(Britain)
The population of the U.K. in September 1943 was an estimated 43 million people. According to the U.K. Ministry of Labour on the 1st September 1943, the information available was as follows. 22.75 million Men and women were either conducting essential war work or in Civil Defence or in the Armed Services. Approximately 52.9% of the population were actively involved in defending the U.K.
(Eastern Front)
In the Soviet Union the second Smolensk Operation was conducted from the 7th August to 2nd October 1943. Smolensk had been under German occupation since the first Battle of Smolensk in 1941. German losses at the end of the Battle of Kursk in July 1943 ensured that they had lost the initiative on the Eastern Front. On the 7th August 1943 the Soviet Union army, comprising over a million troops, tanks, guns and aircraft began a general offensive. However, the Germans still had approximately 850,000 men plus their armour to defend the Smolensk area. The offensive tactics, as envisaged by Soviet Commanders, were to attack in three stages. The first stage resulted in stalemate on the 20th August 1943 when strong German defences inflicted heavy casualties on the Soviet army. The second stage was Operation Polkovodets Rumyantsev, as described in the August1943 text. This stage ran from the 3rd to 23rd August 1943. The third stage began on the 7th September 1943 following Soviet reinforcements. The actual attack, after an artillery bombardment, began on the 14th September 1943. Gradually the Red Army began to create a 12 mile (20 km) wide and 6.2 mile (10 km) deep salient around Smolensk. On the 25th September 1943 the Red Army liberated Smolensk. By the 2nd October 1943 the Smolensk Operation was over. The total losses for the Germans during the Smolensk Operation were nearly 71,000 killed, wounded or missing. The Red Army suffered over 450,000 killed, wounded, missing or captured. The Germans suffered a defeat but were still in Soviet territory. But owing to the losses sustained they were denied the opportunity to send reinforcements to assist in the defence of Italy.
Denmark and Norway were occupied by Nazi Germany in April 1940. At first the German occupation was mild after the Danish government had promised “loyal cooperation”, for which they were allowed to uphold their Danish civil laws. During the early years of occupation the Danish authorities insisted there was not a Jewish problem. However, following a visit to Berlin in 1941, the German authorities insisted, that Danish foreign minister Erik Scanenius saw the Jews as a problem. Anti-Semitic newspapers took the opportunity to discredit the country’s Jews. Arson attacks were made against Jewish property. Because of the newspaper reports the Danish government, began to impose fines and jail sentences on editors and arsonists. The German authorities interpreted this as being uncooperative. In the meantime the Danish resistance movement became more active. The Germans presented the Danish government with an ultimatum on the 28th August 1943, that they would adopt the Nazi legal code regarding the Danish Jewish population. The Danish government found that unacceptable. The Danish government declared a state of emergency and in response the Germans apprehended 100 prominent Danes including some Jews as hostages. The Danish government resigned on the 29th August 1943 and with it the protection of the Jews had ended. With approximately 7,800 Jews in Denmark, the German occupiers began to plan for their deportation to Nazi concentration camps. By the 27th September 1943 German diplomat Georg Ferdinand Duckwitz had contacted the Swedish government with a view to accepting the Danish Jews. The Swedes would accept them but only with Nazi approval. Approval was sought and the Nazis subsequently ignored the request. On the 28th September 1943, Duckwitz leaked plans to Rabbi Marcus Melchior, via the Danish Social Democratic Party. The party in turn passed the information to the Danish Resistance Movement, who passed it to the head of the Jewish community. On the 29th September 1943 Melchior urged all Jews to hide immediately and he warned them of the planned German actions. Martial law was introduced in Denmark on the same day. The Swedish government realised the Jews were in immediate danger. On the 2nd October 1943 Sweden announced they would accept the Danish Jews. A variety of boats smuggled the Jews out of Denmark. Approximately 580 Danish Jews failed to escape and out of these 464 were captured and sent to Czechoslovakian concentration camps. The Danish Red Cross persuaded the Germans not to send the Jews to extermination camps. However, 102 Danish Jews were murdered during the Holocaust. Of the countries in occupied Europe Denmark sent the lowest number of Jews to concentration camps.
