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Information About

Grand Fleet




  caption Grand Fleet battleships
  dates 1914-1918
  country United Kingdom
  branch Royal Navy
  notable Commanders John Jellicoe , David Beatty


During World War I , the British Home Fleet was renamed the Grand Fleet. It was initially commanded by Admiral Sir John Jellicoe . He was later succeeded by the commander of the Grand Fleet battlecruisers Admiral Sir David Beatty .

The Grand Fleet only took part in one fleet action during the war, the indecisive Battle Of Jutland . More British ships were sunk than German, although the German High Seas Fleet was damaged to the extent that it was unable to put to sea for a number of months. Strategically, Jutland was a British victory because the British fleet retained control of the North Sea with no further challenge from the German Navy.

The Grand Fleet was based in Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands .

The Grand Fleet's Order Of Battle in May 1916 was as follows:


THE GRAND FLEET



1st Battle Squadron



2nd Battle Squadron




4th Battle Squadron



3rd Battlecruiser Squadon



1st Cruiser Squadron

(Armoured Cruisers)


2nd Cruiser Squadron

(Armoured Cruisers)
  • Minotaur - Captain d'Aeth, Rear-Admiral Heath

  • Hampshire - Captain Savill

  • Cochrane - Captain Leatham

  • Shannon - Captain Dumaresq



4th Light Cruiser Squadron

  • Calliope - Commodore Le Mesurier

  • Constance - Captain Townsend

  • Caroline - Captain Crooke

  • Royalist - Captain Meade

  • Comus - Captain Hotham



Attached Light Cruisers

  • Active - Captain Withers

  • Bellona - Captain Dutton

  • Blanche - Captain Casement

  • Boadicea - Captain Casement

  • Canterbury - Captain Royds

  • Chester - Captain Lawson



4th Destroyer Flotilla

  • Tipperary - Captain Wintour

  • Acasta

  • Achates

  • Ambuscade

  • Ardent

  • Broke

  • Christopher

  • Contest

  • Fortune

  • Garland

  • Hardy

  • Midge

  • Ophelia

  • Owl

  • Porpoise

  • Shark

  • Sparrowhawk

  • Spitfire

  • Unity



11th Destroyer Flotilla

  • Castor (Light Cruiser) - Commodore Hawksley

  • Kempenfelt

  • Magic

  • Mandate

  • Manners

  • Marne

  • Martial

  • Michael

  • Milbrook

  • Minion

  • Mons

  • Moon

  • Morning Star

  • Mounsey

  • Mystic

  • Ossory



12th Destroyer Flotilla

  • Faulknor - Captain Stirling

  • Maenad

  • Marksman

  • Marvel

  • Mary Rose

  • Menace

  • Mindful

  • Mischief

  • Munster

  • Narwhal

  • Nessus

  • Noble

  • Nonsuch

  • Obedient

  • Onslaught

  • Opal



Miscellaneous

  • Abdiel (Minelayer)

  • Oak (Destroyer tender)



THE BATTLECRUISER FLEET



1st Battlecruiser Squadron



2nd Battlecruiser Squadron



5th Battle Squadron



1st Light Cruiser Squadron

  • Galatea - Commodore Alexander-Sinclair

  • Phaeton - Captain Cameron

  • Inconstant - Captain Thesiger

  • Cordelia - Captain Beamish



2nd Light Cruiser Squadron

  • Southampton - Commodore Goodenough

  • Birmingham - Captain Duff

  • Nottingham - Captain Miller

  • Dublin - Captain Scott



3rd Light Cruiser Squadron

  • Falmouth - Captain Edwards, Rear-Admiral Napier

  • Yarmouth - Captain Pratt

  • Birkenhead - Captain Reeves

  • Gloucester - Captain Blunt



Seaplane Carrier

  • Engadine



1st Destroyer Flotilla

  • Fearless (Light Cruiser) - Captain Roper

  • Acheron

  • Ariel

  • Attack

  • Badger

  • Defender

  • Goshawk

  • Hydra

  • Lapwing

  • Lizard



9th and 10th Destroyer Flotillas (combined)

  • Lydiard - Commander Goldsmith

  • Landrail

  • Laurel

  • Liberty

  • Moorsom

  • Morris

  • Termagant

  • Turbulent



13th Destroyer Flotilla

  • Champion (Light Cruiser) - Captain Farie

  • Moresby

  • Narborough

  • Nerissa

  • Nestor

  • Nicator

  • Nomad

  • Obdurate

  • Onslow

  • Pelican

  • Petard



EXTERNAL LINKS

The Grand Fleet