Fantasque Time Line (France Fights On) - English Translation
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1374
November 3rd, 1940
Rome - On his own initiative (the Germans had not asked for any contribution from the Regia Aeronautica), the Duce, as soon as he is informed of the imminent arrival of German planes in Italy, reactivates the project to send an Air Expeditionary Corps against Great Britain, which he had six weeks earlier postponed indefinitely.
In a difficult context, this Corps, whose existence was to end in April 1941, is finally reduced to two of the three regiments (13th and 43rd Stormi) of the 4th Drago Land Bombardment Division. Like the German bombers at that time, its aircraft are limited to night operations - for most historians, the Italians did not actually participate in the Battle of Britain.
Rome - On his own initiative (the Germans had not asked for any contribution from the Regia Aeronautica), the Duce, as soon as he is informed of the imminent arrival of German planes in Italy, reactivates the project to send an Air Expeditionary Corps against Great Britain, which he had six weeks earlier postponed indefinitely.
In a difficult context, this Corps, whose existence was to end in April 1941, is finally reduced to two of the three regiments (13th and 43rd Stormi) of the 4th Drago Land Bombardment Division. Like the German bombers at that time, its aircraft are limited to night operations - for most historians, the Italians did not actually participate in the Battle of Britain.
1375
November 3rd, 1940
North Sea - During its first patrol on the Norwegian coast, the submarine MN Archimède (L.V. Attané) attacks a small German convoy off the Stadlandet peninsula. Applying the rules of engagement which prescribe the use of 400 mm torpedoes against merchant ships, he succeeds in sinking the Norwegian coaster Richard With (905 GRT), but if another torpedo hits the German freighter Harm Fritzen (4,818 GRT), this one is only damaged. The 400 mm torpedoes are decidedly a bit light.
North Sea - During its first patrol on the Norwegian coast, the submarine MN Archimède (L.V. Attané) attacks a small German convoy off the Stadlandet peninsula. Applying the rules of engagement which prescribe the use of 400 mm torpedoes against merchant ships, he succeeds in sinking the Norwegian coaster Richard With (905 GRT), but if another torpedo hits the German freighter Harm Fritzen (4,818 GRT), this one is only damaged. The 400 mm torpedoes are decidedly a bit light.
1376
November 3rd, 1940
Alger - A dispatch from the Protocol Service indicates that the High Commissioner of the United Kingdom will take precedent before all the ambassadors, just after the papal nuncio, by tradition the dean of the diplomatic corps. This is only a symbol, of course, but what a symbol!
Alger - A dispatch from the Protocol Service indicates that the High Commissioner of the United Kingdom will take precedent before all the ambassadors, just after the papal nuncio, by tradition the dean of the diplomatic corps. This is only a symbol, of course, but what a symbol!
1377
November 3rd, 1940
Alger - The NA-73X makes its first flight on October 26th. Its performance confirms what was already expected, the French Air Force hopes that the Franco-British Procurement Commission will validate with North American the desire of the French to participate actively in the program for this aircraft, which the British have named Mustang. The aircraft is to be equipped with an Allison V-1710 engine. However, in September Rolls-Royce signed a contract with the Packard company to manufacture the Merlin 28 under license. This engine is expected for the summer of 1941.
Alger - The NA-73X makes its first flight on October 26th. Its performance confirms what was already expected, the French Air Force hopes that the Franco-British Procurement Commission will validate with North American the desire of the French to participate actively in the program for this aircraft, which the British have named Mustang. The aircraft is to be equipped with an Allison V-1710 engine. However, in September Rolls-Royce signed a contract with the Packard company to manufacture the Merlin 28 under license. This engine is expected for the summer of 1941.
1378
November 3rd, 1940
Munich - Ciano meets with Hitler to request the implementation of the decisions taken a month earlier at the Brennerpass.
The Battle of Britain being over and although the RAF has not been crushed, the Führer can effectively deploy three FliegerKorps of the Luftwaffe on the Peninsula. Moreover, he decides, in order not to take any risks, to send ground forces to Italy (a Panzer division and an infantry division), in addition to the "light" division and the two infantry divisions already in Italy. These decisions open the way for discussions from which the Axis counter-attack in the Mediterranean would emerge.
In return for this promised intervention, Ciano can only agree to the main German request: the sending of Italian oceanic submarines to the Atlantic to contribute to the fight against Allied convoys.
Munich - Ciano meets with Hitler to request the implementation of the decisions taken a month earlier at the Brennerpass.
The Battle of Britain being over and although the RAF has not been crushed, the Führer can effectively deploy three FliegerKorps of the Luftwaffe on the Peninsula. Moreover, he decides, in order not to take any risks, to send ground forces to Italy (a Panzer division and an infantry division), in addition to the "light" division and the two infantry divisions already in Italy. These decisions open the way for discussions from which the Axis counter-attack in the Mediterranean would emerge.
