[humblegunner]

(Excerpt) Read more at 19fortyfive.com ...

No.

get a job.

[PAR35]

Easy enough - Jutland.

44 Battleships (plus 6 pre-Dreadnoughts)
15 Battle Cruisers
45 Cruisers (light and heavy)
78 Torpedo Boat Destroyers
61 Torpedo Boats
1 minelayer
1 seaplane carrier

Over 175,000 tons sunk
Over 8500 killed, over 1100 wounded

[datura]

Go away blog pimp.

[Andyman]

Few things.
1) I’m a fan of the Oxford comma; I think it improves readability.
2) “Check out the below and make your own mind.” Poorly worded sentence.
3) “ . . . over half its warship sunk” They either had only a single ship and >50% of it stayed afloat, or an “s” needs to be added to “warship.”
Overall I enjoy reading these articles.

[Vermont Lt]

I like reading your blog.

[Red Badger]

The one we’re in right now........ The armed forces Vs the LGBTQ Woke Brigades............

[circlecity]

How do you define “biggest”? The battle with the most assets at play or the battle with the most far reaching impact? If the latter, I would say the battles of Salamis and Lepanto.

[heavy metal]

another story about the kardashians?...

[Blennos]

Please keep posting your site here. I find it quite well done.

[central_va]

If you look at the Battle of the Atlantic (1940-1945) as one continuous running battle then that would be it.

[gdc61]

the battle of 1588 comes to mind with well over 300 ships involved. consisted of approximately 130 Spanish warships against 34 British warships 30 other large warships and a collection of smaller vessels numbering approximately 130.

[Afterguard]

Fun facts regardless what Humblegunner has to say.

My vote goes way back to the British defeat of the Spanish Armada in July-August of 1588. There were total of 57 warships, 271 armed merchant vessels, and 8 fireships. A total of 336 ships (+/-) depending on how accurate the records are of the time.

[Reily]

Try these

Salamis, September 480 BC. A fleet of 371 Greek ships defeated 600–900 Persian ships in this decisive battle off the coast of Athens. Greek triremes typically had crews of about 200 men, and the smaller penteconters were each crewed by 50 oarsmen, yet the total number of personnel involved in the battle is uncertain.

Cape Ecnomus, 256 BC. One of Ancient Rome’s first major naval victories over its rival, the city of Carthage, during the First Punic War, the battle involved around 680 ships and 300,000 personnel from both sides. Total casualties were about 40,000–50,000, of which roughly 10,000 were on the Roman side and the rest from the Carthaginian side.

Battle of Actium, September 31 BC. This was the crucial battle of the final war of the Roman Republic, between the forces of Mark Antony and Octavian, and one of the most decisive naval battles in history. Somewhere between 780 and 800 ships were involved; Antony had 350 quinqueremes (larger galleys) and 30–50 transports, while Octavian had at least 400 ships, a combination of smaller biremes and triremes. Octavian’s fleet won the battle, after which he was established as the first Roman emperor, Augustus.

[Osage Orange]

Do ever comment?

Do help out FR with MONEY?

[Bratch]

Ask any armchair historian to name the largest naval battle in history and a typical response is the “Battle of Leyte Gulf,” fought in October 1944 off the coast of the Philippines. It involved hundreds of ships, had nearly 200,000 participants and it spanned some 100,000 square miles. Battleships, Aircraft Carriers, and Cruisers all duking it out–oh my.

The Battle of Leyte Gulf also involved the United States’ Third and Seventh Fleets, which comprised some eight large aircraft carriers, another eight light carriers as well as 18 escort carriers and a dozen battleships. The Allied forces won a decisive victory over the Japanese forces, which lost a fleet carrier, three light carriers and three battleships.

The U.S. Navy light aircraft carrier USS Princeton (CVL-23) burning soon after she was hit by a Japanese bomb while operating off the Philippines on 24 October 1944. This view, taken from the battleship USS South Dakota (BB-57) at about 1001 hrs., shows the large smoke column aft following a heavy explosion in the carrier’s hangar bay.

In terms of sheer numbers, it is easy to see why Leyte Gulf should have the distinction of being the largest naval battle in history. But some historians will argue it really was a combination of four major subsidiary battles that happened to take place at the same time. Moreover, Leyte Gulf didn’t have the largest number of participants or even ships that were engaged in one battle.

There are several other notable battles that have also been called the largest or greatest naval battle in history. Check out the below and make your own mind.

