Fantasque Time Line (France Fights On) - English Translation

[Wings]

September 6th, 1940

Gulf of Cagliari, 02:30 to 04:30 GMT - While the Ciro Menotti spends the night recharging batteries, drained by the pursuit of the slow convoy and the maneuvers to escape the escort, the submarine Corallo (C.C. Loris Albanese), finally arrives in its area of operation, and tries in vain, on two occasions, to approach interesting targets. Glimpsed, pushed back and chased by the escorts, it has to move away and, having had to flee while submerged, also spends time to recharge its batteries.
Ajaccio, 05:00 GMT - The light cruisers Marseillaise and HMS Delhi are released in Corsica. The La Galissonnière and the two destroyers which accompanied them until now leave to relieve the Jeanne d'Arc.

 

[Wings]

September 6th, 1940

Bône, 06:30 GMT - Arrival of the fast convoy from the Gulf of Cagliari. Are loaded without delay on the cargo ships Dupleix and Pierre L.D. the materials intended for Marignan 1.
10:00 GMT - Arrival of the survivor of the slow convoy, the cargo ship Ile d'Aix, and its escort.
11:00 GMT - The fast convoy from Oristano is in the clear. At daybreak, the submarine Marcello (C.C. Carlo Alberto Teppati) launches, in poor conditions, two torpedoes
"on a small liner" (probably the Prince Philippe): nobody on the Allied side notices the attack.
Very quickly, the liner Massilia takes on board the 13th BCA and the personnel of the 1st Group and the Mobile Anti Aircraft Group of the Navy, all destined for Marignan 1.
The Koutoubia, Côte d'Argent and Prince Philippe did the same for the men of the 3rd RTS, who are to go to Oristano. The regiment's equipment is loaded on the cargo ship Belain d'Esnambuc and the mixed liner Sidi Brahim, with supplies for the troops of Marignan 2.
Marignan 3, 07:00 GMT - The first aerial reconnaissance shows the nucleus of resistance at Nulvi by the Italians. Giving priority to the reduction of the Sassari pocket, General Cartier is content to have the VIII/373rd DBIA guard it to the small river Silis and advancing towards Nulvi itself, 17 km from Osilo, some companies of the V/RICM and the mounted squadrons of the 2nd REC. If the Italians do not move by then, he plans to turn this difficulty around after two or three days by landing in the Coghinas plain one or two battalions, which can go up the small river to the place called Scala Ruia, to cut the direct communications between Nulvi and Tempio Pausania.
On the other hand, in a bad mood after the bad moment spent during the night, he decides to eliminate immediately the few remaining elements of the 14th Coastal Brigade north-west of PortoTorres. The company of the VI/373rd DBIA that is there is asked to clear up the ground up to Aquila Point and to take the island of Asinara in the process.
07:30 GMT - Delighted to be able to take part in a last action before withdrawing, C.V. Rouyer does not hesitate to empty the Jeanne's holds a little more. After fifteen minutes of fire, a white flag appears on the small port of Stintino. The alpine infantry company can advance without having to fire a single shot.
08:00 GMT - While one half of the Alpine fighters occupies the easily conquered ground, the other half conquers ground, the other half takes passage on the auxiliary minesweepers Courlis and Marsouin II and, supported by the landing company of the Jeanne, embarks in the cruiser's boats, go to take hold of the Asinara. A few 155 mm shells later, the few soldiers occupying the island surrender in turn.
08:45 GMT - When the La Galissonnière arrived, it is a very cheerful Commander Rouyer who hands over to his colleague, C.V. Dupré. With the feeling of having done a good job the Jeanne leaves for Mers-el-Kébir, where she is to arrive the next day in the early afternoon. She is escorted by HMS Encounter and HMS Fortune, which are relieved midway by the destroyers of the 1st DCT, returning from accompanying the heavy cruisers Colbert and Dupleix to Algiers.
10:00 GMT - The Armée de l'Air finally takes possession of the Alghero-Fertilia airfield, conquered the day before. Two MS-406 of the GC III/1 are the first to land there. They are followed by eight Bloch MB-200s converted into transport aircraft, which brings from Ajaccio in several rotations "rampants" and supplies. In the middle of the afternoon, the nine aircraft of the 1st squadron of the group (Spa 84, the "Renards") will have joined Fertilia. The eight available Potez 63.11 available from GR I/22 will join them at sunset
11:00 GMT - Around Sassari, supported by their artillery and by the Potez 63.11 and the Martin 167F of the GB I/32 and those of the GR I/61, General Cartier's men push back the encircled Calabria units towards the city.
Of course, the I and II/60th RI manage to hold the hills which overhang the city by 50 to 60 m to the south-east and to the east, and the elements of the III/59th RI and of the 178th Black Shirt Battalion not engaged the day before, helped by the men of the services, hold on to Monte Rosello. But the other units (i.e., turning from southwest to northwest, the remains of the III/59th RI and the 178th battalion CC.NN., the II/59th RI and the bulk of the III/60th RI and 177th battalion CC.NN.) retreat and fall apart inexorably.
18:30 GMT - North of Sassari, the IX/373rd DBIA is installed at the School of Agriculture. One to the south-west, the IV/28th RTT threatens the goods station. To its right, the IV/373rd DBIA have removed the cemetery and is at the gates of the historic center. Its neighbor on the right, the V/373rd DBIA, pushes up to the San Pietro hospital and, still more on the right the VII/373rd DBIA threates the rear of the I/60th RI, which is pinned by the IV/RICM. In short, the fruit is ripe, but it still needs to be picked...

