1,',ll:,I::\:\I'I\llil~II~I\\'~~\1NAA006.0150

SECRET

INTELLIGENCE REPORT

(W.I.R .)

. NAVAl. IXTELLIGEK'CE DIVISION. :t\AVAL STAr::,

J~FORxtATION OF ALL OFFICERS I~ H.M. ~AVY

1941

tte,'1tJ(1l1 is called to the penaitteS

to any infraction of theOflicial Secrets Acts

is for the information of

only, The knowledge that

the British Officers and Officials

I: 1111"1111~ 1111IIJII~II'I~r~AA0060151

OR COMMANDING OFFICER'S copies of \V.LR.,

Ships where a Captain is in

All other copies

Estaf:,lisllment and burnt

Personal copies

subse'luenl number.

that lectures should be given to Shipa'

of "V.loR., care being taken to

which Commanding Officers consider

1?:age 37·:.Yugosla\~ia:39: U.S.A.

IV : POLITICAL

Page A i: Ge:"'J"Iwny43: Poland44: Low Countries46:. France

(French ,Vorth Africa)50: Spain5I : Porh:gal52: !JulyS4 : The Balkans57: Syn:a58: Far EastGO: U.5A.

SPECIAL CO'lTRlBUTIO:-lS

Security"

lSSUED BY THE NAVAL INTELLIGENCE DIVISION, NAVAL

STAF_~1\.~_~IRALTY, FRIDAY, APRIL +, _~~

PART I: WEEKLY NAVAL NOTES

Current Events

REPORT

1IIIIIIIIIIIillll~~~~111NAA.006.0152

WEEKLY INTELLIGENCE

The German raider Santa Cruz which is known to have beenoperating in the North Atlantic in March was attended by at"lnker which refuelled the ex-Norwegian whale-catchers subse­quently intercepted by H.M.S. Scarborough on March 6 inapproxirnatciy 27 0 00' N., 42 0 00' W. The Santa Cruz wasbuilt in 1938 and used to belong to the Oldenburg-Portugallinc.She is a ship of 3,862 tons with a listed speed of IG knots. It isprobable that she can do at least 18 knots. The picture is froma pre-war photograph and it is probable lilat her Sampson postsha ve been removed and that the forewell deck has dummybulwarks giving a flush line from the forecastle to the midshipsupcrstfllc!nrc. Her bow Jines are notice" hly [me. TheSanta Cruz was reported to have a very foul botlom and mayhave been a t sea for a comiderable time. She might beRaider D at the Appreciation of I~aider Activities, 1940 (inW.I.R. for January 17, 1941), hut it appears that the Germanshave fitted out several ships of similar appcamnce, onc type beingsirnilar to the Fels class of the Hansa Line and the other sin1ilarto the Santa Cruz or other fruit-ships.

HIn the Italian communiqUii abont the Battle of Matapan it is

claimed that " one large British cruiser received heavy directhits and sauk." It is known, however, that no ships of the:Mediterranean Fleet were lost, or even hit by the cllclny, duringthe engagement, in spite of the presence on board some of theItalian men-of-war of German gunlayers. Men in boats at0820/29 signdlled to British aircraft that they v\ere survivorsfrorn the Giovanni Delle Band(~ l\TCTG , a six-inch cruiser of thesa.Ine class as the late Bartolulizeo Colleoni: the Cmnn1anrler-in­Chief did not claiul that any of his ships-had sunk this cruiser,hut did report that the sound of heavy guns and secondaryarcruxnent had been heard in a position ncar \vhich no Britishships "vere at the time. It appears possible therefore that the" 1 8· . , , ." . d' h I l' . ,argc' .nhsn cr1llser mcntlOIle In t ,e ta~lan DOl1Vnul1zquc\-vas the G;·o7.)(!.;;ri-i l)elle Bande iVere and that she i-vas actually

1

2,3

6

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2 :-

3:1: 1

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5.79. Total.

HI

2:

3:

Cr. 42. i e50_~_L _

Italian aircraft were less active this week than during thatending March 24. It is now known that they attacked the aero.drome at Gorahai, ahout 240 miles south·east of Harar, on thatday. On March 25 they made another attack on the Heraklionaerodrome in Crete, and next day again attacked that atParamythia in Epirus. On Mareh:lO at dawn six of their aircraftnHchine·gunned the aerodrome ".1 Jijiga, where two of them wereshot down. jijiga was again attacked on March 31. Their lossesin the air for the week amounted to 6: 1 with seven damaged,compared WIth the revised figures of 10: 2 with seven damagedlast week 3nd 49: 8 wilh IS damaged for the week before.

During February six Channel Convoys consisting of a total of62 ships of 78,423 tons, sailed between Southend and St. Helenswithout damage to any ship through enemy action. During thesame month 13 Convoys of 247 ships, totalling 8G2,003 tons,sailed from Methil to the Clyde; four of these ships were bombedand damaged by aircraft but none wa.s sunk. From the Clydeto Mothil 287 ships, totalling 1,020,970 tons, sailed in 15 Convoysand of these one ship was sunk by aircraft and three weredamaged.

In addition to its other activities during the week, the CoastalCommand of the R.A.F. has provided air escort for convoys asfollows: ~On March 26 for six, on March 27 for fourteen, onMarch 28 for twenty, on March 2~) for twenty·eight, on March 30for twenty·three, and on March :11 for fifteen, or for 106 dnringthe week as compared with 104 last week and 92 the week before.

The first figure nnder a lype in the above table indicates thenumber destroyed; the second gives the number probably shotdown.

l\larch 25'2G27282930:11

HDelayed reports have now come in of several attacks by British

and Allied submarines on enemy shipping. On March 16H.M.S. Parthian attacked a tan.ker of 10,000 tons and amerchant ship of G,000 tons at the southern end of the Straits ofMessina and it is believed that both ships were hit. On March 20H.M. Submarine Sturgeon successfully attacked a southboundtanker off Obrestad, Norway, and the Greek Ministry of Marinehas announced that on March 23 H.H.M. Submanne Inton sankthe Italian Carnia, .0,4.01 tons, and seriously damaged a smallership in an escorted convoy off the Albanian coast.

+-?In addition to a successful attack on a destroyer off

Schiermonnikoog on March 31 by aircraft of the BomberCommand, there was a series of air attacks agamst enemy shIp­ping during the week. A torpedo attack was made on anescorted convoy of six ships which were entenng YmUlden onMarch 26; the largest ship was hit and was last seen well downhy the bows. On the following day three hits were obtamed on aship of 800 tons in the harhour at Alderney. On ,,'larch 31 twotankers were attacked at Lc Havre and three hits were made onone and two on another; both ships were afterwards seen to bein f1omes. On the same day a ship of 2,000 tons received a directhit on the stern while in convoy off Ymuiden, and on April 1another ship of 2,000 tons was successfully attacked with atorpedo off the Danish coast.

H

sunk by other Italians, or Germans, who had mistaken hernationality in the dark. In days of old when Matapan wasTaenarum it was believed to be one of the adits of the House ofHades. It was therefore conveniently at hand for the benefitof classically-m'inded Italians who were leaving their MareNostrum for" the gloomy Realms of Dis."

HOn March 30 in the Red Sea, H.M.S. Kandahar intercepted

the German Bertram Rickmers 4 188 tons, which had sailedfrom Massawa in Eritrea on Ma~ch'29 after having remained inthat port since Italy's entry into the war. An attempt was madeto scuttle the ship, but when last heard of she was afloat and atanchor. On April 1 two large Italian destroyers were reportedby R.A.F. reconnaissance to have left :Massawa and at IS 15 onthat day aircraft from H.M.S. Eagle reported that a destroyerhad been sunk 40 miles N .E. of the port. Further detaIls arenot yet available, but it is believed that the name of the destroyeris Pantera.

4

The air score against the Germans over this Kinijdom andHome Waters increased this week to 13: 2. Last week It was 8: 3and the week before a9: 14.

~IIIIIIII!I!!I!IIII~!III~NAA.006.0154

Aller the twenty-two survivors of the Greek };[e"tor, 3,050tons,which had been torpedoed and sunk on the mormng of March 7about S80 miles west of the Butt of Lewis while outward boundfrom Cardiff in ballast for Takoradi, had been six days andnights in their boat they were picked up by a Faroese trawler,which, fortunately for them, was out of her course. Long beforeany man on board the trawler was able to sight the boat, warningof iis proximity had been given by the barking of the trawler'sblack dog. The survivors, who were su£[ering from frost-bite,had had Dlentv of food, but had been so short of waler that theirrescuers had t~ deal firmly with them to prevent them from over­drinking. Later they were landed at Thorshavn, the capital ofthe Faroe Islands.

Signor Ansaldo in a broadcast from Rome al 1630 on March 30inviled his hearers to take heart from the fact that on the sameday that Keren in Eritrea was captured by the British­March 27-the town of El Agheila in Libya was re-occupied." The Italians" he said " forced to give way 111 one part ofAfrica at once make it a matter of honour to conquer in another

[;

Italian, German and Danish ships in United States ports havebeen takcn into protective custody after information had beenreceived to the effect that Italian crews were systematicallydestroying their machinery. This action was in accorda~ce withan Act of Congress passed in 1917 and the PreSIdential Pro­clamation of 1940. When boarded many of the Italian shipswere found to have already made preparations for setting them­selves on fire or to have damaged their engines. The Master ofone of them told the coastl,'1lard that he had received orders todestroy his machinery from the Italian Naval Attache inWashington. There are twenty-eIght Italian ShIPS m U.S.A.ports, totalling 169,906 tons, two German, one. of then: atanker, totalling 9,133 tons, and thIrty-fIVe Damsh, totalling113,517 tons. No damage had been done to the Danishships, bUl one of the German, the Pauleine Friedrich at Boston,was reported to have been damaged. Three Danish ships haverecently been seized in Chile and one in Peru. The crews of allthe Axis ships have been arrested, but those members of theDanish crcws who were delighted at the turn of events wereallowed to remain on board their ships. Since the action of theUnited States Government several German ships in SouthAmerican ports have been set on fIre by their crews, for thedetails of which, sec German Shipping, Part II, page 14,

-M-~. II un-! " IDam-ilO. spec. To,a!, ag,d.

1"-1'-.-13:11 11 - 1', I' "- I - 1: 1

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=Il_~!21_'__-=-_-_I_-_ 1_5 _:-_i_ 22:

-\- I ' I IJu. i Do. I Do. He. I Me.SH. I 17. 215. Ill. , 109.

Mar-c-h-2-e-- ~'-I-'-.-j- _! - -I -27 - - i - .- I .28 1 -i --1-. 1 '29 1 - !

30 1 .31

April 1

One Italian aircraft was destroyed and a second probablydestroyed on the ground during the week; in ~he raId on Lecceon March 28 when 20 others were damaged. FlVe were damagedon the ground at Karpathos (?carpanto) on March 25, andanother on the ground at Calato m Rhodes on March 27-a totalof 26 damaged on the ground during the week compared WIthtwo last week and 14 the week before.

German aircraft damaged during the week number no morethan seven conlD'Hed with 14 last week and 25 the week before.H.M.S. Ve;'sc;,tle shot down the Me.110 on J'ibrch 26, andH.M.S. Leith and her convoy destroycd an aircralt of unspeCIfiedtype at 2110 on March 27 0[[ St. David's Head and the BntlshBaronscourt damaged two others. Antl-arrcraft iue ashoredamaged a Ju.88 on March 26.

The Germans lost one Ju.88 on MarcJ: 28.and another n.ext dayduring their attacks on ships engaged I:' }llckmg up Itahan sur­vivors after the Battle of Matapan, and It 15 now known th;~J theylost two other aircraft of unspecified type last week durmg anattack on troops near EI AgJ:eilain Libya on March 24. Inanengagement near Jedabya In Libya on March 31. Austrah~naircraft destroyed one Me. ~ 10 and damaged three Itahan B:.20 s.These losses bring the aIr score agamst the Germans In theMediterranean to a: - and one damaged lor the week, comparedwith the revised ligures of 16: 2 and nine damaged for last week

. and a blank return for the week before.

His successor was a rcmarkable man, who seized the vacantthrone in 1525, but refused to call himself either Sultan or Erniron the ground that it would be undernocratic to do so, and wascontent to be no more than Imam -Mohamed Gran ibn Ibrahimcalled the Left-handed. He Soon earned the tille of EI Ghazi andextended the power of Harar over the greater part of Abyssinia.He even took AXUI11, far away to the north, in 1535, but was finallydefeated III 1542, when the Abyssinians were helped by a smallforce o( Portuguese undcr (hristovao da Ganl,L He died soon aftertl.lis battle, but was avenged by his successor Nur ibn Mujahid, whokIlled the Negus Galawdewos (Asnaf Sagad) in 1559. SultanMohamed ibn Nasir ibn Osman in 1577 transferred his capital fromHarar lIl~O .the Aussa, where the pOvver of the Sultanate slowlyfaded unhl Its rulers, who lived eilher at Hadele Gnbo or at Sardo,bccam~ vassals of the Abyssinian Kings of Shoa and latcr acccptedan ~talian protectorate. Haral', reduced to the rank of a provincialcapItal, became thc scat of a slTIall vassal Emirate under Ali ihnDand, who died ill 1647, but although it gradually regainedIndependence, Its authonty was small and its area was luuch cir­cUlllscribed by Gallas whOIn it was not strong cnough lo subdue.

Harar is supposed to have first become important when Arabsfrom the Hadramaut founded the Sultanate of Add in the 9th centuryand set up a dynasty descended from Okail, son of Abu Talib,the uncle of the Prophet Mohamed, and brother of the Caliph Ali.The sultanate became powerfnl under Omar Walasluna, who ruledit from Zeyla, called by the Somalis Audet, hut in 1:,28 the AbyssinianNegus Amda Sian I (Gabra Masqal) deposed the Sultan Haqq-ed-Dinand enthroned his brother Sabr-ed-Din Mohamed Walkawi. Later,Amda Sian's son, the Negus Newaya Krestos (Saila Arad), deposedSultan Ali, son of Sabr-ed-Din, and installed h.is son Ahmed Harb ;but th.is Ahmed's brother (or, according to one account, son),Haqq-ed-Din conquered a great deal of Abyssinia and even tookAnkobar. fIe was, however, killed in 1374 by the Negns NewayaManam (Wedem Asfarc), son of Newaya Krestos, and the brotherof this ruler, the Negus Daw!t I, over-ran Add, and besieged andsacked Zeyla in 1403. The luckless Sultan Saad-ed-Din fled to thelittle island which bears his name in front of Zeyla and there com­manded his own guards to kill him. His brother Sabr-ed-Dinre-established the Sultanate in 1415, after the death of D;'wit I andof his son Tewodros I, and a century later the Sultan Abubekribn Mohamed Azhar-ed-Din made Harar (he capilat of Add. IIewas the last of the House of Okail and was defeated and takenprisoner in 1521.

71!111111111111111111~!~I~NAA.006.0155

6

The capture of Keren on March 27 led with surprising rapidityto the capitulation of Asmara, the capital of Eritrea on April 1.Asmara is a fine town with good buildings and many gardens.It is laid out on European lines and the greater part, 58,000, ofits population of more than 98,000 is Italian. In the days whenit was the headquarters of Ras Alula, it was no more than a smallAbyssinian village. This was peacefully occupied by theftalians on August 8, 1889, and in 1897 Signor Martini, the firstCivil Governor of Eritrea made it the capital of that colony.Since then a great deal of care and money has been devoted tothe building and beautification of Asmara where the moderntown is laid out to the south-west of the original village.

part." The reporls received in this country conveyed theimpression that it was on March 24 that German tanks ratherthan Italian troops which had occupied EI Agheila from whichthe British had withdrawn some days earlier as being a place ofno particular value to them. Even so one can admire the courageof the broadcaster in asserting in the face of so meagre a gain­EI Agheila has a population of less than a thousand inhabitanls­in exchange for the loss of Keren with its population of nearly10,000 and of an equal or even larger number of its garrisonkilled or prisoners, that" Never has the whole of Italy felt withsuch certainty that in the long centuries to come she will bemistress in Africa."

Harar, which British forces occupied OIl March 26 after an advanceof smne 600 miles from lVrogadishu, is a town of about 4;:;,000inhabitants. It is 6,089 feet above the sea and enjoys a much betterclimate th,Ul can be found in any part of Somaliland. The rainfallis 35·4 inches in the year and of this 28· 3 inches fall in the six monthsfrom April to September; 5·6 of illIl July. Its temperature variesbetween 54·5 and 77· I Fahrenheit in January and between 58·8and 80· I in April, which is the hottest month. The old city is stillsurrounded by its high mud wall pierced by five gates and brokenthrough in one place to open into the piazza in front of the Govern­ment House, built by the Emperor Haile Selassie for his youngerson the Duke of Harar. This in its turn opens into the end of thenew Italian town, which was laid out very spaciously by SignorGuido Ferrazza to the west of the walled city and contains a numberof official and sCIni-ofticial buildings.

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T.his meagre indepcndence was maintained by the Ernirs of IIararuntil October 18, 1875, when an Egyptian force led by Rwf Pashaca~c up from Zey1a and imposed an Egyptian Protectorate on theEmlf Mohamed Abd-csh-Shakur. The Egyptians, after thebankruptcy and deposition of Khedive Ismail and the revolt ofArabi Pasha against his successor Khedive Tewfik, which was fol­lowed by the loss of the Sndan to the Mahdi, Mohamed Ahmed ofDongola, and his dervishes withdrew frorn their recent acquisitionsalong thc coast of the Red Sea and its hinterland and Harar, underthe Emir Abdallah-esh-Shakur, recovered its independence in May,18lJ6. The new Emir, however, had failed to protect a party ofItalian explorers and scientists who had obtained his permissionto visit the country. This party, which was led by Colonel GianPlero Porro, Professor LIcata and Dr. Zenini, was massacred nearGildessa on April 9, 1886. This provoked the future EmperorMenelik, then only King of Shoa and still on good terms with theltalians, to intervene. The Abyssinians defeated the Emir at thebattle of Challanko on January 7, 1887, and dethroned him. Theconqueror appointed the celebrated Ras Makonnen, father of thepresent Emperor Haile Selassie, as Viceroy of Harar, which wasannexer! to Abyssinia. The Italians occupied the city on May 8,1936, when General Graziani's troops, coming up frOln the south,marched in [rom Jijiga at the end of a wdl-org'lllised campaign,which earned for their cornmander a Marshal's baton. Now theBritish in their turn have advanced from Jijiga, which they occupiedon March 19, 1941, and two days later forced the Marda Pass, about40 miles by roar! [rom Karar.

