The Royal Naval Air Service
"The human bird shall take his first flight, filling
the world with amazement, all writings with his fame,
and bringing eternal glory to the nest whence he
sprang."
LEONARDO DA VINCI.
"The feathered race on pinions skim the air,
Not so the mackerel, and still less the bear;
Ah! who hath seen the mailèd lobster rise,
Clap her broad wings, and claim the equal skies?"
Poem in _The Anti-Jacobin_.
"The French are all coming, for so they declare;
Of their floats and balloons all the papers advise us;
They're to swim through the ocean and ride on the air,
On some foggy evening to land and surprise us."
_The Invasion._ DIBDIN.
WE have had a good many surprises during the Great War, and so also have
the enemy; but the fine record of the British air service is not the
least of them. It is not that we had not every confidence in the pluck
and resourcefulness of our gallant British flying-men, but, if we may
trust available sources of information, we began the war miles behind
our French friends and our German foes, both in numbers and
organization.
Of course no exact figures can be quoted, but, according to an authority
on aeronautic matters,[102] Germany alone was in possession of a
thoroughly organized and equipped fleet of 1300 aeroplanes. According to
the same authority, Austria had about 100, France 800, and Russia 300,
while we ourselves are credited with 100 machines belonging to the
military wing of the air service, besides those in the naval wing, whose
number is not forthcoming, but which, I think, may fairly be put down
at well below a hundred. Neither we nor our allies had more than three
or four air-ships or dirigible balloons, while Germany had a fleet of
nearly twenty, most being of the famous Zeppelin type, from which very
great things were expected. The naval and military authorities in this
country either did not or would not believe in these "gas-bags", and, so
far, events seem to have proved that they were correct in their views.
In every estimate of the strength of navies we must not only make
comparisons of material, but of personnel. "The man behind the gun" is a
factor of the highest importance, and it is here that we "came in",
handicapped as we were in other respects. I do not think that I can do
better than again quote the same authority on this point. As regards the
enemy, his estimate of the German air personnel is that its pilots were
"mediocre, with a few brilliant exceptions". The Austrians were "brave
and skilful pilots badly organized". As to our allies, he considers the
French to have had "a very uneven air service". "Many magnificent
fliers, many very bad"; while the Russians possessed "numerous skilful
and daring aviators, but not very well equipped". We must not overlook
the little Belgian squadron of five-and-twenty aeroplanes, which he
assesses as "good", both in men and machines. We may, without vanity,
accept his estimate of our own aerial establishment as "a small but
highly efficient flying corps", since its efficiency has been proved
over and over again.
The "Royal Flying Corps" only dates from a few years ago, and we are
principally indebted to Major-General--then Lieutenant-Colonel--Sir
David Henderson, K.C.B., D.S.O., for its formation. He had no easy job
before him when he took the matter in hand, since neither Admiralty nor
War Office appeared to be in any hurry to attain a commanding position
in the novel arm, in spite of the great efforts being made by France,
and more especially by Germany. However, nothing daunted, he made the
very best possible of the small beginnings he was able to deal with,
and we are now reaping the harvest he sowed. For a time naval and
military officers and men worked together, but gradually, as numbers
increased, drew rather more apart, and the naval wing had its own
flying-schools at Eastchurch, near Sheerness, and at Upavon, near
Salisbury, its central air office at Sheerness, an establishment at
Hendon, and nine or ten air stations on the coast.
At the beginning of the war, confident in their numbers and
organization, the German aviators showed considerable boldness, and
their skilfulness in picking out our guns and positions, and signalling
them by flares, strips of glittering tinsel, circling movements, and
other devices to their gunners, rendered the fire of their
artillery--which at first greatly outnumbered that of the Allies--very
deadly indeed. Our own airmen were by no means such adepts at this
particular work to begin with, but, few as they were, they soon proved
themselves the better men. They worked on the old principle that so
often brought us victory afloat in Nelsonian days. "Directly you see an
enemy go for him." This system of fighting enabled Sir John French to
report, quite early in the campaign, that "The British Flying Corps has
succeeded in establishing an individual ascendancy which is as
serviceable to us as it is damaging to the enemy.... Something in the
direction of the mastery of the air has already been gained." The fact
was that the very qualities of preciseness, method, painstaking, and
avoidance of risk which make the German so formidable in some respects
do not fit in where such warfare is concerned.
