Maritime

The Escape of the Goeben and Breslau, August 1914

The presence of these two ships in the Mediterranean at the opening of the First World War gave the Germans a dangerous advantage. Their escape to the Dardanelles, writes David Woodward, had a manifold influence on Allied strategy.

The Battle of Jutland, Part II

The second phase of the Battle of Jutland was dominated by Jellicoe's resolve to renew the action and Scheer’s determined and successful efforts to escape. By Geoffrey Bennett.

The Battle of Jutland, Part I

The first news of the Battle of Jutland in 1916 startled the British public, who had looked forward to an emphatic victory at sea. Geoffrey Bennett asks, what exactly happened in the course of this momentous and controversial engagement?

The Siege of Valletta, 1798-1800

Christopher Hibbert describes how the people of Malta revolted against their Napoleonic garrison and, with British and Neapolitan aid, became a British Mediterranean dependency.

Mutiny at Kiel

At the close of the First World War, writes David WoodwardGerman Sailors were the forerunners of general revolt against the imperial system.

Hearts of Oak: The Battle of Quiberon Bay

Christopher Lloyd describes how Hawke’s victory over the Brest Fleet, on November 20th 1759, destroyed the last possibility of the French gaining the supremacy at sea necessary for their projected invasion of Britain.

Scapa Scuttle

Under the terms of the Armistice, writes Geoffrey Bennett, the ships of the German High Sea Fleet were interned and not surrendered. Hence they were manned by their own crews, who eight months later were able to carry out “an act of treachery.”