Action of 22 September 1914
Encyclopedia
The Action of 22 September 1914 was a naval engagement that took place during the First World War, in which three Royal Navy
cruiser
s were sunk by one German submarine
while on patrol. Approximately 1450 sailors were killed, and there was a public outcry at the losses. The incident eroded confidence in the government and damaged the reputation of the Royal Navy at a time when many countries were still considering which side in the war they might support.
, which was assigned patrol duties in the North Sea
, supporting destroyers and submarines of the Harwich Force to guard against incursions by the German Navy
into the Channel
. Although concerns had been expressed about the vulnerability of these ships, particularly to attack by more modern German cruisers, no changes had been made before the events of 22 September. There was less concern about submarine attack at this point in the war, as the U-boat threat was not taken seriously by many in the Royal Navy.
The U-boat was treated equally lightly by the Imperial German Navy; in the first six weeks of the war the U-boat Arm had lost two boats and seen little result for their effort.
The morning of 22 September found a single U-boat, U-9, under the command of Lt Otto Weddigen
, passing through the Broad Fourteens
on her way back to base.
On patrol on 22 September were three cruisers of 7th CS, Aboukir
, commanded by Capt J Drummond (senior officer present), Hogue
, and Cressy
. A fourth cruiser, Euryalus
, flagship of the squadron commander Rear Adm.
A Christian, had returned to port for re-fuelling on the 20th, whilst the squadron's accompanying destroyers had been forced to depart by heavy weather on 17th.
At 6.30 a.m. on the morning of 22 September the weather had calmed and the ships were patrolling at 10 knots, line abreast, two miles (four km) apart. Lookouts were posted for submarine periscopes or ships and one gun either side of each ship was manned. German Navy
submarine, U-9
commanded by Kapitänleutnant Otto Weddigen
had been ordered to attack British transport ships at Ostend
, but had been forced to dive and shelter from the storm. On surfacing, he spotted the British ships and determined to attack. At 6:20 a.m. the submarine fired one torpedo at the nearest ship from a range of 550 yards, which struck Aboukir on the starboard side, flooding the engine room and causing the ship to stop immediately. No submarines had been sighted, so Drummond assumed that the ship had hit a mine, and ordered the other two cruisers to close in to help. After twenty five minutes Aboukir capsized, and sank five minutes later. Only one boat could be launched, because of damage from the explosion and failure of steam powered winches needed to launch them.
U-9 surfaced from her dive after firing the initial torpedo to observe two British cruisers engaged in the rescue of men from the sinking ship. Weddigen fired two more torpedoes at his next target, Hogue, from a range of 300 yards. As the torpedoes left the submarine, the bows rose out of the water and she was spotted by Hogue, which opened fire before the submarine dived. The two torpedoes struck Hogue; within five minutes Captain Wilmot Nickolson gave the order to abandon ship, after 10 minutes she capsized before sinking at 7:15 am.
At 7:20 a.m. U-9 fired two torpedoes from her stern torpedo tubes at a range of 1000 yards. One missed, so the submarine turned to face her one remaining bow torpedo towards Cressy, and fired at a range of 550 yards. Cressy had already seen the submarine, had opened fire and attempted to ram, but failed. The ship had then returned to picking up survivors. The first torpedo struck the starboard side at around 7:15 a.m., the second the port beam at 7:30 a.m. The ship capsized to starboard and floated upside down until 7:55 a.m. Two Dutch sailing trawlers in the vicinity declined to close Cressy for fear of mines, which led to the cruiser's aft 9.2 inches (23.4 cm) gun firing on one of them in anger.
Distress calls had been received by Commodore Tyrwhitt, who with the destroyer squadron had already been at sea returning to the cruisers now the weather had improved. At 8.30 a.m. a Dutch steamship Flora approached the scene (having seen the sinkings) and rescued 286 men. A second steamer Titan, picked up another 147. More were rescued by the two Lowestoft sailing trawlers Coriander and J.G.C., before the destroyers arrived at 10:45 a.m. 837 men were rescued while 1,397 men and 62 officers, mostly part-time men from the Royal Naval Reserve
rather than regular sailors, had died. Wenman "Kit" Wykeham-Musgrave (1899–1989) survived being torpedoed on three ships. A midshipman
aboard the Aboukir, he went overboard and he swam away from the suction. He was climbing on board the Hogue when she was torpedoed. He swam to the Cressy, but after she was torpedoed, he went overboard again, clung to a bit of driftwood and was eventually picked up by a Dutch trawler." The destroyers began a search for the submarine, which had little electrical power remaining to travel underwater and could only make 14 knots, trailing a plume of exhaust smoke, on the surface. The submarine submerged for the night before returning home the next day.
By contrast, Weddigen and his crew returned to a hero's welcome; Weddigen was awarded the Iron Cross
, 1st class, while his crew each received the Iron Cross, second class. The reputation of the U-boat was established as a potent weapon of war.
Future First Sea Lord
, Dudley Pound
, then serving as Commander in the dreadnought
battleship
in the Grand Fleet, wrote in his diary on 24 September, "Much as one regrets the loss of life one cannot help thinking that it is a useful warning to us — we had almost begun to consider the German submarines as no good and our awakening which had to come sooner or later and it might have been accompanied by the loss of some of our Battle Fleet".
