The Prinz Eitel Friedrich and SS William P Frye

The common conception of the Kaiserliche - Marine's attacks on neutral and especially American shipping was the sinking of the Lusitania but the first shots fired against the neutral United States occurred on the 27th January 1915 by the Hilfkreuzer SMH Prinz Eitel Friedrich.

Here is the German cruiser's journey and the consequences it encountered by attacking the neutral vessel.

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SMH Prinz Eitel Friedrich

As vice-admiral von Spee's fleet prepared to head south for Cape Horn a final instruction to Captain Thierichsens which was to make the most of the German naval superiority and to attack British trade whilst giving the impression that the East Asiatic Squadron were still operating there with action and radio messages. He set about sending messages with Leipzig's call sign "Li" repeatedly as if Leipzig was signalling Scharnhorst. Allied shipping, like German merchants a few weeks previously had taken to port or sailing at night and close to shore to avoid detection. Prinz Eitel Friedrich only achieved one victory at this time when she encountered the SS Charcas on a foggy 5th December before boarding, taking the crew off and sinking her with her cargo of 220 tonnes of nitrate. It had been a lucky catch because the local head of the New York and Pacific steam company had put out an order following a sighting of the Prinz Eitel Friedrich at Valparaiso for all shipping to stay in port. As this was not an official order from head office the Charcas sailed keeping to the territorial waters however the fog had forced her away from the coast but still forty miles away from the usual track.

Having waited for the designated amount of time Thierichsens prepared to follow after his Admiral around the cape and hopefully catch up at a later point. Bad news struck on the 10^th December when a radio message from Montevideo to Stanley that alluded to the defeat of the East Asiatic, a fact that was confirmed on the 11th when a Daily Mail radio query to the Bishop of the Falklands asking about the sinking of Scharnhorst, Gneisnau and Leipzig.

Thierichsens had to revaluate his plans for his vessel in the light of a superior British fleet at the Falklands would soon be rounding the cape to secure British trade routes and be searching for the vessel that had been transmitting on behalf of Leipzig and his vessel was known by sight. The Pacific colonies had long been overrun so he knew that there was no point returning there but he was also constrained by the threat of British warships in the South Atlantic and in all probability sweeping around the Horn. There was a simpler solution; Thierichsens took his vessel to a "dead zone" in much the same way Huhn took Leipzig to the Galapagos. Easter Island was chosen as the place they could sit out and wait for the British searches to pass. If von Spee's fleet had been wiped out in its entirety then any sweep would be cursory and would hopefully leave quickly allowing Prinz Eitel Friedrich free reign. Then again his vessel was known in the region and there was no doubt they would be looking for the vessel that had been masquerading as Leipzig.

As the German vessel turned towards her new destination she came across the French barque Jean carrying 3500 tons of coal, a very welcome stroke of luck. A prize crew was sent over and the vessel taken into tow its cargo would be transferred in the remote harbour at Easter Island. The very next day the Prinz Eitel Friedrich came across a British barque, the Kidalton bound for Calou from Liverpool. As her cargo was of no use to the Germans the ship was promptly sunk and they continued on their way with the Jean in tow arriving at Cook’s bay on 23^rd December.  On arrival the Germans set about coaling from the Jean whilst Mr. Edmunds the manager of the Williamson-Balfour sheep company was brought aboard to see Thierichsens who issued a demand for forty sheep for provisions after Christmas but refused to bring any news of the war or what his vessel or intentions were. It was an interview that made Edmunds so uncomfortable that he declined a later invitation for Christmas festivities aboard for fear he would be taken prisoner.

Thierichsens’ forces set up a radio antennae on one of the highest points on the island to listen for news from the Americas and more importantly any approaching ships. This was a flagrant violation of the rules of neutrality but this was of no concern to the German Captain, the island was far too remote to worry about any Chilean naval intervention and his officers reportedly treated the island as if they owned it. Once their primary concerns of coal and stores had been addressed they took Jean out to sea and sank her with gunfire on the XX January. The crews of the fallen barques were put ashore on the 6^th January and Thierichsens put the island to his rudder. The prisoners were picked up two months later by a Swedish freighter save for a few who had died due to an outbreak of dysentery on the island and a half of the Jean’s crew who had promised not to raise in arms against Germany, the others were willing to abandon their parole having already turned down rescue by the British vessel Skerries on the 28^th February.

Thierichsens had enough coal and mutton to last until April and knowing his Admiral was gone, the Pacific was closed to him and the Atlantic seaboards were closing with the Royal Navy and their Japanese allies were scouring the seas for any raiders left behind. There were only two options left to him both of which involved sailing up the trade spines causing as much damage as possible and then break for Germany or intern in a neutral port. Obviously they hoped for the former. The Prinz Eitel Friedrich was beginning to suffer from the extended time at sea too, her engines were tired, her boilers needed cleaning and her belly was fouled causing her top speed to drop below her original 15 knots. This was a matter of concern for Thierichesens, however not as great a problem as how he was going to avoid the British navy. The only way to round the Horn was to go as far south as possible as the British would more than likely be checking channels and islands to the north but not along the 61^st Parallel which was as close to the Antarctic as they could. It was exceptionally cold especially for men in tropical uniforms and the ship’s company was on alert for ice as there was a very real danger from “growlers” and icebergs.

Knowing that his vessel’s speed was compromised and not wanting to draw attention Thierichsens decided to avoid the faster steamer lane and opted for the sailing route believing that he could still make captures without the Allied navies being drawn to investigate. Although fewer in number and harder to spot there was the advantage of their due dates being a lot more flexible if a vessel was delayed there was no great concern or the were months rather than weeks away. More importantly none of the vessels carried wireless sets and so could not call for help and they could not run even from his tired vessel. Although he had enough supplies there was still hope that they would come across a collier or ship that could be plundered to restock his holds but what would be desirable would be a tender to arrive but the likelihood of that was becoming very diminished.

What hadn’t factored in to pre-war German planning was the damage to the local economies that commerce raiding was doing and this led the South American republics to begin to enforce their neutrality by force. The SS Union, was caught by the Kronprinz Wilhelm was carrying 3500 tons of coal for the Argentine Railway and Electric power stations which was a big blow. It also damaged relations with British companies who traded meat, grain, nitrates and other valuable materials in these countries and there was a worry that Britain could take her very lucrative trade contracts elsewhere.

There also came the question of violating their sovereignty and all the German warships that had passed through South American waters were responsible in one way or another. Leipzig and Nürnberg had stopped vessels in territorial waters, Karlsruhe had allegedly had a secret cove on the Brazilian coast where she had gone for coaling and had messages concerning British movements, the whole East Asiatic squadron and Dresden had spent lengthy periods of time sheltering in neutral territory at Mas a Fuera and Easter Island. No action could be taken against the East Asiatic Squadron as it was too powerful and more importantly it was known after his stay in Valparaiso that von Spee was merely passing through the area and his Cruiser units did not harass the trade routes to the extent that was feared, though complaints were made to the German consulate. The Germans though did not pay them much heed as it was considered a means to an end with cordial relations being re-established after the war and the German merchant marine taking up some of Britain’s lucrative trade contracts. The South American republics were not going to wait for the end of the war and instead took action to reassert their sovereignty and take action against the lingering Auxiliary cruisers that were lingering.  The Kosmos line cruisers that had assisted Leipzig and von Spee were all interned whilst others were watched very carefully whilst the Roland line’s SS Holger‘s actions saw the company penalized significantly. Holger was believed to have lain in port at Pernambuco transmitting information concerning trade movements to Karlsruhe and Kronprinz Wilhelm an action that saw her boarded by the Brazilian authorities and her wireless set dismantled! To make matters worse Holger sailed out of port on the 1^st January 1915 without permission to resupply  Kronprinz Wilhelm with coal, food and water before moving on to Buenos Aires carrying prisoners. Pernambuco was locked down with the port Captain and other senior officers being replaced and when rumours of the battle cruiser SMS Von der Tan’s escape from the North sea reached them only the Otavi managed to escape the impound. The Brazilians also took action against rumours of a secret base for Karlsruhe somewhere along the coast as well as a network of coast watchers with hidden wireless sets and although nothing was found the coastline and surrounding countryside was scoured. All of the nations tightened up their rules on coaling times and repair times and any vessel known to have acted as a tender or had intentions of acting as a tender was interned immediately including the Seydlitz when it turned up in KLJKJKLJKLJ. The Odenwald was caught leaving San Juan in Puerto Rico by the Americans and the Norwegian vessel Gladstone changed her name to Mariana Quesada and was given permission to change nationality by the Costa Rican consulate in Newport Virginia to sail under their colours. Under her German captain she sailed for Costa Rica and arrived at Limon on the 5^th December where the Costa Ricans immediately impounded her and took away the right to sail under their flag. This did not stop the Mariana as she snuck out of harbour without a flag or orders on new years day and skirted around the coast of Brazil finally putting in on the 23^rd January at Pernambuco where she was immediately impounded and her machinery dismantled so there would be no further escape. Elsewhere the Patagonia was arrested by an Argentinian cruiser and taken to Bahia Blanca on 21^st December and the Mera was which had put to sea to meet von Spee was forced to return to Montevideo and was impounded.

