Note 1 — Front matter
Reading edition
When in 1914 the cause of civilisation was menaced, it was the instinct of solidarity that brought about the Union of the Allies.
At every critical moment of the war, in the face of peril, this bond was renewed; and when it became a question of closing one of the lairs from which the enemy submarines threatened the vital communications of the Allies, the port of Zeebrugge was attacked and closed once and for all by a superb manoeuvre involving a common spirit of supreme sacrifice.
The Captain of the Vindictive has undertaken to tell in detail the story of the action in which he played so brilliant a part, and his book will afford a valuable record and set forth a fine example to future generations.