The 5th Battle Squadron was a squadron of the British

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

consisting of battleships. The 5th Battle Squadron was initially part of the Royal Navy's Second Fleet. During the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, the Home Fleet was renamed the

Grand Fleet The Grand Fleet was the main battlefleet of the Royal Navy during the First World War. It was established in August 1914 and disbanded in April 1919. Its main base was Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands. History Formed in August 1914 from the F ...

History

First World War

August 1914

In August 1914, the 5th Battle Squadron was based at Portland, and consisted of a number of

pre-dreadnought Pre-dreadnought battleships were sea-going battleships built between the mid- to late- 1880s and 1905, before the launch of in 1906. The pre-dreadnought ships replaced the ironclad battleships of the 1870s and 1880s. Built from steel, protec ...

battleships. These were: * * * * * * * * Following the loss of HMS ''Bulwark'' in 1914, and were transferred from the

6th Battle Squadron The 6th Battle Squadron was a squadron of the British Royal Navy consisting of Battleships serving in the Grand Fleet and existed from 1913 to 1917. History First World War August 1914 In August 1914, the 6th Battle Squadron was based at Portl ...

. With the commissioning of the five

fast battleship A fast battleship was a battleship which emphasised speed without – in concept – undue compromise of either armor or armament. Most of the early World War I-era dreadnought battleships were typically built with low design speeds, s ...

s of the ''Queen Elizabeth'' class, the remaining pre-dreadnoughts were sent to the Mediterranean. herself was delayed in joining the squadron, instead taking part in the Dardanelles Campaign until May 1915.

Battle of Jutland

In 1916, the 5th Battle Squadron—under the command of Rear Admiral Hugh Evan-Thomas— was temporarily transferred to David Beatty's Battlecruiser Fleet. On 31 May, four ships of the Squadron served with distinction in the battle of Jutland. These were: * Flagship of Rear Admiral H. Evan-Thomas; Captain A. W. Craig; * Captain M. Woollcombe; * Captain E. M. Philpotts; * Captain the Honourable A. D. E. H. Boyle; In the clash with the German

I Scouting Group The I Scouting Group (german: I. Aufklärungsgruppe) was a special reconnaissance unit within the German Kaiserliche Marine. The unit was famously commanded by Admiral Franz von Hipper during World War I. The I Scouting Group was one of the most ...

under Admiral Franz von Hipper, the 5th Battle Squadron "fired with extraordinary rapidity and accuracy" (according to

Reinhard Scheer Carl Friedrich Heinrich Reinhard Scheer (30 September 1863 – 26 November 1928) was an Admiral in the Imperial German Navy (''Kaiserliche Marine''). Scheer joined the navy in 1879 as an officer cadet and progressed through the ranks, commandin ...

), damaging the battlecruisers and and a number of other German warships. Three of the ''Queen Elizabeth''s received hits from German warships during the engagement, yet they all returned home, though ''Warspite''—whose steering was jammed—was targeted by the German line, taking 15 hits and coming close to foundering. After the battle, HMS ''Queen Elizabeth''—which had missed the battle due to being in dock—rejoined the squadron.

Vice and Rear-Admirals commanding

Post holders as follows:

Second in Command

Post holders as follows:Harley & Lovell, 2017

Footnotes

References

* Dittmar, F.J & Colledge J.J. (1972), British Warships 1914-1919 Ian Allan, London. * Gordon, Andrew. (1996), The Rules of the Game John Murray. * Harley, Simon; Lovell, Tony. "Fifth Battle Squadron (Royal Navy) - The Dreadnought Project". www.dreadnoughtproject.org. Harley & Lovell, 1 August 2017. * Macintyre, Donald. (1957), Jutland Evans Brothers Ltd.

External links

Fifth Battle Squadron at DreadnoughtProject.org

Royal Navy History

{{Battle squadrons of the Royal Navy, state=collapsed Battle squadrons of the Royal Navy Ship squadrons of the Royal Navy in World War I Military units and formations established in 1912 Military units and formations disestablished in 1919