|
||||||
|
|
||||||
|
Note: all vessels and aircraft are British unless otherwise identified or implied - click for abbreviations |
||||||
|
|
||||||
|
Background Events - June-November 1941 Invasion of Russia, Malta Convoys, Japan prepares for war
1941
Saturday, 1 November Heavy cruiser BERWICK with destroyers PUNJABI and
ESCAPADE departed _____ Light cruiser ARETHUSA, escorted by destroyer
VALOROUS and torpedo school ship LAIRDS _____ Light cruisers EDINBURGH and _____ Aircraft carrier ARGUS and aircraft transport
ATHENE departed the On the 2nd, a Swordfish of ARGUS' 818 Squadron
ditched and its pilot, Lt A. S. Campbell, and crew were picked up by
destroyer LAFOREY. _____ Convoy ON.32 departed _____ Destroyer BEAUFORT departed The destroyer arrived at 2240 that day. _____ The British Admiralty directed that destroyers
ARROW, ANTELOPE, ACTIVE, ANTHONY, and ACHATES should join Western Approaches
when former Force H destroyers FAULKNOR, FORESTER, FORESIGHT, and FURY become
available to the Home Fleet. _____ Destroyer CHELSEA was damaged in a collision with
British trawler CANNING (148grt) at The destroyer sustained only minor damage and spent
no time out of service. _____ U.68 sank British steamer The entire crew were rescued when they rowed
ashore. South African anti-submarine trawlers BLOMVLEI and MOOIVLEI
stood by the steamer. _____ U.552 and U.567 made unsuccessful attacks on convoy
HX.156, both claiming damaging steamers. _____ British steamer KINGSLAND (3669grt) was damaged by
German bombing in the _____ Swedish steamer BRAHEHOLM (5676grt) was damaged by
British bombing off the Dutch coast. One crewman was killed. _____ Swedish steamer SIGRID (1093grt) was sunk on a mine
near Ten crewmen were lost on the steamer. _____ Rear Admiral Philip Vian assumed command of Cruiser
Squadron 15 with his flag on light cruiser NAIAD. The Mediterranean Fleet cruisers at that time were Cruiser Squadron 7 (Rawlings) with Cruiser Squadron 15 (Vian) with NAIAD, GALATEA,
EURYALUS, and later by DIDO on 31 December. The cruisers _____ Force K of light cruisers AURORA and PENELOPE and
destroyers LANCE and LIVELY departed No contact was made and the ships returned to _____ Submarine UTMOST sank Italian steamer MARIGOLA
(5996grt) 2.3 miles 165° from _____ U.75 was attacked by British aircraft in 33-44N,
24-48E. The submarine received light damage. _____ Wellington bombers attacked Italian steamer CAPO
ARMA (3195grt), escorted by torpedo boat PROCIONE, en route to Benghasi from
Brindisi. The steamer was damaged by the bombing, but was able to reach
Benghasi on the 1st. _____ A Swordfish of 830 Squadron failed to return from
an operation in which six Swordfish unsuccessfully searched for a convoy. Sub
Lt W. E. Cotton, Sub Lt D. H. Stokes RNVR, and Leading Airman E. A. Robson
were picked up by an Italian ship after seven days adrift. _____ Convoy OS.9G, escorted by Dutch destroyer ISAAC
SWEERS, sloops FOWEY and _____ Convoy SL.91G departed On the 2nd, sloop FOWEY and corvette STONECROP
departed Sloop Destroyer DUNCAN and French sloop COMMANDANT DUBOC
sailed on the 4th to join the convoy. The destroyer was en route to When German raiders were reported as moving into
the Atlantic, destroyers DUNCAN and SIKH returned to Gibraltar to escort
Force H. Battleship RODNEY, at sea with destroyers ZULU, GURKHA, LIGHTNING,
and ISAAC SWEERS to meet aircraft carrier ARGUS, was ordered to join
destroyers HIGHLANDER, HAVELOCK, and HARVESTER in 55-40N, 17-45W. Oiler
DINGLEDALE, escorted by corvettes JONQUIL and COREOPSIS and submarine Sloop COMMANDANT DUBOC had been detached from the
convoy with defects and arrived at On the 8th, destroyer DUNCAN departed On the 8th, the joined convoys SL.91 and SL.91G
split into SL.91GF and SL.91GS. SL.91GF arrived at _____ Lt A. C. Wilkinson with Leading Airman A.G. Gilbert
and Leading Airman N. C. Moulden of light cruiser _____ Soviet cruiser VOROSHILOV was mined and badly
damaged off The cruiser was repaired at Poti, completing in
February 1942. Sunday, 2 November Battleship DUKE OF Destroyer TARTAR, en route from Sheerness to Heavy cruiser BERWICK arrived at Destroyer IMPULSIVE departed Destroyer PUNJABI arrived at The battleship and her destroyers arrived at _____ Destroyer SOUTHWOLD departed The destroyer was to carry out boiler cleaning at The destroyer arrived at 0730/3rd and began boiler
cleaning. _____ Submarine P.35 departed _____ British steamer BRYNMILL 9743grt) was sunk by