SS William P. Frye

How much of this Thierichsens knew is debatable but having seen his support network in the Pacific dry up quickly it is safe to assume that he was not going to take any chances and avoided using radio traffic to give away his position. It was a valid move that meant that the first news of the Prinz Eitel Friedrich was from the Skerries which had seen the crews of Jean and Kidalton in late February and placed the vessel in the Pacific. With ample space aboard the former liner prisoners were held aboard and not set ashore unlike the other raiders which would frequently offload them on prizes or tenders leaving a rough trail. The first confirmed sighting of the ship and her position would not come until she arrived at Newport News in Virginia in March.

The sailing lanes were a lot quieter than perhaps Thierichsens had hoped for and it was not until 26^th January when they caught the Russian sailing vessel Isobel Browne and on the following day the French Pierre Loti. Both ships had their crews removed and the vessels sunk with gunfire. The 27^th also saw the first shots fired at an American vessel by Germany when the William P. Frye was pulled over carrying cargo of grain to Queenstown in Ireland. Although not a contraband cargo the German Captain believed that the grain could be given to the British army or by selling it to the Irish civilians could allow other grain to be passed on to the army and so ordered his men to destroy the cargo by throwing it overboard. By the following day with the task still not complete and spurned on by either impatience or through worry of being caught out in the same place for too long Thierichsens gave the order for his men to take the American crew from the vessel and to sink her with gunfire. The American Captain Kiehne was furious and protested but to no avail.

Sailing on the French vessel Jacoben was caught and sunk on the 28^th February as well and these four prizes in three days gave the crew a morale boost for the first time since capturing the Jean and hoping to add to the tally the Prinz Eitel Friedrich began to patrol the same area of the sailing lanes and advanced north at a slow speed to conserve fuel eventually capturing the Invercoe and her cargo of wheat on the 12^th February only a few hundred miles from where he had sunk the Jacoben and only thirty miles away from where Kronprinz Wilhelm had caught the Sementha only nine days before! It was around this time that they intercepted a message from Berlin for Kronprinz Wilhelm.  It advised the larger liner that the naval situation had drastically changed, the blockade was tightening up and there were too many Royal Navy vessels ahead and behind them and the German Navy would be unable to meet them and the chances of a tender were next to impossible. They believed the best course was for the liner to intern itself in a neutral port be it Spain or the United States. The German crew were pleased to learn that there was another vessel nearby but the feeling that of disappointment that they had come so far only to be denied at the final hurdle must have been very hard for them to stomach. No contact was attempted with Kronprinz Wilhelm and instead they continued to press northwards with dwindling coal and food supplies and as the number of captures had significantly dropped they believed they had exhausted the sail route knowing that internment was now the only option.

They reached the St Paul Rocks – Fernando Noronha line and on the 18^th February stopped the 3605 ton steamer Mary Ada Short bound for St Vincent carrying a cargo of 5000 tons of maize from Rosario. Unlike Thierfelder Thierichsens did not take the ship off the route and strip her of anything and everything useful including every last lump of coal and instead sank her and moved on quickly. This turned out to be a very clever move as the following day HMS Otranto passed the spot carrying the survivors of the East Asiatic Squadron to their POW cages. Had she come across the raider the British vessel would no doubt have added another significant amount of von Spee’s men to her holds.  The move also meant that they were able to catch the French liner Floride of the Compagnie Générale trans Atlantique line taking on her passengers and crew before turning east. On the 20^th February he caught his last vessel, SS Willerby from Marseille to Plate carrying nothing but water ballast. The Prinz Eitel Friedrich was in a bad way, her engines were in severe need of overhauling and his engines broke down regularly and with as many prisoners as crewmen the stores were dwindling quickly. It was only a matter of time before they would have to put into a neutral port.

Having narrowly missed the auxiliary Edinburgh Castle on her journey south and pulled into Newport News, Virginia having sailed 3000 miles from where she had taken Willerby. The arrival of the raider finally revealed to the world that they had been in the Atlantic. Other than the report from the Skerries, the only other report of Thierichsens’ vessel came from the Iquique which had reported sighting her on the 7^th March just four days before she arrived in Virginia. Her arrival caused quite a stir that was reported in the local papers such as the Troy Times of New York after the customs team came aboard and discovered their arms and prisoners. The German officers knew that they could not continue without a serious overhaul of the engines, a thorough scraping of the befouled belly which had picked up barnacles and other parasites from two oceans and a complete restocking of the coal bunkers they were reported to be tight lipped but all hoping for internment. 

Prinz Eitel Friedrich serving as the USS DeKalb (© IWM (Q 58257)) 



Whilst customs officer Captain Hamilton conferred with the neutrality board in Washington, Thierichsens sent communications to the German Consulate naval attaché, Captain Boy-Ed whilst closing his vessel to everyone save for the customs officials. Of the three hundred or so prisoners only the Captains were allowed ashore with the first class passengers of the Floride who were kept under watch of the American Customs officers but the one person that Hamilton wanted to speak to was the one person that would cause the most problems for Thierichsens as Captain Kiehne of the William P. Frye told his tale. Thierichsens had other problems too. As the Ship’s band played “Deutschland uber Alles” to celebrate his birthday he had to contend with reports of Royal Navy wireless transmissions growing closer, they finally knew where he was and he knew the reports were confirmed by the two British steamers, Bolton Hall and a second carrying horses to Avonmouth. There was also the question of what to do with the prisoners with many refusing to honour any parole agreement that would see them not take up arms with Germany again. Captain Monssion of the Floride told the press on the 8^th March that the German Commander had said he was willing to take his vessel out to fight the British with his prisoners still aboard.

As the investigation into the sinking of the Frye continues the German captain played for time refusing to hand over the American vessel’s papers claiming they should go to the prize courts in Berlin and that the Americans should make their claims of compensation there but as a concession he would make a copy of the papers. On the other hand he was trying to seek permission to extend his stay from twenty four hours to the seven weeks he believed his ship required. This was eventually agreed by the US neutrality board but under strict supervision to make sure the strength of the vessel was not increased. On the 18^th March the Secretary of State W J Bryan wrote to the German Ambassador, Bernstorff, to tell him that the Prinz Eitel Friedrich required fourteen working days to be made seaworthy and by extension were allowed to stay in port until midnight on the 7^th April or face internment. On the 29^th March Thierichsens was told by the Secretary of State that the twenty-four hour rule would take effect should a British ship leave port further delaying any departures but this was of little concern and did not change the fact that the Royal Navy would soon be outside and waiting for him.

As the diplomatic debates intensified so did British interest and HMS Cumberland and HMCS Niobe were sent to the Chesapeake to await her departure which was considered to be the first move of a fresh campaign by axillaries in the Atlantic. The Germans had heard their signals and now the choice was fight and lose or intern. The Royal Navy strategists were suspiciously eying the German liners in New York and fearing that if they were to try to break out they assigned vessels to watch from Halifax to Bermuda. Weight was added to the argument as the SS Pisa began to coal and resupply in New York harbour being fully ready to leave on the 28^th March. There was another rumour that the German fleet had detached more cruisers to run the blockade and head out into the Atlantic, including the elusive Von der Tam.

The 2^nd April saw a blizzard strike the bay and with communications to the American main land

lost and visibility at a minimal the British feared that Thierichsens had seized the moment and broken forth. When the snow cleared she was seen to still be in port. The time was nearing though with the Prinz Eitel Friedrich taking on a pilot on the 6^th April and making it be known that he was going to sail with all of his prisoners and go down fighting against the British. He also told the press that he had word from the Von der Tam and that the German battle cruiser was on her way to assist him by decimating the blockade. With his stores and coal collated Thierichsens prepared to leave port on the 8^th April.