 

[Wings]

September 6th, 1940

Marignan 2, 06:30 GMT - In accordance with Béthouart's orders, General Pellet divides his forces in two, to finish with Samassi and clean the south-west of the island.
Samassi, 11:30 GMT - The bombardments of the Potez 63.11 of the GR II/36 and the Douglas DB-7 of GB I/19 and II/19 are not enough to win the day. It is necessary to assault with the three battalions of the 4th RTS, supported by the 75 mm guns of the Groupe autonome d'artillerie mobile 314, to stop the resistance of the Black Shirts and the infantrymen of the 45th RI who had joined them the day before.
The village falls at 12:30 GMT. Leaving the men of the 4th RTS to rest, Pellet pushes the I/20th RIC to Siliqua.
South-west of Sardinia - During the elimination of the defenders of Samassi, the II and III/20th RIC (minus a garrison left at Villacidro), as well as the 4th GRDI begin to march to the southwest of the island. The French, not expecting to find the mining installations intact, do not hurry to occupy them: in fact, the destruction will vary according to the mines (those of coal will be partially left intact out of concern for the fate of the local populations). As the colonials are not motorized, the advance is rather slow.
The part of the III/20th RIC that arrived the day before at Arbus marches on Fluminimaggiore and then on the mining area (lead, zinc) further south. After having handed over the guard of the Villacidro area to the first elements of the Armée de l'Air that has come to assess the state of the area, the rest of the battalion moves to Domusnovas, where it will arrive at the end of the day.
17:00 GMT - The 4th GRDI passes through Domusnovas shortly after the Polish GRDI leaves. It does not stop there, but charges at Iglésias. The supposedly non-combatant elements of the Sabauda division that hold the small town resist only for the time of an exchange of shots. The threat of an assault by the Senegalese infantry (who were in fact still far away) convinces them to lay down their arms.

 

[Wings]

September 6th, 1940

Marignan 1, 08:30 GMT - If General Béthouart hoped that the Italian morale was sufficiently weakened to give in to the threat of increased air, naval and land bombardments, or even at the sight of the three battleships now present in the Gulf of Cagliari, he is in for his trouble. His emissary is politely but firmly rejected by General Scanagatta, which at least allows the French to know that General De Pignier has made sure to keep his freedom of movement.
09:00 GMT - Cagliari begins to suffer a heavy bludgeoning. Of course, it is its defenses that get focused, but some of the projectiles go astray and the nearby residential areas also suffer. The batteries that had been treated on September 4th (Tuvixeddu and C 135 or San Bartolomeo) are treated again, but the bombardments are extended to all those likely to fire against the land, on the territory of Cagliari (C 194 at Giorgino, C 198 on Monte Urpinu) as well as on the territory of Quartu Sant'Elena (C 165 at Nuraghe Capitana). The anti-ship batteries Roberto Prunas at Cape Sant'Elia and Carlo Faldi at Torre Mortorio (Quartu Sant'Elena) are not forgotten, as their neutralization can allow the intervention of light naval units in support of land operations.
10:00 to 10:40 GMT - While the submarine Corallo tries to approach the battleships, its periscope is spotted by the ASM trawler L'Ajaccienne. The commander of the trawler
depth charges vigorously while calling for reinforcements. The destroyers Brestois and Boulonnais rush to the scene, followed by the trawler La Sétoise. Seriously damaged, the Corallo ends up surfacing in the middle of the French ships. They clearly see its crew trying to evacuate it. But, contrary to their expectations, the submersible does not sink quickly.
Continuing to show initiative, the commander of the Ajaccienne, imitated by the commander of the La Sétoise, then head towards their victim and board her. Once on board, the trawlers' boarding teams find Commander Albanese and the mechanical engineer struggling with air intakes damaged by the depth charging. With the two officers under control, the French sailors close the other intakes. The Corallo can then be towed to the coast and beached in front of the "Bayard" beach. The fire from the battleships does not even stop.
Brought back to the port of Cagliari after the fall of the city and summarily repaired, the Corallo is towed to Algiers and, once repaired, integrated into the French fleet under the name Doris [1].
It is not used in the front line but as a training ship for submariners and for ASM training of ships and aircraft.
19:30 GMT - The day's results of ground operations are a bit disappointing. Certainly, the Polish GRDI, the self-propelled guns of the 2nd REC and the motorized companies of the III/7th RIP finish with what is left of the III/46th RI by taking Dolianova and pushing on to Villasalto and San Vito. But the men of the 13th Coastal Brigade have time to withdraw beyond the Flumendosa River.
On the side of Cagliari, the soldiers of the general Lhuillier take successively the reliefs of Cuccuru e Serra (62 m) and the San Michele hill (120 m), but they are stopped by the line of defense of the hills of Tuvixeddu (99 m), Is Mirrionis (110 m) and Monte Claro (63 m). The action of the Poles of General Bohusz-Szyszko is a little more profitable. With the H-39 tanks lent by Lhuillier, the men of the 8th RIP drive a wedge into the Italian defense line by taking Quartucciu and, in a last effort, enter Quartu Sant'Elena before nightfall. One of the small tanks is destroyed and one damaged.