The German cavalry was the same. It worked by the book. If it could mass
against ours at a strength of three to one, then by all the rules of the
game we ought to have retired or waited for their ponderous squadrons to
ride us down and overwhelm us by sheer weight of flesh and bone. But
when our dashing horsemen whirled into their masses in their
shirt-sleeves, and plied sabre and lance in a way that showed they meant
business, and then turned round and cut their way home again in the
same way, they did not like it. They have never dared to "take on" our
cavalrymen on anything approaching equal terms. Brave as we must admit
the Germans have shown themselves, they have not the same individual
dash and self-reliance as the British races.
No German would ever attack single-handed like Sergeant O'Leary, V.C. If
any proof were wanted of this, one has only to consider that the mass
attack formations, which have proved so deadly to our enemies, were
deliberately designed by the German military experts, with full
knowledge of the growing power of modern guns and rifles, because from
their experience of the war of 1870 they had formed the reasoned opinion
that in no other formation could they keep their "cannon fodder" up to
the scratch. All their views are well set forth in a German pamphlet
published some years ago, entitled _A Summer Night's Dream_. It has been
translated into English, and is well worth perusal at the present time.
Now look at our own men. Here is what Viscount Castlereagh wrote of them
from the front to his wife last autumn. "The thing that has impressed me
most here has been the aeroplane service; a splendid lot of boys who
really do not know what fear is."[103] The German army was provided with
a large quantity of guns especially designed for bringing down hostile
airmen; but they proved singularly ineffective, and our flying-men
simply laughed at them. And yet, with all their talk of air-raids and
the effect they were supposed to have on this country, the German fliers
have never attempted to attack any place over here where they thought
there might be any guns in waiting to receive them.
The Naval Air Service, primarily intended for scouting at sea, not only
for hostile ships but for submarines--for from high up these deadly
craft are visible deep under water, just in the same way that one can
see fish from a bridge that are invisible from the bank--was originally
equipped with water-planes, fitted with floats instead of wheels, so
that the naval aeronauts could rise from or alight on the water.
But though these machines proved of the greatest service in guarding and
watching the Channel and the Straits of Dover, the enterprising spirit
of the naval and marine officers who acted as air pilots, squadron
commanders, &c., was not content to devote itself entirely to such
necessary but perhaps rather monotonous work. The Naval Air Service
after the outbreak of war went ahead by leaps and bounds. Not only were
the numbers of sea-planes increased, but wheeled aeroplanes were
purchased as fast as they could be obtained, and supported by a whole
fleet of armoured motors fitted with machine-guns, a regular naval air
contingent appeared on the Continent ready to assist the army by raiding
in any direction likely to be of service. All sorts of mechanics,
motor-drivers, and other men were enlisted for special service with this
new organization, which lost no time in proving its great value and
efficiency.
The leading spirit and commanding officer was Commander Samson, R.N.,
and by 4th September, 1914, he was able to report that bombs had been
dropped on four German officers and forty men who had got rather too
near Dunkirk. Then, about a fortnight later, came the first raid in
force against the enemy's country, which created quite a scare in the
German frontier cities, since, judging our gallant airmen by their own
low-down standards, they feared for the lives and property of civilian
inhabitants.
After carefully and successfully assisting in covering the transit of
the Expeditionary Force to France, a temporary base for the naval wing
was established at Ostend. It was to assist in establishing this base
that the three battalions of Royal Marines were dispatched to that place
in the early part of the war. Other outlying bases were gradually
established in Belgium. The naval motors, acting in conjunction with the
Belgians, made things very warm for the prowling Uhlans, and eventually
a regularly organized combined expedition of motors and aeroplanes was
directed against Cologne and Düsseldorf, with the object of destroying
the Zeppelin sheds at these places and, haply, any Zeppelins that might
be taking their repose within.
It fell to Flight-Lieutenant Collet of the Royal Marine Artillery to
score the first "bull's-eye". This officer had attracted some attention
by the way he had handled a heavy German-built biplane which the
Admiralty had bought from a Leipzig firm in 1913. In the hands of the
German pilot who came over with her the new machine appeared but a slow
and lumbering affair, but flown by Collet she became endued with a new
life, and was made to perform all sorts of startling manoeuvres. "To see
him descend for a thousand feet or so," says an eye-witness, "in a
closely wound spiral, with the machine standing vertically on one
wing-tip, was an education in the handling of big aeroplanes."
Accompanied by other aviators, Lieutenant Collet set out from their base
on 22nd September, and made for Düsseldorf, about 100 miles distant from
Antwerp. Here, flying very low, he dropped four bombs on the Zeppelin
shed which was the special object of attack. What damage was done was
not ascertained. The attacking machine was only struck by a single
bullet, which did no damage, and Collet and his companions regained
their base without difficulty.
