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Note: all vessels and aircraft are British unless otherwise identified or implied - click for abbreviations |
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Background Events - June-November 1941 Invasion of Russia, Malta Convoys, Japan prepares for war
1941
Wednesday, 1 October Heavy cruiser Destroyer NORMAN arrived to carry out working up
exercises. _____ Destroyer DULVERTON arrived at _____ Norwegian destroyer DRAUG departed The The _____ Convoy WS.12 with one ship departed Avonmouth on 29
September, seven ships from The convoy was composed of steamers CLAN CAMPBELL
(7255grt), EMPIRE TRUST (8143grt), HIGHLAND BRIGADE (14,134grt), SARPEDON
(11,321grt), PERSEUS (10,286grt), ALMANZORA (15,551grt), EMPIRE PRIDE
(9248grt), LEOPOLDVILLE (11,509grt), STRATHAIRD (22,281grt), EMPRESS OF
RUSSIA (16,810grt), EMPRESS OF CANADA (21,517grt), NARKUNDA (16,632grt), Steamer HIGHLAND PRINCESS was detached as convoy
CT.4. Armed merchant cruiser Destroyer SIKH escorted the convoy from 30
September to 5 October. Destroyers BRADFORD, BADSWORTH, Anti-aircraft cruiser Destroyer BEVERLEY escorted the convoy on 2 and 3
October. Destroyer BLANKNEY escorted the convoy from 1 to 7
October. Aircraft carrier ARGUS escorted the convoy from 30
September to 5 October, when she was detached to Heavy cruiser Destroyer ISAAC SWEERS departed Destroyers WRESTLER, VELOX, VIMY, and VANSITTART
and corvettes AMARANTHUS and ARMERIA escorted the convoy from 11 to 14
October, when the convoy arrived at The convoy departed The convoy was escorted by destroyers VELOX and
WRESTLER and corvettes MIGNONETTE, ANCHUSA, and CALENDULA from 19 to 22
October. Heavy cruiser Armed merchant cruiser DERBYSHIRE escorted the
convoy from 30 October to 3 November. Steamers ULSTER MONARCH and ROYAL ULSTERMAN were
detached to Takoradi on the 21st. Steamer PRINCE BAUDOUIN was detached the
same day to Steamers STRATHAIRD, EMPRESS OF CANADA, DOMINION
MONARCH, EMPIRE PRIDE, Steamers On 5 November, steamers STRATHAIRD, On 8 November, steamers On 8 November, battlecruiser REPULSE relieved armed
merchant cruiser On 17 November, steamers DOMINION MONARCH, EMPRESS
OF CANADA, DUCHESS OF RICHMOND, and PERSEUS were detached as WS.12 J in
6-05N, 52-30E. The convoy was escorted by light cruiser GLASGOW to Steamers DOMINION MONARCH and EMPRESS OF CANADA
departed Light cruiser GLASGOW took steamer AWATEA to The convoy arrived at _____ When a Roc of 772 Squadron crashed near Crinan,
Argyllshire, T/Sub Lt (A) J. W. T. Cooper RNZVR, and Leading Airman J.
Stewart were killed. _____ British steamer SERENITY (557grt) was damaged by
near misses of German bombing in 51-29N, 4-45W, ten miles southeast by east
of St Goven's Light. _____ U.94 badly damaged British tanker Twenty one crew and one gunner were lost on the
tanker. The tanker was sunk by US Coast Guard cutter
CAMPBELL _____ Flag Officer, Force H transferred his flag from
battleship NELSON to battleship RODNEY. _____ Battleship PRINCE OF Destroyer LIVELY was detached on the 4th and
returned to _____ Light cruisers The cruisers were ordered to search en route for an
enemy supply ship off the north coast of _____ Light cruiser EURYALUS and destroyers FARNDALE and
HEYTHROP departed _____ Corvettes COREOPSIS and FLEUR DE LYS departed _____ Submarine TALISMAN unsuccessfully attacked a convoy
of steamers LAURETTA and ARKADIA, escorted by torpedo boat LIBRA, off the Zea
Channel. _____ Submarine P.34 departed _____ Dutch submarine O.24 departed _____ Submarine THRASHER arrived at _____ Polish submarine SOKOL arrived at _____ Submarine RORQUAL departed The submarine arrived at _____ Minesweeping whaler SOTRA was damaged below the
water line by gunfire at Tobruk. One rating was wounded. The whaler was able to departed Tobruk at 1900/2nd
with lighter A 9 and minesweeping whaler SOIKA. _____ The New Zealand Division of the Royal Navy became
the Royal New Zealand Navy. Thursday, 2 October Heavy cruiser Heavy cruiser _____ Destroyer ESCAPADE relieved destroyer ANTELOPE at 1700
in 70-00N, 13-00W in convoy PQ.1. Destroyer ANTELOPE arrived at Seidisfjord at