[1] In homage to the first submarine sunk since the beginning of the conflict. Other voices had proposed to name it Morse (first submarine lost in the Mediterranean).

 

[Wings]

September 6th, 1940

Tyrrhenian Sea, off Livorno, from 15:06 GMT - The submarine MN Pégase (L.V. Mottez) sights at 16:06 (French time) the squadron leaving from Naples. Chance puts it directly in the path of the Italians - after half an hour of discreet maneuvers, it arrives in a good position to launch. So good that the L.V. Mottez tries to make a double shot by using simultaneously its two mobile tubes, aiming at the Bolzano from its stern tubes and the Trento from its central tubes. But he underestimates the speed of his targets and only a 400 torpedo from the rear mount hits the Bolzano at the stern, damaging her port shaft line. As for the three 550 torpedoes from the central mount, they miss the Trento... but one of them hit the destroyer Geniere, sailing on the starboard side aft of the cruiser. The Pégase then manages to escape from the search of the three other destroyers. Of its two victims, the Bolzano was back on line at the beginning of January 1941, but the Geniere, towed to Livorno by the Bande Nere will remain unavailable for a year. This misadventure worries Admiral Paladini, who immediately asks Supermarina to postpone (that is, in practice, to cancel!) the planned operation.
La Maddalena, 16:30 GMT - At the request of the Navy, annoyed by the activity of the MAS, nine Martin of the GR I/61 and seven of the GB I/32 bomb the base of La Maddalena to destroy the fast boats, but in vain.

 

[Wings]

September 6th, 1940

Cyprus, 10:00 GMT - The "Cordite" convoy and its escort leave Limassol and the Akrotiri bay. They are joined offshore by the six ships coming from Famagusta. Just before the departure of the convoy, General Mittelhauser discreetly boards the battleship Courbet. At the same time, his Dewoitine D-338 takes off ostensibly from Nicosia for Alexandria with General de Larminat on board.
The Polish and French passengers who embark in Cyprus soon discover that they will travel with most of the 192nd Infantry Division (6th Foreign Infantry Regiment, 10th North African Half-Brigade and the equivalent of an artillery regiment) and the 68th BCC, withdrawn from the Cyrenaica front before the end of operations [1]. The final destination, Port-Sudan or Djibouti...until a few observant soldiers realized that we were definitely not heading southeast.
Eastern Mediterranean, 11:30 (09:30 GMT) - The oil tanker MN Le Tarn and the transport MN Golo, coming from Bizerte via Alexandria (where the Golo completed its cargo) under the escort of the colonial aviso Rigault-de-Genouilly and the auxiliary patrol boat Cap Nord (P11), dock at Famagusta. The best Cypriot port is to be used as a rear base for the supply of fuel oil and ammunition, in particular ASM, of the smaller naval units engaged in Cordite, so that they do not have to return to Beirut or Alexandria to refuel.
12:10 (10:10 GMT) - The convoy, zigzagging at 10 knots, is joined off Paphos by the "task force" commanded by Admiral Cunningham. The latter is built around the HMS Valiant and Warspite as well as the three aircraft carriers HMS Illustrious, HMS Eagle and MN Béarn. The two formations set a joint course to the west before turning west before bending their course slightly to the southwest.
12:30 (10:30 GMT) - General Mittelhauser sends the following message by Scott lamp to all the ships in the convoy: "Our force is about to attack the Italian possessions in the Dodecanese. Our next stop is the island of Karpathos, which the Italians still call Scarpanto". The same message is transmitted to the British and French warships. Shortly afterwards, General Mittelhauser's staff transmitts his instructions to the Polish and French officers on the various ships of the convoy.
In the middle of the afternoon, a Swordfish of Sqn 819 drops General de Larminat on the HMS Illustrious. The officer is soon transferred to the battleship Courbet.
The combined force spends the rest of the day zigzagging westward, covered by the anti-submarine patrols of the Illustrious' Swordfish and Eagle.

[1] The third regiment of the 192nd ID (17th Regiment of Senegalese Riflemen) is part of the second echelon with elements of the New Zealand Division (18th infantry battalion, 5th engineer company, two cavalry squadrons and 4th Field Artillery Regiment).

 

[Wings]

September 6th, 1940

Castellorizo - The allied diplomats, anxious to prevent any Turkish velléité and to conciliate Greece (which had made its point of view known to the Allies as early as July), invite the persons in charge for Cordite to float the allied flags absolutely everywhere where Italy's flag had flown until now. In order not to leave Castellorizo without naval means of defence, the British Admiralty proposes to send the gunboat HMS Ladybird: if its speed is reduced to 7 knots due to the damage suffered in the Indian Ocean, the British Admiralty decided not to engage it in Cordite, its main armament (two 152 mm guns) still commands respect. The small ship, leaving Alexandria the next morning, should have arrived in the port of Megisthi on September 9th around noon. In the meantime, the French agree to send from Beirut the submarine Achéron (C.C. Alliou), which would be on site from the 7th.

