The Navy's Work Completed

CHAPTER CCCII. THE NAVY'S WORK COMPLETED. SURVEY OF THE SEA WAR-GERMANY'S FALSE RECKONING-LOSS OF HER OVERSEA SQUADRONS AND COLONIES-ADOPTION OF SUBMARINE WAR ON COMMERCE-NoRTH SEA EPISODES-JUTLAND A DEOISIVE VICTORy-ALLIED NAVIES IN THE ADRIATIC-NAVAL AND MILITARY COOPERATION THE NAVIES' SHARE IN THE ENEMIES' COLLAPSE-INTERNMENT OF THE HOSTILE FLEETS HISTORIC SURRENDER OF THE GERMAN NAVY IN THE NORTH SEA, NOVEMBER 21, 1918-SCUTTLING OF THE GERMAN SHIPS AT SCAPA-KING GEORGE'S TRIBUTE TO HIS FLEET. N this concluding chapter of the Naval Chapter CXII. (Vol. VII.), continues the Operatior.s of the vVar, it seems desirable narrative down to Hie Suvla Bay landing; I to summarize the information given in and the next chapter in the same vohune earlier chapters devoted to events at sea. deals with the evacuation. Similarly, the work The ·first three months of naval war were dealt 'of the Navy in connexion with other operations with in Chapter XXX. (Vol. II.), and the suc of an amphibious character will be found ceeding chapter was concerned with the Navy's recorded in the articles dealing with events work in the outer seas. In the same volume, in the theatre of war concerned. As regards Chapter XLIII. was devoted to the raids on the Mes -potamia, the operations in the Persian East Coast by German battle-cruisers, when Yar Gulf up to the fall of Kurna are dealt with in mouth, Hartlepool, Whitby and Scarborough Chapter LI!. (Vol. III.), entitled" The Invasion were bombarded, in November and December, of Chaldea." In Chapter CLVIII. (Vol. X), 1914. The second three months of naval war, "The Advance Towards Baghdad," the from the rettU'n of Lord Fisher to office to the narrative was continued to the end of 1915, Battle of the Dogger Bank, formed the subject when the forces under General Townshend had of Chapter LIII. (Vol. III.): This narrative retired to Kut, the siege and fall of which place of the main Fleet operations was continued is described in Chapter CXC!. (Vol. XII.) The in Chapter CX!. (Vol. VII.), dealing with the Navy's part in the captlU'e of Baghdad in Navy's work in 1915; in Ohapter CLIII. March, 1917, and the work of the Tigris flotilla (Vol. X.), dealing with 1916; in Chapter under Captain vVilfrid Nunn, are. cov6roo in CCXII. (Vol. XIV.), dealing with 1917; and Chapter CCI. (Vol. XII!.). The capture of in Chapter CC LXXI. (Vol. XVIII.), dealing Kiaochau will be found recorded in Vol. II., with 1918. Chapter XLIV.; the naval operations in the ' The work of the Fleet in connection with Red Sea down to the end of 1914 in Vol. Ill., the Dardanelles expedition is, of course, Chapter LVIII. ; and t.he naval work on the described in the articles devoted to that sub Syrian coast in the spring of 1915 in Vol. IV., ject. Chapters XCII. and XCIV., in Volume Chapter LL",{IIT. Later operations undertaken V., contain the early naval attacks and the by the Navy in support of, or in conjunction landing respectively; Chapter XCVIII., in the with, milit.ary expeditions are dealt . with in next volmne, events to the end of June, in the chapters concerned with the latter. cluding the advent of the enemy submarines; Turning to purely navai operations, the Vol. XXI.- Part 261 2 THE TllkIES HISTORY OF THE WAR. Battle of Jutland forms the subject of Chapter granted was the belief, in fact the conviction, CXL., in Vol. IX. As regards the subm.arine that Great Britain could b e induced to remain war on merchantmen, a comparison of. our qwn neutral. \Vhat such a condition of things would and enemy methods will be found in Chapter have meant is clear. Gerrnany, supreme on land CXCV. (Vo1. XIII. ), entitled "The Blockades, at the beginning, would have been supreme at 1915-17," and a mOl'e comprehensive review sea also, and must certainly have been vic· is given in Chapter CCLVII. (Vol. XVI!.), on torious, whereas the power of the British Navy, " .The Anti-Submarine War, 1915- 1918." An exerted against h6r, proved, in the words of important phase of the subject, however, js Viscount Grey on May 2,19-19, to have been 1.he trea.ted separately in "Naval Transport. and foundation of all success in the war. On the Convoy," Chapter CCXXXIX. (Vol. XVI.), and occasion of the British nava.l visit to France in closely related with these articles are the April, 19H), it was pointed out by the Paris two · on "The Shipping Problem" in Vols. Figaro that the situation between July 28 and XI. and XV. Special cha,pters on the organi- August 4, 1914, was especially . complicaterl . zation or material of the Navy include one on because there existed