Battle of Lepanto

On the shortlist of greatest battles in naval history is the Battle of Lepanto, which was fought between the Holy League, which included the forces of the Spanish Empire, the Papal States, the Republic of Venice and other Italian states; and the Ottoman Empire on October 7, 1571. It didn’t involve quite as many men as Leyte Gulf – the Holy League mustered around 40,000 sailors and another 20,000 soldiers while the Ottoman Empire had some 84,000 men including 37,000 slaves who acted as oarsmen.

However, the Battle of Lepanto involved some 500 warships, mostly galleys, and in the end, nearly a third of the Ottoman force was killed, over half its warship sunk and a substantial number captured. It marked a major turning point for Europe and has been hailed as the greatest naval battle of the late Middle Ages.

Battle of Yamen

Fought in March 1279, the Battle of Yamen took place in the South China Sea between the Mongol Yuan Dynasty and the Song Dynasty. It could go down as the most one-sided naval battle as well – and with an outcome that on paper seems improbable.

The Song had more than 1,000 ships, which were carrying around 200,000 people while the Yuan had just 50 warships and only around 20,000 soldiers. A closer look at the numbers tells another story. Most of the Song vessels were transports, carrying court officials and servants/slaves. The actual fighting capacity was just a fraction of the total strength.

To make matters worse, the Song commander Zhang Shijie ordered his fleet to be chained together – to prevent any from feeling. While prepared for a skirmish and not a full-blown battle, Zhang Shijie quickly was overwhelmed and lost seven ships and most of his best fighters. Unable to support the middle or retreat, a slaughter ensued. At least 100,000 Song were killed, and for days after the battle thousands of corpses floated to the surface. Those included the boy emperor Zhao Shi. Within a year the Song Dynasty, which had ruled China for nearly three centuries, came to an end.

Battle of Salamis

Described as one of the most decisive military engagements of all time, the Battle of Salamis took place near Athens in 480 B.C.E. during the Greco-Persian Wars. It was another battle where on paper it seemed to be one sided affair – upwards of 1,200 Persian galleys (other estimates claim just 800) against 370 Greek triremes.

However, the Greek commander successfully drew the Persian fleet into the small Saronic Gulf. Without room to maneuver, the Persian fleet was overwhelmed by the more agile Greek ships. The Persians lost some 300 ships while the Greeks lost just 40.

Battle of the Red Cliffs

A millennia before Salamis, another decisive naval battle took place in China. It was the Battle of Red Cliffs or Battle of Chibi. Fought not on open water, it was actually an amphibious battle fought along the Yangtze River. It involved some 800,000 troops under the forces of northern warlord Cao Cao, against 50,000 troops under the allied forces of the southern warlords Sun Quan, Liu Bei and Liu Qi.

Yet again the numbers would suggest a very one-sided affair, but the southern forces had better ships and knew how to best navigate the river. The allied forces then set many of their boats on fire and rammed Cao’s fleet, destroying much of his invasion force. He was unable to conquer the lands south of the Yangtze River. It has become famous as an example of Chinese history where the smaller and weaker successfully defeated a larger and stronger force.

[Bratch]

The Naval Battle of Okinawa

The Battle of Okinawa was the largest and deadliest battle of the Pacific campaign. But the terrible battle on the island was only part of the fight, as the ships of the Navy faced an onslaught of Kamikaze attacks.

The History Guy recalls the many desperate actions to save the ships of the Okinawa armada.

[ZULU]

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Cape_Ecnomus

[BunnySlippers]

Naval or Navel?

[central_va]

The Battle of the Atlantic has been called the “longest, largest, and most complex” naval battle in history.[10] The campaign started immediately after the European War began, during the so-called “Phoney War”, and lasted more than five years, until the German surrender in May 1945. It involved thousands of ships in more than 100 convoy battles and perhaps 1,000 single-ship encounters, in a theatre covering millions of square miles of ocean. The situation changed constantly, with one side or the other gaining advantage, as participating countries surrendered, joined and even changed sides in the war, and as new weapons, tactics, counter-measures and equipment were developed by both sides. The Allies gradually gained the upper hand, overcoming German surface-raiders by the end of 1942 and defeating the U-boats by mid-1943, though losses due to U-boats continued until the war’s end. British Prime Minister Winston Churchill later wrote “The only thing that really frightened me during the war was the U-boat peril. I was even more anxious about this battle than I had been about the glorious air fight called the ‘Battle of Britain’.”[11]

[TruthWillWin]

Midway?