| Battle off Bermuda | ||
|---|---|---|
| Part of Franco-Lavrunarian War | ||
| {{{image}}} | ||
| Date | 11 February 1943 | |
| Location | To the southeast of Bermuda | |
| Result | • Inconclusive
• Lavrunarian Tactical Victory | |
| Belligerents | ||
|
Confederation of Lavrunaria |
Fascist France | |
| Commanders and Leaders | ||
|
Admiral Varfolomei von Konstantinov Vice-Admiral Veikko von Ljungman |
Amiral Raphael Legrand | |
| Strength | ||
|
1 battleship 1 battlecruiser 5 heavy cruisers 2 light cruisers 10 destroyers |
1 battleship 2 light cruisers 8 destroyers | |
| Casualties and losses | ||
|
2 destroyers sunk 1 light cruiser heavily damaged 2 heavy cruisers lightly damaged 378 dead 107 wounded |
1 destroyer crippled 1 battleship damaged 2 destroyers lightly damaged 107 dead 272 wounded 35 captured | |
The Battle off Bermuda was a major Naval Battle in the Franco-Lavrunarian War between a large task force of the Imperial Lavrunarian Navy and a group of ships of the Fascist French Navy, fought on 11 February 1943.
In the battle, the French ships were leaving Bermuda after refueling and rearming. The Lavrunarian task force approached out of a squall from the South and was only spotted by the French when they were about 20 nm away. The French ships quickly formed into two divisions to battle the three divisions of the Lavrunarian task force. The French were able to land hits on the Lavrunarian ships early in the battle, with two destroyers - Grygg Horne and Arnulf Radek - blowing up after engaging with the larger French destroyers. However, as the French and Lavrunarian main battle lines closed, the tide began to turn against the French, leading up to the pivotal point of the battle where the French battleship NdN François de La Rocque, focused on engaging the Lavrunarian battleship Otokar Geissler, was hit by torpedoes launched from the heavy cruiser Dyonetsk. The French were forced to retire afterwards, ending the battle in a stalemate.
Prelude[]
The Lavrunarians, using information from the floatplanes launched by Otokar Geissler and Atlantis, formed into three divisions: the Main Battle Squadron, Flying Squadron, and Diversionary Squadron. As was typical for Lavrunarian fleet combat, the Main Battle Squadron was composed of the heavier surface forces of the task force, the Flying Squadron was composed of the faster fleet units, and the Diversionary Squadron was composed of the light cruisers and destroyers. The Main Battle Squadron was meant to destroy the enemy, while the Flying Squadron attacked the flanks of the enemy, attempting to force the enemy into a crossfire - so called 'L' tactics. The Diversionary Squadron was meant to draw away some of the destroyers and light cruisers of the enemy, in order to prevent the enemy from splitting his forces and confounding the Lavrunarian battle plans. As the Lavrunarians approached, their order of battle was as follows:
Main Battle Squadron[]
- Battleship Otokar Geissler
- Heavy Cruisers Dyonetsk and Jarvensynn
Flying Squadron[]
- Battlecruiser Atlantis
- Heavy Cruisers Ypryenn, Nova and Parnyu
Diversionary Squadron[]
- Light Cruisers Odynse and Holbayek
- Destroyers Artur Transat, Henri Rykord, Alexis Guido Hesekiel, Grygg Horne, Loch af Skysil, Kai Adolf, Ensio Jaak Richard, Arnulf Radek, Vadimir Donne and Volodya Piaras
Battle[]
Opening moves[]
Minutes after the François de La Rocque spotted the plumes of smoke from the Lavrunarian force, Amiral Legrand ordered half of his contre-torpilleurs to form a 2nd Division behind the light cruiser 11 Novembre in order to battle the Lavrunarian Diversionary Squadron under Vice-Admiral Veikko von Ljungman. The other contre-torpilleurs stayed to escort the light cruiser Concorde and the battleship François de La Rocque as the 1st Division. From this point on, the order of battle for the French was as follows:
1st Division[]
- Battleship NdN François de La Rocque
- Light Cruiser NdN Concorde
- Destroyers NdN Aulne, Odet, Vienne and Dive
2nd Division[]
- Light Cruiser NdN 11 Novembre
- Destroyers NdN L'Indestructible, L'Incorruptible, L'Élégant and Le Rapide
As the French 2nd Division approached the flying squadron, the leading contre-torpilleurs opened fired with their forward 138mm guns. In particular, the four ships of the L'Indestructible class focused their fire on the leading Lavrunarian destroyers.