(Italy)
The Armistice of Cassibile was signed by the Kingdom of Italy and the Allies on the 3rd September 1943. The armistice had been approved by King Victor Emmanuel III and the Italian Prime Minister, Marshall Badoglio. The signing was conducted in an Allied military camp at Cassibile in Sicily, which had recently been occupied by the Allies. A confirmation telegram was sent to the Allies, which unfortunately was intercepted by the Germans who had by this time began to suspect Italy was seeking a separate armistice. The Germans began to develop Operation Achse to take control of Italy as soon as the Italians switched allegiance to the Allies. Achse was anticipated as early as May 1943 and the Germans transferred some troops from France. On the 8th September 1943 General Dwight D. Eisenhower publically announced the surrender of Italy. On the same day the Germans immediately attacked the Italians by executing Operation Achse. The Italian forces collapsed and were soon overwhelmed as they had not been issued with any clear orders about what action to take against the German armed forces. The King, his family and Badoglio fled Rome, on the 9th September 1943, and took shelter at Brinisi in southern Italy. From the 8th to 12th September 1943 the Germans occupied all of Italian territory that was not under Allied control. On the 10th September 1943 German troops occupied Rome. With the announcement of the armistice the Regia Eserciti (Italian Royal Army) and Regia Aeronautica (Italian Royal Air Force) had virtually disintegrated. The Regia Marina (Italian Royal Navy) was coveted by the Allies and encouraged them to surrender at Malta. Regia Marina consisted of 206 warships which included four battleships. Owing to the news of the armistice not being known to all the warships there was a possibility that some of the navy might fight on. There was also the possibility that some may be scuttled or disturbingly end up in German hands. Under the terms of the armistice the Italian warships on the west coast of Italy would sail for North Africa. The remaining fleet along the east coast would make their way to Malta to surrender and arrived on the 10th September 1943. During the evacuation the Italians suffered the loss of one battleship and nearly 1,400 sailors. The ships that were kept in commission retained their Italian crews and flew the Italian flag.
Historic Frascati is located slightly to the southwest of Rome. Just after midnight on the 8th September 1943, Frascati was bombed by 131 USAAF B-17 heavy bombers. The target was the German General Headquarters and the Italian headquarters. The headquarter defences were heavy anti-aircraft guns and light artillery guns. The Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica) supplied fighter aircraft which included some obsolete biplanes. The raid took place on the same day Eisenhower announced the armistice. On the 3rd September 1943, during the peace talks the Italians were alerted by the Allies of the bombing on Frascati. When the raid commenced the Italian officials were not present at the German or Italian headquarters. During the raid, approximately 50% of the buildings were destroyed. Part of the destruction was to St. Pietro square and many monuments and villas lost. The Cathedral façade was the exception to the destruction as it remained undamaged. The Italian townspeople were hiding in bomb shelters less than 24 hours before the raid. After the raid some of the townspeople fled south to avoid occupation by the German Army. Rumours abounded that the Germans would declare the city an “infected area” and raze it to ground with flamethrowers. The remaining townspeople heeded the rumours and buried 485 civilian victims of the raid. A few days after the raid, German Field Marshall Albert Kesselring and his militia transferred their headquarters to Monte Soratte which is located north of Rome. The staff of the Italian headquarters fled to the port of Ortona on Italy’s east coast. The USAAF lost one B-17 bomber, whilst the Germans do not appear to have suffered any losses, either personnel or machinery. The Italians lost 36 fighters as well as the 485 civilians killed.