About a fortnight later another raid was made against the same sheds and
also against those at Cologne.
The aviators on this occasion were Squadron-Commander Spencer-Grey and
Flight-Lieutenants Marix and Sippe, all belonging to the Royal Navy. The
last-named had trouble with his engine shortly after starting and had to
drop out, but the remaining two rushed along through the growing
light--the start had been made at the first streak of dawn--Grey making
for Cologne and Marix for Düsseldorf. There was a good deal of fog,
which, while it served them to a certain extent by concealing their
approach, at the same time made it no easy job to steer a correct
course. Travelling at 80 miles an hour Grey reached Cologne, but had no
luck. Owing to the fog he was unable to locate the Zeppelin shed of
which he was in search, and would not drop a bomb without a definite and
legitimate objective, for fear of harming women and children. He,
however, was able to do some damage to the railway station.
As for Marix, he found his way to the shed already struck by Collet.
Rising to a great height, he made a spiral dive at the tremendous speed
of 140 miles an hour. He had been seen some time before, and was greeted
with a tremendous fusillade from machine-guns, anti-aeroplane guns, and
rifles. His machine was struck several times, but he descended to within
500 feet of the shed to which a Zeppelin had been recently removed from
that damaged by Collet, let go his bombs, and shot upwards again with
marvellous velocity. As he went he saw that at least one of his
projectiles had scored a success, for a volcano of flame was spouting
500 feet into the air. There was one Zeppelin the less. His "mount" had
been hit no less than twenty times and two of his control-wires cut, but
by the exercise of great judgment and skill he contrived to travel for
10 miles on his way back and to get across the frontier, where he was
met by a Belgian car and taken safely to Antwerp.
A correspondent of the _Globe_ who was at Düsseldorf at the time gives
the following account of what an eyewitness saw of Flight-Lieutenant
Marix's exploit and its effect. "A friend of mine saw an aeroplane one
day near Düsseldorf. He followed its movements with great anxiety, and
saw that it dropped when it was close by the Zeppelin shed. He had an
idea that something was wrong, but about 200 metres from the ground the
machine turned again and disappeared. Almost at the same moment he heard
two explosions, and a few moments after saw big flames of a light
colour, giving him the impression that the whole shed was on fire. My
friend went down to the place as quickly as he could, but at a distance
of a few hundred metres the people who had already run to the spot were
kept away by a ring of soldiers. A few minutes later a rumour spread
through the crowd that two more enemy aeroplanes were reported from
Cologne, and immediately all the soldiers were ordered near the shed to
be ready for firing at the new-comers. My friend followed the soldiers,
and came quite near the place where he had seen the flames. He saw that
the contents of the shed had been entirely burnt out, and only the walls
of the building were erect. In the shed was the carcass of a Zeppelin,
burned and broken to pieces. It was one big heap of aluminium."
The next exploit of the Naval Air Service was the attack on the Zeppelin
sheds at Friedrichshafen, on the Lake of Constance. There are three or
four big sheds here close together, with workshops and all appliances
for building and fitting out these monster air-ships. The newspapers had
for some time previously been publishing paragraphs giving accounts of
Zeppelin experiments at this place. Some may have been more or less
correct, while others bore the stamp of the usual "bogey-bogey" stories
set about by the Germans with the somewhat childish idea of frightening
us. Anyway the naval airmen made up their minds to go and see for
themselves. Of course their departure from the usual scene of their
activities in the north was made "without beat of drum", and, as
Friedrichshafen was something like 150 miles from the French frontier,
their visit was entirely unexpected.
The raiders were Squadron-Commander Briggs, Flight-Commander Babbington,
and Flight-Lieutenant Sippe, all of the Royal Navy. They are supposed to
have started from the neighbourhood of Belfort, that very strongly
fortified town on the eastern frontier of France. They were mounted on
similar machines--Avro biplanes. Heading almost due east, they struck
the Rhine in the vicinity of Basle--where it turns almost at a right
angle from east to north--flew upstream as far as Schaffhausen with its
picturesque falls, and then struck across country to Ludwigshafen, at
the western extremity of Lake Constance, or the Boden See as the Germans
term it. Thence they steered directly down the lake at their objective,
the cluster of hangars and workshops on the lakeside, just east of the
town of Friedrichshafen. Their advent was both seen and heard, and the
whirr of their propellers was at once answered by the stutter of Maxims,
the banging of guns, and the popping of musketry. But it is not easy to
disable an aeroplane unless you are successful in damaging it in a vital
part; so, regardless of this very warm reception, the naval airmen
swooped down one after the other from the high altitudes at which they
were travelling, and, passing over their target at a height of about
1200 feet, discharged their cargoes of bombs.