In return for this promised intervention, Ciano can only agree to the main German request: the sending of Italian oceanic submarines to the Atlantic to contribute to the fight against Allied convoys.
1380
November 4th, 1940
North Atlantic - German submarines are taking an increasingly heavy toll on the British merchant fleet. Thus, the U-99 sinks two auxiliary cruisers (armed freighters), the Laurentic and Patroclus, which had gone to the rescue of a merchant ship, the Casanare, itself a victim of the German submarine.
North Atlantic - German submarines are taking an increasingly heavy toll on the British merchant fleet. Thus, the U-99 sinks two auxiliary cruisers (armed freighters), the Laurentic and Patroclus, which had gone to the rescue of a merchant ship, the Casanare, itself a victim of the German submarine.
1381
November 4th, 1940
Karpathos, 14:00 (12:00 GMT) - With the exception of the slow Terror and the damaged Duquesne all the ships of the fire support force leave the bay of Pigadia to reach Alexandria.
The battleship Courbet and the cruisers Tourville, Georges-Leygues and Montcalm left surrounded by eleven escorts (the seven that were with them in the bay and four from Rhodes) [1].
16:35 (14:35 GMT) - The gunboat HMS Aphis arrives from the port of Maltezana, in the island of Astypalea, where it had been stationed since she was damaged on October 15th.
The French and British Admiralty are primarily concerned with the recovery of the main warships, the redeployment of some of them to other theaters of operations, having been recently acted. The transports, liners and freighters, as well as the small escorts will leave a little later, to repatriate the troops that will not be kept on site and to evacuate the prisoners to the camps of the Levant.
[1] Four Commonwealth destroyers (HMS Hero, Ilex ; HMAS Stuart, Vampire) ; six french destroyers (Tartu, Kersaint, Le Mars, Tempête, Tornade, Tramontane, Typhon).
Karpathos, 14:00 (12:00 GMT) - With the exception of the slow Terror and the damaged Duquesne all the ships of the fire support force leave the bay of Pigadia to reach Alexandria.
The battleship Courbet and the cruisers Tourville, Georges-Leygues and Montcalm left surrounded by eleven escorts (the seven that were with them in the bay and four from Rhodes) [1].
16:35 (14:35 GMT) - The gunboat HMS Aphis arrives from the port of Maltezana, in the island of Astypalea, where it had been stationed since she was damaged on October 15th.
The French and British Admiralty are primarily concerned with the recovery of the main warships, the redeployment of some of them to other theaters of operations, having been recently acted. The transports, liners and freighters, as well as the small escorts will leave a little later, to repatriate the troops that will not be kept on site and to evacuate the prisoners to the camps of the Levant.
[1] Four Commonwealth destroyers (HMS Hero, Ilex ; HMAS Stuart, Vampire) ; six french destroyers (Tartu, Kersaint, Le Mars, Tempête, Tornade, Tramontane, Typhon).
1382
November 4th, 1940
Alexandria, 08:00 (06:00 GMT) - The tugs HMS Respond and Saint Issey are leaving the large Egyptian base to pick up the three wrecked ships: the heavy cruiser Duquesne, the gunboat Aphis and the cargo ship Calédonien. They are escorted by the destroyers HMS Janus, Jervis and Juno.
Alexandria, 08:00 (06:00 GMT) - The tugs HMS Respond and Saint Issey are leaving the large Egyptian base to pick up the three wrecked ships: the heavy cruiser Duquesne, the gunboat Aphis and the cargo ship Calédonien. They are escorted by the destroyers HMS Janus, Jervis and Juno.
1383
November 5th, 1940
United States - The election for the presidency of the United States takes place in the pervasive shadow of the war in Europe (and China), while the country is slowly emerging from the Great Depression. The incumbent president, Democrat Franklin D. Roosevelt, decides to break with tradition and run for a third consecutive term. His Republican opponent is a "dark horse" named Wendell Willkie, on whom no one would have bet a few months earlier for the role of Grand Old Party representative.
Indeed, the Republican Party was torn between isolationists and interventionists, but the convention candidates (Dewey, Hoover, Taft and Vandenberg) were all more or less isolationist. Thus, Senator Robert Taft was vehemently opposed to any American involvement in what he called "the European war," which he saw as a means for Roosevelt to establish socialism in the United States...
In contrast, Willkie was a strong advocate of aid to the Allies. His speech about giving the Allies "all possible aid without going to war" had won him the support of many East Coast Republicans, who disapproved of the isolationist attitude of their party's congressional leaders. On the other hand, Willkie did not reject the social gains of Roosevelt's
welfare programs - in fact, he favored those that he believed could not be matched by the free enterprise system. Nevertheless, with 3 percent of intentions, Willkie trailed in Gallup polls far behind Dewey, who, with 67 percent, far outnumbered Vandenberg and Taft.
