THE WAR AT SEA
THE ZEEBRUGGE RAID: 23rd APRIL 1918
It was towards the end of April 1918 that the British Admiralty, still deeply concerned about Germany’s u-
Acknowledgements
Local Map: wartime.blog Battle Map: edwinvanbloois.com. Dutch biochemist and historian HMS Vindictive: en.wikipedia.org Disembarking: pinterest.fr by Charles John de Lacy. Keyes: sketch by Glyn Warren Philpot,1918 Imperial War Museum Scuttling: lookandlearn.com by Graham Coton. Battleship (sketch): pinterest.com Revolution: alphahistory.com
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However, when the operation took place, not all went according to plan (see map above).The port proved to be more heavily protected than expected. The old cruiser HMS Vindictive, carrying the bulk of the landing force, was badly hit by a number of coastal batteries, and had difficulty in mooring alongside the harbour wall. And, once disembarked, the troops came under heavy machine gun fire and suffered severe loses as they tried to make their way along the narrow mole. As a result, the German guns remained intact and could be directed against the operation taking place in the harbour below. There, however, despite being under constant fire, two of the three blockships (HMS Iphigenia and Intrepid), were successfully scuttled at the entrance to the canal, whilst the much depleted invasion force made its way back to the boats.
The raid accomplished little. In fact, it only took a few days for the port to be reopened. Nonetheless, the sinking of the blockships compensated in part for the failure of the troops ashore, and (perhaps a little surprisingly), provided some welcome propaganda. Despite its shortcomings, the operation was seen as a brave and bold attempt for a justifiable cause. Winston Churchill thought it might well be ranked as “the finest feat of arms in the Great War”. Keyes – who played a prominent part in the British victory at the Battle of Heligoland in August 1914 – received a knighthood, and the heroism shown by those taking part was measured by the award of eight Victoria Crosses. In the matter of casualties, the British lost 600 men, dead or wounded, compared with a German loss of no more than 30.
Incidentally, atxthe time of the Zeebrugge Raid a similar attack was made on the port of Ostend, some 17 miles south of Zeebrugge, but it proved a failure due to bad weather and the defensive measures taken by the German defenders. Two weeks later, however, a second attack was launched. This time, Keyes used the ageing Vindictive as a blockship. Its volunteer crew sank the ship at the harbour entrance and, for a short time at least, traffic was hindered. In this operation, three Victoria Crosses were awarded, and the dead and wounded amounted to 49.
As we shall see, it was, in fact, a mutiny within the German Navy, beginning at the port of Kiel on the 28th October, that triggered off a wave of uprisings across Germany. As a result the Kaiser abdicated on the 9th November, and, two days later, the Armistice of Compiègne was signed, bringing an end the to First World. It was a conflict which – for the major combatants – had lasted for four years and 106 days. One source estimates that 65 million men fought in the war. Of this number, 8.5 milliion died and more than 20 million were severely injured. The deaths among civilians is put at more than 6 million. Given the killings, the destruction, and the suffering it caused, it was seen as a war to end wars, but, sadly, it wasn’t!
