The Whale Has Wings Vol 2 - Taranto to Singapore (17 page)

General Blamey, who is to command the Imperial expeditionary forces being prepared for Greece, arrives in Athens to arrange the final details with the Greek general staff. A major convoy is about to leave Alexandria in Egypt, with the first large contingent headed for Crete, and other forces are ready to follow. The British have only just discovered that the Greek forces in Macedonia have not retired to the Aliakmon Line and will not be able to persuade them to do so because of the damage to morale that would result if territory is obviously given up without a fight after the German move into Bulgaria.

Blamey is not happy about the situation (something he puts forward in typically Australian blunt detail). While he realises and accepts the use of his troops in Greece is political, he is not prepared to sacrifice them 'on behalf of the bloody Greeks who don't even keep to their bloody agreements with us'. The staff are kept busy working out how the Allied troops can be deployed in Greece with some hope of a secure line of retreat, given the Greek obstinacy.

The Turkish government turns down Hitler's personal plea to join the Axis powers. The Turkish President replies that he is grateful for the assurance that German troops would be kept a safe distance from the Turkish border, and tells the German ambassador that Turkey will do everything in her power to avoid war with Germany. He points out his concerns about Bulgaria's mobilisation, which he feels can only be directed against Turkey. The German ambassador, Von Papen, assures him that this is not the case. Fortunately for Von Papen the President does not press him on exactly who it is aimed at if not at them.

5th March

Free French motorised units reach the outskirts of Tunis, to the general appreciation of the populace They are greeted by units of de Tassigny's men, but do not enter the city immediately, though they do put out a screen to the west of the city as a precaution. The town is still in turmoil, as the initial fights between de Tassigny's forces and the Vichy supporters have turned into a tense armed standoff; neither party really wishes to turn Tunis into a battlefield. The arrival of the column of French troops outside the town finally forces a resolution of the situation. The French commander enters the city under a flag of truce, to talk to the Vichy authorities, and later to de Tassigny, in the hope of avoiding a full-blown attack on the city. While this are happening, the rest of the Brigade (less some troops detached on the way to secure the route, and a number of tanks, are arriving and assembling outside the city. No attempt is made to conceal this. Officially of course the authorities are only talking to the French commander.

Britain has broken off diplomatic relations with Bulgaria. George Rendel, the British minister, handed the Bulgarian government a strongly-worded note protesting against Bulgaria's active cooperation with Germany which, it declared, constituted a grave threat to Britain's ally, Greece, and was "incompatible with the maintenance of British diplomatic representation in Bulgaria.

In Greece, Eden reports that the Greeks are reluctant to evacuate their forces from Albania if Yugoslavia does not attack from the north, and who are only offering the British 23 battalions of troops to delay any German advance into Salonika until British reinforcements arrive.

General Blamey is increasingly unhappy about the position he seems to be expected to put his troops in, and the constant refusal of the Greeks, as he sees it, to follow the military logic of their situation. In order to play for time, he suggests to Eden that, until the exact deployment can be arranged, his troops concentrate as an operational reserve, while the New Zealand Division holds Crete as a base for the RAF if German attacks force them to withdraw. Blamey's position is strengthened by a telegram from Menzies who basically gives him carte blanch to dispose his men as he sees best.

Meanwhile Operation Lustre officially begins as troopships head out of Alexandria for Crete; the cruisers Gloucester, Bonaventure and York are carrying the advance elements of I Australia Corps directly to Greece.

On patrol off the east coast of Tunisia, the submarine HMS Upright torpedoes and sinks an Italian cruiser as she covers the Italian convoy heading for Bone. This change of direction has in fact caught the Royal Navy unprepared, they were expecting to attack the convoy as either it entered Tunis, or as it retreated back to Naples, and Cunningham's ships are not disposed to intercept it.

