Cerberus ship. Armored ship Cerberus
Operation Cerberus(found in literature Operation Cerberus from English Operation Cerberus, German Zerberus Later Cerberus) is the German name for the operation to redeploy three large Kriegsmarine surface ships from Brest to Germany. In English-language literature it is known as "Dash across the English Channel" (eng. Channel Dash).
Background
Operations to guide surface ships across the English Channel were carried out by the Germans more than once, for example, shortly before the events described:
- On November 27, 1941, Sperrbrecher 52 (auxiliary cruiser Komet) broke through the Strait of Dover from west to east.
- In the first half of December "Sperrbrecher 53" (auxiliary cruiser "Thor") from east to west.
The distinctive feature of Operation Cerberus is both the number of ships carried out and the number of Kriegsmarine and Luftwaffe forces deployed to ensure the successful completion of this operation. In addition, the climax of the operation occurs in the middle of the day.
In the winter of 1941-1942, Scharnhorst (flag of Vice Admiral Tsiliaks, Captain 1st Rank Hoffmann), Gneisenau (Captain Otto Fein), and Prinz Eugen were based in Brest.
On January 12, 1942, the Fuhrer’s headquarters decided to redeploy the ships of the “Brest group” to German ports. Distance between Brest and Wilhelmshaven ~850 miles.
Preparation
Command of this operation was given to Vice Admiral Otto Ziliax. Chief of Staff - Captain 1st Rank Reinicke. To carry out the operation, 6 destroyers, 14 destroyers, 28 torpedo boats were involved: EM: “Z-29” (cap. 1st rank Erich Bey ( English)), "Richard Beitzen" (cap. 1st rank Berger), "Paul Jacobi", "Hermann Schoemann", "Friedrich Inn", "Z-25" MM: "Jaguar", "Falke", "Iltis", " Kondor", "Seeadler", 2nd Flotilla: "T-11", "T-2", "T-4", "T-5", "T-12"; 3rd Flotilla (commander Corvette-Captain Hans Wilcke): "T-13", "T-15", "T-16", T-17".
To interact with the Luftwaffe, Aviation Colonel Ibel arrived at the disposal of Ciliax, who was supposed to direct the actions of the fighters.
Between 22 January and 10 February, Luftwaffe fighter pilots based in France and the Low Countries conducted eight major training exercises with the Kriegsmarine, totaling 450 sorties. Colonel Adolf Galland, recently appointed inspector (commander) of fighter aviation, was responsible for organizing and providing fighter cover. At his disposal were 252 Bf.109 and Fw-190 fighters from the 1st, 2nd and 26th fighter squadrons and the Luftwaffe fighter school in Villacoublay near Paris, and about 30 more Bf.110 night fighters.
Electronic warfare was led by General Wolfgang Martin: reconnaissance of the carrier frequencies of coastal radars and their approximate geographical location was carried out, jamming transmitters were developed (to blind the indicators of enemy radars), their base points were selected and the schedule for their activation was verified (the enemy should not guess about the operation). Therefore, the transmitters were turned on for a short time, and the British were given the impression of strange phenomena in the atmosphere.
A number of measures were thought out to disinform the enemy. Boxes with pith helmets and barrels of oil were loaded onto the ships, with inscriptions on the container: “For use in the tropics.” Until the very last moment (the departure of the ships), postal and laundry services for the crews continued.
The task of determining the course of the squadron from Brest to the North Sea fell on the shoulders of Captain 1st Rank Gissler, flagship navigator of Admiral Tsiliaks. The commander of the minesweeping forces of the German fleet, Rear Admiral Friedrich Ruthe, ensured a safe route for the squadron. His ships (minesweepers), having completed clearing each of their sectors, marked the fairway with buoys and floating lights. But Ruge could not equally well mark the trawled fairway along its entire length, since the excessive consumption of buoys from warehouses in France could arouse suspicion. He solved this problem simply. He began sending minesweepers into the English Channel, where they were supposed to act as lightships.
At night, as the ships were leaving the base, the British launched an attack by 18 Wellingtons. None of the bombs hit the ships, and the RAF crews did not notice anything unusual in Brest harbor.
Progress of the operation
22:45 On February 11, the formation (both battleships, a cruiser and six destroyers) left Brest.The 2nd flotilla left from Le Havre, the 3rd from Dunkirk, both joined the squadron at about 10 o'clock in the morning when it passed the meridian of the mouth of the Seine. At Cape Gris-Ne, the 5th flotilla (five ships of type 23/24) joined the escort.
8:50 the first group of covering fighters appeared above the formation - they were Bf.110
In addition, two aircraft equipped with radar jamming transmitters began emitting radiation in order to prevent the detection of a large group of aircraft accompanying the ships. When the ships reached the operating area of the British coastal radars, German coastal jamming stations were also activated. Their action was so effective that some British radars had to be turned off, and operating stations began to change operating frequencies to avoid interference. The British believed for a long time that they were dealing with some unknown atmospheric phenomenon. At about 10 o'clock in the morning, one of the British radars switched to such a high frequency that the Germans could not interfere with it. From it a message was received about German planes flying over the strait at low altitude. At around 11 o'clock the Bf.110s were replaced by Bf.109s from JG-2. When the ships passed the mouth of the Somme, a pair of Spitfires flew over them (British fighters were returning from a raid into the airspace of Northern France. Having discovered the large German ships, the pilots (Group Captain Victor Beamish and Wing Commander Kinley Finley Boyd (14 victories each)) nevertheless, they decided to maintain radio silence and at the headquarters of the British Navy they learned about the German ships only 30 minutes after landing.
12.20 attack by 5 torpedo boats. (?) 12:30 the ships were drawn into the narrowest part of the English Channel, and entered the area of responsibility of JG-26. The group of aircraft from the 8th and 9th squadrons was led by the commander of III./JG-26, Major Gerhard Schöpfel. 12:45 Ciliax was 10 miles from Calais when his formation was attacked by 6 torpedo planes of the 825th Fleet Air Arm Squadron. Fleet Air Arm, FAA ) accompanied by 10 fighters. German fighters were higher and immediately dived to intercept the Swordfish. Nevertheless, the pilots of 10 Spitfires managed to shoot down 3 aircraft from the 9th squadron. More than 80 anti-aircraft guns on German ships turned to port to meet this suicidal attack. All 6 aircraft of 825 Squadron, under the command of Lieutenant Commander Eugene Esmond, were shot down.).
13.45 (?) Fountains of water flew up on the left side of the Scharnhorst. It was with great delay that the coastal batteries opened fire. Their shells fell harmlessly into the water far from the German ships (33 rounds of 234 mm guns). The lead destroyer immediately began laying a smoke screen. A few minutes later, the gunners of the Dover batteries ceased fire, as they lost their target in the smoke and fog.
14:31 an explosion occurred 30 m on the port side of the Scharnhorst. The magnetic mine went off (the weather was bad; the ships could not distinguish the markers set by the minesweeper that had passed earlier). On the ship, the electrical systems failed due to damaged fuses, leaving all areas without lighting for 20 minutes. The emergency switches left without power on the boilers and turbines did not allow the turbines to be stopped immediately.
Otto Ciliax moved the flag to the destroyer Z-29. There were 4 destroyers left with the damaged ship. "Gneisenau" and "Prinz Eugen" went further.
