Zeebrugge Raid

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Zeebrugge Raid

The wrecks of British cruisers after the Zeebrugge Raid, April 1918.

Date	April 23, 1918
Location	Zeebrugge, Belgium
Result	Indecisive

Combatants

United Kingdom

German Empire

Commanders

Roger Keyes

Unknown

Strength

75 ships
1,700 regulars

Unknown

Casualties

200 dead
300 wounded

Unknown

The Zeebrugge Raid, which took place on April 23, 1918, was an attempt by the British Royal Navy to neutralize the key Belgian port of 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.

1 Background
2 The raid
3 Aftermath
4 References
5 See also

[edit] 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.

[edit] The raid

The raid began with a diversionary attack against the mile-long Zeebrugge mole. The attack was lead by the old cruiser, HMS Vindictive, with two Mersey ferries, Daffodil and 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, one of the old submarines destroyed the viaduct after it exploded.

The plan to sink three old cruisers to block the flow of traffic in and out of the Port of 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.

[edit] Aftermath

The blockships were not in the correct position when sunk and only managed to block the canal for a few days. 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.