Commander Briggs was the first to arrive and drop his bombs, but his
petrol tank being pierced by a bullet the petrol ran out and he was
brought to the ground, where he was made prisoner and taken off to
hospital, having received some injuries from his fall. Babbington and
Sippe, following in his tracks, bombarded first the hangars and
afterwards the Zeppelin factory, and, circling round, flew off down the
Rhine and arrived safely at their starting-point, though their machines
had suffered some minor damages. Both were decorated on their return
with the Cross of the Legion of Honour, which was pinned on their
breasts by General Thevenet, the Governor of Belfort. All three, too,
appeared as recipients of the Distinguished Service Order in the New
Year's Honours List. And they had well earned their distinctions.
Putting on one side the risks inseparable from such an enterprise, they
had flown right into the enemy's country for a very considerable
distance, over a mountainous district and in quite unfavourable weather
conditions, and had created a tremendous moral effect in the enemy
nations. They had probably done a considerable amount of material
damage to the hangars and workshops, possibly to one or more Zeppelins
as well, but no certain details as to the extent have yet become
available.
The Germans had been taught to expect great things from their
well-organized and numerous fleets of air-ships and aeroplanes. They
were to bombard London, defeat our fleets, and terrorize the whole of
our "right little, tight little island" with these monster gas-bags.
And, lo and behold! before anything of the kind had happened, here were
these pestilent English flying-men attacking them in their own country.
Not blindly dropping bombs just anywhere in haste to get rid of them,
frighten civilians, and get away as fast as possible, but deliberately
attacking--and hitting--selected targets. German opinion was profoundly
moved. No wonder that their airmen felt that it "was up to them" to show
their fellow-countrymen what _they_ could do. But what a poor show it
was! On 5th December one gallant airman got within sight of Dover, but
turned round and made off again. On the 24th this one, or another,
actually flew over the town and dropped a bomb into a cabbage-patch. He
was in too much of a hurry to select a more important target, much less
hit it. The British reply, if such an unimportant exploit could be
deemed worthy of receiving a reply, was prompt and effective. The very
next day--Christmas Day--the Naval Air Wing, working in conjunction with
its own branch of the service, carried out an extremely well-organized
attack upon Cuxhaven, the strongly-fortified port at the mouth of the
Elbe which protects the approaches to Hamburg. The following officers
participated in this exploit: Flight-Commanders Oliver, Hewlett, and
Ross, R.N., and Kilner, R.M.L.I., Flight-Lieutenants Miley and Edmonds,
R.N., and Flight Sub-Lieutenant Blackburn, R.N.
The aeroplanes were all of an identical type--Shorts--just as those used
against Friedrichshafen were "Avros" and against Düsseldorf "Sopwiths".
They were carried on three very fast Channel steamers that had been
"taken up" by the Admiralty, each of which was commanded by a naval
officer belonging to the air service. It is interesting to note that the
navigating officer of one of these vessels was Mr. Erskine Childers, a
lieutenant in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, the author of that
fascinating novel _The Riddle of the Sands_, which deals most minutely
with the navigation of the German coastal waters between the Elbe and
the Zuyder Zee. The little expedition was convoyed by the _Undaunted_
and the "saucy" _Arethusa_--a pair of new light cruisers which have
proved themselves a most effective type of war-vessel--and a cordon of
submarines and destroyers. Everything had been worked out in detail.
[Illustration: THE BRITISH AIR RAID ON CUXHAVEN
_Drawn by John de G. Bryan_]
On approaching Heligoland, that German Gibraltar with which we so
foolishly parted some years ago, the sea-planes were hoisted out and
sped away on their errand of destruction. It was a misty morning, and on
arrival at Cuxhaven the aviators were much hampered by a fog which lay
in shallow patches over the town and harbour, but it is thought that
they succeeded in destroying a Parseval air-ship in its shed and in
badly knocking about some of the Zeppelin sheds. According to the German
account they also dropped bombs on a gasometer and on some men-of-war
lying in the river, of course "without doing any damage". The fog was,
however, much closer and thicker over the Elbe than over the town, so
that ships were in any case difficult targets.