18 minutes after the explosion (on the Scharnhorst), the first turbine was launched, 6 minutes later - the second and at 15.01 - the third, which allowed a speed of 27 knots. Shortly afterwards, a twin-engine bomber dropped several bombs 90 m off the port side, which caused no damage. A little later, the Scharnhorst was attacked by 12 Beauforts for 10 minutes, but they were driven off by anti-aircraft fire and Luftwaffe fighters. Then we managed to evade a torpedo dropped by an aircraft from the stern corner. 14:40 The escort group was attacked by a squadron of Hurricanes armed with cannons. The destroyer Jaguar and the destroyer T-13 were damaged, and the British lost 4 aircraft. British Navy destroyer attack
At 11:45 a signal was received from Dover that German ships were passing Boulogne. Immediately the ships moved in two divisions (1st: Campbell, Vives, Worcester; 2nd: Mackay, Whitshed, Walpole) to intercept.
13:00 "Walpole" turned back due to an accident with the car (problems with the propeller shaft bearings). Soon after this, two flights of German bombers attacked the Mackay (to no avail), and a few minutes later the formation was attacked by a British (its own) Hampden bomber.
15:17 large German ships were detected by Campbell's radar.
15.40 visual contact was made. More by chance than by organized attack, the formation's attack coincided with an attack by British Beaufort torpedo bombers, which allowed the destroyers of the 1st Division to approach the target at a distance of 16 cables. The destroyer Worcester took the brunt of the broadsides from the Gneisenau and the Prinz Eugen. Its commander, Lieutenant Commander Coates, ordered the crew to prepare to abandon ship. Unable to move and fight (17 killed and 45 wounded out of 130 crew), the Worcester was in a disastrous position at the moment when the Germans passed by, not paying attention to the burning, sinking ship (the Germans believed that it was doomed).
4 British destroyers, returning to the battlefield, took guard of the damaged Worcester and escorted it back to Harwich, being subjected to repeated attacks by their own and German bombers.
19.55 the Gneisenau was blown up by a mine (near the island of Terschelling, Holland).
At 20.30 the squadron passed the island of Texel.
At 21.34, another magnetic mine exploded from the starboard side of the Scharnhorst at a depth of 24 m. The gyrocompasses and lighting failed for two minutes. Again we had to stop all the turbines: the left and middle ones were jammed, but the right one remained operational.
3.50 On February 13, together with two destroyers, Gneisenau anchored in the Helgoland bight.
8.00 "Scharnhorst" encountered ice at the mouth of the Jade River, which somewhat delayed its progress. Vice Admiral Ciliax moved the flag to it again; in the afternoon the ship arrived in Wilhelmshaven.
In total, 242 British aircraft took part in the attacks on the formation, of which only 39 were able to reach the target. During the night (February 12-13), British pilots flew more than 740 sorties. No results. (“But of the 242 aircraft that took off, 188 did not find Ciliax at all. 15 bombers were shot down. And only 39 aircraft attacked German ships, but did not achieve a single hit. And in addition, some of the bombs were dropped on returning British destroyers.”)
Awards
The commander of the torpedo bomber formation, Lieutenant Commander Eugene Esmond, was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for his dedication. Ciliax and Hoffmann were awarded Knight's Crosses for this breakthrough. Captain 1st Rank Gissler received the Golden German Cross. The commander of the Gneisenau, Otto Fein, was not awarded.
Grade
A hearing was held in the House of Commons (Great Britain) regarding the unimpeded passage of German ships. Clearly upset but maintaining his dignity, Churchill said: “Although it may come as somewhat of a surprise to Parliament and the people, I must state that in the opinion of the Admiralty - with whom I maintain the closest communications - the departure of the German squadron from Brest led to a decisive change in the military situation in our benefit"
- As a result of an explosion on two bottom mines, the Scharnhorst took in about 1,500 tons of water; the tank was damaged by the shock; repairs took 4 months.
- On the night of February 27, the Gneisenau, which was being repaired in Kiel, was hit by a British 1000 lb bomb in the area of the first main battery turret, which led to the final failure of the ship.
Literature
- Preston A. “V&W class destroyers 1917-1945” (London, 1971)
- S.U. Roskill "The Flag of St. George" Ed. AST Moscow 2002
Links
Excerpt characterizing Operation Cerberus
“For the health of beautiful women, Petrusha, and their lovers,” he said.Pierre, with his eyes downcast, drank from his glass, without looking at Dolokhov or answering him. The footman who was handing out Kutuzov's cantata put the sheet of paper on Pierre, as a more honored guest. He wanted to take it, but Dolokhov leaned over, snatched the piece of paper from his hand and began to read. Pierre looked at Dolokhov, his pupils sank: something terrible and ugly, which had been bothering him throughout dinner, rose up and took possession of him. He leaned his entire corpulent body across the table: “Don’t you dare take it!” - he shouted.
Hearing this cry and seeing who it referred to, Nesvitsky and the neighbor on the right side turned to Bezukhov in fear and haste.
- Come on, come on, what are you talking about? - whispered frightened voices. Dolokhov looked at Pierre with bright, cheerful, cruel eyes, with the same smile, as if he was saying: “But this is what I love.” “I won’t,” he said clearly.
Pale, with a trembling lip, Pierre tore off the sheet. “You... you... scoundrel!.. I challenge you,” he said, and moving his chair, he stood up from the table. At that very second that Pierre did this and uttered these words, he felt that the question of his wife’s guilt, which had been tormenting him these last 24 hours, was finally and undoubtedly resolved in the affirmative. He hated her and was forever separated from her. Despite Denisov’s requests that Rostov not interfere in this matter, Rostov agreed to be Dolokhov’s second, and after the table he talked with Nesvitsky, Bezukhov’s second, about the conditions of the duel. Pierre went home, and Rostov, Dolokhov and Denisov sat in the club until late in the evening, listening to gypsies and songwriters.
“So see you tomorrow, in Sokolniki,” said Dolokhov, saying goodbye to Rostov on the porch of the club.
- And are you calm? - Rostov asked...
Dolokhov stopped. “You see, I’ll tell you in a nutshell the whole secret of the duel.” If you go to a duel and write wills and tender letters to your parents, if you think that they might kill you, you are a fool and are probably lost; and you go with the firm intention of killing him, as quickly and surely as possible, then everything will be fine. As our Kostroma bear hunter used to tell me: how can one not be afraid of a bear? Yes, as soon as you see him, and the fear passes, as if it didn’t go away! Well, so am I. A demain, mon cher! [See you tomorrow, my dear!]
The next day, at 8 o’clock in the morning, Pierre and Nesvitsky arrived at the Sokolnitsky forest and found Dolokhov, Denisov and Rostov there. Pierre had the appearance of a man busy with some considerations that were not at all related to the upcoming matter. His haggard face was yellow. He apparently didn't sleep that night. He looked around absently and winced as if from the bright sun. Two considerations exclusively occupied him: the guilt of his wife, of which, after a sleepless night, there was no longer the slightest doubt, and the innocence of Dolokhov, who had no reason to protect the honor of a stranger to him. “Maybe I would have done the same in his place,” Pierre thought. I probably would have done the same thing; Why this duel, this murder? Either I will kill him, or he will hit me in the head, elbow, knee. “Get out of here, run away, bury yourself somewhere,” came to his mind. But precisely in those moments when such thoughts came to him. With a particularly calm and absent-minded look, which inspired respect in those who looked at him, he asked: “Is it soon, and is it ready?”
