The Edgars with their poor sea-keeping capabilities and their old and unreliable engines were soon found unsuitable for operations with the Northern Patrol. However, already in mid-August 1914 the first armed merchant cruiser had started operations with the Northern Patrol and soon enough AMCs were available to recall the surviving seven Edgars (HMS Hawke had been lost in October 1914) on 20 November 1914. The AMCs had better sea-keeping and more reliable machinery than the Edgars and provided their crews with far more comfortable quarters. Later armed trawlers were added to the force. Warships from the Grand Fleet or other commands were sometimes temporary attached to the Northern Patrol.