6th March

Churchill issues his Battle of the Atlantic directive. Merchantmen modified with a deck to carry 4-6 Swordfish are to be fitted out as a priority, merchant ships to be given AA weapons as a first priority (in particular any ships to be used on the Gibraltar and Coastal convoys), and more Coastal Command squadrons formed and fitted with radar. Port and dockyard congestion is to be dealt with and the defence of ports greatly improved. These and numerous other matters are to be dealt with as a matter of the very highest priority. The survival of Britain depends on them. Overall direction is to be exercised by a Battle of the Atlantic Committee chaired by the Prime Minister himself.

The picture is not entirely black; the presence of Goshawks on many of the southern routes have turned the Luftwaffe Kondors into an endangered species; they are now only to be seen doing long range reconnaissance where they think they won't encounter a carrier. This has reduced the early losses due to them bombing ships, and made the U-boats task of finding a convoy much more difficult. However the Coastal and Gibraltar convoys are still suffering air attack as the intercepting of the Ju88's and He111's used is more difficult, and often a fast attack is made before the fighters can intercept.

The first of the US-built escorts will arrive soon, and Canadian-built corvettes are now starting to arrive (although they need additional work on arrival as Canada cannot produce all the equipment they need). The British corvette program is now delivering significant numbers of ships, and the new twin-screw Corvettes are on the slips. The Free French have also contributed six destroyers to form an escort group.

However despite better air cover, the U-boats Wolfpack tactic has not been defeated, just made more difficult. While they only manage an occasional concentration, the boats are still taking a heavy toll of any straggler, and U-boat sinkings are not affecting their numbers thanks to the construction programme.

In Tunis, an arrangement has been made between the Vichy governors and the Free French forces (for reasons of face, de Tassigny isn't mentioned even though he has been involved in the negotiations). The governor realises his position is completely untenable (outside the city where the bulk of the forces loyal to Vichy had been stationed, the situation is far worse for the regime, and with the harbour out of their control, there is no hope of reinforcement), and the result is a resignation of certain people in the government structure. By agreement, there are no individual reprisals and later a number of people and their families will be repatriated to metropolitan France.

The first aims of the new regime are twofold. To restore stability in Tunisia (while the government in Tunis has made agreements, there are some units in the country who are still loyal to Vichy, and it would be preferable to disarm them peacefully), without too much of a blood-bath, and to find what has happened to the Axis convoy that was heading for them. The position of the convoy is cleared up later that evening when they hear first of the actions of HMS Upright, and then from Bone that the convoy has docked there.

Fortunately Bone is not a major port, and while Rommel is keen to get his reconnaissance elements ashore and headed for Tunis as fast as possible, practicalities mean this will take a few days. It is agree in Tunis that the Free French troops will dig in to the west to impede any invasion, and the local forces are being mobilised in support. There is considerable French military equipment in the country, and while not up to modern standards will be very useful in a defensive position, but it will take a few days to get a suitable force together and then get it into place. The local forces are not strong, but they know the country well and will be attached to the Free French forces in the west of Tunisia. Another brigade of Free French forces is expected in Egypt in a few days, and this will follow immediately to Tunisia. There are also allied formations in Libya who can be used if needed, although many of these are still short of transport and supplies. However it is not thought that the Vichy forces in Algeria will attack themselves (one of the reasons for the generous terms to the governor is to stop Vichy using the excuse of civil war to intervene). As part of the hurried defence activity, an airfield is being prepared to handle some of the RAF Hurricanes supporting 13 Corps.

Churchill telegrams to Eden agreeing that the situation in Greece had worsened - so much so that he War Cabinet found it difficult to believe that Greece could be saved unless Turkey or Yugoslavia came in on the allied side, which now seemed most unlikely. Another telegram confirming this opinion is sent to General Blamey, with the (top secret) instructions that, while a commitment of some sort in Greece is necessary for political reasons, things should be arranged so as to risk as little as necessary to meet our commitments.

