Part 4:
"It was an interesting fight off the Falklands islands, a good stand-up fight." Sturdee, memoirs
But the luck of the East Asia Squadron could not last forever. The British had been expecting the Germans at the Falklands at any moment. They'd beached the Canopus and turned her into a fortress. The garisson had quietly panicked until Admiral Sir Frederick Charles Doveton Sturdee arrived with a modern, well-armed, and fully prepared squadron of warships.
The Germans had 2 heavy cruisers, 2 light cruisers, and 3 "auxiliaries" - lightly armed supply vessels. All were undamaged, but low on ammo and low on supplies.
Facing them were 2 British battlecruisers, 2 heavy cruisers, an "armed merchant cruiser" of considerable power, and 2 light cruisers.
But the British had just arrived in port, and in this era, ships were slow to refuel and slower still to reach full power. Only one could reach maximum speed in under 2 hours. It was a perfectly calm and clear day, and the Germans, not suspecting the British reinforcements, inadvertently alerted the garrison.
All of Sturdee's ships were tied up with colliers and repairs. One of them even had a dissembled boiler. He faced von Spee's seasoned fleet and did the only sensible thing.
He ordered breakfast.
Of all the famously stoic British Admirals, Sturdee deserves special mention. "No man ever saw him rattled," it is said. He gave his orders calmly and politely and then sat down for toast and jam.
The Germans approached, and the British fleet, trapped in the harbour, could do next to nothing. But the beached Canopus opened fire and somehow scored a lucky hit on the Gneisenau. von Spee ordered his cruisers to break off the attack and speed away, hoping to engage on better terms.
Sturdee watched them placidly, then, when he was ready, set off in pursuit at 10am. By 1pm, they'd made contact. By 9pm it was all over. Only the light cruiser Dresden had escaped being run down.
