After Beatty again fails to communicate effectively, Evan-Thomas's battleships become the rear guard against the High Seas Fleet. Beatty's signal calls for a turn in succession and is not hauled down promptly, so Evan-Thomas warns his squadron and begins turning on his own initiative; Malaya turns early enough to reduce the danger of every ship using the same exposed patch of sea. Barham and Valiant engage Hipper while Warspite and Malaya take on Scheer's battleships. Historically the squadron scores at least thirteen hits, including multiple strikes on Seydlitz and Markgraf, but many shells fail to penetrate or burst correctly. In the alternate scenario, the loss of several battlecruisers and serious damage to a dreadnought would confront Scheer with a force he cannot replace. An early turn for home is the most plausible response, with HMS Queen Elizabeth's possible availability making the imbalance still sharper. If that happens before the main fleets meet, the public story of Jutland could credit Evan-Thomas with driving off Scheer after Beatty left the Fifth Battle Squadron behind.
Chapter · 1:58:33-2:10:18
The Fifth Battle Squadron could force Scheer to turn away
Accurate British 15-inch fire could turn existing hits on German battlecruisers and Markgraf into losses that force Scheer to withdraw early.