HMS Jervis Bay: "Admiral Scheer" | Modern Heavy-Metal

⚓ Upcoming ships & member-only songs➡️Playlist➡️    • Members-only videos   👇 Click "...more" for the full ship description All music on this channel is royalty‑free and copyright‑free. You are allowed to use these songs in any videos or live streams, without restriction! ____________________________________________ The Battle of HMS Jervis Bay and Admiral Scheer HMS Jervis Bay was an armed merchant cruiser of the Royal Navy, originally launched as a passenger liner in 1922 and converted for wartime service after the outbreak of the Second World War. She carried no armor and was armed with seven aging 6-inch guns, making her hopelessly outmatched against modern warships. Yet on 5 November 1940, she would earn a place among the most celebrated ships of the Battle of the Atlantic. Her opponent was the German raider Admiral Scheer, one of Germany's famous "pocket battleships." Commissioned in 1934, she displaced around 15,000 tons and was armed with six powerful 11-inch (280 mm) guns. Designed to overwhelm cruisers while outrunning heavier opponents, she was one of the Kriegsmarine's most successful commerce raiders. The Ships: HMS Jervis Bay Type: Armed Merchant Cruiser Displacement: 14,164 GRT Speed: 15 knots Armament: 7 × 6-inch guns, 2 × 3-inch AA guns Crew: 254 men Admiral Scheer Type: Deutschland-class "Pocket Battleship" Standard displacement: about 14,500 tons Speed: 28 knots Armament: 6 × 11-inch guns, 8 × 5.9-inch guns, torpedoes, AA weapons The Battle On 5 November 1940, Convoy HX 84 was crossing the North Atlantic from Halifax to Britain. The convoy consisted of 37 merchant ships carrying food, fuel, steel, and other supplies vital to Britain's survival. Its only escort was HMS Jervis Bay. When Admiral Scheer appeared, Captain Edward Stephen Fogarty Fegen immediately recognized the danger. If the German raider reached the convoy, dozens of merchant ships could be destroyed. Fegen ordered the famous signal: "Convoy scatter." He then turned Jervis Bay directly toward Admiral Scheer. The decision was effectively a sacrifice. His ship was slower, unarmored, and hopelessly outgunned, but every minute gained increased the convoy's chance of escape. Admiral Scheer opened fire with her 11-inch guns, smashing the British ship with shells weighing hundreds of pounds. Jervis Bay was repeatedly hit, her bridge damaged, fires breaking out across the ship. Despite this, her crew continued fighting and firing their obsolete guns at the German raider. The Last Stand For roughly twenty minutes, Jervis Bay charged and fought against overwhelming odds. Eventually her guns were silenced, the bridge devastated, and Captain Fegen was killed while continuing to command his ship. Burning fiercely and beyond saving, Jervis Bay sank beneath the Atlantic. Only 65 of her crew survived. The sacrifice was not in vain. The delay allowed most of HX 84 to scatter into the gathering darkness and poor weather. Although Admiral Scheer sank several merchant ships, the majority escaped and continued to Britain. Captain Fegen's courage saved thousands of tons of desperately needed supplies and countless lives. Legacy Captain Edward Fegen was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross, Britain's highest award for gallantry. His citation praised him "for valour in challenging hopeless odds and giving his life to save the many ships it was his duty to protect." HMS Jervis Bay did not win the battle. She won something rarer: a place in history as one of the greatest examples of naval courage and self-sacrifice ever displayed at sea. Facing an enemy she could neither defeat nor escape, she chose to stand between danger and the ships under her protection, buying them the time they needed to survive. ____________________________________________________________________________ #metal #heavymetal #jervisbay #admiralscheer #hmsjervisbay #wwiihistory #navalhistory