17 – Baltic Sea Campaign (2)
“Confirmed German Navy sortie! Large-scale formation! Numerous battleships!”
“Urgent! This is urgent! Report it as a Class 1 emergency! Whether it’s in plain language or whatever, hurry!”
The reconnaissance ships and torpedo boats that Russia had deployed in the Baltic Sea had reported abnormal signals, but by then it was too late.
By the time they noticed, the German fleet was already right in front of them. Due to lax vigilance, less than 70% of the troops were in their proper positions.
“Oh, my goodness.”
“The horizon is filled up!”
The Russians were half in awe at the grandeur of the German Navy that filled the sea with their dark presence. The German fleet attempted to enter the Sound Strait, which leads to the port of Riga.
“Commence firing!”
As the fortress guns fired, the battleships of the German Navy also unleashed their firepower. The artillery fire from both sides was so intense that it deafened the ears.
The opening salvo from the German battleship Schleswig-Holstein destroyed one of the ammunition depots. With a thunderous roar, a mushroom cloud rose up.
“The enemy shell has hit our ammunition depot! Battery 4 is silent!”
“It doesn’t matter. Keep firing!”
The Russian artillery also fired, but the German fleet was too massive.
Starting with the 11-inch guns, all kinds of heavy artillery shells overwhelmed the Russian forces in the fortress. Although the coastal guns had three times the firepower compared to the naval guns of the same caliber, the numerical difference didn’t matter much at this point.
Desperately, the Baltic Fleet under Admiral Reigen fired their guns, but it was futile. The German fleet was too far away for their shots to reach.
“German battleship hit!”
Commander Kamin personally looked through the binoculars to confirm the formation of the German fleet.
“We managed to hit one.”
“They won’t dare approach the Sorbe Strait.”
As the shells flew back and forth, the German fleet couldn’t completely avoid being hit. The flagship “Deutschland” emitted black smoke and hastily retreated from the front line.
However, one by one, the Russian fortress guns fell silent.
“At this rate, the fleet is in danger.”
Commander Kamin felt a strong sense of crisis.
Although the German navy had temporarily retreated, they had suffered a devastating blow, with half of their fortress guns silenced after just one attack.
If they were to endure another attack of the same intensity, the safety of the fleet could not be guaranteed.
Admiral Nikolai Ottovich von Essen, the commander of the Baltic Fleet, also agreed with Commander Kamin’s concerns.
“If we had just four Gangut-class battleships, we would have had a chance. It’s a shame that we lost the fleet in the Far East.”
In response to the admiral’s bitter words, Commander Kamin also expressed his regret.
The Baltic Fleet suffered the greatest loss in that terrible disaster that practically destroyed the Russian Imperial Navy, losing a total of eight battleships.
The country was making every effort to rebuild its power, but time was running out.
Less than 10 years had passed since the war broke out, and there was nothing prepared. There were no dreadnoughts, no battleships in the fleet.
With this inadequate power, it was difficult to stick to the existing fleet strategy against the German Navy.
So the Admiral was reluctant to go to war with Germany. He thought it shouldn’t be fought.
If it had to be done, he believed it should be done in alliance with Britain and France.
But reality was different.
The French Navy feared the German Navy and did not send a single warship across the Channel, and Britain betrayed the negotiations.
The Russian Navy was left alone to face the main force of Germany.
In this situation, the fortresses, the strongest defense of the Navy, collapsed. The Admiral had to make a decision. To abandon Riga or defend it.
The conclusion was not easy. The opinions of the staff were divided.
“If we abandon Riga, how can we face His Majesty with any dignity?”
“What if we use submarines to attack the German main forces?”
“You’re suggesting sending submarines when faced with the blackened German warships?”
Considering the state of submarines, which were almost like semi-submersibles, sending them out amidst the German destroyers covering the sea would be tantamount to suicide.
“Even in the worst case scenario, the German Navy won’t be able to break through our fleet formation, which is arranged in a T shape. You must hold your current position. If we show firm resolve, the Germans will give up too.”
“If the Germans were so willing to give up, why would they bring such a large fleet? Your Majesty, you must make a decision to withdraw.”
Admiral Essen decided to postpone the decision.
But the Germans had no intention of waiting for him to make up his mind.
*
“These Ivan guys. They’re sleeping so peacefully! The German Navy has arrived!”
Taking advantage of the noise, the torpedo boats that set out from East Prussia infiltrated into the sea through the Sorbe Strait.
“It’s a German torpedo boat! Prepare for a mine battle!”
The Russians realized the invasion too late.
The loss of most of their searchlights in the artillery battle with the German fleet was fatal.
With holes in the strait that had been tightly guarded by searchlights and fortress cannons, the safety of the fleet could not be guaranteed.
“We aim for the battleships first. The large ships near the Suo Strait are the primary targets.”
The German torpedo boats boldly pushed through the gaps between the ships and launched torpedoes. The Baltic Fleet had installed torpedo nets on the anchored ships considering the lessons of the Russo-Japanese War, but there weren’t enough of them.
Even then, some captains dismantled the torpedo nets on their own when the evacuation orders came, so they didn’t have much effect.
