On the afternoon of 6 December, the German ships departed Picton Island, bound for the Falklands.
On 7 December, they rounded Tierra del Fuego and turned north into the Atlantic.
They arrived off the Falklands at around 02:00; three hours later, Spee detached Gneisenau and Nürnberg to land a party ashore.
By 08:30, the ships were approaching Port Stanley, when they noticed thick columns of smoke rising from the harbor.
After closing to the harbor entrance, they quickly realized they were confronted by a much more powerful squadron, which was just getting up steam.
Spee immediately broke off the operation and turned east to flee before the British ships could catch his squadron.
By 10:45, Gneisenau and Nürnberg had rejoined the fleet, and the German auxiliaries were detached to seek shelter in the maze of islands off Cape Horn.

The British ships set off in pursuit, and by 12:50, Sturdee's two battlecruisers had overtaken the Germans.
A minute later, he gave the order to open fire at the trailing German ship, Leipzig.
Spee ordered the three small cruisers to try to escape to the south, while he turned back with Scharnhorst and Gneisenau in an attempt to hold off the British squadron.
Sturdee had foreseen this possibility, and so had ordered his armored and light cruisers to pursue the German light cruisers.
The battlecruisers quickly overwhelmed Spee's armored cruisers, and destroyed them with heavy loss of life.
Dresden, with her turbine engines, was able to outpace her pursuers, and was the only German warship to escape destruction.
Lüdecke decided to take his ship into the islands off South America to keep a steady supply of coal available.

On 9 December, she passed back around Cape Horn to return to the Pacific.
That day, she anchored in Sholl Bay, with only 160 t (160 long tons; 180 short tons) of coal aboard.
Oberleutnant zur See (lieutenant at sea) Wilhelm Canaris convinced the Chilean naval representative for the region to permit Dresden to remain in the area for an extra twenty-four hours so enough coal could be taken aboard to reach Punta Arenas.
She arrived there on 12 December, and received 750 t (740 long tons; 830 short tons) of coal from a German steamer.
The Admiralstab hoped that Dresden would be able to break through to the Atlantic and return to Germany, but the poor condition of her engines precluded this.
Lüdecke instead decided to attempt to cross the Pacific via Easter Island, the Solomon Islands, and the Dutch East Indies and raid commerce in the Indian Ocean.
Dresden took on another 1,600 t (1,600 long tons; 1,800 short tons) of coal on 19 January.
On 14 February, Dresden left the islands off the South American coast for the South Pacific.
On 27 February, the cruiser captured the British barque Conway Castle south of Más a Tierra.
From December to February, the German liner Sierra Cordoba had supplied Dresden and had accompanied her northward to a final coaling at Juan Fernández Islands just before the cruiser was sunk.

On 8 March, Dresden was drifting in dense fog when lookouts spotted Kent, which also had her engines off, about 15 nautical miles (28 km; 17 mi) away.
Both ships immediately raised steam, and Dresden escaped after a five-hour chase.
The strenuous effort depleted her coal stocks and overtaxed her engines.
Lüdecke decided that his ship was no longer operational, and determined to have his ship interned to preserve it.
The following morning, she put into Más a Fuera, dropping anchor in Cumberland Bay at 8:30.
The following day, Lüdecke received by wireless the Kaiser's permission to let Dresden be interned, and so Lüdecke informed the local Chilean official of his intention to do so.
On the afternoon of 6 December, the German ships departed Picton Island, bound for the Falklands. On 7 December, they rounded Tierra del Fuego and turned north into the Atlantic. They arrived off the Falklands at around 02:00; three hours later, Spee detached Gneisenau and Nürnberg to land a party ashore. By 08:30, the ships were approaching Port Stanley, when they noticed thick columns of smoke rising from the harbor. After closing to the harbor entrance, they quickly realized they were confronted by a much more powerful squadron, which was just getting up steam. Spee immediately broke off the operation and turned east to flee before the British ships could catch his squadron. By 10:45, Gneisenau and Nürnberg had rejoined the fleet, and the German auxiliaries were detached to seek shelter in the maze of islands off Cape Horn.
The British ships set off in pursuit, and by 12:50, Sturdee's two battlecruisers had overtaken the Germans. A minute later, he gave the order to open fire at the trailing German ship, Leipzig. Spee ordered the three small cruisers to try to escape to the south, while he turned back with Scharnhorst and Gneisenau in an attempt to hold off the British squadron. Sturdee had foreseen this possibility, and so had ordered his armored and light cruisers to pursue the German light cruisers. The battlecruisers quickly overwhelmed Spee's armored cruisers, and destroyed them with heavy loss of life. Dresden, with her turbine engines, was able to outpace her pursuers, and was the only German warship to escape destruction. Lüdecke decided to take his ship into the islands off South America to keep a steady supply of coal available.
On 9 December, she passed back around Cape Horn to return to the Pacific. That day, she anchored in Sholl Bay, with only 160 t (160 long tons; 180 short tons) of coal aboard. Oberleutnant zur See (lieutenant at sea) Wilhelm Canaris convinced the Chilean naval representative for the region to permit Dresden to remain in the area for an extra twenty-four hours so enough coal could be taken aboard to reach Punta Arenas. She arrived there on 12 December, and received 750 t (740 long tons; 830 short tons) of coal from a German steamer. The Admiralstab hoped that Dresden would be able to break through to the Atlantic and return to Germany, but the poor condition of her engines precluded this. Lüdecke instead decided to attempt to cross the Pacific via Easter Island, the Solomon Islands, and the Dutch East Indies and raid commerce in the Indian Ocean. Dresden took on another 1,600 t (1,600 long tons; 1,800 short tons) of coal on 19 January. On 14 February, Dresden left the islands off the South American coast for the South Pacific. On 27 February, the cruiser captured the British barque Conway Castle south of Más a Tierra. From December to February, the German liner Sierra Cordoba had supplied Dresden and had accompanied her northward to a final coaling at Juan Fernández Islands just before the cruiser was sunk.
On 8 March, Dresden was drifting in dense fog when lookouts spotted Kent, which also had her engines off, about 15 nautical miles (28 km; 17 mi) away. Both ships immediately raised steam, and Dresden escaped after a five-hour chase. The strenuous effort depleted her coal stocks and overtaxed her engines. Lüdecke decided that his ship was no longer operational, and determined to have his ship interned to preserve it. The following morning, she put into Más a Fuera, dropping anchor in Cumberland Bay at 8:30. The following day, Lüdecke received by wireless the Kaiser's permission to let Dresden be interned, and so Lüdecke informed the local Chilean official of his intention to do so.
SMS Dresden (1907)