Download or read book Convoy Escort Commander written by Sir Peter Gretton and published by London, Cassell [1964]. This book was released on 1964 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Convoy Escort Commander written by Peter Gretton and published by . This book was released on 1964 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Convoy Escort Commander A Memoir of the Battle of the Atlantic written by Peter Gretton and published by Sapere Books. This book was released on 2021-08-30 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An engrossing memoir that uncovers the turning point of the Battle of the Atlantic against the U-boat menace. Perfect for fans of Ian Toll, Jonathan Dimbleby or C. S. Forrester's Greyhound. Vice Admiral Sir Peter Gretton's book is a brilliant account of his career in the navy through World War Two: fighting in the Second Battle of the Narvik, guarding convoys in the Mediterranean and the North Atlantic, before being placed in charge of Escort Group B7, which he described as "the finest job in the Navy for a new commander". It was in this role that Gretton, and the seven warships under his command, were able to make their contribution to turning the tide against the U-boat threat. On the 22nd April 1943 Gretton was in charge of the escort for Convoy ONS 5 during its journey across the North Atlantic. Over the course of the voyage they were attacked by over fifty U-boats, and although they lost thirteen ships they managed to sink six U-boats and seriously damage many more. The U-boats had never faced such fierce resistance to their lethal raids. As the great historian Samuel Eliot Morison stated: "the glorious battle of a British escort group under Commander P. W. Gretton to the Westbound convoy ONS 5 is regarded by both the Allies and the Germans as a turning point in the struggle for the North Atlantic." What tactics had Gretton used to fend off Doenitz's terrifying submarine wolf packs? And how had these strategies developed over the course of the war? Convoy Escort Commander demonstrates how Allied commanders searched for new methods to repel U-boat assaults, including using direction-finding radio and radar, employing special tactical formations, co-ordinating with air cover, and endeavouring to keep the convoy together and prevent straggling. This book takes the reader to heart of the action and is an impressive account of the Battle of the Atlantic and the Royal Navy in World War Two. "one of the best memoirs of the Battle [of the Atlantic]" Acadiensis: Journal of the History of the Atlantic Region
Download or read book Summary of Peter Gretton s Convoy Escort Commander written by Everest Media, and published by Everest Media LLC. This book was released on 2022-06-22T22:59:00Z with total page 40 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book. Sample Book Insights: #1 I was appointed First Lieutenant of the Vega, a World War I destroyer, which was being converted to anti-aircraft and antisubmarine escort duties. The start was in the best traditions. The commissioning ceremony went well, but the rain began to fall as soon as the official inspection of the ship was finished. #2 The ship’s company and the dockyard workers, who were aboard for the trials, were extremely busy. We had to prepare for sea in the short time available, and work was never finished before ten or eleven at night. #3 The first R. N. V. R. unit was raised as a complete team. The scheme was admirable, but it had little time to develop before the war came. We were constantly going to action stations before investigating ships sighted in the darkness. #4 The ship had a number of adventures while on the east-coast route. The merchant ships were not used to keeping station, and they would often slip away from convoys. The four-day passage to our base was more tiring than we expected.
Download or read book Crisis Convoy written by Sir Peter Gretton and published by . This book was released on 1974 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "In April 1943, Commander Peter Gretton in charge of escorting a vital Allied trade convoy from New York to Great Britain across the North Atlantic. Over the course of the voyage, the sixty-one merchant ships of convoy HX231, along with the six ships of B7 Escort Group, were continuously shadowed and attacked by a German wolf pack of twenty U-boats. With the aid of air support, the convoy and defending escort fought valiantly across hundreds of miles of ocean and, despite poor weather conditions, managed to sink and severely damage several enemy submarines. Tragically six merchant ships were torpedoed and with no rescue vessel any survivors were left stranded in the freezing waters of the Atlantic as the convoy continued on its journey. Drawing on reports from both sides, Gretton details the sequence of events as convoy HX231 battled its way through a large wolf pack and offers an authoritative post-battle analysis of the strategies, decisions and actions taken that would ultimately see the tide of war turn in favour of victory for the Allies."--Back cover.