4--)The news of the capture of Rarar 111USt have caused pleasure to

the Emperor Haile Sclassie. His father, I(.;ls Makonnen, vvas Viceroythere fronl January, 1&<j7, until his death in March, 1906. TheEmperor himself was born there in July, 1891, and was Viceroy ofI-iaT8.r, as Ras 1afan lVIakonnen, frOln 1911 until he becanle Regentand Heir to the Thronc in 1916, after the deposition, on Septcmber 27,of the EIllperor Yasu, and his elder son was born at HaraT in the senneyear. His younger son was created Duke of HaraT and fOT some tinlcwas titular administrator of the province until 1936.

HThe attention of the Editors has been drawn to the mistakr;n

information in WIR. No. 36, where it is stated that the VichyFrench Sloop Bougaim.1ille set fire to herself on the occasion of thecapture of Libreville by the Free French Forces on November 9,1940. It is nov" known that the gUIlS of the Free French SavorJYnande Brazza made 12 direct hits on the Bougainville and thus Gl~]~edthe fire as well as other damage.

S

An E~Boat SunkCaptain George Arthur William Mastin, the Master of the British

Wandie, 1,482 tons, describes the engagement with an E-boat,which attacked her on March 23, 1941, while bound from Hull toLondon with a cargo of coal. It may be remembered that theWandie's predecessor of the same name successfully eng<lged aGerman subnlarine in the last war.

" The night was dark and clear, with light N .W. wind, little cloudand gentle northerly swell.

At abollt 2230, when the Wandie was about! mile to the north­eastward of Hearthy Knoll Buoy, calcinm flares were shot into theair over the convoy frolll a presullied enemy source. Action stationswere already manned. A number of enemy E-boats were sightedabout a quarter to half a mile on our port beam, heading north ata very slow speed, if not lying stationary.

One E-boat began to shell the ship with a quick firing gun, usingexplosive shells with large red tracers, and also with light automaticweapons. These shots, particularly, raked over our bridge and gun.This E-boat was engaged with the ship's 12-pdr. at 1,000 yards,using S.A.P. shell. One round was short so the range was increasedto 1,500 yards; second round over; third round not observed;fourth round over; the E-boat was closing. The fifth round at1,000 y<lrds was over. As the enemy was closing, the Control Officerdecided to use H.E., set to bUTst at 850 yards. The sixth roundburst alongside <lnd silenced the E-boat's pam-pam. As the E-boatwas still trying to close thc ship, evasive action was taken to bringthe cnclllY astern. The port Hotchkiss v.'as now brought intoaction. The seventh round of H.E. n1issed, but the eigbth bursl along­side and when water spout subsided the E-boat had disappeared.As this E-boat did not press home any further attack on this orfollowing ships in the port column, it is assume(l that she wasdestroyed. The vVandlc then rcsmucd her position in the colUlnn.

This whole action occurred under considerable Hare illumination.A second E-buat, proceeding south parallel with convoy, bearillgRed 1~)5'J at 1,000 yards, travelling at speed slightly faster than theconvoy (presumed 7 knots) firing her guns was engaged with fourrounds of S.A.P., hut the effects \vere not observed as the flare lightbecanlC din1. Throughout the action the E~boats were to the east­ward of the convoy. The starboard Lewis gun \vas not used untilthe E-boal had bcen brought astern. ~

No damage was suffered by clie Wandie." il,IIIII\I~lllli\II~I~111NAA.006.0156

9

Collier Versus CondorThe following is an account of the attacks made on March 13, 1941,

by a Focke Wulf Condor on the British Collier Inishtrahull, 869 tons,of Belfast, while bound from Limerick to Ayr in ballast. TheImshtrahull at the time was armed with two Hotchkiss guns, oneon either wing of the bridge, and a steam Holman Projector.

At 1010 on March 13, the I nishtrahull was in position q milesS.W. of Eagle Island, off the coast of County Mayo, Eire (54 0 17' N.,100 OS' W.).

. A large four-engine 'plane was sighted which, owing to badvisibihty, was at first thought to be a Sunderland. The aircr<lftapproached from over the land bearing green 1500 and as it passedastern it was seen to be an F.W. Condor. Captain Robert Gibson,the Master, immediately ordered action stations and the ship'sarmament was 111anned. The Master took the starboard tnachine-gunand the Second Mate the port machine-gun and the D.E.M.S.gunner manned the Holman projector.

The 'pl<lne then turned and approached from astern flying atabout 400 feet.

1st Attack

Fire from the ship was held until the aircraft was distant 400yards, when both m<lchine-guns opened fire. The port gun jammedafter six rounds but the sL<lrboard machine-gun got off a full belt.They spr'"yed the forepart of the aircraft which imme,liaLcly openedfire with ll1achine-guns and at least two, probably three, cannon.One round W;LS fired from the Holman projector but burst highabove the plane. This occurred in all subsequent attacks, when oneround was got off each time.

The aircraft dropped one 500 kilo (1,100 lb.) bomb which siruckthe port side of the bridge rail, shot into the air and then into thesea without exploding. The aircraft turned to starboard, flew downthe starboard side, and came up again from astern.

2nd Attack

The 'plane attacked with machine-gun and cannon fTorn a heightof about 150 feet. It was noticed that the lower rear gunner, orhis gun, was out of action, and that gun neveT carne into actiona?"a.in. Both the ship's ll1achine-gllns januned, the port gun afterSIX rounds, the starboard after thirty rounds. Aga.in tracers wereseen to hit. The aircrafi dropped another 1,100 lb. bomb whichhit the starboard side of the forecastle head, demolished the ladder

10

,and cam,e to rest hetwcen the COTner of the hatch coarning and theforecastle bulkhead. It failed to explode and only the low heightfrom which it was dropped prevented it going right through theship. The 'plane then turned io starboard and repeated its previousmanreuvrc.

3rd Attack

The aircraft repeated its previous tactics, but this time the bombfell about 180 feet astern, exploding as soon as it hit the waier.Both the ship's machine-guns got off a full bell apiece, slill on thefore-part of the plane. The Master was struck on the arm by someunknown ohject (probably a block) ami ihrown from his gun.

4th Attack

Again the aircraft came up from astern and again his bombmissed, siriking the w"Ler about 150 feet ahead and exploding oncontact. The ship's starboard Inachine-gull got off a full belt. Theport machine-gun jamrned after 15 rounds.

5th Attack

Tactics as before. This time the Master awl Second l\hte heldtheir fire until the aircrafi was almost directly overhead and 150 feetup. They both got off full belts "cross the wings and into ihe fuselageof the "aircraft, whose bornb ll1issed and hit the waler bearing Green45° 100'. It exploded on contact. The Master was slightly woundedin the chest and shoutders by splinters when two cannon shellpenetrated the wheel-house diagonally and burst outside.

The aircraft then turned as before and when turning to starboardastern of the ship to come up for a sixth attack, it suddenly m'lde asteep turn to port and made off on a south-south-westerly courseflying low over the water.

The Master considers that t.he lower rear gunner was put per­manently out of action and the plane probably dalnaged, as thebulk of their tracers were seen to hit.

There now remained the prohlem of the unexploded bomb forward.The Master hrst thoughL of putting inLo Broaclhaven Bay and gettingthe Free SLate experts to dcal with it. lIe then ,lecided thaL thatmight be giving information La the enemy and that he had bettcrdeal with it himself. The whole crew of 13 volunteered and withthe exception of the Masler, who \vas at the wheel, lhe Chief Engineerand a sioker, and the cook who was elderly, they began to tacklethe bomb. The Second Engineer, who took charge of the operations,remarked th<rt it was" probably a b-- dud anyway." Theydid not know its weight (confirmed at 1,100 lb. by the Bomb DisposalOfficer "flcr inspection of the wings which were left on board).

11

1IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIil~IIIIII!~11111NAA.006.0157

•

All the halyards and derrick falls had been shot away so five mentried to lift it. This was impossible, so they rigged a double watchtackle from the derrick-boom. The Master thought this would notstand the strain, and as a bump might explode the bomb, theydesisted.

A wire strop was then made and passed round the bomb. Thecargo wire leading from the winch through the gin-block on the endof the derrick boom was shackled to the strop and the wire hove inon thc winch. The bomb was dragged aft until it was just forwardo( the bridge. The angle was stiU not quite right for a direct liftto the hatch, but with much bumping and pushing the bomb waseventually landed on to the hatch. Once on the hatch, two skidswere laid from hatch to the rail and the bomb rolled overboard.

The whole action, including the disposal of the bomb, tookone hour and ten rninntes.

PART II: STATISTICS

British ShippingCON VOYs. The following table shows the number of ships, British.

Allied and Neutral, which have sailed in escorted convoys during the lastweek and since the beginning of the war; together with the losses fromenerny action:-

12

111111111111111111~1111111111111111111NAA.006.0158

18

German Shipping Italian ShippingMediterranean

During the week news has been received of the sinking or damagingof five Italian merchant ships. (See Part 1, p. 2.)

The Ogaden, 4,546 tOIlS, was due to leave Naplcs on March 26 forLibya.

The j1-fauro Croce, 1,049 tons left Barcelona for Genoa on March 30.

The Pacific

The Fella, 6,072 t.ons, was set OIl fire by her own crew at Punta Arenas,Costa Rica, when the local authorities attempted to board her on March 31 .she is probably a total loss. The crew have been interned. '

For general information about the protective detcntion of Italianships in the United States, see Part I, p. 5

The G·,,'! of Mexico

The Cuban Navy is reported to have detained the Recca, 5,441 tons atHavana. The tanker GiOf{!,io Fassio, 6,212 tons, at Vera Cruz has beentaken into custody b.y the fvTexlcan Government.

The Atlantic

On March 27 the Alonbaldu, G,214 tons, \-vas reported to be ahout tosail [rom Para, Brazil. The tanker Frisco, 4,910 tons, sailed from Cfaraon March 28, and the tanker Franco jl1arh:lli, 10,535 tons, sailed fromPernambuco, OIl the same day having cleared for Oslo; the latter isthought to have 10,000 tuns of oil on board. Four other Italian ships inPernamhuco heLVe been showing con~idP.rahle activity and have takenon fresh water and provisions besides coal. The Conte Grande, 25,661 tonsand the l'ehro, 4,310 tons at Santos were reported on March 27, t.o beraising steam.

A report from Bnenos Aires says that the Italian ships in the port11a\'c received orders to prepare for sea. There aTe si:-.:. ships tot<lHi.ng36,873 tons. A similar report concerning two ships at Necochca in theArgentine, tIte Vo!ullfas, ;:),655 tons and the Pe!O,'"lUU, 5,314 tOIlS, hasalso bCf'll receiveu. The Arnaln1itas, 5,425 tOIlS, at Bahia Btanca wasrep?rted as intending to sail on IVlarr.h 26, and then as having postponedsalhng. The Vitton:o Veneto, 4,595 tons, in the saillt: IJort \vas alst) saidto be preparing to sail.

Considerable activity has a130 be~n shown by Italian ships in theCanary Islands, and there are persistent rumOurs lhat L1lf(~e ships willleave soon. At Las Palmas tlie Atlanta, 4,404 tons, went alongsidethf' tanker Cianna ivl on TVfarch 27, returning to moor at her hUOTV' in theevenmg. On March 29, the Capo Alga, 4,835 tons, and the ~tankcrs

Tuda:o, 5_.16.~ tOIl~: and HUfano, 4,450 tons, YI'Crc :'itated to be readyto sa11 from lel1enl£c.

15111111111111111111~1111111111111111111

NAA.006.0169

European WatersDuring the week seven ships have been either sunk or damaged. See-­

Part I, p. 2.The Gerda Vith, 1,312 tons, sailed from Vigo during the night of

March 25/26.

The Indian OceanThe Bertram Rickmers, 4,188 tons, left Massawa where she had been

since the beginning of the \Var. She was intercepted by H.M.S. Kandahar,at 0750/30 in 140 07' N., 41 0 42' E., and was immediately scuttled andabandoned. She was still afloat at 1000/30 and at anchor. This is thesecond ship to have tried unsuccessfully to escape Irom Massawa, theOder, 8,516 tons, having been intercepted by II.M.S. Slwreham onMarch 23. A third ship, the Wartenjels, 6,181 tons, is reported to haveleft Massawa between February 21 and March 21, but she has not beenheard of since; she is believed to be unarmed.

The PacificIt has been reported in the press that the RanEes, 7,983 tons, left

Shanghai for Japan on March 29. She had been in port since: September,1939.

The Elsa Essberger, 6,103 tons, which sailed from Kobe on March 23,.returned there two days later, and the Anneliese Essberger, 6,103 tons,which left Kobe on March 24, returned on March 27.

The Eisen Bach, 4,423 tons, at Punta Arenas, Costa Rica, was setun fire by her crew on March 31, when the local authorit1f'S tried toboard 11('L She is thought to be a total loss. The crew were beingrounded up.

The Hennon/his, 4,833 ions, and the Alunchen, 5,619 tOIlS, sailedsuddenly froIll Callao, Peru, on March 31; they" have since been sighted.The former has a considerable amount of cargo on board. The T.eipzig,5,898 tOIlS, and the :ifonsenatB, 5,578 tons, also at Callao, have set them­selves on llre, and so has the Fr£esland, 6,310 tons, at Paita.

For information about the detention of Gennan ships in the UnitedStates, see Part r, p. 5.

Gu6·· of JYIexicuThe llame/n, 4,:3;") 1 Lons, \vhich bas been at Vera Cruz since tIw heginning

of the war, has been taken into CIl.StO-:1\- by the Mexican Government.

Atlantic

'fhe Sordenwy, 3,667 tons, at PaT8, Brazil, compleh~d loading allavailaLle cargo ClI' l\'Iarch 2G, and t\VG days later anchored in the !::itrcarn.At Bahia f-'nqulrics wpre being made for the qnick cleaning of the bottomsof the BolhYJcrk, 4,173 tons, and the Jllaceio,3,23S tons. The Leeh, 3,290ton:;, which n:cerrtly arrived at Hio de Janeiro, was reported as likel),' tosail on March 31.

The LJresden, 5,5G7 lOllS, sailed from Santos at 2240/28, and it wasrumoured that she. was going south of Tristan da Cunha.

14

Sinkings, Attacks and Minings

The sinkings are in accordance with information l-eceived up to 1200on April 1.

\Vith the following belated reports the totals last week now amount to:~

10 British ships of 2-1,922 tons,6 Allied shil's of 27,528 tons1 Neutral shlJ) of 6,673 tons

Total losses up toMarch 30.

t; ~

;';~

~ .~II1:

~

IAllied

~t is considered certain that the Norwegian Oil Refinery ship Pelagos,12,083 tons, was a victim of the same enemy raider which captured thetwo other Norwegian Refinery ships, Ole Weg,<;er and Solgiimt. Sheleft Montevideo for the Whaling Grounds on November 10, and herwireless was last heard on the night of January 15, 1941.

The Dutch M andatika, 7,750 tons, in Convoy S.L.68 bound fromBatavia to Belfast with a cargo of sugar, was torpedoed on March 19,about 120 miles north-east of Sal in the Cape Verde Islands, and is nowpresumed to have sunk. Three of the crew were killed. The M andalikais the ex~Gcrman Nordmark.

Two Norwegian tankers, the Polykarp, 6,405 tons, bound from Greenockto Cura~oa and the Bianca, 5,688 tons, bound from Swansea to Aruba,are now known to have been captured by German warships on March 15,and to have had prize crews put on board. On March 20, the Biancawas intercepted by H.M. ships in position 44: t6 N.-I9: 21 W. andwas set on fire by the prize crew. The crew of the Rianca were rescuedand the prize crew taken prisoner.

11I1111111111111111111111111111111

NAA.006.0160

The Saint Fintan, 495 tons, was bombed and sunk by aircraft onMarch 22, ahout 7 miles uorth-north-west of the Smalls. One of thecrew was landed but died later.

Tonnage.

82922330n

1,352

3,446,1361,008,774

I 5,::::::---'------'--

I Losses dunng week

1_~_M_a~~h_2_4-_3_0__

IN f I No. of0.0 TSh' I onnage. Ships.

rps. I _-'-- _

British 12 53.337Allied 5 14,975Neutral 1 85

Totals 18 68,397

; Total 17 ships 01 59,123 tons

BRITISH LOSSES DUE TO ENEMY ACTIONIt has no\V been decIded that the Icelandic Reyky"abol'g, 687 tons,

which was sunk OIl March 10th, should b2 reckoned anlong the Neutral andnot among the Alli£d losses. Adjustment has been made accordingly in theabove tahle. Losses during week

March 24-30.Total losses up to

March 30.

((:40913-1) C17

The four ships captunxi in port last year are now included under" theheading" Other causes and cause unknown."

Tonnage.No. ofShips.

Tonnage.No. ofShips.

- ~--~--

ubmarinei

14,308 [.. 3 3"15 1,942,037inc .. .. - 188 464,092

uTface Craft .. 1 8,799 96 483.542ircraft .- .. R :l(),230 164 474,7(iOther causes and ~ - 36 81,7()5cause unknown.

-Totals .. 12 53,337 829 3,446,136

I

SMSAo

BELATED REPORTS

BritishThe trawler Aberdeen, 163 tons, which was machine-gunned by aircraft

and abandoned all March 11, is nOw presumed to have snnk. Two ofthe crew Vi'crc landed, six were drowni?d and two died of exposure.

The Western Chief, 5,759 tons, a straggler from Convoy S.C.24, boundfrom New York to NC\'r'port with a cargo of steel and lorric's v,ras to-rpcdoedon 1larch 14, a.bout 250 miles w6t-north-west of Rockrtll, and '15 nowbelieved to h8ve S11n k. The TvI8 :;ter and 20 sllrvi vors \-vere landed atthe Azores.

The Clan OgiI-vy, 5,802 tons, which was torpedoed 182 mi.ks nQrth~

north-\-vcst of the Cape Verde Islands on M8..rch 21, and the C!toma,8,077 tons, which was torperl.oed 520 miles \vest of the Scillies on :vfarch 23,are both nmv Dresumed -to have sunk. The Clan Ogilvy was homewardbound from (hittagong \-'lith a cargo of tea and the Chama was onpassage from Anlrossan to Nnv York. As far as is known at presentthere are no survivors from cilhcr Slltp,

18

,.

Mar. 4Mar. 3Mar. 9Mar. 2Mar. 9Mar. I:iMar. IIMar. 12Mar. 13

~ID:-due

Mar. 19

To

CapetownAdellCuracao '.Newport. "I'rcetownHalifaxHalifaxHalifaxFreetown

19

Halifax

New York Mar. 23H amjJtons 11ar. 24

Rds..Nuevitas, i lVlar. 26

Cuba.. I

Halifax i Mar. 21

l-'hiladelphia l\Iar. 22

From----- ---:-----,1D~:-due.

