with the name "Jutland". Yes, and it is clear why the German Navy does not have a ship with the same name. In honor of the defeat, the ships are not named.
Bibliography.
1. G. Scheer "The death of the cruiser" Blucher ". St. Petersburg, 1995. Series" Ships and Battles ".
2. G. Haade "On the "Derflinger" in the Battle of Jutlan". St. Petersburg, 1995 Series "Ships and Battles".
3. Shershov A.P. "History of military shipbuilding". St. Petersburg, 1995 "Polygon".
4. Puzyrevsky K. P. "Combat Damage and Loss of Ships in the Battle of Yutlan". SPb. 1995
5. "Valecne lode", "Druni svetova" "Nase vojsko pnaha".
6. Model designer 12 "94. Balakin S. "Superdreadnoughts". St. 28-30.
7. Model designer 1 "95. Kofman V. "A new hypostasis of the battleship". Art. 27-28.
8. Model designer 2 "95. Balakin S. "The incredible return of Seidlitz. Art. 25-26.
In addition, materials from numbers 11"79, 12"79, 1"80, 4"94, 7"94, 6"95, 8"95 "Model Designer" were used.
"Thuringian"
Organization of fleets:
1. English fleet:
1.1 Main forces:
2 squadron of battleships: "King George 5", "Ajax", "Centurion", "Erin", "Orion", "Monarch", Conqueror, "Tunderer".
4 squadron of battleships: Iron Duke, Royal Oak, Superb, Canada, Bellerophon, Temerair, Vanguard.
1 squadron of battleships: "Marlboro", "Rivenge", "Hercules", "Edzhikort", "Colossus", "St. Vincent", "Collingwood", "Neptune".
3rd battlecruiser squadron: Invincible, Inflexible, Idomitable.
1.2 Vice Admiral Beatty's squadron: flagship - Lion.
1 squadron of battlecruisers: "Princess Royal", "Queen Mary", "Tiger".
2 squadron of battlecruisers: New Zealand, Indefatigable.
5 squadron of battleships: Burham, Valiant, Warspite, Malaya.
1.3 Light forces:
1, 2 squadrons of armored cruisers: Defense, Warrior, Duke of Edinburgh, Black Prince, Minotaur, Hampshire, Cochran, Shanon.
1, 2, 3, 4 squadrons of light cruisers (23 in total).
1, 4, part 9 and 10, 11, 12, 13 destroyer flotillas (total 3 light cruisers and 75 destroyers).
"Edjicourt"
German Navy
2.1 Main forces:
3rd battleship squadron: "Koenig", "Grosser Kurfyust", "Markgraf", "Kronprinz", "Kaiser", "Prinzregent Leopold", "Kaiserin", "Friederik der. Grosse".
1 squadron of battleships: Ostfriesland, Thuringian, Helgoland, Oldinburg, Posen, Rhineland, Nassau, Westfalen.
2 squadron of battleships: "Deutschland", "Pomern", "Schlesien", "Hanover", "Schleiswing-Holstein", "Hesse".
2.2 Reconnaissance detachment of Admiral Hipper:
battlecruisers: Lützow, Derflinger, Seydlitz, Moltke, Von der Tann.
2.3 Light forces:
2, 4 squadrons of light cruisers (total 9).
1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 9 destroyer flotillas (total 2 light cruisers, 61 destroyers).
"Von der Tann"
Notes.
* A ship with a displacement of 2500-5400 tons, with a speed of up to 29 knots (up to 54 km/h) and 6-10 guns with a caliber of 102-152 mm. Designed for reconnaissance, raiding and raiding operations, protecting battleships from enemy destroyers.
2* A ship with a displacement of 600-1200 tons, with a speed of up to 32 knots (up to 60 km/h), 2-4 small-caliber guns and up to 4 torpedo tubes. Designed for torpedo attacks on enemy ships.
3* A ship with a displacement of 17000-28400 tons, with a speed of 25 - 28.5 knots (46 - 53 km / h) and 8-10 guns with a caliber of 280 - 343 mm. designed to fight raiders, support light forces, pin down enemy battleships in a squadron battle.
4* A ship with a displacement of 18,000-28,000 tons, with a speed of 19.5 - 23 knots (36 - 42.5 km / h) and 8-14 guns with a caliber of 280 - 381 mm. Constituting the main forces of the fleets and intended to capture and maintain dominance at sea.
5* Cables - 185.2 meters (80 cables - 14816 meters, 65 cables - 12038 meters).
6* It is assumed that the Queen Mary was hit by 15 305-millimeter shells.
7* 17 people escaped from the Queen Mary.
8* An obsolete ship with a displacement of up to 14,000 tons, with a speed of up to 23 knots (up to 42.5 km/h), and up to 20 guns with a caliber of 152-234 mm. Performed the same functions before the advent of battlecruisers.
9* During the battle, 21 heavy shells hit the Derflinger.
11* Ship of an obsolete type with a displacement of up to 14,000 tons, with a speed of up to 18 knots (33 km/h.), which had 4 guns with a caliber of 280 mm. And before the advent of "dreadnoughts" performing the same functions.
12* Light cruiser of small displacement.
13* The Germans were able to instill fear in the hearts of English sailors. And so Admiral Jellicoe did not dare to pursue the High Seas Fleet. To impose a daytime battle on the Germans on June 1. Although he could oppose the 1 battleship squadron left by the Germans with 3 of his own. And that's not counting the light forces.
14* So the battle showed that the 305 mm. the German shell pierced the side armor of the British battlecruisers already from 11,700 meters, and the English 343 mm. the shell penetrated the thicker armor of the German battlecruisers from as little as 7,880 meters. In addition, the survivability of the English ships, unlike the German ones, and their most important devices, wished much better. The Germans, firing 3491 shells with a caliber of 280-305 mm, against 4538 English ones with a caliber of 305-381 mm, achieved 121 hits on British ships, against 112 English shells that hit German ships.
