The Siege of London.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 8751, 13 October 1906, Page 1

The Siege of London.

by William Le Queux, 1906.]

Being the Second Part of the Invasion, of 19iO.

By WILLIAM LE QUBUX.

With, Naval Chapters by H- W. WILSON.

BATTLE OF TSB TESEL.

V threat Success of the. British ■ Armoured Cruisers.

64 Battleships in Action.

; ' Dawn was showing in the east ; the fcky was bright withvthe first. promise .of lday;- the faint, cold, ,lilac light , shimmered on a placid sea, and slowly save way ;-to the red of sunrise. To flje ; westward showed menacingly the .interminable line? of British battle? Ships, already openjng out and prepar- ; lag to meet the GernSfcn attack, as th« 'divisions parted company and mad© teatiy each to manoeuvre independently, line© to handle a fleet of thirty-three jthips in one mass was impossible. . 'The British ships floated grey upon the grey sea: ' far off, they could be •made out clear of top-hamper and gripped for the mortal fray. From the great divisions of British armoured cruisers smoke \?as pouring as they inweased speed and hurried to assist the •battle-fleet in the imminent encounter. Out beyond the big ships hovered the s&aller British oruisers and destroyers,' waiting orderfc or a favourable ■ Dpportunity for striking a blow. From the south powerful reinforcements were wming up to join the British; at 4.55 seven large protected cruisers of the Diadem class and seven of the Edgar type, which had been sent on by the -Southern Admiral at full speed, reported their presence to Admiral Bohngbroke, and received orders to attack" the- German left flank and rear. Five minutes lajfcer six protected cruisers of the Minerva class, which had been jcouting .towards the Norfolk coast, Jeame up from the south and joined the ri^er;: protected cruisers in the general movement against the German left. ■The Germans were closing at a 6peed ■ ■bf about thirteen knots to permit their older ships to keep easy station; the British were going fourteen knots, which gave a margin of a knot for the older ''snips/ The formation of each fleet "was similar, in four divisions of battleships disposed in lines ahead abreast of each other, with intervals of ■bout a mile> between each division. ; 'The most powerful British battleships Were on theJeft centre; four of the Dreadnought class; the Indefatigable, «nd one of the King Edwards forming the first division. • # " . '„ , -In the second division, abreast ot tne sfiwst and to the south of it, were the ■tother seven King Edwards and the Repfetance. Eight of the Formidable class. ?njade ap the third division, .which was to the south of the second;.. while eleven of the older battleships . constituted the Tfourth division, and were stationed well ; tb the north, two miles north of the firet division, and. in advance of the British front. .To the north of them again, and. three miles in advance of them, were the nine large .armoured bruisers of the Third Squadron.. Slightly to the rear of th© German battle divisions, and acting as a reserveon either flank, were the two German armoured cruiser squadrons, ; each four ships strong. Ten protected cruisers -were to the north of the_ first German armoured cruiser division, steering with their attendant flotillas of destroyers to pass round the flank of the British battle-fleet and attack it. ; , Another squadron of protected bruisers was to the south of the German battle-fleet, to manoeuwe against the southern British flank. The main German fighting force centred in the seven enormous and powerful battleships of the first division, each of them equal to the British Dreadnoughts, but "with a slightly different armament and somewhat smaller speed. The second, third and fourth. German, battleship divisions were much inferior in fighting force to the corresponding divisions in the British fleet. The first "German division faced the tnoet powerful British division; it was on the extreme right of the German battle column. The German intentions were to force on a melee with the three weaker divisions, while the first division passed round the north flank of the British fleet and attacked the older battleships and tte new end powerful .ships of the first British division.

At 5 a.m., when the two fleets were about ten.miles apart, the first German division began to elent away north■vrards to deliver this 1 attack. At the same moment, with a heavy roll of firing from all their batteries, the three British armoured cruiser squadrons, fourth, first and second, in the order mentioned," opened a terrific fire on the northern division of German protected cruisers. Two minutes later, with a loud crash, the big British, protected cruisers came into action to the south against the other German protected cruiser division.

' The sudden roar of firing was heard far away in the southern British battlefleet, and the admiral in command, realising the importance of entering the battle as rapidly as possible, called on Ibis captains to race to* the scene of action.

They were to steam at their highest epeed, breaking $he order of the fleet, and to co-operate, with the main force in action to the north. It was a stirring sight to see the fifteen battleships of the Southern fleet from two orderly divisions dissolve into fifteen separate units, and with great trails of smoke pouring from their funnels, and spray rising under their bows, press their engines to the utmost. Three of the smaller battleships idrew rapidly ahead, and left the older and stronger ships; they went away in magnificent style towards the roar of the battle, like hounds released from the leash, at seventeen knots, while behind them the Southern fleet tailed out into a long irregular line. From the north now came the most furious cannonading, in which the dull cote of heavy guns could be distinguished. It rose continuously to a, very tempest, until the heavy vibration tiled the air.