Download or read book The Convoy written by Angus Konstam and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2023-10-26 with total page 339 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Convoy represents a fresh approach to the story of the Battle of the Atlantic. It is also the first to deal with the more spectacular story of HG-76, a major turning point in the naval war. HG-76 sailed from Gibraltar to Britain in December 1941 and was specially targeted by the Germans. A wolfpack of U-boats was sent against it, and the Luftwaffe was heavily committed too in a rare example of German inter-service cooperation. German intelligence agents in Gibraltar and Spain also knew every detail of HG-76 before it had even sailed, seemingly stacking the odds in favour of the Kriegsmarine. Despite this the convoy fought its way through. Improved radar and sonar gave the convoy's escorts a slight edge over their opponents, while the escort group was led by Commander Walker, an anti-submarine expert who had developed new, aggressive U-boat hunting tactics. Previous Gibraltar convoys had been mauled by Luftwaffe bombers operating from French airfields. This time, though, HG-76 would be accompanied by HMS Audacity, the Royal Navy's first escort carrier – a new type of warship purpose-built to defend convoys from enemy aircraft and U-boats. Following seven days and nights of relentless attack, the horrors of which are brought home through a series of first-hand accounts, the convoy finally reached the safety of a British port for the loss of only two merchant ships. Its arrival was seen as the first real convoy victory of the war. Brought to life by expert naval historian Angus Konstam, The Convoy combines the story of the technical and tactical developments that won the Battle of the Atlantic for the Allies along with a narrative that reveals both the terror and the stubborn determination that defined the experiences of those that served on convoy duties.
Download or read book Convoy SC122 HX229 written by Martin Middlebrook and published by Casemate Publishers. This book was released on 2011-07-12 with total page 633 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The author of The First Day on the Somme details a naval skirmish that became a turning point for the Battle of the Atlantic during World War II. Winston Churchill wrote, “The only thing that ever really frightened me during the war was the U-boat peril.” Had the convoy link between North America and Britain been broken, the course of World War II would have been different. There was a period during the winter of 1942-43 when the Germans almost cut the North Atlantic lifeline. In the first twenty days of March, 1943, the Germans sank ninety-seven Allied merchant ships—twice the rate of replacement. During the same period, seven U-boats were lost and fourteen put in service. No wonder Churchill was worried. Early in March, 1943, Convoys SC122 and HX229 sailed from New York harbor for England, and Admiral Doenitz deployed forty-two U-boats to entrap them. Twenty-one merchant ships were sunk in the ensuing battle. The Germans called it “the greatest convoy battle of all time.” This book documents the convoys, every maneuver of the merchant ships, their escort vessels, the long-range aircraft cover, and the attacking U-boats in a powerful narrative reminiscent of Nicholas Monsarrat’s bestselling novel The Cruel Sea. In many ways, this book could be the story of any of the hundreds of convoys that sailed the ocean during the war. Middlebrook also elucidates three controversial aspects of the Battle of the Atlantic: why there was an “Air Gap” long after full air cover could have been provided, why the convoys had to sail with dangerously weak naval escorts, and how the Allied outwitted the Germans in the radio decoding war.
Download or read book Convoys written by Roger Knight and published by Yale University Press. This book was released on 2022 with total page 425 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The first account of Britain's convoys during the Napoleonic Wars--showing how the protection of trade played a decisive role in victory During the Napoleonic Wars thousands of merchant ships crisscrossed narrow seas and wide oceans, protected by Britain's warships. These were wars of attrition and raw materials had to reach their shores continuously: timber and hemp from the Baltic, sulfur from Sicily, and saltpeter from Bengal. Britain's fate rested on the strength of its economy--and convoys played a vital role in securing victory. Leading naval historian Roger Knight examines how convoys ensured the protection of trade and transport of troops, allowing Britain to take the upper hand. Detailing the many hardships these ships faced, from the shortage of seaman to the vicissitudes of the weather, Knight sheds light on the innovation and seamanship skills that made convoys such an invaluable tool in Britain's arsenal. The convoy system laid the foundation for Britain's narrow victory over Napoleon and his allies in 1815 and, in doing so, established its naval and mercantile power at sea for a hundred years.