But while our aviators were carrying out their mission, under fire from
guns of all sorts and kinds, there was a most remarkable fight going on
outside--a battle unprecedented in the annals of warfare.
The aviators left the flotilla sharp at daybreak, and it would seem that
neither they nor their escort were seen. But as the light grew, the
British ships were picked up by the look-outs on Heligoland, and an
instant attack was made upon them by submarines, sea-planes, and a
couple of the redoubtable Zeppelins. But the high speed of the
British vessels and the consummate seamanship and gunnery of their crews
defeated every attempt made to injure them. For three hours they fought
while waiting the return of the aviators. The white flash made by the
German torpedoes in the water was detected by sharp eyes, ships and
boats dodged and turned and cleared the "lurking death" by the "skin of
their teeth". The sea-planes whirred overhead and dropped their deadly
bombs, which exploded in fire, smoke, and fountains of water; but though
they often fell close alongside, none of the flotilla was touched. The
big bluffing Zeppelins also dropped a few, but they soon felt "they
could no longer stay", since the 100-pound shells from the _Arethusa_
and _Undaunted_ were coming closer and closer, and their crews
knew--none better--that one fair hit would mean annihilation. So, as the
official report stated, they "were easily put to flight". None of the
German surface vessels dared to show their noses outside, or, perhaps,
were able to disentangle themselves from their elaborate defences in
time, and after three of the daring raiders had been safely re-embarked
with their machines, the flotilla stood out to sea again, leaving a
detachment of submarines to look out for the remainder. Three of the
four remaining airmen were rescued by this means, though their machines
had to be sunk. The seventh--Flight-Commander Hewlett, son of the famous
novelist--after dropping bombs on some of the German ships, one of
which, at any rate, he felt certain he had hit, lost his way in the fog,
missed the flotilla, and, having trouble with his engine, descended to
the sea not far from Heligoland. Here he was picked up by a Dutch
trawler. He destroyed his engine and sank his machine, and after
experiencing two or three days of very heavy weather on board the
fishing-vessel was landed safely at Ymuiden, in Holland.
Curiously enough, the same day was selected for a somewhat feeble raid
up the Thames by a German Taube, which, apparently, was working
independently. The hostile air-craft was seen, fired on, and, after
harmlessly dropping a bomb here and there, was chased away by three of
our own airmen, and there is reason to believe that its return journey
ended at the bottom of the North Sea.
[Illustration: _Photo. Cribb, Southsea_
THE BRITISH AIR RAID ON CUXHAVEN
Seaplane 151, which was flown by Flight-Commander R. Ross in the raid
which shook up the Germans and gave them a dose of their own medicine.]
The day before the big expedition to Cuxhaven a dashing attack was made
by Squadron-Commander R. B. Davies, R.N., on a hangar which the Germans
had erected at Etterbeek, a suburb of Brussels, probably on the
manoeuvre-ground of the crack Belgian cavalry regiments, the Guides.
This officer travelled on a Maurice-Farman biplane and dropped eight
bombs on a shed which was supposed to contain a Parseval air-ship,
circled round, and dropped four more on his return journey. He was
unable to see exactly what damage he had effected, on account of the
clouds of smoke which arose from the hangar. His machine was recognized
by the citizens of Brussels as belonging to the Allies, and his exploit
created great enthusiasm among them.
At last the German airmen determined to have a raid of their own. A nice
quiet little trip this was to be, out of the way of nasty, unpleasant
guns and Maxims. And so we had the "great Zeppelin raid" on Yarmouth and
on a few quiet out-of-the-way villages in Norfolk, and the slaughter of
men, women, and children. The German aviators, however, did more
respectable work when considerable squadrons of aeroplanes twice
attacked Dunkirk in January, 1915. The first attempt would appear to
have been originally directed against Dover or some other place on this
side the Channel, as sixteen German aeroplanes were sighted hovering
over the Channel. But either by reason of the good look-out kept by our
own airmen and gunners, or on account of unfavourable weather
conditions, the "Boches" changed the direction of their flight and a
dozen of them attacked Dunkirk and dropped about thirty bombs. As usual,
most of the victims were civilians, but Dunkirk was a fortified town and
an important position of the allied armies, so that, but for the fact
that on one occasion the market-place seemed to be selected for an
especial target, we may consider these raids as legitimate military
operations. But the Germans were not able to carry them out at their
leisure. Belgian, French, and British airmen rushed their machines aloft
and engaged and drove off the raiders with the loss of one of their
machines, while a couple of our naval officers flew off and countered at
Zeebrugge, dropping twenty-seven bombs on a couple of submarines and on
the guns mounted on the mole. One of them, Squadron-Commander Davies,
R.N., was attacked during his approach by no less than seven hostile
aeroplanes, but got away from them with a slight wound and delivered his
bombs at their destination.
