The armored cruiser SMS Scharnhorst was sunk by the British Royal Navy at the Battle of the Falkland Islands on December 8, 1914. During the battle, a British squadron, led by Vice-Admiral Sir Frederick Doveton Sturdee, engaged the German East Asiatic Squadron commanded by Admiral Maximilian von Spee. After being hit by 12-inch shells from the British battlecruisers HMS Invincible and HMS Inflexible, the Scharnhorst sank with all hands, including Admiral von Spee and his two sons. The Battle of