Battle of Lemnos ( 1913 ) The Battle of Lemnos ( , ) , fought on , was a naval battle during the First Balkan War , which defeated the second and last attempt of the Ottoman Empire to break the Greek naval blockade of the Dardanelles and reclaim supremacy over the Aegean Sea from Greece . Prelude . Following the loss of a number of Aegean Islands to Greece during the first phase of the war in 1912 , and its first defeat at the Battle of Elli , the Ottoman Navy sought to check Greek progress by destroying the Greek fleet docked at the port of Moudros , Lemnos . However , it faced the problem of countering the Greek flagship , the , which had already defeated them at Elli . The Ottomans developed the plan to slip a fast cruiser through the Greek patrols for a raiding mission in the Aegean , hoping to draw off some Greek ships , possibly even the " Georgios Averof " itself , in pursuit , leaving the remainder weakened for the Ottoman fleet to attack . Indeed , the cruiser evaded the Greek lookout ships on the night of 13 / 14 January 1913 , and sunk a Greek transport ship at Syros the next day , also bombarding the island ' s harbour . This action caused concern in Athens , and an order was sent to the Fleet , commanding it to " sail immediately in pursuit " . Admiral Kountouriotis refused to obey , suspecting an Ottoman trap , and instead prepared for the inevitable exit of the Ottoman Fleet from the Dardanelles Straits . On the Ottoman side , efforts were made to uplift the morale of the crews , including the hoisting of the original banner of the great corsair and admiral Hayreddin Barbarossa on the flagship , , which was named after him . Battle . The Greek fleet , led by Rear Admiral Pavlos Kountouriotis was composed of its 9 , 960 ton armored cruiser flagship , the three old pre - dreadnought battleships , and and seven destroyer s , while the Ottoman flotilla included the pre - dreadnought battleships " Barbaros Hayreddin " , and and the cruiser , and five destroyers . The battleship remained in the Dardanelles and did not participate in the battle . At 08 : 20 on the morning of January 5 , the Greek patrols signalled that the Ottoman fleet had appeared . At 09 : 45 , the Greek fleet sailed from Moudros Bay . The two fleets met some 19 . 3 kilometers ( 12 miles ) SE of Lemnos , sailing southeast in converging columns , with their flagships in front . The gunnery exchange commenced at 11 : 34 , when the two fleets were at a distance of 8400 meters ( 9186 . 4 yards ) . Immediately the Greek column turned left , further diminishing the distance . Soon after , the " Mecidiye " and the accompanying destroyers turned northeast towards the Dardanelles , followed by the " Mesûdiye " at 11 : 50 , after it had suffered heavy damage from the combined fire of " Hydra " and " Psara " . At 11 : 54 , a successful salvo from the " Georgios Averof " hit the " Barbaros Hayreddin " , destroying its middle tower , forcing it to withdraw towards the Dardanelles , along with the " Turgut Reis " at 12 : 00 . As at Elli , the " Georgios Averof " commenced independent action , using its superior speed , and maneuvering so that it could use the artillery of both its sides , to pursue the Ottoman ships , while the older battleships followed as fast as they could . The pursuit ended finally at 14 : 30 , as the Ottoman ships were nearing the Dardanelles . Aftermath . Throughout the battle , the Ottoman ships achieved an excellent rate of fire , firing about 800 shells , but with dismal accuracy . Only two hits were registered on the " Georgios Averof " , causing one injury and minor damages , while the other battleships escaped unscathed . The Ottoman ships suffered far more . " Barbaros Hayreddin " was hit by over 20 shells , which destroyed much of its artillery , and suffered 32 dead and 45 wounded . " Turgut Reis " suffered a major leak and other minor damages from 17 hits , and 9 dead and 49 wounded . " Mesûdiye " also suffered several hits , but the main damage was caused by a 270mm shell which destroyed the central 150mm gun platform , and had 68 casualties . This , the final naval battle of the First Balkan War , forced the Ottoman Navy to retreat to its base within the Dardanelles , from which it did not venture for the rest of the war , thus ensuring the dominion of the Aegean Sea by Greece . The withdrawal of the Ottoman fleet within the Dardanelles was confirmed by 1st Lieutenant Michael Moutoussis and Ensign Aristeidis Moraitinis on January 24 , 1913 . They conducted a naval aviation mission , flying their Maurice Farman hydroplane over the Nagara naval base , where they spotted the enemy fleet . During their sortie , they accurately drew a diagram of the positions of the Ottoman fleet , against which they dropped four bombs . Moutoussis and Moraitinis travelled over 180 kilometers ( 111 . 8 miles ) and took 140 minutes to complete their mission , which was extensively reported in both the Greek and international press .