THE NAVAL SITUATION.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXI, Issue 457, 6 May 1909, Page 3

THE NAVAL SITUATION.

COMPARATIVE STRENGTH IN NORTH SEA.

THE STRATEGICAL TEST IN JULY.

At the beginning of this year the strength of the German High Sea Fleet was 16 latest battleships and 10 cruisers (four armoured, six small). Recently Britain made a new naval disposition, under which there are now a Main Fleet and an Atlantic Fleet, The Main Fleet, the larger of the two, is of the same strength numerically, as the German High Sea Fleet was—--16 battleships and ten armoured cruisers. But the present German fleet under Prince Henry of Prussia includes 18 battleships (an increase of two), and 16 cruisers (an increase of six), so it is numerically stronger than any individual British fleet.

The balance of the 94 German warships will be mostly destroyers. At the beginning of the year the German High Sea Fleet had attached to it 33 fully-manned destroyers (which it was then intended to raise at an early date to 50), and 14 reserve destroyers (to be raised to 40), which could be mobilised at a few hours notice; torpedo inspection, x old battleship, gunnery inspection, x modern battleship, x modern armoured cruiser, 2 small cruisers ; gunnery experiments, 1 armoured cruiser, 2 coast defence battleships. All these are in European waters, and no doubt all of them are now cruising under Prince Henry. It will be seen that this list gives the German force commissioned in home waters at the beginning of the year as 23 modern battleships and armoured cruisers, omitting smaller craft- Saturday’s cablegram, it will be noted, credit’s Prince Henry’s command with 24 armoured ships. In the summer of 1908 the German High Sea Fleet carried out with great success a longdistance cruise to the Azores and back. The German policy is concentration of naval strength in home waters, and there is, in fact, only one important ship outside Europe, the armoured cruiser Bismarck. The question of whether the two British fleets could unite in the event of a war with Germany, in order to outnumber the enemy, was tested in the British naval manoeuvres last July. The conditions and results have been unofficially reported on as follows: —

“ Blue Fleet (representing the German Navy), under Admiral Lord Charles Beresford, was stationed on the Scandinavian coast. Red Fleet (representing the British naval forces) was in two sections, each weaker than Blue Fleet, but together stronger, one part at Rosyth, and the other part in the Irish Channel; and the problem, was for Red to effect a junction while holding Blue in check. On July 16 war began, and from that date till the 19th the Blue Fleet was in command of the North Sea, seeing nothing of the enemy. The Red Fleet, however, succeeded in the meanwhile in effecting its junction. “Thus neither side gained a decided victory, though it was surprising that a hostile fleet should have been' left for 62 hours to work its will in the North Sea. The weather was exceedingly stormy, and this appears to have interfered with the scouting arrangements of either side ; indeed the manoeuvres passed without a single encounter. “ An application made after the manoeuvres by the Commander-in-Chief of the Channel Fleet (Admiral Lord Charles Beresford) to the Admiralty that the Blue and Red fleets might meet and carry out tactical exercises, so that officers might be given experience in handling a large fleet, was refused. At the close of the manoeuvres, Rear Admiral Sir P. Scott, whose relations with his Commander-in-Chief were not of the happiest, owing to a signal which he had made in November, 1907 (to the effect that paint work was more in demand than gunnery), and which was censured by Lord C. Beresford as ‘ insubordinate,’ was withdrawn from the First Cruiser Squadron, which forms part of the Channel Fleet, and detached with four armoured cruisers to South Africa.”