Beginning on the 9th September 1943 the Allies launched Operation Avalanche near the port of Salerno. The primary objective was to seize the Port of Naples to ensure resupply and to secure the inland route to the east coast. The U.S. Fifth Army comprising the U.S. VI Corps, the British X Corps and U.S. 82nd Airborne Division carried out the landings. The surprise which the Allies expected by not having any naval or aerial bombardment was not achieved. Following the evacuation from Sicily the Germans had anticipated the invasion of mainland Italy upon the west coast, south of Naples. They had established artillery and machine posts throughout the landing zones. When the seaborne landings began on the 9th September 1943 the beach areas were successfully taken. Later in the day a concerted counterattack by the 16th Panzer division caused heavy casualties but were beaten off by naval gunfire support. At the end of the first day both the British and Americans attackers made slow progress. They had a 10 mile (16 km) gap between them owing to strong German defences. The next day (10th September 1943) the two armies linked up. They occupied approximately 40 miles (64 km) of coastline for a depth of about 7 miles (11.5 km). For three days six divisions of German motorised troops counter-attacked the beaches hoping to drive the Allies back into the sea (12th – 16th September 1943). The Allies suffered heavy casualties as they were very thinly spread along the beachhead. The solution was the outermost troops were withdrawn in order to reduce the perimeter. With naval gunfire, Fifth Army artillery and the assistance of 4,000 U.S. paratroopers the perimeter was held. The German attacks almost reached the beaches but ultimately failed. However, on the 13th September 1943, they came close to overwhelming the Salerno beachhead. Hitler had heeded advice from his commanders that defending Italy south of Rome was not a strategic priority. As a result the German defenders were not able to call upon reserves from the north. On the first day (9th September 1943) the British Eighth Army arrived, by sea, at the port of Taranto. Two Italian battleships and three cruisers were observed leaving the harbour. In accordance with the armistice announced the previous day they sailed past the British flotilla heading for Malta to surrender. By the late afternoon the flotilla reached the edge of Taranto’s minefield. After negotiating the minefield, destroyer HMS Javelin entered the harbour and returned to the flotilla with an Italian harbour pilot. The majority of the flotilla stayed outside the minefield and their cargoes of soldiers and equipment were ferried aboard small ships to the harbour. On the 11th September 1943 the ports of Brindisi and Bari on the Adriatic coast were still under control of the Italian royal army. Within 48 hours of landing at Taranto, British troops had reached and occupied the ports with the assistance of the Italians under the terms of the armistice. When the Germans evacuated Sicily in August 1943 most of their army retreated to a line north of Naples. The British Eighth Army had been making quick progress up the “toe” of Italy. Despite German delaying tactics they joined up with the U.S. Fifth Army on the 16th September 1943 near Salerno. By the 18th September 1943 the combined forces were ready to advance toward Naples. After a week-long battle, the combined Allies lost 2,349 killed, 7,366 wounded and 4,100 missing. The Germans losses, mainly from Allied naval support fire and field artillery guns, were 840 killed, 2,002 wounded and 603 missing.
On the 12th September 1943 the deposed Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini was rescued by the order of German Führer Adolf Hitler. As Prime Minister, Mussolini received a vote of no confidence motion from the Grand Council of Fascism in July 1943. The Italian King replaced him as Prime Minister with Badoglio, and had Mussolini arrested. His final destination for custody was in the Gran Sasso d’Italia mountain range. He was being held at a hotel with a ski station on a remote plateau 7,257 ft. (2212 m) above sea level. The only access to the plateau was by cable car and the hotel was defended by 200 Italian Carabinieri troops. Hitler was shocked as he feared a similar fate would befall him. He ordered that Mussolini be found, freed and reinstated as leader of Italy. German signals intelligence, commanded by Otto Skorzeny, were able to establish his exact location on the 7th September 1943. Parachuting onto the high plateau was impractical, owing to the altitude. However, the flat area next to the hotel would be ideal for gliders landing. On the 12th September 1943 the raid was carried out in two phases. Phase one consisted of ten Henschel planes towing DFS 230 gliders, each carrying nine soldiers and a pilot, onto the plateau. One crashed on landing causing injuries to the crew. Skorzeny and 16 S.S. troopers were involved