The Blitzkrieg of May-June 1940 deeply shocked American public opinion. The compassion for the Franco-British began to grow daily, and to this compassion was added respect during the French "Sursaut". As a result, sympathy for the fighting attitude of the French government and Winston Churchill resulted in a surge in voting intentions in favor of Willkie, just as the Republican Convention opened! At that time, the Gallup poll of Republican supporters put Willkie in second place with 17%, behind Dewey with 52%, but in a short time the results changed to 29 percent for Willkie and 47 percent for Dewey, with none of the others above 8%. Hundreds of thousands of telegrams poured into the Convention, while millions of Republican supporters signed petitions across the country for Willkie's candidacy, and his supporters, chanting "We Want Willkie," lined the galleries of the Congress Center in Philadelphia day after day, where the convention was held.
Then the voting began. Round after round of voting, Dewey's candidacy crumbled, Willkie's only opponent being Taft, the hard-line isolationist. At this point, the delegates from the major states still in favor of Dewey announced their change of heart and their support for Willkie, who won on the sixth ballot. Historians still regard this convention as the most spectacular in the history of American presidential elections. Unquestionably, it was the only one where speeches by foreign politicians - Churchill and De Gaulle - were used as propaganda for one side.
The situation on the Democratic side was obviously not the same. After (apparently) hesitating for a long time, Roosevelt decided in June that he alone had the experience and ability to guide the country to lead the country against the Nazi threat. The Democratic Convention was held in July in Chicago, "while the guns of a merciless enemy were tearing the land of France apart" (Roosevelt was to say in his speech) and the front pages of the press were filled with articles by war correspondents competed with those of political editors. Roosevelt was easily designated candidate.
In the ensuing campaign, Willkie's first argument is that Roosevelt should not have broken the unwritten two-term rule: "If one man is indispensable, none of us are free." He also begins to criticize some of the New Deal aid programs, although he had to confine himself to saying that he would not abolish these programs, but would make them more effective. Nevertheless, for many Americans, Willkie represents the men of Big Business, who were responsible for the Great Depression - which alienated him from the votes of many workers, who were otherwise delighted to see their factories benefit from orders for Franco-British armaments, which Roosevelt had facilitated. Willkie nonetheless goes on to campaign in areas that had suffered greatly from the Great Depression and where Roosevelt was very popular, and he was sometimes greeted by the throwing of rotten fruit and vegetables.
Willkie also accuses Roosevelt of secretly preparing to plunge the country into war, to which FDR does not hesitate to retort that he would never send "American boys" into a foreign war. But Willkie cannot, of course, blame Roosevelt for supporting the United Kingdom and France in exile, since he shares his position on this point.
.........
In the end, 27.4 million Americans (big-city residents, union members, blacks and citizens of the "Solid South") vote for Roosevelt, against 22.3 million for Willkie. At the Electoral College, Roosevelt wins by 468 to 63. Nevertheless, in four elections (1932, 1936, 1940 and 1944), Willkie is the Republican candidate who had the best result against Roosevelt.
Franklin Roosevelt is re-elected to an unprecedented third consecutive term - but American support for his administration waned somewhat after eight years, allowing the Republican opposition in the Senate to take two seats from the Democrats (and gaining a third through the rallying of the last remaining Senator from the Farmer-Labor Party).
However, New Deal supporters, especially members of the liberal wing of the Democrats, dominate the election: the economic recovery that followed the recession of 1937-38 convinces voters that the New Deal is working. This is how the Democratic Party is able to pick up two seats in the House of Representatives. The Democrats
continue to control both houses.
Overall, the war in Europe does not seem to be a major issue, especially since while France had suffered a terrible defeat, it is still fighting. Under these conditions, England does not seem to be really threatened.
United States - The election for the presidency of the United States takes place in the pervasive shadow of the war in Europe (and China), while the country is slowly emerging from the Great Depression. The incumbent president, Democrat Franklin D. Roosevelt, decides to break with tradition and run for a third consecutive term. His Republican opponent is a "dark horse" named Wendell Willkie, on whom no one would have bet a few months earlier for the role of Grand Old Party representative.
Indeed, the Republican Party was torn between isolationists and interventionists, but the convention candidates (Dewey, Hoover, Taft and Vandenberg) were all more or less isolationist. Thus, Senator Robert Taft was vehemently opposed to any American involvement in what he called "the European war," which he saw as a means for Roosevelt to establish socialism in the United States...
