Germany, England, the other European powers, Japan and the United States had continually developed fleets of strong, modern naval forces from late in the 1800s until the war broke out in 1914. As with the American Great White Fleet's 1908 world cruise, the impressive, powerful warships were an excellent means to extend a nation's diplomatic and commercial influence in the era of colonies and growing commercial competition in the sea lanes.
Light Cruiser S.M.S. Emden
of the German Asiatic Squadron.
A part of the Imperial German Navy's battle fleet at sea led by the 13,200 ton Battleship S.M.S. Deutschland. She was one of five ships in her class capable of 18.5 knots and armed with four 11 inch, fourteen 6.7 inch, twenty-two 3.4 inch, eight smaller guns and six submerged torpedo tubes.
Both ships with the Asiatic Cruiser Squadron under Admiral von Spee sailed across the Pacific after the war started in 1914. On November 1, at Coronel off the west coast of South America, von Spee engaged and destroyed a British squadron under Admiral Craddock. After rounding Cape Horn, von Spee squadron encountered a superior British naval force at the Falkland Island on December 8 leading to the destruction of the German squadron in the battle that followed.
May 31, 1916
Photo: Cordite flames shooting out of the battle cruiser H.M.S. Lion's pierced "Q" turret roof (amidships).
Description of events by the H.M.S. Lion's Gunnery Officer.
As the indirect result of a German shell penetrating the roof of the turret, 10 minutes after the action started, a cordite fire occurred in the "Q" turret which very nearly resulted in the magazine and so the ship blowing up.
It appears that all the occupants of the gun house proper, most of the silent-cabinet's crew, and most of the working chamber's crew situated directly below the gun-house were killed or severly wounded by the detonation of this shell in the gun-house. The Officer of the Turret, although himself severly wounded, realized that his turret was out of action and on fire, and also that the fire might reach the magazine. He accordingly passed orders by the direct voice pipe down to the handling room below to close the magazine doors and open the magazine flood valves. This order was promptly carried out, and did in fact prevent the flash from the cordite charges reaching the magazines and so the ship from being blown up...The damage and loss of life caused by the actual explosion of the German shell did not extend to the magazine handling-room and shell-room crews, none of whom were wounded, but unfortunately all of them lost their lives through the cordite fire which followed a few minutes afterwards.
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Last update 01/30/2008.
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Author: Richard O. Aichele
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