Great Britain declared the entire North Sea a military zone as of November 5, 1914, imposing a blockade of Germany with nets, mines, and ships from Scotland across the northern end of the North Sea, and at the mouth of the English Channel. Germany's response depended on its submarine fleet.
Die Blockade EnglandsUnsere Unterseeboote bei der ArbeitThe Blockade of EnglandOur submarines at workReverse:Serie 2652/6Logo: R&K (?)
"The Special Service ship or Q-boat of 1915 was a tramp or collier with a concealed armament for the decoying and destruction of submarines. The first success was achieved on July 25, 1915, when one of them, the Prince Charles (Lieutenant W.P. Mark-Wardlaw), was pursued and shelled by U 36, near North Rona Island. Her crew abandoned ship, leaving their gunners concealed on board. The U-boat thereupon closed; but when she was within five hundred yards of her apparently helpless prey, the British guns were suddenly unmasked, and the submarine sank under their fire, leaving fifteen of her crew to be rescued by the victors."
Great Britain declared the entire North Sea a military zone as of November 5, 1914, imposing a blockade of Germany with nets, mines, and ships from Scotland across the northern end of the North Sea, and at the mouth of the English Channel. Germany responded on February 4, 1915 by declaring a war zone around the British Isles, within which ships of Britain and its allies were subject to being sunk. The submarine was Germany's only weapon for enforcing the zone. After the sinking of Lusitania on May 7 and subsequent American protests, Germany suspended its campaign of unrestricted submarine warfare. In his Naval History of World War I, Paul G. Halpern dates the sinking of U-36 on July 24.
Days To Remember: The British Empire in the Great War by John Buchan and Herny Newbolt , page 142, publisher: Thomas Nelson and Sons, Ltd., publication date: 1922
1915-07-25, 1915, July, Q-boat, submarine, Q-ship, blockade