From

Ahadan. Feb. 6Durban. Feb. 1ILoch Ewe. Feb.13Halifax. Feb. 1:3Swansea. Feb. 18Oban. Feb. 19Clyde. Feb. 19Loch Ewe. Feb. 20Azores. Mar. 5

10 Milford Haven.Mar, 4.9, Mersey Mar. 5

Clyde Mar. 6

9! Mersey Mar. S

91 iVIillo'd Haven IMar. 4.

10 Mcrsey Mar. 5

Overdue Ships

4,388

4,3478,298

Name.

The Norwegian Gunny, 2,362 tons, which left Durban on February 22and has be.en overdue ~at Pernambuco s~nce March 14, is now reportedto have arnved at St. 1 homas, West Indies, on March 23.

Pris0!1ers rescued from the San Casimiro, 8!046 tons, which was capturedby a raIder and scuttled herself after being mtercepted by a British ship,have reported that the overdue ships A.D. Huff, 6,219 tons and Kantara,3,237 tons were attacked by raiders between February 22 and Mareh IS,

There is no further news of the following ships;-

)1 Ton. )K t)inage. no s.

6.9941102,546 I 96, \56 9

6,461 I 98,685 \21,908, 8,5,4.')8 I 103,385 8,7,926

1

13 I--'---.__ . ~--

British AdvocateGrigorios C. I I (Greek)Lustrous (Tanker)EffnaGrootekeYR (Dutch).Svein Jarl (Norwehrian)Sirikishna ..LinariaMarathon (Greek) ..

Royal Crown

Silverfir .•Mangkai (Dutch)

Name.

Myson

Athelfoam (;,554

__ .~lI4'5G4Sardinian Prince ._ 3,491

11III11111111111111111111111111111

NAA.006,0161

.Fate of crew(approximatefigures only).

All ~aved.

All saved.

19 ~aved, 30missing.

1 killed, remainderof Crew safe.

All saved.

All saved.

All saved.

37 saved, 5 killed.

All saved.

140 saved.

39 saved 3missing.

347

3,798

8,Q70

ITonnage.1 Position and II

Cause.

12 m. N.E. of GodrevyIsland, Cornwall.Aircraft.

166 m. N.W. of CapeWrath. Aircraft.

700 m. W. of Free­town. Surface raider.

17 m. N.N.E. of Blyth.Aircraft.

Nr. St. Gowan's Light­ship. Aircraft.

150 m. W. of CapeWrath. Aircraft.

Nr. Lundy Island. Air­craft.

Off Suffolk coast. Air-craft. I

Off Flamborough Head.Aircraft.

152 m. S.S.E. ofReykjanes. Su1>~

marine.155 m. 5.S.E. of

Reykjanes. Sub-marine.

275 m. S.W. of Iceland.Submarine.

190

627

3,759

5,550

5,352

5,197

9,956

8,799

6,809

642

6,38\

75

Name.

Antwerpen

EmbiricosNikolaos.

Solheim(Tanker).

Escaut

Name.

Dutch

Belgian

Dutch

Norwegian

Greek

Rossmore

Britannia

Meg Merrities ..

Coultarn

Somali (F.NA2)

Beaverbrae

EmpireMermaid.

Kestrel (trawler)

Oiltrader (tanker)(F.N.46).

Kimberley(trawler)

Germanic(H.X.ll5) I

Hylton (H.X.l\5)

Date.

- - .~--~---'----_----'..__.~­

ALLIED SHIPPING LOSSES DURING WEEK ENDINGMARCH 30

March 29

---o-~ I

S.E. of Crete. I Believed safe.Aircraft.

S.E. of Cret.e. i An saved.Aircraft. 1,

S Ill. off BUlle, All saved.Cornwall. IAircraft.

30 m. W.N.vV. 4 saveu.3 UllS-of Lundv I sing.Island. Ait-- I

craft. ILimbourg I 2,396 I 152 m. S.S.E. I .Not knmvll.

(H.X.115). of Reykjanes.Submarine. I

The only' -N~.-u-t-r-a-l-'-'I-:li-p-reported lost this week wa~ the l'aroc.sc iish~ngsmack Retnis,W7, 8S tons, which \-vas bombed by 3.lrI:raft on,~Iarch 27,wlule fisluIlg N.E. of the Shetlands. The crew was landed at lllOIshavn

March 28

I Fate of crewTon~ and passengers

I Position and Cause. (approximatenage. . \ )__._..l ~--~~---------.;--fi::guo::':.:e"-s?_~

4 saved, 5 missing.

Mar. 30

Mar. 29

Mar. 29

Mar. 29

Mar. 29

Mar. 28

March24/25.

March24/25.

March 25

Mar. 25

Mar. 24

Mar. 27

Mar. 28

Mar:. 27

Mar. 25

__D_a_te_._1 Nationality.

20

PART III: NAVAL INTELLIGENCE

lr·-;;.; •\

" §"0'·1

~J)

" i.Q,

:::; 'i

'" W0 'fN ,

;

\iIi

11111111111!li~IIIIIIIIIII~111111NAA.006.0162Convoy•zn

. . }One, probably the Tirpitz, left Kicl between_. March 1:, and 18. The Bismarck reported at

Gdynia, March 20. (Graded C2.)

Imports

Based on information received up to March 31,1941

Main Units1. An incomplete photographic air reconnaissance of Kiel was carried

out on March 24. The berth in which the pocket battleship Liitzow waslocated on March 18 was not covered, but the 8-in. cruiser Prinz Eugenwas again seell. The Leipzig was not in the dry dock which she wasoccupying on March 18, but may have been elsewhere in the port.

2_ The battle cruisers Gneisenau and Scharnhorst were seen in Brest onMarch 28 and March 30, the former in dry dock and the latter alongsidethe Torpedo Boat Station.

3. The last known disposition of German Main Units is as follows :­Battleships:· .

BismarckTirpitz

Germany

Old Battleships :-

Schlesien . . . '}B h . MSchles7.vig-Hotstein ot at KIel, arch 18.

Battle Cruisers :-_.-Gneisenau .. }Both in Brest March 31. The Gneisenau in a dock,Scharnhorst . . and the Scharnhorst alongside Torpedo Boat

Station.

Imports into Great Britain by ships in convoy during the week endingMarch 29, totalled 557,429 tons compared with 502,789 tons duringthe previous seven days and an average of 680,234 tons during the previousten weeks. Oil imports were 134;703 tons in thirteen tankers comparedwith 162,299 tons in fifteen tankers during the week ending March 22.Imports of minerals were 155,816 tons of which 112,192 tons were steel,scrap iron, pig iron and iron ore. The corresponding figures for the.previous week were 159,095 and 123,902 tons. Timber imports were9,548 and cereal imports were 88,480 tons, eleven ships being fully ladenwith grain. Other food imports amounted to 92,081 tons of which 2,OS3tons were fruit, including a cargo of 1,050 tons of Seville oranges, 13,666tons were sugar, 12,234 were refrigerated and tinned meat, bacon andhams, and 13,011 tons were tea. There were two small consignments ofonions, totalling 168 tons, and 150 tons of rum from Mauritius. Tobaccoimports were 2,006 tons. Aircraft and considerable quantities of machineryand war stores were among the cargoes.

Pocket Battleships :-

Admiral Scheer ",orth of Madagascar, February 22,Littzow Alongside at Kiel, Marcb 18,

8~in. Cruisers :-

1IIIIIillllllllll,III!1111111NAA.006.0163

, . }One, probably Hipper, left Brest night, March 15/16.. . the other was alongside at Kiel, March 24.

Completing at Bremen, March 19.

HipperPrinz EugenSeydlitz

6-in. Cruisers ;­

Le£pzzgHitmberg

K6lnEmden

4, Destroyers:­

Kiel

Kiel CanalBremen ..WilhelmshavenBremerhaven

In dry dock at Kiel, March 18. (See above.)Not located since December 21, when she was at

Kie!.At Kiel, December 21 }Both probably operating offAt Kiel, January 30 Heligoland, March 12/13.

March 18. Five (only two were seen onMarch 24, but port was not completelycovered).

ylarch 18. One (proceeding eastwards).March 19, Three (probably completing).March 18. Two.March 18. Two.

E-Boats

5. E-boat activity was reported off the East Anglian coast on the nightsof 1~arch 23-24 and 24-25, but no reports of damage to convoys or escortshave been received; the enemy, on the other hand, appear to havesuffered some loss.

6, The British Wandle in Convoy F,S.43, was attacked by gunfire nearHearty Knoll Buoy at about 2230 on March 23; she replied with her12-pdr. and Hotchkiss guns and, after having silenced the enemy's pom­pom fire, claimed to have sunk the E·boat, which disappeared after theexplosion of a round of H.E. alongside.

7. Captain D.16, in H.Y1.S. Worcesler (escorting Convoy F.N.41),reported unsuccessful torpedo attacks at about 2250 on March 24, andclaimed two hits on one E-boat in a position to the north-eastward ofYarmouth.

8. The British William Cash, in Convoy F,N.41, opened [!Ce on anE-boat about 2 miles N, of Sheringham Light Buoy, and claims threehits on the E-boat, which was apparently stopped when last seen.

9. Correction.-The report in paragraph 8 (page 17), of W.I.R. No. 52,of March 7, 1941, may have given, incorrectly, the impression that theBritish Minorca was torpedoed after H,MS. Woolston had reported thatthe E-boats had been driven off. Actually the torpedoing of the shipoccurred fIrst, but could not be reported till after the enemy had beendriven off \vith, it is thought, severe damage.

21

Mining30. There was little or no Illllllng activity until the night of March

29/30 when the Humber was again attacked. It is thought that some50 mines were dropped. On the night of March 30/31 there was a furtherraid by about 26 aircraft, apparently millclaying to seaward of SpurnPoint.

, 31. There have been only two casualties dnring the week - a rnotorfishing boat off Seaham and a small freIghter off Bellamy's WharfRotherhithe.

U-boats25. The week has been quiet and up to March 28 there was a temporary

lull in activity directly caused by the sinkings effected hy H.MS. Walkerand H.M.S. Vanoe during the night of March 16/17.

26. A ship was shelled on March 24 about 675 miles west of Ushantafter leaving an outward bound convoy.

27. On March 28 three ships in an inward convoy whose local escorthad not yet joined were torpedoed and sunk.

28. One or two V-boats have operated along the southern coast ofIceland, and it is expected that increasing attention will he paid by theenemy to these waters.

29. No effective attack has been made on any V-boat.

21. Reconnaissance activity by enemy aircraft has shpwn signs ofsteady increase during the week. As many.as 100 aircraft were .. at tiIIlesengaged in this direction, reporting on convoys off the East Coa~t., Par...ticular attention has also been paid to shipping off the S.W. Coast andin St. George's Channel. Inland reconnaissance activi,ty has been on amoderate scale and G.N.A. activity has taken place over the WesternApproaches and off the Norwegian Coast on a small scale each day.

22. In the early part of the week adverse weather prevented manyattacks on shipping, but since March 25 activity has been extensive.Many convoys off the East Coast were bombed, as was shipping betweenthe Scillies and Milford Haven, where constant attacks have resulted inthe loss of several ships. Attacks by the F.W. aircraft to the west andnorth-west of Ireland and in Northern Approaches have been morenumerous, but fortunately no more successful, than in previous weeks.

23. Offensive activity against this country by day has been on a verysmall scale.' Bombing has taken 'place at a number of :places in theEastern COllnties and on the South Coast, but little damage of anyimportance has been done. Several R.A.F; stations have been attackedduring the week and aircraft from Norway were responsible for raids onthe Faeroes.

24. Night bombing activity was slight during the period March 24-28,except for isolated raids by a few aircraft at dusk each evening. On thenight of March 29 there was appreciable activity, Bristol and Avonmouthbeing again the principal targets.

23Ii 1111111!~I~I~lllill~~~

NAA.006.0164

Aircraft Activity.18. The week under review has been marked by a noticeable increase

in attacks on shipping by enemy aircraft. On the other hand of(ellsiveactivity over this country by day and night has been almost insignificantexcept on the night of March 29.

19. The scale of effort by aircraft on meteorological flights has variedlittle from previous weeks. The North Sea zenit flights have operatedregularly and the aircraft [rom Trondheim has been out on ftve days inthe week, during one of which it made a longer flight to the West thanusual, reaching the N.E. coast of Iceland. The fiight from Brest hasdaily covered the area up to 1T W.

20. There has been considerable increase in activity by the F.\V.aircraft operating from both Bordeaux and Stavanger. Not less thantwo of these aircraft ltavc operated each day, and on several occasionsfour or five aircraft have been engaged in weather and shipping recon­naissance over the Atlantic to the west and north-west of Ireland.The round ft.ight from Bordeaux to Stavanger or in the reverse directionhas been made hy at least one aircraIt each day in the week.

22

Raider Activity10. On March 28 the ScharnJwrst and Gneisenau were located in Brest by

air reconnaissance.11. The following ships are now definitely known to have been attacked

by the battle cruisers on March 15 and 16: Royal Crown, Empire Industry,Chilam Reefer, Athelfoam, San Casimiro, Polykarp, Demetenon, Simnia,Sardinian Prince, Myson and .Bianca.

12. It is also believed that fonr other ships were attacked, namely :~Granli, Mangkai, British Strength, Silver Fir, as survivors from them werereported to have been landed at Brest.

13. It has now been established that Trelawny was attacked by thebattle cruisers on February 22, and that three other ships--the Kantara,A. D. Huff, and Harlesden, which are all overdue, were attacked betweenthen and March 15.

14. It therefore appears that during a month's cruise the Scharnhorstand Gneisenau accounted for at least nineteen ships. They claim to havesunk or captured twenty-two.

15. The" Raider" sighted on March 22 (see W.I.R., No. 54, page 17,para. 11) has subsequently proved to be the British Sacramento Valley.

16. A raider has, however, been operating in the area SQuth of the CapeVerde Islands. The Greek Marathon has been overdue at Freetown sinceMarch 13, on a voyage from the Azores, while early on March 25 theBritannia was sunk in the vicinity of 07° 30' N., 24° 00' W. Survivorshave been picked up and report that the raider was similar to the Germanfruit-ship Pioneer, with a different bow, straight stern, and the funnelcloser to the bridge. It therefore seems possible that she was theSanta Cruz (see illustration facing page 1).

17. The Newbrough has now arrived safely at Jamaica, but it is notclear whether she managed to escape from a merchant raider or whetherthe other ship was harmless.

24 Il

t-

The Hipper can enter basin~

but the Scheer cannot.

Remarks.Too short for Hipper. Re~

ported by prisoners of war :that this dock is beingdivided to accommodatemore U-boats. for which itis in constant use.

Can be used as dry dock.Depth on sill 28 ft. 5 in.

BismarckScharnhorst

(if lightened).Scharnhorst

(probable).

Will takeScheM' ..

Dock,; too small.

Precise depth on sill unknown.The Jean Bart left beforecompletion on top of H.W.springs.

Note -If a ShIp 15 already docked in the entrance lock, theScharnhorst cannot enter No dock by the small entrance. TheHipper and Scheer can do so.Docks too small ..

Entrance lock ..No.1

Construction dock

Dock.No.3

Bordeaux

$t. Ntl.taire ..

La Pallice

Port.Lori~nt

Navigation to BordeauxBerths have been dredged at Bassins (Bordeaux) to a depth of 29 ft. 6 in.

alongside. Vessels drawing up to 28 ft. can pass up the river on one tideat springs and 26 ft. at neaps. Estimated maximum draught of theScharnhorst is 28 ft. in salt water. In March, 1939, a tanker drawingi 26 ft. 6 in. had to wait two days for a suitable tide and wind. The Hipper

, draws 21 ft.'11 No/e.-Both at Havre and Cherbourg is a dry dock that will take. all ships.

INFORMATION ON YMUIDEN

E-Boats. (Graded B.2)1. An E-boat flotilla is based on FischhavcIl, Ymuiden. The boats

lie in the north side at the seaward end. The torpedoes and ammunitionare stored at the fish market abreast of the boats. Minesweepers lie onthe south side of this basin. There is a repair shop in the centre of thesouth side near the water and here running repairs are done. E-boatsdraw their petrol from small tankers of about 300 tons, which lie in thebasin and bring petrol from Amsterdam. On Friday, March 21, sourcesaw five E-boats leave at 1800, one remained behind. E-boats arecamouflaged by being covered by sails painted different colours. The

.~ boats are not camouflage painted. Normally the officers and crew go to~ Amsterdam every nig-ht and return at 0700 next day, but just lately they*have been living in a house not far from the boats at Ymuiden. ~

~ 2.. A new. E-boat base is to be constructed on the south end of the~ herrmg baslIl. Source thonght it would consist of pens covered withp, camouflage.

i Comme~t.-This may be the explanation of pens in courSe of~' construction at Ostcnd and whose construction is suspected at~ . Boulognc.

! ~. E-b?,:ts always arrive by sea. Source has ncvcr seen or heard of:~ them arnvmg by canal, but occasionally a single boat goes to Amsterdam,I probably for repairs. ~. ~

~ ~IIIIIIIIIII~~I~IIIIII~IIIIIIJ! NAA.OO6.0165

Remarks.

Reported by reconnaissance:lengthened 150 ft., but tooHarrow for Scharnhorsf.

Too short for Hipper.

Too narrow for Bismarck.

Scheer ..

Will take

: }Scharnhorst

Hipper andScheer,

No.4

WEST COAST OF FRANCEDocks for German Wanhips

This table shows the docks and harbours on the west coast of Franceavailable for German ships.

Port. Dock.Brest No.8

No.9 ..Commercial

This sketch was made from a poor photograph taken while the raiderwas attacking the Rangitane. It is therefore possible that there are minormodifications in her actual silhouette.

She is probably a vessel of about 7,000 tons with a speed of at least18 knots. She is Diesel engined and is said to smoke a great deal, possiblybecause she uses unsuitable fuel taken from prizes.-Great secrecy was maintained about hel and in consequence few details

are available. She was nicknamed Narvik, or the" Black Ship." (Atthe time she was painted black.) Her official German number may be" 41," but this is not certain. Her captaiIl was said to be ruthless andunpopular with his men. Her topmasts and funnel are telescopic and shecarries at least one aircraft, housed in number 1 hold, as well as torpedotubes, and the usual armament of six or seven S·9-in. guns and pom-poms.She is also fitled for mine-laying.

She was last reported off Emiran Tslanrl on December 21, 1940, whenprisoners from the other two raiders (but not from her) were landed. Asshe appears to have been at sea since March, 1940, it is possible that shemay now be returning to Germany or a German occupied port, if she hasnot already done so.