German bombing four miles 210° from 59A Buoy, East Dudgeon. The entire crew were rescued. _____ British steamer MARIE DAWN (2157grt) was badly
damaged by German bombing twenty miles from Spurn Point. The steamer sank on the 3rd four miles 210° from
59A Buoy, _____ British fishing trawler CALIPH (226grt) was sunk by
German bombing eleven miles south of Old Head of Kinsale. One crewman died of wounds. _____ British hopper barge FOREMOST 45 (824grt) was sunk
by a mine in 51-21-10N, 51-21-06W. One crewman was lost on the barge. _____ U.208 sank British steamer LARPOOL (3872grt) 250
miles east, southeast of Twenty two crewmen were missing and four died of
wounds. _____ British tanker AGILITY (522grt) and British steamer
THYRA The tanker arrived at Great Yarmouth on the 3rd. The steamer was towed to Great Yarmouth arriving on
the 3rd. _____ Swedish steamer INGEREN (6123grt) was damaged by
British bombing west of Borkum. The steamer arrived at _____ Battleship RODNEY, escorted by destroyers GURKHA,
ZULU, LIGHTNING, and ISAAC SWEERS, departed Gibraltar to meet aircraft
carrier ARGUS and aircraft transport ATHENE, escorted by destroyers LAFOREY,
HIGHLANDER, HAVELOCK, and HARVESTER. At 42N, 20W, the two groups met. Battleship RODNEY with destroyers HIGHLANDER, Aircraft carrier ARGUS, transport ATHENE, and
destroyers LAFOREY, ZULU, GURKHA, LIGHTNING, and ISAAC SWEERS proceeded to _____ Minelaying cruiser ABDIEL and destroyers carried
troops to Forces were divided into three groups for the
Operation. Group A was minelaying cruiser ABDIEL (Rear Admiral
Destroyers embarked) and destroyers JAGUAR and HASTY departing GroupB was destroyers JERVIS, Group C was destroyers NAPIER, NIZAM, KIPLING, and
JACKAL departing En route destroyer KIPLING broke down in 31-46N,
30-22E at 2300/2nd. Her troops were transferred to destroyer JACKAL which
took the destroyer in tow for Groups A,B, and C arrived at The ships of Group A andB arrived at The groups arrived at The Groups arrived at The destroyers departed The ships arrived at _____ Minesweeper BAGSHOT sighted a submarine periscope
22 miles 282° from Ras el Tin. Destroyer DECOY and a motor anti-submarine
boat were sent from _____ Polish submarine SOKOL damaged Italian steamer
BALILLA (2469grt) in 38-22N, 12-20E, northwest of Subarine UTMOST sank the damaged BALILLA later in
the day with gunfire. _____ Submarine THRASHER unsuccessfully attacked a
minelayer off _____ French sloop D'IBERVILLE was escorting an
unnumbered convoy of steamers ships The ships, which departed Sloop D'IBERVILLE withdrew unmolested. Steamer Steamer The other three steamers were brought into South
African ports. The other two South African minesweeping whalers
involved were SOUTHERN BARRIER and TERJE. _____ Turkish auxiliary ship KAYNAKDERE (also identified
as KARALTEPE, 145grt) was sunk bySoviet submarine SHCH 214 off The crew of eight were all rescued. Monday, 3 November Battleship KING GEORGE V, aircraft carrier
VICTORIOUS, heavy cruisers Battleship KING GEORGE V, heavy cruisers At 1730/4th, destroyers TARTAR and ESKIMO departed The destroyers arrived at 1000/6th. _____ Destroyer ESCAPADE departed _____ Convoy ON.33 departed _____ British patrol vessel OUZEL (76grt, T/LtG. W.
Wilkinson Wilkinson and the entire crew of the vessel were
lost. _____ Submarine TRIDENT sank German auxiliary patrol
vessel UJ.1213 (whaler RAU IV, 354grt) in Honningsvaag in 70-58N, 26-58E. German steamer ALTKIRCH (4713grt) was missed in the
same attack. _____ Convoy QP.2 departed Heavy cruiser Destroyers ECLIPSE and ICARUS, which departed
Archangel at 2214 on the 2nd, escorted the convoy from 3 to 16 November, when
they were detached to Kirkwall, arriving at 0800/17th and Scapa Flow at 1130
that day. Minesweepers BRAMBLE, LEDA, and SEAGULL were local
escorts from Trawlers CELIA and WINDERMERE departed Hvalfjord at
2315/9th and joined the convoy on the 11th to relieve destroyers ECLIPSE and
ICARUS. The trawlers escorted the convoy to 13 November. The destroyers proceeded to Seidisfjord to refuel
and rejoined on the 13th. The convoy arrived on the 17th. The destroyers
arrived at _____ U.569 sank British steamer ROSE SCHIAFFINO
(3349grt) near _____ U.202 sank British steamers FLYNDERBORG (2022grt)
and GRETAVALE (4586grt) in 51-21N, 51-45W from convoy SC.52. The submarine
claimed sinking two other steamers. Three crewmen were lost on the steamer FLYNDERBORG.