In 1954 the British government sold the salvage rights to the ships and salvage is ongoing.
German Navy:
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
cruiser
Cruiser
A cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period...
s were sunk by one German submarine
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
while on patrol. Approximately 1450 sailors were killed, and there was a public outcry at the losses. The incident eroded confidence in the government and damaged the reputation of the Royal Navy at a time when many countries were still considering which side in the war they might support.
Background
The cruisers were part of the Royal Navy’s 7th Cruiser Squadron7th Cruiser Squadron (United Kingdom)
The 7th Cruiser Squadron was a blockading force of the Royal Navy during the First World War used to close the English Channel to German traffic. It was employed patrolling an area of the North Sea known as the "Broad Fourteens" in support of vessels guarding the northern entrance to the Channel...
, which was assigned patrol duties in the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
, supporting destroyers and submarines of the Harwich Force to guard against incursions by the German Navy
Kaiserliche Marine
The Imperial German Navy was the German Navy created at the time of the formation of the German Empire. It existed between 1871 and 1919, growing out of the small Prussian Navy and Norddeutsche Bundesmarine, which primarily had the mission of coastal defense. Kaiser Wilhelm II greatly expanded...
into the Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
. Although concerns had been expressed about the vulnerability of these ships, particularly to attack by more modern German cruisers, no changes had been made before the events of 22 September. There was less concern about submarine attack at this point in the war, as the U-boat threat was not taken seriously by many in the Royal Navy.
The U-boat was treated equally lightly by the Imperial German Navy; in the first six weeks of the war the U-boat Arm had lost two boats and seen little result for their effort.
The morning of 22 September found a single U-boat, U-9, under the command of Lt Otto Weddigen
Otto Weddigen
Otto Eduard Weddigen was a German U-boat commander during World War I.-Biography and career:He was born in Herford and started his military career in the Kaiserliche Marine in 1901...
, passing through the Broad Fourteens
Broad Fourteens
thumb|200px|right|The Broad Fourteens on a map by Delisle The Broad Fourteens is an area of the southern North Sea that is fairly consistently fourteen fathoms deep...
on her way back to base.
On patrol on 22 September were three cruisers of 7th CS, Aboukir
HMS Aboukir (1900)
HMS Aboukir was a Cressy-class armoured cruiser. She was built by Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering Co Ltd, Govan, Scotland in 1902.-First World War:...
, commanded by Capt J Drummond (senior officer present), Hogue
HMS Hogue (1900)
HMS Hogue was a Cressy-class armoured cruiser in the Royal Navy. Hogue was sunk by the German U-boat U-9 on 22 September 1914.-Service history:...
, and Cressy
HMS Cressy (1899)
HMS Cressy was a Cressy-class armoured cruiser in the Royal Navy. Cressy was sunk by the German U-boat U-9 in September 1914.-Service history:...
. A fourth cruiser, Euryalus
HMS Euryalus (1901)
HMS Euryalus was a Cressy-class armoured cruiser in the Royal Navy. Though the class was already obsolete by the outbreak of the First World War, the Euryalus and her sisters Aboukir, Bacchante, Hogue and Cressy were assigned to patrol the Broad Fourteens of the North Sea, in support of a force of...
, flagship of the squadron commander Rear Adm.
Rear Admiral
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "flag officers" or "flag ranks"...
A Christian, had returned to port for re-fuelling on the 20th, whilst the squadron's accompanying destroyers had been forced to depart by heavy weather on 17th.
Action
Kaiserliche Marine
The Imperial German Navy was the German Navy created at the time of the formation of the German Empire. It existed between 1871 and 1919, growing out of the small Prussian Navy and Norddeutsche Bundesmarine, which primarily had the mission of coastal defense. Kaiser Wilhelm II greatly expanded...
submarine, U-9
Unterseeboot 9 (1910)
SM U-9 was a German Type U 9 U-boat. She was one of 329 submarines serving in the Imperial German Navy , and engaged in commerce war during World War I. Her construction was ordered on 15 July 1908 and her keel was laid down by Kaiserliche Werft in Danzig...
commanded by Kapitänleutnant Otto Weddigen
Otto Weddigen
Otto Eduard Weddigen was a German U-boat commander during World War I.-Biography and career:He was born in Herford and started his military career in the Kaiserliche Marine in 1901...
had been ordered to attack British transport ships at Ostend
Ostend
Ostend is a Belgian city and municipality located in the Flemish province of West Flanders. It comprises the boroughs of Mariakerke , Stene and Zandvoorde, and the city of Ostend proper – the largest on the Belgian coast....
, but had been forced to dive and shelter from the storm. On surfacing, he spotted the British ships and determined to attack. At 6:20 a.m. the submarine fired one torpedo at the nearest ship from a range of 550 yards, which struck Aboukir on the starboard side, flooding the engine room and causing the ship to stop immediately. No submarines had been sighted, so Drummond assumed that the ship had hit a mine, and ordered the other two cruisers to close in to help. After twenty five minutes Aboukir capsized, and sank five minutes later. Only one boat could be launched, because of damage from the explosion and failure of steam powered winches needed to launch them.