32. According to the Swedish press the following area on the Danishside of the northern entrance to the Sound has been declared dangeroustosrupping:-- .

56°05' 03" N., 12° 31' 00"56° 06' OS" N" 12° 33' 01"56° 08' 00" N., 12° 30' 07"56° 05' 07" N., 12° 27' 07"

There is a buoyed passage aloug the coast following the five fathom line.

RAIDER "A"(See Appreciation for 1940, W.I.R., No. 45)

4. About a month ago an E-boat was hit at sea off Ymuidcn by abomb and sunk. Source had this at first hand from the crew of a trawler'who saw it.

State oj Y1nuiden Harbour. (Graded B.2)I. The blockship 1- P. Coen put in place by our demolition parties.

has been blown up, but the south 'side of the entrance is stillconsidercd~·

dangerous and all traffic keeps to the north side.

2. The steamer Ranawyk, which was sunk across thesQuth entrance,;has been raised and this is now clear. The middle lock is cleared and in'nse. The north lock is still blocked and the Germans are not troublingabout this, as the middle lock is sufficient for their needs.

Sea Traffic. (Graded C.3)1. There is very little traffic at Amsterdam ; source estimated about

one ship a week and he does not think the port has much importanceeither for trade or for military supply.

2. Rotterdam -is far more important and convoys, including iron oreships, arrive regularly. On Wednesday, March 19 (I), he saw a convoyof five or six ships bound for Rotterdam. He also thinks that petrol andoil is taken by tankers to Rotterdam from Germany, but is not sure ofI:.this.

3. At Ymuiden, some time ago, one of our bombs missed the harboul<but fell on the house of a local Quisling. The whole town was delighted..and said: .. You see, the R.A.F. know everything; if you are a Quislingyou will certainly be bombed." I

POSSIBLE GERMAN INTENTIONS J(i) Invasion of Great Britain ~

Results have suggested that the German plan is to intensify blockadand air attack and that unless this fails to defeat Great Britain invasionwill not be nndertaken. Detailed analysis of enemy propaganda tends,in the same direction. ~

Considerable activity has been noted on obsolete naval units lying in:'~Ge:man .occnpied p?rts, bul so far it has not been possible to deduce any~rehable mterpretatIOn. :~

There have been no significant reports concerning movements of shipping~or military preparations in German ports, and it is reported that there~are, in Denmark at least, no signs of preparations for offensive seaborne~

operations. ,\.,Extensive air reconnaissance of the Low COWltries and France showsi

that work is being carried out on aerodromes of a type which indicatesMthat the enemy's air policy is mainly direded to night bombing. Whil~lf

this might. suggest the preliminary stages of invasion it is more likcly>~in the absence of other signs, to signify an intensification of the bloCkade~i

(ii) Spain and Portugal ~

Individual reports state that the German Army H.Q. in Bordeaux ha~m~~ed to 13iarritz and that several hundred German troops have bee,

.~

j

arnVlIlg on the Spanish frontier. There is no continuation ·of eitherreport and recent air reconnaissance shows no unusual activity in thatregion beyond the widening of bridges and other long term preparations.

Neither Dr. Salazar nor the SpanishClrief of Staff thinks invasion ofPortugal Or Spain is imminent.

;Ci,erman Fifth Column activities on an increased scale in Portugal andalso in the Cape Verde ISlands are again reported.(ilifMorocco'An increase in the strength of the German Armistice Conunission at

Casablanca is contemplated, and there has been a strengthening of Germaninfluence in Tangier.

.(iv) LibyaThere has been no considerable increase in the number of German

trOOps in Libya. It is reported that German ground forces were involved·in the recovery of EI Agheila. The strength of the German forces now inTripolitania is estimated to be one light armoured division and elements,of another armoured division.

(v) Bulgaria

'~here are now, proba~ly tv.:enty complete divisions in Bulgaria, themajor .concentrahon~ bemg shU probably in central and south-westernBulgana. Included In the total aTe ptobably three armoured divisionsa monntain division and two regiments of parachute troops. '(vi) Greece

Reports indicate that the Germans have been completing theirarrangements to attack Greece and that troop-carrying aircraft havearrived in South-East Europe.

Me~n~hile t?e ~ermans in Athens are adopting a conciliatory attitude,the Mllu~ter Wlshmg to attend the Greek Independence Day celebrationsand o~enllg to reopen trade negotiations. This may be part of the usualtechmql1e adopted by the Germans which would enable them to tell theworld that they extended the hand of friendship to the Greeks and thatthe latter refused .to cl,:sp it. On the other hand, it may be anotherexample of the cunous nvalry and lack of co-ordination which is so oftenapparent between Gem1an Government Departments.(vii) Turkey

A reliable report states that Germany will follow her Greek campaignby the occupatIon of th~ whole of tl:e Balkan Peninsula and later, by an~dvance ~hrollgh Ana~oha. Less .relIable sources speak of colonial troopsm Bulgana and there 1S open talk In German military circles of a campaignthrough Turkey against Iraq and Egypt.

The Germans do not usu~l~-%, disclose their future plans in such anopen m.anncr; but. the pOSSIbIlIty of an attack on Turkey following theconclUSIOn of the Greek campaign certainly exists.(viii)1Yugoslavia

Ge~~ny. is reported to have demanded from Yugoslavia, inter alia,demoblllZahon, control of Yugoslav communications, and the right ofpassage for German troops across Yugoslav territory.

1'lllllllllil~III~I~IIII~I!IIIIIII~NAA.006.0166

.-,IIf!

Swedenii!I,\IIII~li\i\,\m~ II\i~NAA.OO6.0167

Swedish Operational Aerodromes

A large number of operational aerodromes have been prepared through­out Sweden. The Swedish Air Force wilJ operate from -these aerodromesirt· an emergency after the evacuation of their 'peace-time aerodromes.Their general position is in the following areas :-15 in Vasterg6t1and;9 in Skane; 6 in S6dermanlaud; 4 in Kalmar; 4 in Norrkoping; 10 inBoden. These aerodromes arc not prepared for demolition, hut areprotected by a number of machine-gun emplacements which have beenspecially designed and constructed to withstand heavy bombing. Theseposts are constantly manned,

The group of ten aerodromes in the Boden area, termed the Notrlandbase, will also contain full repair facilities for about twenty squadrons.Fuel, oil, ammunition, bombs, etc., are to be stored at these aerodromes,and ground personnel will be permanently stationed there so that, in anemergency, the bulk of the Swedish Air Forcc can fly to this arca andoperate immediately.

Purchase of Italian Aircraft

It is learnt that 108 Caproni 313 bomber reconnaissance aircraft havebeen purchased by Sweden from Italy, of which all but five have arrived.

Thirty c.R. 42 flgbter aircraft have so far been delivered to the SwcdishAir Force; fifteen remain on order.

Sixty Falco I fighter aircraft with Fiaggio radial engines have beenpurchased, and delivery is expected to begin this month at the rate often monthly. It was not found possible to obtain the Falco with D.B. 601engines as the Italians have experienced great difficulty in the manufactureof this type of engine. The armament of the Falco is two 13-mm. gunsfiring through the airscrew. Additional guns cannot be introduced intothe wings without structuralrnodiflcations.

New Swedish Dive Bomber

A modified version of the Swedish dive bomber (Northrop SA-I) is tobe used by Army Co-operation units.

A second version is to he fitted with floats and to be used by the Naval-Co-operation units. It was recently intended that this aircraft should befitted with the Twin-Wasp which would give a performance of 450 k.p.h_(279,6 m.p.h.). Owing to the impossihility of obtaining American engines,the Mercury 24, built under licence in Sweden, is to bc used. Themaximum performance with this engine is 410 k.p.h. (254,7 m.p.h.).It is expected that squadrons will receive this aircraft in June, 1941.It is known as the" B.17."1 minimum

II3

185

10

58

7

"119 minimum16 minimum

65

67I

179

61

55

113

145

10

199

42

2

232

2

Cavalry.

DISTRIBUTION OF GERMAN DIVISIONS

Total

Area.

IIi;i

The latest estimated distrihlltion of German divisions is as follows:- jIMmomCd.!Mo,o,ized,\'lnfaOi,y_.-o-_T_ot3.l. .~

Iif~'

~

NorwayDenmarkGermanyBaltic CoastEast Prussia and

Polish Corridor.Poland (excluding

Corridor).Bohemia-Moravia.AustriaSlovakiaRoumaniaBulgariaLow Countrie:; and

France.Italy Troops lreported.

_L_ib_y_a 1_ - -__1__1 \ -

.. \ I I 13 I 10-------'--- ---'- ----- ---

*Indmles two 5.S. divisions.

,

There is no doubt that the Yngoslav coup d' Etat has come as an'unpleasant surprise to the Germans and we may expect to find German I

concentrations forming on the Yugoslav border with a view to impliment-,ing the threats should Yugoslavia prove obdurate as she is likely to do. •••1.·

(ix) Soviet Russia ..Reports suggesting that Germany intends to attack the U.S.s.R. this

summer continue to. be received but are not convincing. There is nodoubt, however, that German activity in Finland continues-possiblywith a view to containing Soviet troops, possibly to distract Sovietattention from the Balkans-and also that Germany is increasing thenwnber of troops in .Poland.

(x) SwedenGermany has made demands on Sweden for greater latitude with regard

to the transit agreement and possibly also for the restriction of pro-British I"

propaganda. There is absolutely no reason to think that the demands. ·•.•·I~...will be backed by force. .'

ConclusionThere is no doubt that the attack on Greece is Germany's next step_ ~

If this attack is successful it is impossible to say whether she will theu \1.·.·.

tum her attentions to Turkey, attack Gibraltar or extend her activities lin Tripolitania. Her final decision will depend principally on the success ,!or otherwise of her blockade and air attacks against this country.

29

Ice Conditions[March 28]

White SeaNo change; usual opening date is about third week of May.

Baltic(i) Gulf of Bothnia, }(ii) Gulf of Finland. No change.

(iii) Baltic Sea.-Conditions are improving very slowly due to thepersistence of cold weather. Navigation is now possible everywhere..though in places pack ice makc~ progress very slow_ The southernapproaches to the Sound and the Great Belt are intermittently navigable,but a change of wind direction, and perhaps fog as well, will mean severaldays of long delays during the next fortnight.

(iv) Approaches to Baltic Sea.-The Kattegat is navigable, but thesituation is little improved and drifting floes and fog will cause manydifficulties for another ten days or more. Passage through the Great Beltand the Sound is intermittently practicable with the aid of icebreakers forocean-going ships.

North SeaIce in small quantity persists off the west coast of Jutland and ralher

more off the Skaw. There is little likelihood of any ice off the southernNorwegian coast west of the 10th meridian, and westerly winds for aperiod of at least 24 hours should preclude a possibility of meeting iceoutside the tOO-fathom line in the Skagerrak.

Denmark Strait

The width of the channel off Iceland is about 40 miles but varies con­siderably with the direction of the wind.

ItalyBased on information received up to March 31, 1941

Enemy Surface CraftTRIPOLI. On March 23 a Blenheim reconnaissance reported that there

were SCV('ll large, 30 very small ships and fOUf submarines in TripoliHarbour. One large ship was off the harbour. One large and four mediumwarships were 20 miles north-west of Tripoli. Small ships were alsoreporteil near Sirte and Tamct, and at Beurat-c1-Hsun, where Lhey wereunloading, on the same date.

From 1040 to 1405 on March 26 a GlenIl Martin carried oul anotherphotographic reconnaissance of Tripoli Harbour. In the h8.rbour werea hospital ship 01 15,000 tons, six destroyers of the Gregale class, ~wo

torpedo boats, one fleet auxiliary and the following merchantmen: One

30

019,000 tons, one of 8,000 tons, two of 7,000 tons, two of 4,000 tons,.one.0£:3000 tons, and three of 1,000 tons. Thirty barges and eight seaplanes~w'(~r~,'also in the harbour. Two miles east of the harbour a merchantman',0(5.,:000 tons with bows under watE'r and a fieet auxiliary standing by andwith lighters alongside were reported. '

On March 28 a Glenn Martin reconnoitring between Malta and the-Tunisian coast repoded at 1243 three merchantmen of between 2,000­3,000 tons 100 miles north of Tripoli, heading south at a speed of ten knots.

NAPLES. Naples was reconnoitred by a Glenn Martin on March 27.In this harbour at 1405 hours there were four destroyers, three fleetauxiliaries and three merchantmen of 4,000 tons. A convoy of threemerchantmen of 6,000 tons, escorted by two destroyers, two gunboats andtwo Macchi 2oos, was eutering the harbour. The following ships werealso reported: One merchantman of 3,000 tons seven miles west ofNaples 'on an eastern course at a speed of 10 knots; another of 2,000 tons15 miles west of Naples on a westerly course, speed 10 knots.

At 1218 a merchantman of 5,000 tons was sighted 30 miles east-north-east of Cape Bon in Tunisia on a southerly course, and at 1440 hoursi ~~~~:r of 3,000 tons in position 40: 00 N.-13: 00 E., also on a southerly

I'." BRINDISI. A Glenn Martin reconnoitring Brindisi on March 27 estab­

lished that at 1540 hours the following ships were in the harbour: twocruisers, one battleship under constrnction, three merchantmen of5,000 tons and three of 1,000 tons. One destroyer was entering thei harbour.

S H.M.S. Parthian attacked an escorlcd convoy east of Cape Dell 'Armi

I'.':.· on March 16. Three torpedoes were fired at a 6,OOO-ton merchantman

and three at a IO,OOO-ton tanker. The result was unobserved; but twoexplosions heard were probably hits on the merchant ship, and a thirdexplosion was thought to be a hit on the tanker.

I On March 19 H.MS. Truant entered the anchorage at Buerat-el-HsunI at night to attack a lanker observed during the day, but her torpedoes~ missed under the ship al 400 yards as the tanker had already unloaded." A lighter or pier was, however, probably hit.

; Fleet Action in the Mediterranean ilnml.llllllillll~~'I'mThe Battle of Matapan, March 28-29, 1941 i NAA.OO6.0168

At the time of going to press full reports on the above action have not$ been received, but information so far to haud shows that on March 27~'. British air recoIlnaissance reported a force of enemy warships to the east­~ ward of Cape Passero, steering easlwards. Sleps were immedialelyt' taken to intercept them.

~ At 0740 the following morning, H.M.S. Orion signalled that she hadi made contact south of the western end ot Crete with a force of enemy~. cruisers and one Littorio class battleship, while a second enemy forcet containing two battleships, a cruiser and destroyers was also reported~ by air reconnaissance about 4S miles further north.

~ 31~I.~

~

1

At 1630 on March 24 there was a high level bombillg attack on Grandij:arbonr by ten ]u. S8's with an escort of twenty Me.f.09's. Slight9-arn~gewas done to cnrlhan property but then;~ were no SerVIce casualties.A:A. claimed .one Ju. 88 as 3; probable los~ and two others damaged:eighteen .Hurncanes went up III two formahons, butthe enemy avoidedcontact.

On March 26 at 0715 a single aircraft approached the island to within20 miles of the coast and returned.

'On March 27 and 28 the enemy left a standing fighter screen o( twoand sometimes three fonnations of three to six aircraft, mostly 10 to20 miles cast of the island. These tadics were probably to interceptreconnaissance aircraft from Malta, and the take·-offs of Glend Martinson reconnaissance were delayed un,til opportunities occurred suitably tarout them out.

On March 29 approximately 14 enemy alrcraft flew over the island frOlTl

the north in the early hours of the morning. Parachute Hares weredropped and A.A. enga.ged unseen targets. Some bombs dropped onland and several in the sea. There was no Servic'e damage or casualties,but one civilian was killed and eight were wounded. .

GERMAN RAIDS. During the recent German raids on Malta­undoubtedly more severe than the Italian raids-it is to be noted thatnearly three-fourths of the casualties occurred OIl two days and in areasin which the people were taken by surprise. In other German raids,causing severe damage to property, the number of casualties has beenremarkably small. The increasing number of shelters and the readlnessof the people to use them is undoubtedly having a good effect.

ALEXANDRIA. On March 24 onc unidentified aircraft reconnoitredAlexandria at midday but no bombs were dropped.

SUEZ. During the afternoon of March 29 a Gladiator of the Royal­Egyptian Air Force Fighter Squadron based at Suez engaged a singleHe.lIl which was flying over the town.

CHETE. A Hudson reported a C. R.42 in the sea off Crete after anattack by C. R.42s on Heraklion aerodrome on March 25.

EHITREA. On March 28 three C.R.42s machine-gunned ]ijiga aero­drome and three S.A.A.F. ]1..1.52s and one Gull on the ground weredamaged. One European was wonnded.

The Brazilian Taubale, 5,OSS tons, was attacked on March 22 by aGerman aircraft while on independent passage. The attack was madeabout 100 miles north-east of Alexandria. Six bombs were dropped anda near miss damaged the ship's steering gear. The J'(utbaie stoppedimmediately the attack started and the crew trIed to abandon ship, buteach attempt was frustrated by machine-gun fire, during which onc manwas killed and fourteen wcre wounded. One boat cventnally managed toget away and later, when the aircraft had gone, the ship was rehoardedby the crew and brought into Alex3.ndria. A flying-boat was sent out,but arrived aftcr the enemy aircraft had left.

Asenes of torpedo attacks by the F.A.A. made on the Littorioclasbattleship seriously damaged her and caused her to fcdllce: speed. Otheenemy ships were heavily attacked by Blenheims. This, and the generconfusion to the enemy caused by these air attacks, resulted in the nighencounter. Towards nightfall the British mainforcesmadf" contact witthe enemy who were then heading in a north-westerly direction.

The British battleships opened fire at 4,000 yards and the first salvo·all fOlmd their mark and almost wrecked two of the enemy 8-in. cruiserDestroyers astern of these cruisers were seen tc turn and fire torpedoand our battlefleet turned to avoid them. The destroyer screen wasent in to mop up, which they did very effectively, H.M.A.S. Stuart anH.M.S. Havock particularly doing considerable damage. In the meantime our destroyer attacking force went in search of the Littorio clabattleship but failed to locate her, and it seems probable that she move.'Off under cover of darkness during the action against the cruisers.