In contrast, Willkie was a strong advocate of aid to the Allies. His speech about giving the Allies "all possible aid without going to war" had won him the support of many East Coast Republicans, who disapproved of the isolationist attitude of their party's congressional leaders. On the other hand, Willkie did not reject the social gains of Roosevelt's
welfare programs - in fact, he favored those that he believed could not be matched by the free enterprise system. Nevertheless, with 3 percent of intentions, Willkie trailed in Gallup polls far behind Dewey, who, with 67 percent, far outnumbered Vandenberg and Taft.
The Blitzkrieg of May-June 1940 deeply shocked American public opinion. The compassion for the Franco-British began to grow daily, and to this compassion was added respect during the French "Sursaut". As a result, sympathy for the fighting attitude of the French government and Winston Churchill resulted in a surge in voting intentions in favor of Willkie, just as the Republican Convention opened! At that time, the Gallup poll of Republican supporters put Willkie in second place with 17%, behind Dewey with 52%, but in a short time the results changed to 29 percent for Willkie and 47 percent for Dewey, with none of the others above 8%. Hundreds of thousands of telegrams poured into the Convention, while millions of Republican supporters signed petitions across the country for Willkie's candidacy, and his supporters, chanting "We Want Willkie," lined the galleries of the Congress Center in Philadelphia day after day, where the convention was held.
Then the voting began. Round after round of voting, Dewey's candidacy crumbled, Willkie's only opponent being Taft, the hard-line isolationist. At this point, the delegates from the major states still in favor of Dewey announced their change of heart and their support for Willkie, who won on the sixth ballot. Historians still regard this convention as the most spectacular in the history of American presidential elections. Unquestionably, it was the only one where speeches by foreign politicians - Churchill and De Gaulle - were used as propaganda for one side.
The situation on the Democratic side was obviously not the same. After (apparently) hesitating for a long time, Roosevelt decided in June that he alone had the experience and ability to guide the country to lead the country against the Nazi threat. The Democratic Convention was held in July in Chicago, "while the guns of a merciless enemy were tearing the land of France apart" (Roosevelt was to say in his speech) and the front pages of the press were filled with articles by war correspondents competed with those of political editors. Roosevelt was easily designated candidate.
In the ensuing campaign, Willkie's first argument is that Roosevelt should not have broken the unwritten two-term rule: "If one man is indispensable, none of us are free." He also begins to criticize some of the New Deal aid programs, although he had to confine himself to saying that he would not abolish these programs, but would make them more effective. Nevertheless, for many Americans, Willkie represents the men of Big Business, who were responsible for the Great Depression - which alienated him from the votes of many workers, who were otherwise delighted to see their factories benefit from orders for Franco-British armaments, which Roosevelt had facilitated. Willkie nonetheless goes on to campaign in areas that had suffered greatly from the Great Depression and where Roosevelt was very popular, and he was sometimes greeted by the throwing of rotten fruit and vegetables.
Willkie also accuses Roosevelt of secretly preparing to plunge the country into war, to which FDR does not hesitate to retort that he would never send "American boys" into a foreign war. But Willkie cannot, of course, blame Roosevelt for supporting the United Kingdom and France in exile, since he shares his position on this point.
.........
In the end, 27.4 million Americans (big-city residents, union members, blacks and citizens of the "Solid South") vote for Roosevelt, against 22.3 million for Willkie. At the Electoral College, Roosevelt wins by 468 to 63. Nevertheless, in four elections (1932, 1936, 1940 and 1944), Willkie is the Republican candidate who had the best result against Roosevelt.
Franklin Roosevelt is re-elected to an unprecedented third consecutive term - but American support for his administration waned somewhat after eight years, allowing the Republican opposition in the Senate to take two seats from the Democrats (and gaining a third through the rallying of the last remaining Senator from the Farmer-Labor Party).
However, New Deal supporters, especially members of the liberal wing of the Democrats, dominate the election: the economic recovery that followed the recession of 1937-38 convinces voters that the New Deal is working. This is how the Democratic Party is able to pick up two seats in the House of Representatives. The Democrats
continue to control both houses.
Overall, the war in Europe does not seem to be a major issue, especially since while France had suffered a terrible defeat, it is still fighting. Under these conditions, England does not seem to be really threatened.
1384
November 5th, 1940
North Atlantic, 50° N. 32° W, 11:30 - Since the early morning, all the means of radio, radar and optical tracking means are put on alert on board the Scheer. Krancke is standing in his command blockhouse, where all the observations are centralized. At the end of the morning, although the reports of radio interception B-Dienst are positive (there are ships nearby!), the ocean remains empty. Krancke then ordersto launch the Arado 196 in order not to miss the convoy before nighttime. It is indeed the seaplane which is going to put him on the good track.
