The Dover Patrol and later known as the Dover Patrol Force was a

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

command of the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, notable for its involvement in the

Zeebrugge Raid The Zeebrugge Raid (; ) on 23 April 1918, was an attempt by the Royal Navy to block the Belgium, Belgian port of Bruges-Zeebrugge. The British intended to sink obsolete ships in the canal entrance, to prevent German vessels from leaving port. ...

on 22 April 1918. The Dover Patrol formed a discrete unit of the Royal Navy based at

Dover Dover ( ) is a town and major ferry port in Kent, southeast England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies southeast of Canterbury and east of Maidstone. ...

and

Dunkirk Dunkirk ( ; ; ; Picard language, Picard: ''Dunkèke''; ; or ) is a major port city in the Departments of France, department of Nord (French department), Nord in northern France. It lies from the Belgium, Belgian border. It has the third-larg ...

for the duration of the First World War. Its primary task was to prevent enemy German shipping—chiefly submarines—from entering the

English Channel The English Channel, also known as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Southern England from northern France. It links to the southern part of the North Sea by the Strait of Dover at its northeastern end. It is the busi ...

''en route'' to the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

, thereby forcing the

Imperial German Navy The Imperial German Navy or the ''Kaiserliche Marine'' (Imperial Navy) was the navy of the German Empire, which existed between 1871 and 1919. It grew out of the small Prussian Navy (from 1867 the North German Federal Navy), which was mainly for ...

to travel via the much longer route around

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

which was itself covered by the

Northern Patrol The Northern Patrol, also known as Cruiser Force B and the Northern Patrol Force, was a naval force of the Royal Navy during the world wars. The Northern Patrol was part of the British "distant" Blockade of Germany (1914–1919). Its main task wa ...

History

In late July 1914, with war looming, 12 s arrived at

to join the near obsolete destroyers already at anchor in the harbour, most of them built in the late 19th century. These destroyers formed the nucleus of the fledgling Dover Patrol, which, from its early beginnings as a modest and poorly equipped command, became one of the most important Royal Navy commands of the First World War. The Dover Patrol was established as an independent command on 12 October 1914 after the German capture of Antwerp, Zeebrugge and the impending fall of Ostend. German possession of Belgian Channel ports and rising activity of U-boats led the

Admiralty Admiralty most often refers to: *Admiralty, Hong Kong * Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964 *The rank of admiral *Admiralty law Admiralty can also refer to: Buildings * Admiralty, Tra ...

to consider the Dover Straits vital enough to be distinct from the Admiral of Patrols. The first actions of the Dover Patrol included bombarding German coastal positions during the

Battle of the Yser The Battle of the Yser (, ) was a battle of the First World War that took place in October 1914 between the towns of Nieuwpoort, Belgium, Nieuwpoort and Diksmuide, along a stretch of the Yser River and the Yperlee Canal, in Belgium. The front ...

and defeating a German Navy detachment in the Battle off Texel. The Dover Patrol assembled

cruiser A cruiser is a type of warship. Modern cruisers are generally the largest ships in a fleet after aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and can usually perform several operational roles from search-and-destroy to ocean escort to sea ...

monitor Monitor or monitor may refer to: Places * Monitor, Alberta * Monitor, Indiana, town in the United States * Monitor, Kentucky * Monitor, Oregon, unincorporated community in the United States * Monitor, Washington * Monitor, Logan County, Wes ...

s, destroyers,

naval trawler Naval trawlers are vessels built along the lines of a fishing trawler but fitted out for naval purposes; they were widely used during the World War I, First and World War II, Second World Wars. Some, known in the Royal Navy as "Admiralty trawlers ...

s and drifters, paddle minesweepers, armed

yacht A yacht () is a sail- or marine propulsion, motor-propelled watercraft made for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a ...

Motor Launch Launch is a name given to several different types of boat. The wide range of usage of the name extends from utilitarian craft through to pleasure boats built to a very high standard. In naval use, the launch was introduced as a ship's boat ...

es and

Coastal Motor Boat Coastal Motor Boat was a small high-speed British torpedo boat used by the Royal Navy in the First World War and up to end of the Second World War. During the First World War, following a suggestion from three junior officers of the Harwich ...

submarine A submarine (often shortened to sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. (It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability.) The term "submarine" is also sometimes used historically or infor ...

seaplane A seaplane is a powered fixed-wing aircraft capable of takeoff, taking off and water landing, landing (alighting) on water.Gunston, "The Cambridge Aerospace Dictionary", 2009. Seaplanes are usually divided into two categories based on their tech ...

s, aeroplanes and airships. With these resources it performed several duties simultaneously in the Southern

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...

and the

Dover Strait The Strait of Dover or Dover Strait, historically known as the Dover Narrows, is the strait at the narrowest part of the English Channel, marking the boundary between the Channel and the North Sea, and separating Great Britain from continental ...