U-9 surfaced from her dive after firing the initial torpedo to observe two British cruisers engaged in the rescue of men from the sinking ship. Weddigen fired two more torpedoes at his next target, Hogue, from a range of 300 yards. As the torpedoes left the submarine, the bows rose out of the water and she was spotted by Hogue, which opened fire before the submarine dived. The two torpedoes struck Hogue; within five minutes Captain Wilmot Nickolson gave the order to abandon ship, after 10 minutes she capsized before sinking at 7:15 am.
Distress calls had been received by Commodore Tyrwhitt, who with the destroyer squadron had already been at sea returning to the cruisers now the weather had improved. At 8.30 a.m. a Dutch steamship Flora approached the scene (having seen the sinkings) and rescued 286 men. A second steamer Titan, picked up another 147. More were rescued by the two Lowestoft sailing trawlers Coriander and J.G.C., before the destroyers arrived at 10:45 a.m. 837 men were rescued while 1,397 men and 62 officers, mostly part-time men from the Royal Naval Reserve
Royal Naval Reserve
The Royal Naval Reserve is the volunteer reserve force of the Royal Navy in the United Kingdom. The present Royal Naval Reserve was formed in 1958 by merging the original Royal Naval Reserve and the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve , a reserve of civilian volunteers founded in 1903...
rather than regular sailors, had died. Wenman "Kit" Wykeham-Musgrave (1899–1989) survived being torpedoed on three ships. A midshipman
Midshipman
A midshipman is an officer cadet, or a commissioned officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Pakistan, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Kenya...
aboard the Aboukir, he went overboard and he swam away from the suction. He was climbing on board the Hogue when she was torpedoed. He swam to the Cressy, but after she was torpedoed, he went overboard again, clung to a bit of driftwood and was eventually picked up by a Dutch trawler." The destroyers began a search for the submarine, which had little electrical power remaining to travel underwater and could only make 14 knots, trailing a plume of exhaust smoke, on the surface. The submarine submerged for the night before returning home the next day.
Aftermath
The disaster shook public opinion in Britain, and the reputation of the Royal Navy worldwide. The surviving cruisers were withdrawn from patrol duties; Adm Christian was reprimanded, and Drummond, who did not survive, was criticized by the resulting Inquiry for failing to take the anti-submarine precautions recommended by the Admiralty. He was however praised for his conduct during the actual attack. The 28 officers and 258 men rescued by the Flora were landed at Ymuiden and were repatriated on 26 September.By contrast, Weddigen and his crew returned to a hero's welcome; Weddigen was awarded the Iron Cross
Iron Cross
The Iron Cross is a cross symbol typically in black with a white or silver outline that originated after 1219 when the Kingdom of Jerusalem granted the Teutonic Order the right to combine the Teutonic Black Cross placed above a silver Cross of Jerusalem....
, 1st class, while his crew each received the Iron Cross, second class. The reputation of the U-boat was established as a potent weapon of war.
Future First Sea Lord
First Sea Lord
The First Sea Lord is the professional head of the Royal Navy and the whole Naval Service; it was formerly known as First Naval Lord. He also holds the title of Chief of Naval Staff, and is known by the abbreviations 1SL/CNS...
, Dudley Pound
Dudley Pound
Admiral of the Fleet Sir Alfred Dudley Pickman Rogers Pound GCB OM GCVO RN was a British naval officer who served as First Sea Lord, professional head of the Royal Navy from June 1939 to September 1943.- Early life :...
, then serving as Commander in the dreadnought
Dreadnought
The dreadnought was the predominant type of 20th-century battleship. The first of the kind, the Royal Navy's had such an impact when launched in 1906 that similar battleships built after her were referred to as "dreadnoughts", and earlier battleships became known as pre-dreadnoughts...
battleship
Battleship
A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...
in the Grand Fleet, wrote in his diary on 24 September, "Much as one regrets the loss of life one cannot help thinking that it is a useful warning to us — we had almost begun to consider the German submarines as no good and our awakening which had to come sooner or later and it might have been accompanied by the loss of some of our Battle Fleet".
In 1954 the British government sold the salvage rights to the ships and salvage is ongoing.
Order of Battle
Royal Navy:- HMS AboukirHMS Aboukir (1900)HMS Aboukir was a Cressy-class armoured cruiser. She was built by Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering Co Ltd, Govan, Scotland in 1902.-First World War:...
, armoured cruiser, flagshipFlagshipA flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag... - HMS HogueHMS Hogue (1900)HMS Hogue was a Cressy-class armoured cruiser in the Royal Navy. Hogue was sunk by the German U-boat U-9 on 22 September 1914.-Service history:...
, armoured cruiser - HMS CressyHMS Cressy (1899)HMS Cressy was a Cressy-class armoured cruiser in the Royal Navy. Cressy was sunk by the German U-boat U-9 in September 1914.-Service history:...
, armoured cruiser
German Navy:
- U-9, submarine