North Atlantic, 50° N. 32° W, 11:30 - Since the early morning, all the means of radio, radar and optical tracking means are put on alert on board the Scheer. Krancke is standing in his command blockhouse, where all the observations are centralized. At the end of the morning, although the reports of radio interception B-Dienst are positive (there are ships nearby!), the ocean remains empty. Krancke then ordersto launch the Arado 196 in order not to miss the convoy before nighttime. It is indeed the seaplane which is going to put him on the good track.
1385 - The Jervis Bay's sacrifice
November 5th, 1940
North Atlantic, 52°45 N. 32°13 W, 16:30. - The tanker San Demetrio is part of convoy HX.84, coming from Halifax (Nova Scotia) for Avonmouth (England) with a load of gasoline.
"We had been sailing in convoy since we left Halifax under the protection of HMS Jervis Bay, a liner of the Aberdeen & Commonwealth Company armed as an auxiliary cruiser with seven outdated 6-inch guns, a coat of grey paint and the right to wear the Royal Navy's White Ensign. Her crew, composed of a large majority of reservists did not look much more warlike, but her 255 men were going to prove ttheir value. This type of ship was used to escort convoys against German raiders, which were thought to be, as in 14-18, armed merchant ships; against them, the Jervis Bay was able to put on a good show. In addition, three small corvettes, the "Flowers" HMS Clematis, Cyclamen and Geranium, provided us with an anti-submarine escort. Thanks to the French assistance, all the convoys benefited from this kind of ASM coverage.
Four days after departure, we had machine problems and had to let the convoy go ahead. After sixteen long hours of effort and worry (we were a perfect target for a submarine), we had caught up with the convoy by steaming ahead, when, as we were rejoining the herd, we realized that we would have been better off staying behind: a big German ship, a battleship, coming from the north, was coming at us.
Our little Jervis Bay didn't hesitate to run towards the enemy with all her speed - 15 knots - opening fire with her old guns, but the response was not long in coming. After a few exchanges of fire, I could see clearly that the Jervis Bay was hit and on fire. But it did not stop firing. In a very short time the fire seemed to be under control and the auxiliary cruiser continued to challenge the German battleship. The German battleship was furious and decided to finish the job, firing numerous shots at the Jervis Bay until it was finally silenced. The unfortunate ship was nothing more than a burning wreck, yet it still seemed to be trying to stand in the way of his adversary until he came to rest before sinking. A little more than twenty minutes had passed - 24 to be exact, it seems - between the the first gunshot and the end of the drama.
Once the enemy had gotten rid of the troublemaker, they began to fire on the freighters, which had taken advantage of this short respite to move away a little. First they hit the Fresno City. The three corvettes (which had no weapons that could interfere with the battleship) tried to lay a curtain of smoke, but it was not dense enough and the moon was already high enough to keep the shots accurate. However, we soon saw only the start of the battleship's shots and further on those of the tiny guns of the corvettes that were vainly trying to distract it.
Although we were running as fast as possible, we were still in the line of fire of the beast.
On our starboard stern, we heard the thud of shots on the Beaverford, which was following a parallel course at a short distance. The ship caught fire as her stern rose above the surface. It was close enough to us that we could make out the cries of the wounded.
Then it sank rapidly and soon there was only a lifeboat with a few men and some debris and bodies floating around.
A little further on, we passed the hulk of the Maiden, which was finishing burning before sinking by the stern.
We were next in line. Two shells hit us in the middle superstructure killing all those on the bridge, including the commander, and setting fire to both floors of the castle. Given the nature of the cargo, I decided, as the only surviving officer, to evacuate the rest of the crew in the lifeboats and to wait near the burning ship. The fire seemed to have subsided. I later learned that the corvettes, hoping that in the darkness they would be mistaken for destroyers, had simulated a torpedo attack!
In the early morning, we were still in our dinghy watching the fire in the middle of our tanker. The metal sheets were reddening and the smoke was blowing in the wind, but the cargo was untouched and the hull seemed to be intact. The raider had abandoned the pursuit around midnight, having destroyed only four ships in all. The sacrifice of the Jervis Bay and her Captain, Fogarty Fegen, and the desperate maneuvering of the corvettes had saved most of the convoy, allowing the ships to get some breathing room and buying time until nightfall. As for us, the survivors of the San Demetrio, perhaps we owed them our lives, for God knows what we would have become in our two boats, in November, on the Atlantic at war. At about 5:30 p.m., the fire seemed to diminish significantly in intensity. Half of the castle had melted away, but only a few flames were still rising from the pile of twisted sheets. I then decided to go back on board, hoping that the fire had not gone down under the tanker deck - in which case it was an assured explosion. The time to restart the boiler to get enough steam to power the pumps and we were able to attack the remains of the castle fire and convince ourselves that the ship was safe.
