The Battle of the Falkland Islands 18

The Battle of the Falkland Islands 18

About 5.35 two boilers of the _Nürnberg_ burst in quick succession,

apparently from excess of pressure due to her strenuous efforts to

escape. This reduced her speed to 19 knots, when all hope of averting

disaster, even with the aid of several lucky shots, was shattered at

one fell swoop. The _Kent_ now gained very rapidly on her opponent,

and all anxiety as to the chase being prolonged until dark was

dispelled.

 

[Illustration: _Plan of action between H.M.S. "KENT" and German Light

Cruiser "NÜRNBERG" off FALKLAND ISLANDS December 8^{th} 1914_

 

The Mappa Co. Ltd. London

]

 

Realising the hopelessness of continuing the attempt to escape, the

German decided to fight it out, and altered course ten minutes later

90 degrees to port (_see_ Plan). The _Kent_ turned about 70 degrees

to port, so that both ships were on converging courses, and able to

bring every gun on the broadside to bear. The running fight was over,

and the action developed during the ensuing quarter of an hour

into as fierce a duel as it is possible to imagine, with the range

rapidly decreasing from 6,000 to 3,000 yards and all guns firing

in succession, keeping up one continuous thunder. The _Kent_ now

started using her lyddite shell. As was only to be expected, a good

deal of damage resulted. In a very short time a fire broke out near

the German's mainmast, followed a little later by the fall of her

main-topmast, which bent gracefully forward like a sapling, and then

fell with a crash. Both ships were firing their guns independently,

not in salvoes, and in consequence the sequence of the discharges

was almost unbroken. A fearful din resulted, which was as loud as

it was penetrating, and soon began to have an irritating effect on

the nerves. The incessant clanging and clashing jarred horribly and

gave the impression that the ship was being continually hit; in fact,

those below began to think that matters were not going too well from

the constant concussions and severe jolts that were felt, until they

were reassured by the optimistic and cheering bits of news passed

down through the voice-pipes. The _Kent's_ fore-topgallant-mast now

suddenly fell over, fortunately remaining suspended in midair by the

stays; a chance shot had cut right through the heel.

 

From the rate of fire maintained at such a short range it was

patent that matters would soon be brought to a finish so far as

the _Nürnberg_ was concerned. By 6.5 P.M. her fore-topmast had

disappeared, she was on fire in two or three places, and her speed

was still further reduced. She turned away, as if to escape such

heavy punishment, the details of which could be plainly observed at

this short distance. Her upper deck was a veritable shambles, and

most of the guns' crews, only protected by gun shields, had been

killed. In the words of one of the _Kent's_ officers, "her foretop

and foremost funnel were so riddled that they appeared to be covered

with men"; the torn and twisted steel sticking out in every direction

caused this paradoxical illusion. Only two of her guns on the port

side remained in action.

 

On the other hand, the _Kent_ herself had by no means come out

unscathed. In addition to the hits already mentioned, there were many

more that had struck the ship's side and boat deck on the starboard

side, but no fires of consequence had taken place, nor had there been

any hits on the water-line of a vital character. One of the enemy's

shells burst just outside the midship casemate situated on the main

deck. Only fragments entered, but there were ten casualties, most

of them burns; one man was killed instantly, and he remained in

the same position after death with arms bent for holding a cordite

charge. A small fire was caused, and the flames passed down the

ammunition hoist to the passage below, igniting a charge which was

hooked on ready to be hoisted. Had it not been for the prompt action

of Sergeant Charles Mayes, of the Royal Marines, complete destruction

might easily have followed. With the greatest presence of mind, he

immediately isolated the cordite charges in the vicinity, closed the

sliding scuttle in the hoist, and at the same time ordered his men

to run for the nearest hoses to flood the compartment. The fire was

extinguished before it could get a hold, and for this brave deed he

was awarded the Conspicuous Gallantry Medal and an annuity of £20.

 

The _Nürnberg_ executed a sudden and unexpected manœuvre at 6.10 by

turning inwards as if about to ram her opponent. Continuing the turn,

however, she eventually passed astern of the _Kent_ and brought her

starboard guns into play for the first time. During this manœuvre,

and while in an end-on position, two of our shells burst almost

simultaneously on her forecastle, causing a fire and putting the guns

there out of action.

 

In reply to this manœuvre the _Kent_ turned to a nearly opposite

course. It will be realised from the plan that the _Kent_ was

travelling well over twice as fast as her opponent at this time, and

that her port guns were now brought into action. The courses of both

ships were again roughly parallel, the _Kent_ taking care to avoid

getting on the beam of the _Nürnberg_, which would have afforded the

latter an opportunity of using her torpedoes.