The following letter, written shortly before, and referring to the first
German raid on Dunkirk, is interesting as showing the consciousness of
superiority in the minds of our airmen:--
"I must tell you something about the beano we had yesterday. It _was_ a
day! Engaged with three Taubes in the morning and in the afternoon--and
I went and dropped 18 bombs and 6 grenades on various works and the
railway at Ostend, with incidentally another scrap with a German
machine. Hope we tickled them up and gave them ---- at Ostend. We've got
'em scared stiff--absolutely. It's a great game entirely. I hope we get
to hear about what damage we did at Ostend, though I'm afraid it's
impossible. I know I got the railway with one bomb--a clinking shot
right in the middle. I tell you they let us have it. The machine was hit
in nine places."[104]
The writer was evidently "keen as mustard", and against such airmen the
German air service could make no headway.
The biggest air raid on record took place on Tuesday, 16th February,
1915, when no less than thirty-four sea-planes and aeroplanes belonging
to the Naval Wing made a combined attack on the German positions on the
Belgian littoral. They were assisted by eight French airmen, who made a
determined attack on the German aeroplane depot at Ghistelles, situated
inland and south of Ostend, thereby preventing the German airmen from
intercepting our main attack. This big "flight"--a regular "aery
navy"--was commanded by the redoubtable Wing-Commander Samson, R.N., who
had made things so hot for the Germans in Belgium that a price of £1000
was set on his head; Wing-Commander Longmore, R.N., and
Squadron-Commanders Porte, R.N., and Courtney and Rathbone of the Royal
Marine Light Infantry.
It was a great performance. Most of the British aeroplanes crossed the
Channel in the teeth of very violent winds, flying in the bitter cold of
high altitudes and obstructed by not infrequent "flurries" of snow. Once
over the water, they flew down over Ostend, Middelkirke, and Zeebrugge.
Bombs were dropped on the German guns hidden from the view of our ships
at all three places: the stations at Ostend and Blankenberghe were
either destroyed or much damaged, as well as the power-station and
mine-sweeping vessels at Zeebrugge and a Zeppelin shed. Unfortunately no
submarines were seen. All this was carried out in the face of a very
heavy gun-fire from every class of weapon that the Germans could get to
bear on our "wild ducks". But all got away without loss of life or limb,
and with only a couple of machines damaged. The celebrated airman
Grahame-White, who served in the expedition as a flight-commander, fell
into the sea off Nieuport, but was rescued by a French vessel. This is
the last big air raid carried out by the Naval Wing up to the time of
writing, and space forbids any mention of the hundred-and-one smaller
exploits carried out by its fliers, either aloft in the air or working
on the ground in their armoured motor-cars. The price set on Commander
Samson's head by the exasperated "Boches" sufficiently indicates what a
thorn in the side they proved to the German desecrators of Belgium and
France.
FOOTNOTES:
[102] Editor _Aeronautical Journal_.
[103] Published in _The Sphere_.
[104] _Naval and Military Record._
Conclusion
"The Fleet of England is her all in all:
Her fleet is in your hands,
And in her Fleet her fate."
HAVING now traced the beginnings of the Royal Navy, glanced at some
little-known episodes of the naval history of Great Britain, sketched
the development of our men-of-war and their weapons, and finally
endeavoured to portray--in a very inadequate way, I am afraid--the
gallant men who man them, and some of their deeds in the greatest and
most terrible war that has ever been known in the history of the world,
I have arrived at the time when I must hoist the signal "Permission to
part company" with my readers.
But I cannot leave the subject of this book without some reference to
the part played by the navy in the Dardanelles. The outstanding points
in regard to the navy's participation in these operations were without
doubt the tremendous effect of the monster guns of the _Queen
Elizabeth_, the severe fighting which fell to the lot of the Naval and
Marine Brigades in the attack of the Turkish shore positions, and last,
but not least, the wonderful exploits of our submarines. The
achievements of Lieutenant Norman D. Holbrook, who, in the B11, crept
under five rows of mines and blew up the Turkish ironclad _Messudiyeh_;
and of Lieutenant Commander Martin Nasmith, who, in the E11, penetrated
right into the Sea of Marmora, torpedoing transports and creating a
scare in Constantinople itself, are examples of that brilliant daring
which has been exemplified again and again during the war.
