Broke formed part of the 4th Destroyer Flotilla commanded by Captain Charles Wintour on board HMS Tipperary.
During the night of 31 May the flotilla was stationed behind (north) of the Grand Fleet to guard against German attack and was heading south keeping station with the fleet.
At around 23:15 Leading Torpedoman Cox on board HMS Garland, fourth ship in the twelve strong line, sighted three ships approaching.
These were reported to Captain Wintour, who being unable to determine whether the ships were British or German issued a British challenge signal to the approaching ships.
 This was immediately answered by a hail of fire at a range of around 600 yards from the approaching German light cruisers, SMS Stuttgart, SMS Hamburg, SMS Rostock and SMS Elbing.
Shortly behind them, the battleships SMS Westfalen and SMS Nassau also opened fire with their secondary armament.
The ships were the van of the German High Seas Fleet, which was passing behind the British fleet.

The leading British ships, Tipperary, HMS Spitfire, Sparrowhawk, HMS Garland, HMS Contest and Broke all fired torpedoes at the German ships before turning away from  the fire.
Confusion as to the identity of the opposing ships persisted despite the outbreak of gunfire, so that Broke's captain ordered  no torpedoes to be fired until he could positively identify the ships as German.
This he did when a searchlight from one of the German ships caught one of her companions for long enough for it to be identified.
 None of the destroyers further behind felt sufficiently confident to open fire.
In accord with standing orders to conserve torpedo stocks, each ship fired only one or two torpedoes, one of which struck Elbing, but in the dark it was unknown which ship had fired it.
The German ships had turned away to avoid the torpedoes, and in the confusion Elbing was rammed by the battleship SMS Posen.
Tipperary was set on fire in the engagement and sank around 02:00 the following morning.
Elbing had to be abandoned and similarly sank around 03:40.
Spitfire narrowly avoided being rammed by the battleship Nassau, ripping a hole in the side of the battleship as the two ships collided side to side, but then had to retire from the battle and limped home to England.

The remaining ships of the 4th Destroyer Flotilla formed up behind Commander Walter Allen of Broke, who was the half-flotilla leader and now assumed command.
At around 23:40 large ships were again sighted and Allen attempted to challenge.
Before he could do so, the German battleship Westfalen sent her own recognition signal and then turned on searchlights.
Broke attempted to fire torpedoes, but the range was very short, in the region of 150 yards (140 m), and the German ship opened fire first.
The effect was devastating so that within a couple of minutes 50 crew were killed and another 30 injured, disabling the guns and preventing any effective activity on deck.
The helmsman was killed at the wheel, and as he died his body turned the wheel, causing the ship to turn to port and ram Sparrowhawk.
Both ships had already turned to port from line ahead to line abreast to fire torpedoes.

Sub Lieutenant Percy Wood saw Broke coming towards them at 28 knots, heading directly for Sparrowhawk's bridge.
He shouted warnings to crew on the foc'sle to get clear, and then was knocked over by the impact.
He awoke to find himself lying on the deck of Broke.
Wood reported to Commander Allen, who told him to return to his own ship and make preparations there to take on board the crew of Broke.
Two other men from Sparrowhawk were also thrown onto Broke by the collision.
 Returning to Sparrowhawk, Wood was told by his own captain, Lieutenant Commander Sydney Hopkins, that he had just sent exactly the same message across to Broke.
Approximately 20 men from Sparrowhawk evacuated to Broke, while fifteen of Broke's crew crossed to Sparrowhawk.

At this point a third destroyer, HMS Contest steamed into Sparrowhawk, removing 6 feet (1.8 m) from her stern.
Contest was relatively unharmed and able to continue underway after the collision.
Broke a
Broke formed part of the 4th Destroyer Flotilla commanded by Captain Charles Wintour on board HMS Tipperary. During the night of 31 May the flotilla was stationed behind (north) of the Grand Fleet to guard against German attack and was heading south keeping station with the fleet. At around 23:15 Leading Torpedoman Cox on board HMS Garland, fourth ship in the twelve strong line, sighted three ships approaching. These were reported to Captain Wintour, who being unable to determine whether the ships were British or German issued a British challenge signal to the approaching ships.  This was immediately answered by a hail of fire at a range of around 600 yards from the approaching German light cruisers, SMS Stuttgart, SMS Hamburg, SMS Rostock and SMS Elbing. Shortly behind them, the battleships SMS Westfalen and SMS Nassau also opened fire with their secondary armament. The ships were the van of the German High Seas Fleet, which was passing behind the British fleet.
The leading British ships, Tipperary, HMS Spitfire, Sparrowhawk, HMS Garland, HMS Contest and Broke all fired torpedoes at the German ships before turning away from  the fire. Confusion as to the identity of the opposing ships persisted despite the outbreak of gunfire, so that Broke's captain ordered  no torpedoes to be fired until he could positively identify the ships as German. This he did when a searchlight from one of the German ships caught one of her companions for long enough for it to be identified.  None of the destroyers further behind felt sufficiently confident to open fire. In accord with standing orders to conserve torpedo stocks, each ship fired only one or two torpedoes, one of which struck Elbing, but in the dark it was unknown which ship had fired it. The German ships had turned away to avoid the torpedoes, and in the confusion Elbing was rammed by the battleship SMS Posen. Tipperary was set on fire in the engagement and sank around 02:00 the following morning. Elbing had to be abandoned and similarly sank around 03:40. Spitfire narrowly avoided being rammed by the battleship Nassau, ripping a hole in the side of the battleship as the two ships collided side to side, but then had to retire from the battle and limped home to England.
The remaining ships of the 4th Destroyer Flotilla formed up behind Commander Walter Allen of Broke, who was the half-flotilla leader and now assumed command. At around 23:40 large ships were again sighted and Allen attempted to challenge. Before he could do so, the German battleship Westfalen sent her own recognition signal and then turned on searchlights. Broke attempted to fire torpedoes, but the range was very short, in the region of 150 yards (140 m), and the German ship opened fire first. The effect was devastating so that within a couple of minutes 50 crew were killed and another 30 injured, disabling the guns and preventing any effective activity on deck. The helmsman was killed at the wheel, and as he died his body turned the wheel, causing the ship to turn to port and ram Sparrowhawk. Both ships had already turned to port from line ahead to line abreast to fire torpedoes.
Sub Lieutenant Percy Wood saw Broke coming towards them at 28 knots, heading directly for Sparrowhawk's bridge. He shouted warnings to crew on the foc'sle to get clear, and then was knocked over by the impact. He awoke to find himself lying on the deck of Broke. Wood reported to Commander Allen, who told him to return to his own ship and make preparations there to take on board the crew of Broke. Two other men from Sparrowhawk were also thrown onto Broke by the collision.  Returning to Sparrowhawk, Wood was told by his own captain, Lieutenant Commander Sydney Hopkins, that he had just sent exactly the same message across to Broke. Approximately 20 men from Sparrowhawk evacuated to Broke, while fifteen of Broke's crew crossed to Sparrowhawk.
At this point a third destroyer, HMS Contest steamed into Sparrowhawk, removing 6 feet (1.8 m) from her stern. Contest was relatively unharmed and able to continue underway after the collision. Broke a
HMS Broke (1914)