Mistaken targets in the North SeaSourced
A fleet bound for the Far East fired on British fishermen
During the Russo-Japanese War in October 1904, a Russian fleet heading east mistook British fishing trawlers in the North Sea for Japanese torpedo boats. A trawler sank and fishermen were killed or injured. Russian ships also fired on one another in the confusion. The diplomatic crisis led to an international inquiry.
Fear of a distant enemy had been directed at fishing boats.
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Dogger Bank incident · Wikimedia contributors
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Reviewed: 2026-10-10