The operations against the Dardanelles forts opened on the 3rd November
last year, when an allied British and French squadron bombarded those
nearest to the entrance. Operations were then practically suspended
until the 19th February, when the allied fleets returned to the attack
in greater force, and made a resolute attempt to break down the defence
of the narrow waterway leading to Constantinople. The outer forts having
been silenced, the _Queen Elizabeth_, with four other battleships,
entered the Dardanelles and bombarded the defences of what are known as
the Narrows. But they were unable to advance farther, partly on account
of the heavy mobile batteries of the Turco-Germans, but more especially
from the great danger of floating mines and of torpedoes launched from
stations on shore. These submarine weapons began to take heavy toll of
the allied ships. The British battleships _Irresistible_, _Ocean_, and
_Goliath_ were all sunk--the two first on the same day. With them, too,
went down the French battleship _Bouvet_, and, later on, the _Triumph_
and _Majestic_ succumbed to torpedoes said to have been fired from one
of two submarines which are supposed to have made their way to the scene
of action from Germany. Space forbids any further account of these
operations, which are still being continued; but, in order to give some
idea of what they were like, I cannot do better than quote from a letter
just written to his chum by a midshipman on board one of the ships
engaged in the Straits, so vivid an account does he give of the fighting
as it presented itself to his eyes:
"Since we have been out we have been in four or five big actions and a
large number of small ones. I think the hottest one that this ship
personally has been in was on Sunday, ----. This ship and one other were
ordered to reduce, or attempt to reduce, two of the most powerful forts
going. The action commenced just when you--if you were a good boy--were
going to church. As usual we cleared for 'immediate action' on the way
in. I must say before the action I felt rather as if I was going to the
dentist to have a bad tooth out, but once the show started and we were
fighting I felt as happy as a lark, despite the infernal noise and
smell!
"My action station is in No. -- turret, two -- guns. I wear the
officer's telepads, and have to sing out all the orders, ranges, &c.,
that come down from the controls, and work all the voice pipes, &c. If
the lieutenant of the turret gets knocked out I am supposed to take
charge. The forts opened a heavy fire as soon as we were in range, and
as we were the leading ship we had the concentrated fire of _both_ forts
on us for the first quarter of an hour, one fort shifting to the second
ship later. The water round both ships soon became like an animated
moving fountain, with the ships as the centre, from the splashes made by
the falling shell, most of the splashes reaching as high as the foretop
(about 110 feet). We really had a most miraculous time, considering the
large amount of shells fired at us and the comparatively small number of
hits we received. Also the way we managed to avoid getting any
casualties was a miracle, some of the men having most marvellous
escapes. However, we let them have it pretty hot as well, and it was
absolutely ripping to feel the ship lurch and stop on her course as we
let rip broadside after broadside at them. After two and a half hours
the forts ceased firing altogether, and we drew off, having done our
job.
"About the most exciting show I have had myself was when I had to go
away sweeping up the Straits one night in a picket-boat. Our objective
was to locate and blow up an electric cable which was connected to a
long row of mines at a certain point in the Dardanelles. We started off
at about 7.30 p.m., and it was an absolutely pitch-black night. There
were five other boats with us, and of course we could show absolutely no
lights. I was steering the boat, and it was hard to see anything at
all.... We arrived at about 10 p.m., and at the position for commencing
the sweep at about 11.15. The Turks had a lot of beastly search-lights
going. The first sweep up they did not discover us, but the second time
they fairly caught us and let rip with all sorts of things--Nordenfeldts,
rifles, pom-poms, and a few howitzers. It was beastly uncanny hearing
the shells shrieking and whizzing about in the still air of the
night--much worse than in daytime. However, a picket-boat is a very
difficult thing to hit even at the best of times, and in a pitch-black
night it wants a lot of luck despite all the search-lights. As soon as
they started firing I commenced zigzagging all over the place, and the
nearest we had was about ten yards away, although a lot of rifle bullets
went whistling overhead. I was never more pleased than when we turned
round and started back to the fleet. We blew up something, but whether
it was the cable or not I don't know. The boat next to us got into the
middle of a bunch of mines, and we had to stand by her; however, by
great luck she managed to clear, blowing up two mines with rifles. We
got back to the ship about 5 a.m., after quite an exciting night. I
really thought I looked quite ferocious that night; life-saving
waistcoat, overcoat, sea-boots, muffler, a huge revolver with 60 rounds
of ammunition, both my pockets full of sandwiches, and a Thermos flask
full of cocoa, which I kept on spilling all over myself in the dark.
