title: Battle of Jutland

text: Heavily outnumbered by Boedicker's four light cruisers, "Chester" was pounded before being relieved by Hood's heavy units, which swung westward for that purpose. Hood's flagship disabled the light cruiser shortly after 17:56. "Wiesbaden" became a sitting target for most of the British fleet during the next hour, but remained afloat and fired some torpedoes at the passing enemy battleships from long range. Meanwhile, Boedicker's other ships turned toward Hipper and Scheer in the mistaken belief that Hood was leading a larger force of British capital ships from the north and east. A chaotic destroyer action in mist and smoke ensued as German torpedo boats attempted to blunt the arrival of this new formation, but Hood's battlecruisers dodged all the torpedoes fired at them. In this action, after leading a torpedo counter-attack, the British destroyer was disabled, but continued to return fire at numerous passing enemy ships for the next hour.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: In the meantime, Beatty and Evan-Thomas had resumed their engagement with Hipper's battlecruisers, this time with the visual conditions to their advantage. With several of his ships damaged, Hipper turned back toward Scheer at around 18:00, just as Beatty's flagship "Lion" was finally sighted from Jellicoe's flagship "Iron Duke". Jellicoe twice demanded the latest position of the German battlefleet from Beatty, who could not see the German battleships and failed to respond to the question until 18:14. Meanwhile, Jellicoe received confused sighting reports of varying accuracy and limited usefulness from light cruisers and battleships on the starboard (southern) flank of his force.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: Jellicoe was in a worrying position. He needed to know the location of the German fleet to judge when and how to deploy his battleships from their cruising formation (six columns of four ships each) into a single battle line. The deployment could be on either the westernmost or the easternmost column, and had to be carried out before the Germans arrived; but early deployment could mean losing any chance of a decisive encounter. Deploying to the west would bring his fleet closer to Scheer, gaining valuable time as dusk approached, but the Germans might arrive before the manoeuvre was complete. Deploying to the east would take the force away from Scheer, but Jellicoe's ships might be able to cross the "T", and visibility would strongly favour British gunnery – Scheer's forces would be silhouetted against the setting sun to the west, while the Grand Fleet would be indistinct against the dark skies to the north and east, and would be hidden by reflection of the low sunlight off intervening haze and smoke. Deployment would take twenty irreplaceable minutes, and the fleets were closing at full speed. In one of the most critical and difficult tactical command decisions of the entire war, Jellicoe ordered deployment to the east at 18:15.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: Meanwhile, Hipper had rejoined Scheer, and the combined High Seas Fleet was heading north, directly toward Jellicoe. Scheer had no indication that Jellicoe was at sea, let alone that he was bearing down from the north-west, and was distracted by the intervention of Hood's ships to his north and east. Beatty's four surviving battlecruisers were now crossing the van of the British dreadnoughts to join Hood's three battlecruisers; at this time, Arbuthnot's flagship, the armoured cruiser , and her squadron-mate both charged across Beatty's bows, and "Lion" narrowly avoided a collision with "Warrior". Nearby, numerous British light cruisers and destroyers on the south-western flank of the deploying battleships were also crossing each other's courses in attempts to reach their proper stations, often barely escaping collisions, and under fire from some of the approaching German ships. This period of peril and heavy traffic attending the merger and deployment of the British forces later became known as "Windy Corner".


title: Battle of Jutland

text: Arbuthnot was attracted by the drifting hull of the crippled "Wiesbaden". With "Warrior", "Defence" closed in for the kill, only to blunder right into the gun sights of Hipper's and Scheer's oncoming capital ships. "Defence" was deluged by heavy-calibre gunfire from many German battleships, which detonated her magazines in a spectacular explosion viewed by most of the deploying Grand Fleet. She sank with all hands (903 officers and men). "Warrior" was also hit badly, but was spared destruction by a mishap to the nearby battleship "Warspite". "Warspite" had her steering gear overheat and jam under heavy load at high speed as the 5th Battle Squadron made a turn to the north at 18:19. Steaming at top speed in wide circles, "Warspite" attracted the attention of German dreadnoughts and took 13 hits, inadvertently drawing fire away from the hapless "Warrior". "Warspite" was brought back under control and survived the onslaught, but was badly damaged, had to reduce speed, and withdrew northward; later (at 21:07), she was ordered back to port by Evan-Thomas. "Warspite" went on to a long and illustrious career, serving also in World War II. "Warrior", on the other hand, was abandoned and sank the next day after her crew was taken off at 08:25 on 1 June by "Engadine", which towed the sinking armoured cruiser during the night.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: As "Defence" sank and "Warspite" circled, at about 18:19, Hipper moved within range of Hood's 3rd Battlecruiser Squadron, but was still also within range of Beatty's ships. At first, visibility favoured the British: hit "Derfflinger" three times and "Seydlitz" once, while "Lützow" quickly took 10 hits from "Lion", and "Invincible", including two below-waterline hits forward by "Invincible" that would ultimately doom Hipper's flagship. But at 18:30, "Invincible" abruptly appeared as a clear target before "Lützow" and "Derfflinger". The two German ships then fired three salvoes each at "Invincible", and sank her in 90 seconds. A shell from the third salvo struck "Invincible"s Q-turret amidships, detonating the magazines below and causing her to blow up and sink. All but six of her crew of 1,032 officers and men, including Rear-Admiral Hood, were killed. Of the remaining British battlecruisers, only "Princess Royal" received heavy-calibre hits at this time (two by the battleship "Markgraf"). "Lützow", flooding forward and unable to communicate by radio, was now out of action and began to attempt to withdraw; therefore Hipper left his flagship and transferred to the torpedo boat , hoping to board one of the other battlecruisers later.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: By 18:30, the main battle fleet action was joined for the first time, with Jellicoe effectively "crossing Scheer's T". The officers on the lead German battleships, and Scheer himself, were taken completely by surprise when they emerged from drifting clouds of smoky mist to suddenly find themselves facing the massed firepower of the entire Grand Fleet main battle line, which they did not know was even at sea. Jellicoe's flagship "Iron Duke" quickly scored seven hits on the lead German dreadnought, , but in this brief exchange, which lasted only minutes, as few as 10 of the Grand Fleet's 24 dreadnoughts actually opened fire. The Germans were hampered by poor visibility, in addition to being in an unfavourable tactical position, just as Jellicoe had intended. Realising he was heading into a death trap, Scheer ordered his fleet to turn and disengage at 18:33. Under a pall of smoke and mist, Scheer's forces succeeded in disengaging by an expertly executed 180° turn in unison ("battle about turn to starboard", German "Gefechtskehrtwendung nach Steuerbord"), which was a well-practised emergency manoeuvre of the High Seas Fleet. Scheer declared:


title: Battle of Jutland

text: Conscious of the risks to his capital ships posed by torpedoes, Jellicoe did not chase directly but headed south, determined to keep the High Seas Fleet west of him. Starting at 18:40, battleships at the rear of Jellicoe's line were in fact sighting and avoiding torpedoes, and at 18:54 was hit by a torpedo (probably from the disabled "Wiesbaden"), which reduced her speed to . Meanwhile, Scheer, knowing that it was not yet dark enough to escape and that his fleet would suffer terribly in a stern chase, doubled back to the east at 18:55. In his memoirs he wrote, "the manoeuvre would be bound to surprise the enemy, to upset his plans for the rest of the day, and if the blow fell heavily it would facilitate the breaking loose at night." But the turn to the east took his ships, again, directly towards Jellicoe's fully deployed battle line.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: Simultaneously, the disabled British destroyer HMS "Shark" fought desperately against a group of four German torpedo boats and disabled with gunfire, but was eventually torpedoed and sunk at 19:02 by the German destroyer . "Shark"s Captain Loftus Jones was awarded the Victoria Cross for his heroism in continuing to fight against all odds.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: Commodore Goodenough's 2nd Light Cruiser Squadron dodged the fire of German battleships for a second time to re-establish contact with the High Seas Fleet shortly after 19:00. By 19:15, Jellicoe had crossed Scheer's "T" again. This time his arc of fire was tighter and deadlier, causing severe damage to the German battleships, particularly Rear-Admiral Behncke's leading 3rd Squadron (SMS "König", , "Markgraf", and all being hit, along with of the 1st Squadron), while on the British side, only the battleship was hit (twice, by "Seydlitz" but with little damage done).


title: Battle of Jutland

text: At 19:17, for the second time in less than an hour, Scheer turned his outnumbered and out-gunned fleet to the west using the "battle about turn" (German: "Gefechtskehrtwendung"), but this time it was executed only with difficulty, as the High Seas Fleet's lead squadrons began to lose formation under concentrated gunfire. To deter a British chase, Scheer ordered a major torpedo attack by his destroyers and a potentially sacrificial charge by Scouting Group I's four remaining battlecruisers. Hipper was still aboard the torpedo boat "G39" and was unable to command his squadron for this attack. Therefore, "Derfflinger", under Captain Hartog, led the already badly damaged German battlecruisers directly into "the greatest concentration of naval gunfire any fleet commander had ever faced", at ranges down to .


title: Battle of Jutland

text: In what became known as the "death ride", all the battlecruisers except "Moltke" were hit and further damaged, as 18 of the British battleships fired at them simultaneously. "Derfflinger" had two main gun turrets destroyed. The crews of Scouting Group I suffered heavy casualties, but survived the pounding and veered away with the other battlecruisers once Scheer was out of trouble and the German destroyers were moving in to attack. In this brief but intense portion of the engagement, from about 19:05 to about 19:30, the Germans sustained a total of 37 heavy hits while inflicting only two; "Derfflinger" alone received 14.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: While his battlecruisers drew the fire of the British fleet, Scheer slipped away, laying smoke screens. Meanwhile, from about 19:16 to about 19:40, the British battleships were also engaging Scheer's torpedo boats, which executed several waves of torpedo attacks to cover his withdrawal. Jellicoe's ships turned away from the attacks and successfully evaded all 31 of the torpedoes launched at them – though, in several cases, only barely – and sank the German destroyer "S35", attributed to a salvo from "Iron Duke". British light forces also sank "V48", which had previously been disabled by HMS "Shark". This action, and the turn away, cost the British critical time and range in the last hour of daylight – as Scheer intended, allowing him to get his heavy ships out of immediate danger.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: The last major exchanges between capital ships in this battle - and in the war - took place just after sunset, from about 20:19 to about 20:35, as the surviving British battlecruisers caught up with their German counterparts, which were briefly relieved by Rear-Admiral Mauve's obsolete pre-dreadnoughts (the German 2nd Squadron). The British received one heavy hit on "Princess Royal" but scored five more on "Seydlitz" and three on other German ships. As twilight faded to night, exchanged a few final shots with .