Everybody held their breath. Would the German commander really hide behind his human shield and go muzzle to muzzle with the Royal Navy? Would the British fire upon a ship laden with prisoners including women? Would the mighty Von der Tam appear on the horizon and save Thierichsens and his men?

The raider never left port and to the relief of everybody waiting in the harbour, on the British and Canadian ships and indeed on the German vessel, the ship powered down and Thierichsens officially requested internment. His prisoners and armaments were handed over as there was no reason to fight on, no where to go and no reason to sacrifice his men and the prisoners for a gesture. They would sit out the war in a shanty town with the crew of the Kronprinz Wilhelm until America declared war in 1917, took their ships into their service and placed the crews in various Prisoner of war camps finally releasing them in 1919.

von Mücke's odyssey

The Emden's landing force before embarking on Ayesha

Korvetten-kapitän Helmuth von Mücke sat in a boat with the rest of his fifty strong landing force watching HMAS Sydney chasing the heavily damaged Emden and realised that he had to do something and ordered his men back to Cooling Island. He had enough fire power to defend the island from an armed landing and if he could dig in on the beaches his four machine guns could make short work of any boats approaching. The big problem was that as soon as the boats had been shot at the Sydney would begin firing her big guns and with no cover to speak of he would only bring death to his small command. What else could be done? Honour demanded that he at least make a show of force especially against an enemy he bitterly despised. He gave the relieved civilians permission to take boats to one of the other islands and ordered his men to dig in and prepare the beaches for an assault but then his eyes settled on the schooner Ayesha in the harbour, his men hadn’t got around to destroying it and suddenly an escape plan began to form. Whilst Sydney was finishing off Emden and looking for Buresk he personally inspected her sea worthiness and satisfied that she could make it at least to a neutral port where another boat could be procured he returned to the beaches and ordered his relieved men to begin massing supplies and anything they could feel that would be useful to an escape attempt or long periods of time at sea. Their foraging was aided by some of those on the island who brought out pipes, tobacco, clothing, water, drums of petrol and blankets as well as offering information about tides, courses, wind and weather in the region. Von Mücke was also advised that Ayesha’s bottom was rotten and that HMS Minotaur and a Japanese cruiser were nearby as well as the Sydney. What hope would he have in a rotten ship that was no longer used with little in the way of supplies? Nevertheless as the sun set the Emden’s steam launch towed “His Majesty’s newest ship” under the battle flag of the Imperial Navy out of the harbour.

Life aboard was pretty basic with the majority of the men sleeping on the iron ballast below decks as the only two beds were reserved for von Mücke and the off duty Lieutenant. Day to day running was the complete opposite of life on a modern steam driven warship and soon the strict German military discipline was allowed to slide with washing in stale water or in impromptu baths during rain storms, shaving was not compulsory and cleaning of teeth was abandoned as were uniforms which rapidly fell into a state of disrepair leaving the crew in a state of semi nudity. There were also hardships with water turning bad in rusted containers which was rectified by catching rain water through a crafted canvas chute and carried in pales to the cleaned tanks. There was also boredom with no room to drill and after cleaning the deck little housekeeping to be done and the majority of downtime was taken up with singing, talking or the few of the crew who were knowledgeable about Sail teaching the others.

For von Mücke there were weightier concerns. The Ayesha was indeed rotten, he had discovered how bad it was shortly after Direction Island whilst poking around in the hold. Should they run over a reef the ship would be torn apart. He was aiming for the Dutch ports of Padang or Batavia but his overall destination was even more ambitious with a choice of three, either German East Africa to join up with General von Lettow-Vorbeck’s forces, locate Königsberg and report to Kapitän Looff or to return to Tsingtaō. He also had to contend with the nagging concern of being intercepted by the Allies. His total armament was four machine guns and twenty nine rifles and his plan was to bring his schooner close to the enemy ship and open fire with what he had whilst sitting under the cruiser’s big guns. They did however take no chances with all the weapons stored below decks and the state of undress only added to the illusion that of a simple trading vessel. With no ability to run or turn away all they could do was hope not to be spotted or questioned and on the one occasion a steamer paid too much attention they were able to bluff their way past.

Wind and weather were a continual problem and damage to the sails and equipment had to be repaired where possible. It took several days to get into Padang harbour where an on going debate with the Dutch authorities developed with them mounting pressure on the three German officers to quietly intern their vessel. With that came news from the other German and Austro-Hungarian steamers. Tsingtaō had fallen, Königsberg had been forced to hole up in the Rafugi estuary and was under siege. There was also news of hard battles and campaigning in East Africa and von Lettow-Vorbeck disappearing into the bush. Whilst the Dutch refused fresh clothes, combs and toothbrushes as it was deemed that it would increase the fighting strength of the vessel. Despite all of the set backs von Mücke and his two officers said they were going to sea and with their fresh food and gear donated by the German vessels in port they sailed into the night singing “Wacht am Rhein” only to be joined by a row boat carrying an reservist officer and engineering officer who wished to join them.

Von Mücke kept the Ayesha heading west hoping that the captains of the German ships in Padang would come looking for them and after two weeks on a foggy 14
^th December the freighter Choising caught up with them and the Emden’s crew transferred to the steamship. It was with a heavy heart that the crew gathered to watch their home of 1709 Nautical Miles disappeared beneath the waves with her sea cocks open and holes bored through the rotten hold at 16:58 on the 16^th December.

The Choising was only a moderately better vessel and only averaged four knots with cramped conditions as most of the men were delegated an ex-coal bunker for quarters. Nevertheless it was the hand that had been dealt and von Mücke was going to take it and he had a new destination. News in Padang had revealed Turkey was waging war against England and as his men were not infantry trained nor able to locate von Lettow-Vorbeck’s forces and Kapitän Looff had enough of his own problems without fifty more mouths to feed  and so it was decided to head for Turkish territory. After crafting an Italian flag and disguising the vessel as the merchant vessel Shenir they headed for the straits of Perim without charts of the region finally arriving on the 7^th January 1915. As they approached a small British blockade von Mücke prepared to sacrifice the Choising and get his men to shore in the largest rowboats with orders to “Obey your officers”.

As a precaution the Choising was blacked out and hugging the coast so as to avoid being silhouetted they were however, illuminated by the Perim lighthouse but attracted no attention from the British gunboats and the Germans were able to slip past and land outside Hodeida the following day. There was a very optimistic belief that all they had to do was march into the town of Hodeida, board the Hejaz railway to Constantinople and they would be back in Kiel in a fortnight. After a misunderstanding which almost saw the garrison attack them as an Allied force making a hostile landing they were greeted with great ceremony and for the first time since leaving Emden they slept on real beds in the local barracks. The path ahead was a tricky one with the sea guarded by the Allies and a long route on land would take two months but with the certainty of the Allies catching them in the thin straits of the Red sea they were forced to prepare for a land march and von Mücke requested the necessary camels, water, food, guns and equipment from the Turkish commander. This endeavour would take two weeks. The climate was hard for the European sailors and despite boiling the water and regularly taking Quinine disease like Malaria and Dysentery quickly caught hold of them and fearing the complete loss of his men before they marched out von Mücke sought advice as to where he could take his men. He was directed to Sanaa in Yemen where the mountainous climate was similar to that of Europe and the water cleaner. The Germans set out on horseback for the journey which proved uneventful but was excellent preparation for the march they would have to endure from Hodeida to the railway. Although Sanaa did prove a better place to rest than Hodeida the sicknesses continued to ravage his forces and they sat for four weeks until they were well enough to ride back to the sea. The land journey was no longer an option, his men would never survive, they would have to sail.

On arriving back at Hodeida von Mücke was able to secure two Turkish Zambuks, a type of sail boat which only had one deck and room for about forty men in each. He divided his forces, their Turkish escorts and equipment in two and placed the wounded under Leutnant Gerdts. Together, under cover of darkness on the 14^th March the two vessels moved up the straits and split up so as to lessen the chance of capture by the British blockade manned by two gunboats and the auxiliary HMS Empress of Russia. Taking the chance that the British would not be on duty on a weekend they pressed through the shallows and passed the line where the British ships were stationed without any incident. Life on the Zambuks was very basic, they were small and cramped and there was a continuing problem with lice which were removed from clothing every morning, the most in one shirt was seventy-four! The journey was slow and a little tedious, more so than it had been on the Ayesha as there was absolutely no room to move about at all and everyone huddled under the woollen blankets at night to stay warm and in the sun to stay cool. This was not a great way to travel for the sick but was their only hope as travelling by land and camel would be a virtual death sentence. Knowing that they needed a break von Mücke ordered the boats moved to land at the island of Marka. Their pilot guided von Mücke’s boat over the shallow reef which they passed over a  with a concerning shudder but passed out the other side unscathed, the second boat was less fortunate and Gerdts’ boat ruptured and sank quickly. As the sun sank quickly von Mücke risked his whole party by firing flares, making noise and even lighting a fire on his boat to attract the survivors who were now swimming in the dark shark infested water towards the shoreline. Through some stroke of luck there had been no fatalities with non-swimmers and the sick being brought in on makeshift rafts and a canoe. With no other option but to press on they managed to squeeze all seventy men into one boat and pressed onwards having spent the morning trying to recover what they could from their sunken fellow. With their luck returning a stiff southerly wind caught high in the sail and brought them into Coonfidah where they were able to get hold of a larger Zambuk and proceed further by sea in the company of a Turkish official and his wife who were likewise heading to Constantinople and relished the escort of heavily armed Germans.

