 At the Battle of Dogger Bank on 24 January 1915 , Blücher was slowed significantly after being hit by gunfire from the British battlecruiser squadron under the command of Vice Admiral David Beatty . Rear Admiral Franz von Hipper , the commander of the German squadron , decided to abandon Blücher to the pursuing enemy ships in order to save his more valuable battlecruisers . Under heavy fire from the British ships , she was sunk , and British destroyers began recovering the survivors . However , the destroyers withdrew when a German zeppelin began bombing them , mistaking the sinking Blücher for a British battlecruiser . The number of casualties is unknown , with figures ranging from 747 to around 1 @,@ 000 . Blücher was the only warship lost during the battle . 
