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It is possible that Jellicoe assumed an inferiority of the British armor piercing shell because of this power of the German ships to stay afloat. But photographs published after the armistice showed that British shells penetrated the 11-inch turret armor of the Seydlitz and the 13-inch of the Derfflinger with frightful effect.
It was on the 16th of December, 1914, that this second raid took place. Over the North Sea there hung a light mist. The German admiralty did not afterward make public the names of the cruisers which participated in this expedition, but they are believed to have been the Derfflinger, Blücher, Von der Tann, Seydlitz, and Graudenz.
The German losses, as claimed by the British, included two dreadnaughts, believed to be the Hindenburgh and Westfalen, each of approximately 26,000 tons, with a complement of 1,000 men; the battle-cruiser Derfflinger, 26,600 tons, complement, 900 men; the battleship Pommern, of 12,997 tons, complement, 729 men, cost, $6,000,000; the new fast cruiser Elbing, of 5,000 tons, complement, 500 men; the cruisers Frauenlob, of 2,715 tons, complement, 264 men, and Wiesbaden, not registered; a number of destroyers, variously estimated at from six to sixteen, and one submarine rammed and sunk.
There was a distance of fourteen miles between the two fleets when the Lion got her heavy guns into action. At the head of that line was the Moltke, and following her came the Seydlitz, Derfflinger, Blücher, and the destroyers in the order given. At the head of the British line was the Lion, followed by the Tiger, Princess Royal, New Zealand, and Indomitable in the order named.
Heavy fighting was renewed between the opposing battle cruiser squadrons, during which the Derfflinger was sunk; but toward 6 o'clock the German fire slackened very considerably, showing that Beatty's battle cruisers and the Queen Elizabeths had inflicted serious damage on their immediate opponents.
The enemy vessels were Hipper's cruisers, and they also turned south to fall back on their battle-fleet, at whose proximity Beatty can only have guessed. At 3.48 the action began with Hipper's battle-cruisers, Derfflinger, Lutzow, Moltke, Seydlitz, and Van der Thann; none of them carried heavier than 12-in. guns, while Beatty's "Cats" had 13.5-inch and his Queen Elizabeths 15-inch guns.
The forces opposed were as follows: | Dis- | | | Best | |Dis- | | | Best British |place-|Armor| Guns |recent|German |place-|Armor| Guns |recent | ment | | |speed*| |ment | | |speed | | | | | | | | | Lion |26,350| 9" |8 13.5"| 31.7 |Derfflinger|26,180| 13" | 8 12" | 30 Tiger |28,500| 9" |8 13.5"| 32 |Seydlitz |24,610| 11" |10 11" | 29 Princess |28,350| 9" |8 13.5"| 31.7 |Moltke |22,640| 11" |10 11" | 28.4 Royal | | | | | | | | | New Zealand|18,800| 8" |8 12" | 29 |Blücher |15,550| 6" |12 8.2"| 25.3 Indomitable|17,250| 7" |8 12" | 28.7 | | | | |
The following account from Commander von Hase of the Derfflinger, which led this sortie, is interesting not only for its description of what occurred at this time but also as a picture of a personal experience of the terrific fire that the battle cruisers of both sides had to sustain throughout the greater part of the engagement. It was on them that the brunt of the fighting fell.
He had with him three of the best German battle-cruisers, the Derfflinger, Seydlitz, and Moltke, with speeds ranging from 27 to 25 knots, tonnage from 26,000 to 22,000, and 12 or 11-inch guns; the Blücher of 15,550 tons, 24 knots, and 8.2-inch guns; six light cruisers and a torpedo flotilla.
First to evade this dangerous encirclement. But the maneuver must be unobserved and executed without interference. The battle-cruisers and torpedo-boats must cover the movement of the fleet. "And now an infernal fire was opened on us, especially on the Derfflinger, as leading ship. Several ships were concentrating their fire upon us. I selected a target and fired as rapidly as possible.
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