Results so far known show that of the enemy ships, three 8-in. cruiser{Pola, Zara and Fiume) and two destroyers (Vincenzo Gioberti anM aestrale) were sunk, while it is possible that a further destroyer (Alfieriand the 6-in. cruiser Giovanni delle Bande N ere were also sunk. Oth'ships are known to have been damaged in addition to the Littorio claJ'battleship, which is thought to be the Vittorio Veneto. '

About 900 Italian officers and men were picked up, but a fnrther 3 .or 400 had to be left owing to attacks on British ships by German aircraft~The British Commander-in-Chief sent a signal to the Italian commande~-­in-Chief reporting the position of these men and suggested that a hospit '.ship should be sent to pick them up. The Italian C-in-C. replied, thankin .him and saying that the hospital ship Gradisca had already left Taranto.Among the survivors rescued by us is the Captain of the Pola. The I talii'Admiral whose :flag was in the cruiser Zara is missing. It is learnt tha.'the Italian Commander-in-Chief was in the Littorio battleship. _

The British ships suffered no damage or casualties in the engagement~Two British aircraft were lost. _~

Greek destroyers were sent through the Corinth Canal in order to joi~in the action but unfortlInately arrived too latc. They were able, howeverl~to rcnder great service in picking up survivors from the enemy ships. ~

According to latest reports, the composition of the opposing nava~;forces was- ,~

British: 3 battleships, 4 cruisers, 12 destroyers and 1 aircraft]carner.

Italians: 3 hattleships, 11 cruisers and 14 destroyers.

Enemy Aircrajt Activity '.'MALTA. There has been considerable air activity over Malta durin&}

the week, but in several cases attacks have failed to materialize and irfgeneral the raids were less effective than those recently carried out. ~

At dawn on March 24, six unidentified aircraft dive-bombed the,;dockyard. Some damage was done to the dockyard buildings and ther~}were four slight Army casualties. ~IJ

32 ~f!

(C40913-1) D

1111111111111~llllllllllllillllNAA.OOS.01S9

33

Attacks on Enemy Ports and other objectivesALBANIA. Six, BleIiheims, escorted by thirteen Hurricanes and eleven'

Gladiators. bombed Berat aerodrome on March 23. Two enemy aircraftwere destroyed on the ground. On the same date Hurricanes of33 Squadron were sent to maclllne-gun the aerodrome at Berat andencountered twenty G.50s over the target. The Hurricanes destroyedtwo of them certainly, and probably two others. One Hurricane machine­gunncd the aerodrome, destroying two G.50s on the ground and damaging'a third.

Five Blenheims, escorted by ten Gladiators, dropped 4,500 lb. of bombson an enemy camp at Paraboar near Buzi, also on March 23.

On March 26 four Gladiators intercepted six bombers escorted bytwenty G.50s and Macci 200s near Paramythia in Epirus. One G.50was probably destroyed and a second badly damaged.

DODECANESE. On March 27 eleven Blenheims dropped nearly 12,000 lb.of bombs on Calato aerodrome in Rhodes, hitting runways and destroyingone aircraft on the ground. A petrol dump and aerodrome buildings wereset on fire. Smoke from the former was visible for 100 miles. .. ERITREA. Ene~y positions were heavily bombed by British aircraftIn support of troops before and during the capture of Keren and thesubsequent withdrawal of the Italians to Asmara on March 27. During I'the dny Wellesleys, Hardys, Gauntlets, S,A.kF. Hurricanes and Vincents 'bombed and machine-gunned Italian columns withdrawing along the .'Asmara road, destroying M.T. and inflicting casualties. Blenheims 'dreppec! bombs on military headquarters at Asmara on March 28. During I,

this operation fllemy troops at Teclesan were machine-gunned and '.bombed. Vincents bombed and machine-gunned M.T. on the Asmara­Gondar road, d,stroying vehicles and badly damaging a bridge. A gun Iemplacement was also hit. Blenheims machinf'-gunne(l M.T. convoys on .'

U'e Adi-Ugri Adi-Kwali road and a Blcnheim of the Free French Flight ·.i

s

,.'.,­dropped 1,000 lb. of bombs among buildings at Gondar. It is stated that •the enemy's casualtif's in the fighting in Hus area were considerable_British troops have reached a point less than 30 miles from Asmara, thecapital cf Eritrea.

ABYSSINIA. On March 26 aircraft of the S.A.A.F. reconnoitred Addis IAbaba Railway and the Alghe area. A train was machine-gnnned about i15. m.iles north-east of Adarna, and rolling stock at Harawa. Station fbmldmgs at Adagalla, and adminIstrative buildings and trenches at .'i,

Alghe, were bombed. A Glerul Martin on reconnaissance in the Adama.:,£

area (SO miles south-east of Addis Ababa chased one 5.79 which is believed' ;1to have crashed. The Addis Ababa railway was bombed by five Wellcsleys lon March 27, whcn 5,000 lb. of bombs were dropped. ~

After the capture of Harar, South African troops took Diredawa and €thus cut the Addis Ababa-Jibuti railway. S.A.A.F. Battles dropped i4,000 lb. of bombs on the road wcst of Diredawa on March 29. i

TRIPOLI. On the night of M~rch 28/29 two Wellingtons dropped 'l4,000 lb. of bombs on Tripoli harbour causing explosions between the- f!

WIT station, the Governor's office and power station and near the under- igr;:nd pipeline station. Further bombs fell among shipping. I

I

Italian SubmarinesFor several days there was abnormal U'-boat activity in the Bay of

,Biscay, and it is considered that half a dozen or more Italian submarineswere maintaining patrols probably of a defensive character off Bordeauxand S1. Nazaire.

In the North-Western Approaches there has been·no evidence of any_Italian submarine activity, though several U-boats have left this area forBordeaux. One has probably patrolled somewhere between the Azoresand Madeira.

The Italian A ir Force in Belgium

Some interesting facts have come to light of the time when a portion'Of the Italian Air Force was based in Belgium for operations against theBritish Isles.

The inability of the Italian pilots to accustom themselves to climaticconditions so new to them, and their defeats when they did attemptattacks on this country, are well known. There is now reason for believingthat the cold, poor maintenance and other causes kept many of theaircraft grounded. Some pilots did no more than two flights in two months.

Nearly every night, in all types of weather, the Italians heard theR.A.F. overhead. This, combined with the inability of Italian aircraftto take off, increased the feeling of inferiority and had a disastrous effect'On their morale.

When this Italian air detachment was finally recalled to Italy it wasfound that the fighter aircraft were in no fit mechanical condition toreturn by air. They were, therefore, crated and sent by raiL

The Fleet Air Arm Attack on Taranto

Italian Air Force officers are reported to have expressed the highestadmiration for the Fleet Air Arm's attack on Taranto, and particnlarlyfor British pilots' attacks at low altitudes.

It is confirmed that as a result of this raid a number of so-called spieswere executed, the Italian staff insisting that the responsibility for thewhole affair was due to the work of these men and not to any imperfectionsin the defences.

il'I!,lllllllil~I~II~~IIIII~NAA.006.0170

35.(CWi13-I) D 2

the, regional grouping of the following reports of submarines or ofattacked by them the following geographical expressions are used :-

«North-Western Area" North of 55 : 00 N., and West of the Orkneys andShetlands, and of 01 : 00 \Y".

" Coast of Norway" The area East of 02 : 00 E., to the North of50; 00 N., and East of 01 : 00 W., to the Northof 61 : 00 N.

" North Sea" " The area between that line and a line runningfrom Dover to Cap Gris Nez.

"The Channel " Wc~t of that line as far as a line running from theLizard to Ushant.

" Western Area" West of the Channel, South of 55 00 N., andNorth of 36 : 00 N.

" African Coast" The area South of 36 : 00 N., and West of TariIa,Strait of Gibraltar.

IIil't

!

,ii

1IIIllllllii\illll~~II~~NAA.OO6.0171

Yugoslavia .' .Yugoslavia is a~l agricultural country and is self-sufficient il1~s~eJtial

f?odstuffs. Pr~c~lcaUy ~ll ~anufacturedgoods have to be impo:tted,~~dSUice YugoslaVla IS lacklllg In an armament industry, she willin-time'bfwar. be ~epende~t on her allies for .supplies of armaments. Solid frids'ofan m~enor qualIty are produced In the country: liquid fuels havcaHto be Imported.

The rout~s ?y which Yugoslavia receives her seaborne supplies in theorder of theIr llnportance arc as follows :-(1) vt"a the Straits of Qtranto .(2) across lhe Adriatic frolll Italy; (3) from lhe Black Sea via the Danube:(4) via the port of Salonika (where she has a free zone), '

If Yugoslavia goes to war against Italy and Germany, Salonika is theonly port by which war supplies could reach her, but rail and road COlU­

municati~ns ,vith that p~r~ are poor and capable of handling onlycomparatlvely small quantltles. The coastal traffic in the Adriatic is of~mportaIlce,but not vital to the life of the country in time of war, although.t would greatly add to the mobility of the army.

Yugoslavia's naval policy 1S purely defensive and aims at assisting thearmy and air force in the defence of the coast.

Main Naval Units I

The Yugoslav navy consists for the main part of; I

One destroyer flotilla leader. I

Three destroyers (one undergoing extensive repairs).Eight torpedo boals,Ten small motor torpedo boats.Four submarines.

Tn ~ddition, there arc six minelayers, five minesweepers, an aircraftcarner, two submarine depot ships and an old light cruiser (ex German)which is used as a training ship.

The flotilla leader D-ubrovnik was built in 1932 on the Clyde. She hasa speed of 37 knots and carries four 5·S-in. guns and two 21-in. tripletorpedo tubes. The other three destroyers, Zagreb, Beograd and Ljubl}ana,fimshed building in 1939. They have a speed of 38 knots and each carryfour 4·7~in. guns and two 21-in. triple torpedo tubes. The Ljttbljanaunfortunately struck a rock early in 1940 and sank. She was salvedin July, 1940, and it is hoped she will be recommissioned again shortly.

The torpedo boats are old and mostly ex-Austrian from the last war.Eight of the motor torpedo boats though much smaller were, however,built between 1935 and 1937 in Bremen. These have a speed of 34 knotsand carry two 21 .7-1n. double torpedo tubes, The other two are Thorny­croft boats of 1927 and are merely fast coastal motor boats carrying twoIS-in. tubes and five or six men. .

The suhmarines are aJl of about 1928--29 vintage; the two larger ones,the Hrabi and the Nebovsca, have a standard displacement of 870 tons,a surface speed of 15 knots and carry two 4-in. guns. They were builtby Armstrong \Vhitworth. The remainin.g two, the Smeli and theOsvelnz'k, built -in France, have only one 4~in. gun and a displacement of570 tons. All f.our submarines carry six 21-in. torpedo tubes.

British Hylton attacked.

Reported hy Fleet Unit.

Reporte{l by Fleet Unit.

British Coultarn attacked.

British Germanic and Bel­gian Lirnbouyg attacked.

R("~pol·ted by aircraft.

Reported by P.O., l.e.,Iceland.

Reported by a trawler.

British Western ChiefaUacked.

Reported by H.M. ship.

MEDlTERRANEAN

33 33 N.-26 22 E., 120 lll. I Reported by H.M. Shlp.S.S.Vv. of ICupatho".

WESTERN AREA

58: 52 N.-21 : 13 W., 250 m. 2860

Rockall.55: to N.-l0 : 52 W., 92 m. 2700

Bloody Foreland.64 : 52 N.-24 : 04 W., off SVO[­

tuloft, Iceland.63 : 26 N.-21 : 56 W., 42 m. S. of

Reykjavik.61: 18N.~22:05W.,155m. 1750

Reykjanes.61: 19N.~21: 57 W., 152m. 1730

Reykjanes.60: 50 N.-22: 30 W., 335m. N.W.

by W. of Rockall.GO: 20 N.---19: 30 VV., ~40 m. 314 0

Rockall.59: 60 N. -18: 20 W., about 200 m.

N.W. of Kockall.GO: 18 N.-29: 28 \'1., 275 111. 220 0

Eeykjanes, Iceland.

Enemy Submarine Activities

0207/31 I

36

2250/14

1825/26

0400/23

0730/28

0537/29

0608/29

1602/29

1755/29

,~! 02:32/29\\ii 0617/30:I'

.::./

, • The six minelayers are German-built in the year 1918. Their dispJaee­mentis ::330 tons and they were designed for a speed of 15 knots. Theyeac~ carry.40 mines and can be used as sweepers if necessary.

Alternatively the five minesweepers, which were built by Yarrows in1931 and 1932, can be used for minelaying and also carry 40 mines each.They are small vessels of 128 tons with a speed of only 9 knots.

There are ~so four river monitors for use on the river Danube. Theyare ex-Austnan from the last war and as they have not been subjectedto the wear and tear of a sea-going vessel they are in excellent condition.They arc anned with two 4·7-in. guns apiece and three of them carry4·7-in. howitzers as well.

Littoral Defence

At present the fleet is based on the Gulf of Kotor and it may begenerally assumed that most of the principal ships are either there orat the ports of Split and Sibenik. The Gnlf of Kotor (fonnerly knownas CaHaro) is an excellent main base with efficient repair and fuellingfacilities at Tivat, half-way down the gulf. It is easily defended andsecure from seaward observation and attack. As it is situated 120 milesfrom the nearest Italian air base and only 30 miles from the Albanianborder, air attack must be expected; but there is ample room for theships to .disperse and considerable protection is afforded by the surroundingmountams.

The coast of Dahnatia is difficult from the point of view of an invadingforce. Throughout its length it is mountainous, the foreshore is narrowor non-existent. It would therefore seem that landings on a large scaleon such a coast are unlikely, and the Navy is greatly assisted by theirregular coast line, whose islands, bays and inlets afford good cover fortheir light forces. Taking into consideration the size of the YugoslavNavy and the nature of their coast line, it is easily seen that the basisof their maritime defence must be the capacity to lay a large number ofminefields at strategical and tactical points and try to prevent the enemyfrom sweeping them up, To prevent this, protection must be given byboth fixed and mobile shore artillery. Accordingly there is a specialanny called the Army of the Littoral, which is unaffected by the remainderof the land forces and which on mobilization provides both fixed andmobile defences.

It is also recognized that continual and energetic naval attacks mustbe made on the enemy minesweepers, and for this purpose small sub­marines, motor torpedo boats, shallow draught destroyers and naval andmilitary aircraft are most suitable. This, as far as she is able, is theprogramme that Yugoslavia is attempting to carry out.

Personnel

The Commander-in-Chief of the Navy is at present Rear-AdmiralLuteroti, who, assisted by a naval staff, advises the Minister of \Varand Marine on all naval matters. The Admiralty is at Zcmun, a suburbof Belgrade. The Naval Staff at Zemun is rigidly controlled by theGeneral Staff, i.e., the Army.

38

The total strength of the Navy is about 600 officers andS,500 pettyofficers and men. The. greater proportIon of the more senior officersare Croats who served In the Austro-Hungarian Navy in thelast,·watbut the more junior officers arc drawn from all parts of -the <COUDtrYand receive an excellent training at the Naval Academy at DubrovIlik.These young officers are keen and of excellent physique and intelligence.

The ships' companies are largely drawn from the coast and are· for themost part Croats and Slovenes. They are said to be good seamenstrong, intelligent and well disciplined. •

DockyardsThere are good repair facilities at Tivat dockyard and two floating

docks of 7,000 tons and 1,700 tons lifting capacity. Other likely baseson the coast which would be easy to defend against sea attack if fixeddefences were available are Crikvenica, Selce, Sibenik, Susak and Split,and these would all be of value for light forces engaged in defending thecoasts. There is a shipbuilding and repair yard at Split and two floatingdocks with lifting capacities of 3,500 tons and 2,000 tons.

The general condition of the Active Fleet and the ships in reserve isgood. Ships are systematically refitted and well maintained. At thesame time military rearmament comes first in the Yugoslavian Govern­ment's expenditure and it is difficult for the Navy to obtain the necessarycredits for her needs.

Naval A ir ServiceThere are two naval air bases in Yugoslavia, one at Denovici on the

Gnlf of Kotor and the other at Divulje near Split. The comparativelymodern aircraft carrier Zmaj can hold six aircraft. The strength of theNaval Air Service a.mounts to about 40 aircraft, but only 24 of these canbe considered up to date. This small force is well organized and trained.

I1111111111I1111111111111111111111111111

NAA.006.0172

U.S.A.The St. Lawrence Waterway

An agreement has been reached between the United States and Canadaon what is called the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Devciopment Scheme,which, according to the State Department, possesses an importancecomparable with that of the Panama Canal.

The St. Lawrence Scherne contemplates two undertakings which willbe complete by 1948. The first is the construction of a dam across theSt. Lawrence River ncar Massena, New York, capable of holding sufficientwater to develop over 2,000,000 horse-power of electricity. An additionalpower plant will be installed at the Niagara Falls which, in spite of itssize, will not impair the beauty of this place. The construction willbegin at once and will cost the United States rather more than £20,000,000.

39

If,

I1;

40

Small Craft for Great BritainThe Maritime Commission has announced that it has approved the

transfer to British registry of nine small speedy yachts, ranging from50 ft. to 75 ft. in length, for use in rescue work at British ports.

1!!IIIII!II~~lli~~!I~1INAA.006.0173Germany!

cpkRl' IV: POLITICAL

41

. It has not been an altogether happy week for Hitler,tior oneIn whICh he would have chosen to receive in Berlin the ForeignMmlSter of the passive ally whom he is trying to persuade to maketrouble for his enemies in the Far East. Germany suffered per­haps her greatest set-back III the war when Yugoslavia suddenlyand dramatically-a day after the celebration of the latest GermanU diplomatic victory "-revolted against the fate that had beenprepared for her: Italy's set-backs cannot be computed in termsof greater or less, but the crnshing naval defeat off Cape Matapan,followmg hard on the military disasters in Italian East Africa,must finally have persuaded Hitler of the valuelessness of his onlyacllve ally. He must have been aware of the effect of these eventson Mr. Matsuoka.

A considerable body of evidence has been accumulated by theMinistry of Economic Warfare to show that the German warmachine is suffering from a shortage of real and syntbetic rubber.The Germans expect to consume 122,000 tons of rubber in 1941and to meet this reqnirement by a domestic production of 62,000t?!,s, stocks of 21,300 tons, and imports of about 40,000 tons.( 1he last figure mcludes 30,000 tons from Indo-China, to whichthe Vichy Government is said to have agreed: this report addsmterest to the IDCldent off the Algerian coast discussed underU France " below.) The figure for domestic production is farbelow that of whIch lhe main German factories were intended tohavc been capable, and suggests that the work on the newsynthetic rnbber .pla1!1s has not proceeded satisfactorily. Thefigure for stocks, m VIew of Germany's heavy imports before thewar, seems astolllshmgly low, untJJ It IS remembered that four ofthe largest reclaimers and stockholders are in Hamburg andHanover, where R.A.F. bombing has not been without effect.MeanwhJ1e newspal)er propaganda is somewhat contradictoryon the rubber questIon. On March 23 the Bremer N achrichtenannonnced a large programme of bicycle road and track races inSWltzerland and It,tly: special concessions would be made " toovercome the great shortage of tyres," and the races would"prove to foreign sportsmen that, in spite of the war, there was noshortage of tyres in Germany." On the same day a Kiel news­paper reported that all unused tyres of certain sizes, includingthose already attached to vehicles, lIlust be surrendered earlythis month.