 

[Wings]

September 6th, 1940

Libya - Allied troops have completed their redeployment and are ready to attack again.

 

[Wings]

September 7th, 1940

Off Djibouti - The Italian submarine Ferraris, boarded at anchor in the Gulf of Tadjoura by Franco-Somali privateers, scuttles to avoid capture.

 

[Wings]

September 7th, 1940

Paris - At the Salpêtrière Hospital, a new stroke takes the life of Philippe Pétain, who had never regained normal brain function since the fateful night of June 12th to 13th. Laval decides to have the remains of the Marshal displayed at the Invalides, where the coffin remains for two months. Tens of thousands of Parisians come to pay their respects.
Radio-Alger is content with a very dry communiqué, recalling the great age of the deceased and underlining that he had known his hour of glory in the fight against Germany.

 

[Wings]

September 7th, 1940

Gulf of Cagliari, 03:30 GMT - Having left Maddalena seven hours earlier, the five operational MAS - two from the 2nd squadron (MAS-509 and 544) and three from the 1st (MAS-438, 439 and 441) - pass Cape Carbonara with the hope of reaching the large ships of Marignan 1. The flotilla splits in two: the 1st squadron tries a direct approach, from east to west, while the 2nd squadron executes a turning movement, in order to reach the contact from the southwest.
The assault of the 1st squadron quickly becomes entangled in the network of escorts of all sizes that are watching over the Ark Royal, the three battleships and the cruisers. However, MAS-438 manages to launch on the HMS Sheffield. By maneuvering sharply to avoid the torpedoes, the light cruiser cuts off the destroyer HMS Foresight. However, the latter is able to straighten its course sufficiently to rip along the cruiser's hull. If the cruiser suffers little (its hull was only dented and only five of its crew are wounded), the Foresight is damaged (deformed hull and water ingress) and loses four men (reported missing), and eleven wounded. MAS-439 and 441 launch from a little distance on the Ark Royal who dodges the four torpedoes without much difficulty. The three launches are able to escape without damage.
The two patrol boats of the 2nd Squadron come very close to a good hit.
The MAS-509 having attracted the attention of the French escorts, the MAS-544 manages to approach the Provence but, as on September 4th, it has problems to fire its torpedoes at the moment of the attack. However, it manages to withdraw unharmed. On her side, pushed away from the battleships, the MAS-509 insists on getting close to the transport ships. It tries to attack the liner Massilia but, closely followed by the torpedo boat Bombarde, is unable to get into a good position (especially as its target was not cooperative and moved away). Continuing its course towards the bottom of the gulf, it sees silhouettes: the damaged Mariette Pacha and the Mexique, already reduced to the state of a wreck. In doubt, its commander launches a torpedo on each of these targets and both hit the target. The one that hit the Mexique is wasted, but the one that hits the Mariette Pasha completes the work started two days earlier by Carlo Emanuele Buscaglia, the ship is lost. But the MAS-509 has pushed its luck too much and as it begins its retreat, it is hit by the fire of the Iphigénie, which had come to support the Bombarde. Engines hit, she slows down and is finished off by the two torpedo boats.
Coming after the attack on the Corallo the day before, the attack of the MAS convinces Admiral Duplat that it is better to withdraw the fire support force from the Gulf of Cagliari before Fortune chooses the Italian sailors. The ground (and air) forces are able to obtain the fall of Cagliari. He immediately shares his analysis with the Admiralty and General Béthouart. Understanding, however, the latter asks to be supported by the guns of the fleet and the planes of the Ark Royal until the main Italian resistance position has given way: a day or two, no more. The Admiralty asks for nothing more than to save its large ships and the one diligently lent by the British ally, which is (discreetly) concerned. It is a given that the aircraft carrier will leave for the west at sunset, at the same time, it is hoped in Algiers, as the three battleships.

 

[Wings]

September 7th, 1940

Sardinia, northwest front - General Cartier's men would have had a quiet night if the artillerymen of the 40th RA Caprera did not engage in harassing fire, to which their "colleagues" of the I and II/92nd RAM and the III/2nd RAC responded. In fact, the decisive event is played out elsewhere, in the town hall of the besieged Sassari. An animated discussion between Colonel Serpentini, placed at the head of the encircled troops, and the podestate of Sassari, the Ingegnere Giacomo Crovetti. All fascist hierarch that he is, Crovetti loves his city. To see it transformed into a battlefield would have seemed (hardly) tolerable to him if he had he hoped for success, but, like his colleague from Olbia, he knows what to expect from Sardinia's capacities of defense. The podestate leads little by little his interlocutor to first to admit the obvious: with its only means, it can not break the siege; then a truth more difficult to express: to defend Sassari until the end would not inflect in nothing the fate of an island abandoned to itself. In these conditions, could the colonel not save his military honor without reducing the city to a pile of ruins?
General Cartier learns of the outcome of this debate from an Italian parliamentarian at 04:00 GMT, a maggiore of the 60th RI, who appears before the lines of the IV/373rd DBIA. Serpentini's message says in substance that, in the interest of humanity, he declares the historical center of Sassari an open city: the population of the more recent districts will find a refuge there during the forthcoming fighting. He therefore asks for a truce allowing his soldiers to withdraw from the city center while the civilians of the other besieged districts move in.
One of Cartier's staff officers sums up the proposal succinctly: "In short, we would only be fighting from the 19th century onwards!" [1] After careful deliberation, General
Cartier agrees to grant his adversary a five-hour truce, the time deemed necessary to summarily evacuate a little more than 20,000 civilians and running from 05:00 GMT.
Southern Front - Quiet night for the troops of Marignan 2. A brief engagement, from 02:30 to 03:00 GMT, wakes up the troops of Marignan 1: the Italians try in vain to take back from the Poles of the 8th RIP some houses of Quartu Sant'Elena forming a salient. They are only able to take two prisoners (bringing to ten the number of Polish prisoners, in addition to fourteen French).

