Battle off Texel

Battle off Texel
Part of the First World War
A sketch of the battle by one of the participants.
Date 17 October 1914 Location 50 nautical miles (58 mi; 93 km) off Texel, the Netherlands, North Sea 53°17′21″N 3°28′27″E / 53.28917°N 3.47417°E / 53.28917; 3.47417 Result British victory
Belligerents
United Kingdom	Germany
Commanders and leaders
Cecil Fox	Georg Thiele †[1]
Strength
1 light cruiser 4 destroyers	4 torpedo boats[2]
Casualties and losses
5 wounded 3 destroyers lightly damaged	218 killed 31 captured[3] 4 torpedo boats sunk
class=notpageimage| The battle location in the North Sea

The Battle off Texel, also known as the Action off Texel or the Action of 17 October 1914, was a naval battle off the coast of the Dutch island of Texel during the First World War. A British squadron, comprising one light cruiser and four destroyers on a routine patrol, encountered the German 7th Half Flotilla of torpedo boats which was en route to the British coast to lay mines.^[4][a] The British forces attacked and the outgunned German force attempted to flee and then fought a desperate and ineffective action against the British force, which sank all four German boats.^[5]

The battle resulted in the loss of the German torpedo boat squadron and prevented the mining of busy shipping lanes, such as the mouth of the River Thames. The British had few casualties and little damage to their vessels. The battle influenced the tactics and deployments of the remaining German torpedo boat flotillas in the North Sea area, as the loss shook the faith of their commanders in the effectiveness of the force.^[6]

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