Battle of Jutland

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john sefton
Posts: 1816
Joined: Sun Mar 22, 2009 1:59 pm

Battle of Jutland

Post by john sefton » Wed Sep 29, 2010 9:15 pm

The Battle of Jutland (German: Skagerrakschlacht; Danish: Søslaget ved Jylland / Søslaget om Skagerrak) was the largest naval battle of World War I, and the only full-scale clash of battleships in that war. It was the third major fleet action between steel battleships, following the battles of the Yellow Sea and Tsushima during the Russo-Japanese War.
It was fought on 31 May – 1 June 1916, in the North Sea near Jutland, Denmark. The combatants were the Imperial German Navy's High Seas Fleet, commanded by Vice-Admiral Reinhard Scheer, and the British Royal Navy's Grand Fleet, commanded by Admiral Sir John Jellicoe. The German fleet's intention was to lure out, trap and destroy a portion of the Grand Fleet, as the German numbers were insufficient to engage the entire British fleet at one time. This formed part of a larger strategy to break the British blockade of Germany and to allow German mercantile shipping to operate. Meanwhile, the Royal Navy pursued a strategy to engage and destroy the High Seas Fleet, or keep the German force contained and away from Britain's own shipping lanes.
The Germans' plan was to use Vice-Admiral Franz Hipper's fast scouting group of five modern battlecruisers to lure Vice-Admiral Sir David Beatty's battlecruiser squadrons through a submarine picket line and into the path of the main German fleet. However, the British had learned from signal intercepts that a major fleet operation was likely, and on 30 May Jellicoe sailed with the Grand Fleet to rendezvous with Beatty, passing over the locations of the German submarine picket lines while the U-boats were unprepared.
On the afternoon of 31 May, Beatty encountered Hipper's battlecruiser force long before the Germans had expected, which eliminated any submarine influence. In a running battle, Hipper successfully drew the British vanguard into the path of the High Seas Fleet. By the time Beatty sighted the larger force and turned back towards the British main fleet, he had lost two battlecruisers from a force of six battlecruisers and four battleships, against the five ships commanded by Hipper. The battleships, commanded by Rear-Admiral Sir Hugh Evan-Thomas were the last to turn and formed a rearguard as Beatty withdrew, drawing the German fleet in pursuit towards the main British positions. Between 18:30 hrs, when the sun was lowering on the western horizon, backlighting the German forces, and nightfall at about 20:30, the two huge fleets — totalling 250 ships between them — were twice heavily engaged.
Fourteen British and eleven German ships were sunk, with great loss of life. After sunset, and throughout the night, Jellicoe manoeuvred to cut the Germans off from their base, in hopes of continuing the battle next morning. But, under cover of darkness, Scheer crossed the wake of the British fleet and returned to port.
Both sides claimed victory. The British lost more ships and twice as many sailors, and the British press criticised the Grand Fleet's failure to force a decisive outcome. But Scheer's plan of destroying a substantial portion of the British fleet also failed. The Germans continued to pose a threat that required the British to keep their battleships concentrated in the North Sea, but the battle confirmed the German policy of avoiding all fleet-to-fleet contact, and they never again contested control of the high seas. Instead, the German Navy turned its efforts and resources to unrestricted submarine warfare and the destruction of Allied and Neutral shipping. Subsequent reviews commissioned by the Royal Navy generated strong disagreement between supporters of Jellicoe and Beatty, and the two admirals' performance in the battle; this debate continues today.
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aukepalmhof
Posts: 8005
Joined: Thu Apr 02, 2009 1:28 am

Re: Battle of Jutland

Post by aukepalmhof » Thu Apr 07, 2016 8:22 pm

Isle of Man Post Office is pleased to present a miniature sheet which commemorates the centenary of the Battle of Jutland, an event that till this day sparks lively discussion. The sheet is due for release 17th February 2016.
The Battle of Jutland was the First World War's largest naval engagement, a battle fought between the "Royal Navy's Grand Fleet and Admiral Reinhard Sheer's High Seas Fleet". Jutland was the largest meeting of dreadnoughts in history. It was the only encounter between the main British and German fleets during WW1 and in a struggle that lasted less than 12 hours, 249 ships and 100,000 men fought each other to maintain maritime dominance, with the Germans attempting to lift the naval economic blockade that was slowly but surely draining Germany's lifeblood.
In the accompanying text, Nick Jellicoe, son of the second Earl who served as First Lord of the Admiralty and grandson of Sir John Jellicoe who was Commander of the Grand Fleet for 2 1/2 years between 1914 and 1916, provides an account of the events which took place on 31 May and 1 June 1916. "The really damaging British fire took place after Admiral Scheer's ships had twice been trapped within an arc when Jellicoe's massive firepower wreaked havoc. The Germans only escaped after launching a courageous but near-suicidal torpedo attack away from which Jellicoe wisely turned his ships to avoid carnage. From around 6pm, two hours after the opening shots, visibility was appalling. Only two or three ships could be seen by anyone. And then, in the darkness of night the Germans broke through the Grand Fleet's blocking line and limped home. During the attack, unstable cordite stacked outside protective British battle-cruiser magazines made it easier to fire more quickly but single sparks destroyed whole ships. The Germans didn't make the same mistake and their ships were designed to take more punishment."
The battle saw a great loss of life with significantly more British casualties for Britain compared to Germany; 14 British and 11 German ships were sunk. Both sides claimed victory. Jutland has been described as a tactical victory for the German High Seas Fleet but a strategic victory for the British Grand Fleet. The Germans had inflicted heavier losses on the numerically superior Grand Fleet and escaped near destruction but had failed to break the British blockade or control of the North Sea and had not altered the balance of power in any meaningful way.