Download or read book Escort Commander written by Terence Robertson and published by . This book was released on 1979 with total page 258 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Bloodstained Sea written by Michael G. Walling and published by Cutter Publishing. This book was released on 2009-04-10 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Through eyewitness accounts based on hundreds of interviews with crew members; personal diaries, notes, and letters; and each cutter's logbooks and patrol reports Walling plunges you into the thick of the battle, re-creating some of the most desperate encounters, heroic rescues, and harrowing missions of the Second World War. Told largely in the voices of the men who lived it, this unforgettable tale is peppered with humorous and ironic anecdotes about life aboard ship during wartime. You'll meet the liberty-craving crew members who painted their entire ship in less than an hour; the ship's mascot who became canine-non-grata in Greenland; and the crew whose vessel was mistaken for the German battleship Bismarck and attacked by the Royal Navy. Complete with dramatic photographs of the Coast Guard in action, Bloodstained Sea brings this epic drama to vibrant and pulsing life.
Download or read book Arctic Convoy PQ8 written by Michael Wadsworth and published by Pen and Sword. This book was released on 2009-11-30 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When Robert Brundle took the SS Harmatris to Russia with Convoy PQ8 he was 47 years of age. Both ship and master were veterans and had already sailed in convoys across the North Atlantic and to South Africa. The 5,395 ton coal fired ship, laden with 8,000 tons of armaments originally set sail on 27 November 1941 to join convoy PQ6 but encountered a fierce storm in which a lorry broke free in the hold and started a fierce blaze below decks. Despite valiant attempts to extinguish the fire the Harmatris was forced to return to Glasgow for repair. Having discharged its cargo, examined and repaired the holds, it restowed and finally put to sea again on 26 December. She was now to join PQ8 and Brundle was elected Convoy Commodore. Two minesweepers, a cruiser and two destroyers escorted the eight merchant vessels.On 8 January the convoy left Reykjavik bound for Murmansk. Harmatris was struck by two torpedoes in No 1 hold which caused flooding. A third torpedo struck her a few hours later and the crew evacuated to HMS Speedwell in attendance. A volunteer crew reboarded and Speedwell took the wounded ship in tow. During the night the same U Boat that had struck Harmatris sunk the destroyer Matabele with the loss of all but two of her crew. A tug eventually replaced Speedwell and the entire crew now returned to their still stricken vessel. On 18 January the ships were twice attacked by low flying Heinkels. The stricken Harmatris finally berthed in Murmansk at 0800 on 20 January. Once unloaded the battered ship entered dry dock on 10 February. The damage was considerable. In a temperature of 40 degrees below zero the crew set about the repairs. It was difficult to locate engine parts and local labor was scarce.During the following months the crew continued to work on the ship, food was scarce and the port was frequently bombed by the Luftwaffe. Several ships close to Harmatris were sunk. It was 21 July when the ship finally left for Archangel. She took aboard a cargo of 3,000 tons of steel pipes and on 13 September she was instructed to join a convoy of 20 ships, QP14 for her return voyage. On 19 September the minesweeper HMS Leda, steaming close by Harmartris, was torpedoed. The convoy was under almost continuous U Boat attack and suffered six losses. As a result of his heroic efforts to preserve his ship and crew Captain Brundle was awarded the OBE and the Lloyds War Medal. He died in 1960 at the age of 66.
Download or read book Combat Leader s Field Guide written by Jeff Kirkham and published by Stackpole Books. This book was released on 2015-03-01 with total page 420 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A guide to the basic skills all soldiers, sailors, and Marines must know to prevail in small-unit dismounted combat operations, including planning, battle drills for offense and defense operations, patrols, construction and emplacement of fighting positions, use of weapons and call for fire, land navigation and map reading, communications, close quarter battle, and tactical combat casualty care.