The journey by water stopped at Leet in the 24^th March as they had been using the 350 mile long reefs known as the Farisan bank to dodge pursuit with their shallow bottom Zambuks but beyond Leet it was wide open sea and there was more news that their planned destination of Djidda was under Naval blockade by the British and absolutely no ship got past without inspection. There was no other choice but to continue by land so Camels and supplies were gathered. The landing party suffered its first casualty at 3am on the 27^th March as Seaman Keil, who had contracted Typhus in Hodeida finally succumbed. The shipwreck had weakened him further and the loss of all of their medical supplies in Gerdts’ Zambuk had condemned him. The day after burying him at sea the column of ninety camels moved out tied muzzle to tail marching for eighteen hours a day and only camping between 10am and 4pm during the hottest period. Their road was a perilous one along the coast in territory that was known to be crawling with robbers. Fortune continued to shine on them as there was a full moon that illuminated their trek but they took no chances with weapons at the ready, the machine guns divided between the head of the column and the rear guard under Leutnant Schmidt. On the 31^st they were greeted by a Turkish officer and his seventeen men at a water hole, they were from the garrison of Djidda sent ahead to meet them. They brought news that they were only a day’s march away but that the land ahead was plagued by a band of robbers numbering forty men an insignificant number considering the firepower they were carrying and if seventeen men could get past them then there should be no problem pushing on after a few hours rest. During the night Bedouins were sighted on the dunes but they backed away leaving the column unharrassed, with their goal so close von Mücke finally began to relax his guard and unclipped his bandolier and laid his rifle across his lap before turning his camel down the line to check in with Schmidt.

The firing came from nowhere and everywhere, the whole column was surrounded with bullets raining down from all directions, von Mücke led a group of men to the head of the column rifles at the ready, this time there could be no avoiding an infantry engagement. The Camels were pulled down and the two machine guns were deployed and sprayed in the areas of rifle flashes whilst they evaluated the situation. Although the fire came from  ahead and to the left there was no way of telling how many foes surrounded them until the sun had risen properly and then the sea of Bedouin that were camped out around them became crystal clear, von Mücke would later estimate there were three hundred against his fifty German and twenty-four Turkish troops. The Germans had twenty four pistols, thirteen German rifles left supplemented by ten old and three new Turkish rifles with the four machine guns. Bayonets were fixed and the enemy charged, an organised infantry manoeuvre with silver bayonets shining in the sun caused the Bedouin to scatter leaving one German wounded and seventeen Turkish missing and later found in Djidda after beating a retreat much to the German’s consternation. There were also injuries to the Arabic porters who had taken shelter with the camels which had drawn the most fire. The Bedouin dead could not be counted but fifteen were found during the bayonet charge armed with the latest breach loading British rifles.

The equipment was quickly redistributed between the unwounded camels, the wounded men strapped to the sides and quickly formed into lines abreast with a skirmish line in the front under Leutnant Gerdts and rear under Leutnant Schmidt heading for the sea. If they could reach the coast they would illuminate a side of attack. Dr Lang and Leutnant Wellmann led the main caravan whilst Leutnant Gyssling took charged of the flanks ready to respond to any attack. They rode for ten minutes before the enemy fire resumed but thankfully fell short. Leutnant Schmidt’s force bore the brunt of the fire and a shot killed one of the machine gun bearing camels. A request was sent forward for a fresh beast whilst Schmidt ordered the machine gun deployed and fired at the horde that was forming around him, moments later he was laying mortally injured and seaman Josef Rademacher was killed outright and Wellman took command as he brought up two spare camels. This was becoming more and more like an organised attack rather than just a random raid by bandits, von Mücke had mad it common knowledge that a heavily armed German company was moving up to Djidda to try and scare off bandits but it seemed to have attracted a stronger foe.

The fire stopped suddenly as two of the remaining Turkish soldiers ran towards the Bedouins waving white flags of parley which provided time for the Germans to dig in with sandbags filled, camels circled, machineguns placed at the corners of the compound, wounded and Dr Lang placed in a secure position and the water buried where it could not be hit by random gunfire. The Bedouins demanded the Germans disarmed themselves, handed over all of their supplies, ammunition, water, camels and £11,000s before being allowed to move on unmolested to which von Mücke refused. The firing went on all day until nightfall but with no more casualties despite the growing accuracy. It was hot and the men hadn’t eaten all day, the moment they so much as lifted their heads above the parapet than a bullet whistled past. Ammunition was running short especially that half of it was defective having lain underwater in the Zambuk shipwreck for a day and an order was quickly circulated to conserve the “dry” ammunition for the machineguns in case of night attack. As night fell the trenches were deep enough that the men could relax and the men were allowed to sleep in shifts leaving half on duty under an officer after an inspection and cleaning of all weapons. They also had to bury Leutnant Schmidt who had died at 9:00 pm.

A runner was sent on to Djidda which von Mücke estimated as eight hours march on foot away and before dawn the men were roused, given water and hard tack biscuits. As the sun rose so did their opponents who began their incessant shooting again only to be met with full disciplined volleys from the German line as they tried to bluff their strength and coordination but the ammunition situation meant that it soon dwindled. Fireman Lanig was hit twice and died whilst another man was severely wounded. All Dr Lang could do was to dose the wounded up with brandy and patch the wounds with the bandage packs left over from Emden, it was heart breaking to watch the men die and not to be able to do anything to assist but it was all Lang could do until they got to Djidda. There was also an infestation of dung beetles that began swarming over the encampment crawling over the faces and clothes of the sleeping and wounded alike and increasing the chance of a lockjaw infection. On top of that was the incessant heat of the desert and the ever present sand that coated their faces, stung their eyes and filled their trenches but yet they held on for another day.

As night fell again two more runners were sent out for Djidda and the Germans tried to get some sleep. The prolonged combat was starting to take its toll upon the sentries and when a pack of jackals were attracted by the smell of dead camels they opened fire believing it to be a Bedouin raiding party.

The beginning of the third day was critical for the small band of sailors as water was almost depleted as was the ammunition with no word from Djidda. To surrender opened up too many possibilities none of which were palatable to von Mücke who instead planned to sit out the day, hope for relief and if none was to arrive break out on foot. It was a risk but there was a chance that some of his men might make it but he would be forced to sacrifice the sick and wounded.

An envoy from his aggressors quickly put any fears to rest by lessening the demand and asking for £20,000s and allowing them to keep arms and supplies. The wily German commander believed they were briefly because they had seen the approach of a relief column. He gambled with his men’s lives by posturing and telling his visitor that he had more than enough ammunition and water for four weeks, his men were in an excellent position covered by their machine guns. He also invited his opposite number to entreat with him face to face but this was angrily refused. He was told to surrender and meet the terms or face the consequences. The demand was met with curt refusal. Silence followed a last frantic Bedouin volley but the Germans held their ground in case it was a trap. Soon camels of the Turkish army arrived under the Emir of Mecca’s second son arrived and after redistributing supplies they marched leaving forty dead camels and their two fallen comrades.

Having reached Djidda his sick and wounded were taken to the military hospital which slowed their departure time by some days but they were finally getting treatment. There was great apprehension at proceeding on foot in case they were ambushed by the same group of Bedouins and so they once again decided to run the British blockade in a zambuk. News was spread that they would be travelling by camel to try and draw attention to the desert and away from the sea lanes. During the night of the 8^th and 9^th April they stole out of the harbour and proceeded by shallows and coast as far as Sherm Rabigh where they traded for a fresh boat and headed out again. A general weariness was setting in, they had been travelling in one way or another since August six months before and Germany was still a long way off. With three dead and others wounded and sick there must have been a growing worry that they might not make it through but their commander was determined and considering what they had faced getting this far they had faith in him to get them through.

