Destroyers at Jutland

By Rudyard Kipling

Rudyard Kipling was a prolific British writer and poet.  Kipling’s children fiction, specifically The Jungle Books and Just So Stories, are some of the most famous in English literature.  This edition of Destroyers at Jutland includes a table of contents.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Charles River Editors
• Release date: Mar 22, 2018
• ISBN: 9781508078654

Rudyard Kipling

Rudyard Kipling was the author of The Jungle Book, Captains Courageous, and Kim.

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DESTROYERS AT JUTLAND

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Rudyard Kipling

KYPROS PRESS

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This book is a work of nonfiction and is intended to be factually accurate.

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Copyright © 2015 by Rudyard Kipling

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Destroyers at Jutland

Stories of the Battle

Night and Morning

Three Destroyers

Luck

Towing Under Difficulties

Useful Employment

The Night Hunt

A Fugitive on Fire

The Confidential Books

The Art of Improvising

Asking for Trouble

The Meaning of Joss

Concerning Joss

An Affair in the North Sea

A Child’s Letter

What the Big Ships Stand

The Minds of Men

Ship Dogs

The Fight

The Silent Navy

DESTROYERS AT JUTLAND

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STORIES OF THE BATTLE

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THERE WAS MUCH DESTROYER-WORK IN the Battle of Jutland. The actual battle field may not have been more than twenty thousand square miles, but the incidental patrols, from first to last, must have covered many times that area. Doubtless the next generation will comb out every detail of it. All we need remember is there were many squadrons of battleships and cruisers engaged over the face of the North Sea, and that they were accompanied in their dread comings and goings by multitudes of destroyers, who attacked the enemy both by day and by night from the afternoon of May 31 to the morning of June 1, 1916. We are too close to the gigantic canvas to take in the meaning of the picture; our children stepping backward through the years may get the true perspective and proportions.

To recapitulate what every one knows.

The German fleet came out of its North Sea ports, scouting ships ahead; then destroyers, cruisers, battle-cruisers, and, last, the main battle fleet in the rear. It moved north, parallel with the coast of stolen Schleswig-Holstein and Jutland. Our fleets were already out; the main battle fleet (Admiral Jellicoe) sweeping down from the north, and our battle-cruiser fleet (Admiral Beatty) feeling for the enemy. Our scouts came in contact with the enemy on the afternoon of May 31 about 100 miles off the Jutland coast, steering north-west. They satisfied themselves he was in strength, and reported accordingly to our battle-cruiser fleet, which engaged the enemy’s battle-cruisers at about half-past three o’clock. The enemy steered south-east to rejoin their own fleet, which was coming up from that quarter. We fought him on a parallel course as he ran for more than an hour.

Then his battle-fleet came in sight, and Beatty’s fleet went about and steered north-west in order to retire on our battle-fleet, which was hurrying down from the north. We returned fighting very much over the same waters as we had used in our slant south. The enemy up till now had lain to the eastward of us, whereby he had the advantage in that thick weather of seeing our hulls clear against the afternoon light, while he himself worked in the