The Battle
As the Danish squadron approached from the north, it sighted the British frigate Aurora at about 10 a.m. and soon afterwards five more ships to the Southwest. The two squadrons approached each other, and Schwarzenberg opened fire at 13.15 p.m. The Danes closed and returned fire when the distance had much shortened. When Tegetthoff altered course to the West in an effort to "cross the T", Suenson turned to port. With the Prussian gunboats unable to keep pace and far behind, the Austrian and Danish squadrons passed each other at a distance of about 1 nautical mile (1.9 km), exchanging furious fire. Tegetthoff turned about so as to prevent the gunboats being cut off, and both flotillas then sailed on a parallel course southwest, continuing to battle each other. Niels Juel duelled Schwarzenberg, while Jylland and Hejmdal concentrated on Radetzky. The Prussian gunboats were too far away to play a role.
At about 15.30 p.m., Schwarzenberg caught fire and was unable to continue. Tegetthoff broke off the encounter and took his ships into the neutral waters near Heligoland. Aurora had observed the action and stood ready to protect the neutrality of the British Heligoland waters, so that Suenson had to abandon his pursuit at about 16.30 p.m.
Read more about this topic: Battle Of Heligoland (1864)
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