[1] Excessive judgment: there were some buildings older than the Ottocento around the heart of Sassari.

 

[Wings]

September 7th, 1940

La Spezia, 06:30 GMT - The flak barks in vain against a French reconnaissance aircraft. Once safe, the Pégase reports on its encounter and the estimated results of its attack. As a result, the Admiralty asks the Armée de l'Air for increased surveillance of La Spezia. An Amiot 351 GR of the Alias Group is therefore sent over the Italian base.
Off the east coast of Sardinia, 06:45 GMT - Twelve Skua of the Ark Royal manage to find the MAS retreating towards La Maddalena. Their attack is fatal for the MAS-544: it did not launch its torpedoes and one of them explodes when hit. Damaged, the MAS-439 is able to drag itself to Arbatax, where it is spotted by an Arsenal VG-33. Two Swordfish go to finish it in the afternoon. Only MAS-438 and 441 manage to reach La Maddalena, where they escape again, in the afternoon, from the Martin 167 bombs of the GR I/61 and the GB I/32.
The balance sheet is still very favorable to the MAS (even if they are only given half of the Mariette Pacha), but this relative success has hardly any effect on the operations.
Algiers, 07:30 GMT - Arrival of the slow convoy that left Oristano on the 5th at 22h30. During the day, it is attacked by the submarine Maggiore Baracca: it launches two torpedoes from its stern tubes on the liner Sagittaire, closing the convoy's path, misses it, but is able to evade the counter-attack of the escorts.
Algiers, 10:45 GMT - At the Admiralty Operations Office, the photos brought back from La Spezia by the Amiot de reconnaissance cause a great deal of excitement: instead of the two cruisers and four destroyers present there for the last two weeks, there are now respectively six and seven. On these pictures, the damage inflicted on the Bolzano is hardly perceptible (new photos showing it in dry dock will be necessary to confirm the claim of the Pégase). The French sailors suspect that the Regia Marina had not grouped the ships of the IInd Squadron without any reason. As, with the exception of Ajaccio, the Corsican ports are empty, they do not imagine an attack directed against them; on the other hand, they seriously consider a raid against the "1515" squadron, at Porto Torres, or against the ships still present in Alghero or Oristano. And this at a time when it has just been decided to withdraw the battleships and the Ark Royal...
After reflection, we decided not to panic: it is possible to counter the threat without cancelling the withdrawal of the large units nor the return of the heavy cruisers Colbert and Dupleix to Algiers. The solution found: to gather in Ajaccio, under the command of Admiral Marquis, a force capable of opposing the Italians. The heavy cruisers Algérie and HMAS Australia as well as the light cruiser Jean-de-Vienne (prudence dictated that HMS Sheffield be left to rest) which would join the Marseillaise and HMS Delhi. To cover this force against ossible air attacks, the HMS Carlisle will be added to it. It is hoped that this squadron, thus placed, will be able to intercept an Italian raid on the way in (obviously desirable) or at least on the way back. In the latter case, one can only hope that the potential targets of the Italian action - notably the small squadron of Porto Torres, now entrusted to C.V. Dupré - will have escaped without too much damage. In the meantime, the Armée de l'Air can bomb La Spezia to try to weaken the opponent.
Ajaccio, 12:15 GMT - Arrival of the destroyers HMS Encounter and Fortune, which had entrusted the cruiser Jeanne d'Arc to the care of the destroyers of the 1st DCT.

 

[Wings]