s, carrying out anti-submarine patrols; escorting merchantmen, hospital and troop ships; laying sea-mines and even constructing mine barrages; sweeping up German mines; bombarding German military positions on the Belgian coast and sinking

U-boat U-boats are Submarine#Military, naval submarines operated by Germany, including during the World War I, First and Second World Wars. The term is an Anglicization#Loanwords, anglicized form of the German word , a shortening of (), though the G ...

s. The Dover patrol was often attacked and took many casualties as in the action of 15 February 1918. During the war, the Dover Patrol was maintained by the Dover Engineering Works, an Iron Foundry which employed and housed hundreds of workers in Dover Town and was managed by Vivian Elkington, nephew of

Walter Emden Walter Lawrence Emden (1847 – 1913) was one of the leading English theatre and music hall architects in the building boom of 1885 to 1915. Biography Emden was the second son of William S. Emden, lessee of London's Olympic Theatre, and wa ...

. The company still exists, operating from a reduced premises at Holmestone Road, under the name of Gatic. In March 1919 the Dover Patrol was renamed Dover Patrol Force.

Commemoration

After the war, a fund was set up to erect a memorial to the Dover Patrol. In July 1921, a memorial at Leathercote Point near St Margaret's Bay was unveiled. Similar memorial obelisks stand at

Cap Blanc Nez Cap Blanc-Nez (, literally "Cape White Nose" in English; from Dutch ''Blankenesse'', white headland) is a cape on the Côte d'Opale, in the Pas-de-Calais ''département'', in northern France, culminating at 134 m. The cliffs of chalk are very ...

on the French channel coast, and at

John Paul Jones Park John Paul Jones Park is a public park located in Fort Hamilton, Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. The park borders Shore Road, Fourth Avenue, 101st Street, and Fort Hamilton Parkway. The park is managed by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation ...

near

Fort Hamilton Fort Hamilton is a United States Army installation in the southwestern corner of the New York City borough of Brooklyn, surrounded by the communities of Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights. It is one of several posts that are part of the region which ...

, overlooking New York harbour.

Admirals commanding

Post holders included: * Rear-Admiral The Hon.

Horace Hood Rear Admiral Sir Horace Lambert Alexander Hood (2 October 1870 – 31 May 1916) was a Royal Navy admiral of the First World War, whose lengthy and distinguished service saw him engaged in operations around the world, frequently participating in ...

, 12 October 1914 – 13 April 1915 * Vice-Admiral Sir

Reginald Bacon Admiral Sir Reginald Hugh Spencer Bacon, (6 September 1863 – 9 June 1947) was an officer in the Royal Navy noted for his technical abilities. According to Admiral of the Fleet (Royal Navy), Admiral of the Fleet John Fisher, 1st Baron Fisher, L ...

, 13 April 1915 – 1 January 1918 * Acting Vice-Admiral Sir

Roger Keyes Admiral of the Fleet Roger John Brownlow Keyes, 1st Baron Keyes, (4 October 1872 – 26 December 1945) was a British naval officer. As a junior officer he served in a corvette operating from Zanzibar on slavery suppression missions. Earl ...

, 1 January 1918 – 20 March 1919 * Vice-Admiral Cecil Dampier, 20 March – 15 October 1919

Dover senior officers

Rear-Admiral and Senior Officer, Dover

Post holders included: * Rear-Admiral Heathcoat Grant, 10 January – 18 June 1917 * Rear-Admiral Cecil Dampier, 18 June 1917 – 1 June 1918, also Admiral-Superintendent, Dover

Senior Naval Officer, Dunkirk

Post holders included: * Commodore Charles Johnson, 13 December 1914 – 4 July 1917 * Commodore

Hubert Lynes Rear Admiral Hubert Lynes, (27 November 1874 – 10 November 1942) was a British admiral whose First World War service was notable for his direction of the Zeebrugge and Ostend raids designed to neutralise the German-held port of Bruges, which ...

, 5 July 1917 – May 1918 * Commodore

Frank Larken Admiral Sir Frank Larken KCB CMG (15 November 1875 – 21 January 1953) was a Royal Navy officer who became Naval Secretary. Early life and education Larken was born in Lincoln, Lincolnshire Lincoln () is a cathedral city and district in ...

, June 1918

Senior Naval Officer, Folkestone

* Captain Pennant Lloyd, 30 October 1914 – 15 September 1916 * Rear-Admiral Bentinck Yelverton, 18 September 1916 – 21 October 1919 (retired)

Senior Naval Officer, Ramsgate

Post holders included: * Captain George Tomlin, 15 January 1915 – 28 May 1917 * Captain Walter Allen, 27 May 1917 – 25 March 1919

Footnotes

Bibliography

* *

External links

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