title: Battle of Jutland

text: At 21:00, Jellicoe, conscious of the Grand Fleet's deficiencies in night fighting, decided to try to avoid a major engagement until early dawn. He placed a screen of cruisers and destroyers behind his battle fleet to patrol the rear as he headed south to guard Scheer's expected escape route. In reality, Scheer opted to cross Jellicoe's wake and escape via Horns Reef. Luckily for Scheer, most of the light forces in Jellicoe's rearguard failed to report the seven separate encounters with the German fleet during the night; the very few radio reports that were sent to the British flagship were never received, possibly because the Germans were jamming British frequencies. Many of the destroyers failed to make the most of their opportunities to attack discovered ships, despite Jellicoe's expectations that the destroyer forces would, if necessary, be able to block the path of the German fleet.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: Jellicoe and his commanders did not understand that the furious gunfire and explosions to the north (seen and heard for hours by all the British battleships) indicated that the German heavy ships were breaking through the screen astern of the British fleet. Instead, it was believed that the fighting was the result of night attacks by German destroyers. The most powerful British ships of all (the 15-inch-guns of the 5th Battle Squadron) directly observed German battleships crossing astern of them in action with British light forces, at ranges of or less, and gunners on HMS "Malaya" made ready to fire, but her captain declined, deferring to the authority of Rear-Admiral Evan-Thomas – and neither commander reported the sightings to Jellicoe, assuming that he could see for himself and that revealing the fleet's position by radio signals or gunfire was unwise.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: While the nature of Scheer's escape, and Jellicoe's inaction, indicate the overall German superiority in night fighting, the results of the night action were no more clear-cut than were those of the battle as a whole. In the first of many surprise encounters by darkened ships at point-blank range, "Southampton", Commodore Goodenough's flagship, which had scouted so proficiently, was heavily damaged in action with a German Scouting Group composed of light cruisers, but managed to torpedo , which went down at 22:23 with all but 9 hands (320 officers and men).


title: Battle of Jutland

text: From 23:20 to approximately 02:15, several British destroyer flotillas launched torpedo attacks on the German battle fleet in a series of violent and chaotic engagements at extremely short range (often under ). At the cost of five destroyers sunk and some others damaged, they managed to torpedo the light cruiser , which sank several hours later, and the pre-dreadnought , which blew up and sank with all hands (839 officers and men) at 03:10 during the last wave of attacks before dawn. Three of the British destroyers collided in the chaos, and the German battleship rammed the British destroyer , blowing away most of the British ship's superstructure merely with the muzzle blast of its big guns, which could not be aimed low enough to hit the ship. "Nassau" was left with an hole in her side, reducing her maximum speed to , while the removed plating was left lying on "Spitfire"s deck. "Spitfire" survived and made it back to port. Another German cruiser, "Elbing", was accidentally rammed by the dreadnought and abandoned, sinking early the next day. Of the British destroyers, , , , and were lost during the night fighting.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: Just after midnight on 1 June, and other German battleships sank "Black Prince" of the ill-fated 1st Cruiser Squadron, which had blundered into the German battle line. Deployed as part of a screening force several miles ahead of the main force of the Grand Fleet, "Black Prince" had lost contact in the darkness and took a position near what she thought was the British line. The Germans soon identified the new addition to their line and opened fire. Overwhelmed by point-blank gunfire, "Black Prince" blew up, (all 857 officers and men were lost), as her squadron leader "Defence" had done hours earlier. Lost in the darkness, the battlecruisers "Moltke" and "Seydlitz" had similar point-blank encounters with the British battle line and were recognised, but were spared the fate of "Black Prince" when the captains of the British ships, again, declined to open fire, reluctant to reveal their fleet's position.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: At 01:45, the sinking battlecruiser "Lützow" – fatally damaged by "Invincible" during the main action – was torpedoed by the destroyer on orders of "Lützow"s Captain Viktor von Harder after the surviving crew of 1,150 transferred to destroyers that came alongside. At 02:15, the German torpedo boat suddenly had its bow blown off; "V2" and "V6" came alongside and took off the remaining crew, and the "V2" then sank the hulk. Since there was no enemy nearby, it was assumed that she had hit a mine or had been torpedoed by a submarine.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: At 02:15, five British ships of the 13th Destroyer Flotilla under Captain James Uchtred Farie regrouped and headed south. At 02:25, they sighted the rear of the German line. inquired of the leader as to whether he thought they were British or German ships. Answering that he thought they were German, Farie then veered off to the east and away from the German line. All but "Moresby" in the rear followed, as through the gloom she sighted what she thought were four pre-dreadnought battleships away. She hoisted a flag signal indicating that the enemy was to the west and then closed to firing range, letting off a torpedo set for high running at 02:37, then veering off to rejoin her flotilla. The four pre-dreadnought battleships were in fact two pre-dreadnoughts, "Schleswig-Holstein" and , and the battlecruisers "Von der Tann" and "Derfflinger". "Von der Tann" sighted the torpedo and was forced to steer sharply to starboard to avoid it as it passed close to her bows. "Moresby" rejoined "Champion" convinced she had scored a hit.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: Finally, at 05:20, as Scheer's fleet was safely on its way home, the battleship struck a British mine on her starboard side, killing one man and wounding ten, but was able to make port. "Seydlitz", critically damaged and very nearly sinking, barely survived the return voyage: after grounding and taking on even more water on the evening of 1 June, she had to be assisted stern first into port, where she dropped anchor at 07:30 on the morning of 2 June.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: The Germans were helped in their escape by the failure of the British Admiralty in London to pass on seven critical radio intercepts obtained by naval intelligence indicating the true position, course and intentions of the High Seas Fleet during the night. One message was transmitted to Jellicoe at 23:15 that accurately reported the German fleet's course and speed as of 21:14. However, the erroneous signal from earlier in the day that reported the German fleet still in port, and an intelligence signal received at 22:45 giving another unlikely position for the German fleet, had reduced his confidence in intelligence reports. Had the other messages been forwarded, which confirmed the information received at 23:15, or had British ships reported accurately sightings and engagements with German destroyers, cruisers and battleships, then Jellicoe could have altered course to intercept Scheer at the Horns Reef. The unsent intercepted messages had been duly filed by the junior officer left on duty that night, who failed to appreciate their significance. By the time Jellicoe finally learned of Scheer's whereabouts at 04:15, the German fleet was too far away to catch and it was clear that the battle could no longer be resumed.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: As both the Grand Fleet and the High Seas Fleet could claim to have at least partially satisfied their objectives, both Britain and Germany have at various points claimed victory in the Battle of Jutland. There is no consensus over which nation was victorious, or if there was a victor at all.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: At midday on 2 June, German authorities released a press statement claiming a victory, including the destruction of a battleship, two battlecruisers, two armoured cruisers, a light cruiser, a submarine and several destroyers, for the loss of "Pommern" and "Wiesbaden". News that "Lützow", "Elbing" and "Rostock" had been scuttled was withheld, on the grounds this information would not be known to the enemy. The victory of the Skagerrak was celebrated in the press, children were given a holiday and the nation celebrated. The Kaiser announced a new chapter in world history. Post-war, the official German history hailed the battle as a victory and it continued to be celebrated until after World War II.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: In Britain, the first official news came from German wireless broadcasts. Ships began to arrive in port, their crews sending messages to friends and relatives both of their survival and the loss of some 6,000 others. The authorities considered suppressing the news, but it had already spread widely. Some crews coming ashore found rumours had already reported them dead to relatives, while others were jeered for the defeat they had suffered. At 19:00 on 2 June, the Admiralty released a statement based on information from Jellicoe containing the bare news of losses on each side. The following day British newspapers reported a German victory. The "Daily Mirror" described the German Director of the Naval Department telling the "Reichstag": "The result of the fighting is a significant success for our forces against a much stronger adversary". The British population was shocked that the long anticipated battle had been a victory for Germany. On 3 June, the Admiralty issued a further statement expanding on German losses, and another the following day with exaggerated claims. However, on 7 June the German admission of the losses of "Lützow" and "Rostock" started to redress the sense of the battle as a loss. International perception of the battle began to change towards a qualified British victory, the German attempt to change the balance of power in the North Sea having been repulsed. In July, bad news from the Somme campaign swept concern over Jutland from the British consciousness.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: At Jutland, the Germans, with a 99-strong fleet, sank of British ships, while a 151-strong British fleet sank of German ships. The British lost 6,094 seamen; the Germans 2,551. Several other ships were badly damaged, such as "Lion" and "Seydlitz".