The attack of the three British armoured cruiser squadrons on £he German Ist Protected Cruiser Division was en awful prelude to an awful encounter. The 4th Armoured Cruiser Squadron drew right across the line of the Ger=man advanee 2 bringing all its seven Chips' broadsides to bear on the unarjnoured German ships. The Ist Armoured Cruiser Squadron steered to cross the German front at still closer quarters, and as it came up at twentytwo knote its broadsides bore upon the enemy. The 2nd Armoured Cruiser Squadron, astern of the German protected shins, headed to cross the rear

of their line and to meet the most powerful of the German armoured cruiser divisions, which had now been compelled to steer to the assistance of the protected cruisers. Under the fire of twenty-five British armoured units, bringing 12in, 9.2 in and 6in Runs to bear, ai ranges which varied between 4000 and 6000 yards, the German protected cruisers, with their batteries, for th© most part composed of only 4in guns, were simply overwhelmed. The" Poeen steamed first in thie German line; the Iphigenia put into'her 12in shell after shell, and m thjjee minutes she was on fire and sinking The 4th Armoured Cruiser # Squadron was firing fast at the next in the German line, the Bromberg, and sank her a few seconds later. The German hulls seemed to be literally, blown away by the tempest of heavy projectiles; tail hope of forcing a passage round the British fleet, and o'osing and using th© torpedo, must have passed from the German admiral in those few minutes of encounter. At the rear of the German line the oruisers caught the full fire of the British 2nd Armoured Cruiser Squadron. The armour of the British ship kept out the German shells, while the British guns rained death and destruction upon thedr enemy. Two more German cruisers stopped and burst into flame ; the remaining six wheeled and stood towards the four armoured cruisers of their Ist Division, which were now coming, up to their support. At the of the* Ist German Armoured Cruiser Division the 2nd British. Squadron turned and went about, giving and receiving a heavy fire. Its leading ship,- the Imperieuse, sustained somewhat seriors damage forward on the water line, so that she was compelled to haul out of the battle and effect repairs., The powerful Ist Armoured Cruiser Squadron, however j instantly closed in on ; the ; German ships, and, w^h batteries a match for theirs, took -the pressure off the 2nd Squadron. Turning rapidly,' it passed across the head of the German line, showering 12-in and 9.2-in shells upon the Waldiersee at 5000 yards. The British guns were firing with terrific rapidity, and under their concedrbrated stream of projectiles the WakLereee'e trellised foremast fell, the second funnel tumbled, and a great explosion took place amidships. Her bows sank in the water, and she dropped' out of the German line, ablaze, with dense columns of -smoke pouring out from her hull. ;

. In this plight, the 4th British Armoured Cruiser. Squadron closed upon Jber, and at 3000 yards directed.sweh.a fire upon her that five minutes later she was seen to be sinking.

The other three German armoured cruisers were now receiving fearful punishment from the great force of British armoured cruisers, and to disengage them the 2nd German Armoured Cruiser Division was moving across the German rear. But their defeat was accomplished before help could reach them. The Moltke and Clausewitz became the target of the concentrated fire from the nine armoured ships of the Ist British Squadron; the Gneisenau was attacked by the batteries of the eight armoured cruisers of the 2nd Squadron.

The German . gunners were overwhelmed, as the British gunners at the Battle of the Would had been, by a storm of shells, which did not permit them to eight their guns, or their captains to manoeuvre the ships. The conning tower of the Moltke was struck at short range three times by heavy shells, and the great armoured cruiser 6teered wildly into the very midst of the British line under a deadly fire from the leading ships of the Ist Squadron.'

The Orion, third in the line, poured into her a broadside from her four 12in and four 9.2 in guns, and as all the shevt s went home, piercing the armour, a-nd causing violent explosions inside the 6hip, fired at her in quick succession two 18in torpedoes. Both struck her; a minute later the Iphigenia fired two more, one of which also hit.

There was a great upheaval of the sea about her, and she slowly filled and sank. Ten minutes later a magazine exploded on board the Gneisenau. A column of smoke and flame went up from her, whirling with it fragments of steel and human forms; the big armoured cruiser parted bodily in two amidships, and the two halves sank in a minute. Three of the best German armoured cruisers had gone. The Clausewitz had stopped, and lay a wreck on the surface of the sea.

