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The Dover Patrol In his forward to
Admiral Sir Reginald H Bacon's "The Concise Story of
the Dover Patrol", Admiral of the Fleet Earl
Jellicoe wrote, in 1932, "Unquestionably the work of
the Dover Patrol was of the utmost importance ... It
involved safeguarding the passage of our troops,
munitions, and stores across the Channel, and
protecting the ships of the Mercantile Marine which,
to the average number of one hundred, passed Dover
daily, carrying food, etcetera, to the Thames and
ports on our East Coast ... A very important part
was the denial of the passage of the Straits of
Dover to enemy submarines ... Admiral Bacon's ladder
minefield with its patrol led to the destruction of
twelve German submarines during December 1917 and
the year 1918, and to the partial closing of the
Straits of Dover to vessels of this type ... He
gives a striking picture of the unending work of
gallant fishermen who laboured day after day and
year after year to keep the anti-submarine barrage
efficient and who were so constantly exposed to
attack by an enemy at whom they could not hit back.
It should never be forgotten that it was largely
upon these men that the real stress of war lay. They
were commanded by officers who were second to none."
Admiral Bacon wrote, "At the
outbreak of war the Dover Flotilla formed part of
the East Coast Command, with Harwich as
headquarters. Its chief function was to prevent
German ships breaking through and passing down
Channel. It soon became apparent that Dover and the
Narrows of the Channel were destined to become of
greater importance. The Dover area was, therefore,
made a separate command ... I was summoned to London
in April, 1915, to see Mr Churchill, who asked me to
take command of the Dover Patrol." Admiral Bacon
remained in charge until the end of 1917.
Vice-Admiral Keyes succeeded him on New Year's Day,
1918. It was Admiral Bacon who planned and put into
operation the notable anti-submarine net-mine
barrage across the 20 miles of the Dover Straits.
In his "Naval Memories", 1936,
Admiral of the Fleet Sir Roger Keyes said:-"The
activities of the Dover Patrol were immense, and
Admiral Bacon had built up an enormous organisation
which carried out its daily duties with great
regularity and efficiency ... The vessels of the
patrol numbered over 300, including large and small
monitors, the light cruiser "Attentive", Flotilla
leaders, destroyers, P-boats, trawlers, drifters,
minesweepers of various types, MLs, CMBs, and
submarines. On a normal night it was possible to
concentrate above the minefield four of the older
destroyers or P-boats, burning searchlights, 14
trawlers, burning flares, at least 60 drifters,
about four motor launches, and two large
minesweepers."
"But," wrote Joseph Conrad, "that
which in the instance kept the German forces from
breaking disastrously on any dark night into the
Channel and jeopardising the very foundations of our
resisting power, were not the wonderfully planned
and executed defences of nets and mines, but the
inimitable hearts of the men of the Dover Patrol"
Resulting from the initiative of
the Mayor of Dover and the action of Lord Northcliff
in collecting money through The Times newspaper,
three noble commemorative obelisks were built in the
1920s. One is near this spot- at Leathercote Point,
St Margarets; the second can be seen across the
Straits of Dover, on the summit of Cap Blanc Nez;
the third is at the entrance to New York Harbour.
Dulce et Decorum est pro Patria Mori
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