The Russian sailors, witnessing the approaching torpedoes, cursed in despair.
“Damn it!”
Torpedoes accelerated to dozens of knots and struck the battleships of the Chesarevich class.
A terrifying explosion shook the 13,000-ton behemoth. Water rushed in like a flood through the gaping hole in the side of the ship.
They hastily turned on the bilge pumps, but it was too late to save the ship.
Due to the spreading fire on the deck, piled up with coal for sorties, the soldiers couldn’t take any safety measures in the ammunition storeroom.
Fifteen minutes later, as the raging fire spread to the ammunition storeroom, the battleship, which had screamed its last scream, exploded with a loud noise.
Kwaaang!
“The Chesarevich is sinking!”
“Hurry, repair the ship line! If the damn Germans push through, it’s all over!”
The admirals observing the situation through binoculars were furious.
Destroyers and cruisers pushed back the torpedo boats by firing their cannons, but they couldn’t compensate for the loss of battleships.
The German army, like wolves, continued to attack, targeting the weaknesses of the Russian army.
“We will be annihilated if we stay like this. We need to mobilize our troops.”
Most admirals longed to escape the nightmare of the Russo-Japanese War as soon as possible. They argued that they would step on the remnants of the Pacific Fleet, which met its end in the port of Lushun.
“Very well. Let’s retreat.”
Admiral Essen accepted the call for mobilization after much contemplation.
As the Russian fleet began to leave the port and head north through the Suoh Strait, the German fleet organized a powerful strike force, including the fast-moving 1st Reconnaissance Division, to pursue the Russian fleet.
The German fleet’s northward movement was immediately detected and reported by the Russian coastal defense units.
“We have urgent news from the land. It is reported that the German fleet, which was beyond the Sorbe Strait, is moving north along the outer sea.”
“Are they planning to annihilate us?”
The admiral believed that it would be impossible to defeat the entire fleet, considering that the German army had a greater distance to cover than the Russian fleet.
But the fact that the rear ships would come under attack was unavoidable.
The admiral closed his eyes, picturing the faces of his subordinates.
3 p.m.
The first appearance of the German fleet was the 1st Reconnaissance Division under the command of Admiral Franz von Hipper.
The 1st Reconnaissance Division, consisting of battle cruisers and cruisers, was a pursuit force with formidable combat power. Hipper had three expensive battle cruisers under his command.
As the black silhouette of the German fleet emerged on the horizon, the Russian fleet fell into chaos.
In order to save the slower battleships, the cruisers quickly turned around and headed towards the battle cruisers.
“We will protect our battleships! Ura!”
“We salute your determination. May the blessings of the gods be with you.”
It was a truly brave decision, but it was an act no different from sacrificing the cruisers against the battle cruisers, which were practically battleship killers.
The intense artillery fire from the armored battle cruiser Blücher, which led the German fleet, swept over the Russian ships.
“Direct hit! The battleship Bayan is detaching from the formation!”
“Flares from the battleship squadron! They’re requesting retreat!”
“Hold your ground! If they break through, the rest of the fleet will be vulnerable!”
The Russian navy fought desperately to hold on.
However, it took less than 30 minutes for the battleship formation to collapse. The battleships were too weak to withstand the power of the cruisers.
Most of the battleships suffered various degrees of damage and retreated from the formation, leaving the remaining ships exposed to attack.
Even the retreating battleships couldn’t escape the inevitable. To avoid being relentlessly bombarded, they had no choice but to turn and face the enemy.
The German battleships skillfully kept their distance.
“Enemy battleships! Distance: 21km. Maintaining the gap!”
Whenever the Russian ships tried to close the distance for retreat, the German ships would narrow the gap. And when the Russian ships tried to close the gap for combat, the German ships would change direction and widen the gap again.
While the Russian fleet wasted time with this cat-and-mouse game, the German main force arrived on the battlefield.
“German battleships have opened fire!”
Led by the Kaiser-class battleship, the German fleet opened fire, realizing too late that the Russian main ships were within firing range.
“Turn! Turn around! Full speed retreat!”
“Engines at maximum! Outrun the enemy battleships!”
But the distance to shake off the German battleships was too close.
“I, battleship Slava, hit by enemy shells! Speed is decreasing!”
“Slava, hit again! Appears to be severely damaged.”
“Oh no. Our fleet…”
Even as Admiral Essen tried to hide his anguish on the bridge, several of the Russian ships were hiding beneath the surface, evading the bombardment from the German battleships.
Indeed, it was an overwhelming gap.
The brutal slaughter did not end until evening.
Compared to the loss of two battleships and four cruisers by the Baltic Fleet, which resulted in losing half of its power, the losses of the German fleet were insignificant.
The Russians now had to consider the possibility of a German attack through the Baltic Sea.
“The Germans have seized control of the Baltic Sea?”
St. Petersburg, shocked by the defeat of Gumbinnen, was once again shocked by this defeat.
“Are you telling me that the German battleships could appear in Kronstadt as early as tomorrow? Did you report this to Jim?”
Charga’s heart pounded, but the situation did not change.
The Baltic Sea was already like a German lake.