When everything was ready, the sabers were stuck in the snow, indicating a barrier to which they had to converge, and the pistols were loaded, Nesvitsky approached Pierre.
“I would not have fulfilled my duty, Count,” he said in a timid voice, “and would not have justified the trust and honor that you showed me by choosing me as your second, if at this important moment, a very important moment, I had not said tell you the whole truth. I believe that this matter does not have enough reasons, and that it is not worth shedding blood for it... You were wrong, not quite right, you got carried away...
“Oh yes, terribly stupid...” said Pierre.
“So let me convey your regret, and I am sure that our opponents will agree to accept your apology,” said Nesvitsky (like other participants in the case and like everyone else in similar cases, not yet believing that it would come to an actual duel) . “You know, Count, it is much nobler to admit your mistake than to bring matters to an irreparable point.” There was no resentment on either side. Let me talk...
- No, what to talk about! - said Pierre, - all the same... So it’s ready? - he added. - Just tell me where to go and where to shoot? – he said, smiling unnaturally meekly. “He picked up the pistol and began asking about the method of release, since he had not yet held a pistol in his hands, which he did not want to admit. “Oh yes, that’s it, I know, I just forgot,” he said.
“No apologies, nothing decisive,” Dolokhov said to Denisov, who, for his part, also made an attempt at reconciliation, and also approached the appointed place.
The place for the duel was chosen 80 steps from the road where the sleigh remained, in a small clearing of a pine forest, covered with snow that had melted from the thaws of the last few days. The opponents stood 40 paces from each other, at the edges of the clearing. The seconds, measuring their steps, laid traces, imprinted in the wet, deep snow, from the place where they stood to the sabers of Nesvitsky and Denisov, which meant a barrier and were stuck 10 steps from each other. The thaw and fog continued; for 40 steps nothing was visible. For about three minutes everything was ready, and yet they hesitated to start, everyone was silent.
- Well, let's start! - said Dolokhov.
“Well,” said Pierre, still smiling. “It was getting scary.” It was obvious that the matter, which began so easily, could no longer be prevented, that it went on by itself, regardless of the will of people, and had to be accomplished. Denisov was the first to step forward to the barrier and proclaimed:
- Since the “opponents” refused to “name” them, would you like to begin: take pistols and, according to the word “t”, and begin to converge.
- G... "az! Two! T" and!... - Denisov shouted angrily and stepped aside. Both walked along the beaten paths closer and closer, recognizing each other in the fog. Opponents had the right, converging to the barrier, to shoot whenever anyone wanted. Dolokhov walked slowly, without raising his pistol, peering with his bright, shining, blue eyes into the face of his opponent. His mouth, as always, had the semblance of a smile.
- So when I want, I can shoot! - said Pierre, at the word three he walked forward with quick steps, straying from the well-trodden path and walking on solid snow. Pierre held the pistol with his right hand extended forward, apparently afraid that he might kill himself with this pistol. He carefully put his left hand back, because he wanted to support his right hand with it, but he knew that this was impossible. Having walked six steps and strayed off the path into the snow, Pierre looked back at his feet, again quickly looked at Dolokhov, and, pulling his finger, as he had been taught, fired. Not expecting such a strong sound, Pierre flinched from his shot, then smiled at his own impression and stopped. The smoke, especially thick from the fog, prevented him from seeing at first; but the other shot he was waiting for did not come. Only Dolokhov’s hurried steps were heard, and his figure appeared from behind the smoke. With one hand he held his left side, with the other he clutched the lowered pistol. His face was pale. Rostov ran up and said something to him.
“No...e...t,” Dolokhov said through his teeth, “no, it’s not over,” and taking a few more falling, hobbling steps right up to the saber, he fell on the snow next to it. His left hand was covered in blood, he wiped it on his coat and leaned on it. His face was pale, frowning and trembling.
“Please…” Dolokhov began, but couldn’t say right away... “Please,” he finished with an effort. Pierre, barely holding back his sobs, ran to Dolokhov, and was about to cross the space separating the barriers when Dolokhov shouted: “to the barrier!” - and Pierre, realizing what was happening, stopped at his saber. Only 10 steps separated them. Dolokhov lowered his head to the snow, greedily bit the snow, raised his head again, corrected himself, tucked his legs and sat down, looking for a strong center of gravity. He swallowed cold snow and sucked it; his lips trembled, but still smiling; the eyes sparkled with the effort and malice of the last collected strength. He raised the pistol and began to take aim.
“Sideways, cover yourself with a pistol,” said Nesvitsky.
“Watch yourself!” even Denisov, unable to bear it, shouted to his opponent.
Pierre, with a meek smile of regret and repentance, helplessly spreading his legs and arms, stood straight in front of Dolokhov with his broad chest and looked at him sadly. Denisov, Rostov and Nesvitsky closed their eyes. At the same time, they heard a shot and Dolokhov’s angry cry.
- Past! - Dolokhov shouted and lay helplessly face down on the snow. Pierre grabbed his head and, turning back, went into the forest, walking entirely in the snow and aloud uttering incomprehensible words:
- Stupid... stupid! Death... lies... - he repeated, wincing. Nesvitsky stopped him and took him home.
Rostov and Denisov took the wounded Dolokhov.
Dolokhov lay silently, with his eyes closed, in the sleigh and did not answer a word to the questions put to him; but, having entered Moscow, he suddenly woke up and, with difficulty raising his head, took Rostov, who was sitting next to him, by the hand. Rostov was struck by the completely changed and unexpectedly enthusiastically tender expression on Dolokhov’s face.
- Well? How do you feel? - asked Rostov.
- Bad! but that's not the point. My friend,” said Dolokhov in a broken voice, “where are we?” We are in Moscow, I know. I’m okay, but I killed her, killed her... She won’t stand it. She won't bear it...
- Who? - asked Rostov.
- My mother. My mother, my angel, my adored angel, mother,” and Dolokhov began to cry, squeezing Rostov’s hand. When he calmed down somewhat, he explained to Rostov that he lived with his mother, and that if his mother saw him dying, she would not bear it. He begged Rostov to go to her and prepare her.
Rostov went ahead to carry out the assignment, and to his great surprise he learned that Dolokhov, this brawler, the brute Dolokhov lived in Moscow with his old mother and hunchbacked sister, and was the most tender son and brother.
Pierre had recently rarely seen his wife face to face. Both in St. Petersburg and Moscow, their house was constantly full of guests. The next night after the duel, he, as he often did, did not go to the bedroom, but remained in his huge, father’s office, the same one in which Count Bezukhy died.
He lay down on the sofa and wanted to fall asleep in order to forget everything that happened to him, but he could not do it. Such a storm of feelings, thoughts, memories suddenly arose in his soul that he not only could not sleep, but could not sit still and had to jump up from the sofa and walk quickly around the room. Then he imagined her at first after her marriage, with open shoulders and a tired, passionate look, and immediately next to her he imagined the beautiful, insolent and firmly mocking face of Dolokhov, as it had been at dinner, and the same face of Dolokhov, pale, trembling and suffering as it was when he turned and fell into the snow.