They reached Serm Munnaiburra on the 28^th April which lay 10 nautical miles short of El Wegh their destination but it also marked the end of the protective reefs and not willing to push their luck they proceeded over land arriving the following day and enjoying the well needed baths and sleep. With one final mountain trek with camels to El Ula before them von Mücke decided to take no chances finding his outlook coloured by the previous caravan becoming more suspicious and cautious ordering that every night rudimentary trenches were dug, loaded rifles kept to hand and sentries set. They found that the mountain climate was cooler, far more agreeable to Europeans and more importantly there was plenty of fresher drinking water.

Despite encroaching on a Sheikh’s territory and causing upset for not using his camel the journey was uneventful and the tired Germans arrived at El Ula station and into another world unscathed. Their commander had ridden ahead and things were prepared for them including bathing facilities, food, cold German wine, fresh uniforms, letters from home, the Iron Cross and comfortable chairs.

During the journey to Constantinople they were treated as celebrities and greeted with cheers and marching bands a far cry from the hardships of their global trek. The atmosphere in Constantinople was electric. The landing party headed by von Mücke, his officers and the war flag they had carried before them since leaving Emden flying on their left paraded with every bit of precision they had done at Kiel before the Commander in Chief of the Turkish Navy Admiral Wilhelm Souchon. Coming to a halt von Mücke lowered his sword and reported;

“The landing party of the Emden, five officers, seven petty officers and thirty men strong”

Their only loses being two killed by the Bedouin and one to disease and others too sick to parade. It had been an epic journey that ensured von Mücke would be elevated to national hero and his books Emden and Ayesha would go on to be best sellers in Germany during the war and worldwide afterwards.

Karlsruhe's survivors voyage home

SMS Karlsruhe was gone but a third of her crew remained

With his Cruiser and commanding officer lost to the depths Kapitän-lieutnant Studt had to make serious decisions as to how to proceed and what was best for the men. He was a long way from home with limited resources and in hostile waters. The options were ultimately surrender, internment in a neutral port or trying to return to Germany or one of her allies. The role of a German First officer was to be in charge of the running of the vessel and the visible face of command whilst the Captain led a solitary existence. The Captain only appeared at important junctures to add to his gravitas and was tied by strict discipline to avoid any fraternization with the ships officers outside of commands. This left the First officer as the disciplinarian, day to day commander and the conduit of messages to the Captain in short he was well prepared to command a vessel or body of men and make decisions.

Kapitän-lieutnant Studt climbed aboard the Rio Negro after the remains of Karlsruhe slipped beneath the waves and immediately began to assess the situation. One hundred and twenty one men had survived the explosion that had taken 21 men including Kohler to their watery graves with them went all the weaponry, supplies and ammunition, he was left with the two tenders and off ahead the other collier the Farn. As the senior officer he took command of the flotilla as well as relieving Oberleutnant zur See Tepfer of his command on Rio Negro and held a quick conference to discuss how best to proceed. Stopping at a neutral South American port was out of the question, an anti-German feeling had been growing in Brazil and British diplomatic pressure would force their internment as enemy combatants and news that Karlsruhe was gone would spread quickly. It would be beneficial for the war effort and the survivors that the Royal Navy kept up their search for the elusive cruiser rather than them. They could try and sail south but that was where Craddock’s mighty warships had gone, true von Spee would more than likely come around the Horn but what could he add to the East Asiatic other than his tenders empty of coal? There was also the dangerous journey. Could they contact Kronprinz Wilhelm? It was a possibility but the liner could be far out of range of their W/T set and could attract far too much attention especially if they were to organise a rendez-vous point. Studt knew that they were alone and would have to remain so for the meantime.

The next big question was where to go if south was out of the question and with no eapons and no wish for internment little point in going north it was clear that they would have to head east to Germany. Knowing that the British would be policing their home waters heavily to keep the German navy bottled up. Studt suggested a sunnier route via the Azores, slipping past Gibraltar at night and heading for neutral but German friendly Italy or Austro-Hungary. On the surface this seemed the most reasonable rout, a shorter journey and less chance of running into the Royal Navy. One of his engineering officers, Grabe, disagreed pointing out the British maintained warships at Cape Verde and regular patrols from Gibraltar to the coast of Africa and then there was the probability of the French fleet. Grabe successfully argued that although the weather would be deteriating at this time of year there was a better chance of avoiding British patrols and making contact with the German fleet or travelling via one of the Scandinavian ports.

They would need to be cautious of how they proceeded though as the Rio Negro was well know by British Intelligence from countless debriefs from former prisoners, she would, at least on the eastern coast of the Americas, be recognised quickly. The problem was of the three vessels available to him the Rio Negro was the best suited for the journey but what to do with the others? Farn was too far away and too much unnecessary W/T traffic including coordinates for a meeting would surely draw attention. After working out coal supplies they realised they didn’t have enough coal for Indrani and Rio Negro so decisions were made. Rio Negro was better suited for carrying the survivors rather than the more modern collier. If they pulled into a neutral port they would be able to bluff their way as a group of reservist sailors heading home on a German vessel rather than on a British vessel which would point to them being combatants.

Farn was directed to detach and remain at sea until further notice whilst Rio Negro and Indrani moved to the remote part of the Tesstigos Islands where the crews cannibalised the unfortunate Indrani for her 3000 tonnes of coal and anything that was of value for the journey home and also took the time to get rid of any evidence of the Karlsruhe including ribbons on hats, lifeboats and anything with the insignia or name. From now on they were strictly reservists trying to get to Kiel, it was a longshot but it could just be the difference between internment or returning to the Fatherland. With Indrani scuttled  the Rio Negro began her slow journey at 12 knots across the Atlantic as far from populated land as possible and steering away from any ship that crossed his path. As they turned for Iceland on the 19^th November a warship was seen approaching and panic set in. A Union jack was hoisted up and the Rio Negro continued on her course casually hoping to fit in as one of the many merchants and vessels travelling across the Atlantic in the increased traffic. As the vessel drew nearer they must have felt that their long journey had been wasted and they would spend the rest of the war as prisoners, the Atmosphere was tense and the crew held their collective breaths  until she passed with the US flag fluttering on her mast as she sailed west.

The journey was long and tedious with the only news from the wireless to tell them what was going on in the outside world. They celebrated von Spee’s victory at Coronel and commiserated on the 20^th when they heard a message from the Admiralstab for Karlsruhe telling them their work was done and come home. There was other bad news as well, they heard of the sinking of the Kaiser Wilhelm der grosse and they must have wondered about the fate of Kronprinz Wilhelm. The weather and wind was bitterly cold and the crew only had their light weight tropical whites but that suited Studt as it meant the majority of the men were below deck at anyone time which added to the façade of a collier or merchant ship. Then came the storm. On the 23^rd November freezing sleet and snow rained down freezing the decks and making access to the mast observation points impossible so that all they could do was keep pressing on through the gap between Iceland and the Faroes Islands. By the 26^th the storm passed leaving only minor damage to the vessel and the crew, cold and tired but still fighting fit. By the 28^th Leutnant Frese plotted the course for Norway despite not having any specific maps and charts if the area but using the general Steiler’s Atlas he not only managed to get them to Norway but also to the very target port of Aalesund.

It was more than luck that saw the vessel through the blockade. As the weather turned to winter and the cold storms set in the Royal Navy found their Edgar class cruisers and destroyers were unsuited and sending them out was putting the vessels and cews at risk so withdrew the 10^th Squadron. The Admiralty was in the process of of organising merchant ships which were of a hardier design to take over the blockade and through this loop hole sailed the Rio Negro.

On arrival Studt reported to the senior Naval commander, who was the officer commanding the gunship Troll which guarded the harbour. He reported that he was carrying 159 reservists from South America bound for Kiel and that his last port of call was Para. On consulting with his superiors in Oslo the Captain searched and held the vessel whilst the German consul brought a few luxuries and promised to dispatch coded letters to Germany telling the Admiralstab of their status.

With the radio set temporarily disabled by the Norweigans to prevent sending coded messages or intelligence all Studt could do was sit and see what came about. It did not take long before the Norweigans granted them permission to sail south in their territorial waters which gave the Germans some protection from British interference. There was also word from Germany, vessels of the Kaiserliche marine would be looking out for them as they approached home waters and would escort them. To be certain Oberleutnant Aust (the ship’s adjutant) and Leutnant Eyring were to travel via civilian post liner so that if the worse came to the Rio Negro someone would be able to report the fate of Karlsruhe.