title: Battle of Jutland

text: As of the summer of 1916, the High Seas Fleet's strategy was to whittle away the numerical advantage of the Royal Navy by bringing its full strength to bear against isolated squadrons of enemy capital ships whilst declining to be drawn into a general fleet battle until it had achieved something resembling parity in heavy ships. In tactical terms, the High Seas Fleet had clearly inflicted significantly greater losses on the Grand Fleet than it had suffered itself at Jutland, and the Germans never had any intention of attempting to hold the site of the battle, so some historians support the German claim of victory at Jutland.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: However, Scheer seems to have quickly realised that further battles with a similar rate of attrition would exhaust the High Seas Fleet long before they reduced the Grand Fleet. Further, after the 19 August advance was nearly intercepted by the Grand Fleet, he no longer believed that it would be possible to trap a single squadron of Royal Navy warships without having the Grand Fleet intervene before he could return to port. Therefore, the High Seas Fleet abandoned its forays into the North Sea and turned its attention to the Baltic for most of 1917 whilst Scheer switched tactics against Britain to unrestricted submarine warfare in the Atlantic.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: At a strategic level, the outcome has been the subject of a huge amount of literature with no clear consensus. The battle was widely viewed as indecisive in the immediate aftermath, and this view remains influential.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: Despite numerical superiority, the British had been disappointed in their hopes for a decisive battle comparable to Trafalgar and the objective of the influential strategic doctrines of Alfred Mahan. The High Seas Fleet survived as a fleet in being. Most of its losses were made good within a month – even "Seydlitz", the most badly damaged ship to survive the battle, was repaired by October and officially back in service by November. However, the Germans had failed in their objective of destroying a substantial portion of the British Fleet, and no progress had been made towards the goal of allowing the High Seas Fleet to operate in the Atlantic Ocean.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: Subsequently, there has been considerable support for the view of Jutland as a strategic victory for the British. While the British had not destroyed the German fleet and had lost more ships and lives than their enemy, the Germans had retreated to harbour; at the end of the battle, the British were in command of the area. Britain enforced the blockade, reducing Germany's vital imports to 55%, affecting the ability of Germany to fight the war.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: The German fleet would only sortie into the North Sea thrice more, with a raid on 19 August, one in October 1916, and another in April 1918. All three were unopposed by capital ships and quickly aborted as neither side was prepared to take the risks of mines and submarines.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: Apart from these three abortive operations the High Seas Fleet – unwilling to risk another encounter with the British fleet – confined its activities to the Baltic Sea for the remainder of the war. Jellicoe issued an order prohibiting the Grand Fleet from steaming south of the line of Horns Reef owing to the threat of mines and U-boats. A German naval expert, writing publicly about Jutland in November 1918, commented, "Our Fleet losses were severe. On 1 June 1916, it was clear to every thinking person that this battle must, and would be, the last one".


title: Battle of Jutland

text: There is also significant support for viewing the battle as a German tactical victory, due to the much higher losses sustained by the British. The Germans declared a great victory immediately afterwards, while the British by contrast had only reported short and simple results. In response to public outrage, the First Lord of the Admiralty Arthur Balfour asked Winston Churchill to write a second report that was more positive and detailed.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: At the end of the battle, the British had maintained their numerical superiority and had 23 dreadnoughts ready and four battlecruisers still able to fight, while the Germans had only 10 dreadnoughts. One month after the battle, the Grand Fleet was stronger than it had been before sailing to Jutland. "Warspite" was dry-docked at Rosyth, returning to the fleet on 22 July, while "Malaya" was repaired in the floating dock at Invergordon, returning to duty on 11 July. "Barham" was docked for a month at Devonport before undergoing speed trials and returning to Scapa Flow on 8 July. "Princess Royal" stayed initially at Rosyth but transferred to dry dock at Portsmouth before returning to duty at Rosyth 21 July. "Tiger" was dry-docked at Rosyth and ready for service 2 July. "Queen Elizabeth", "Emperor of India" and , which had been undergoing maintenance at the time of the battle, returned to the fleet immediately, followed shortly after by "Resolution" and "Ramillies". "Lion" initially remained ready for sea duty despite the damaged turret, then underwent a month's repairs in July when Q turret was removed temporarily and replaced in September.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: A third view, presented in a number of recent evaluations, is that Jutland, the last major fleet action between battleships, illustrated the irrelevance of battleship fleets following the development of the submarine, mine and torpedo. In this view, the most important consequence of Jutland was the decision of the Germans to engage in unrestricted submarine warfare. Although large numbers of battleships were constructed in the decades between the wars, it has been argued that this outcome reflected the social dominance among naval decision-makers of battleship advocates who constrained technological choices to fit traditional paradigms of fleet action. Battleships played a relatively minor role in World War II, in which the submarine and aircraft carrier emerged as the dominant offensive weapons of naval warfare.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: The official British Admiralty examination of the Grand Fleet's performance recognised two main problems:


title: Battle of Jutland

text: German armour-piercing shells were far more effective than the British ones, which often failed to penetrate heavy armour. The issue particularly concerned shells striking at oblique angles, which became increasingly the case at long range. Germany had adopted trinitrotoluene (TNT) as the explosive filler for artillery shells in 1902, while the United Kingdom was still using a picric acid mixture (Lyddite). The shock of impact of a shell against armour often prematurely detonated Lyddite in advance of fuze function while TNT detonation could be delayed until after the shell had penetrated and the fuze had functioned in the vulnerable area behind the armour plate. Some 17 British shells hit the side armour of the German dreadnoughts or battlecruisers. Of these, four would not have penetrated under any circumstances. Of the remaining 13, one penetrated the armour and exploded inside. This showed a 7.5% chance of proper shell function on the British side, a result of overly brittle shells and Lyddite exploding too soon.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: The issue of poorly performing shells had been known to Jellicoe, who as Third Sea Lord from 1908 to 1910 had ordered new shells to be designed. However, the matter had not been followed through after his posting to sea and new shells had never been thoroughly tested. Beatty discovered the problem at a party aboard "Lion" a short time after the battle, when a Swedish Naval officer was present. He had recently visited Berlin, where the German navy had scoffed at how British shells had broken up on their ships' armour. The question of shell effectiveness had also been raised after the Battle of Dogger Bank, but no action had been taken. Hipper later commented, "It was nothing but the poor quality of their bursting charges which saved us from disaster."


title: Battle of Jutland

text: Admiral Dreyer, writing later about the battle, during which he had been captain of the British flagship "Iron Duke", estimated that effective shells as later introduced would have led to the sinking of six more German capital ships, based upon the actual number of hits achieved in the battle. The system of testing shells, which remained in use up to 1944, meant that, statistically, a batch of shells of which 70% were faulty stood an even chance of being accepted. Indeed, even shells that failed this relatively mild test had still been issued to ships. Analysis of the test results afterwards by the Ordnance Board suggested the likelihood that 30–70% of shells would not have passed the standard penetration test specified by the Admiralty.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: Efforts to replace the shells were initially resisted by the Admiralty, and action was not taken until Jellicoe became First Sea Lord in December 1916. As an initial response, the worst of the existing shells were withdrawn from ships in early 1917 and replaced from reserve supplies. New shells were designed, but did not arrive until April 1918, and were never used in action.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: British battlecruisers were designed to chase and destroy enemy cruisers from out of the range of those ships. They were not designed to be ships of the line and exchange broadsides with the enemy. One German and three British battlecruisers were sunk—but none were destroyed by enemy shells penetrating the belt armour and detonating the magazines. Each of the British battlecruisers was penetrated through a turret roof and their magazines ignited by flash fires passing through the turret and shell-handling rooms. "Lützow" sustained 24 hits and her flooding could not be contained. She was eventually sunk by her escorts' torpedoes after most of her crew had been safely removed (though six trapped stokers died when the ship was scuttled). "Derfflinger" and "Seydlitz" sustained 22 hits each but reached port (although in "Seydlitz"'s case only just).


title: Battle of Jutland

text: Jellicoe and Beatty, as well as other senior officers, gave an impression that the loss of the battlecruisers was caused by weak armour, despite reports by two committees and earlier statements by Jellicoe and other senior officers that Cordite and its management were to blame. This led to calls for armour to be increased, and an additional was placed over the relatively thin decks above magazines. To compensate for the increase in weight, ships had to carry correspondingly less fuel, water and other supplies. Whether or not thin deck armour was a potential weakness of British ships, the battle provided no evidence that it was the case. At least amongst the surviving ships, no enemy shell was found to have penetrated deck armour anywhere. The design of the new battlecruiser (which was being built at the time of the battle) was altered to give her of additional armour.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: British and German propellant charges differed in packaging, handling, and chemistry. The British propellant was of two types, MK1 and MD. The Mark 1 cordite had a formula of 37% nitrocellulose, 58% nitroglycerine, and 5% petroleum jelly. It was a good propellant but burned hot and caused an erosion problem in gun barrels. The petroleum jelly served as both a lubricant and a stabiliser. Cordite MD was developed to reduce barrel wear, its formula being 65% nitrocellulose, 30% nitroglycerine, and 5% petroleum jelly. While cordite MD solved the gun-barrel erosion issue, it did nothing to improve its storage properties, which were poor. Cordite was very sensitive to variations of temperature, and acid propagation/cordite deterioration would take place at a very rapid rate. Cordite MD also shed micro-dust particles of nitrocellulose and iron pyrite. While cordite propellant was manageable, it required a vigilant gunnery officer, strict cordite lot control, and frequent testing of the cordite lots in the ships' magazines.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: British cordite propellant (when uncased and exposed in the silk bag) tended to burn violently, causing uncontrollable "flash fires" when ignited by nearby shell hits. In 1945, a test was conducted by the U.S.N. Bureau of Ordnance (Bulletin of Ordnance Information, No.245, pp. 54–60) testing the sensitivity of cordite to then-current U.S. Naval propellant powders against a measurable and repeatable flash source. It found that cordite would ignite at from the flash, the current U.S. powder at , and the U.S. flashless powder at .