8th March

Wavell receives a signal from the British Military Mission in Athens. "General Papagos yesterday gave an impression of greater optimism. He states indications led him to hope Yugoslavia might yet fight. He therefore reverted to question of holding Nestos position if Yugoslav collaboration at last moment made this possible. From the point of view of morale he emphasised fact that troops in Eastern Macedonia were recruited locally, and that, if fighting in forward positions would be defending their own homes. He remains anxious about lorry situation in view new supply difficulty, and urges that every available lorry be sent as early as possible."

Wavell views this with some misgivings; he is fast losing belief in the ability of the Greek government to come to what he feels are the hard but necessary military decisions, but feels that he has to work with them as much and as long as possible.

Meanwhile in order to try and reduce any interference from Malta, Axis aircraft drop 76 tons of bombs on this 122 square mile island. While not good for Malta, no-one seems to have pointed out that bases on Crete and the Royal Navy's carriers are probably far more of a problem should they intervene.

In the United States, the carrier USS Ticonderoga is launched. The last of the Yorktown class carriers, she has been built as fast as possible, considering the steadily worsening situation in Europe and the Far East, and the role aircraft carriers seem now to be playing. It is hoped to have her commissioned by next March. The first of the follow-on class of carriers, the USS Essex, is expected to be laid down next month.

The 1st Free French Armoured Brigade is formally declared operational at Benghazi. This is a trifle optimistic, as while they are now equipped with ex-Italian tanks, they are as yet not properly trained up with them. The unit will now conduct training exercises aimed at allowing them to move to Tunisia as soon as possible. Until they are ready, a brigade of the 2nd Armoured will move into Tunisia in case the force under Rommel attempts to attack into the country.

The first prototype of the Canadian-designed Ram tank is completed. This tank is based on the US M3 chassis, with a new turret designed large enough to take the new British 6-pdr AT gun (although the prototype only mounts the 2-pdr). The development has been funded jointly by Canada and France, who want the tank for the armoured divisions they are currently training. Building the tank in Canada will allow easy access to the US components for the tank, and production is expected for August. The first batch will mount the 2-pdr if the 6-pdr is not available in sufficient quantities. The tank also interests the British army, who have supplied guns for a second 6-pdr prototype. General O'Connor has stressed the need for a new tank to include a bigger gun (to allow HE fire), and also that it must be reliable - his experience in the desert has shown that tanks that break down too frequently are of little use. The British want to compare the tank with the Valentine; the new turret for the Valentine has space for three crew, but is too small to accept the 6-pdr gun. One possibility would be to use the Ram turret on a new version of the Valentine chassis (allowing complete construction of the tank in Britain).

9th March

The Italian spring offensive in Albania begins, around Bubesh on the Albanian front, between the Devoli and Vijose rivers, and led by Mussolini himself. The goal is to gain a victory against the Greeks before the Germans intervene, and Mussolini has come to Albania to watch.

The Italians will employ nine divisions (including one armoured and two alpini), plus many smaller units of up to regimental size, against about 20 miles of front straddling the Vojussa river. The Greeks defend with the 1st and 15th Divisions in the line, and the 6th Div and half the 17th Div in reserve. The Italian preparations have long been detected, and the Greeks are established in well-hidden hilltop positions with interlocking fields of fire for their machineguns, mortars, and highly effective mountain artillery. The Italian attack is preceded by a two-hour barrage in which 300 guns fire off 100,000 shells, but these are mostly light field pieces (100mm or smaller) and their effect on the deeply dug-in Greeks is minimal. There are also air attacks by Italian Stukas. The main push will be north of the Vojussa in the 6.5-mile sector of Gastone Gambarra's 8th Corps.

In Bone in Algeria, General Rommel, commanding the Afrika Korps, sends a message to the German High Command suggesting that it might be possible to go on the offensive before the hot weather begins. He suggests four objectives, (1) The occupation of Tunisia, (2) the reoccupation of Cyrenaica, (3) the occupation of northern Egypt, and (4) the capture of the Suez Canal. He proposes 8 May to begin the campaign, but points out he will need the rest of his division plus at least two good Italian divisions under his command. The report is greeted in Berlin with a certain amount of scepticism.