Nous espérons qu'à Zeebrugge, sur le territoire de Bruges, un magnifique monument immortalisera ce fait inoui, mais c'est avec le plus grand intérêt que nous connaîtrons par le livre de Capitaine Carpenter toutes les circonstances de cette histoire héroïque et {xiv} les noms des hommes qui ont donné une nouvelle gloire à la Marine Anglaise.[2] AMIDER VISART _Bourgemestre de Bruges_ [2] It was with great satisfaction that I and all my fellow citizens learned that the famous attack on Zeebrugge by the _Vindictive_ was to be the subject of a book, to be published in the near future, written by Captain Alfred F. B. Carpenter, one of the heroes who took a glorious part in that exploit. This enterprise of the British Navy was assuredly one of the most extraordinary feats of war in both ancient and modern times. It was accomplished with such energy and audacity as to baffle all the German plans. In spite of all the difficulties, dangers, and cruel losses, the wonderful assault on the mole created consternation amongst the enemy; and the ships which followed the _Vindictive_ bottled up the abominable submarines in their base. The sound of heavy firing heard in Bruges had already warned us; later, the receipt of rumours which the Germans had been unable to intercept, and their consternation which they were vainly endeavouring to conceal, proved to us that England had struck a mighty blow. Such an event renewed our courage. We hope that at Zeebrugge, which is within the territory of Bruges, a magnificent memorial will eventually immortalise this unprecedented action, and it is with the greatest interest that we shall learn from Captain Carpenter's book all the circumstances of this heroic episode and the names of the men who added this new glory to the British Navy. {xv} AUTHOR'S PREFACE As a result of having delivered many lectures, under official auspices and in compliance with private invitations, on "The Blocking of Zeebrugge," the author has received several requests to record the story in more permanent form. Underlying these requests there appears to be a feeling that first-hand accounts of enterprises in the Great War should be of some value towards preserving that spirit which rallied all classes of individuals in the British Empire, in the Allied Countries, and in the United States of America, to the common cause of upholding civilisation in the face of danger. That opinion, indeed, has been openly stated to the author in Great Britain, by leading members of the educational profession and of the Church, by naval and military officers and others. Opinions of a similar type also have been received from the United States, where, during a recent series of visits to many of the larger cities, the author personally experienced that solid friendship for Great Britain which is sometimes hidden beneath surface irritations of a political nature.