The next morning, the engines were restarted and a speed of 6 knots was achieved continuously. We could have gone faster, but we had discovered cracks between the tanker deck and the plating through which the cargo was spilling out with each roll. As it was to make the ship suffer a little more, we limited ourselves to this speed. However, the main problem was elsewhere: all the navigation instruments, the charts and radio had burned up with the bridge. All that was left in the aft castle was the emergency wheel and a magnetic compass that was not necessarily well compensated. Even worse, all the navigation officers had been killed and so I was left alone to command this ship, with a few navigation notions learned at school.
We sailed like this until November 12th, keeping a rough course to the east and trying to repair here and there what could be repaired. In particular, we tried to seal the cracks with rings riveted to the plate and chain hoists to maintain a minimum of rigidity to the structure.
On the morning of November 13th, we were in sight of the coast, not knowing if it was Ireland or occupied France! In any case, we could not see even but a cat. As well as we could, we went to anchor in the first accessible bay. The next morning, a seaplane flew over us and I thought I could see roundels on its white hull. In the evening, two tugs appeared in front of us, displaying the Red Ensign. We were out of danger.
On the 14th, we were on our way to the Clyde, escorted by the destroyer HMS Arrow. On the 16th, wewere finally in port to unload our precious cargo. Of the 11,200 tons
of aviation gasoline, there were still 11,000 tons left! This was my greatest satisfaction in this adventure: delivering my cargo intact.
You understand, cadet, that, like all the survivors of the convoy, I honor every year at this time the memory of Captain Fegen VC and that I had good reason to ask your mother to give you the name you bear."
Excerpts from letter dated November 5th, 1970, written by Chief Officer (ret.) Charles Pollard (Lloyd's War Medal for Bravery at Sea), chief engineer of the tanker San Demetrio, to his grandson Fogarty Pettigrew, a cadet at the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth.
North Atlantic, 52°45 N. 32°13 W, 16:30. - The tanker San Demetrio is part of convoy HX.84, coming from Halifax (Nova Scotia) for Avonmouth (England) with a load of gasoline.
"We had been sailing in convoy since we left Halifax under the protection of HMS Jervis Bay, a liner of the Aberdeen & Commonwealth Company armed as an auxiliary cruiser with seven outdated 6-inch guns, a coat of grey paint and the right to wear the Royal Navy's White Ensign. Her crew, composed of a large majority of reservists did not look much more warlike, but her 255 men were going to prove ttheir value. This type of ship was used to escort convoys against German raiders, which were thought to be, as in 14-18, armed merchant ships; against them, the Jervis Bay was able to put on a good show. In addition, three small corvettes, the "Flowers" HMS Clematis, Cyclamen and Geranium, provided us with an anti-submarine escort. Thanks to the French assistance, all the convoys benefited from this kind of ASM coverage.
Four days after departure, we had machine problems and had to let the convoy go ahead. After sixteen long hours of effort and worry (we were a perfect target for a submarine), we had caught up with the convoy by steaming ahead, when, as we were rejoining the herd, we realized that we would have been better off staying behind: a big German ship, a battleship, coming from the north, was coming at us.
Our little Jervis Bay didn't hesitate to run towards the enemy with all her speed - 15 knots - opening fire with her old guns, but the response was not long in coming. After a few exchanges of fire, I could see clearly that the Jervis Bay was hit and on fire. But it did not stop firing. In a very short time the fire seemed to be under control and the auxiliary cruiser continued to challenge the German battleship. The German battleship was furious and decided to finish the job, firing numerous shots at the Jervis Bay until it was finally silenced. The unfortunate ship was nothing more than a burning wreck, yet it still seemed to be trying to stand in the way of his adversary until he came to rest before sinking. A little more than twenty minutes had passed - 24 to be exact, it seems - between the the first gunshot and the end of the drama.
Once the enemy had gotten rid of the troublemaker, they began to fire on the freighters, which had taken advantage of this short respite to move away a little. First they hit the Fresno City. The three corvettes (which had no weapons that could interfere with the battleship) tried to lay a curtain of smoke, but it was not dense enough and the moon was already high enough to keep the shots accurate. However, we soon saw only the start of the battleship's shots and further on those of the tiny guns of the corvettes that were vainly trying to distract it.
Although we were running as fast as possible, we were still in the line of fire of the beast.
On our starboard stern, we heard the thud of shots on the Beaverford, which was following a parallel course at a short distance. The ship caught fire as her stern rose above the surface. It was close enough to us that we could make out the cries of the wounded.
Then it sank rapidly and soon there was only a lifeboat with a few men and some debris and bodies floating around.
A little further on, we passed the hulk of the Maiden, which was finishing burning before sinking by the stern.
We were next in line. Two shells hit us in the middle superstructure killing all those on the bridge, including the commander, and setting fire to both floors of the castle. Given the nature of the cargo, I decided, as the only surviving officer, to evacuate the rest of the crew in the lifeboats and to wait near the burning ship. The fire seemed to have subsided. I later learned that the corvettes, hoping that in the darkness they would be mistaken for destroyers, had simulated a torpedo attack!