September 7th, 1940

Mers-el-Kebir, 15:00 GMT - Arrival of the Jeanne and its escort.
La Spezia, 16:15 GMT - The Armée de l'Air tries to satisfy the sailors: 10 LeO-451 of GB I/31, departing from Sidi-Ahmed, bomb the Italian base. The torpedo boat Sagittario is hit by a bomb which puts it out of service for four months, but Admiral Paladini's ships are unharmed, except for the heavy cruiser Trieste, which is riddled by the shrapnel of two bombs that fall not far from it. The French bombers do not escape without loss. Indeed, since the raid of September 2nd, the Regia Aeronautica provides air cover for the naval base, which relies on the Fiat G.50s of the 24th Ground Fighter Group (CT) based in Sarzana. The eight G.50s on patrol cannot prevent the bombardment, as the French twin-engine planes are flying under their noses, but they catch up with one of the LeOs, damaged by the flak, and finish it off.
La Spezia, 17:30 GMT - The troops of Marignan having now less need of air support, the forces of the ZOA-Co (Corsica and Sardinia) gather enough airpower to mount a daylight raid against the Italian fleet (an attack of the MB-210 being programmed for the night of the 7th to 8th).
This raid gathers 26 bombers: 17 Douglas DB-7 (8 from GB II/61 and 9 from II/32), as well as 9 Martin 167F (from I/32). Their protection was provided by 28 Curtiss H-75s: 20 of the two squadrons of the GC I/5 and 8 from the 1st squadron (the Red Devils) of the GC II/4. Wise precaution, because the attack by the LeOs of the GB I/31 can only encourage the Italians to be more vigilant.
In fact, this time 12 Fiat are in the air. They give the alert and, despite their numerical inferiority, they courageously throw themselves on the French formation. Intercepted by the Curtiss of the I/5, they cannot approach the bombers and, if they shoot down a Curtiss of the 2nd squadron (the Golden Falcons), they lose four of their own, two of whom are shot down by Lieutenant Marin la Meslée (of the Cigognes). Douglas and Martin initially bomb without any other opposition than the flak, which is precise : a DB-7 of GB II/32 explodes (no survivors) and another of the same group is damaged, as are two Martin 167. Eleven other Fiat G.50, which take off in emergency, intervene at the end of the bombing. While six of them confront the GC II/4 planes and shoot down one of them for the loss of two of theirs, the five others manage to engage the bombers and shoot down one DB-7 of the GB II/61, plus one of the already damaged Martin, but a return of the Curtiss of I/5 costs them two aircraft. On the whole of the two raids, the 24th CT Group lost 8 aircraft for 5 victories. The French lost 7 aircraft (the damaged DB-7 of GB II/32 having to land off Miomo [1]). In return, the small military tanker Cocito (1,433 t) is "temporarily" sunk (it will be raised and put back into service), but above all, three ships of the Paladini squadron are damaged. The light cruisers Bande Nere and Montecuccoli haveto spend 30 and 40 days respectively in repair; the destroyer Camicia Nera is unavailable for three months...
The psychological consequences of the two raids go far beyond their material results. Admiral Paladini is convinced that any surprise effect has been lost (which is only partially true, since the French did not imagine a bombardment of the Corsican ports) and that the remaining ships would be awaited with bated breath. He can still strike
one of his objectives with the three cruisers that remained, but he prefers to obtain from Admiral Cavagnari to cancel the mission altogether. His ships leave La Spezia during the night, but they are dispersed: the intact ships between Livorno and Naples, the wounded between the shipyards of Genoa, Livorno and Castellamare.
This timidity leads to an excess of confidence on the French side, which is to blame for the success of the Capraia operation, three weeks later!

[1] "Marine" of Santa-Maria di Lota, on the eastern coast of Corsica. The crew is saved.

 

[Wings]

September 7th, 1940

Alghero, 7:30 GMT - Having left Ajaccio eight hours earlier under the escort of the avisos La Boudeuse and La Moqueuse and the patrol boat Casoar, the cargo ships Djebel Dira and Djebel Nador return to Alghero with the rolling stock of the IV/28th RTT.
Porto Torres, 08:00 GMT - Protected as on the outward journey by the trawler ASM La Havraise and the patrol boat Ville d'Ajaccio (P4), the cargo ship Catherine Schiaffino, which left Ajaccio eight hours earlier, is back with equipment and supplies, notably for the mountain artillery.
Ajaccio, 08:30 GMT - Having left Alghero twelve hours earlier, the six auxiliary minesweepers assigned to Marignan 3 reach Ajaccio, according to the decision taken in Algiers two days earlier.
Porto Torres, 08h40 GMT - The change in local responsibility for naval operations, due to the departure of the cruiser Jeanne d'Arc and its replacement by the La Galissonnière, delays the return to Ajaccio of the "cripples". In fact, the C.V. Dupré modifies what had been planned by C.V. Rouyer. The latter had decided to send back at the same time the Pascal Paoli (P7), amputated of its front but still able to move at low speed in reverse, and the Cyrnos (P2), whose damaged engine can still make up to 8 knots, under the the surveillance of the tug Goliath. Fearing that, despite the shortness of the trip (67 nautical miles), the two injured ships would end up needing the only tug at the same time.
Dupré prefers to spread their departure over two days. The Cyrnos leaves first with the Goliath, escorted by the ASM trawler La Sablaise and the aviso La Gracieuse. Also weighing anchor is the Sidi Okba (P3), destined for Ajaccio. Marked by the traces of two fires but with its engines intact, it is able to sail at 13 to 15 knots; it is escorted by the Sampiero Corso (P8). The two patrol boats take on board a new contingent of Italian soldiers taken prisoner during the first three days of fighting, 562 men, as well as several dozen wounded French and Italians transferred from the hospital in Porto Torres to the one in Ajaccio.
Sassari, 10:00 to 19:30 GMT - At the end of the truce, the troops of General Cartier attack the hills around Sassari and the new districts (only!). They are supported by their artillery and by the planes of the GR I/22, of whom it is the first sortie from Fertilia airfield. In the evening, at the cost of significant losses, they succeed in fragmenting the Italian resistance into small disjointed nuclei: the remains of various units stubbornly hold on to the La Marmora barracks and various buildings surrounding the piazza Castello, the survivors of the II/60th RI cling to the highest (282 m) of the nearby hills, other soldiers still hold on in the Cappuccini (Capuchin) district, at the foot of Monte Rosello, which had fallen.
Brought back from Osilo, the motorized squadrons of the 2nd REC sweep the Acquachiara valley without looking too closely at the scrapyard: three self-propelled guns are definitely lost and five others need more or less heavy repairs.
While the fighting is going on in Sassari, the Potez 63.11s of the Corsican Observation Group attack Nulvi, aiming in particular the railway station, while 9 Martin 167F of the GB I/32 bomb (at last) the railway bridge over the Coghinas to hinder the links between Nulvi and Tempio. As the bridge is only damaged, a second bombing is carried out by 8 Douglas DB-7 of GB II/61; this time, the bridge is cut.
At the end of the day, the MS-406 of the Foxes are joined at Fertilia by the 2nd squadron of the GC III/1 (the Ducks). The 2nd squadron of the GC II/4 (the Petits Poucets) also fly towards the south: it leaves Calvi for the ground of Propriano-Tavaria.
Ajaccio, 14:20 then 17:45 GMT - Successive arrivals of the Sidi Okba and Sampiero Corso then of the Cyrnos and its escorts. Accompanied by the Sampiero, they leave at 19:30 GMT for Porto Torres to take care of the Pascal Paoli. Taking into account of what La Sablaise and the Goliath can give, the speed of the small convoy is set at 9 knots.