no treaty signed pre the development of the submarine, Chapter viously between France and Great Britain LXVII. (Vol. IV.); on the evolution of naval nniting the two nations in every eventuality engineering, Chapter CLXXXVI. (Vol. XII.) ; which might arise. The French Ministry of and on the Medical Service of the Royal Navy, Marine, seeing itself on Aug:ust 2, 1914, forced Chapter CXLIV. (Vol. IX.). There are also to depend on its own resources against the chapters devoted to the Mercantile Marine in Gennan High. Sea,:; F leet, at a tinlO when the Vols. VII. and XI. ; and the work of fishermen French main fleet was in the Mediterranean, in the war in the same volumes. Finally, sent Admiral Rouyer, at CheI:bourg, who had i t may be mentioned that, in addition to only a weak squadron of six batt.leships and ma:1Y references in the course of the various cruisers, the following memorable order: narratives, the work of the Allied navies has " H ead immediately for the Straits of Dover. the following chapters devoted exclusively Defend the Channel ~y force of arms agai nst to it :-The French Navy, Chapter CLXXXII. the Germ.an Fleet." The French ships accor (Vol. XII.); the Russian Navy, Chapter dingly made this " advance to the sacrifice," as CCXLIII. (Vol. XVI.) ; and the Italian Navy, it was t ermed, but before the extreme momeut Chapter CLXXXIX. (Vol. XII.). On the other arrived Great Britain had come into the hand, the work of the United States Navy conflict. will be found recorded in various chapters Evidence of the readiness of Germany for elevoted to America, in particular " America's such an eventuality was forthcoming in the way First Year at vVar," Chapter CCXLIV. (Vol. her n:ml'cantile fleet at once fl ed for safety into XVI.). In the last chapter of Vol. XVIII., neutral ports, in accordance with previous on "The Allies in the Mediterran ean," there instructions, in the attempted cruise of the is also much information concerning the minelayer [{onigin Luise to the Tha.mes estuary American, Fronch, Italian, and J apanese naval a few hours after the declaration of h ostilities, forces in those waters. This present chapter and in the pre-~rranged plans carried O"ut by contains a survey of the various phases of the the German squadrons abroad. The last-named sea war, supplemented by information which might have been more successful but for the has b een revealed since the armistice; with fact, now revealed, that the colliers and store the ilnpor.tant events concerned with the ships for von Sr;ee's fleet were locked up in virtual disappearance of the German Navy. Manila by the prompt action of the Hong-Kong authorities . Such n1: 0VJm ents of a naval char Although th} Germans were surprised by acter as were made by the Germans indicated Great Britain deciding to come into the war, what might have oecllned on a larger scale had it was soon evident that they had made every they not been robbed of the initiative in the preparation for a struggle at sea with this North Sea by the dispatch of the Grand Fleet to country. Th~ir naval chiefs, however, were not its war bases in the north before hostilities began. so ready as the military commanders for a It was a matter of surprise tha.t they did not great war, and it has been stated that Grand attempt to reduce the preponderance of the Admiral von Tirpitz pressed for a postpone Grand Fleet by raids in the ea.rly days, when ment. The main reason 'why this was not there Vi,as not a single hase on the east coast THE TIMES HISTORY OF THE WAR. 3 .; THE NAVY'S TIRELESS WATCH ON THE NORTH SEA. Deck of a British Man-of-War in winter. defended properly against torpedo attack; explanation. Lord J ellicoE' has stated in his but the reason given by the enemy why they book, The Grand Fleet, that he has often failed to take advantage of this state of things wondered why the Germans did not ma'ke was that they did not believe it could bo greater efforts in this direction in those early possible. They have also endeavoured to days. They possessed, in comparison with the .)xplain the omission by stating that their uses for which they were required, almost a destroyers and submarines were unfitted. for superfluity of destroyers, certainly a superfluity the length of the passage to Scapa, but this is as compared with ourselves, says the late rather an attempt to excuse a want of enterprise Commander-in-Chjef, " and they could not have than to furnieh an adequate or convincing put them to a better use than in an attack on 261-2 4 THE TIMES HISTORY OF THE vVAR.

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