Battle of Dogger Bank (1915)

The Battle of Dogger Bank (24 January 1915) was a naval engagement during the First World War near the Dogger Bank in the North Sea, between squadrons of the British Grand Fleet and the Kaiserliche Marine (High Seas Fleet). The British had intercepted and decoded German wireless transmissions, gaining advance knowledge that a German raiding squadron was heading for the Dogger Bank. Ships of the Grand Fleet sailed to intercept the raiders.

The British surprised the smaller, slower German squadron that fled for home. During a stern chase lasting several hours, the British caught up with the Germans and engaged them with long-range gunfire. The British disabled Blücher, the rearmost German ship and the Germans put the British flagship HMS Lion out of action. Due to inadequate signalling, the remaining British ships stopped the pursuit to sink Blücher; by the time the ship had been sunk, the rest of the German squadron had escaped.

The German squadron returned to harbour with several ships in need of extensive repairs. Lion made it back to port but was out of action for months. The British had lost no ships and suffered few casualties; the Germans had lost Blücher and most of her crew. After the battle, both sides replaced officers who were thought to have shown poor judgement and made changes to equipment and procedures according to the experience gained from the battle.