1000/3rd to refuel. She departed at 1345 for _____ Convoy ON.22 departed _____ T/Sub Lt (A) D. E. Smith RNVR, was killed when his
Walrus of 751 Squadron sank in River Tay. _____ British steamer _____ U.562 sank Thirty crew were missing in one of the ship's
boats. One crewman died. T/Lt D. M. Bain RCNVR, en route to PRESIDENT _____ U.575 sank Dutch steamer TUVA (4652grt) in 54-16N,
26-36W. The submarine claimed sinking a second steamer. One crewman was lost on the steamer. _____ U.431 sank British steamer HATASU (3198grt) 600
miles east of Thirty four crew and six gunners were lost on the
steamer. _____ Light cruiser EDINBURGH and destroyers COSSACK,
ZULU, PIORUN, and Light cruiser EDINBURGH, destroyer Destroyers COSSACK and ZULU were detached en route
and met aircraft carrier ARGUS for escort to _____ The Mediterranean Fleet was at sea from The Fleet returned to _____ An Italian convoy of German steamers CASTELLON
(2086grt) and On the 2nd, submarine PERSEUS sank steamer
CASTELLON 10 miles 311° from _____ Submarine UTMOST made an unsuccessful attack on a steamer
in 37-53N, 12-05E. _____ Submarines TRUSTY and UPHOLDER arrived at _____ Anti-submarine trawler KLO reported being attacked
by a submarine off Destroyers _____ Anti-submarine trawler LYDIARD attacked a submarine
contact off The trawler was joined by destroyer VENDETTA and
corvette HYACINTH, without success. The destroyer and the corvette returned
to port on the 3rd. _____ A. S. I. S. ship CHURRUCA (1847grt) was sunk due to
an accidental explosion at The cargo and the ship were later salved. _____ Convoy HG.74 departed Destroyers FORESIGHT and FORESTER were detached and
destroyers DUNCAN and ROCKINGHAM departed Sloop ENCHANTRESS, escort vessel HARTLAND, and
corvette VERVAIN joined on the 8th. Destroyer DUNCAN was detached on the 9th. On the 8th, convoy SL.88 rendezvoused with the
convoy. Destroyer BLANKNEY and ocean boarding vessel CORINTHIAN
joined the convoy on the 9th and were detached on the 11th. Destroyer ROCKINGHAM was detached on the 12th and
sloop ENCHATRESS was detached on the 17th. The convoy arrived at _____ Japanese submarine I.61 was lost in an accidental
collision with a gunboat off In February 1942, the submarine was salved and
broken up at Friday, 3 October Aircraft carrier INDOMITABLE arrived in the _____ Light cruiser _____ Destroyer VIVACIOUS was damaged by German bombing
in the The destroyer's steering engine was damaged. Destroyer VIVACIOUS was repaired at Immingham
completing in November. _____ Destroyer MENDIP, escorting convoy FS.615, drove
off a German motor torpedo boat attack. _____ Convoy OS.8 departed On4 October, sloops BLACK SWAN and On the 5th, sloop Corvettes ARMERIA, ASTER, CYCLAMEN, and STARWORT
joined the escort on the 20th and escorted the convoy into _____ Corvette PEONY proceeded to _____ German steamer YALOVA (3750grt), which had been
previously damaged by submarine TETRARCH on 28 September, was sunk by
submarine TALISMAN south of _____ Dutch submarine O.21 sank Vichy French steamer OUED
YQUEM (1369grt) off _____ Submarine PERSEUS made an unsuccessful attack on a
steamer off _____ Submarine UTMOST arrived at _____ German supply ship KLARA (ex-KOTA The German ship was intercepted and sunk by the
cruiser. Presence of submarine U.129 with the supply ship
made stopping for survivors inadvisable. Four boatloads of survivors were
left in company of the submarine, which picked up one hundred and nineteen
survivors. The survivors were transferred to a Spanish tug on the 6th. Saturday, 4 October Battleship KING GEORGE V and destroyers The Ships arrived on the 5th. Light cruiser AURORA departed Hvalfjord and
proceeded to Seidisfjord arriving the next day. On the 5th, battleship KING GEORGE V and destroyers
SOMALI, BEDOUIN, and ESKIMO arrived at Akureyri and later departed that day
after a visit. The ships arrived at Seidisfjord on the 6th. Light cruiser PENELOPE and destroyers The Commander in Chief, Home Fleet, transferred to
light cruiser AURORA on the 6th for passage to On the 6th, battleship KING GEORGE V, aircraft carrier
VICTORIOUS, light cruiser PENELOPE, and destroyers Sub Lt (A) P. G. F. Dumas and Leading Airman M. S.