 

[Wings]

September 7th, 1940

Southwest (Iglesiente), 07:00 to 19:00 GMT - The I/20th, the II/20th and a part of the III/20th RIC go by fractions from Siliqua and Domusnovas to Iglesias by train [1], thanks to the railway equipment found intact in this city. If, two days earlier, the Italians blew up, other than the road bridge, the railroad bridge over the Cixerri, cutting the Siliqua-Calasetta line through Narcao, Tratalias and San Giovanni Suergiu, the line Siliqua-Calasetta by Iglesias, Gonnesa and the new town of Carbonia has remained intact, at least until the regional capital.
The arrival of the men of the 20th RIC frees the 4th GRDI, which move forward, through Monteponi and Gonnesa, to Porta Monteponi and Gonnesa, to Portoscuso, only to find that it can hardly take on the SR 310 battery built on Cape Altano. While the elements of the III/20th RIC remain in Iglesias to secure the town and guard the thousand prisoners taken the day before by the GRDI, the I/20th and II/20th RIC take the train. The first one pushes first to Carbonia : the progression is but the line proves to be usable. The new town (1938, but already 12,000 inhabitants) is occupied without a shot: the French seize a trophy there a little later, the bronze lion holding a beam that decorated the top of the municipal belfry! Shortly afterwards, part of the battalion occupies the Serbariu coal mine. At the announcement of the arrival of the French, the garrison of the island of Sant'Antioco blew up the road and railway bridges linking the island to Sardinia: to occupy it, an amphibious operation will be inevitable!
The II/20th RIC has to solve the problem of the SR 310 battery. This one is attacked in the afternoon, after the successive bombardments of 22 MB-210 coming from Corsica and 18 DB-7 based in Algeria. It surrenders at 19:15 GMT, after five hours of fight, once its weapons of close defense are neutralized [2]. This success is dearly paid for by the
the battalion, which loses 9 killed and 14 wounded. Before surrendering, the garrison (about a hundred men, who had 17 dead and wounded) sabotages everything it can. In the evening, the 4th GRDI advances to San Giovanni Suergiu.
While the 20th RIC operates in the extreme southwest, the 4th RTS leaves Samassi. The General Pellet finally splits it up. While the I and II/4th go south, arriving at Rosas at the end of the day, the IIIrd Battalion pushes two points to the north-east and east of Samassi, at Villamar and Senorbi.
Oristano, 17:00 GMT - Escorted by the torpedo boats of the 11th TD and the avisos Commandant-Duboc and Commandant-Dominé, the five ships of the fast convoy carrying the 3rd RTS and its equipment arrive in the Gulf of Oristano. The next morning, the regiment can to begin to advance in the center of Sardinia.
Villacidro airfield, 17:20 GMT - Symbolic arrival of three Potez 63.11 of the GR II/36, welcomed by a team of "creepers", themselves arrived in the morning. Villacidro finally reveals itself in less bad state than Decimomannu, but it will still be a lot of necessary work for the whole group to redeploy in Sardinia. To underline the fact, one of the Potez, while driving towards the parking lot, puts its left wheel in a badly plugged hole, mowing down its gear and making it unavailable for several days.

[1] In fact, the II/20th RIC and the part of the III/20th arriving at Domusnovas must first march from this locality to the railroad which does not pass there.
[2] That is to say 2 guns of 20 mm AA usable in horizontal fire and 3 machine guns of 8 m.