On steamer GRETAVALE, one crewman died, thirty six
crewmen were missing, and five crewmen were rescued. All five of the gunners
were missing. _____ U.203 sank British steamer EMPIRE GEMSBUCK
(5626grt) in 52-18N, 53-05W and British steamer EVEROJA (4830grt) 80 miles
77° from Belle Isle from convoy SC.52. The entire crew of steamer EMPIRE GEMSBUCK were
rescued. The entire crew of steamer EVEROJA were rescued. _____ In an attack on a German convoy in the Channel,
MGB's claimed torpedoing and badly damaging a MOEWE class torpedo boat (note
says MOEWE or GREIF) and sinking a 5000 ton ship. _____ German minelayer KAISER laid mines in the Baltic. _____ German steamer ANNELIESE (726grt) was lost on a
mine off Dievenow. _____ Submarine PROTEUS damaged Italian tanker TAMPICO
(4958grt) in the Gulf of Athens three miles south of Mandili Island in
37-53N, 24-30E. The submarine was counterattacked by Italian
torpedo boats MONZAMBANO and CASTELFIDARDO. _____ Submarine URGE unsuccessfully attacked a steamer
north of Kuriat. _____ Submarine UTMOST arrived at _____ Polish submarine SOKOL arrived at _____ Aircraft carrier INDOMITABLE was damaged in
grounding off Corvette CLARKIA, escorting the aircraft carrier,
also ran aground. The carrier arrived at _____ Convoy HX.158 departed Tuesday, 4 November Light cruiser Convoy PQ.3, which these ships were to have
escorted, were ordered to remain at Hvalfjord until further notice. _____ Minelaying cruisers MANXMAN and WELSHMAN departed
Loch Alsh at 2300 for _____ Destroyer WHEATLAND departed the The destroyer arrived at 0815/5th. _____ Destroyer MONTROSE departed The destroyer arrived at 0700/5th. _____ Free French submarine MINERVE arrived at _____ British sailing vessel BRITISHER (95grt) was sunk
on a mine just north of West Mouse Buoy, off Maplin. Both crewmen were lost. _____ Dutch motor vessel MADJOE (249grt) was sunk on a
mine in 51-34-38N, 3-50-30W. The crew of four, two gunners, and the pilot were
all lost on the vessel. _____ Italian submarine DANDOLO damaged French tanker _____ Soviet destroyer SMETLIVY was mined off Hango. _____ Greek destroyer KONDOURIOTIS departed _____ An Italian convoy of steamers BOSFORO (3567grt) and
German SAVONA (2120grt), escorted by torpedo boat PEGASO departed The Steamer Steamer BOSFORO and torpedo boat PEGASO put into
Navarino. The ships later departed and arrived at _____ Submarine TRUSTY arrived at _____ Convoy SC.53 departed Sydney, CB escorted by
corvettes BATTLEFORD, DUNVEGAN, and SOREL. Corvettes DUNVEGAN and SOREL were
detached on the 6th when relieved by destroyer BURNHAM and corvettes ALGOMA,
ARVIDA, _____ Wednesday, 5 November Battleship KING GEORGE V, aircraft carrier
VICTORIOUS, heavy cruisers Light cruisers EDINBURGH (CS.18), heavy cruiser American heavy cruisers American battleships When intelligence indicated the German ship had
returned to harbour, the allied warships ordered to return to Hvalfjord just
before The Commander in Chief, Home Fleet, arrived back at
Hvalfjord on the 6th. Light cruiser EDINBURGH, heavy cruiser American heavy cruisers American battleships _____ Light cruiser ARETHUSA, after refitting, departed
Rosyth and arrived at _____ Destroyer CHIDDINGFOLD departed The destroyer arrived back at 1330. _____ Destroyer MONTROSE embarked Vice Admiral, Second in
Command Home Fleet and his staff and departed Rosyth for The destroyer arrived at Vice Admiral, Second in Command Home Fleet, hoisted
his flag in battleship DUKE OF _____ Destroyers ONSLOW, IMPULSIVE, and ANTELOPE departed
The destroyers arrived at The battleship was met in 55N, 12W at 1200/7th and
the H class destroyers were relieved. The RODNEY force then proceeded to Loch
Ewe to fuel. The British force arrived at Loch Ewe at 0815/8th.
Following refuelling, the ships departed at 1600 to carry out patrol on the _____ British steamer GLENCREE (481grt) was damaged
fifteen miles southwest of Bishops Light by German bombing and gunfire. _____ German motor steamer KURT SANDKAMP (250grt) was
sunk by British bombing in the _____ Italian steamer ANNA ZIPPITELLI (1019grt) was sunk
by British bombing in 31-49N, 18-25W, west of _____ Italian steamer TORCELLO (3336grt) was sunk by
Russian submarine SHCH 214 in the _____ |