In the early morning, we were still in our dinghy watching the fire in the middle of our tanker. The metal sheets were reddening and the smoke was blowing in the wind, but the cargo was untouched and the hull seemed to be intact. The raider had abandoned the pursuit around midnight, having destroyed only four ships in all. The sacrifice of the Jervis Bay and her Captain, Fogarty Fegen, and the desperate maneuvering of the corvettes had saved most of the convoy, allowing the ships to get some breathing room and buying time until nightfall. As for us, the survivors of the San Demetrio, perhaps we owed them our lives, for God knows what we would have become in our two boats, in November, on the Atlantic at war. At about 5:30 p.m., the fire seemed to diminish significantly in intensity. Half of the castle had melted away, but only a few flames were still rising from the pile of twisted sheets. I then decided to go back on board, hoping that the fire had not gone down under the tanker deck - in which case it was an assured explosion. The time to restart the boiler to get enough steam to power the pumps and we were able to attack the remains of the castle fire and convince ourselves that the ship was safe.
The next morning, the engines were restarted and a speed of 6 knots was achieved continuously. We could have gone faster, but we had discovered cracks between the tanker deck and the plating through which the cargo was spilling out with each roll. As it was to make the ship suffer a little more, we limited ourselves to this speed. However, the main problem was elsewhere: all the navigation instruments, the charts and radio had burned up with the bridge. All that was left in the aft castle was the emergency wheel and a magnetic compass that was not necessarily well compensated. Even worse, all the navigation officers had been killed and so I was left alone to command this ship, with a few navigation notions learned at school.
We sailed like this until November 12th, keeping a rough course to the east and trying to repair here and there what could be repaired. In particular, we tried to seal the cracks with rings riveted to the plate and chain hoists to maintain a minimum of rigidity to the structure.
On the morning of November 13th, we were in sight of the coast, not knowing if it was Ireland or occupied France! In any case, we could not see even but a cat. As well as we could, we went to anchor in the first accessible bay. The next morning, a seaplane flew over us and I thought I could see roundels on its white hull. In the evening, two tugs appeared in front of us, displaying the Red Ensign. We were out of danger.
On the 14th, we were on our way to the Clyde, escorted by the destroyer HMS Arrow. On the 16th, wewere finally in port to unload our precious cargo. Of the 11,200 tons
of aviation gasoline, there were still 11,000 tons left! This was my greatest satisfaction in this adventure: delivering my cargo intact.
You understand, cadet, that, like all the survivors of the convoy, I honor every year at this time the memory of Captain Fegen VC and that I had good reason to ask your mother to give you the name you bear."
Excerpts from letter dated November 5th, 1970, written by Chief Officer (ret.) Charles Pollard (Lloyd's War Medal for Bravery at Sea), chief engineer of the tanker San Demetrio, to his grandson Fogarty Pettigrew, a cadet at the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth.
1386
November 5th, 1940
Rome - Exasperated by the disappointing results (and the word is weak) obtained by the Italian forces since the beginning of the war, Mussolini decides to change some heads. The first to fall is that of the Chief of Staff of the Regia Marina, Army Admiral Domenico Cavagnari. The day after the Victory Day of 1918 (which commemorates the armistice of Villa Giusti, a week before the Rethondes armistice, and which is of course only very discreetly celebrated this year), Cavagnari is unceremoniously replaced by Squadron Admiral Arturo Riccardi.
The Duce informs the Chief of the General Staff, Marshal Pietro Badoglio, of this only after the fact. He decides to get rid of him as well - but as Badoglio is a more prominent figure than Cavagnari, and enjoys the esteem of King Victor Emmanuel III, Mussolini prefers to push the Marquis of Sabotino and Duke of Addis Ababa [1] to resign.
It is a faithful man, Roberto Farinacci [2], who is responsible for launching that same day in the press - starting with his own newspaper, Il Regime Fascista - a campaign denigrating Badoglio and inviting him to step down.
[1] Noble titles granted to Badoglio: the first in recognition of his actions until the early 1930s (and referring to a tactical success on the Carso during the First World War), the second as a reward for his contribution to the conquest of Ethiopia.
[2] An early Fascist, secretary-general of the party in 1925-1926, but a controversial figure within Fascism itself, he was only 48 years old.
Rome - Exasperated by the disappointing results (and the word is weak) obtained by the Italian forces since the beginning of the war, Mussolini decides to change some heads. The first to fall is that of the Chief of Staff of the Regia Marina, Army Admiral Domenico Cavagnari. The day after the Victory Day of 1918 (which commemorates the armistice of Villa Giusti, a week before the Rethondes armistice, and which is of course only very discreetly celebrated this year), Cavagnari is unceremoniously replaced by Squadron Admiral Arturo Riccardi.
