Friedrich von Ingenohl

Who was Friedrich von Ingenohl?

Gustav Heinrich Ernst Friedrich von Ingenohl was a German admiral from Neuwied best known for his command of the German High Seas Fleet at the beginning of World War I.

His intention of engaging the British Royal Navy in a quick, decisive battle was not supported by the German admiralty. Ingenohl repeatedly sought small engagements against the British fleet in order to provoke imprudent counterstrokes, in order to gain a crucial advantage for the German navy. The intended result did not materialize; in the first combat of this kind on August 28, 1914 at the Battle of Heligoland Bight, the German Imperial Navy lost three light cruisers and a torpedo boat to Royal Navy ships. After a similarly unsuccessful action on the Dogger Bank on January 24, 1915, Ingenohl yielded command of the High Seas Fleet on February 2 and was succeeded by Admiral Hugo von Pohl. Ingenohl died in Berlin.