“What happened? – he asked himself. “I killed my lover, yes, I killed my wife’s lover.” Yes, it was. From what? How did I get to this point? “Because you married her,” answered an inner voice.
“But what am I to blame for? - he asked. “The fact is that you married without loving her, that you deceived both yourself and her,” and he vividly imagined that minute after dinner at Prince Vasily’s when he said these words that never escaped him: “Je vous aime.” [I love you.] Everything from this! I felt then, he thought, I felt then that it was not that I had no right to it. And so it happened.” He remembered the honeymoon, and blushed at the memory. Particularly vivid, offensive and shameful for him was the memory of how one day, soon after his marriage, at 12 noon, in a silk robe, he came from the bedroom to the office, and in the office he found the chief manager, who bowed respectfully and looked at Pierre's face, on his robe, and smiled slightly, as if expressing with this smile respectful sympathy for the happiness of his principal.
“And how many times have I been proud of her, proud of her majestic beauty, her social tact,” he thought; he was proud of his home, in which she welcomed all of St. Petersburg, he was proud of her inaccessibility and beauty. So this is what I was proud of?! I thought then that I didn’t understand her. How often, pondering her character, I told myself that it was my fault that I didn’t understand her, that I didn’t understand this constant calm, contentment and absence of any attachments and desires, and the whole solution was in that terrible word that she was a depraved woman: said this terrible word to myself, and everything became clear!
“Anatole went to her to borrow money from her and kissed her bare shoulders. She didn't give him money, but she allowed him to kiss her. Her father, jokingly, aroused her jealousy; she said with a calm smile that she was not so stupid as to be jealous: let her do what she wants, she said about me. I asked her one day if she felt any signs of pregnancy. She laughed contemptuously and said that she was not a fool to want to have children, and that she would not have children from me.”
Then he remembered the rudeness, the clarity of her thoughts and the vulgarity of expressions characteristic of her, despite her upbringing in the highest aristocratic circle. “I’m not some kind of fool... go try it yourself... allez vous promener,” she said. Often, looking at her success in the eyes of old and young men and women, Pierre could not understand why he did not love her. Yes, I never loved her, Pierre told himself; I knew that she was a depraved woman, he repeated to himself, but he did not dare admit it.
And now Dolokhov, here he sits in the snow and smiles forcibly, and dies, perhaps responding to my repentance with some kind of feigned youth!”
Pierre was one of those people who, despite their outward, so-called weakness of character, do not look for an attorney for their grief. He processed his grief alone.
“She is to blame for everything, she alone is to blame,” he said to himself; - but what of this? Why did I connect myself with her, why did I tell her this: “Je vous aime,” [I love you?] which was a lie and even worse than a lie, he said to himself. I am guilty and must bear... What? A disgrace to your name, a misfortune to your life? Eh, it’s all nonsense, he thought, a disgrace to the name, and honor, everything is conditional, everything is independent of me.
“Louis XVI was executed because they said that he was dishonest and a criminal (it occurred to Pierre), and they were right from their point of view, just as those who died a martyr’s death for him and ranked him among the face of the saints. Then Robespierre was executed for being a despot. Who is right, who is wrong? Nobody. But live and live: tomorrow you will die, just as I could have died an hour ago. And is it worth it to suffer when you only have one second to live compared to eternity? - But at that moment, when he considered himself reassured by this kind of reasoning, he suddenly imagined her in those moments when he most strongly showed her his insincere love, and he felt a rush of blood to his heart, and had to get up again, move, and break and tear things that come into his hands. “Why did I tell her: “Je vous aime?” he kept repeating to himself. And having repeated this question for the 10th time, Molierevo came to his mind: mais que diable allait il faire dans cette galere? [but why the hell brought him to this galley?] and he laughed at himself.
During 1867-1868, while considering the defense of the colonies of the British Empire, Victoria (one of the territories of the Australian Federation) expressed a desire to build a monitor for the defense of Melbourne.
After much discussion, the Admiralty agreed to a monitor-type ship designed specifically for Melbourne conditions, which determined the requirements for its artillery and armor. In accordance with these requirements, two Cerberus-class monitors were built, notable in that they became the first ships in a series of “parapet” monitors that embodied the ideas that formed the basis of low-sided tower ships.
In every component, the Cerberus-class monitors meant a complete break with previously established traditions and stood out in their appearance from all ships already sailing. The freeboard height was only 1.07 m, and the central parapet, 34 m long, rose 2.14 m above the deck and did not reach the sides by the width of the passage. The main innovation: the end, raised arrangement of 2 gun turrets. Between the towers, rising high above them, there was a hanging deck with a wheelhouse and boats. By similar techniques it was possible to maintain the monitor's low freeboard, but by raising its turrets, allowing them to fire on the wave, and providing a spacious overhang deck.
None of the Royal Navy's ironclads received such limited recognition upon entry into service as Reid's first breastwork monitors. Built for the colonial fleets, they remained somewhat protected by this circumstance from the furious stream of criticism, and their lives were destined to end modestly in the quiet oblivion of distant harbors. However, as examples of military shipbuilding products, they deserve the fullest fame, remaining the first examples of a fundamentally new type of warship, which became the embryo of future development.
The Cerberus monitors had two propellers and a balancing rudder, which provided them with good maneuverability and completely replaced the previous sail propulsion, since by the very nature of their purpose they did not need to make long sea crossings.
Cerberus1870/1936
When Cerberus entered service, it had a hanging deck extending beyond the towers (to accommodate additional boats); a light pole-type mast was installed at the ends of the parapet. However, when preparing the ship for the long journey to Melbourne, it was necessary to expect any accidents, so the ship was equipped with temporary sides from the roundings of the parapet to both stems, leaving a low side in the center. This temporary superstructure was so high that the roofs of the towers rose only slightly above it, and since the ship also received a temporary three-masted rig for the passage, it looked like a smaller version of the Monarch.
When taking on board a full supply of coal of 210 tons, the draft of the Cerberus reached 4.57 m, which corresponded to a metacentric height of 1.07 m. The angle of maximum stability was 25°, and with a roll of 39° the ship turned over. During the passage to Australia, which the monitor sailed mostly under sail in bad weather, she heeled only up to 15°.
"Cerberus" became the first steamship to pass through the newly opened Suez Canal, and a warship in particular! For most of the journey, the battleship sailed under steam, calling at the ports of the British Empire to replenish coal reserves, so the installed sails turned out to be useless; only during a storm in the Bay of Biscay did the sails help keep the ship in the wind.
Upon arrival at its destination, the temporary superstructures at the ends were removed, as well as part of the hanging deck protruding beyond the towers; as for the spars, they limited themselves to a single pole-type mast immediately behind the chimney.
The Cerberus was not destined to leave Port Phillip; it can be called the ship with the most ineffective combat service - not a single salvo was fired at the enemy. Although…
One night in 1878, a small merchant ship tried to sneak into the bay without paying customs duties. At this time, the Cerberus was anchored in Hobson Bay with her guns pointed towards the sea. No one noticed how the current turned the ship so that the guns were already looking towards the shore, and when they saw the unidentified ship, the gunners fired a salvo! And they hit it! The roof of a pharmacy in St Kilda was blown up! Realizing their mistake, they turned their guns and fired again - this time damaging the Gellibrand Lighthouse. The fire was immediately stopped and the unidentified merchant ship was discovered only in the morning.
