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Note: all vessels and aircraft are British or Dominion unless otherwise identified or implied - click for abbreviations |
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Background Events - January-May 1941
1941
Saturday, 1 February Destroyers SOMALI, ECLIPSE, ESKIMO, NAPIER departed
Scapa Flow at 0830 to meet battleship KING GEORGE V in 62N, 25W at 1600/3rd
and escort her to Scapa Flow. Destroyer NAPIER was detached from the escort and
arrived at The battleship and the three destroyers arrived at _____ Convoy OB.281 departed _____ Destroyer KEPPEL departed Following this duty, the destroyer arrived back at _____ Anti-aircraft ship CURACOA departed The ship returned to _____ Submarine SEALION unsuccessfully attacked a German
convoy off Stadlandet in 62-11N, 5-24E. _____ German heavy cruiser ADMIRAL HIPPER departed _____ U.48 sank Greek steamer NICOLAOS ANGELOS (4351grt)
in 59N, 17W. _____ The Mediterranean Fleet departed Light cruiser ORION, anti-aircraft cruiser
BONAVENTURE, destroyers ILEX, HERO, HEREWARD departed After leaving harbour, the destroyers proceeded to
the northeast to sweep the waters around The cruisers proceeded past Battleships WARSPITE and BARHAM, aircraft carrier
EAGLE, destroyers JERVIS, Light cruiser When these ships joined the Main Force, destroyer WRYNECK
was detached to return to Anti-aircraft cruiser BONAVENTURE was detached to
return to At 1800/2nd, light cruisers ORION, Destroyer HERO was detached from the ORION force to
the Main Force. RAF personnel were embarked on destroyer DEFENDER
which was proceed to At 0900, Vice Admiral, Light Forces rejoined the
Main Force. At 0930, light cruisers At 1800/3rd, light cruiser ORION with defects and
destroyer ILEX with her anti-submarine gear out of action were detached to _____ At 1800, destroyer HASTY and corvettes HYACINTH and
SALVIA departed Destroyer DAINTY, after towing tanker DESMOULEA to _____ Convoy BN.14 departed Sunday, 2 February Light cruisers ARETHUSA and AURORA and destroyers
MATABELE, TARTAR, INTREPID, IMPULSIVE departed Mines were to be laid at Fro Havet, but bad weather
prevented the operation. The ships, less light cruiser AURORA, arrived back
at The operation was cancelled and destroyers INTREPID
and IMPULSIVE departed _____ Light cruiser DIDO, refitting in the Light cruiser NAIAD departed _____ Destroyers The destroyers arrived at 0900 and 1300,
respectively. _____ Anti-aircraft ship CURACOA departed The ship returned to _____ Convoy FN.398 departed Southend, escorted by
destroyers PYTCHLEY, _____ Convoy FS.402 departed Methil, and arrived at
Southend on the 4th. _____ Anti-aircraft ship ALYNBANK was docked at _____ Submarine SUNFISH unsuccessfully attacked a German
steamer off _____ Naval trawler ALMOND (505grt, T/Skipper A. E.
Johnson Johnson, T/Skipper J. C. Cutter _____ British steamer THE SULTAN (824grt) was sunk by
German bombing in 51-43N, 1-26E. One crewman and one gunner were lost. Trawler LORD
ST VINCENT rescued twelve survivors. _____ British steamer Anti-submarine trawler LORD MIDDLETON stood by the
steamer. Destroyer DOUGLAS departed The steamer was damaged by a near miss. She was
taken in tow by tug BANDIT on the 6th, escorted by destroyer DOUGLAS. The destroyer was ordered to proceed to Skaalefjord
for refuelling. She arrived at daylight on the 7th and departed after
refuelling at 1440 to return to her escort duty. The steamer arrived at _____ Aircraft carrier ARK ROYAL launched eight torpedo
planes against the hydroelectric San Chiara Ula Dam on No success was obtained in destroying the dam or
the facilities. One Swordfish of 810 Squadron was shot down and its
crew of Lt M. J. A. O'Sullivan, Sub Lt (A) R. B. Knight, Petty Officer L. C.
Eccleshall made prisoners of war. A Skua of 800 Squadron force landed in the sea. Sub
Lt A. M. Tritton and his crewman were rescued. Operation RESULT, bombardment of Force H returned to _____ Anti-aircraft cruiser The cruiser could operate on only one propeller
shaft. A replacement was sent from _____ Netlayer PROTECTOR departed The netlayer was to pass the Kithera Straits during
the night of 3/4 February. _____ Submarines TETRARCH and ROVER departed _____ Force K, aircraft carrier FORMIDABLE and heavy
cruiser HAWKINS were operating off Aircraft from aircraft carrier FORMIDABLE dropped
mines in After the mining, nine Albacore aircraft attacked
shore installations at Heavy cruiser _____ Norwegian tanker KETTY BROVIG (7031grt) was
captured by German armed merchant cruiser ATLANTIS north of On 4 March, the tanker was intercepted by British
warships off _____ Australian light cruiser SYDNEY arrived in
Australian waters. _____ During the night of 2/3 February, Italian
destroyers PANTERA, _____ Convoy BS.14 departed Monday, 3 February Minesweeping trawler ARCTIC TRAPPER (352grt,
T/Skipper L. M. Harvey Harvey, T/A/Lt R. S. Meirick RNVR, fifteen ratings
were lost on the trawler. _____ Convoy OB.282 departed Liverpool, escorted by
destroyers ACHATES, ANTELOPE, ANTHONY, GEORGETOWN, sloop FLEETWOOD, corvette
HEATHER, anti-submarine trawlers AYRSHIRE and LADY MADELEINE. On the 5th,
trawler LADY MADELEINE was detached. Corvette PICOTEE joined on the 6th.
