Credit River - Invincible Traditional Cache

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Tylor2100: Even the Invincible's time has come.

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Hidden : 8/9/2013
Difficulty:
3 out of 5
Terrain:
4.5 out of 5

Size: Size: small (small)

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Geocache Description:


Credit River - Shipwreck Series

Invincible
 May 31, 1916



There are many shipwrecks around the world. Some very famous and others not so. Each however has it’s own story to tell. As you travel along the Credit River doing this series of caches, we have highlighted a number of these shipwrecks. During low water levels on these parts of the Credit River, you need to be careful in a canoe or kayak so as you don’t wind up in your own shipwreck. Besides the many large rocks along the way, there are also some other obstacles such as dams which should be avoided. All of the geocaches in this series have been placed by tubing, inflatable boat or on foot by walking in the water along the Credit River. Whichever way you choose to search for these caches, use caution and common sense.
More information about this series can be found here: Credit River - Shipwreck Series

Invincible
HMS Invincible was a battlecruiser of the British Royal Navy, the lead ship of her class of three, and the first battlecruiser to be built by any country in the world. In the First World War she participated in the Battle of Heligoland Bight in a minor role as she was the oldest and slowest of the British battlecruisers present. She fired on the light cruiser Cöln, but did not hit her before Cöln was sunk by the battlecruiser Lion. During the Battle of the Falkland Islands, Invincible and her sister Inflexible sank the armoured cruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau almost without loss to themselves, despite numerous hits by the German ships.

She was the flagship of the 3rd Battlecruiser Squadron during the Battle of Jutland. The squadron had been detached from Admiral Beatty's Battlecruiser Fleet a few days before the battle for gunnery practice with the Grand Fleet and acted as its heavy scouting force during the battle. She was destroyed by a magazine explosion during the battle after 'Q' turret was penetrated.

She was commissioned into the 1st Cruiser Squadron of the Home Fleet on 20 March 1909 and participated in fleet manoeuvres in April and June 1909, the Spithead Review on 12 June 1909, and the Fleet Review off Southend on 2 July. She was refitted between 17 August and 17 January 1910 in an attempt to cure the electrical problems with her turrets, but they were still unsatisfactory. Another attempt was made to bring her turrets to working order during a refit in the spring of 1911, but this too was unsuccessful and the decision was made the following year to convert her turrets to hydraulic power. This was delayed until after her deployment to join the Mediterranean Fleet at the end of 1912. On 17 March 1913, she collided with the submarine HMS C34, but the collision was ruled the fault of the submarine. She returned to the UK in December 1913 in preparation for a major refit that would finally give her turrets hydraulic power and make her battle-worthy.

Her refit at Portsmouth Dockyard began in March 1914 and was interrupted by the declaration of war on Germany on 4 August. She'd been formally recommissioned the day prior, but the turret work required another week to complete. Invincible was the first battlecruiser to be fitted with a new fire-control director, but this could not be completed in the allotted time and would remain inoperable until she was refitted after the Battle of the Falkland Islands. She was declared operational on 12 August, when Rear-Admiral Sir Archibald Gordon Moore, commanding the 2nd Battlecruiser Squadron, hoisted his flag in her. He was ordered to the Humber, along with the battlecruiser HMS New Zealand, where he could better support the British ships patrolling the Broad Fourteens.

Battle of Heligoland Bight:
Invincible's first action was as part of the battlecruiser force under the command of Admiral Beatty during the Battle of Heligoland Bight operation on 28 August 1914. Beatty's ships had originally been intended as distant support of the British cruisers and destroyers closer to the German coast in case large units of the High Seas Fleet sortied in response to the British attacks. They turned south at full speed at 11:35 AM when the British light forces failed to disengage on schedule and the rising tide meant that German capital ships would be able to clear the bar at the mouth of the Jade estuary. The brand-new light cruiser Arethusa had been crippled earlier in the battle and was under fire from the German light cruisers Strassburg and Cöln when Beatty's battlecruisers loomed out of the mist at 12:37 PM. Strassburg was able to duck into the mists and evade fire, but Cöln remained visible and was quickly crippled by fire from the squadron. Beatty was distracted from the task of finishing her off by the sudden appearance of the elderly light cruiser Ariadne directly to his front. He turned in pursuit and reduced her to a flaming hulk in only three salvos at close range (under 6,000 yards (5.5 km)). At 1:10 PM Beatty turned north and made a general signal to retire. At this time, Invincible, trailing the main body of battlecruisers, opened fire on Cöln. She fired 18 rounds, all misses, before Beatty's main body encountered the crippled Cöln shortly after turning north and she was sunk by two salvos from Lion.

Battle of the Falklands:
The West Indies Squadron of Rear Admiral Christopher Cradock was destroyed by the German German East Asia Squadron commanded by Admiral Graf von Spee during the Battle of Coronel on 1 November 1914. In response, the Admiralty ordered that a squadron be sent to destroy the Germans. The squadron, under the command of Admiral Sir Doveton Sturdee, consisted of Invincible (flag) and Inflexible. They departed on 11 November and rendezvoused with several other cruisers under Rear Admiral Stoddard at Abrolhos Rocks, off the coast of Brazil on the 26th. They departed the following day and reached Port Stanley in the Falklands on the morning of 7 December.