A more serious incident occurred later, in 1881, when, during an exercise involving other ships of the flotilla, an officer and 3 other ranks were killed when a mine suddenly exploded. At the same time, the Cerberus was updated - with the help of electrical equipment, the ship showed a fascinating show to observers on the shore with its spotlights.
Cerberus served in three navies of one country: first in the Victorian Colonial Fleet from 1871 to 1901, then from 1901 to 1913 in the Commonwealth Naval Forces and ultimately from 1913 to 1924 in the Royal Australian Navy.
In 1926, the battleship was bought by one of the Melbourne companies that disposed of old ships, and after removing the engines and boilers, leaving the 1800 ton barbette, 400 ton gun turrets and guns, it sank the Cerberus as a breakwater 150 meters from the shore.
In December 1993, during a storm, the 2000-ton hull of the Cerberus broke and now a 25-meter exclusion zone has been created around it, since the skeleton has become dangerous. There are projects to restore the battleship, to dismantle its gun turrets and install them on the shore, but so far all the projects are only on paper...
But the significance of "Cerberus" is difficult to overestimate. This is the only first generation (barbet) armadillo surviving in the world! Moreover, not only the hull, but also its gun turrets! Cerberus is the only surviving battleship with a central superstructure. The design of the battleship was the first in the world with a front and rear gun turret. This is the only "surviving" battleship of the Royal Australian Navy. In addition, she was the flagship and the most powerful of them, she combined the latest achievements in shipbuilding, metallurgy, mechanical engineering and weapons. And this was the first warship built for Australia.
Magdala1870/1903
The ship sailed to Bombay during the winter unescorted - representatives of the counterparty and officers considered it sufficiently seaworthy for such a risk, and the insurance company fully shared this opinion. The monitor was equipped with the same temporary spar as the Cerberus, but they did not equip it with additional superstructures at the ends, and the ship set off under sail with the reluctant permission of the Admiralty, which specifically stipulated all the necessary conditions for the transition, which the navigational unit had to strictly observe - roll parameters, etc. Fortunately, the wind force did not exceed force 5, and the wave height was 2 m, so the water only slightly flooded the deck. The ship showed great rigidity under sail, and when all sails were set (except for the topsails) it did not heel more than 12°
On arrival in Bombay, all the temporary spars were removed, the overhead deck was shortened so that it did not reach the towers, and a single light pole mast was placed in front of the chimney. The ship's entire service was spent as part of the reserve in Bombay, only occasionally interrupted by trips to sea for artillery exercises.
In 1892, the main caliber was replaced by 8" breech-loading guns. Subsequently, several light rapid-fire guns were also installed on the hanging deck.
"Magdala" was sold for scrap in 1903.
On February 11, 1942, German ships, a whole squadron, passed through the Channel (as the British call the central part of the English Channel) from Brest to the North Sea! And this is within the range of British aviation, under the gun of coastal batteries, through minefields! How could this even happen?
Millions of British people asked the same question in February 1942. Yes, Britain has experienced tragedies - take, for example, the death of the battle cruiser Hood, sunk in May 1941 with its entire crew by the German battleship Bismarck. But Hood died in battle, and the honor of the fleet was not damaged. And now? However, in order to understand the situation, let us turn to the events of the end of 1941.
At that time, the Nazi fleet had impressive forces. The newest battleship Tirpitz, heavy cruisers Admiral Hipper and Admiral Scheer, 4 light cruisers and destroyers were stationed in the Baltic. The battleships Scharnhorst, Gneisenau and the heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen were stationed at Brest. Destroyers and submarines were based in the ports of Nazi-occupied Norway.
The British metropolitan fleet then consisted of the battleships King George and Rodney, the aircraft carrier Victorius, 4 heavy and 6 light cruisers, and destroyers. The latter were not enough even to guard the Allied convoys traveling through the central Atlantic.
Fears of a possible attack on these convoys by large enemy surface ships, including the Brest squadron, persuaded the British Admiralty to launch a grandiose raid on this port. In January 1942, 612 bombers dropped 908 bombs on it, which, however, did not cause any serious damage to the battleships.
As it turned out, the Admiralty officials were worried in vain. Hitler's attention was focused on the Eastern Front, where the Wehrmacht suffered its first serious defeats. Therefore, Hitler decided to stop surface ship operations in the central Atlantic and concentrate them in northern Norway, from where they could attack Arctic convoys heading to the ports of the Soviet Union. On December 12, 1941, he ordered the transfer of Scharnhorst, Gneisenau and Prinz Eugen, which were stationed in Brest, to Norwegian waters, which were to break through the English Channel. The detailed plan for this operation “Cerberus” was developed in detail by the commander of the Brest squadron, Vice Admiral Zilliax.
The squadron's departure from Brest was scheduled for 19:30 on February 11, 1942. As one would expect, the preparations for the operation did not go unnoticed by British intelligence officers, which they promptly reported to London. Back in 1941, the “Fuller” counter-operation plan was developed, which included a number of measures aimed at preventing this breakthrough. In particular, British aviation was ordered to drop magnetic, bottom mines on the enemy fairways in the strait, and the minelayers Manksman and Welshman set up an additional barrier between Ouessan and Boulogne. Coastal batteries, units of torpedo bombers and bombers, and a destroyer division were put on combat readiness. The torpedo boats stationed in Dover were reinforced with another flotilla. In the areas of Brest, the island of Ouessant, between the ports of Le Havre and Boulogne, constant air patrols were organized. On February 11, the submarine Silion was sent to the waters surrounding Brest, the commander of which was ordered to continuously monitor enemy ships. It seemed that everything had been taken into account. However...
The Brest squadron went to sea at 20:45, with an hour delay due to an air raid on the port. The night was moonless, and a haze hung over the water. But the commander of the Silion did not notice the enemy for this reason. During the bombing, he found it possible to leave the position to recharge his batteries.
The patrol plane, which returned to base due to a breakdown of the on-board locator, also did not see the squadron. Another vehicle, sent to the same square two hours later, naturally did not find the enemy.
Meanwhile, the squadron sailed through the strait at a 7-knot speed and at 5:30 a.m. on February 12 passed the island of Alderney. At dawn, air cover Messerschmitts hovered over the ships.
At 10:30 a.m. the ships came abeam the mouth of the Somme, and the British Admiralty was still unaware of their departure from Brest. By the way, an hour earlier, interference appeared on the screens of British coastal radars. However, similar things had happened before, so the staff officers did not attach any importance to them.
Two English Spitfire fighters, flying out for reconnaissance, saw some ships in the strait, but mistook them for one of their convoys. Only upon returning to the airfield did the pilot notice that some ship looked like a battleship.
At 10:42 a.m., two other Spitfires, pursuing an enemy aircraft, emerged from the clouds just above the squadron. The leader of the pair, Colonel Beamish, immediately realized that there were ships from Brest under him, but, mindful of the order to maintain radio silence, he reported what had happened only after landing, at 11:09 a.m.
And so it began... At the British headquarters the telephones began to ring, orders began pouring in, sometimes ill-considered and contradictory. Instead of a clear Fuller plan, a completely disordered military machine came into action. For example, it never occurred to anyone that Swordfish torpedo bombers are twice as slow as the fighters sent to cover them, that high-altitude bombers do not make it to the battlefield in time, that of the dozen torpedo boats allocated for Operation Fuller are combat-ready only eight.
