2110-7-3-24

19 DRAYCOTT AVENUE CHELSEA S.W.3.

Kensington 7396.

April 9th. 1935.

My dear Buchan,

Many congratulations on your appointment. I am glad it is a brother Scot. As a matter of fact, they generally have Scotsman for Governor-Generals in Canada. My great grandfather, Charles Lennox, Duke of Richmond, was one; my grandfather, Sir Peregrine Maitland, whose wife was a daughter of Richmond's , was Governor of Upper Canada for 10 years and of Nova Scotia for 8 years, and acting Governor-General when his father-in-law died of Hydrophobia & was buried in Quebec Cathedral. My mother was born by the side of the falls of Niagara. In later years Julian Byng (not a Scotsman) was there, a brother-in-law of my sister, the late Emily, Lady Strafford. I love Canada and have been there several times, and I am sure you will be a great success.

One thing I would like to ask you to consider is making a slight alteration in your book " The King's Grace" with regard to the Dardanelles. I enclose a letter of mine which was published in the "Times" last October, three days before the Trafalgar dinner of The Navy Club, at which I was surrounded by Naval Officers saying 'Thank God, you've told the truth about the Dardanelles, and defended Jack de Robeck's conduct." I also received a letter from Lady de Robeck's in which she said she could not understand Keyes writing all that stuff against her husband, when he knew that she had got all de Robecks papers on the subject, which entirely explained his action and showed it to be right.

Next, Admiral Sir Heathcoat Grant, one of de Robeck's Senior Captains, wrote to me and told me how de Robeck signalled for him after the bombardment and the first attempt on the Straits. I asked him to write to The Naval and Military Record, which he did, and I enclose a copy.

Two days after my letter appeared I met Admiral

Usborne, who was in command of the minesweepers in the Dardanelles channel. He told me that it proved to be absolutely hopeless. They tried it; and were knocked out at once; they never got near the minefield; the forts were all uninjured, and also batteries of artillery appeared when required.

The Dardanelles could have been captured and held if Mr. Churchill had accepted the Greek plan and not gone near the Dardanelles until he had 150,000 men ready. I gave the figures in my criticism of "The World Crisis", Vol. 11, in the "Morning post", and also I repeated them in my book "The Navy in My Time". Lord Kitchener's estimate when he went out to Mudros in 1915 was precisely the same as the Greek. He afterwards saw King Constantine and had a long talk with him, and when he came out he said to Captain Cardale, who had been my second-in-command: "Cardale, what you said is correct. That man is right. I spoke to him as one soldier to another ."

If we had never gone near the Dardanelles until we had the troops required, it was to have 'been had for the asking'. Before our fleet bombarded there were only 5,000 men on the whole peninsula; but it must be remembered that we had not only to take both sides of the Straits before the minefields could be swept up, but in addition to have sufficient troops there to hold the Straits so that they could not be re-captured after our expedition had gone up, otherwise they would have been like a mouse in a trap.

Forgive me for writing all this, but as there is certain to be a reprint of your book, it seems a pity that it should not be correct in such an important matter.

Good luck to you in your new important job .

Yours very sincerely ,

(Mark Kerr) Admiral.