Spee, making a leisurely voyage back to the Atlantic, wanted to destroy the radio station at Port Stanley and sent the armoured cruiser SMS Gneisenau and the light cruiser Nürnberg to see if the harbour was clear of British warships on the morning of 8 December. They were spotted at 7:30 AM, although the pre-dreadnought Canopus, grounded in Stanley Harbour to defend the town and its wireless station, did not receive the signal until 7:45. Sturdee was not expecting an engagement and most of his ships were coaling. The armoured cruiser Cornwall and the light cruiser Bristol had one or both of their engines under repair. The armed merchant cruiser Macedonian was patrolling the outer harbour entrance while the armoured cruiser Kent was anchored in the outer harbour, scheduled to relieve the Macedonian at 8:00 AM. The German ships were not expecting resistance and the first salvo from Canopus's guns at 9:20 caused them to sheer off from their bombardment of the wireless station and fall back on Spee's main body.

Sturdee's ships did not sortie from the harbour until 9:50, although they could see the retreating German ships on the southwest horizon. The Invincibles, fresh out of dry dock, had a 5 knots (5.8 mph; 9.3 km/h) advantage over Spee's ships, which all had fouled bottoms that limited their speeds to no more than 20 knots (23 mph; 37 km/h). The light cruiser SMS Leipzig lagged behind the other ships and Inflexible opened fire when the range dropped to 17,500 yards (16.0 km) at 12:55 PM. Invincible opened fire shortly afterwards and both ships began straddling Leipzig as the range closed to 13,000 yards (12 km). At 1:20, Spee ordered his squadron to separate and ordered his light cruisers to turn to the southwest, while his armoured cruisers turned north east to cover their retreat. The German ships opened fire at 1:30 and scored their first hit at 1:44 when SMS Scharnhorst struck Invincible, though the shell burst harmlessly on the belt armour. Both sides fired rapidly during the first half-hour of the engagement, before Sturdee opened up the distance to put his ships outside of the effective range of the German guns. British gunnery was very poor, scoring only four hits out of 210 rounds fired. The primary cause was the smoke from the guns and funnels, since the British were downwind of the Germans, though one gun of Invincible's 'A' turret jammed at 1:42 and was out of action for thirty minutes.

Spee turned to the south in an attempt to disengage while the British had their vision obscured, but only opened the range to 17,000 yards (16 km) before his course change was spotted. The British battlecruisers gave chase at 24 knots (28 mph; 44 km/h). Forty minutes later the British opened fire again at 15,000 yards (14 km). Eight minutes later Spee turned again to the east to give battle. His strategy was to close the range so he could bring his 15 cm (5.9 in) secondary armament into play. He was successful and the 15 cm guns were able to open fire at 3:00 at maximum elevation. The smoke bothered both sides, but multiple hits were scored. Those of the German ships either failed to detonate or hit armoured areas. However, Gneisenau's starboard engine room was put out of action. Sturdee ordered his ships at 3:15 to cross their own wakes to gain the windward advantage. Spee turned to the northwest, as if to attempt to cross the British T, but actually to bring Scharnhorst's undamaged starboard guns to bear as most of those on his port side were now out of action. The British continued to hit Scharnhorst and Gneisenau regularly and Scharnhorst ceased fire at 4:00 before capsizing at 4:17 with no survivors. Gneisenau had been slowed by earlier damage and was battered for another hour and a half by Inflexible and Invincible at ranges down to 4,000 yards (3.7 km). Despite the damage her crew continued to fire back until she ceased firing at 4:47, her ammunition exhausted. Sturdee was ready to order 'Cease fire' at 5:15 when an ammunition hoist was freed up and she made her last shot. The British then pounded her until 5:50, after her captain had given the order to scuttle her at 5:40. She slowly capsized at 6:00 and the British were able to rescue 176 men from the freezing waters. Invincible had fired 513 12-inch shells during the battle, but had been hit twenty-two times. Two of her bow compartments were flooded and one hit on her waterline abreast 'P' turret had flooded a coal bunker and temporarily given her a 15° list. Nevertheless, only one man had been killed and five wounded aboard the battlecruisers.

After the battle Invincible made temporary repairs at Port Stanley and headed for Gibraltar, where she could be drydocked for more permanent repairs. This took a month and the opportunity was taken to extend the height of her fore funnel by 15 feet (4.6 m) to reduce the amount of smoke blocking visibility from the bridge and spotting top. Invincible sailed to England on 15 February 1915 and joined the Grand Fleet. On 21 February the British battlecruiser force was organised into three squadrons of the Battlecruiser Fleet, with the 3rd Battlecruiser Squadron (BCS) that was to consist of the three Invincible-class ships once Inflexible arrived from the Mediterranean. She was refitted between 25 April and 12 May to have four worn-out 12-inch guns replaced and the secondary armament reduced and given casemates. Rear Admiral Horace Hood took command of the 3rd BCS on 27 May 1915 and hoisted his flag in Invincible.