The Duce informs the Chief of the General Staff, Marshal Pietro Badoglio, of this only after the fact. He decides to get rid of him as well - but as Badoglio is a more prominent figure than Cavagnari, and enjoys the esteem of King Victor Emmanuel III, Mussolini prefers to push the Marquis of Sabotino and Duke of Addis Ababa [1] to resign.
It is a faithful man, Roberto Farinacci [2], who is responsible for launching that same day in the press - starting with his own newspaper, Il Regime Fascista - a campaign denigrating Badoglio and inviting him to step down.
[1] Noble titles granted to Badoglio: the first in recognition of his actions until the early 1930s (and referring to a tactical success on the Carso during the First World War), the second as a reward for his contribution to the conquest of Ethiopia.
[2] An early Fascist, secretary-general of the party in 1925-1926, but a controversial figure within Fascism itself, he was only 48 years old.
1387
November 5th, 1940
Karpathos, 10:45 (08:45 GMT) - Arrival of the two tugs and their escort.
13:30 (11:30 GMT) - Departure of the convoy of injured vessels: its maximum speed is set at 8 knots. The avisos Ailette and Dubourdieu and the avisos-minesweepers Commandant-Bory, Commandant-Delage, Commandant-Rivière and Elan come to reinforce the escort. They will leave it (to return to Rhodes) at the level of Cyprus, where they qre to be replaced by four destroyers that had come to the front of the convoy from Alexandria, the HMS Havock, Imperial, Mohawk and Nubian.
Karpathos, 10:45 (08:45 GMT) - Arrival of the two tugs and their escort.
13:30 (11:30 GMT) - Departure of the convoy of injured vessels: its maximum speed is set at 8 knots. The avisos Ailette and Dubourdieu and the avisos-minesweepers Commandant-Bory, Commandant-Delage, Commandant-Rivière and Elan come to reinforce the escort. They will leave it (to return to Rhodes) at the level of Cyprus, where they qre to be replaced by four destroyers that had come to the front of the convoy from Alexandria, the HMS Havock, Imperial, Mohawk and Nubian.
1389
November 5th, 1940
South-southeast of Karpathos, 22:30 (20:30 GMT) - Held at a distance by the air patrols at the time of the departure of the convoy, the submarine Delfino manages to catch up with it during the first hours of the night. As it tries to reel it in to attack the Duquesne, it is spotted by the destroyer Hyperion. Forced to think about his salvation, commander Aicardi still manages to launch two torpedoes from his stern tubes on the nearest target, the freighter Calédonien. The shot is unsuccessful, one of the "eels" only grazing the mutilated bow of the cargo ship (which was sailing in reverse). Its commander is able to note in the logbook: "Luckily, our bow was already shortened, so that the torpedo found nothing to hit."
South-southeast of Karpathos, 22:30 (20:30 GMT) - Held at a distance by the air patrols at the time of the departure of the convoy, the submarine Delfino manages to catch up with it during the first hours of the night. As it tries to reel it in to attack the Duquesne, it is spotted by the destroyer Hyperion. Forced to think about his salvation, commander Aicardi still manages to launch two torpedoes from his stern tubes on the nearest target, the freighter Calédonien. The shot is unsuccessful, one of the "eels" only grazing the mutilated bow of the cargo ship (which was sailing in reverse). Its commander is able to note in the logbook: "Luckily, our bow was already shortened, so that the torpedo found nothing to hit."
1391
November 6th, 1940
Paris - Pierre Laval decides to transform the Provisional Government Defense Groups into the Service d'Ordre du Nouvel Etat Français (SONEF). He entrusts the command of the SONEF to Joseph Darnand.
To celebrate the event with dignity, the SONEF militants engage in brutal actions against the real or supposed adversaries of the regime, sparing no environment - political, religious, cultural and military. However, if in the large cities, where there are important German garrisons, Darnand's men meet no opposition, in the small towns, several SONEF detachments in search of a victim are counter-attacked and forced to run by real mini popular uprisings (often animated by communist cells acting spontaneously, without any order from the PCF leadership).
Paris - Pierre Laval decides to transform the Provisional Government Defense Groups into the Service d'Ordre du Nouvel Etat Français (SONEF). He entrusts the command of the SONEF to Joseph Darnand.
To celebrate the event with dignity, the SONEF militants engage in brutal actions against the real or supposed adversaries of the regime, sparing no environment - political, religious, cultural and military. However, if in the large cities, where there are important German garrisons, Darnand's men meet no opposition, in the small towns, several SONEF detachments in search of a victim are counter-attacked and forced to run by real mini popular uprisings (often animated by communist cells acting spontaneously, without any order from the PCF leadership).
- Status