Traininf{ Cruise oj Cruiser SquadronsTwo heavy "Cruisers, Chicago and Portland, accompanied by the des~

troyers Clark, Cassin, Conyngham, Downes, Reid, paid an informal visitto Sydney and Brisbane last month, and called at Suva on their returnhome. At the same time the light cruiscrs Brooklyn and Savannah, withfour destroyers Tucker, Case, .c,haw, Cummings arrived at Auckland, andafterwards paid a visit of shari duration to Papeete. It was st.ressed bythe State Department t.hat the cruisc of these squadrons had no politicalsignificance and only formed part of their normal training routine. Both§quadrons are now returning to Pearl Harbour.

i,Tl.1esecondpart'ofthis scheme consists'of a deep-water canal with locks:"atthe' side of the dam. When this has been completed it will be possiblefor an ocean":going ship to dock in the ports of the Great Lakes; and there..:'fore the Middle West of the United States will have direct communicationwith the Atlantic.

President Roosevelt has stated that now that every shipyard on theAtlantic and Paciflccoasts is already working to capacity, he has authorizedthe construction of new building slipways on the shores of the GreatLakes. This plan has gained favour with the Navy Department becausethe sites are invulnerable to attack.

1.1111'11',liili\I\\III\II~NAA.006.0174Poland

43

It is reported that the shortage of agriCl1ltutakcii3.l1otJirinGen;na;ny IS comp.uted at 30 .per cent.. by' the.' Na:2i'Pa:rtY'~~tatisttcal Bureau m Berlm.. th15 figure represelltllgtbe ptop6t.tiOn of. the demands for agnculturallabour in 1941 which'ca.nn:otbe satisfied. The report go~s on to state that the shortageisaccounted f,?r partly by m?bihzation and partly by therernovalof peasants mto war fac~ones: (Presumably nt:mbers ofagricul.tural workers have got Jobs m war factones Situated in countrydistricts where they get better pay:.) According .to the HamburgerFre.mden~latt parents ~nd gu.ardians are ~ontinually expressingtheir an.xlety that th,;, lUcreaslUl5 use of children for agriculturalwar!': Will h.ave a senously detrimental effect on their education.BeSides their farm work, however, they attend the local schoolswhere classes are arranged in shifts. After they have returnedfrom the farms, special coaching will eliminate any deficiencies.

Foreign labour is being increasingly recruited to relieve theshortage, both in agriculture and in industry. It is estimatedthat Germany will have absorbed by the end of the summer halfa million Italian .workers, half a million French and a quarterof a ml1hon BelgIan, as well as smaller, but not inconsiderable,numbers from Norway, Denmark and even the Balkan countries.The use of Polish labour and of prisoners of war is believedalready to have reached its peak. According to the Ministry ofEconomlc Warfare, the number of foreign workers and prisonersof war employed 10 Germany (illcludmg Austria and the Sude­tcnland) III January, 1941, was 2.4 millions, compared with 1.8milhons m the same area in December, 1916.

.On March 7 Igo Sym, a Polish actor, who had so far ingratiatedhunseHWIth the Gennans as to be appointed managing directorof the German theatre In Warsaw, was shot in his house. Thereappears to be no doubt that the motives of the crime were notpersonal, but politicaL According to the Krakauer Zeitung,tlurty persons were arrested by the German authorities and wereto be shot if the murderer was not discovered within three days.The paper [epons that these hostages have been exccuted, butthe murderer has not yet been found. A large reward andImmullity from pUillshment to any accomplice have been pro­11llsed for mfonualion Jeadmg to the arrest of a slispect. Inconne;"oll With the ll1urdec, the Governor of Warsaw suspendedall Palish concerts and theatncal performanccs for a month, andunposed a curfew for Poles between 8 o'clock in the evening and5 o'clock in the morning.

,> A few months ago important tax concessions were made to'G~rman individnals and firms in .the areas o~ Western 'polandincorporated in the Rei~h.. ThIS resnlted ill a. C0!lslderablemigration into these terntones from the eastern districts of theold Reich. The whole of the eastern half of the Reich hao; nowbeen granted substantial tax concessions of every sort, w~lle thesouthern part. of the. old. Reich--:-Wurtemberg, Bavana andSaxony in particular-Is bemg sJ.'eclally favoure~ as regards foodsupplies. Not only.are full rations always available there, butunrationed commodities, such as frUIt and vegetables, .are moreplentiful than elsewhere. While transport consideratiOns mayaccount to some extent for this d.iff,;,reptiation, it has ~een assertedthat in contrast to the better dlsclplme of the Prusslans and.thesub;ervience of the Austrians, Southern Reich Germans .mlghttend to become unruly if rations were short. Some concesslOns­particularly those for busincss firms-are to be ~xtended to theOstmark (Austria) in order that replacement of m~ustrial plantand machinery may be encouraged and that rationallZed methodsof produdio~, like those in the Reich l,'r.oper, may be adopted mAustria. Th15 kmd of regIOnal favountism, whether d,,:creed forpurposes conneded with civilian morale or for the mamtenanceof the war effort on the home front, has introduced an element oflocal rivalry, and possibly resentment, whic~ may. have reper­cussions. It is clear that m matters of financlalpoll<;Y th~re area number of influences at work, often pulling ill differentdirections. As migbt be expeded, this has so fa~ led to moreconccssions than economies, and there are no signs that theauthorities are, in gencral, adopting a restrictive policy.

Vienna is reported to be so crowded with evacuees from thebombed areas that 50,000 more Jews were to be re.moved toPoland by March 15 if transport facilities could be prov!ded. Theevacuees from the Reich include a large number of nch peopleand families of party oflici~ls, but 50,000 children from J:Iamburgalone are said to be now ill Vienna: Austnan morale IS said tobe affected by the presence of these e.vacuees. Recent reportscontain much reliable and detal1ed eVidence of damage causedby British air raids on Germany. At Hanove.r, dunng Marct;,heavy damage was done to whole blocks of bUIldings, both resI­dential and industrial. At Cologne the city water supply wasseverely affected, over 400 houses were destroyed, and 100 firesstarted, one of which, in a factory, burnt for thl.'ee days. Therewas also much damage to industry and commumcatiOns. A rat,don Berlin was highly effective, and It Is reported that Berlm sgreat weakness, bad shelters, was in evidence agam. AtHamburg heavy damage waS caused to pubhc bUlldmgs, barracksand houses, and an cxplosives factory was hit: for a time thefires were out of control, and casualties were heavy.

42

r1,I

j

Iij

'. :Tp'eG~nnan newspapers printed in Poland continue to reportllnexplaiJ;led fires and also acts of violence committed by armed"bandits." The fires, which seem to be increasiJ;lg in number.occur at least as frequently in the annexed territories as in theGovernment-General. Activities of " bandits" are reportedfrom several parts of the country, notably from Upper Silesia,where more than one gang using hand grenades is said to havecome into conflict with the police. The Deutsche Rundschaureports the arrest of eleven Poles on a charge of having organizedamled bands, the members of which had procured German policeuniforms. Thus disguised, they took money and arms----exclu­sively from Germans. All these facts taken together show thatthe Polish resistance to German rule has not diminished in vigour.

Deportations of Poles from the all1lexed territories are con­tinuing, and more are foreshadowed. Many of them are fanners,and it is very hard to see how they can possibly find a living inthe already overcrowded Government-General. In all parts ofPoland religion is oppressed. An order is reported to have beenissued in the annexed territories for the removal of the images ofsaints from cross-roads because they have an "un-Germanappearance," and the Ostdeutscher Beobachter reports that inconnexion with an " East German Culture Day" the Germansarranged secular concerts in the sequestrated Polish Cathedral atGniezno. These concerts are described as a " temple purgingceremony" in a country where" every church, every cross andevery picture of the Madonna is converted into a strongholdagainst the Germans." In the Russian-occupied parts of Polandlistening to Vatican broadcasts is a crime punishable wilb death,but in spite of the anti-religious propaganda carried on in manyways, especially through the schools, it is reported that thechurches are still well attended. In the Government-General it iscommonly believed that it will not be long before a war breaksout between Germany and Russia, and a saying is current that" optimists teach their children Polish, pessimists German, andrealists Russian."

The Low CounlriesIt appears that the Germans are beginning to realize that it is

of no use hoping that the Dutch will take them to their hearts.Seyss-Inquart, speaking at a recent meeting in Amsterdam, inwhich he was discussing the agricultural situation, assured theDutch farmers that the Germans did not expect an ostentatiouswelcome or acceptance. He also paid them the compliment ofpointing out that they were now faced with the same task as thefarmers in Germany, claimed that Dutch food supplies were

44

adequate, and assured them that sufficient food e6Uld~epro"duced to meet modest requirements. On the otherhand,GE>ttJ:1anyis determined to impose National Socialist principles ilP6I'l''.Qiltchpolitical life, and Seyss-Inquart has declared that,untiLthis':i;irnis attained, German troops will remain in Holland, althoilgh1l1lerewill be no permanent occupatron of the country. Another.niatii­festation of Germany's desire to break the Dutch spirit IS thecampaign against the Roman Cathohc Church, whoseanti.Naziinfluence she wishes to destroy. At a recent meeting of DutchNazis the speaker denounced, in the true Nazi tradition, pluto­cracy, the Jews and tbe Catholic Church, which he accused ofmeddling in politics. The attack on Church schools, launched afew weeks ago, continues with the removal of Catholic priestsfrom senior positions in lay schools. An article in Het Volk calledfor the abolition of all private schools: in this event only secularstate schools would remain.

Further inroads upon Dutch nationalism have been made bythe dismissal of four members of the Amsterdam city council, andby the appointment of Dutch Nazis as Government Commi~­sioners for Amsterdam, Hilversum and Zaandam. But the Nazlsfind it difficult to make headway with propaganda among theobstinate Dutch; pamphlets distributed to school children a littletime ago were posted back in shoals to Seyss·Inquart by theindignant parents. The Dutch are SUSP1ClOUS of the use made bythe German authorities of the money collected for the WinterHelp: as very few Dutchmen subscribed, being unwilling to a~sist

a German-run orgamzation, they concluded that the pnnclpalcontributions came from Germany, particularly as it was at firstrumoured that the sums collected had been sent to Germany.The Winter Help organization set up in Belgium to relieve thedistress caused by the serious food shortagc feeds 500,000 of thepopulation in soup kitchens, occasionally distributes fooJ.s, s~chas condensed milk, and has sent 20,000 parcels to Belglanprisoners of war in Germany. A 5 per cent. tax is levied onsalaries to meet the financial needs of this organization, and theproceeds of the sale of food seized from secret hoards are alsocontributed. Hoardmg of food lS earned on to such an extentthat official German propa.ganda attributes the shortage, not tofood, but to unpatriotic hoarders.

The University of Brussels is now to be bi-lingual, and lectureswill be given in Flemish. Formerly the University of Ghellt wasthe only Flemish University, although Flemish is the languageof two-thirds of the population. Thi" move of the Germans is inkeeping with their desire to encourage. the trad!tional feudbetween the Flemings and the Walloons. I he Flemlsh NatronalUnion and its Walloon counterpart, the H.exist party, underDegrelle, arc being encouraged by Germany to attack the

45

~lllllllllmli!I~~II!11NAA.OO6.0175

•

Catholic Church. .Both parties have similar aims in their pro­gr3;IT.lme: war.~gamst England, freemasonry, the Jews andpobncal CathohClsm. It may be noted that the Flemings are forthe most part devout Catholics. The Germans claim that theUnion controls a fighting organization, the Black Brigadedistinct from the Flemish Security groups; they have also statedthat Degrelle has offered to man an aeroplane unit for serviceagainst Gre:,t Britain. But it is doubtful whether they have muchconfidence m the strength of his following in the country.

FranceWithin a few days of the British decision to allow the passage

to Vichy France of two gift cargoes of flour from the U.S.A.,news was p,:blished of an unsuspected barter agreement betweenthe French m VIchy and the Germans in Paris. The reportedfigures of exchanges of foodstuffs between the two zones are such!hat, at another time, they nee.d ha,;~aroused no suspicion; butIt was unfortunate for the VIchy collaborators " that theirdeal! which looked very much like the result of a German attemptto discredIt BntI~h and American help for France, should havebe~n made publIc :'~ ~recisely the mo.ment when they stood togam most by conCIlIating Great Bntam and the United States.The first unoffiCIal comments in the United States showed thatVichy, by her evident desire to run with the democracies andhunt with the Nazis, ~as in grave d,tnger of alienating thesympathy that lay behmd the proposed gIft of flour. Officialcomment will only be available when the State DepartInent hasconSIdered the report which it immediately requested fromAdmIral Leahy, the U.S. Ambassador to Vichy.

Admiral Darlan has recently boasted that French mechantmencan pass unhindered through the British blockade. He wasreported in the]ournal de la Marine Marchande as declaring thatFre~lch trade was entIrely normal again, not only with NorthAtnca but, beyond tl,e StraIts of GIbraltar, with West AfricaIndo-China and the Antilles. The whole French merchant scrvice'he said, was engaged in bringing vital supplies to Franc~. Th~VItal supplIes, he dId not add, are in many cases destined forGermany; and within a week of his boast a French ship, believedto be. carrymg a car;:;o of Indo-Chmese rubber (a commodityof WhICh (1ermany IS m great need) ran fonl of the British block­ade off the coast of Algeria.

The result was an incident in which a Viehien merchant con­;rOy c witlt an armed naval escort, resisted visit ane! search byEntlsh contraband control vessels. The political significance

46

of this incident lies in the. divergent Bd(ishaI\dFrenchiJ:I{\)J;Pre­tations of neutrality and of belligerent rights. . Th~:I3fi~hcontention that any vessel suspected of carrying i9:mtt'<l~9c~is liable to interception on tlte high seas wouldh~Y~.R€!~~accepted-and was indeed acted npon-by the Frenchbef"'l.'ethe armistice as in accordance with the established. Pghts .9tbelligerents. Within neutral territorial waters the right of. visitand search is not claimed: bnt H.M. Government had alreapy;.caused Vichy to be informed, apropos of the use of Tunisia.nwaters by enemy transports and supply ships (W.I.R., No. 5>i),that France cannot be regarded as either fulfilling the obligations,or entitled to the rights, of a neutral.

In the latter connexion it is interesting to recall tltat before theinvasion of Norway the French;-botlt Gove~nment.and press­several times urged Great Bntam to take action agamst Germanships in Norwegian waters {or exactly the same rea~ons as hayenow decided R.M. Government to take actIon agamst them mTunisian waters. The present French atti~de, however, owesless to logic than to opportulllsm; and the mCldent off Nemourshas drawn [rom the propagandISts of VIchy and Pans a volley.ofexecration comparable with that which followed the Bntishactions at Oran and Dakar. By tlte polIcy whIch provoked theincident Admiral Darlan-designedly or not-is clearly playmgHitler's game. A serions clash between British and Frenchnaval forces might be a step towards, the ahg!,ment of the FrenchFleet with the German: and the l'rench 1'leet, HItler may bethought to assnme, wonld more titan recompense him for tltevirtual loss of the Italian.

The French plan for old-age pensions has now been announc~d.

All men of 65, or men of 60 who are past work, are to rece:vepensions. The rates are varied, bnt pitifully sma!l, a marnedconple receiving the eqnivalent of only eIght shillmgs a week.For Paris al1 rates are higher dunng the hrst year; those wholeave the capital to settle in the country WIll, however, continueto receive the extra payment. It IS mterestrng to note that theVichy Government are supporting the. movement away fromParis, which is in keepmg WIth theIr project for encouragmg theagricnltural development of France at the expense .of herindustrial life. The return of Frenchmen to the land IS, mdeed,a policy COmmon to Vichy, Paris and Berlin. Recently theMundlner Neueste Nachrzchten devoted an artrcle to the"inhihitions" of those Frenchmen" who still cherish tlte illusionthat a "reat reserve o[ industrial workers should be held in readi­ness [;r the re-establishment of an armaments industry ....A series of provisional administrations will gradually rebuild thecountry for its new task-that of becommg one of the greatest

I ~

r ~! 1IIIIIIIIIIilil~IIII~!IIIII~NAA.006.0176

49

11111I11111111111111~llinllNAA.OO6.0177

estimated 120,000 ~o 100,000! which would considerablyiJ;lcreaseGeneral Weygand s ,~hfficu.ltIes 111 defending NorthAfri¢ai~tbyFrench forces alone, as Vichy has said that he will do. GeneralWeygand at least seems anxIous from now onwards notto givethe Germans easy passage. .>

German propaganda in Morocco runs on familiar lines' theEuropeans are assured that they will receive all possible assistancefrom Germany in the economic development of the country-theGermans are naturally mterested ill the milleral resources ofSouthern Morocco--while the natives are promised entire liberty(a suggestion of " Free Morocco "), in contrast to the oppressivedomination of France, and vast bribes are dangled before theireye~ (20 frs. to shoe blacks and 50 frs. for a packet of cigarettescosting 20 frs.). The Germans <:\e. boasting that they have pre­vented England from attackmg I npol!, an Idea which only tooeasily impresses French opinion in Morocco.

The German mission has b~en followed in Casablanca by amiSSiOn from Japan, which mclndes economic and financialexperts and two army officers of senior rank, and is alsomterested in the mineral resources of Morocco. Doth missionsare meeting obstruction from the French authorities over thequestion of payment for transport.

Several eminent French statesmen have recently made pro­nouncements On the proposed construction of the ReseauMediterranie-Niger, the 2,000-mile trans-Saharan railway.Reports have been approved by Marshal Petain and AdmiralDarlan, Admiral Platon has examined the project on the spot,and It has been announced in a Moroccan paper that work hasalready started. In spite of the publicity given to this plan, andthe stress laId upon the immense possibilities which it wouldopen up, it is doubtful whether it could be carried out on thegrandiose scale indicated. The total expense is estimated at fivemlll!ards of francs, a large sum for a country in France's presenteconomiC SituatIOn to mvest in a scheme which could only hopeto prove protilable on a long-term basis. It is more likely that anumber of small portions of new railway and new roads will beconstructed in various districts between North Africa and Dakarfor the rcason that, as communications between French Afric~and Metropolitan France become more restricted, the inhabitants?f North Africa. need more scope in their own continent. TheImprovement of communications, thongh not on the scaleenvisaged, would do much to facilitate trade both for the nativesand for the French. It would also, as the Free French radio inBrazzaville has pointed ont, facilitate the movements of Germancommissioners and tourists, with whose infiltration into thecountry it has been timed to coincide.