Rio Negro began the last dangerous leg on the 1^st December staying well within Norweigan territorial waters with her original commander, Tepfner, taking station on the bridge for the duration. Using the charts supplied by the German consul Tepfner hugged the coastline as closely as possible all the way down to the Skagerrak but ultimately it was bad weather that kept the British naval cordon away. During the voyage the Germans broke their neutrality agreement with Norway by sending transmissions to the High seas fleet as Studt was apprehensive about approaching German waters and the minefield which was not on the civilian charts they had acquired. On arrival at Fredrickshavn Studt went ashore to secure some fresh charts whilst an exhausted Tepfner retired to bed after thirty-six consecutive hours on the bridge. They broke Denmark’s neutrality as well by communicating with their superiors to state their position and request an escort which was granted. On the 5^th December the torpedo boat S-124 met with them and began to lead them to the safety of German waters and the Naval base at Kiel.

A veil of secrecy was quickly drawn over the new arrival and Admiral Hebbinghaus the officer commanding of Kiel boarded the vessel and quickly ordered them to silence only they and the Admiralstab knew of the fate of Karlsruhe, Studt had not even told the commander of S-124 who they were and had stuck rigidly to their cover story. Regular radio intercepts and intelligence reports showed the British were still searching for Karlsruhe and Admiral Patey’s squadron had swung around the Horn whilst Stoddart was scouring the coast of Brazil and all the while Britiain was searching for a phantom they were committing resources they could be utilising elsewhere such as the Mediterranean. Although rumours did leak that Karlsruhe’s crew had returned and one of the crew was recognised and his return reported to British intelligence only for it to be dismissed as hearsay and not enough to cancel the sweeps which would confirm the ship’s loss. Studt’s men were congratulated by Prinz Heinrich von Hohenzollern and they were reassigned to the cruiser Regensburg which had just been completed.

The last of Karlsruhe’s crew still at sea aboard the Farn put into San Juan harbour when her food supplies ran out having received no further orders from Studt. They gave themselves up to internment with no hope of returning to Germany on their own or linking up with other German forces following the loss of the East Asiatic Squadron.

The battle of the Falklands - Von Spee's end

It was 5am ship's time when SMS Gneisenau and Nurnberg broke formation with the rest of the East Asiatic squadron and set a northerly course for the Falklands. Captain Maerker, along with Huhn and Lüdecke, had voiced his concerns at the meeting with Graf Spee on 6th December about the proposed landing but he had been overruled.

The two cruisers were to advance to the east of Cape Pembroke at 14 knots and survey the mouth of Port William and subdue any defences. Once the way is clear Nürnberg would head out towards Berkeley sound to scout out British shipping whilst Gneisnau lowered boats to survey the outer harbour of Port William for mines. Once clear Nurnberg would enter the harbour of Port Stanley and take on stores whilst Gneisnau advanced to the channel between the two anchorages and lowered cutters filled with marines to arrest the Governor under the cover of Nürnberg's guns. The two cruisers were due to return to the rest of the squadron by 19:30.

The only worry was that the British fleet might have taken shelter in Port William harbour after Coronel and been bolstered to form another line of defence. As they approached the islands the Gneisnau's chief gunnery officer Lieutenant -Commander Busch relayed that there was thick with dust and smoke. As at Tahiti the coal stores were being burnt to deny them to the Germans. He also reported four A frame style mast heads visible which meant that the battleship that they had heard was accompanying Craddock was here joined by another, there was also a cruiser advancing to the mouth of the harbour. If Gneisnau could sink her there then the rest of the British fleet would be bottled up and easy pickings. signalling Busch's observations to the Scharnhorst, Maerker was confident the vessels in the harbour would pose little threat. The German cruisers advanced, ensigns flying and guns presented. It was 9.20 am.

In London Winston Churchill received a telegram from the Governor of the Falklands saying;

Admiral Spee arrived at daylight this morning with all his ships and is now I'm action with Admiral Sturdee's whole fleet which was coaling.

The fear that gripped the Admiralty was that Sturdee had been caught napping and the German Admiral was tearing him apart at his leisure in port. This would be worse than Coronel and the Mediterranean debacle combined and would do immeasurable damage to British prestige, especially in the Southern American states but also embolden the German navy at home into action.

Canopus beached at the Falklands for support

Things were not as desperate as they seemed though. Sturdee's fleet were indeed coaling with their boilers no where near full steam but Sturdee's noted calmness under pressure could save a situation  that might make a hotter headed Commander flap and panic making the situation worse. Glasgow was the first to see the signal from the lookout point at Sapper's hill via Canopus and tried to signal Sturdee's flagship but the smoke and clouds of dust that hung over the harbour obscured the signal flags, finally the 3" salute cannon was fired to gain the admiral's attention. There quickly followed a report that German warships were approaching from the southeas . Sturdee took stock of his vessels dispositions. The two heavy battlencruisers had colliers filling their bunkers, Glasgow and Carnarvon were fully refuelled but like the rest of the squadron had no steam up. Bristol and Cornwall had low fuel stocks and had opened up engines for maintainence. Only HMS Kent had steam up but lacked fuel.

After a few moments quiet thought the Admiral ordered Kent to leave port, colliers to move away and the whole force to get steam up. It would take time but that was all he could do. He was depending on Canopus to give enough covering fire with Carnarvon and Kent to keep the two cruisers at bay. His orders given, Admiral Sturdee went below for breakfast.

Canopus fired her heavy guns at maximum range of 11,500 yards at 9.20 sending up great white spouts of water in front of Maerker's vessel. Then the improbable happened as the last shell struck the Armoured cruiser's funnel sending German crew scattering for cover. By a twist of fate it was a practice shell and did not explode. Shaken, Maerker ordered the ships turn east but when another salvo did not follow up he resumed their course towards the ports whilst sending a signal to the flagship that they had come under fire. His intention was still to bottle the British fleet up.

Admiral von Spee had different aims though. Coal was vital to his squadron's journey and fresh supplies would be very welcome but not at the expense of irreplacable ammunition which would be needed if they made it to the North sea and had to run the British blockade. They could also not afford to take any lame ducks with them, especially not one of his Armoured cruisers. The British squadron at the Falklands was of no consequence. They had already set the coal stocks aflame and all were at anchor. In the time it took them to get out of the harbour and get a full head of steam his forces would have disappeared into the blue and heading for the rendezvous point with fresh colliers. The British would never catch him, especially not the Queen class battleship the only ship that posed a serious threat. More importantly this lucky escape meant that they would never find him out in the blue in such numbers again as they would need to split up to sweep for him. Orders were issued to Maerker to turn his ships around and rejoin Scharnhorst and the rest of the squadron heading east at a steady pace whilst the three support vessels released to the south east. On the arrival of his detached ships von Spee turned his warships south to give the illusion they were heading around the Cape for the safety of Chilean waters or to lose the British amongst the islands and bad weather.

There has been debate over the German admiral's actions and why he didn't press the advantage. With hindsight it is easy to see that the Germans could have easily caught Sturdee napping and, as Churchill and Fisher feared, take the fleet apart at anchor or bottle them up and escape. On the bridge of Scharnhorst a century ago though von Spee was playing the long game and every decission was made with one eye on the final confrontation in the North sea preserving as much of his squadron for that bloody day had to be his primary duty. They had already come half way, why throw it away for nothing?

With the Germans well underway, Sturdee's fleet slowly brought their boilers up to steam by mixing oil and coal. Glasgow was the first to pull out of port at 9.45 followed by Carnarvon and the two battlecruisers Invincible and Inflexible and the vessels began to give chase at 24 knots. The first major problem for Sturdee was that despite the icy clear and calm weather he could not see the East Asiatic Squadron. The amount of smoke being belched out from the two battlecruisers was obscuring the observers view. It was a particularly nasty thick acrid smoke caused by the burning of the mixed fuels. Sturdee quickly ordered Inflexible to his starboard quarter and Glasgow to his port and at the same time ordered the fleet to a more leisurely 19 knots so the armoured cruisers could keep up.There also followed a signal that the midday meal would still be served as normal at 11:45.