title: Battle of Jutland

text: This meant that about 75 times the propellant would immediately ignite when exposed to flash, as compared to the U.S. powder. British ships had inadequate protection against these flash fires. German propellant ("RP C/12", handled in brass cartridge cases, which were used in German artillery since traditional there sliding wedge breeches were hard to obturate with smokeless powder otherwise) was less vulnerable and less volatile in composition. German propellants were not that different in composition from cordite—with one major exception: centralite. This was symmetrical diethyl diphenyl urea, which served as a stabiliser that was superior to the petroleum jelly used in British practice. It stored better and burned but did not explode. Stored and used in brass cases, it proved much less sensitive to flash. RP C/12 was composed of 64.13% nitrocellulose, 29.77% nitroglycerine, 5.75% centralite, 0.25% magnesium oxide and 0.10% graphite.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: The Royal Navy Battle Cruiser Fleet had also emphasised speed in ammunition handling over established safety protocol. In practice drills, cordite could not be supplied to the guns rapidly enough through the hoists and hatches. To bring up the propellant in good time to load for the next broadside, many safety doors were kept open that should have been shut to safeguard against flash fires. Bags of cordite were also stocked and kept locally, creating a total breakdown of safety design features. By staging charges in the chambers between the gun turret and magazine, the Royal Navy enhanced their rate of fire but left their ships vulnerable to chain reaction ammunition fires and magazine explosions. This 'bad safety habit' carried over into real battle practices. Furthermore, the doctrine of a high rate of fire also led to the decision in 1913 to increase the supply of shells and cordite held on the British ships by 50%, for fear of running out of ammunition. When this exceeded the capacity of the ships' magazines, cordite was stored in insecure places.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: The British cordite charges were stored two silk bags to a metal cylindrical container, with a 16-oz gunpowder igniter charge, which was covered with a thick paper wad, four charges being used on each projectile. The gun crews were removing the charges from their containers and removing the paper covering over the gunpowder igniter charges. The effect of having eight loads at the ready was to have of exposed explosive, with each charge leaking small amounts of gunpowder from the igniter bags. In effect, the gun crews had laid an explosive train from the turret to the magazines, and one shell hit to a battlecruiser turret was enough to end a ship.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: A diving expedition during the summer of 2003 provided corroboration of this practice. It examined the wrecks of "Invincible", "Queen Mary", "Defence", and "Lützow" to investigate the cause of the British ships' tendency to suffer from internal explosions. From this evidence, a major part of the blame may be laid on lax handling of the cordite propellant for the shells of the main guns. The wreck of the "Queen Mary" revealed cordite containers stacked in the working chamber of the X turret instead of the magazine.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: There was a further difference in the propellant itself. While the German "RP C/12" burned when exposed to fire, it did not explode, as opposed to cordite. "RP C/12" was extensively studied by the British and, after World War I, would form the basis of the later Cordite SC.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: The memoirs of Alexander Grant, Gunner on "Lion", suggest that some British officers were aware of the dangers of careless handling of cordite:


title: Battle of Jutland

text: Grant had already introduced measures onboard "Lion" to limit the number of cartridges kept outside the magazine and to ensure doors were kept closed, probably contributing to her survival.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: On 5 June 1916, the First Lord of the Admiralty advised Cabinet Members that the three battlecruisers had been lost due to unsafe cordite management.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: After the battle, the B.C.F. Gunnery Committee issued a report (at the command of Admiral David Beatty) advocating immediate changes in flash protection and charge handling. It reported, among other things, that:


title: Battle of Jutland

text: British gunnery control systems, based on Dreyer tables, were well in advance of the German ones, as demonstrated by the proportion of main calibre hits made on the German fleet. Because of its demonstrated advantages, it was installed on ships progressively as the war went on, had been fitted to a majority of British capital ships by May 1916, and had been installed on the main guns of all but two of the Grand Fleet's capital ships. The Royal Navy used centralised fire-control systems on their capital ships, directed from a point high up on the ship where the fall of shells could best be seen, utilising a director sight for both training and elevating the guns. In contrast, the German battlecruisers controlled the fire of turrets using a training-only director, which also did not fire the guns at once. The rest of the German capital ships were without even this innovation. German range-finding equipment was generally superior to the British FT24, as its operators were trained to a higher standard due to the complexity of the Zeiss range finders. Their stereoscopic design meant that in certain conditions they could range on a target enshrouded by smoke. The German equipment was not superior in range to the British Barr & Stroud rangefinder found in the newest British capital ships, and, unlike the British range finders, the German range takers had to be replaced as often as every thirty minutes, as their eyesight became impaired, affecting the ranges provided to their gunnery equipment.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: The results of the battle confirmed the value of firing guns by centralised director. The battle prompted the Royal Navy to install director firing systems in cruisers and destroyers, where it had not thus far been used, and for secondary armament on battleships.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: German ships were considered to have been quicker in determining the correct range to targets, thus obtaining an early advantage. The British used a 'bracket system', whereby a salvo was fired at the best-guess range and, depending where it landed, the range was progressively corrected up or down until successive shots were landing in front of and behind the enemy. The Germans used a 'ladder system', whereby an initial volley of three shots at different ranges was used, with the centre shot at the best-guess range. The ladder system allowed the gunners to get ranging information from the three shots more quickly than the bracket system, which required waiting between shots to see how the last had landed. British ships adopted the German system.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: It was determined that range finders of the sort issued to most British ships were not adequate at long range and did not perform as well as the range finders on some of the most modern ships. In 1917, range finders of base lengths of were introduced on the battleships to improve accuracy.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: Throughout the battle, British ships experienced difficulties with communications, whereas the Germans did not suffer such problems. The British preferred signalling using ship-to-ship flag and lamp signals, avoiding wireless, whereas the Germans used wireless successfully. One conclusion drawn was that flag signals were not a satisfactory way to control the fleet. Experience using lamps, particularly at night when issuing challenges to other ships, demonstrated this was an excellent way to advertise your precise location to an enemy, inviting a reply by gunfire. Recognition signals by lamp, once seen, could also easily be copied in future engagements.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: British ships both failed to report engagements with the enemy but also, in the case of cruisers and destroyers, failed to actively seek out the enemy. A culture had arisen within the fleet of not acting without orders, which could prove fatal when any circumstances prevented orders being sent or received. Commanders failed to engage the enemy because they believed other, more senior officers must also be aware of the enemy nearby, and would have given orders to act if this was expected. Wireless, the most direct way to pass messages across the fleet (although it was being jammed by German ships), was avoided either for perceived reasons of not giving away the presence of ships or for fear of cluttering up the airwaves with unnecessary reports.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: Naval operations were governed by standing orders issued to all the ships. These attempted to set out what ships should do in all circumstances, particularly in situations where ships would have to react without referring to higher authority, or when communications failed. A number of changes were introduced as a result of experience gained in the battle.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: A new signal was introduced instructing squadron commanders to act independently as they thought best while still supporting the main fleet, particularly for use when circumstances would make it difficult to send detailed orders. The description stressed that this was not intended to be the only time commanders might take independent action, but was intended to make plain times when they definitely should. Similarly, instructions on what to do if the fleet was instructed to take evasive action against torpedoes were amended. Commanders were given discretion that if their part of the fleet was not under immediate attack, they should continue engaging the enemy rather than turning away with the rest of the fleet. In this battle, when the fleet turned away from Scheer's destroyer attack covering his retreat, not all the British ships had been affected, and could have continued to engage the enemy.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: A number of opportunities to attack enemy ships by torpedo had presented themselves but had been missed. All ships, not just the destroyers armed principally with torpedoes but also battleships, were reminded that they carried torpedoes intended to be used whenever an opportunity arose. Destroyers were instructed to close the enemy fleet to fire torpedoes as soon as engagements between the main ships on either side would keep enemy guns busy directed at larger targets. Destroyers should also be ready to immediately engage enemy destroyers if they should launch an attack, endeavouring to disrupt their chances of launching torpedoes and keep them away from the main fleet.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: To add some flexibility when deploying for attack, a new signal was provided for deploying the fleet to the centre, rather than as previously only either to left or right of the standard closed-up formation for travelling. The fast and powerful 5th Battle Squadron was moved to the front of the cruising formation so it would have the option of deploying left or right depending upon the enemy position. In the event of engagements at night, although the fleet still preferred to avoid night fighting, a destroyer and cruiser squadron would be specifically detailed to seek out the enemy and launch destroyer attacks.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: At the time, Jellicoe was criticised for his caution and for allowing Scheer to escape. Beatty, in particular, was convinced that Jellicoe had missed a tremendous opportunity to annihilate the High Seas Fleet and win what would amount to another Trafalgar. Jellicoe was promoted away from active command to become First Sea Lord, the professional head of the Royal Navy, while Beatty replaced him as commander of the Grand Fleet.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: The controversy raged within the navy and in public for about a decade after the war. Criticism focused on Jellicoe's decision at 19:15. Scheer had ordered his cruisers and destroyers forward in a torpedo attack to cover the turning away of his battleships. Jellicoe chose to turn to the south-east, and so keep out of range of the torpedoes. Supporters of Jellicoe, including the historian Cyril Falls, pointed to the folly of risking defeat in battle when one already has command of the sea. Jellicoe himself, in a letter to the Admiralty seventeen months before the battle, said that he intended to turn his fleet away from any mass torpedo attack (that being the universally accepted proper tactical response to such attacks, practised by all the major navies of the world). He said that, in the event of a fleet engagement in which the enemy turned away, he would assume they intended to draw him over mines or submarines, and he would decline to be so drawn. The Admiralty approved this plan and expressed full confidence in Jellicoe at the time (October 1914).


title: Battle of Jutland

text: The stakes were high, the pressure on Jellicoe immense, and his caution certainly understandable. His judgement might have been that even 90% odds in favour were not good enough to bet the British Empire. Churchill said of the battle that Jellicoe "was the only man on either side who could have lost the war in an afternoon."