Finally, the gun barrels of the British coastal batteries began to move, although the gunners were sure that firing at ships covered in fog and rain was pointless without guidance from the radars (and those, as we know, were “blind”). However, at 12:18 p.m. the guns began to speak, firing 33 salvos in 27 minutes. Alas, not a single 229-mm shell fell closer than a mile from the squadron.
The echo of gunfire was still rolling over the strait when only five torpedo boats from Dover went out to sea. In addition, one soon fell behind due to engine failure. At 12:23 p.m., the boats discovered the squadron, but the detachment commander did not risk approaching the enemy without air cover. Rather, in order to free themselves from the cargo, and not to hit the enemy, four boats fired torpedoes in a fan from a distance of 4 cables and retreated. The crew of the fifth boat, having fixed the engine, broke through the fire of the escort, fired torpedoes at the Prinz Eugen - also to no avail!
It was the turn of aviation. At about 12 o'clock, six torpedo bombers, one after another, took off from the runway of the Menston airfield. The squadron was led by Captain Esmond, a participant in the successful hunt for the battleship Bismarck in May 1941. But then Esmond’s “swordfish” were dealing with a strong but single enemy, and now they had to attack a squadron guarded by patrol boats and fighters. Soon Spitfire fighters appeared above the slow torpedo bombers.
Weak cover... - the captain grumbled. He never learned that poor visibility prevented the remaining Spitfires from finding their Swordfish wards.
German fighters met the British near Ramsgate and, engaging the Spitfires in battle, attacked the torpedo bombers, whose crews saw the enemy squadron at 12:50. Having divided the squadron, Esmond led the vehicles of Lieutenants Rose and King's Mill into the attack. On the other side, Lieutenants Thompson, Wood and Bligh were advancing towards the enemy. The commander's "swordfish" slipped through the escort's barrage zone and rushed at low level towards the dark gray bulk of Scharnhorst. And the planes and hull of the torpedo bomber were already being hit by shells from the Messerschmitts that had tightly clung to it. With his last effort, the wounded Esmond threw off the torpedo, and immediately his blazing car fell into the water. Lieutenant Rose's Swordfish, freed from the torpedo, flashed over the deck of a ship, burst into flames and clumsily splashed down. Having climbed into the inflatable boat, the pilots clearly saw how the burning Kingsmill plane crashed into the waves... An hour and a half later, the numb pilots were picked up by a British torpedo boat. The desperate attack by the Swordfish cost England six aircraft, in which 13 pilots were killed. And not a single torpedo hit the enemy ships!
Meanwhile, the squadron entered mined waters, and Admiral Zilliax reluctantly ordered to slow down. Now the British will definitely resume attacks on ships crawling along narrow fairways, deprived of the opportunity to maneuver! But, oddly enough, no one interfered with the passage of the squadron through the minefields.
By 2 p.m. the ships had picked up speed again, but Scharnhorst was immediately shaken by a powerful explosion. However, the damage caused by the mine was not too serious, and soon she was again sailing at a speed of 25 knots. The Brest squadron was entering the North Sea, and the only one who could stop it was the destroyer division from Harwich.
The commander of this division, Commander Paisi, was ordered to attack the Nazis while his ships were training at sea. The division consisted of two leaders and four destroyers built at the end of the First World War. They were even inferior in speed to German battleships. Realizing that the division was hopelessly late in attacking, Paisi took a chance and led his ships through the minefields. True, the destroyer Walpole was forced to turn back to base due to a machine breakdown; the others confirmed the truth of the saying “he who does not risk does not win.”
At 15:17, the signalmen of the flagship Campbell, through the rain and fog, saw the battleships of Zilliax 9.5 miles away. Taking advantage of poor visibility, Pysey closed with the enemy another 2 miles, after which Campbell and Vivious fired torpedoes at the same time. The Worchester, which came even closer to Scharnhorst, was immediately covered by a salvo of battleships and received several direct hits. Mackay and Whitshed were the last to fire torpedoes. And not a single one reached the goal!
Now only 242 British bombers could overtake the squadron, moving at full speed along the Dutch coast. But luck was not with them either - the squadron was discovered by the crews of only 39 vehicles, which, at random, without cover, approached the target. The result - anti-aircraft guns of Nazi ships and fighters shot down 15 bombers, and all British bombs exploded in the sea...
At 19:55, abeam the island of Terschelling, he hit a mine and Gneisenau. A strong explosion damaged the bottom of the battleship in the stern, it lost speed for a while, but at 7 o'clock the next day it was still the first of the squadron to anchor at the mouth of the Elbe. Following him came Prinz Eugen, the only capital ship of Zilliax not to have been damaged in the breakthrough. As for Scharnhorst, at 21:35 it exploded again, took in more than 1 thousand tons of sea water and, with great difficulty, crawled to the base in Wilhelmshaven with the help of tugs. Nevertheless, the Kriegsmarine command had reason to consider Operation Cerberus a success.
AustraliaXIXcentury was a community of British colonies that rapidly developed and grew rich. By the middle of the century, large cities grew up on the site of former convict settlements, industry appeared, and a financial system was created. And when the need for protection from the sea arose, the governments of Victoria, Queensland and other colonies began to order modern warships from the mother country. This article will tell you how the Australian colonists built their own navy, which later became the Royal Australian Navy.
In the mid-19th century, Britain's Australian colonies were in a state of sustained economic growth. The “Gold Rush”, a large amount of free land - all this created the preconditions for the rapid accumulation of capital. The number of immigrants increased every year, large cities grew, and therefore the issue of the security of the colonies became acute, especially relevant in light of the fact that in 1853–1856 Great Britain was at war with Russia. France was considered another potential enemy with serious forces.
Contrary to popular belief, the British colony of "Australia" never existed. In the 19th century, the continent was home to a whole conglomerate of colonies that united into the Commonwealth of Australia only in 1901 - New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Tasmania, South Australia, Western Australia. Since most of the population of these territories was of British origin, the colonies enjoyed broad rights of self-government - including in such an important issue as defense policy. This allowed them to maintain their own armed forces, built on a volunteer “militia” basis. It is noteworthy that the colonists had the right and material capabilities to maintain not only land, but also naval forces necessary to defend the approaches to large cities.
Of course, the armed forces of the metropolis were present on the continent, including the naval forces - the so-called Australian Station, formed in 1859. At the same time, individual colonies from time to time ordered warships from Great Britain for their own needs. Some of them had serious combat value and would have looked good even in the fleets of independent states. The most notable was the fleet of the colony of Victoria, which became rich from the “gold rush” of 1850–1860. By the end of the 19th century, the Victorian Naval Forces had a far from token naval force, its own marine brigade and coastal artillery.
The sloop Victoria is the first Australian warship, built for the colony of Victoria in 1855.
Source: awm.gov.au
We will not consider the coastal defense systems of Melbourne, Sydney and other large Australian cities - this topic requires a separate story. The ships of the British Royal Navy that served as part of the Australian station will also remain outside of attention. In this article we will consider only the ships that the naval forces of the colonies possessed.