The three German support vessels were fleeing the Royal Navy at speed and separately to von Spee's warships. They had been ordered to head for Pitcairn island to await the East Asiatic or the outcome of the battle. Captain Fanshawe of the Bristol received a report that the German transports or colliers were making their way towards the Falklands at 11:00. Fearing the Germans were leading off the fleet so that an armed landing could take place Bristol was detached from the pursuit at 11:45 to locate the Auxiliary HMS Macedonia and find the German supply ships. If any of the raiders escaped they would be robbed of extra coal and supplies. He took Bristol west south west meeting the converted liner at 12:30 and turned towards Point Pleasant and together began their search of the area finding nothing over the next hour and a half.

There seemed only one logical course of action and he turned southeast, the direction von Spee's warships had been heading. It made sense that the supply ships would follow them at a distance or be heading for a rendezvous in the same direction. There soon came a message from Fitzroy, a small settlement near Point Pleasant. Two steamers had been spotted moving at full speed past the point and minutes later their smoke was spotted off to port from Bristol's conning tower. Fanshawe turned to investigate.

The Baden and Santa Isabel did not intend to be stopped and tried to run from the two British ships ignoring signals to stop for half an hour until at 15:30 Bristol opened fire on them. It was futile to resist and thinking of their crews lives the captains ordered a full stop. Fanshawe had been led to believe that these ships would be full of German Marines for the proposed landing and was ready to sink them as per Sturdee's extensive pre battle instructions, the white flags rapidly changed that and further investigation revealed their cargo of coal and food supplies.

At 19:00 with the prisoners removed to the Macedonia Fanshawe decided to follow his original order and both British ships opened fire before Bristol turned to follow Sturdee's line and leaving the Auxiliary to make certain the German ships sank.


By 12:20 Admiral Sturdee signalled Inflexible to "Engage the enemy" and together the two battle cruisers worked up speed to 26 knots and by 12:50 Inflexible was firing on the Leipzig at the rear of the German formation. Due to engine vibration and the smoke obscuring the rang finders the two turrets on each of Sturdee's battle cruisers took half an hour to sight and range con Spee's squadron.

SMS Scharnhorst

At 13:20 Admiral von Spee made the decision that could make or break his command. The British wanted his two Armoured cruisers destroyed and it would onlybe a matter of time before he would be forced into action, time in which Leipzig would take a critical hit. He would have to buy them time to escape. He might even be lucky and damage the British enough that he could still lead his squadron home but he doubted it. A signal was sent to the ligh-cruisers to break formation and escape as beast they could. He then signalled Gneisnau of his intention and together both ships turned East-north-east and commenced firing on the two battle cruisers.

The German Admiral's aim was to buy his light cruisers as much time as possible and to close the range so his 8.3" guns and if possible even closer and use his 5.9"s. His men were already performing well at ranging the British and then firing in ordered measured shots. One British officer commented;

The German firing was magnificent to watch. Perfect ripple salvoes all along their sides. A brown-coloured puff with a centre of flame marking each gun as it fired... They straddled us time after time.

 Sturdee on the other hand was struggling with bad gunnery. Not only were his reservist crews lacking in practice they were also struggling with the lack of visibility from all of their own smoke. The British whilst fighting at long range also found that they were losing out on accuracy and then Invincible took a hit forcing Sturdee to increase the range again. Von Spee seized on this opportunity to turn south again and try to escape again whilst they were out of range and hoped to encounter bad weather that could help them lose their pursuers. They managed to keep away for  forty minutes but ultimately Sturdee's top speed was too much for them and again the British shells fell about Scharnhorst and Gneisnau. The Germans turned on their axis and crossed the British T so as to bring their broadsides to bear. The manoeuvre did not work.

The German shells were accurate but they bounced off the Invincible and Inflexible's armoured decks where as the British 12" lyddite shells went through the German ships as if they were made of china causing death and destruction on the lower decks and shattering gun turrets. On Scharnhorst the Admiral's flag slipped to half mast and Maerker believed the Admiral dead and signalled Schultz (Scharnhorst's captain) to confirm it.
I am alright so far. You were right after all came the Admiral's reply. There was also one final order from Scharnhorst to Maerker to try and save his vessel if he could and then the flagship passed her sister ship heading straight for the British vessels. The battle had taken its toll on von Spee's flagship as she listed to port and her once proud engines pushed her at an ever decreasing speed and she was clearly taking on water. Pochhammer, the Gneisnau first officer later recalled seeing the flagship with;

Funnels are fallen, smoke was pouring out, flames were visible inside the vessel through shot holes and scuttles.But her guns crashed out furiously and without intermission.

Scharnhorst sinking

The Admiral was trying to buy time for his friend and son aboard Gneisnau and kept up a steady stream of fire on Invincible turning his ship to starboard for one last broadside. Scharnhorst's outer decks were beginning to flood as fires raged across her decks as she began to heel over to port and as the sea got to six foot from the fore turret she fired her last round then she slipped under the waves leaving a cloud of of steam, powder smoke and coal dust that left the crew of Gneisnau feeling a "boundless loneliness" and a fear of their own inevitable fate. Pochhammer felt the pall was saying "the Scharnhorst waits for the Gneisnau."

Maerker's vessel was in a poor state as well, her hull was holed and on fire. A shell had penetrated the after dressing room and not only killed the wounded being treated it also killed the Staff surgeon and the Squadron's Chaplin who was administering last rites. Pochhammer made a patrol below deck and reported to his Captain that there were piles of wreckage, dead and dying below decks and fires were breaking out. The engines were damaged and her speed much reduced. Despite von Spee's intentions and the high morale of his crew who were bringing up reserves to replace the dead and carrying up the ammunition to guns by hand in areas where mechanical hoists laid shattered, he knew escape was impossible. Both the Inflexible and Invincible had their guns trained on him and they were now joined by Stoddart on Carnarvon and between them they went about the business of taking out gun battery after battery pausing briefly thinking their work done but commencing again when a port battery squeezed out a final shot.

The battle was over and the German officers knew it. The Captain ordered the men on deck with anything that could float whilst another team opened the seacocks and planted charges. Officers were moving amongst the survivors issuing hammocks, wood from life boats and fittings when the vessel lurched starboard and those on deck pushed forward and over the port side and onto the Gneisnau's hull.

Many a clenched fist was brandished [at the British] and the men's fury found vent n full blooded seaman's oaths. Then the Captain, who preserved his wonted calm to the last, ordered three cheers for H.M the Emperor, and "Our good and gallant Gneisnau" and proceeded to sink the ship. Our crew, who had really given their utmost in endurance and courage, complied with enthusiasm and the strains of "Deutschland über alles" echoed through the ship with all its wonted vigour, followed by the hymn of the "Black, White and Red flag" which was flying riddled with shot, at the mainmast-head.

Inflexible picking up Gneisnau's survivors

The order was given to abandon ship and as she capsized two hundred men, including Pochhammer, Inflexible stopped to pick up survivors and in all 166 of her 764 compliment were pulled alive from the water and survived to serve the war in POW camps including Gneisnau's first officer Fregatten-kapitäin Pochhammer but not her captain or von Spee's youngest son Lieutenant Heinrich von Spee.
were plunged into the freezing 4° water which quickly claimed the wounded and weakened crewmen. The Albatrosses also descended on the wounded using razor sharp bills to tear at soft flesh and open wounds. The men were forced to try and defend themselves with the very flotsum they clung too, the effort tiring them out further and leaving them vulnerable to the cold.

The Kent, Glasgow and Cornwall pursued the light German units as fast as they could. Dresden was already pulling ahead of the other two Captain Luce of the Glasgow already believed that he could not bring that vessel to action before nightfall and signalled Cornwall that he would slow the Leipzig down so that the Cornwall could come up and sink her with its heavier guns. At 14:50 Luce opened fire and Captain Huhn responded by turning to present his broadside and firing off barrages, he knew that he could not escape and was prepared to give a good account for his vessel in the face of the enemy. Leipzig's navigational officer reported after the battle that his vessel's rate of fire was hampered by the fact only three of the starboard guns and only one port gun was occasionally able to fire on the enemy. This didn't stop the Leipzig striking the Glasgow and causing boiler damage that would stop her from chasing Dresden and concerned Luce enough to not close with her where the German's 4.1" guns would do more damage.

Cornwall closed to support Glasgow and at 16:42 Captain Ellerton's vessel blew Leipzig's foremast away and twenty minutes later struck the German with his full broadside which had set her on fire within an hour. After a patrol around the deck the chief gunnery officer reported to Captain Huhn that the guns were all spent and could offer no more resistance. Huhn stood philosophically for a moment before turning to his Chief torpedo officer and told him it was his turn. Leipzig tried to engage and strike the Glasgow and Cornwall but to no avail, the British heavy guns took their toll and the German cruiser slowed to a stop.

