Zeebrugge Raid

Infobox Military Conflict
conflict= Zeebrugge Raid
partof=the First World War


caption= The wrecks of British cruisers after the Zeebrugge Raid, April 1918.
date= April 23 1918
place= Zeebrugge, Belgium
result=Indecisive
combatant1= United Kingdom
combatant2= German Empire
commander1=Roger Keyes
commander2=Unknown
strength1= 75 ships
1,700 regulars
strength2=Unknown
casualties1=200 dead
300 wounded
casualties2=Unknown
notes=
-
Campaignbox North Sea 1914-1918

The Zeebrugge Raid, which took place on April 231918, was an attempt by the British Royal Navy to neutralize the key Belgian port of Bruges-Zeebrugge. The port was used by the German Navy as a base for their U-boats and light shipping, which was a serious threat to Allied shipping, especially in the English Channel.

Background

A raid on Zeebrugge was first proposed in 1917 by Sir John Jellicoe, but was not authorised until Vice-Admiral Sir Roger Keyes created a plan for a blocking operation which would make it difficult for German ships and submarines to easily leave the port. The raid was formally approved by the British Admiralty in February 1918 and launched two months later consisting of seventy five volunteer ships and two hundred soldiers.

The raid

The raid began with a diversionary attack against the mile-long Zeebrugge mole. The attack was led by the old cruiser, HMS "Vindictive", with two Mersey ferries, HMS "Daffodil" and HMS "Iris II". The three ships were accompanied by two old submarines, which were filled with explosives to blow up the viaduct connecting the mole to the shore. HMS "Vindictive" was to land a force of 200 Royal Marines at the entrance to the Bruges Canal, however, at the time of the landing the winds changed and the planned smoke-screen to cover the ship proved ineffective. The marines, whose objective was to destroy German gun positions, immediately came under heavy fire and suffered heavy casualties. "Vindictive", spotted by German gun positions, was forced to land in the wrong location, resulting in the loss of the marines' heavy gun support. Eventually, submarine HMS C3, commanded by Lt. R. D. Sandford, destroyed the viaduct as planned, by explosion. Sandford was awarded the Victoria Cross for this action.

The plan to sink three old cruisers to block the flow of traffic in and out of the Port of Bruges-Zeebrugge did not go as planned. The failure of the attack on the Zeebrugge mole resulted in heavy German fire on the three blocking ships, "Thetis", "Intrepid" and "Iphigenia", which were filled with concrete. "Thetis" did not make it to the canal entrance, after it had hit an obstruction and was scuttled prematurely. The two other ships were sunk at the narrowest point of the canal.

Aftermath

The blockships were not in the correct position when sunk and only managed to block the canal for a few days. The Germans removed two piers in the western bank of the canal, near the blockships, and created a channel through the silt near the blockships' sterns. They were thus able to move submarines past the blockships at high tide.

The Zeebrugge Raid was promoted by Allied propaganda as a key British victory and resulted in the awarding of eight Victoria Crosses. Of the 1,700 men involved in the operation, 300 men were injured while more than 200 were killed. Among those killed was Wing Commander Frank Arthur Brock, the man who devised and commanded the operation of the smoke screen.

References

*cite web | title= 23 April 1918 - Zeebrugge Raid| work= The Western Front Association| url=http://www.westernfront.co.uk/thegreatwar/articles/timeline/zeebrugge.htm| accessdate=August 15| accessyear=2006
*cite web | title= Battles: The Raid on Zeebrugge, 1918| work= FirstWorldWar.net| url=http://www.firstworldwar.com/battles/zeebrugge.htm| accessdate=August 15| accessyear=2006
*cite web | title= Making History: The Zeebrugge Raid| work= BBC.co.uk| url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/beyond/factsheets/makhist/makhist7_prog12c.shtml| accessdate=August 15| accessyear=2006

*Pitt, Barrie: "Zeebrugge" (New York: Ballantine Books Inc, 1959; and London: Cassell, 1958 + Cassell Military Paperbacks, 2003)

ee also

*St. Nazaire Raid - a similar operation of the Second World War