Battle of Moon Sound

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The Battle of Moon Sound was a naval battle in World War I, fought in the autumn of 1917 between German and Russian forces (and three British submarines) in the Baltic Sea.

The Germans captured the Baltic islands of Saaremaa, Hiiumaa, and Muhu (Moon) during Operation Albion in September 1917. This left a Russian squadron consisting of the battleships Tsesarevich and Slava, together with cruisers and destroyers, stranded in the Gulf of Riga. The Russian fleet escaped on 17 October 1917 by way of the Moon Sound, a strait separating the island of Moon from the Estonian mainland.

Discovered during their retreat, the Russians were engaged by the German dreadnoughts SMS König and SMS Kronprinz. Slava was heavily damaged and had to be scuttled because she drew too much water to pass through the shallow strait.

[edit] External links

• Account of Russian naval activities in World War I; includes a short section on the Battle of Moon Sound
• Article in Russian Language on the Battle - http://ship.bsu.by/main.asp?id=4042#4042
• Article in English - http://www.gwpda.org/naval/albion3.htm
• Halpern, Paul G. A Naval History of World War I, 1994 UCL Press ISBN 1-85728-295-7

v • d • e Baltic Sea 1914-1918 Swedish iron ore - Gotland - Gulf of Riga - Operation Albion - Moon Sound - Ice Cruise - British Campaign in the Baltic 1918-19