I

agricultural states in Europe." This view, which is the Germanideal for all European states outside the Reich Itself, IS frequentlyemphasized by the wireless and newspapers of Paris, and hasbeen officially adopted by Marshal Petain.

The German industrial exhibition opened last month in thePetit Palais in Paris points the same lesson. So far as Frenchfirms are permitted to participate, they playa subsidiary role;and the Vichy Secretary for Industrial Production has declaredthat French industry can only be saved by direct and increasingco-operation with the German. In the caSe of the motorindustry, such factories as Renault, Citroen and Peugeot arealready co-operating to the extent of turning over some70 per cent. of their output to Germany; while in the Jaegerfactory in Paris French workmen, under the supervision ofGermans, are turning out aircraft accessories to the specificationsof Siemens and Halske. (The Jaeger factory in Orleans is closed,and its machine tools are reported to have been removed toGermany.) Co-operation betwen the insurance companies ofthe two countries is to be ensured by a formal agreement betwcenthe two Governments, according toLe Cri du Peuple, which addsthat France's role in the new Europe will be that of a " countryof transit" . . . . "The French Merchant Fleet would thushave more cargoes to carry, French harbours would flourish andFrench workers would prosper. Only the French Navy cansecure these blessings for France. The nation must place herconfidence in the great sailor who is at the helm."

FRENCH NORTH AFRICAIf German infiltration into French North Africa has been pro­

ceeding at a slower rate than a few weeks ago, this does notmean that Germany has abandoned for a time the intention ofestablishing herself in North Africa She has perhaps taken theadvice of the Vichy authorities, is sending fewer reinforcementsand is soft-pedalling the activities of her agents already estab­lished. Vichy is not restraining the Germans solely in their owninterest; she is as mueh concerned on her own account inchecking the possible spread of de Ganllist sympathies as she isin preventing the disintegration of the Empire from within byGerman machinations. For she realizes that the too-rapid infil­tration of Germans might have the effect of increasing thenumber of adherents to the Free French cause; and althoughGeneral Weygand "dnd General Nogues have so far at leastovertly expressed no concern at the dangers inherent in thesituation, it appears that they are now beginning to be worriedand are- pressing the Vichy Government to restrain Gennany'sambitions. They are no doubt aware of the German Commis­sion's desire to reduce the French military forces from the

4$

IIIIIIIIIIIIII~IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINAA.006.0178

SpainIt appeared likely that the Sterling Credit Agreement with

Great Britain, for which the Spanish Government asked inNovember and which has only been delayed by the caprices ofthe Spanish Foreign Minister, would at last be signed in Madridthis week. Senor Suner's delays have been variously explainedby the Spaniards as due to urgent preoccupation with his country'sinternal affairs, to his own recurrent indisposition (physical ordiplomatic), and to a desire to exclude from the draft agreementany mention of a particular commodity which was not, in fact,mentioned in it; but he proved more affable last week, and con­veyed to H.M. Ambassador a desire to sign as soon as he hadexamined the relevant documents. (These have been at hisdisposal for some months.) He also paid an unsolicitedcompliment to the British diplomatic handling of the Mendoubincident at Tangier. Moreover, he so far unbent as to discusswith Sir Samuel Hoare, for the first time, the larger issues of theinternational situation. This, however, was probably a symptomof a temporary relief from his physical indisposition, rather thanof a change of political views. The true reason for the delay insignature of the agreement has always been clear, and has beenadmitted by implication even by his own colleagues: he hasfeared to offend the Germans, whom he expects to win the warbefore very long.

Meanwhile, no preoccupation of the Foreign Minister preventedhis signing in Madrid on March 27 a commercial agreement withSwitzerland. The terms of this agreement have not beenpublished, but they are reported to include a credit of four milliondollars to Spain against the carriage of Swiss imports from Lisbonto Genoa in Spanish bottoms. It is difficult to believe that thescheme will have any profound effect on Spanish economy;perhaps the most significant point about it is that, involvingindirectly an Axis country, it should have been given precedenceover a more far·reaching agreement with Great Britain.

Conditions in Majorca and in Southern Spain arc reported tobe bad; the food situation is very serious and there is a greatshortage of coal. Prices are rising conshntly and trade isdeclining. It is generally believed that wheat, oil and otherfoodstuffs are being exported from Spain to Germany and Italy;and this state of affairs, in view of the acute shortage of food,has provoked widespread discontent. But the population areencouraged by the approach of spring, witb tbe prospect of freshvegetables and, later on, the harvest, and it is not expected thatthis discontent will take an active form.

so

In Tangier, where Axis influence'pa:t. unObtrusively-to ex and th I tcontinues-for the •• rnostBntish rights has been the fmpo~itio~ ~rt mOVe tocireumscribi}s01!'e ObVIOUS embarrassment, and with press ee~o.rship. WithBnhsh newspaper has been unexcepti aWadmISSIOn. that the.past, the Governor has been compelled~na y con?ucted initlrffMadnd (presumably at dictation from a a<;cept his orders frorncensorshIp to the Tangier Gazette. Berlm) and to apply .the

PortugalGerman interest in the Peni l' h . .

few weeks from S ain to Ponsu a as shifted shghtly in the lastattacked the attituX, of the P r:gal. The German wireless haswarned them of alleged Briti~h dgnese, and ha~ at the same timethe Azores. The evidence I eSlgns on ~helr country and onMore than 2,000 German" to l~we,;,;r,. pomts the other way.country from Spain and oth:ns~ have recently entered the·islands; there arc signs of inci~~en~~~ftf;eac?edthe <,:ape Verdepre turepolrts dof German attempts to est~~lrshnf acdtiVdlty; there

or ga an OI! storage in P t 00 epots Inofficials of the German Pro a o~ ugues~ West African ports;LIsbon newspaper offices ~i~n a MI:~Isiry have been visitingo,fficlal of the German Wa~ OffIcesl:mebItt e eff~ct; and a highGovernment to purchase G as een m LIsbon urging the'A b d .. erman war t' Im assa or has warned the Por rna ena. H.M.danger of any arms deal 'th G tuguese Government of thebe useful to the PortugWI :,ermany; the arms might indeedbut they would be even lIlu~:~ ,:n /epell~ng a German ~vasion:accompanied by German instrse:f] to tne Germans, especially ifdisorder wilh invasion. HC ors, m synchwmzmg internal

The economic cond'f f S . .may well doubt the ad~~n to - pam IS such that the Gennansthe other hand 'In inv n age of occupymg the country. Onattempted without Spain ~~i~1 ~f P~rtugal might perhaps besmall German force could I' g irebc y mvolved m hostilities' at · . Ive on t e count 1 .'IOns could be ?ssl'red tllr I b II' ry, ane commUlllca_.. '. oug 1llon· e Iger t S . .way as mlhtary com . t·. b en. pam m the same.r'· mUIllca IOns etw G -,-ournama are assured tbrou h . een ermany andhowever, possible that thi g n0r:Ibelhgerent Hungary. It isPortug;;1 is intended less il~ ~e~~~;~doI~te~est of the Germans i~of the war of nerves". d th t' ~ .0 IrlvaSlon than as a part

t · " ,an a ,t IS co t d .rna IC pressure b" whI'ch (' . . . nnec e WIth the diplo-th P , ,ermany IS ende .. e ortuguese tu hold out against th B 'ti' ahvobllrnng to persuade, ens ockade.

"I

•

When the Yugoslav Ministers signed the Three Power P~c~ inVienna the Italian press, anXIoUS to make the most of that ranty,good n~ws, crowed rather too loudly. "It is clear,': saId LavoroFascista, " that the Belgrade Government's decIsion has beenbacked unanimously by the .w~?\e of the country and by allpolitical parties in YugoslavIa. Corrlere dell,! Sera went sofar as to announce that" a gigantic Balkan bloc 1Il the serVIce ofBritain has turned into a European bloc WhICh 15 completelyanti-British." The best the Rome wireless co~ld find to say,after the coup d' etat in Belgrade, was that It was due to mattersof internal policy" and was a " last desperate thrust, ~f Bnnshintrigue," about which" the most ngorous reserve must bemaintained until authentic detaIls were known. It was declaredthat the new Yugoslav Government would respect all agreementsentered into by their predecessors.

To try and offset this diplomatic reverse and the continuingseries of disasters to Itahan arms b.l:' land and sea, th~ mostgrandiloquent phrases are bemg coIlled about the VISIt ofMr.' Matsuoka, the Japanese Foreigt,I Minister, to Berllll andRome, and the significance of Japan s part m the Three .Pow~:Pact "The iron triangle of reSIstance and reconstructllon,acco~ding to Poi>olo di Roma, " is the guarantor of future w?rldhistory." But an early and powerful J2erformance on the nontriangle will be needed to divert a ttennon from the dIsastrousnaval Battle of Matapan, the losses of Keren and Asmara, an~~herapid crumbling away of the Itahan Empne m East Afnca. " Ittook the Italians thirty years to fight the Arabs 111 LIbya, aSomali comrnented after the recapture of Bntish Somahland," and after defeating the Abyssllllans they counted themselveswith the Greal Powers. We have not heard of any Itahan fightwith a EUropC<lIl nation until now, when they. show themselvesjust lil,c a fly which learns to sWIm In cold mIlk but dies III hotsoup." Harar has heen taken almost exactly. five years afterits burning by Italian bombers, and It IS mtereslmg to ~~. told bythe Itahans now that their own troops were evacuated 1ll orderto avoid the bombardment of the city." . The Home WIreless,admitting that " our position in the EmpIre has ~eco~TIe moredelicate," made use of the eighteenth annlv~rsary OJ. the JO~Ildlngof the Italian Air A rm to announce that whIle 899 enemy. am:rafthave been destroyed, ,'2nlY,,210 Itahan, a;~craft have faI1e~ toreturn to theIr bases. I he magmficence" of thIS force IS yetanother proof "-like. the broadcast Itsr;l,f- of the mexhanstIbleversatility of the Itahan temperament.

52

Italy Ilil!,I!!I!I~i!~llllm!lllll~NAA.o06.0179 , The resignation ?f Marshal Graziani was not unexpected," He

IS suc~eededas Chief of the Army Staff (a pbstdistibcLfi"om th;rtof ,Chief of the General Staff,. which is analogous to that of theBntish Mmlster for Co-ordmanon of Defence) by GeneralRoattaand as G,overnor and Commander-in-Chief in Libya by GeneralGanboldI. Before the war of 1914 General Roatta, who iSIHjW54, spe~t some years as a member of an Italian military missionm Berlm, where m 1939 he was Mlhtary Attache, He was sentto Spain as Chief of Staff, and his handling of the situation at theBattle of Guadalajara was severely criticized. In fact hismilitary ability is not rated highly, and he owes his present posi­tion chiefly to intrigue, He is said to be a most unpleasantperson, compldely unscrupulous, and of a cooler temperamentthan most of hIS countrymen. General Garibaldi is a man of 62.He served in the It-"llo-Turkish war ill 1912, on the Austrian frontin 1915-18, and in the Abyssinian war. His promotion has beenrapId, and maybe taken to signify that his ability is well thoughtof. In 1939 he commanded the Fifth Army in Tripolitania, buthe has had lIttle experience of active operations during thepresent war.

In spite of a tendency lo scepticism and fatalism, the Italiantemperament is marked by vanity and a capacity for self­dece]Jllon, Accordmg to trustworthy observers, many Italiansgennmely beheve themselves to be sapping away British strengthby the mere fact of their resistance. Consequently they feel noloss c:f face m relymg upon theGermans to avenge, as they hope,Italy s defeats: and tbls hope IS at present perhaps stronger thanthe antI-German feeling which certainly exists. Several reportsmd,cate m general terms a worsening of the industrial siluation,With heavy mdustries turning off workers and reducing activityf?r lack of raw materials, The export of Italian labour toGermany lately ananged is partly a refledion of this state ofaflalrs, On the other hand, activity has io somc places beenresumed smee the an:lval of raw materials from Germany, ItIS not clear how far (ycrmany wlll go, but she has been sendingcoal and steel to Italy in large quantities, Italy has also receivedrubber, electrlcal.goods and machinery lately from Germany,beSIdes Iron cartndge-cases-presumably because Italy cannotafford brass.

In a broadcast to France on March 30, Radio Vatican made astrong counterblast to the incessant German propaganda to theeffect that Roman Ca~holic life in Germany is flourishing andImmune from oppresslOD. The talk controverted" lies whichhave assumed scandalous proportions and aim at creating theImpreSSlOn that the Holy Sec had encouraged a certain belligerentPower; that the HoJy See had advised France to conclude

S3

•

immediately a separate peace; and tha~ the religious situa?o~

in Germany is satisfactory. ~he truth IS ~xactly the, ~PPOSIte.in fact, the religious sItuation m Germany IS pat?etic. DetaIlswere then given of the plight of Roman Cathohcs m Germany.Increasing numbers of monasteries and ,:onvents are bemgdissolved, Christian life is being made more difficult, and Germanyouth is growing up m a complete\y paga~ ~tinosphere. Afteran allusion to " the threat of a national relI&,on solely based onthe Fiihrer's will," the talk concluded. wIth a demand thatCatholic Germany should wake up. This talk, hke some thathave preceded it, and 'like recent arti.cles in the OsservatoreRomano, is evidence of the growmg realIzation on the part of theVatican that its inflnence is being weakened by NaZIsm all overEurope, and that silence is useless as a weapon of defence.

It was clear from the violence of popular reaction inYugoslavia to the visit of the Ministers to Vienna to sign theThree Power Pact, that they would not be received on theirreturn with acclamations. The coup d'etat which took place onMarch 27 had been foreseen as a possibility, but only one ofseveral: its success completely changed the situation in theBalkans and npset German plans. It took place wlthont blood­shed had evidently been carefully planned, and was the resnltof a' long-standing dissatisfaction with the last regime: thesignature of tlIe Pact was the last straw. The revolt was headedby General Simovitch, the new Pnme Mmlster, who mformedKing Peter of his accessIOn to the throne.

General Simovitch, a man of 59, has been Chief of the AirStaff since last November, and before that was Chief of theGeneral Staff. He is described as cultured, intelligent, efficient,strong and determined. The Government which he has formedcontams representatives of all the polItical parties, whIle theCroat Ministers of the former Government, mcludmgDr. Makhek, the leader of the Croat Peasant Party, retain theIrposts. Foreign Affairs are in the hands of M. Nintchiteh, whohas held the post of ForeIgn M1lllster 111 several prevIOusCabinets. Some of the new MmlSters have not had recentexperience of the management of affairs, and may have nursedpolitical prejudiC:8s and paTty spmt, but the danger 1Il whIchtheir country stands may cause them to work together to saveit. The immediate polley of the new Government IS stated to beaimed at the maintenance of peace and neutralIty, whIch underthe former Government had been compromised; butrnobilization

54

The Balkans l'II!\I\'llii\mlll~illlll~NAA.006.0180

is proceeding, for the possibility of a Gennan a.ttackf, imiiti~elltand m,?st of the Ge~m~ eolon~ IS reported to haveleftBe:lgrfj.<:1¢rEven If YugoslaVIa IS not directly attacked but Salogik",isithreatened by a German .atta~k on Greece, Yugoslavia would·eonslder that ~Jlle of her VItal. mterests Was involved, agdniiglI

twell take forclbl.e. counter-actio!?-. In the meantime she has theassurance of Bntish and Amencan moral and material supportin her efforts to preserve her independence.

The German attitude, as reflected in the German press andbroadcasts, towards the events m YugoslaVia has shown someuncertainty, but appears now to be stiffening. At first it was saidthat the news was being treated with reserve until more detailswere known. Then it was declared that the coup was unimport­ant and only of internal significance, since the change ofGovernment could not affect Yugoslavia's adherence to theThree Power Pact. That this assertion was made withoutconfidence was evident from the stress suddenly laid on theinternal political differences between Croats and Serbs. TheCroats are represented as being pro-German, in favour of theThree Power Pact, and disapproving of the coup in Belgrade,while M. Matchek was said to be standing aloof and unwillingto ,:o-operate WIth .the new Governm~nt. Presently atrocitystones of the famlhar type were bemg put mto circulation." German shops are being plundered," said a Gennan homebroadcast, "German farms set on fire, and those who speakGerman ;He bemg beaten by Serbs." These tales are beingvaned WIth mdired threats and with fulminations againstAnglo-American propaganda.

All this may be the prelude either to military action or to acampaign of intimidation. What is at least certain is that therevolution in Yugoslavia has completely upset Germany'smlhtary plans and postponed her attack on Greece. TheGerman Minister in Belgrade is said to have returned to Germany" to report" and it is rumoured that Germany has alreadydemanded of the new Yugoslav Government that they shouldratify Yugoslavia's adhesion to the Three Power Pact, cancelsome ,?f their defensive ':leasures, limit mobilization, put an endto anti-AXIS demonstrations, and punish those responsible forthem.

Yugoslavia is faced with other than political difficulties andthose arising from inadequate military equipment. The foodsituation has steadily deteriorated during recent months, andrallomng, though not yet general, is in force in many districts.If the present rate of exports to Germany is maintained, generalrationing wilJ be inevitable (in January alone the Governmentundertook to deliver 20,000 fat pigs to Germany). An all-round

55

•

increase in indirect taxation came into force in January, and this.has sent prices up so much that many commodities are nowbeyond the reach of most of the people. Even before thismeasure was introduced the cost of living had risen greatly. Theloss of the Dalmatian tourist traffic, the retention of all officialand municipal salaries at pre-war rates, the complete stagnationof all development trades-including the building trade, untilrecently very flourishing-and the calling-up of large numbersof men to the colours have combined further to reduce thenational income. The last Government made a belated attemptto remedy the supply situation by the establishment in Tanuaryof a Mmlstry of Food and Supply, but the problems wiIl not beeased in the present situation.

