 Lion became the flagship of Vice @-@ Admiral W. C. Pakenham in December 1916 when he assumed command of the Battlecruiser Fleet upon Beatty 's promotion to command of the Grand Fleet . Lion had an uneventful time for the rest of the war conducting patrols of the North Sea as the High Seas Fleet was forbidden to risk any more losses . She provided support for British light forces involved in the Second Battle of Heligoland Bight on 17 November 1917 , but never came within range of any German forces . Lion and Princess Royal , along with the rest of the Grand Fleet , sortied on the afternoon of 23 March 1918 after radio transmissions had revealed that the High Seas Fleet was at sea after a failed attempt to intercept the regular British convoy to Norway . However , the Germans were too far ahead of the British and escaped without firing a shot . When the High Seas Fleet sailed for Scapa Flow on 21 November 1918 to be interned , Lion was among the escorting ships . Along with the rest of the 1st BCS , Lion and Princess Royal guarded the interned ships until both ships were assigned to the Atlantic Fleet in April 1919 . 