 

From now on the distance between the two ships gradually increased.

 

The German's fire was very spasmodic, and it was evident that she

could not last much longer. By 6.25 her engines were apparently

stopped, for she was barely moving through the water. She was now

badly battered and scarcely recognisable as the ship of an hour and

a half before. The _Kent_ had to turn right round again to keep

somewhere near her, and continued to fire at her with devastating

effect.

 

At 6.36 the enemy ceased fire altogether, the _Kent_ followed suit,

and for a short while awaited developments. Being now on fire all

along her fore part, the German ship looked a complete wreck, and

showed not a vestige of life as she lay helpless on the water. She

had a list, and was at a dead standstill. In vain the _Kent_ waited

for her to strike her colours, and so, as she showed no signs of

sinking, opened fire once more, slowly closing and keeping well

before her beam, firing at her with all guns that would bear. Not

till 6.57 did she haul down her colours, whereupon all firing ceased.

 

On examination it was found that nearly all the _Kent's_ boats were

splintered or smashed up by the enemy's fire, and there were only

two that could be temporarily patched up in a short space of time.

While the necessary repairs were in progress, the _Nürnberg_, which

had been heeling over more and more, turned over on her starboard

side, and in a deathlike silence disappeared beneath the surface

at 7.27 P.M. Captain J. D. Allen, in Writing of his Men, says, "No

sooner had she sunk than the _Kent's_ men displayed the same zeal and

activity in endeavouring to save life as they had done in fighting

the ship. Boats were hastily repaired and lowered, manned by men

eagerly volunteering to help. Unfortunately, the sea was rough and

the water very cold, so we only succeeded in picking up twelve men,

of whom five subsequently died." The search for the survivors was

continued till 9 A.M. It is said that even the living were attacked

by albatrosses.

 

While the ship was sinking a few German seamen gathered at the stern

and waved their ensign to and fro before going down with the ship.

 

The _Kent_ was hit thirty-seven times altogether, but suffered

no damage affecting her seaworthiness. Her wireless telegraphy

transmitting instruments were smashed to pieces by a shell, which

passed through the wireless office. She was thus unable to report the

result of her action, and caused the Commander-in-Chief some anxiety

regarding her fate. The receiving instruments, however, were intact,

so all the wireless signals made by the Commander-in-Chief inquiring

as to her whereabouts were taken in and read, though she was

powerless to reply. The upper works on the starboard side presented

a sorry spectacle, but the armour, though hit, was unpierced. Only

two shots burst against the unarmoured part of the ship's side,

one making a hole about four feet square just before the foremost

starboard 6-inch gun on the main deck, and the other a hole of about

equal size on the same side immediately below the after shelter deck.

 

A German officer who was saved said that they had heard by wireless

that the British had "blown up the harbour" at the Falklands, and had

fled to the west coast of Africa! He also stated that the _Nürnberg_

had not been refitted for three years, and that her boilers were in

a very bad state, which was borne out by some of them having burst

during the chase.

 

Each seaman 6-inch gun's crew had five Royal Naval Reservemen in it,

and their conduct speaks volumes for the all-round efficiency of the

men that the Navy has drawn from the Reserve during the War.

 

The total casualties in the _Kent_ amounted to 16 men, 5 of whom were

killed, whilst 3 of the wounded afterwards died of their wounds.

 

Commander Wharton, of the _Kent_, gives a remarkably realistic

description of the closing scenes: "It was strange and weird

all this aftermath, the wind rapidly arising from the westward,

darkness closing in, one ship heaving to the swell, well battered,

the foretop-gallant-mast gone. Of the other, nothing to be seen

but floating wreckage, with here and there a man clinging, and the

'molly-hawks' swooping by. The wind moaned, and death was in the air.

Then, see! Out of the mist loomed a great four-masted barque under

full canvas. A great ghost-ship she seemed. Slowly, majestically, she

sailed by and vanished in the night." This was the same ghost-ship

that had appeared in the middle of the action fought by the

battle-cruisers--a very fitting apparition, which upholds the legend

that one always appears at a British naval engagement. Meeting one

of the officers of this sailing vessel later on in the Dardanelles,

it was revealed that she had been out at sea so long that she was

unaware that war had even been declared, until she suddenly found

herself a spectator of two naval actions on the same day.

 

A silk ensign, presented to the ship by the ladies of Kent, was

torn to ribbons in the course of the day. The pieces, however, were

carefully collected by Captain J. D. Allen, and returned to the

donors, who sewed them together. This ensign now hangs in Canterbury

Cathedral. A new silk ensign was given to the ship by the ladies of

the county of Kent, and was hoisted on the first anniversary of the battle, December 8th, 1915.