In Greece, so good is Greek morale, the news of theaccession of Yugoslavia to the Three Power Pact was receivedphilosophical,Iy, and the Greeks professed themselves ready totake on the uermans as well as the Italians. The news of thecoup in Belgrade naturally had a bracing effect on the Greeks:they now know that at any rate the Germans are not being giventhe right to reach Greece by the easiest road-down the VardarValley from Yugoslavia. Colonel Donovan, who lately returnedto the United States after his extensive tour in Europe and theNear East, said in a broadcast from Washington; "It seemsmore foolish for Greece to stand against Germany than it was forher to stand against Italy. And England, in electing to fightbeside her aJ1y, is doing a very dangerous and very daring thing,but a very fine thing. Military experts will tell us there can bebut one result-they point to the number of German divisionsand the power of her armoured forces. But if statistics won wars,both England and Greece would have been defeated long ago.There is a moral force in wars which in the long nm is strongerthan any machine." In Turkey, as well as in Greece, moralforc'.' has been strengthened by the events in Yugoslavia. Alandslide ~ias been checked, although undoubtedly heavypressure remains and will gather force again. In the meantime,when the new Yugoslav Government has found its feet, it mayperhaps agree to consult with the Turkish Government aboutmert.sures to prevent the landslidcfrom overwhelming Yugoslavia ,Greece, or Turkey separately.

The visit to Munich, for the purpose of meeting Hitler andRibhentrop, by the new Hungarian Foreign Minister, M.Bardossy, gave rise to eulogies in the German press of Hungaryand her Ministers: and no wonder, for M. Bardossy haddeclared that "it is a sublime task for every Hungarian ForeignMinister to work together with the great German Reich, which iswaging a heroic and flnal struggle for a just new order inEurope." The Hungari<in Minister of the Interior, however, has

56

made a speech in which he declared the.aims of Hnngarianpolicto b~ to ke~p o,:,t of the w.ar, to get as much profit as possible mitof friendship WIth the AXIS, and, to keep the army intact, so ~IOa~sure after the war the reahzation of Hungarian ideals-a polichIghly analogous to that of the Kremlin.·· YTh~ German occ?pation. of. Roumania is alreadygraVlH;

affecting the economIc sItuation 1ll that country There hasb'a furtl,rer deterioration in the quality of bread, and restricti~:are .bemg uuposed on the s?-le of meat, the shortage being con­vemently ascnbed to the lllegal mallceuvres of Jewish cattledealers. A decree has been issued ordering that every scrap ofagncultural l?-nd s~all be put under tillage, on penalty of appro­pnation. It IS beheved that one of the main subjects discussedb~tween General Antonescu and Goering during the former'sVISIt to VIenna was the Roumanian harvest of 1941, and the stepsn~eded to make as much as possible of it available for Germany.General Anlonescu's nephew, now Minister of Justice, in an,?terylew WIth an Italian journalist, explained (though explana­tion IS hardly n~eded) that Roumania is to be reorganized as acountry ]?roducmg raw materials and exporting agriculturalproducts m closest collaboration with the Axis Powers and withthe help of th?ir industrial exper~s. There are reports that theConducator hImself IS showmg sIgns of restiveness towards hisGerman Inastcrs.

Syria I NI~~I~!!~I!I~~The French attempt to form a puppet Government in Syria has

not yet succeeded, and dIsturbances continue in spite of theproclamation of martIal law. Reports have been received ofarmed clashes between the malcontents and the military in severalplaces, and of the arrest of 80 ringleaders. Capital is beingmade out of the .embarrassment of the French not only byNationalrst leaders 11l Syna, but by sympathizers in other Arabc~untrles; the IraqIS, for example, following their regular tactics,WIshed to Improve the occasIOn by a jomt demarche to Vichyfrom all Arab countnes, callmg for Syrian independence.H,-fil. Gove:nment, however, are using their influence both toallay the dIsturbances in the country and to prevent externalmterference, partly m the behef that a quiet Syria will give lessopportumty ot mtng.ne to the Axis. The Syrian malcontents aretherefore bemg advlsed that a resort to violence would be con­trary to their own interests, and would moreover throw doubt ontheIr c~pablhty for self-government, and the proposal for aJomt .demarche has beeI~ abandoned on the argument, acceptedby Kmg Ibn Saud, that It would suggest to Vichy that the Arabsoutslde Syna had helped to originate the disturbances.

57

,

During his elaborate reception in Berlin, ~. Mat~uoka,. the.Japanese Foreign Minister, had conversations with HI~er,Ribbentrop, Goebbels and Funk. In the ,,:,ords of an Amcncancommentator, the absorption of YugoslaVIa was. t?, have been" the big show-piece," but the Germans found It mor~, c0I!-­venient to make Matsuoka himself ~eir Piece de res!sta'!ce. ~fuvisit, in fact, provided bo~ the NaZI pres~ ~n? ?fficlal Clrcles WI.the opportunity of passmg over or mlmm~g the events mYugoslavia. In his public utterances, accord~g to AxIS pressreports, Mr. ~atsuok,,: seems to have confined himself larl)~ly t~

the now famihar platitudes about a new ~orI1,order, a. harmonious commumty with room for all nations, to comphmen~

for Hitler and tlIe German people, and to assurances o.f J apa?- sloyalty to the Three Power Pact. There is, as'yet~ no mdicationthat Mr. Matsuoka has been f1atter!,d out of hiS WitS by ~e fussthat has been made of him. He IS perhaps tlIe more likely tokeep his head in that, having had the advantage of personalcontact with Hitler at the very moment when. news of thecoup d'etat was coming in from ~e~grad~, he a~nved m ~0U?-ejust in time to discuss with Mussohm the mteresting situation IIImare nostrum.

Axis propaganda! is showing much wishful tlIink~g a.boutJapan, and the German press has made no sec!et of ItS hopefulex ectations of a Japanese southward mo,;e m ~e Far East." japan," said the Miinchner Neueste Nachr:chten: ~ust reahzetlIe vital need of occupying British stmteglc pomts. m tlIe FarE t by military force before tlIe Amencan Fleet arnves to taketh~~ over itself." "The Japanese," comments ~e naval.c?r­rcspondent of the same paper, " must move now while ~he BntishFleet-occupied in tlIe Mediterranean and the Atl,;,ntic--eannotadd to its forces in tlIe Far East." The fact remams, however,that so far Japan has derive~ little be,;,-efit from J01mng theAxis except a feeling of not b~mg alon~ m the world and .s'.'meGerman technical aid. (In .thls conn~xlon, Ger~an. techmC:I,;,nsare rcported to be engaged m an adVisory r;apaCity m mumtionand aircraft factories and naval dockyards m Japan, and to beemployed at a number of aerodromes as parachute mstructors:)It is considered by some ob~ervers that Moscow IS the mamobjective of Mr. Matsuoka's miSSIOn, and that, unle~s Berlm findsmeans of influencing Stalin to give Japan thc defimte agreementwhich Mr. Matsuoka wants,. J apaJ!-ese and .German conceptIOnsof Japan's role in the war will continue to dlffe;. ..

There are still advocates m Japan of the policy of fims!Unfj upin China before striking southward. The army-mspued

58

Kokumin has been deprecating recenfoveI'","onceRfr;iti~hc!&n.,fue;;~lUthern sphere OJ!- the gr'?ll'?-dtlIat". co-pIbs-Pi\rityi ':;;,.planSi;ii.~

only a house built on Shifting sand" until. thoC.l.C'.h.'ina ..p...t"qlJ.le.m...•.is settled. The" China first " doctrine will har!'llyava;1.a;·· ••. tthe Impetus now behmd the soutlIward advance, 'but,.ad.~~~tQ:the Ulfluence on the Japanese mind of British and A.n,\epGliiidefence preparations in the Pacific and of the uncertainty aboutGermany's chances of victory, it is an extra weight in fuescaleagainst immediate acts of aggression. However even .fuosesections of Japanese opinion which favour an imm~diate south­ward advance cannot help regarding China as tlIe main objectiyea rich prize w~ch the J,;,panese army has now for nearly fou~years been trymg to seize. A conquered China, witlI vastresources of labour and agricultural and mineral wealtlI, would·offer almost unlimited possibilities for Japanese trade and invest­ment. It is no doubt argned, by those who put southwardexpansion first, that thc more successful such a process mightbe, the more it would have the effect of isolating China andgiving Japan fresh strength to renew her attack. An importanteconomic factor involved is tlIe threat to China's invisible exports.There are roughly 8,000,000 Chinese living in Indo-China,Thailand, Malaya. fue Dutch East Indies and the Philippines.Their joint contribution to investments for the reconstruction andindustrialization of Free China has reached enormous propor­tions: it h,,:s been estimated at 800 million dollars. Their giftstowards rehef of distress at home have enabled the ChungkingGovernment to release for the purchase of supplies, funds ear­marked for relief, and estimated at one quarter of China's totalwar expenditure. Japanese conquest Or control of these regionswould result in the wholesale eviction of Chinese residents and theseizure of tlIeir property, and would put a stop to tlIis steady flowof revenues and foreign currency into China.

Japanese policy being so largely in military hands, the ForeignMinister's absence from home is no adequate guarantee againsta sudden explosion in SoutlI-East Asia, though any militaryplans will presumably be held up pending his report on his con­versations in Berlin. It is noteworthy that in practice Japanesenaval or military movements can be made without reference totlIe Government, and much of the administration of tlIe Servicesis outside Government control. The prerogatives of the SupremeCommand are in fact separated (as the Minister of Marine latelypointed out in the Diet) by "a strict line of demarcation,"though it is recognized that strategy cannot be entirely divorcedfrom politics: hence the liaison conferences that are held betweenthe Supreme Command and the Government.

llIe political situation in Japan is at the moment shifting anduncertain. The elimination of radical extremists from fue

59

i\II.llllllllilill~~I\lil~NAA.006.0182Far East

61

PART V: SPECIAL CONTRIBUTIONS

The Admiralty does not necessarily agree with the opinionsexpressed in Part V of " W.I.R."

The little man who walked into the saloon bar of the Blue Lionbehind Victorloo Cross Station noted at once that the Serviceswere in the majority, which was just as he had expected. It wasthe kind of landscape he preferred-plenty of navy and horizonblue in tlle middle distance, and a solid foreground of khakibrown.

supplies, America will have to draw the logical conclusion.. "'Ifthe British haven't ships," says the San Francisco Chronicle." we mus~ provide them. If they cannot provide convoys, ,wf"must provIde them. The stuft has got to get there if we have to'swim ,~cross. withit. America is in this thing right up to theneck. W,th thiS growmg realism goes a re-awakening.ofAmerican patriotism, to be seen in the reappearance of suchphrases as "manifest destiny" and " our country, right orwrong."

Popular impatience with labour unions, on account of thestrikes which have been interfering with the production of warmaterials, was beginning to turn into impatience with theAdministration. The President has set up a Mediation Board todeal with labour disputes, but some are still unresolved. At theimportant Allis Chalmers plant, which has been idle for nineweeks, it has been established that the strike vote was obtainedby a fraudulent ballot. The causes of the disputes are various.Both employers and employed believe that the urgency of presentcircumstances favours their bringing to a " show-down " con­troversies which have long divided them. There are conflictsbetween the two great labour confederations, in the more radicalof which-the Congress of Industrial Organizations-Nazi andCommunist agitators are active in an effort to sabotage aid toBritain. Then Labour has been counting on being furtherfavoured by a Government which has long shown a strongpartiality for it, the majority of the workers wishing to get a shareof present prosperity, and to obtain, with increased wages, someinsurance against a possible inflationary rise in the cost of living.A measure of the public dissatisfaction is to be seen in the resultof the latest Gallup Poll, which shows that 72 per cent. of thosevoting favour forceful measures on the part of the Administrationto forbid strikes in defence industries.

1IIIIIIrlll~IIIi~II~NAA.006.0183"Security"

Public opinion is now largely concerned with the need forefficiency lU armament production, with strikes which lessenthat e[f;ciency, and with the need for the United States to helpto win" the battle of the Atlantic." The public as a whole stillfights shy of such a warlike act as the use of American navalconvoys, which might lead to immediate" involvement," andthe Administration are pursuing their customary policy of allow­ing public concern to increase until action can be taken. Thepress and wireless point out that if the" bridge of boats" can inno other way be secured, So that Britain receives the American

liO

On March 24, ten days after the entry into law of the Lease­and-Lend Act, the Senate broke its record for quick legislation bypassing, after thirty minutes' debate, the first appropriation of£ 1,750 million for the purposes of the Act. The voting was 67to 9, former isolationists voting on the side of the Governmentbecanse, in the words of one of them, " if there is a chance ofkeeping out of the war under this theory of intervention, it liesin swiftly and boldly proceeding in giving hclp to our quasiallies. II

U.S.A.

so-called " new structure " movement tends to reduce its force­fulness and to align it with conservative and traditionalist circles.On the other hand, the support given by the Army to the newnationalist party, modelled on Fascist lines and cumbrouslyknown as the Imperial Rule Assistance Association, suggests thatthis party may become increasingly important and may' give theGovernment a greater stability than it has at present. Theextremists, though turned out of the " new stmcture," are notquiescent, and are reported to be advocating, as usual, a policyof early expansion to the southward even if this involves a clashwith Britain. They are attempting to form themselves into aparty and are known to have Nazi encouragement.

General Chiang Kai-shek's difficulties with the Chinese Com­munists have been exaggerated by Japanese propaganda, andthere is some reason to believe that the situation in Chunking iseasier. But the present is, in any case, a period of serious strainfor Free China, which is suffering from the effects of politicalstrife, economic deterioration and progressive difficulties in main­taining communications with friendly countries abroad. It is astate of affairs which adds greatly to the importance of moral andmaterial aid from Britain and the United States. Within thelimits which the British war effort imposes this aid is beinggenerously given.

" Guns," he said, " heavy guns. A four-gun turtef,14-l11Chguns, firing simultaneously ... with a two-gun turret above. thefor'rard four-gun turret. That's the stuff." .. .•.•..••.•••••..

He concluded with a flourish that knocked over the little J114t'Sglass on the counter. Full of apologies, Bill insisted on ordeJ;in.gthe little man another drink; but the little man, it appeared, wa:!'.almost stone deaf, and it was some time before Bill could makehim understand. When Bill turned once more to his friends theywere still discussing his predilection for big ships.

" Bill may still get his chance," Tom was saying. "I knowfor a fact"-here he lowered his voice slightly-" that there arefour more nearly completed. There's the Duke of York and thePrince of Wales, and two others."

"The Beatty and the Jellicoe," contributed Fred. "Butdestroyers for me every time. More scope for initiative."

" That's the theory," Tom replied, while the litttle man stolea glance at the forgotten notice on the wall. "You're supposedto be much more on your own. But look at us. Our Captain Dlikes to run everything himself, and if you're dog's body in aflotilla of six, how can you hope to shine any more than in a battlewagon? "

" As witness your three humble servants of the 120th D.F.,"put in Bill. "Take this Operation Moonshine next week-end.What do we do but just steam ahead and wait for orders fromCaptain D? "

" What's .that you're saying, Bill? " Monica sounded quitealarmed. '> You don't mean to say you'll be at sea next week­end? What about our date on Saturday? "

Fred shrugged his shoulders." Sorry, old girl. To-night's the night and this is our date. On

Saturday we sail from Chatport, the whole 120th flotilla. Sameold round. Do a sweep, and then sixteen bloody slow merchantvessels to convoy along the last lap of the northern route intoLiverpool. "

" Our only chance of excitement," Tom explained, " being apossible shot at a Condor. I'm thinking seriously of trying atransfer to the Fleet Air Arm, Oh, boy! The Albacore, allpepped up, 1,065-h.p. Bristol-Taurus engine, 340-m.p.h., with awhopping great torpedo under its belly."

" Very nice, I'm sure," put in Monica; "but do you boysever take a rest? For God's sake talk about something else fora change."

III I! 11111111111I1111111111111111111

NAA.006.0184

In a quiet comer two girls had pegged out a claim beside thecounter. The little manwbrked his way unobtrusively towardsthem.

The girls looked up as three officers in navy blue entered thebar and came over to join them. The little man glancedinstinctively at the gold braid on their sleeves. Not sO bad. Onelieutenant-commander and two lieutenants. Well, you couldn'texpect admirals to come popping into the Blue Lion for a quickone. Admirals, moreover, wcre careful blokes: they seldomsaid anything worth the pricking of an ear.

The little man grinned surreptitiously as he read a printednotice on the wall: Careless Talk Helps the Enemy.

Fred and Tom greeted the two girls, and " Where's Elsie? "asked Bill.

" She'll be along," Margaret replied; " but we only got yourtelegram this morning."

"We got our leave a day sooner than arranged," Billexplained.

" And there's less of it than we hoped," added Tom." Why? " demanded Monica and Margaret protestingly.Bill nodded impressively." Because we've got a job of work to do," he said.Fred, with a glance at the notice on the wall, turned the con­

vcrsation." Anyhow, here we are," he said, " and the first round is on

me. JJ

The little man, edging his way towards the group, noted thatfor Bill, at any rate, the" first round" was a euphemism; Billwas obviously in spirits. The barman was kept pretty busy forthe next few minutes.

" Where's that girl? " Bill was saying crossly as the little mansecured a place at his elbow. "It begins to look as though I'dcome all the way from Chatport for nothing."

" Take no notice of Bill," Tom said soothingly. " Bill isfeeling sore. He's thinking of H.M.S. King George V-a whack­ing big ship, but with no toom in her for Lieutenant BillCatterick."

The girls murmured sympathetically." Big ships," Fred announced with decision, " are no bloody

good-not in this war. Destroyers .... destroyers .... and stillInore destroyers."

Bill set down his glass and made a combative gesture with hisright arm.

62

• • * * *63

(<A0913-1) 2,275 4141

64

NOTE.-This is not the opening chapter of a forthcomingthriller by Francis Beeding. It is a true story of January, 1941.

There have been many warnings against "loose talk,"including that in C.A.F.O. 1231/40 (W.l.R., No. 17); but untilnow no COncrete instance has been made public.

This story came to light through the arrest of an enemy agent inwhose possession all the facts mentioned were found. That hegot his information in the 'manner described has been corro­borated by enquiries. The details and the conversation have onlybeen altered to the extent required to prevent puhlic identificationof the officers concern.ed.

*****

Ten minutes latcr the little man left the saloon bar. He stoodfor a moment in the street outside till his eyes had adjusted them­selves to the darkness. He needed time, .too, to collect histhoughts-there w~ so much to remember. Four big shipsncarly completed Duke of York . ... Prince of Wales . ...Jellicoe Beatty Operation Moonshine .... sailing fromChatport Northern route .... and lots more besides. A verysliccessful evening ....' but he had to get the stuff over, and asquickly as possible. ..' . . .. The littlc man began to walk forward through the black-out.

Suddenly he was aware of foottaUs. Two shadowy figures loomedup beside him, and a heavy hand fell on his shoulder.

" Herc;" protested the little man. "What's the meaning ofthis? "

" Scotland Yard, special branch," said one of the shadows." Now. Mr. Neumann-or Newman, if you insist-are youcoming quietly? "

of Officers ·to be ·passed. to,

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