title: Battle of Jutland

text: The criticism of Jellicoe also fails to sufficiently credit Scheer, who was determined to preserve his fleet by avoiding the full British battle line, and who showed great skill in effecting his escape.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: On the other hand, some of Jellicoe's supporters condemned the actions of Beatty for the British failure to achieve a complete victory. Although Beatty was undeniably brave, his mismanagement of the initial encounter with Hipper's squadron and the High Seas Fleet cost him a considerable advantage in the first hours of the battle. His most glaring failure was in not providing Jellicoe with periodic information on the position, course, and speed of the High Seas Fleet. Beatty, aboard the battlecruiser "Lion", left behind the four fast battleships of the 5th Battle Squadron – the most powerful warships in the world at the time – engaging with six ships when better control would have given him 10 against Hipper's five. Though Beatty's larger guns out-ranged Hipper's guns by thousands of yards, Beatty held his fire for 10 minutes and closed the German squadron until within range of the Germans' superior gunnery, under lighting conditions that favoured the Germans. Most of the British losses in tonnage occurred in Beatty's force.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: The total loss of life on both sides was 9,823 personnel: the British losses numbered 6,784 and the German 3,039. Counted among the British losses were two members of the Royal Australian Navy and one member of the Royal Canadian Navy. Six Australian nationals serving in the Royal Navy were also killed.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the British Empire armed forces. The Ordre pour le Mérite was the Kingdom of Prussia and consequently the German Empire's highest military order until the end of the First World War.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: In the years following the battle the wrecks were slowly discovered. "Invincible" was found by the Royal Navy minesweeper in 1919. After the Second World War some of the wrecks seem to have been commercially salvaged. For instance, the Hydrographic Office record for SMS "Lützow" (No.32344) shows that salvage operations were taking place on the wreck in 1960.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: During 2000–2016 a series of diving and marine survey expeditions involving veteran shipwreck historian and archaeologist Innes McCartney located all of the wrecks sunk in the battle. It was discovered that over 60 per cent of them had suffered from metal theft. In 2003 McCartney led a detailed survey of the wrecks for the Channel 4 documentary "Clash of the Dreadnoughts". The film examined the last minutes of the lost ships and revealed for the first time how both 'P' and 'Q' turrets of "Invincible" had been blasted out of the ship and tossed into the sea before she broke in half. This was followed by the Channel 4 documentary "Jutland: WWI's Greatest Sea Battle", broadcast in May 2016, which showed how several of the major losses at Jutland had actually occurred and just how accurate the "Harper Record" actually was.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: On the 90th anniversary of the battle, in 2006, the UK Ministry of Defence belatedly announced that the 14 British vessels lost in the battle were being designated as "protected places" under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986. This legislation only affects British ships and citizens and in practical terms offers no real protection from non-British salvors of the wreck sites. In May 2016 a number of British newspapers named the Dutch salvage company "Friendship Offshore" as one of the main salvors of the Jutland wrecks in recent years and depicted leaked photographs revealing the extent of their activities on the wreck of "Queen Mary".


title: Battle of Jutland

text: The last surviving veteran of the battle, Henry Allingham, a British RAF (originally RNAS) airman, died on 18 July 2009, aged 113, by which time he was the oldest documented man in the world and one of the last surviving veterans of the whole war. Also among the combatants was the then 20-year-old Prince Albert, serving as a junior officer aboard HMS "Collingwood". He was second in the line to the throne, but would become king as George VI following his brother Edward's abdication in 1936.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: One ship from the battle survives and is still (in 2022) afloat: the light cruiser . Decommissioned in 2011, she is docked at the Alexandra Graving Dock in Belfast, Northern Ireland and is a museum ship.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: The Battle of Jutland was annually celebrated as a great victory by the right wing in Weimar Germany. This victory was used to repress the memory of the German navy's initiation of the German Revolution of 1918–1919, as well as the memory of the defeat in World War I in general. (The celebrations of the Battle of Tannenberg played a similar role.) This is especially true for the city of Wilhelmshaven, where wreath-laying ceremonies and torch-lit parades were performed until the end of the 1960s.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: In 1916 Contreadmiral Friedrich von Kühlwetter (1865–1931) wrote a detailed analysis of the battle and published it in a book under the title "Skagerrak" (first anonymously published), which was reprinted in large numbers until after WWII and had a huge influence in keeping the battle in public memory amongst Germans as it was not tainted by the ideology of the Third Reich. Kühlwetter built the School for Naval Officers at Mürwik near Flensburg, where he is still remembered.


title: Battle of Jutland

text: In May 2016, the 100th-anniversary commemoration of the Battle of Jutland was held. On 29 May, a commemorative service was held at St Mary's Church, Wimbledon, where the ensign from HMS "Inflexible" is on permanent display. On 31 May, the main service was held at St Magnus Cathedral in Orkney, attended by the British prime minister, David Cameron, and the German president, Joachim Gauck, along with Princess Anne and Vice Admiral Sir Tim Laurence. A centennial exposition was held at the Deutsches Marinemuseum in Wilhemshaven from 29 May 2016 to 28 February 2017.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: Centralia is a borough and near-ghost town in Columbia County, Pennsylvania. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania. Its population has declined from 1,000 in 1980 to five residents in 2020 because a coal mine fire has been burning beneath the borough since 1962. Centralia, part of the Bloomsburg–Berwick metropolitan area, is the least-populated municipality in Pennsylvania. It is completely surrounded by Conyngham Township.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: All real estate in the borough was claimed under eminent domain in 1992 and condemned by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Centralia's ZIP code was discontinued by the Postal Service in 2002. State and local officials reached an agreement with the seven remaining residents on October 29, 2013, allowing them to remain in Centralia until their deaths, after which the rights to their houses will be taken through eminent domain.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: Many of the Native American tribes in what is now Columbia County sold the land that makes up Centralia to colonial agents in 1749 for £500. In 1770, during the construction of the Reading Road, which stretched from Reading to Fort Augusta (present-day Sunbury), settlers surveyed and explored the land. A large portion of the Reading Road was developed later as Route 61, the main highway east into and south out of Centralia.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: In 1793, Robert Morris, a hero of the Revolutionary War and a signatory of the Declaration of Independence, acquired a third of Centralia's valley land. When he declared bankruptcy in 1798, the land was surrendered to the Bank of the United States. A French sea captain named Stephen Girard purchased Morris' lands for $30,000, including 68 tracts east of Morris'. He had learned that there was anthracite coal in the region.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: The Centralia coal deposits were largely overlooked before the construction of the Mine Run Railroad in 1854. In 1832, Johnathan Faust opened the Bull's Head Tavern in what was called Roaring Creek Township; this gave the town its first name, Bull's Head. In 1842, Centralia's land was bought by the Locust Mountain Coal and Iron Company. Alexander Rae, a mining engineer, moved his family in and began planning a village, laying out streets and lots for development. Rae named the town Centreville, but in 1865 changed it to Centralia because the U.S. Post Office already had a Centreville in Schuylkill County. The Mine Run Railroad was built in 1854 to transport coal out of the valley.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: The first two mines in Centralia opened in 1856, the Locust Run Mine and the Coal Ridge Mine. Afterward came the Hazeldell Colliery Mine in 1860, the Centralia Mine in 1862, and the Continental Mine in 1863. The Continental was located on Stephen Girard's former estate. Branching from the Lehigh Valley Railroad, the Lehigh and Mahanoy Railroad was constructed to Centralia in 1865; it enabled transport and expansion of Centralia's coal sales to markets in eastern Pennsylvania.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: Centralia was incorporated as a borough in 1866. Its principal employer was the anthracite coal industry. Alexander Rae, the town's founder, was murdered in his buggy by members of the Molly Maguires on October 17, 1868, during a trip between Centralia and Mount Carmel. Three men were eventually convicted of his death and were hanged in the county seat of Bloomsburg, on March 25, 1878.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: Several other murders and incidents of arson also took place during the violence, as Centralia was a hotbed of Molly Maguires activity during the 1860s to organize a mineworkers union in order to improve wages and working conditions. A legend among locals in Centralia tells that Father Daniel Ignatius McDermott, the first Roman Catholic priest to call Centralia home, cursed the land in retaliation for being assaulted by three members of the Maguires in 1869. McDermott said that there would be a day when St. Ignatius Roman Catholic Church would be the only structure remaining in Centralia. Many of the Molly Maguires' leaders were hanged in 1877, ending their crimes. Legends say that a number of descendants of the Molly Maguires still lived in Centralia up until the 1980s.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: According to numbers of Federal census records, the town of Centralia reached its maximum population of 2,761 in 1890. At its peak, the town had seven churches, five hotels, 27 saloons, two theaters, a bank, a post office, and 14 general and grocery stores. Thirty-seven years later the production of anthracite coal had reached its peak in Pennsylvania. In the following years, production declined, as many young miners from Centralia enlisted in the military when the US entered World War I.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: The Wall Street Crash of 1929 resulted in the Lehigh Valley Coal Company closing five of its Centralia-local mines. Bootleg miners continued mining in several idle mines, using techniques such as what was called "pillar-robbing," where miners would extract coal from coal pillars left in mines to support their roofs. This caused the collapse of many idle mines, further complicating the prevention of the mine fire in 1962. Efforts to seal off the abandoned mines ran into the collapsed areas.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: In 1950, Centralia Council acquired the rights to all anthracite coal beneath Centralia through a state law passed in 1949 that enabled the transaction. That year, the federal census counted 1,986 residents in Centralia.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: Coal mining continued in Centralia until the 1960s, when most of the companies shut down. Bootleg mining continued until 1982, and strip and open-pit mining are still active in the area. An underground mine about three miles to the west employs about 40 people.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: Rail service ended in 1966. Centralia operated its own school district, including elementary schools and a high school. There were also two Catholic parochial schools. By 1980, it had 1,012 residents. Another 500 or 600 lived nearby.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: Analysts disagree about the specific cause of the Centralia fire. David Dekok, author of "Fire Underground: The Ongoing Tragedy of the Centralia Mine Fire", concluded that it started with an attempt to clean up the town landfill. In May 1962, the Centralia Borough Council hired five members of the volunteer fire company to clean up the town landfill, located in an abandoned strip-mine pit next to the Odd Fellows Cemetery just outside the borough limits. This had been done prior to Memorial Day in previous years, when the landfill was in a different location.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: On May 27, 1962, the firefighters, as they had in the past, set the dump on fire and let it burn for some time. Unlike in previous years, however, the fire was not fully extinguished. An unsealed opening in the pit allowed the fire to enter the labyrinth of abandoned coal mines beneath Centralia.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: By contrast, other sources claim that the fire had started the previous day, when a trash hauler dumped hot ash or coal discarded from coal burners into the open trash pit. The author of "The Day the Earth Caved In" noted that borough council minutes from June 4, 1962, referred to two fires at the dump and that five firefighters had submitted bills for "fighting the fire at the landfill area." The borough, by law, was responsible for installing a fire-resistant clay barrier between each layer of the landfill, but fell behind schedule, leaving the barrier incomplete. This allowed the hot coals to penetrate the coal seam underneath the pit and start the subsequent subterranean fire.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: Another theory proposes that the Bast Colliery fire of 1932 was never fully extinguished, and that fire reached the landfill area by 1962; however, a miner named Frank Jurgill Sr. disputes that theory. Jurgill claims he operated a bootleg mine with his brother near the landfill from 1960 to 1962. If the Bast Colliery fire had not been extinguished, the brothers would likely have been overcome or killed by the noxious gases via many interconnected tunnels in the area.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: In 1979, locals became aware of the scale of the problem when a gas-station owner, then-mayor John Coddington, inserted a dipstick into one of his underground tanks to check the fuel level. When he withdrew it, it seemed hot. He lowered a thermometer into the tank on a string and was shocked to discover that the temperature of the gasoline in the tank was .