Destroyers ACHATES, ANTELOPE, ANTHONY, sloop FLEETWOOD, trawler AYRSHIRE were
detached on the 7th. On the 8th destroyer _____ Convoy FS.403 departed Methil, and arrived at
Southend on the 5th. _____ Motor anti-submarine boat MA/SB.12 was mined off
Milford Haven. The boat sank in tow on the 6th. _____ Naval drifter MIDAS (89grt, Skipper H. Holden _____ Destroyer WILD SWAN, corvette ANEMONE, minesweeper
FITZROY departed Loch Ewe for Destroyer WILD SWAN and corvette ANEMONE joined
destroyers WITCH and MONTGOMERY, corvettes CAMPANULA, PERIWINKLE, PIMPERNEL
to escort convoy HX.105. The destroyers were detached en route to escort
convoy OB.281. _____ U.107 sank British steamer EMPIRE CITIZEN
(4683grt), from convoy OB.279, in 58-12N, 23-22W. Of sixty nine crew, two gunners, twelve passengers,
only four crew and one gunner were rescued. _____ U.107 badly damaged Ocean boarding vessel CRISPIN
(5051grt, A/Commander B. Moloney DSO The armed boarding vessel had been detached from
the convoy with armed yacht PHILANTE, corvette ARBUTUS, British steamer
COPELAND (1526grt). Moloney, T/Lt B. W. Freeman RNVR, Midshipman R. H.
Holmes Lt G. L.
Fraser The vessel sank on the 4th. _____ British steamer DIONE II (2660grt) in convoy SC.20
was damaged by German bombing in 55-40N, 14-23W. The steamer was sunk the next day in a submarine
attack. _____ British steamer CALYX (212grt) was damaged on a
mine eight miles northeast of Bar Light Vessel. The steamer arrived at _____ During the night of 3/4 February, minefield RUGEN
was laid by German minelayers TANNENBERG and BRUMMER, escorted by the 1st and
2nd Torpedo Boat Flotilla and torpedo boat FALKE off the Norwegian coast. Same force composition as minefield began on 26
January. _____ Convoy AS.14 of six ships, two of which were
British, departed Destroyers VAMPIRE and VENDETTA relieved the
corvettes on the 4th, and arrived at Destroyer VENDETTA, en route from _____ Convoy _____ On the 1st, Italian steamers MULTEDO (1130grt),
GIOVINEZZA (2362grt), UTILITAS (5342grt) departed Italian steamer MULTEDO was lost in the _____ A Swordfish of 815 Squadron from Maleme forced
landed on _____ British steamer DERWENTHALL (4934grt) was damaged
by a mine in the The steamer sustained no casualties. The rudder was blown off. The steamer arrived at _____ Heavy cruisers _____ Convoy HX.107 departed Tuesday, 4 February The 1st Minelaying Squadron with minelayers
SOUTHERN PRINCE, AGAMEMNON, MENESTHEUS, Light cruiser Battleship RODNEY and destroyers INGLEFIELD,
ELECTRA, En route to the operation, minelayer MENESTHEUS
exploded a mine nearby damaging her engines. This mine was twenty miles off
the western end of minefield SN.3. There was no hull damage and no
casualties. Minelayer MENESTHEUS was taken in tow by minelayer
AGAMEMNON and arrived at Loch Alsh at 1115/7th. The mines were laid on the 6th. Battleship RODNEY, light cruiser _____ Minelayer TEVIOTBANK, escorted by destroyer
MEYNELL, departed Immingham on the 3rd. The minelayer laid minefield BS.50
off the East coast of This operation had been cancelled several times
prior due to weather. The operation was first attempted on 18 January, when
the minelayer and destroyer IMPULSIVE departed Immingham. Bad weather forced
cancellation and the minelayer arrived at Rosyth and the destroyer returned
to Immingham. On 24 January, minelayer TEVIOTBANK, escorted by destroyer
WITHERINGTON, departed, but again was forced to return. On 30 January, the
minelayer, escorted by destroyer QUORN, was forced to turn back from Spurn
Point due to weather. _____ Polish destroyer PIORUN departed The destroyer arrived at 2000/5th. _____ Convoy FN.399 departed Southend, escorted by
destroyers HOLDERNESS and WOOLSTON. Corvette SNAPDRAGON joined on the 6th,
and arrived at Methil on the 6th. _____ Convoy FN.400 departed Southend, escorted by
destroyers VANITY, VORTIGERN, WORCESTER, and arrived at Methil on the 6th. _____ Naval drifter IMBAT (92grt) was sunk in a collision
at _____ Minesweepers KELLETT and LEDA collided at There was very minor damage to minesweeper KELLETT. Minesweeper LEDA was repaired at _____ British steamer GWYNWOOD (1177grt) was sunk by a