Colony Victoria Naval Forces
The first-born of the Victorian fleet was a British-built sloop, simply named Victoria, which was commissioned in 1856. It is noteworthy that she became the first warship built in Britain for the colonies. The sloop had a displacement of 580 tons, its steam engine was complemented by sailing equipment, and its armament consisted of several 32-pounder cannons. Victoria became the first Australian ship to take part in hostilities - in 1860–1861, the sloop sailed to the shores of New Zealand to fight the rebellious Maori. Another highlight in the “career” of this ship was its participation in the search for the missing expedition of Burke and Wills in 1861–1862 (a detachment under their leadership tried to cross Australia from south to north, but died on the way). The sloop's service ended in 1880 when she was converted into a civilian vessel.
Wooden battleship "Nelson" as a training vessel. In the foreground is the destroyer "Childers"
Source: navy.gov.au
The next addition to the Victorian fleet was quite unexpected. Great Britain transferred to the colony the wooden battleship "Nelson", launched back in 1814, and then stood in reserve for forty years (displacement - 2617 tons, equipped with a steam engine, armed with five dozen cannons of various calibers). It’s hard to get rid of the feeling that the British “floated” a not very necessary and hopelessly outdated combat unit to a distant colony. The veteran arrived in Australia in 1867 and was used in the Melbourne coastal defense until 1879, when she was converted into a training vessel. The ancient ship survived until the 20th century, having become a coal miner, and was gradually dismantled (partially destroyed by nature) only in the 1920s.
But a little later, the Victorian naval forces were replenished with the latest combat units, capable of decorating any fleet of its time. The Cerberus monitor was built by the British between 1867 and 1870, and it arrived in Melbourne in April 1871. The ship had a displacement of 3,340 tons, a speed of 9 knots, and its main caliber was four 10-inch (254 mm) guns located in two turrets. The hull was protected by armor up to 280 mm thick at the waist and up to 250 mm thick on the turrets. In general, at the time of commissioning, Cerberus was the most powerful ship in Australia and adjacent waters, deservedly becoming the pride of the inhabitants of the Victoria colony. One eyewitness described the appearance of the monitor in Melbourne as follows:
“A huge number of boats, filled with passengers hoping to board, set sail from the shore. Captain Panther [first commander of the ship - approx. author] decided not to disappoint the curious public, although the ship was not ready for inspection. He gave the necessary orders and went to pay his respects to the governor. Crowds of visitors poured in throughout the afternoon and several thousand guests must have come on board to view the ship's construction and the workings of the towers."
Monitor "Cerberus" approaching Melbourne, April 9, 1871 (engraving based on a contemporary drawing)
Source: slv.vic.gov.au
However, experts assessed the appearance of the new product quite skeptically:
“When it [the monitor] appeared, it aroused the greatest interest. As might be expected, she was not a beautiful ship in any sense. It seemed large, as it should be, a long rectangular box, chopped off on both sides and topped with scanty masts, towers and a chimney.”
Monitor "Cerberus", sunk off Melbourne - current condition. The upper part of the superstructure, the barbettes of the towers, and the chimney are visible. Photo by the author
The slow-moving Cerberus traveled from Great Britain to Australia with some difficulty, after which it did not leave Port Phillip Bay for half a century, providing coastal defense for the capital of the colony (later state) Victoria. The only crew casualties over these decades were six people who died when the boat exploded on its own mine during an 1881 exercise. In 1911, the old monitor became part of the newly formed Royal Australian Navy, becoming a modest mother ship. In 1926, after fifteen years of service in a new capacity, the decommissioned Cerberus was sunk off Melbourne and turned into a breakwater (the hull lying in shallow water has survived to this day). The public foundation that preserves the old ship has plans to completely renovate it and turn it into a museum, but it has been unable to raise funds for this.
It is prohibited to approach the body of the old monitor under threat of a large fine, therefore it is impossible for outsiders to inspect it up close. Perhaps someday Cerberus will become a museum ship
Source: cerberus.com.au
A noticeable strengthening of the Victorian fleet, which made it a combat-ready force (albeit small in number), occurred in the mid-1880s. The gunboats Victoria and Albert, which arrived in Australia in 1884, were valuable acquisitions. The gunboat Albert had a displacement of 350 tons, a speed of 10 knots and was armed with one 203 mm and one 152 mm guns. "Victoria" was larger (500 tons), faster (12 knots) and had a more powerful main caliber - 254 mm. However, already in 1895, during the economic crisis, both gunboats were sold to private owners, after which they served as civilian ships for thirty years.
In 1884–1886, the colony received English-built destroyers - "Childers" (displacement - 62 tons, speed - 18 knots), "Lonsdale", "Nepean" and "Gordon" (displacement - 12 tons, speed - 17 knots) ). In 1891, the light force detachment was replenished with the destroyer Countess of Hopetown (displacement - 75 tons, speed - 24 knots). These ancestors of torpedo boats were armed with self-propelled Whitehead mines (2-3 torpedo tubes per ship). They turned out to be very successful in design and served until the advent of modern destroyers in the Australian fleet. Suffice it to say that the Countess of Hopetown was withdrawn from the naval forces only in 1924.
Victorian Navy destroyers "Childers" and "Countess of Hopetown" at Williamstown Base
Source: navy.gov.au
The appearance of new ships in the fleet was greeted by Melburnians with great enthusiasm. For example, the godmother of the destroyer “Countess of Hopetown” was the lady after whom it was named - the wife of the then governor of Victoria, Countess Alice Evely de Moulins. Here's how one of the newspapers of that time wrote about the curious ceremony of christening the ship:
“The christening of the ship by breaking a bottle of champagne on the side was carried out in a manner that aroused the most ardent interest of the spectators. The bottle was secured to the forward torpedo tube, connected to a galvanic battery on the shore. Instead of breaking the bottle herself, Lady Hopetoun simply fired the battery, as a result of which the bottle was immediately broken into atoms by the torpedo, showering the bow of the ship with its contents. The audience cheered and the orchestra began to play “Rule Britannia.”
At the peak of its development, in the first half of the 1890s, the Victorian fleet consisted of 1 monitor, 2 gunboats, 5 destroyers and 9 armed vessels. As mentioned above, this made it the strongest among Australia's colonial fleets.
Navies of other colonies
Among Australia's other colonial fleets, it is worth noting the Queensland naval forces. They arose in 1883 and immediately armed themselves with a pair of gunboats of the same type, “Gayundah” and “Paluma” (displacement - 360 tons, speed - 10 knots, armament - one 203 mm and one 152 mm gun). Both gunboats remained in the fleet for three decades, after which they survived as civilian vessels until the 1950s. Gayundah was sunk as a breakwater off Brisbane and her hull is partially preserved (albeit in very poor condition). Queensland also acquired destroyers "Mosquito" and "Midge" (displacement - 12 tons, speed - 17 knots, armament - two torpedo tubes). In total, by the 1890s, the naval forces of the colony had the following composition: 2 gunboats, 2 destroyers, 7 armed ships.
Operation Cerberus (in the literature there is Operation Cerberus from the English Operation Cerberus, German Zerberus later Cerberus) is the German name for the operation to redeploy three large Kriegsmarine surface ships from Brest to Germany. In English-language literature known as "Dash across the English Channel"
22:45 On February 11, the formation left Brest.
The 2nd flotilla left from Le Havre, the 3rd from Dunkirk, both joined the squadron at about 10 o'clock in the morning when it passed the meridian of the mouth of the Seine. At Cape Gris-Ne, the 5th flotilla (five ships of type 23/24) joined the escort.