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: Statewide attention to the fire began to increase, culminating on February 14, 1981, when a 12-year-old resident named Todd Domboski fell into a sinkhole, wide by deep, that suddenly opened beneath his feet in a backyard. His cousin, 14-year-old Eric Wolfgang, pulled Domboski out of the hole and saved his life. The plume of hot steam billowing from the hole was tested and found to contain a lethal level of carbon monoxide. At the time of the sinkhole collapse, then-incumbent Rep. James Nelligan and Governor Dick Thornburgh were visiting the town to assess the area. Domboski died in 2022.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: Although there was physical, visible evidence of the fire, residents of Centralia were bitterly divided over the question of whether or not the fire posed a direct threat to the town. In "The Real Disaster is Above Ground," Steve Kroll-Smith and Steve Couch identified at least six community groups, each organized around varying interpretations of the amount and kind of risk posed by the fire. In 1983, the U.S. Congress allocated more than $42 million for relocation efforts. Nearly all of the residents accepted the government's buyout offers. More than 1,000 people moved out of the town and 500 structures were demolished. By 1990, the census recorded 63 remaining residents.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: In 1992, Pennsylvania governor Bob Casey invoked eminent domain on all property in the borough, condemning all the buildings within. A subsequent legal effort by residents to overturn the action failed. In 2002, the U.S. Postal Service discontinued Centralia's ZIP code, 17927. Only 16 homes were still standing by 2006, which was reduced to eleven by 2009 when Governor Ed Rendell began the formal eviction of the remaining Centralia residents. Only five homes remained by 2010.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: The Centralia mine fire extended beneath the village of Byrnesville, a short distance to the south, and required it also to be abandoned.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: Few homes remain standing in Centralia. Most of the abandoned buildings have been demolished by the Columbia County Redevelopment Authority or reclaimed by nature. At a casual glance, the area now appears to be a field with many paved streets running through it. Some areas are being filled with new-growth forest. The remaining church in the borough, St. Mary's, holds weekly services on Sunday. It has not yet been directly affected by the fire. The town's four cemeteries—including one on the hilltop that has smoke rising around and out of it—are maintained in good condition.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: The only indications of the fire, which underlies some spreading along four fronts, are low round metal steam vents in the south of the borough. Several signs warn of underground fire, unstable ground, and dangerous levels of carbon monoxide. Additional smoke and steam can be seen coming from an abandoned portion of Pennsylvania Route 61, the area just behind the hilltop cemetery, and other cracks in the ground scattered about the area. Route 61 was repaired several times until it was closed.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: The current route was formerly a detour around the damaged portion during the repairs and became a permanent route in 1993; mounds of dirt were placed at both ends of the former route, effectively blocking the road. Pedestrian traffic is still possible due to a small opening about two feet wide at the north side of the road. The underground fire is still burning and may continue to do so for 250 years. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania did not renew the relocation contract at the end of 2005.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: The last remaining house on Locust Avenue was demolished in September 2007. It was notable for a period for the five chimney-like support buttresses along each of two opposite sides of the house. The house had formerly been supported by a row of adjacent buildings. Another house with similar buttresses was visible from the northern side of the cemetery, just north of the burning, partially subsumed hillside.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: Residents John Comarnisky and John Lokitis, Jr. were evicted in May and July 2009, respectively. In May 2009, the remaining residents mounted another legal effort to reverse the 1992 eminent domain claim. In 2010, only five homes remained as state officials tried to vacate the remaining residents and demolish what was left of the town. In March 2011, a federal judge refused to issue an injunction that would have stopped the condemnation.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: The Borough Council still had regular meetings . It was reported that the town's highest bill at the meeting reported on came from PPL Corporation, a power utility, at $92 and the town's budget was "in the black."


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: In February 2012, the Commonwealth Court ruled that a declaration of taking could not be re-opened or set aside on the basis that the purpose for the condemnation no longer exists; seven people, including the Borough Council president, had filed suit claiming the condemnation was no longer needed because the underground fire had moved and the air quality in the borough was the same as that in Lancaster. In October 2013, the remaining residents settled their lawsuit, receiving $218,000 in compensation for the value of their homes, along with $131,500 to settle additional claims, and the right to stay in their homes for the rest of their lives.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: In April 2020, amidst the early part of the COVID-19 pandemic, the property's current owners made the decision to cover over the graffiti highway section of old Route 61. Several mounds of dirt were laid over the area, thus ending a decades-long fascination with the desolate stretch of road.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: The town's residents and former residents decided to open a time capsule buried in 1966 a couple of years earlier than planned after someone had attempted to unearth and steal the capsule in May 2014. The capsule was not scheduled to be opened until 2016 (50 years after it was buried). Items found in the footlocker-sized capsule, which had been inundated with about of water, included a miner's helmet, a miner's lamp, some coal, a Bible, local souvenirs, and a pair of bloomers signed by the men of Centralia in 1966.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: Several current and former Centralia residents believe the state's eminent domain claim was a plot to gain the mineral rights to the anthracite coal beneath the borough. Residents have asserted its value to be in the hundreds of millions of dollars, although the exact amount of coal is not known.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: This theory is based on the municipality laws of the state. According to state law, when the municipality can no longer form a functioning municipal government, "i.e.", when there are no longer any residents, the borough legally ceases to exist. At that point, the mineral rights, which are owned by the Borough of Centralia (they are not privately held) would revert to the ownership of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: As of the census of 2000, there were 21 people, ten households, and seven families residing in the borough. The population density was . There were 16 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the borough was 100% white.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: There were ten households, out of which one (10%) had children under the age of 18 living with them, five (50%) were married couples living together, one had a female householder with no partner present, and three (30%) were non-families. Three of the households were made up of individuals, and one had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.10, and the average family size was 2.57.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: In the borough the population was spread out, with one resident under the age of 18, one from 18 to 24, four from 25 to 44, seven from 45 to 64, and eight who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 62 years. There were ten females and 11 males with one male under the age of 18.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: The median income for a household in the borough was $23,750, and the median income for a family was $28,750. The per capita income for the borough was $16,083. All of the population was below the poverty line.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: As of the census of 2010 there were ten people (down 52% since 2000), five households (down 50%), and three families (down 57%) residing in the borough. The population density was (down 52%). There were six housing units (down 62.5%) at an average density of 0.4 units per square mile (.015 units/km). The racial makeup of the borough was 100% white.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: Of the five households, none had children under the age of 18. Two (40%) were married couples living together, one (20%) had a female householder with no spouse present, and two (40%) were non-families. One of those non-family households was an individual, and none had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.0 persons, and the average family size was 2.33 persons.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: There were no residents under the age of 18, one aged 25–29, one aged 50–54, one aged 55–59, four aged 60–64, two aged 70–74, and one aged 80–84. The median age was 62.5 years, and there were five females and five males in total.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: As of the census of 2020, there were five people residing in the borough. The racial makeup of the borough was 80% white, and 20% Asian.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: The borough is served by a small group of volunteer firefighters operating one fire engine that is more than 30 years old. The fire company ambulance was given to the nearby Wilburton Fire Company in Conyngham Township in 2012.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: The Centralia Municipal Building still stands, along with its attached fire station garage. By the early 2010s, the building had fallen into disrepair, but new siding was installed in 2012. The building hosts the annual Centralia Cleanup Day, when volunteers collect illegally dumped trash in the area. Although past cleanup days avoided fire-impacted areas, the 2018 cleanup included areas around the landfill and the abandoned section of PA Route 61, since nicknamed the Graffiti Highway. In April 2021, volunteers planted 250 apple trees around Centralia to restore the town's ecosystem and wildlife habitats.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: The town's Ukrainian Catholic church, the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, remains in use and attracts worshippers from surrounding towns including people who were once residents of the town. A geological survey found there was solid rock, not coal, under the church so it is not in danger of collapse due to the fire.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: Centralia has been used as a model for many different fictional ghost towns and manifestations of Hell. Prominent examples include Dean Koontz's "Strange Highways" and David Wellington's "Vampire Zero".


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: Screenwriter Roger Avary researched Centralia while working on the screenplay for the "Silent Hill" film adaptation.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: The 1982 PBS documentary "Centralia Mine Fire" contains interviews with residents and relates the story of the mine fire.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: Author Bill Bryson described Centralia as "the strangest, saddest town I believe I have ever seen" in his 1998 travel book "A Walk in the Woods".


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: The 2007 documentary "The Town That Was" is about the history of the town and its current and former residents.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: Centralia had a segment entitled "City on Fire" on the Travel Channel television series "America Declassified" which aired in 2013.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: The Centralia story was explored in the documentary segment "Dying Embers" from public radio station WNYC's "Radiolab".