Eastment in a Fulmar of 809 Squadron were lost in a practice flight on the
6th. Aircraft carrier VICTORIOUS, escorted by battleship
KING GEORGE V, light cruiser PENELOPE, and destroyers SOMALI, Two steamers were reported damaged in the air
attack. Norwegian steamer HAAKON ADALSTEIN (710grt) was damaged in the
attack. The only casualty in the operation was a slight
wounding of one of the air gunners. Destroyer BEDOUIN lost two ratings overboard in
heavy weather. A sweep in Vestfjord by destroyers SOMALI and
MATABELE in Operation EJ was cancelled due to the lack of available
destroyers and poor weather. An inshore patrol north and south of Alesund by
destroyers SOMALI, Submarine P.35 was to support EJ, but was ordered
to patrol west of Utsire. The Forces arrived back at _____ Heavy cruiser _____ Convoy ON.23 departed _____ Destroyer HURWORTH departed the The destroyer called at Rosyth and departed at
1800/5th. Destroyer HURWORTH spent the night at Methil and departed at
0630/6th. She was delayed by thick fog and anchored in LochEribol at 1818 on
the 7th. _____ Destroyer EXPRESS departed the _____ Minesweeper BRAMBLE departed The minesweeper arrived at _____ U.111 was sunk by Anti-submarine trawler LADY
SHIRLEY southwest of Teneriffe, 27-10N, 20-24N. Four crew on the trawler were wounded by machine
gun fire from the submarine. The commanding officer and five ratings were killed
in the submarine. Forty five survivors were picked up; one died of wounds. Returning to _____ Submarine THORN departed _____ On the 3rd, a convoy of Italian tanker TORCELLO
(3336grt) and French steamer THEOPHILE GAUTIER (8194grt), escorted by torpedo
boats MONZAMBANO, CALATAFIMI, and ALDEBARAN, departed Submarine TALISMAN sank French steamer THEOPHILE
GAUTIER (8194grt) in the _____ Submarine UPRIGHT arrived at _____ Submarine REGENT departed _____ Polish submarine SOKOL departed _____ A submarine was reported by aircraft north of
Bardia in 33-00N, 25-30E steering towards Destroyers KIPLING, _____ Minesweeper ABERDARE departed After delivering the torpedoes, the minesweeper
relieved minesweeper BAGSHOT at _____ Antisubmarine whaler WHIPPET (ex-KOS XXI, 353grt,
Lt A. R. J. Tilston The whaler was in company with minesweeping whaler
SVANA (286grt). Four survivors reached Tobruk in trawler SVANA. The remainder
of the crew returned in the D lighter to Mersa Matruh. T/Sub Lt (E) A. Hodgson RNVR, lost on the whaler,
was the only fatality in the loss. _____ Anti-aircraft ship This was in preparation in leaving for repairs at _____ Light cruiser Light cruiser ACHILLES and armed merchant cruiser
MONOWAI returned to _____ Argentine destroyer Sunday, 5 October Norwegian destroyer DRAUG and motor torpedo boat _____ U.204 sank Panamanian steamer C. JON (744grt) in
48-30N, 13-00W. The entire crew was made prisoners of war. _____ British tanker TYNEFIELD (5856grt) was sunk by
mining in the Four crew were lost. _____ Italian tanker The tanker was from a convoy of steamers VETTOR
PISANI, SEBASTIANO VENIER, FABIO FILZI, _____ Convoy SL.89 departed On the 6th, destroyers VELOX and WRESTLER escorted
the convoy for that day only. Sloop Destroyers BEVERLEY to 24 October and CROOME for
that day only joined the convoy on the 22nd. On the 23rd, destroyers
KRAKOWIAK and KUJAWIAK to 24 October and VANQUISHER and WITCH to 25 October
joined. The convoy arrived at _____ Ocean boarding vessel MARON was attacked by U.67 at
27-59N, 18-39W. The vessel fired upon the submarine, which submerged. Corvettes COREOPSIS and FLEUR DE LYS, which had
escorted tanker BENEDICK, were ordered to assist the boarding vessel. On the 6th, corvette COREOPSIS developed engine
room defects and proceeded to Funchal. The ocean boarding vessel and corvette FLEUR DE LYS
arrived at _____ U.559 in operations northeast of Tobruk was
attacked by a "friendly aircraft" which dropped three bombs. No
damage was done. _____ Convoy HX.153 departed Convoy SC.48, departed Sydney CB, by corvettes
BADDECK and SHEDIAC. Corvette GLADIOLUS joined on the 8th and corvettes
CAMROSE, MIMOSA, ROSTHERN, and WETASKIWIN on the 9th. The convoy wasjoined on the 16th by American
destroyers PLUNKETT, LIVERMORE, The initial escorts, less corvette ROSTHERN were
detached, and the American destroyers were detached. Corvette VERONICA was
also detached on the 17th. On the 17th, destroyers AMAZON, BULLDOG, and On the 18th, destroyer BROADWATER was lost. Destroyers HIGHLANDER and Monday, 6 October Battleship PRINCE OF |
