TRENDEAtlas of the Sultans · Wars, battles and treaties
Naval battle · 1913
The Naval Battle of Lemnos, fought on 18 January [O.S. 5 January] 1913, was a naval battle during the First Balkan War, in which the Greeks defeated the second and last attempt of the Ottoman Empire to break the Greek naval blockade of the Dardanelles and reclaim supremacy over the Aegean Sea. This, the final naval battle of the First Balkan War, forced the Ottoman Navy to retreat to its base within the Dardanelles, from which it did not venture for the rest of the war, thus ensuring the dominion of the Aegean Sea and the Aegean islands by Greece.
| Date | 18 January [O.S. 5 January] 1913 |
|---|---|
| Location | Off Lemnos, Aegean Sea |
| Result | Greek victory |
| Belligerents | Greece | Ottoman Empire |
|---|---|---|
| Commanders | Pavlos Kountouriotis | Ramiz Bey |
| Strength | 1 armored cruiser 3 ironclad battleships 7 destroyers | 2 pre-dreadnought battleships 1 ironclad battleship 1 protected cruiser 5 destroyers |
| Casualties | 1 wounded | 41 killed 104 wounded 2 battleships damaged 1 ironclad damaged |
Throughout the battle, the Ottoman ships achieved an excellent rate of fire, firing about 800 shells, but with dismal accuracy. Only two hits were registered on the Georgios Averof, causing one injury and minor damages, while the other battleships escaped unscathed. The Ottoman ships suffered far more. Barbaros Hayreddin was hit by over 20 shells, which destroyed much of its artillery, and suffered 32 dead and 45 wounded. Turgut Reis suffered a major leak and other minor damages from 17 hits, and 9 dead and 49 wounded. Mesûdiye also suffered several hits, but the main damage was caused by a 270mm shell which destroyed the central 150mm gun platform, and caused 68 casualties.
Took place during the reign of Mehmed V (1909–1918). Mehmed V
The atlas records this territorial change for the year:
Text: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0), adapted for the atlas.