After serving in the Mahdist War and then the response to the Boxer Rebellion, he commanded the 1st Battlecruiser Squadron at the Battle of Jutland in 1916, a tactically indecisive engagement after which his aggressive approach was contrasted with the caution of his commander Admiral Sir John Jellicoe.
Despois de servir na guerra do Mahdí e na supresión da Rebelión dos Boxers, comandou o 1º Escuadrón de Cruceiros de Batalla na batalla de Xutlandia en 1916, un enfrontamento táctico indeciso despois do cal o seu enfoque agresivo foi comparado coa cautela do seu comandante o almirante Sir John Jellicoe.