On
the second half of 1914, the forces of the German army had pushed into Belgium,
taking over the town of Zeebrugge. A two mile crescent-shaped outcrop called
the Mole had been constructed in order to hamper the British Naval Intelligence
from incursions.
Along
with nearby Ostend, Zeebrugge with its Mole coastline, provided shelter for German
destroyers and torpedo boats. Naturally the British Forces needed to breach the
Mole in order to eradicate the U-boat threat.
 |
| Map of Zeebrugge and the Mole |
However,
the Mole was defended by a dozen or more strategically-placed German coastal
guns, all facing out to sea.
On
the 23 April 1918 (St George’s Day) the Royal Navy, the Royal Marines and the
Submarine Service gathered servicemen, mostly volunteers, to undertake a daring
attack upon the Mole.
The
plan was to use a smokescreen under which two old submarines laden with high
explosives were to be detonated with the aim of destroying the Mole viaduct
shoreline. Then, three old cruisers, HMS Intrepide, Iphigenia and Thetis, all
heavily laden with cement, were to be scuttled at the Mole entrance. This would
in effect block the entrance to the Mole.
The
HMS Vindictive
 |
| HMS Vindictive Assault Ship |
To
act as an escort and armed with a landing party, HMS Vindictive, a six-inch gun
second class cruiser had been stripped and reinforced with extra metal
protection as a shield for the assault force. Once the Vindictive was alongside
the harbour, the landing party was to take out the German gun batteries.
Before
the attack even began the wind direction changed, removing the smokescreen. The
vessels were sighted from the shoreline. Illumination lights were sent up
making the attack an easy target. Not put off, the raid pushed on.
Scuttling
Ships
HMS
Thetis grounded before its proper position had been reached. The Intrepide and
the Iphigenia were scuttled. Under intense close range fire, Vindictive’s
landing party struggled to get ashore. Although the daring raid on the
Zeebrugge Mole was good for national prestige, there had been many casualties.
And after a few days, the Mole was operational once more. For the courage
displayed, a number of British servicemen were acknowledged with many awards.
Once
the war was over, it took a salvage company almost a year to clear the Mole
properly. Zeebrugge today is a busy commercial area with its skyline covered by
cranes for the loading and unloading of container ships.
The
Mole is now a pier and docking area for cruisers.
Relevant Links on the Zeebrugge Raid of 1918
