How The “Kent” Caught And Sank The “Nurnberg”

liverpool annie · Nov 20, 2009

A Stokers Triumph - How The “Kent” Caught And Sank The “Nurnberg”

In nearly every action which the Navy has fought the officers and men in the engine rooms and stokeholds have won the special praise of their commanding officers, and never was such praise more worthily earned than when the Kent, commanded by Captain John D. Allen, was a vessel of 9,800 tons, designed for a speed of twenty-three knots, and on the morning when the German fleet, under Admiral von Spee, walked into the trap that had been prepared for it at the Falkland Islands, she was doing the duty of guard ship at the entrance to the harbour. Many of the ships inside filled up with coal the day before, but the Kent was one of those detailed to fill her bunkers on the 8th, so that she was none too well provided with fuel.

As soon as the Germans were sighted, Admiral Sturdee ordered the Kent to weigh anchor and keep in touch with the enemy while the remainder of our ships were getting up steam. The cruiser stood out to sea at once, and it will always remain a problem why the heavy German ships, with their long range 8.2-inch guns, did not there and then open fire on the isolated British vessel, for they were well within range, and altogether outmatched the Kent, with her 6-inch weapons. These onboard expected that the attack would be made, but much to their surprise, the enemy sheered off instead to the east, leaving the Kent to shadow them without interference.

Presently the rest of the British squadron headed out of harbour at a rapidly increasing speed, and the ships quickly disposed themselves into battle formation, the Dreadnought cruisers Invincible and Inflexible leading the line. In the course of a few hours the action had resolved itself into three distinct phases. The heavy armoured ships fought out their battle alone; the Glasgow and Cornwall devoted themselves to the Leipzig; while Captain Allen, the junior of the cruiser captains was entrusted with the task of accounting for the Nurnberg. It was, perhaps a curious selection, for not only was the Glasgow two knots faster than the Kent, but the latter was, on paper, actually half a knot slower than the German she was sent to chase. The Nurnberg was in fact a faster ship than the Leipzig, to which the Glasgow and Cornwall were devoting themselves; and, as we have already seen, the Kent had not had the chance of completing with coal, and so was not particularly well placed for carrying out a long chase.

However, if her bunkers had been loaded to their full capacity, the added weight would have reduced her speed and probably put the possibility of a chase out of the question altogether. It was a chance either way, and the men of the Kent rose magnificently to the one before them.

If they were to catch the enemy at all they would have to do it quickly, otherwise the cruiser would be left in mid ocean without fuel, helpless. In a few brief words Captain Allen told the engineers and the stokers how they stood, and appealed to them to get their utmost out of the ship. Seamen and others who could be spared were sent down below to help in the blistering business of feeding the furnaces and rushing up the coal from the bunker. The engineers, with a careful eye on the vanishing fuel, tightened up a valve here and opened out a steam pipe there, coaxing the 22,000 horsepower engines as a jockey coaxes a racehorse. As one of the stokers put it afterwards, “It was a case of either getting the Nurnberg or busting up in trying to.”

Little by little the Kent increased her pace. Her record speed in ten years of service was a shade over twenty-four knots, but before long Engineer Commander Andrew and his perspiring band of artificers and stokers had her doing well over twenty-five an achievement which can, perhaps, only be adequately appreciated by an engineer. All the time the voracious furnaces were eating up the coal at an enormous rate, and although the Nurnberg was being gradually overhauled, it was becoming doubtful whether the Kent would have sufficient fuel to complete the business when she got within range, to say nothing of getting back to her at the Falklands afterwards.

It was therefore decided to eke out the coal with anything combustible that could be found onboard. Wooden boats were taken out of their cradles, broken up, and taken below to feed the furnaces. Wooden spars, companionways and ladders shared similar fate, and even the wooden planking of the decks was torn up and passed down to the stokeholds.

Shortly after four o’clock the Kent passed within range of the Leipzig, giving her thee broadsides as she went, and in less than an hour afterwards the grimy stokers down below gave a great shout as they heard one of the 6-inch guns in the forward turret out its 100-lb message. They well knew what that bow-chaser meant. The enemy was within range at last.

Like the other German ships in this action, the Nurnberg fought exceedingly well. The Kent had opened at eleven thousand yards-nearly six and a half miles-and in a few minutes the full speed fight was in full swing. Both vessels made good shooting, and by the combination of fine marksmanship and good luck one of the earliest of the Kent’s shells struck the Nurnberg square in the stern, disabling the after guns and seriously affecting the enemy’s speed and manoeuvring power. The German weapons fired more rapidly than ours, and the shells fell thickly around the British cruiser. The silk ensign presented to the ship by the people of Kent was shot to ribbons, the foretopmast was carried away, and many shells and fragments penetrated the funnels.

