HMS Euryalus (1901)

300px HMS Euryalus
Career
Name:	HMS Euryalus
Builder:	Vickers
Launched:	20 May 1901
Reclassified:	Used as minelayer 1918
Fate:	Sold for breaking up 1 July 1920
General characteristics
Displacement:	12,000 tons
Length:	472 ft (144 m)
Beam:	69.5 ft (21.2 m)
Propulsion:	triple expansion engines twin screws
Speed:	21 knots (39 km/h)
Armament:	2 × BL 9.2-inch (233.7 mm) Mk X guns 12 × BL 6-inch (152.4 mm) Mk VII guns 14 × 12pdr guns

For other ships of the same name, see HMS Euryalus.

HMS Euryalus was a Cressy-class armoured cruiser in the Royal Navy. Though the class was already obsolete by the outbreak of the First World War, the Euryalus and her sisters Aboukir, Bacchante, Hogue and Cressy were assigned to patrol the Broad Fourteens of the North Sea, in support of a force of destroyers and submarines based at Harwich which blocked the Eastern end of the English Channel from German warships attempting to attack supply route between England and France. During this period, Euryalus was the flagship of Seventh Cruiser Squadron, under Rear Admiral Arthur Christian.

The Live Bait Squadron

The Cressy-class vessels had rapidly become obsolete due to the great advances in naval architecture in the years leading up to the First World War. At the outbreak of the war, these ships were mostly staffed by reserve sailors. The Euryalus was one of four units that made up Rear Admiral Henry H Campbell's Seventh Cruiser Squadron. Owing to the obsolescence of these ships, the squadron was nicknamed the Live Bait Squadron.

At 6 am on 20 September, Euryalus had returned to port because of low coal stocks. Rear Admiral Christian had been unable to transfer to another ship because of the rough sea, and consequently command was passed to John Drummond, captain of Aboukir, as the senior officer remaining with the squadron.

At around 6 am on 22 September the three cruisers Aboukir, Cressy and Hogue were steaming at 10 knots (19 km/h) in line ahead and they were spotted by the U-9, commanded by Lt. Otto Weddigen. Although they were not zigzagging, all of the ships had lookouts posted to search for periscopes and one gun on each side of each ship was manned.

Weddigen ordered his submarine to submerge and closed the range to the unsuspecting British ships. At close range, he fired a single torpedo at the Aboukir. The torpedo broke the back of the Aboukir and she sank within 20 minutes with the loss of 527 men.

The captains of the Cressy and Hogue thought the Aboukir had struck a floating mine and came forward to assist her. They stood by and began to pick up survivors. At this point, Weddigen fired two torpedoes into the Hogue, mortally wounding that ship. As the Hogue sank, the captain of the Cressy realised that the squadron was being attacked by a submarine, and tried to flee. However, Weddigen fired two more torpedoes into the Cressy, and sank her as well.

Gallipoli

She later served in the ill-fated Gallipoli Campaign, assisting the landings at Cape Helles. The 1st Battalion of the Lancashire Fusiliers were embarked in Euryalus and the battleship HMS Implacable which took up positions off the beach. The troops transferred to 32 cutters at around 4 am. Euryalus closed in on the beach at around 5 am whilst Implacable moved off to land troops and provide covering fire at X beach, and opened fire on the defences. Euryalus served as the Headquarters for the landing.

Euryalus continued in service, and was used as a minelayer for part of 1918. She was eventually sold after the conclusion of the war on 1 July 1920, and was broken up in Germany.

References

• Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969]. Ships of the Royal Navy: the complete record of all fighting ships of the Royal Navy (Rev. ed.). London: Chatham. ISBN 9781861762818. OCLC 67375475.