8:50 the first group of covering fighters appeared above the formation - they were Bf.110
In addition, two aircraft equipped with radar jamming transmitters began emitting radiation in order to prevent the detection of a large group of aircraft accompanying the ships. When the ships reached the operating area of the British coastal radars, German coastal jamming stations were also activated. Their action was so effective that some British radars had to be turned off, and operating stations began to change operating frequencies to avoid interference. The British believed for a long time that they were dealing with some unknown atmospheric phenomenon. At about 10 o'clock in the morning, one of the British radars switched to such a high frequency that the Germans could not interfere with it. From it a message was received about German planes flying over the strait at low altitude. At around 11 o'clock the Bf.110s were replaced by Bf.109s from JG-2. When the ships passed the mouth of the Somme, a pair of Spitfires flew over them (British fighters were returning from a raid into the airspace of Northern France. Having discovered the large German ships, the pilots (Group Captain Victor Beamish and Wing Commander Kinley Finley Boyd (14 victories each)) nevertheless, they decided to maintain radio silence and at the headquarters of the British Navy they learned about the German ships only 30 minutes after landing.
12.20 attack by 5 torpedo boats. (?)
12:30 the ships were drawn into the narrowest part of the English Channel, and entered the area of responsibility of JG-26. The group of aircraft from the 8th and 9th squadrons was led by the commander of III./JG-26, Major Gerhard Schöpfel.
12:45 Ciliax was 10 miles from Calais when his formation was attacked by 6 torpedo planes of the 825th Fleet Air Arm (FAA) squadron, accompanied by 10 fighters. German fighters were higher and immediately dived to intercept the Swordfish. Nevertheless, the pilots of 10 Spitfires managed to shoot down 3 aircraft from the 9th squadron. More than 80 anti-aircraft guns on German ships turned to port to meet this suicidal attack. All 6 aircraft of 825 Squadron, under the command of Lieutenant Commander Eugene Esmond, were shot down.
13:30 Cape Gris-Nèz.
13.45 (?) Fountains of water flew up on the left side of the Scharnhorst. It was with great delay that the coastal batteries opened fire. Their shells fell harmlessly into the water far from the German ships (33 rounds of 234 mm guns). The lead destroyer immediately began laying a smoke screen. A few minutes later, the gunners of the Dover batteries ceased fire, as they lost their target in the smoke and fog.
14:31 an explosion occurred 30 m on the port side of the Scharnhorst. The magnetic mine went off (the weather was bad; the ships could not distinguish the markers set by the minesweeper that had passed earlier). On the ship, the electrical systems failed due to damaged fuses, leaving all areas without lighting for 20 minutes. The emergency switches left without power on the boilers and turbines did not allow the turbines to be stopped immediately.
Otto Ciliax moved the flag to the destroyer Z-29. There were 4 destroyers left with the damaged ship. "Gneisenau" and "Prinz Eugen" went further.
18 minutes after the explosion (on the Scharnhorst), the first turbine was launched, 6 minutes later - the second and at 15.01 - the third, which allowed a speed of 27 knots. Shortly afterwards, a twin-engine bomber dropped several bombs 90 m off the port side, which caused no damage. A little later, the Scharnhorst was attacked by 12 Beauforts for 10 minutes, but they were driven off by anti-aircraft fire and Luftwaffe fighters. Then we managed to evade a torpedo dropped by an aircraft from the stern corner.
14:40 The escort group was attacked by a squadron of Hurricanes armed with cannons. The destroyer Jaguar and the destroyer T-13 were damaged, and the British lost 4 aircraft.
British Navy destroyer attack
The interception plan was drawn up by Vice Admiral Ramsay with the participation of Captain Paisy (Pizi). The plan assumed that the breakthrough of German ships would take place at night. The flotillas were in full combat readiness at Garwich English. Harwich. Commander of the 21st Destroyer Flotilla (Commander of the Order of Merit) Captain K. T. M. Paisi (Peasey) on the leader "Campbell", Harwich base. Composition: one destroyer "Vivacious" and the attached 16th Flotilla (under the command of Captain J.P. White) consisting of the leader "Mackay", the destroyers "Whitshed", "Worcester" and "Walpole"
At 11:45 a signal was received from Dover that German ships were passing Boulogne. Immediately the ships moved in two divisions (1st: Campbell, Vives, Worcester; 2nd: Mackay, Whitshed, Walpole) to intercept.
13:00 "Walpole" turned back due to an accident with the car (problems with the propeller shaft bearings). Soon after this, two flights of German bombers attacked the Mackay (to no avail), and a few minutes later the formation was attacked by a British (its own) Hampden bomber.
15:17 large German ships were detected by Campbell's radar.
15.40 visual contact was made. More by chance than by organized attack, the formation's attack coincided with an attack by British Beaufort torpedo bombers, which allowed the destroyers of the 1st Division to approach the target at a distance of 16 cables. The destroyer Worcester took the brunt of the broadsides from the Gneisenau and the Prinz Eugen. Its commander, Lieutenant Commander Coates, ordered the crew to prepare to abandon ship. Unable to move and fight (17 killed and 45 wounded out of 130 crew), the Worcester was in a disastrous position at the moment when the Germans passed by, not paying attention to the burning, sinking ship (the Germans believed that it was doomed).
13:00 "Walpole" turned back due to an accident with the car (problems with the propeller shaft bearings). Soon after this, two flights of German bombers attacked the Mackay (to no avail), and a few minutes later the formation was attacked by a British (its own) Hampden bomber.
15:17 large German ships were detected by Campbell's radar.
18.00 "Scharnhorst" approached the coast of Holland. At 19.16, several bombs dropped from a high altitude fell behind her stern.
Luftwaffe fighters and anti-aircraft artillery of the ships shot down 12 Hampden and Bleinheim bombers, 6 Swordfish torpedo bombers, 6 Hurricanes, 8 Spitfires, as well as 4 Whirlwind twin-engine fighters. 14 British pilots were killed and three were captured (including a Lithuanian). Two more Spitfires collided in the clouds, killing one pilot. The Luftwaffe lost 7 fighters and 4 pilots were killed.
19.55 the Gneisenau was blown up by a mine (near the island of Terschelling, Holland).
At 20.30 the squadron passed the island of Texel.
At 21.34, another magnetic mine exploded from the starboard side of the Scharnhorst at a depth of 24 m. The gyrocompasses and lighting failed for two minutes. Again we had to stop all the turbines: the left and middle ones were jammed, but the right one remained operational.
3.50 On February 13, together with two destroyers, Gneisenau anchored in the Helgoland bight.
8.00 "Scharnhorst" encountered ice at the mouth of the Jade River, which somewhat delayed its progress. Vice Admiral Ciliax moved the flag to it again; in the afternoon the ship arrived in Wilhelmshaven.
In total, 242 British aircraft took part in the attacks on the formation, of which only 39 were able to reach the target. During the night (February 12-13), British pilots flew more than 740 sorties. No results. (“But of the 242 aircraft that took off, 188 did not find Ciliax at all. 15 bombers were shot down. And only 39 aircraft attacked German ships, but did not achieve a single hit. And in addition, some of the bombs were dropped on returning British destroyers.”)