"We have been covering the landing and supporting the advance of the
troops. It is a pretty strenuous time, as we are at action stations on
and off from 5 or 6 a.m. till 7 or 8 p.m., with a night watch to keep as
well, so we are kept pretty busy. We also live in a constant state of
'immediate action'."
But as it had been decided to supplement the naval attack by the landing
of an army, a disembarkation was effected towards the end of April at
five points on the Gallipoli Peninsula and one on the Asiatic shore. The
latter was carried out by the French, but it was only intended to be a
temporary measure to assist the British landings on the western shore.
The troops, which were composed of British, Australians, and New
Zealanders, effected their landing in the face of the most tremendous
opposition, making their way through masses of wire entanglements under
a terrible fire from all kinds of weapons. Their losses were very great,
but they effected their object and established themselves on shore, and
set about a series of operations against the Turkish positions which are
still continuing. The navy's share was to cover the landing with the
fire of its big guns, and to transport the soldiers to the shore. Its
work was magnificent. The Turkish entrenchments were plastered with
high-explosive shell, while the bluejackets and marines employed in the
actual business of landing the troops behaved with a coolness, energy,
and gallantry which has never been surpassed. Nor must it be forgotten
that the navy was represented in the landing force by the newly-formed
Naval Division, under the command of Brigadier-General Paris of the
Royal Marine Artillery, consisting of several battalions of the Royal
Marines and a number of others formed from the R.N.V.R. and other
reserves, and distinguished one from the other by bearing the names of
celebrated naval commanders--such as "The Drake Battalion". These had
all been organized and trained by the staff of the Royal Marines under
the Adjutant-General, Sir William Nicholls, and were commanded by naval,
marine, or in some cases army officers. As for their work in the
campaign, we have, so far, little or no information. Beyond extensive
mention in the casualty lists, the press seems to have overlooked them.
But their very losses prove that they have been well to the front, and
we may be sure that they have given a very good account of themselves.
Everywhere the Royal Navy has proved itself worthy, nay, more than
worthy, of its gallant ancestors and their gallant deeds. To quote Lord
Charles Beresford, in a letter written to the London Chamber of
Commerce: "The brilliant work of the Navy in clearing the North Sea and
providing safety for the transport to France of their comrades in the
sister service will be gratefully appreciated by the country. Such work
could only have been effective by superb organization, loyalty to duty,
and discipline, requiring not only caution but courage. The watching
fleets of the present day have none of the charm and change to occupy
their mind which accompanied the sailing-ship navy, making and
shortening sail, trimming sails, tacking, and wearing, necessary for
cruising on the look-out. There were no air-vessels, mines, submarines,
or torpedoes in the old days, no under-water warfare. The strain upon
officers and men of the sea-going fleet in these days is terrific:
nothing to occupy their thoughts as in the days of sailing-ships."
But with all this we know what the navy has done, and we know that it
will never be found wanting. Only let us all try to emulate the spirit
of thoroughness and devotion to duty which has made our navy what it is;
let us all try to "do our bit", however small, and, in those inspired
words of our great poet Shakespeare which we should always bear in
mind--
"Nought shall England rue,
If England to herself do prove but true".
PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN
_At the Villafield Press, Glasgow, Scotland_
* * * * *
Transcriber's note:
Obvious punctuation errors were corrected.
The text uses both warships and war-ships. This, and other varied
hyphenation, was retained.
The text uses both Zeebrügge and Zeebrugge.
The remaining corrections made are listed below.
Page 6 and also on actual illustration near 192, the hyphen was removed
from BLUE-JACKETS to reflect the many uses in the text.
Page 44, "Mont-joie's" changed to "Mont-Joie's" (of the _Mont-Joie's_
passengers)
Page 105, "intollerable" changed to "intolerable" (too intolerable to
suffer the)
Page 107, "ther" changed to "their" (written over to their)
Page 130, "Greite" changed to "Griete" (_Dulle Griete_ or "Mad Marjery")
Page 172, "fforged" changed to "forged" (forged cases to be shot)
Page 182, "cassion" changed to "caisson" (caisson at least 17)
Page 238, illustration caption, "Blucher" changed to "Blücher" (fate of
the _Blücher_ in)
Page 245, "markmanship" changed to "marksmanship" (was the marksmanship
of her)
Page 295, footnote 103, number of footnote added to citation. Footnote
text: (Published in _The Sphere_)