This action packed miniature sheet features stamp designs by Francesca Jellicoe, daughter of Nick Jellicoe, and is divided into two parts, each showcasing a painting of HMS IRON DUKE http://www.shipstamps.co.uk/forum/viewt ... =2&t=11950 , the flagship of the Grand Fleet during the First World War, including Jutland. On the left is William Whyillie's painting of HMS IRON DUKE opening fire at Jutland on a stamp depicting Admiral Sir John Jellicoe and Admiral Scheer. To the right, is William Stӧwer's painting of a German torpedo boat with portraits of Vice Admiral Sir David Beatty and Vice Admiral Franz Hipper on a stamp.

Commenting on the sheet, Nick Jellicoe said: "It is a fitting tribute to the men of both the Royal Navy and the German High Seas Fleet to have such a fine commemorative miniature stamp sheet issued in their memory. The Battle of Jutland was a fundamental though still little understood turning point in the conduct of the First World War. Not the resounding Trafalgar the nation had expected, nor the indecisive engagement many thought but rather a strategic victory that eventually forced a fundamental change in German conduct of the naval war. The immediate impact of declaration of unrestricted submarine warfare very nearly severed Britain's vital trade links but ultimately it led to America's entry into the war, mutiny in the German fleet and the outburst of revolutionary unrest. Admiral Jellicoe, as Churchill said, "the only man on either side who could have lost the war in an afternoon" bore this onerous burden of responsibility while quietly laying the groundwork for Britain's ultimate victory."

Maxine Cannon, General Manager of Isle of Man Stamps & Coins said: "We are pleased to present this miniature sheet commemorating the centenary of the Battle of Jutland. The battle was the only major encounter between the main British and German fleets during WW1 making it a significant event. Fittingly, Nick Jellicoe, grandson of Sir John Jellicoe, has produced the accompanying text which tells the story of the battle and Francesca, his daughter, helped design the stamps."

Source. /#sthash.mkT6Crct.dpufhttps://www.iompost.com/stamps-coins/stamps-coi ... -jutland-/

Whyllie’s painting shows the situation at Jutland at approximately 18.33 on 31 May 1916. Admiral Jellicoe’s flagship IRON DUKE is firing to starboard at the German battleship KÖNIG. She is followed in the line by the ROYAL OAK, SUPERB, CANADA, COLOSSUS, COLLINGWOOD, NEPTUand ST VINCENT. The vessel listing on the left is probably the destroyer ACASTA of the 4th Destroyer Flotilla: she had made an unsuccessful torpedo run against the LÜTZOW and was hit by an enemy shell in the engine room which killed five men and disabled her. As she drifted into the path of the advancing British battleships her men lined the rails and cheered the IRON DUKE as Jellicoe passed: she was later taken under tow into Aberdeen, repaired and eventually scrapped in 1921. The four-funneled vessel on the right is the flotilla leader KEMPENFELT, leading the 11th Destroyer Flotilla. (The MS is too vague to see all this ships except the IRON DUKE.)

A wonderful moment when the signal Z is hoisted for the destroyers to Attack. « Stander Z ». The dramatic “Torpedoboote im Manöver”( Torpedo Boats on Manoeuvre) by Willy Stoewer can be seen in the Hamburg International Maritime Museum’s collection which was put together over many years by Peter Tamm.
http://www.jutland1916.com/paintings/
(When you are looking at the sheet then is Whyllie’s painting on the right and Willy Stöwer on the left.)

Isle of Man 2016 1.75p sgMs?, scott?
Attachments
43_Torpedo-Stander-Z_Hamburg_PERMISSION.jpg
Whyllie_Iron-Duke.jpg
2016 Battle of Jutland.jpg

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