As Leipzig came under fire the Nürnberg and Dresden were going hell for leather to escape the British cruisers with the Dresden well ahead and HMS Kent doggedly pursuing Nürnberg. The British vessel's coal stocks were getting dangerously low but Captain Allen urged the stokers on and ordered all woodwork to be thrown on the fires to increase speed and despite her reputation as poor at holding her steam the ships engineers managed to coax the vessel to 25 knots which was over her commisioning top speed and well above what she was comfortable with, the over stretched engines were vibrating so much that the gun target controllers were next to useless!

The distance was down to seven miles and gradually closing until by 17:00 the Nürnberg opened fire with her stern guns hoping to deter her pursuers but to no avail, her shots sailed over the Kent.

Allen pushed his vessel harder to bring his 6"guns to bear and to narrow the chance of missing through the drizzle and fading light as well as the engine vibrations. Soon they began to return fire.

Despite Nürnberg's excellent rate of fire and accuracy her 4.1" shells could not penetrate the Armoured cruiser's plating. Kent on the other hand got in two lucky shots, one of which hit the after steering plane beneath the water line killing all save one in the compartment.

At 17:35 two of Nürnberg's overworked boilers blew and her speed was reduced to 18 knots. There was only one option open to von Schönberg - turn and fight to either disable the pursuer or go down with honour, he ordered his cruiser to turn 8 points to port to present her full broadside and fired.

Allen knew that his coal and the daylight were fading. If he wanted to stop the German cruiser he had to move to close range and trust that the Kent's armour could absorb the smaller vessel's shells. He brought Kent on a converging course at 6000 yards and the one sided exchange began.

By 18:00 the range had fallen to 3000 yards and although Nürnberg had managed to get a shell burst within one of Kent's gun turrets and one on the wireless room knocking out the communications the British ship was fairly undamaged. The German cruiser faired very differently and by 18.25 she had come to a dead stop, all but two guns were silent, her top mast had been shot away and fires were breaking out. Kent began to circle the crippled ship but the moment Nürnberg began to alter course, presumably to fire her other broadside, Allen gave the order to fire all his starboard guns at 3800 yards knocking out the forward guns and ravaging the forecastle before moving out of torpedo range and ceasing fire.

Nürnberg was barely afloat, the forecastle was decimated with no signs of life with a fire burning brightly under the bridge conning tower and she was starting to list and down by the stern. Still her flag flew defiantly and as Kent approached she opened fire again until five minutes later it was ripped down. Schönberg knew there was nothing left for his vessel and ordered his men to assemble on deck and to load the wounded into a lifeboat. With a final three cheers for the Kaiser the boat was lowered into the sea.

The Last man by Hans Bohrdt

Captain Allen had surveyed his lifeboats and found them all holed or shattered by shellfire and ordered his carpenters to begin repairs to the least damaged as quickly as possible. Within 20 minutes the gig andf cutter were also being lowered but it was too late. Nürnberg's boat of wounded had sunk due to its own damage and at 19:26 the cruiser suddenly heeled over to starboard and sank within four minutes taking the majority of the crew with her. The lifeboats moved forward but only managed to pull twelve men from the water alive, five were to die before reaching Kent or soon afterwards. As the ship sank the British saw some Germans clinging to some wreckage waving the Naval ensign attached to a staff and through the cold still night air heard them singing Deutschland über alles.

The Kent remained on station until 21:00 trying to search for survivors but no more of the crew of 322 could be found, including Lieutenant Otto von Spee, the admiral's eldest son and Captain von Schönberg.

Captain Allen later reported that;

I very much regret if my closing the enemy to such short range was the cause of so many casualties. If I erred in taking my ship too close to the enemy it was due to my extreme eagerness to sink her before she could escape, there were only a few hours of daylight left.

Kent had been struck 37 times during the fighting and had suffered four men dead and twelve wounded. Although it seems pretty much one sided the Kent came close to being destroyed. A German shell had burst against the A3 casemate and ignited some of the charges. A sheet of flame shot down the shell hoist into the ammunition corridor where another charge sat ready. Had this ignited the fire would have quickly spread into the magazine and caused a chain reaction that would have blown the ship up. Luckily Sergeant James Mates of the RMLI was stood at the bottom of the hoist and had the presence of mind to throw the charge away and flood the compartment. In gratitude but perhaps not fully recognising the danger that had been posed, the Admiralty awarded him the Military cross.

With a severe lack of coal the Kent began to limp back to Stanley at a fuel conserving dawdle that did not see them return to a very surprised Sturdee the following afternoon. With no W/T transmitter Allen had been unable to signal his status and Kent was presumed sunk.


Glasgow approached the smouldering wreck of Leipzig and signalled Captain Luce's message;

Am anxious to save life. Do you surrender?

Luce was still wary that although the guns had fallen silent and the German vessel clearly was near her end her Imperial ensign still flew from the foremast denoting she was still an active combatent despite being aflame at each end and her main mast and two funnels blown away. If he brought his ship in close would the German ship surprise him?

An ambush was far away from Huhn's mind. His ship was dying and he knew there was nothing more he could ask of her or the crew. Orders were sent out for the remaining crew to assemble amidships with life saving equipment and the sea cocks were opened to aid the vessel's sinking. After a brief address to the surviving 150 men and three cheers for the Kaiser he pointed to the flag fluttering from the mast and the inferno that was raging at its base.

If anyone can reach the ensign, they can haul it down, for we shall sink now.

Obediently one crewman rushed forward to the mast but was overcome by the flames before he could reach it. It was I of little consequence as the vessel was clearly mortally damaged and as soon as Huhn gave the order his men would leave the vessel and the battle would be over.

Through ill luck a gun fired, whether by mistake, design or a shell lodged in the barrel overheated in one of the many fires no one knows but the result was the same. Glasgow fearing she was under fire openned up with her main guns with deadly effect on the massed ranks of sailors. Blasts and shrapnel ricocheting off the conning tower blasted men to pieces, tore away limbs turning the decks into a charnel house awash with blood and the stench of cordite and death. Men scattered in panic hiding behind the gunshields or diving into the sea and swimming towards their aggressors but whilst the British thought there was still fight left in Leipzig they there would be no rescue. As the death toll rose the surviving fifty men clung to their cover as best they could and waited in terror for the violence to stop and in a lull managed to launch two green flares.

SMS Leipzig

Luce saw them and took this as the Germans attempting to communicate their surrender and at 20:12 and approached again signalling;

I am sending boats to save lives.

 At 20:45 the lifeboats were made ready for launch to pull Huhn's men to safety. Leipzig had no lifeboats left to launch, they had long been turned to splinters or burnt up. The surviving crew sat with their captain In the dark on the forecastle sharing his cigarettes and calmly waiting for the British boats to hit the water. Looking out into the black they saw the white hulled boats approach, their nightmare was nearly over. When the British reached 40 yards Huhn turned to his companions and ordered them over the side before turning and walking forward into the dark night, going down with his vessel.

The water was cold and with little light the men in the sea stood little chance as fatigue and wounds combined to sap them of their strength. They're splashing and cries soon diminished. The surviving officers blew their whistles and the four boats approached plucking men from the icy embrace of the sea. Glasgow's two boats pulled seven officers who's whistles saved their lives, and ten men, Cornwall's pulled one out one man. Out of a crew of 288 only 18 were saw the end of the battle.

After seven hours of combat Leipzig disappeared beneath the waves at 21:23. Von Spee's oldest and most obsolete vessel had acquitted itself well in the face of the enemy.

SMS Dresden escaped into a rain and fog squall and disappeared from the combat zone. The other survivor was the hospital ship Seydlitz. The former liner that was carrying some British prisoners (From the collier Drummuir) and supplies had been tailing von Spee's warships acting as a hospital ship but with the approach of Sturdee's squadron she used her superior speed to escape south slipping past Bristol. She finally disappeared into the darkness and around the cape. She came very close to disaster though as she passed within four miles of gunfire and explosions that turned out to be the death throes of Leipzig.

The battle of the Falklands was considered to be the most decisive naval battles of the First World War and saw the almost complete destruction of von Spee's force. The battle saw 2000 Germans killed and the rest taken prisoner for 10 British sailors killed and 20 wounded. It also closed the chapter of the regular Kaiserliche-marine hunting merchant ships. Outside of the North sea only Dresden and the estuary bound Konigsberg remained elusive.