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: The setting of the 1991 film "Nothing but Trouble" starring Chevy Chase and Dan Aykroyd was set in a fictional town "Valkenvania" based on Centralia.


title: Centralia, Pennsylvania

text: The song "Perpetual Flame of Centralia", featured on the 2021 album "Sinner Get Ready" by Lingua Ignota, derives both its title and lyrical themes from the town and its mine fire.


title: Epic Records

text: Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony. The label was founded predominantly as a jazz and classical music label in 1953, but later expanded its scope to include a more diverse range of genres, including pop, R&B, rock, and hip hop.


title: Epic Records

text: Epic Records was launched in 1953 by the Columbia Records unit of CBS, for the purpose of marketing jazz, pop, and classical music that did not fit the theme of its more mainstream Columbia Records label. Initial classical music releases were from Philips Records which distributed Columbia product in Europe. Pop talent on co-owned Okeh Records were transferred to Epic which made Okeh a rhythm and blues label. Epic's bright-yellow, black, and blue logo became a familiar trademark for many jazz and classical releases. This has included such notables as the Berlin Philharmonic, Charles Rosen, the Juilliard String Quartet, Antal Doráti conducting the Hague Philharmonic, and George Szell conducting the Cleveland Orchestra.


title: Epic Records

text: By 1960, Epic became better known for its signing of newer, fledgling acts. By the end of the 1960s, Epic earned its first gold records and had evolved into a formidable hit-making force in rock and roll, R&B and country music. Among its many acts, it included Roy Hamilton, Bobby Vinton, the Dave Clark Five, the Hollies, Tammy Wynette, Donovan, the Yardbirds, Lulu, July, Helen Shapiro, and Jeff Beck. Several of the British artists on the Epic roster during the 1960s were the result of CBS's Epic/Okeh units' international distribution deal with EMI; Epic recordings were issued by EMI on the Columbia label.


title: Epic Records

text: Epic was involved in a notable "trade" of artists. Graham Nash was signed to Epic because of his membership in The Hollies. When the newly formed Crosby, Stills & Nash wanted to sign with Atlantic Records, Ahmet Ertegun worked out a deal with Clive Davis whereby Richie Furay's new band Poco (having signed with Atlantic due to Furay's contract from being in Buffalo Springfield) would sign with Epic.


title: Epic Records

text: Epic's commercial success continued to grow in the 1970s with releases from ABBA (in the UK), Boston, Cheap Trick, the Clash, Charlie Daniels, Gabriel, Heart, Heatwave, the Isley Brothers, the Jacksons, George Jones, Labelle, Meat Loaf, Johnny Nash, Ted Nugent, REO Speedwagon, Minnie Riperton, Pegasus, Charlie Rich, Sly & the Family Stone, Steve Vai, and Edgar Winter. Also contributing to the label's success was its distribution of Philadelphia International Records, which produced additional hit records by acts such as the Three Degrees and McFadden and Whitehead.


title: Epic Records

text: During the 1960s, Epic oversaw the smaller subsidiary CBS labels including Okeh Records and Date Records. In 1968, Epic recordings began being distributed in the UK by CBS after the distribution deal with EMI expired that year; Epic itself launched in England around 1971.


title: Epic Records

text: Sony Corporation bought CBS Records in 1987, and the company was renamed Sony Music in 1991. It began splitting European operations into two separate labels, Epic and Columbia, in 1992, and in 1997, Sony Music Australia and New Zealand followed suit.


title: Epic Records

text: In 2004, Sony merged with music distributor BMG, bringing Arista Records, Columbia Records, Epic Records, J Records, Jive Records, RCA Records, and Zomba Group of Companies to one parent company known as Sony BMG Music Entertainment. In 2008, Sony bought out BMG for $1.2 billion, bringing all affiliated labels together as Sony Music Entertainment International, SMEI. The merger was approved by the European Union in 2009.


title: Epic Records

text: Epic was arguably the most successful label of the 1980s and its 1980s and 1990s mainstream success were fueled by its signing and releasing of albums by notable acts such as Michael Jackson, Culture Club, the Miami Sound Machine and Gloria Estefan, Wham! and George Michael, Adam Ant, Living Colour, Incubus, Dead or Alive, Europe, Cyndi Lauper, Teena Marie, Ozzy Osbourne, Korn, Pearl Jam, Sade, Luther Vandross, the Indigo Girls, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Rage Against the Machine, Céline Dion, Ginuwine, and Oasis, among many others. Michael Jackson's "Thriller" album, released by Epic, is the best-selling album of all time. Another one of the label's many successes came via George Michael's debut solo album "Faith" which is estimated to have sold 25 million copies worldwide.


title: Epic Records

text: Epic Soundtrax was founded in 1992. It was central to Epic's 1990s success, with 11 releases cumulatively selling more than 40 million records over a three-year period. Notable releases included soundtrack albums for "Honeymoon in Vegas", "Singles", "Sleepless in Seattle", "Forrest Gump", "Philadelphia", and "Judgment Night".


title: Epic Records

text: In 1999, Jennifer Lopez released her debut album, "On the 6", as part of WORK Group which was a critical and commercial success going on to sell over 8 million copies worldwide. Lopez's sophomore album "J.Lo", experienced similar success in which over 8 million copies were sold worldwide in 2001, gaining multi-platinum status under Epic Records. With this album, Lopez became the first female solo artist under the record company to reach the number one spot on the "Billboard" 200. The 2002 remix album "J TO THA L-O! The Remixes", which served as a follow up to Lopez's sophomore effort, was the first remix album to debut at number one on the "Billboard" 200, and became the fourth best selling remix album of all time, behind "Michael Jackson" (fellow Epic Records artist), "Madonna" and "The Beatles". What's more is, in the second week at number one for the remix album, Lopez's remix single "Ain't It Funny (Murder Remix)", was also number one, making Lopez the only artist in history to have a number one remix album and single in the same week. Lopez's third studio album, released in late 2002 which was also a success, "This is me... Then", sold 6 million copies worldwide and peaked at the second spot of the "Billboard" 200. Lopez's first full-length Spanish debut, "Como Ama Una Mujer", became the first Spanish-language debut album to enter the top 10 of the "Billboard" 200, and has sold 1 million copies worldwide. This was Lopez's final studio album under Epic Records before her move to Island Def Jam and Capitol, until she released her first greatest hits compilation, "Dance Again... The Hits", gaining critical success.


title: Epic Records

text: In February 2009, Sony Music Group chairman Rob Stringer appointed singer-songwriter Amanda Ghost as president of Epic. Ghost, who had successfully promoted James Blunt to Grammy Award-winning status, was an unconventional and controversial choice for president because she had no corporate executive experience. She was expected to reverse the trend of declining sales at Epic by promoting the label's newer and mid-tier artists such as Augustana. Stringer also merged Epic and Columbia to form the Columbia/Epic Label Group in 2009, with himself as acting chairman. Ghost scored hit records for the Fray, Modest Mouse, Matisyahu and Sean Kingston. However, she delayed the scheduled release of Shakira's album "She Wolf" by insisting that the album contain another song – "Give It Up to Me" featuring Lil Wayne and uncredited Timbaland. This delay probably caused "She Wolf" to perform less well in the market. Epic staff members described Ghost as "abrasive" and a "loose cannon". She was fired in October 2010, with Stringer apologizing for his mistake: "I owe the people at Epic..."


title: Epic Records

text: In July 2011, L.A. Reid became the CEO of Epic Records, signing artists such as TLC, Toni Braxton, Cher Lloyd, Avril Lavigne, Outkast, Future, Yo Gotti, Ciara, Meghan Trainor, DJ Khaled, and Travis Scott. Epic also signed the winners of "The X Factor" during the seasons that Reid appeared on the show.


title: Epic Records

text: In 2013, Sylvia Rhone, former president of Universal Motown, launched the imprint Vested In Culture through Epic Records. A year later,


title: Epic Records

text: In November 2014, Mosley Music Group created a joint venture with Sony Music, with marketing, publicity, distribution and overall label services provided by Epic. The joint venture was created due to Timbaland's previous co-collaboration with Reid on Michael Jackson's posthumous album, "Xscape". Previously operated by Interscope, most of MMG's roster moved to Epic.


title: Epic Records

text: In 2015, Def Jam Recordings parted ways with Mariah Carey and Carey reunited with Reid at Epic. She had worked with Reid at Def Jam under The Island Def Jam Music Group in 2004. Carey's deals with both Def Jam and Epic were at a fraction of the $80 million deal Carey had previously signed with Virgin Records; Virgin later rescinded that deal after poor sales. That same month, it was announced that R&B group Jodeci had signed to the label and planned to release their first studio album in 20 years.


title: Epic Records

text: Wondaland Records, singer Janelle Monáe's imprint, entered into a joint venture with Epic in 2015. Acts on Wondaland include Jidenna, St. Beauty, Deep Cotton and Roman GianArthur.


title: Epic Records

text: In 2016, Jennifer Lopez returned to Sony Music, six years after leaving in favor of Island Def Jam and Capitol Records. Lopez's multi-album deal reunited her with Reid, whom she signed with at Island Def Jam in 2010.


title: Epic Records

text: In January 2017, 21 Savage signed to Epic. On May 11, 2017, it was announced that Reid would exit as the label's CEO. Following his exit, it was reported that Reid had been accused of sexual harassment by multiple Epic employees.


title: Epic Records

text: Unlike sister label Columbia, Epic went through five different logos since its launch. Some logos were temporarily revived for period reissues. The years shown below list the time served as the label's primary logo.


title: Ned Beatty

text: Ned Thomas Beatty (July 6, 1937 – June 13, 2021) was an American actor and comedian . In a career that spanned five decades, he appeared in more than 160 films. Throughout his career, Beatty gained a reputation for being "the busiest actor in Hollywood". His film appearances included "Deliverance" (1972), "White Lightning" (1973), "All the President's Men" (1976), "Network" (1976), "Superman" (1978), "Superman II" (1980), "Back to School" (1986), "Rudy" (1993), "Shooter" (2007), and "Toy Story 3" (2010).


title: Ned Beatty

text: Beatty was nominated for an Academy Award, two Emmy Awards, an MTV Movie Award for Best Villain, and a Golden Globe Award; he also won a Drama Desk Award.