One hit came perilously near ending the Kent’s career forever. A shell from the Nurnberg entered a casemate by the gun port-a most remarkable chance-and burst inside, killing or wounding the whole of the gun’s crew. A fire was started among the cordite charges lying about, and a flash of flame shot down the ammunition hoist and into the passages below. A sergeant of Marine, Charles Mayes, dashed through the flames and threw the burning charges and sacks away so that the fire would not spread, and then, seizing a hose, flooded the compartment and extinguished the fire. In the woods of the commander-in-chief, “the extinction of this fire saved a disaster which might have led to the loss of the ship”-and there was some seven hundred souls onboard.

When the range had closed down to 7,500 yards and the two ships were running broadside to broadside, the Kent started firing lyddite. After that, the end was not long in coming. The Nurnberg’s upper deck was already a mass of twisted and battered scrap iron, and her sides were peppered with holes. A great fire now burst out in the fore part of the ship, and her guns became silent; but when the Kent also ceased fire and closed down to 3,000 yards, the enemy’s colours were seen to be still flying at the masthead. Another five minutes hammering however, brought them down with a run, and the action was over at 6.57, having lasted almost exactly two hours from the firing of the first shot.

The Kent now devoted her self to the task of saving life. Nearly all her wooden boats had been burnt, and the enemy’s fire had been so heavy that all those left had several holes knocked in them. These had to be patched up before the boats could be launched into the rising sea-for a stiff breeze, with, rain had sprung up during the afternoon-and it was half an hour before the first could be got away. By that time the Nurnberg had disappeared, showing how great was the damage she received before giving in. As she went down a group of men could be seen on her quarterdeck, waving the German flag as they went under. Only about a score were picked up, and although everything possible was done for them, many died of exposure. The German loss was about 350 officers and men, while the sunken cruiser was a vessel of 3,400 tons, armed with ten 4.1-inch gun, and less than seven years old.

The Kent had been hit altogether thirty-six times, without counting the holes made by splinters. Her loss in men was five killed and eleven wounded, of whom three succumbed to their injuries. If it is possible to apportion credit for the victory, then the greatest measure must be accorded to the men down below. They saw nothing of the fight; but if it had not been for their magnificent efforts, giving their ship a speed more than two knots above that for which she was built, the gunners up above would never had got within striking distance of the enemy. The Kent had sailed so close to the wind-or, in its modern equivalent, steamed so nearly to the limit of her capacity-that when she got back to the Falklands little more than the sweepings of coal remained in her bunkers. Only one of her engine room staff, however, was accorded any recognition, Stoker Petty Officer G.S. Brewer receiving the Distinguished Service Medal.

Captain J. D. Allen was ultimately made a C.B., while Sergeant Mayes, for virtually saving the ship from destruction, was awarded the Conspicious Gallantry Medal.
Click to expand...

Deeds That Thrill The Empire. Page 305. Volume II

liverpool annie · Nov 20, 2009

Remembered here ...

cally · Nov 24, 2009

A really fine picture of HMS Kent as well as a good picture of the German cruiser Nurnberg...

liverpool annie · Nov 25, 2009

Good stuff Cally ... rounds everything off seeing the ships !!

cally · Nov 27, 2009

Thanks Annie. You have done a sterling job putting together the wide range of posts needed to get this forum started. As far as at least the naval side of WW1 goes, I will always do my best to provide good pictures to accompany your posts...

liverpool annie · Nov 28, 2009

Thanks Cally ... thats nice of you to say ! ... you know it's been a year already ... where did that time go ??

Of course you already know I get a big kick out of your photos !

Annie

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How The “Kent” Caught And Sank The “Nurnberg”

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canterbury cath H. M. S. Kent who fell in action off the Falkland Islands, 8th December, 1914g.jpeg

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SMS NURNBERG-2-1908-1914TB.jpg

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How The “Kent” Caught And Sank The “Nurnberg”

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liverpool annie New Member

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Attached Files:

canterbury cath H. M. S. Kent who fell in action off the Falkland Islands, 8th December, 1914g.jpeg

cally New Member

Attached Files:

HMS KENT-5-1901-1920J.jpg

SMS NURNBERG-2-1908-1914TB.jpg

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