[2] V189 was laid down at AG Vulcan's Stettin shipyard as Yard number 307 and was launched on 14 March 1911 and completed on 30 June 1911.

[7] On 28 August 1914, the British Harwich Force, supported by light cruisers and battlecruisers of the Grand Fleet, carried out a raid towards Heligoland with the intention of destroying patrolling German torpedo boats.

[8] The German defensive patrols around Heligoland consisted of one flotilla (I Torpedo Flotilla) of 12 modern torpedo boats forming an outer patrol line about 25 nautical miles (29 mi; 46 km) North and West of Heligoland, with an inner line of older torpedo boats of the 3rd Minesweeping Division at about 12 nautical miles (14 mi; 22 km).

[10] However, sister ship V187, leader of I Flotilla, ran into the midst of the Harwich force when trying to return to Heligoland and was sunk.

The intervention of the supporting British forces resulted in the sinking of the German cruisers Mainz, Cöln and Ariadne.

The British light cruiser Arethusa and destroyers Laurel, Laertes and Liberty were badly damaged but safely returned to base.

[2][7][15] In 16 July 2021, An explorer, Darren Murray was searching for two other wrecks off Torbay when he discovered its remains.