parachute mine in the Nine crew and two gunners were lost. _____ U.52 sank Norwegian steamer RINGHORN (1298grt) in
55-46N, 22-36W. Fourteen crew were lost. Five crew were rescued. _____ U.93 sank British steamer DIONE II (2660grt), which
was straggling behind convoy SC.20, in 55-50N, 10-30W. Only one crewman was rescued. _____ U.123 sank British steamer EMPIRE ENGINEER
(5358grt), which was last seen 2 February straggling behind convoy SC.20,
west of _____ Greek steamer CALATATIS (4443grt) was sunk by
German bombing in 56-27N, 13-40W. Eighteen crew were missing from the steamer. _____ British troopship When news of aerial mining of _____ As there were no magnetic minesweepers available
for Tobruk, Corvettes PEONY, GLOXINIA, SALVIA, HYACINTH were recalled to Corvettes SALVIA and HYACINTH arrived at _____ Submarine TRUANT attacked Italian steamer CALINO
(5186grt) was the steamer was departing _____ Greek steamer AGHIOS GEORGIOS (3283grt) was sunk on
a mine in the Two crew were killed and one was missing. The wreck was removed to clear the canal. _____ Australian troop convoy US.9 departed From 4 to 6 February, Australian light cruiser
HOBART escorted the convoy from On the 12th, the convoy departed Fremantle escorted
by Australian heavy cruiser On the 16th, liner QUEEN Off Wednesday, 5 February Aircraft carrier FURIOUS arrived in the The aircraft carrier began refitting at _____ Light cruiser PHOEBE at 1153 departed The light cruiser departed the _____ Destroyers NIZAM, COTTESMORE, ATHERSTONE, KEPPEL
departed Destroyer NIZAM proceeded to Destroyers COTTESMORE, ATHERSTONE, KEPPEL proceeded
to _____ Light cruiser NEPTUNE arrived at On the 8th, the light cruiser proceeded to The light cruiser was damaged by bombing on the 9th
at On the 16th while in dockyard at Damage from both bombings and the refit were
completed on 1 May. _____ British steamer MERCHANT ROYAL (5008grt) was in
convoy WN.74, escorted by escort vessel JASON and minesweeping Escort vessel JASON was ordered to assist the
steamer. Light cruiser AURORA departed Tug ABEILLE 4 was sent from Peterhead to take the
steamer in tow. _____ Submarine SEALION sank Norwegian steamer RYFYLKE
(1151grt) two miles north of Kvitenaes Point near Stadlandet. _____ Anti-submarine trawler TOURMALINE (641grt, Lt H. P.
Carse RNVR) was sunk by German bombing off North Foreland. _____ T/Sub Lt (A) S. G. Burden RNVR, of HMS KESTREL, was
killed when his Fulmar, being ferried from Worthy Down, crashed _____ Special service vessel MINNIE DE LARINAGA (5046grt)
was sunk as a blockship at _____ Convoy OG.52 departed On the 6th, ocean boarding vessel REGISTAN escorted
the convoy. On the 9th, sloop Destroyer ISIS from _____ Greek steamer IOANNIS M. EMBIRICOS (3734grt) was
sunk by German bombing in 55-41N, 12-26W. The crew were all rescued. _____ Captain A. L. Poland DSO, DSC, succeeded Captain H.
Hickling as commander of the Inshore Squadron. Captain Hickling, formerly of light cruiser
GLASGOW, had been appointed to this command on 8 January. _____ A motor schooner was mined at Tobruk. Lost on the
schooner was the Assistant King's Harbour Master, Tobruk, Lt Cdr J. Cochrane. _____ British steamer RANEE (5060grt) was sunk by a mine
in the Nine crew were lost. The forepart of the wreck was taken to _____ Submarine UPRIGHT made an unsuccessful torpedo
attack on Italian shipping off Kerkenah. _____ Submarine OTUS left her station in the The submarine was relieved by submarine TUNA on the
6th which came from Holy Loch after patrol off The patrol was terminated on the 12th and the
submarine proceeded to _____ Italian convoy of steamers ESPERIA (11,398grt),
CONTE ROSSO (17,879grt), MARCO POLO (12,272grt), CALITEA (4013grt), escorted
by destroyers FRECCIA, SAETTA, TARIGO departed Naples for Tripoli. The convoy
was joined by light cruiser GIOVANNI DELLA BANDE NERE on the 6th. The convoy
safely arrived at _____ Italian steamer SNIA AMBA (2532grt) was scuttled at
Benghasi. The steamer was later salved. _____ Heavy cruiser Heavy cruiser Thursday, 6 February Battleship KING GEORGE V, escorted by destroyers
SOMALI, ECLIPSE, ESKIMO arrived at The fourth destroyer, NAPIER, was detached north of
the Minches to the _____ Seven ships departed Avonmouth, five ships from |