The 1st and 3rd BCS had sortied in response to the German bombardment of Yarmouth and Lowestoft on 24–25 April 1916, but failed to locate the German ships in heavy weather. During the return home, Invincible was rammed by the patrol yacht Goissa at 11:07 PM. Goissa's bow was embedded in Invincible's side which partially stoved-in. Invincible's speed was reduced to 12 knots (14 mph; 22 km/h) through flooding and she was forced to haul out of line and proceed independently to Rosyth for repairs which lasted until 22 May 1916.

Battle of Jutland:
At the end of May 1916, the 3rd Battlecruiser Squadron was temporarily assigned to the Grand Fleet for gunnery practice. On 30 May, the entire Grand Fleet, along with Admiral Beatty's battlecruisers, had been ordered to sea to prepare for an excursion by the German High Seas Fleet. In order to support Beatty, Admiral Hood took his three battlecruisers ahead of the Grand Fleet. At about 2:30 PM Invincible intercepted a radio message from the British light cruiser Galatea, attached to Beatty's Battlecruiser Force, reporting the sighting of two enemy cruisers. This was amplified by other reports of seven enemy ships steering north. Hood interpreted this as an attempt to escape through the Skagerrak and ordered an increase in speed to 22 kn (41 km/h) at 3:11 and steered East-Southeast to cut off the fleeing ships. Twenty minutes later Invincible intercepted a message from Beatty reporting five enemy battlecruisers in sight and later signals reporting that he was engaging the enemy on a south-easterly course. At 4:06 Hood ordered full speed and a course of south-southeast in an attempt to converge on Beatty. At 4:56, with no British ships in sight, Hood requested Beatty's course, position and speed, but never received a reply.

Hood continued on course until 5:40 when gunfire was spotted in the direction to which his light cruiser Chester had been dispatched to investigate other gunfire flashes. Chester encountered four light cruisers of Hipper's 2nd Scouting Group and was badly damaged before Hood turned to investigate and was able to drive the German cruisers away from Chester. At 5:53 Invincible opened fire on Wiesbaden and the other two Invincibles followed two minutes later. The German ships turned for the south after fruitlessly firing torpedoes at 6:00 and attempted to find shelter in the mist. As they turned Invincible hit Wiesbaden in the engine room and knocked out her engines while Inflexible hit Pillau once. The 2nd Scouting Group was escorted by the light cruiser Regensburg and 31 destroyers of the 2nd and 9th Flotillas and the 12th Half-Flotilla which attacked the 3rd BCS in succession. They were driven off by Hood's remaining light cruiser Canterbury and the five destroyers of his escort. In a confused action the Germans only launched 12 torpedoes and disabled the destroyer Shark with gunfire. Having turned due west to close on Beatty's ships, the three Invincible-class battlecruisers were broadside to the oncoming torpedoes, but Invincible turned north, while Inflexible and Indomitable turned south to present their narrowest profile to the torpedoes. All the torpedoes missed, although one passed underneath Inflexible without detonating. As Invincible turned north, her helm jammed and she had to come to a stop to fix the problem, but this was quickly done and the squadron reformed heading west.

At 6:21, with both Beatty and the Grand Fleet converging on him, Hood turned south to lead Beatty's battlecruisers. Hipper's battlecruisers were 9,000 yards (8.2 km) away and the Invincibles almost immediately opened fire on Hipper's flagship Lützow and Derfflinger. Indomitable hit Derfflinger three times and Seydlitz once, while the Lützow quickly took 10 hits from Lion, Inflexible and Invincible, including two hits below the waterline forward by Invincible that would ultimately doom her. But at 6:30 Invincible abruptly appeared as a clear target before Lützow and Derfflinger. The two German ships then fired three salvoes each at Invincible and sank her in 90 seconds. At least one 305 mm (12-inch) shell from the third salvo struck her midships 'Q' turret. The shell penetrated the front of 'Q' turret, blew off the roof and detonated the midships magazines, which blew the ship in half. The explosion possibly ignited 'A' and 'X' magazines. Of her complement, 1026 officers and men were killed, including Rear-Admiral Hood. There were only six survivors picked up by Badger. The names of the survivors are:

Commander Hubert E. Dannreuther, RN
Lieutenant Cecil. S. Sandford, RN
Chief Petty Officer P. T. I. Thompson
Yeoman of Signals Walter Maclean Pratt
Able Seaman Ernest George Dandridge
Gunner Bryan Gasson, RMA

All except Gunner Gasson were stationed in the fire control top located at the top of the tripod foremast. Gasson was stationed in 'Q' turret itself. When the magazine exploded he was somehow thrown clear of the ship.

After the war, the wreckage was located by a minesweeper at 57º02'40" North Latitude, 06º07'15" East Longitude, 180 feet (55 m) down.

Mount Invincible in the Canadian Rockies was named after the battlecruiser in 1917.

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Ebhaq plyvaqevpny pbagnvare va n ubyr ba gur gbc bs gur natyrq snyyra gehax.

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)


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