In this fierce action, which was compressed into fifteen or twenty minutes, at short range, the flagship of the British_ Ist Armoured Cruiser Squadron, Iphigenia, sustained serious injury. A German shell perforated the armour of ' her fore 12in barbette, . and, bursting inside the barbette, killed every man in it, and put two of the four heavy guns out of action. The foremast was 6hot away, and one of the funnels fell, while , a fire broke out amidships. Admiral Hunter signalled to the Intrepid, next in the line, to assume command, and steamed away to the lee of his squadron, out or the battle, to get hie ship once more in fighting trim.

The remainder of the Ist Squadron drew across the course of the advancing 2nd German Armoured Cruiser Division, to engage it ' and protect the flagship. But the task of the 2nd German Division, was hopeless after the defeat of the far more powerful Ist Division. Received by the sixteen armoured cruisers of the Ist and 2nd British Squadrons with a tremendous fire, the four German cruisers altered their oourse, confessing defeat, and ran towards the battleships for shelter. To the south of the main German Fleet the 2nd German Protected Cruiser Division had fared no better than the Ist. It was composed of more powerful ships, including as it did three of the Vineta class, but it found itself attacked by twenty-one British protected cruisers, which brought into action against it an overwhelming superiority of metal. •

The heavy, old-fashioned 9.2's of the Edgar claes did good work at 3000 yards' rang©, '-whilst the British cruisers of the Diadem class, with the great protected cruiser Potentate leading them, smothered the German line with 6in shells. Two of the German cruie-

ers speedily took fire; the Vineta, after fighting gallantly, received two 9.2 in projectiles from the Potentate, which struck her low down on the water-line, and admitted so much water that she began to sink. Steaming slowly, with a heavy list, she fast fell behind her line.

. Another protected cruiser of the Berlin, class capsized from injuries to the water-line; the other six, several of them burning, and ,. all of them much, batteredj were -driven in upon the Ger•man battle-fleet. Then the British protected cruisers turned to tihe attack of the shattered fragments of the German destroyer flotillas, which had so far "remained in reserve, and, scattering, chased them, aided by certain of the British destroyer detachments. The Sirius, protected cruiser, sighted the German armoured cruiser Roon steaming very slowly in a damaged condition, some miles astern of the German ' fleet, and, accompanied by four British destroyers, steered towards her. The Roon V fore-turret was 6een to be out of action, and the Sirius took up a position on her bow and brought the eight 6in guns of her broadside into play at 2000 yds. The German cruiser fired her bow torpedo tube, but missed ; and then endeavoured to turn and bring her after-turret to bear. A 6 she was turning, half-disabled, the Sirius fired the broadside torpedo tube at her, but missed, and then ran at her with the ram. '

The German armoured cruiser, greatly damaged , with bow low in the water, manoeuvred badly, and could not meet this terrible form of attack. Two hundred yards away the captain of the Sirius reversed his engines, seeing that his tactics would succeed. The ram of the British cruiser struck the Roon on the port side, just forward of the fore-turret, with a loud crash, cutting half-way through the hull of the German ship. . For some instants the two vessels remained locked, while the engines of the British ship went astern and strove to tear the bows- free. The German, captain, when a collision became inevitable, put his engines ahead as hard as they could go to wrench the fore part off the British cruiser. All the guns that would bear were firing furiously at the closest quarters in this brief trial of strength. How the trial of strength would have ended had the two cruisers been left to themselves, no one can tell ; but ac they were interlocked a British destroyer put two torpedoes into the Roon's stern, and gave her the coup de grace. The German cruiser had' her screws blown away or gravely damaged by the torpedoes. She began to fill and sink, still locked with the Sirius.- Her crewrushed forward, gallantly led by their officers, and strove to force their way on to the British vessel's forecastle, while the two 6-inch guns orf that forecastle, firing their fastest, mowed them down at. point blank range.

Then, . making a supreme effort, the Sirius drew clear, with her bows gaping and twisted, and water pouring into her forward' compartment ; and the Roon lurched and listed to port. -The plight of the Sirius was serious ; the bow of ihe ship wa6 wrecked, but the forward bulkhead held under the strain, and though her bow eank in the water considerably, she remained afloat. She steered slowly southwards to draw behind the rest of the protected cruisers and effect hasty repairs, leaving the Roon sinking and the British destroyers at work rescuing her crew.

• The defeat of the German cruisers paved the way for the concentration of the whole British armoured cruiser force upon the German battle-fleet. Admiral Hunter, who was in chief command of the armoured cruisers, signalled from his damaged ship to the 4tn Squadron to draw in and attack the German cruisers to the east of the main German line of battle, and ordered the Ist Squadron to support this attack. The 2nd Squadron was already closing in upon the rear and centre of the German battle-line, while the 3rd Squadron had drawn within long range of the head of the German line and come into action against it.