 

[Wings]

September 7th, 1940

Gulf of Cagliari, 07:00 - Arrival of the liner Massilia, escorted by the torpedo boats of the 12th TD. The 13th Battalion of Alpine Chasseurs (BCA) is disembarked as quickly as possible. By mid-day, it is in place, in reserve, behind General Lhuillier's division. The marine gunners follow.
08:00 GMT - The Italians having undertaken to move the quasi-wreck of the auxiliary cruiser Attilio Deffenu so as to be able to use its two 100 mm guns for the defense of the northwestern approaches to Cagliari, twelve Swordfish of the Ark Royal attack the port and the Deffenu capsizes. For good measure, the biplanes also sink one of the tugs and two small boats: the sailing ship Lilibeo (191 GRT) and the auxiliary patrol boat Bella Italia (V.295, 124 GRT). But, if the main AA batteries are now out of action, there is still some light flak and one of the aircraft, hit, has to land on the water not far from the Ark Royal.
09:00 GMT - It is the turn of the cargo ships Dupleix and Pierre L.D. to arrive from Bône, protected by the destroyer L'Alcyon and the avisos L'Impétueuse, La Batailleuse and La Capricieuse. The guns of 90 mm AA are quickly put in place in order to cover the beaches as well as possible, while the eight 155 mm guns of the 1st Marine Gunnery Group take part in the early afternoon shelling of Cagliari.
Siege of Cagliari - The day sees decisive progress. In the east, the Polish infantrymen of the 8th RIP, supported by H-39s (two of which were damaged during the assault), finish occupying Quartu Sant'Elena before 13:00. At the same time, elements of the I and II/7th RIP attack the Faldi coastal battery, at Torre Mortorio, left aside the day before. Isolated from the main corps since the evening of the 5th, the structure took in the survivors of the garrison of the nearby battery C 165 [1]. The battery finally surrenders after having repelled the first assault. The Polish soldiers take nearly 200 prisoners. They discovered that, if the four 152 guns had been sabotaged by the Italian gunners, only one had been damaged by the fire of the naval force (cracked gun barrel). On the other hand, the other buildings, including the firing centre, have suffered a lot. In the afternoon, a joint Franco-Polish assault brings down Selargius, while the 13th DBLE pushes alone in Monserrato.
In the west, the 24th DBCA takes, loses and retakes Monte Claro and the hill of Is Mirrionis. The entry in line, in the afternoon, of the fresh troops of the 13th BCA, which relieves the 6th BCA which had been severely tested by the harshness of the battle, also takes Mount Tuvixeddu. The main resistance line of General Scanagatta disappears. In view of the following day's push in the city itself, General Lhuillier recovers the eight H-39 tanks still operational, to which is added the one that had been damaged on the 5th but that could be repaired.
In the south-eastern part of the island, after having breathed for half a day, the time to see the arrival of the motorized elements (Polish GRDI, of the 2nd REC, part of the III/7th RIP) secure the lower valley of the Flumendosa (Muravera and Villaputzu) and then push northwards to Cardedu, on the road to Arbatax.

[1] Known as Nuraghe Capitana and located 1 km west of the Faldi, the C 165 was abandoned, all its parts out of order, after the bombardments of the 6th, which dealt a severe blow to the prehistoric monument that gave its name to the battery. Today, a pizzeria has been built on the ruins of the nuraghe.

 

[Wings]

September 7th, 1940

Gulf of Cagliari, 17:00 GMT - With the Army now in control of the situation, Vice-Admiral Duplat is able to implement his decision to withdraw from the Gulf of Cagliari, a decision taken up by Algiers. With the exception of the hospital ship Canada (whose beds are filled with French and Polish wounded, but also with Italians), the damaged Pigeon and the other auxiliary minesweepers, which still have work to do in Sardinian waters, four minesweepers and two ASM trawlers, which remain on patrol, all the allied ships are going to leave the Gulf. The first departure is of the four cruisers sent to Ajaccio. Algérie, Australia, Jean-de-Vienne and Carlisle are escorted by the destroyers Lynx, Panthère and Tigre (4th DCT) and Brestois and Boulonnais (5th TD).
19:00 GMT - The Massilia, Dupleix, Pierre L.D. and Prosper Schiaffino leave for Bône, escorted by the HMS Firedrake, the Alcyon and the "600 tons" of the 12th TD. The aircraft carrier Ark Royal, the three French battleships and the HMS Sheffield set course for Mers-el-Kebir, accompanied by the 3rd and 9th DCT, the 6th TD and the four British destroyers (the Foresight remaining capable of sailing at 18 knots and of chasing a submarine if necessary). From there, the British return to Gibraltar.

 

[Wings]

September 7th, 1940

Between Cyprus and Crete - The combined "Cordite" force continues to zigzag, first to the west and then slightly to the northwest.
13:50 (11:50 GMT) - The submarine Berillo, which is sailing at periscope depth, is spotted 35 nautical miles east of the Allied naval force by a Swordfish from Sqn 813 of the Eagle. Severely damaged by the biplane's depth charges, the Berillo managed to emerge but immediately starts to sink again: its crew has to abandon it (it is picked up by the
destroyers HMS Havock and Hasty dispatched to the scene).

 

[Wings]

September 7th, 1940

Libya - The French troops concentrated in Msus and north of Agedabia start to move towards Solluch, defended by the 2nd CC.NN. XXVIII Ottobre and the remains of three or four divisions of the 5th Italian Army.