Download or read book Convoy Ambush Case Studies written by Richard E. Killblane and published by Pickle Partners Publishing. This book was released on 2014-08-15 with total page 151 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When the enemy adopts a policy to attack convoys, truck drivers become front line troops. Convoy commanders must then become tacticians. How to study war? The student of tactics studies previous fights and mentally places himself in the position of the participants. Knowing what they knew, how would he have reacted? In hind sight, what was the best course of action, remembering that there is no one perfect solution? Any number of actions would have succeeded. The tactician must learn what would have worked best for him. For this reason, I have pulled together all the examples of convoy ambushes. The 20th century, Vietnam War, and current war in Iraq provide a wealth of examples of convoy ambushes from which to study. Unfortunately, the US Army did not record many good accounts of ambushes during the Vietnam War. Much of what is presented in this text is based upon oral interviews of the participants, sometimes backed by official record, citations or reports. For this reason, some of the ambush case studies present only the perspective of a crew member of a gun truck or the convoy commander. Since this academic study works best when one mentally takes the place of one of the participants, this view of the ambush serves a useful purpose. After my own review of the ambushes, I have drawn my own conclusion as to what principles apply to convoy ambushes.
Download or read book The Convoy written by Angus Konstam and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2023-10-26 with total page 291 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Convoy represents a fresh approach to the story of the Battle of the Atlantic. It is also the first to deal with the more spectacular story of HG-76, a major turning point in the naval war. HG-76 sailed from Gibraltar to Britain in December 1941 and was specially targeted by the Germans. A wolfpack of U-boats was sent against it, and the Luftwaffe was heavily committed too in a rare example of German inter-service cooperation. German intelligence agents in Gibraltar and Spain also knew every detail of HG-76 before it had even sailed, seemingly stacking the odds in favour of the Kriegsmarine. Despite this the convoy fought its way through. Improved radar and sonar gave the convoy's escorts a slight edge over their opponents, while the escort group was led by Commander Walker, an anti-submarine expert who had developed new, aggressive U-boat hunting tactics. Previous Gibraltar convoys had been mauled by Luftwaffe bombers operating from French airfields. This time, though, HG-76 would be accompanied by HMS Audacity, the Royal Navy's first escort carrier – a new type of warship purpose-built to defend convoys from enemy aircraft and U-boats. Following seven days and nights of relentless attack, the horrors of which are brought home through a series of first-hand accounts, the convoy finally reached the safety of a British port for the loss of only two merchant ships. Its arrival was seen as the first real convoy victory of the war. Brought to life by expert naval historian Angus Konstam, The Convoy combines the story of the technical and tactical developments that won the Battle of the Atlantic for the Allies along with a narrative that reveals both the terror and the stubborn determination that defined the experiences of those that served on convoy duties.
Download or read book Commander in Chief written by Eric Larrabee and published by Naval Institute Press. This book was released on 2019-10-15 with total page 740 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Few American presidents have exercised their constitutional authority as commander in chief with more determination than Franklin D. Roosevelt. He intervened in military operations more often and to better effect than his contemporaries Churchill and Stalin, and maneuvered events so that the Grand Alliance was directed from Washington. In this expansive history, Eric Larrabee examines the extent and importance of FDR's wartime leadership through his key military leaders—Marshall, King, Arnold, MacArthur, Vandergrift, Nimitz, Eisenhower, Stilwell, and LeMay. Devoting a chapter to each man, the author studies Roosevelt's impact on their personalities, their battles (sometimes with each other), and the consequences of their decisions. He also addresses such critical subjects as Roosevelt's responsibility for the war and how well it achieved his goals. First published in 1987, this comprehensive portrait of the titans of the American military effort in World War II is available in a new paperback edition for the first time in sixteen years.
Download or read book Armor Operations written by United States. Department of the Army and published by . This book was released on 1966 with total page 76 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book United States Army in World War II The war in the Pacific written by United States. Dept. of the Army. Office of Military History and published by . This book was released on 1947 with total page 794 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
