 By 13 : 20 , the battlecruisers had caught up with Spee , who realized his armored cruisers could not escape the much faster battlecruisers . He ordered the three light cruisers to attempt to break away while he tried to hold off the British squadron with Scharnhorst and Gneisenau . Sturdee instead ordered his cruisers to chase down the fleeing German light cruisers while Invincible and Inflexible dealt with Scharnhorst and Gneisenau . Spee deftly maneuvered his ships , taking the leeward position ; the wind kept his ships swept of smoke , which improved visibility for his gunners . This forced Sturdee into the windward position and its corresponding worse visibility . Scharnhorst straddled Invincible with her third salvo and quickly scored two hits on the British battlecruiser . The German flagship was herself not hit during this phase of the battle . Sturdee attempted to widen the distance by turning two points to the north to prevent Spee from closing to within the range of his numerous secondary guns . Spee counteracted this maneuver by turning rapidly to the south , which forced Sturdee to turn south as well to keep within range . This allowed Scharnhorst and Gneisenau to turn back north and get close enough to engage with their secondary 15 cm guns . Their shooting was so accurate that it forced the British to haul away a second time . 