title: Ned Beatty

text: Beatty was born on July 6, 1937, in Louisville, Kentucky, to Margaret ("née" Fortney) and Charles William Beatty. He had an older sister, Mary. In 1947, Beatty began singing in gospel and barbershop quartets in St. Matthews, Kentucky, and at his local church. He received a scholarship to sing in the a cappella choir at Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky; he attended but did not graduate.


title: Ned Beatty

text: In 1956, Beatty made his stage debut at age 19, appearing in "Wilderness Road", an outdoor-historical pageant located in Berea, Kentucky. During his first ten years of theater, he worked at Barter Theatre in Abingdon, Virginia, the State Theatre of Virginia. Returning to Kentucky, Beatty worked in the Louisville area through the mid-1960s, at the Clarksville Little Theater (Indiana) and the newly founded Actors Theater of Louisville. His time at the latter included a run as Willy Loman in "Death of a Salesman" in 1966.


title: Ned Beatty

text: Throughout his career, Beatty had no regrets about mostly only playing supporting roles: "[Leading roles] are more trouble than they're worth. I feel sorry for people in a star position. It's unnatural".


title: Ned Beatty

text: In 1972, Beatty made his film debut as Bobby Trippe in "Deliverance", starring Jon Voight and Burt Reynolds, and set in northern Georgia. Beatty's character is forced to strip at gunpoint by two mountain men who humiliate and rape him, a scene so shocking that it is still referred to as a screen milestone. Beatty admitted that most of the people who worked on the film did not want to do that scene, but it was an important one. The film was the fifth highest grossing that year, and also featured "Duelling Banjos" as its theme tune, which went on to be a number one hit record. In 1972, he also appeared in "The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean", a western with Paul Newman.


title: Ned Beatty

text: In 1973, Beatty had roles in "The Thief Who Came to Dinner", "The Last American Hero", and "White Lightning". The latter film reunited Beatty with his "Deliverance" co-star Burt Reynolds. He also appeared in an episode of the TV series "The Waltons" that year, as well as the TV movie "The Marcus-Nelson Murders", which was the pilot for the series "Kojak". The next year, he appeared in the television miniseries "The Execution of Private Slovik" and in the two-part episode of "The Rockford Files", "Profit and Loss". In 1975, he appeared in "W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings", in Robert Altman's "Nashville", and as Colonel Hollister in the "M*A*S*H" episode, "Dear Peggy". He appeared in the NBC-TV movie "" as Deputy Sheriff Ollie Thompson (1975). Beatty also made an appearance on "Gunsmoke" in "The Hiders" episode in 1975.


title: Ned Beatty

text: Beatty received his only Academy Award nomination, for Best Supporting Actor category for the acclaimed film "Network" (1976), portraying a television network's bombastic but shrewd chairman of the board who convinces the mad Howard Beale character (portrayed by Peter Finch) that corporation-led global dehumanization is not only inevitable, but is also a good thing. Neither Beatty nor William Holden, who shared the lead role with Finch, won an Oscar. The other three acting awards besides the best supporting actor category were swept by "Network" performers: Best Actor for Peter Finch, Best Actress for Faye Dunaway, and Best Supporting Actress for Beatrice Straight. The Best Supporting Actor award went to Jason Robards for his role in "All the President's Men", which also starred Beatty.


title: Ned Beatty

text: In 1976, he also appeared in "The Big Bus", "Silver Streak", and "Mikey and Nicky". In 1977, he returned to work with John Boorman in "" (1977), and appeared in "The Final Chapter", the first episode of the television series "Quinn Martin's Tales of the Unexpected". During 1977-78, he starred in the short-lived sitcom "Szysznyk" on CBS.


title: Ned Beatty

text: In 1978, Beatty appeared in "Gray Lady Down" (1978), a drama aboard a submarine starring Charlton Heston. The film is significant chiefly for being the screen debut of Christopher Reeve, Beatty's future costar. Later that year, Beatty was cast by Richard Donner to portray Lex Luthor's inept henchman Otis in "Superman: The Movie" (1978), as he would in the 1980 sequel, where we see his character being left behind in prison. He received his first nomination for Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or a Special for the television series "Friendly Fire" (1979). In 1979, he was also seen in "Wise Blood", directed by John Huston, and "1941", directed by Steven Spielberg.


title: Ned Beatty

text: In 1980, Beatty appeared in Ronald Neame's film "Hopscotch" with Walter Matthau. In 1981, Beatty appeared in the comedy/science fiction film "The Incredible Shrinking Woman", directed by Joel Schumacher and starring Lily Tomlin. In 1982, Beatty returned to work with Richard Donner and Richard Pryor in the comedy "The Toy". Beatty worked with Burt Reynolds again in the auto-racing farce "Stroker Ace" (1983).


title: Ned Beatty

text: In the middle of the 1980s, Beatty appeared in the comedy film "Restless Natives" (1985), directed by Michael Hoffman. By the end of the 1980s, Beatty appeared in another comedy film, as the academic "Dean Martin" in "Back to School" (1986), starring Rodney Dangerfield. He played a corrupt cop in the 1987 American neo-noir crime film "The Big Easy", directed by Jim McBride and starring Dennis Quaid, and continued with a spy drama, "The Fourth Protocol" (1987), opposite Michael Caine and Pierce Brosnan.


title: Ned Beatty

text: In 1988, Beatty appeared with the main character Thelonious Pitt in "Shadows in the Storm", and reunited with Burt Reynolds and Christopher Reeve for the comedy film "Switching Channels", his fifth time in a movie with Reynolds. He appeared in "Purple People Eater" (1988), portraying a simple grandfather. In 1989, Beatty made "Chattahoochee", portraying Dr. Harwood. He had a recurring role as the father of John Goodman's character Dan Conner on the TV comedy series "Roseanne" (1989–1994).


title: Ned Beatty

text: Entering the 1990s, Beatty gained his third nomination for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Special category for "Last Train Home" (1990). A year later, he appeared in the British film "Hear My Song" (1991), in which he portrayed tenor Josef Locke, for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture.


title: Ned Beatty

text: In 1990, Beatty worked again with Linda Blair in "Repossessed" (1990), a spoof of "The Exorcist". He appeared in the Marvel Comics superhero adventure "Captain America" (1990). He portrayed the father of the bride in "Prelude to a Kiss" (1992), opposite Meg Ryan and Alec Baldwin. In 1993, he appeared in the true story based film "Rudy", playing a Notre Dame Fighting Irish football fan whose son, against all odds, makes the school's football team. In 1992, he played Blanche Devereaux's developmentally disabled older brother in the TV show "The Golden Palace". Beatty starred in the television series "" as Detective Stanley Bolander for its first three seasons (1993–1995).


title: Ned Beatty

text: Beatty made the 1994 science-fiction film "Replikator" (1994) and mystery-comedy "Radioland Murders". In 1995, he worked with Sean Connery and Laurence Fishburne in the thriller "Just Cause". He appeared as Judge Roy Bean in the TV miniseries adaptation of Larry McMurtry's western novel, "Streets of Laredo" (1995). He appeared in a 1998 sports-drama film written and directed by Spike Lee and starring Denzel Washington, "He Got Game". In 1999, Beatty returned to work with "Cookie's Fortune", "Life", and "Spring Forward".


title: Ned Beatty

text: In the beginning of the 2000s, he was a member of the original cast of the television police drama reunion film "Homicide: The Movie" (2000), reprising his role of Detective Stanley Bolander. In 2002, he appeared in Peter Hewitt's film "Thunderpants". In 2003, he portrayed a simple sheriff in "Where the Red Fern Grows".


title: Ned Beatty

text: Beatty also enjoyed a career as a stage actor, including a run in the Broadway and London productions of "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" with Brendan Fraser and Frances O'Connor. He won a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play for playing Big Daddy in a production of "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof".


title: Ned Beatty

text: In the middle of the 2000s, Beatty appeared in the television film "The Wool Cap" (2004) with William H. Macy, and in 2005, in an American independent film directed and written by Ali Selim, "Sweet Land". In March 2006, Beatty received the RiverRun International Film Festival's "Master of Cinema" Award (the highest honor of the festival), in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.


title: Ned Beatty

text: At the end of the 2000s, Beatty portrayed a corrupt U.S. Senator in the film version of Stephen Hunter's novel "Point of Impact" retitled "Shooter" (2007), directed by Antoine Fuqua and starring Mark Wahlberg, Michael Peña, and Danny Glover; in a drama film written and directed by Paul Schrader, "The Walker" (2007), and as the honorable U.S. Congressman Doc Long in the true story "Charlie Wilson's War" (2007), with Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts, directed by Mike Nichols. He also worked with Tommy Lee Jones in the thriller "In the Electric Mist" (2009).


title: Ned Beatty

text: In 2010, Beatty starred in the thriller "The Killer Inside Me" (2010), which was part of the Sundance Film Festival. He also voiced Lots-O'-Huggin' Bear in the 2010 Disney/Pixar film "Toy Story 3" (2010) opposite "Charlie Wilson’s War" costar Tom Hanks, who was reprising his role of Woody from the first two films. In 2011, Beatty worked with actor Johnny Depp and director Gore Verbinski in the computer-animated film "Rango" (2011), playing the role of Tortoise John. He appeared briefly in the film "Funny Guy" and in the film "Rampart" (2011), opposite Woody Harrelson, which is set in 1999 Los Angeles. Beatty's final television appearance was in sitcom television series "Go On" (2013), starring Matthew Perry.


title: Ned Beatty

text: Beatty's next film was "The Big Ask" (2013), a dark comedy about three couples who head to the desert to help their friend heal after the death of his mother. The film featured Gillian Jacobs, Zachary Knighton, David Krumholtz, Melanie Lynskey, Ahna O'Reilly, and Jason Ritter, and was directed by his son Thomas Beatty and Rebecca Fishman. His other next movie was "Baggage Claim" (2013), an American comedy film directed by David E. Talbert and written by Talbert based on his book of the same name, opposite Paula Patton, Adam Brody, Djimon Hounsou, Taye Diggs, Christina Milian and Derek Luke, which was also Beatty's final film role before his retirement.