in the glider raid. Together with the additional soldiers in the gliders they quickly overwhelmed Mussolini’s captors without a shot being fired. Phase two involved two paratrooper companies capturing the low level station of the cable car. The German paratroopers were commanded and led by Major Harald Mors, who planned the operation. During this raid two Italian defenders were killed and a further two injured by hand grenade. Once the low level was secured, Mors and his paratroopers ascended in the cable car to the plateau, in order to reinforce the glider attackers. In the meantime Skorzeny confronted the radio operator, overwhelmed him, and entered into the hotel. From the moment the gliders landed and Mussolini left the hotel only 10 minutes had elapsed. Upon reaching the hotel Mors introduced himself to Mussolini and informed him he would be rescued by small plane. A Fieseler FI 156 Stol plane had arrived in the meantime. Skorzeny insisted on accompanying Mussolini even though the plane was overloaded, given the altitude conditions. The take-off was successful but highly dangerous and they flew south to Pratica di Mare. Transferring to a Heinkel HE 111 they immediately flew on to Vienna where Mussolini stayed overnight. The next day he was flown to Munich and he finally met up with Hitler at the Führer Headquarters in the Wolf’s Lair near Rastenburg on the 14th September 1943. The aftermath was that Skorzeny was granted the majority of the credit for the operation. For this he was awarded the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross and the fame that led to his image as the “most dangerous man in Europe”. German propaganda capitalised on this mission for months afterwards.
(Mediterranean)
During September 1943 all actions in the Mediterranean were concentrated in the German/Italian occupied Greek Islands. With the Armistice of Cassibile and subsequent surrender of Italy to the Allies on the 8th September 1943, the Greek islands were solely occupied by the Germans,
On the German occupied island of Crete the Viannos Massacre was launched from the 14th to 16th September 1943. German troops retaliated against the Viannos civilian population for guerrilla resistance. Crete was one of the Greek islands that had been invaded and occupied by the Germans and Italians since 1941. Towards the end of 1942, with minimal Italian presence in the Viannos region, local resistance groups were being organised. By early 1943 rumours were circulating that the Allies had plans to attack Crete. With the surrender of Italy to the Allies earlier in the month the Germans were the sole occupiers of Crete. On the 10th September 1943 the resistance fighters attacked the German outpost at Koto Simi. In the process two German soldiers were killed and their bodies thrown into a crevasse. When the bodies were discovered on the 12th September 1943 the resistance realised that Koto Simi would need to be defended. Forty guerrillas set an ambush against the expected Germans. When the Germans appeared a running battle developed and the Germans retreated suffering heavy losses. The guerrillas lost one man and the remainder withdrew into the mountains. The German commander Friedrich-Wilhelm Müller ordered his troops to destroy Viannos on the 14th September 1943. All males over the age of sixteen were to be executed. Irrespective of age or gender, anyone arrested in the countryside were also executed. A large German force of 2,000 troops approached Viannos and surrounding villages from different directions. Initially the locals were reassured the intention was peaceful. They also persuaded many of the men who had fled to the mountains to return home. On the 16th September 1943 the Germans carried out indiscriminate mass executions. Part of the plan was to encourage arson, vandalism, demolition and the harvest destruction. The survivors were forbidden to bury their dead or return to their homes. An estimated 500 Crete civilians were murdered and a further 200 civilians taken as hostage. Viannos suffered the destruction of 1,000 buildings, mostly housing. Each village involved eventually installed a war memorial dedicated to the dead, but the victim’s families did not receive any reparations. Other than Müller, who was executed after the war for war crimes, nobody was brought to justice for their involvement.
On the 8th September1943 Allied forces attempted to capture the Italian Dodecanese islands in the Aegean Sea. The Dodecanese group of islands had been under Italian control since 1911 following the Italo-Turkish war. The plan was to use the islands as a base from which the German controlled Balkans could be attacked. The 55,000 Italian troops garrisoned on the islands joined forces with 5,500 British troops following the surrender of the Italians to the Allies on the 8th September 1943. The total number of Germans on the islands were 7,500. The first island to be attacked was Rhodes where most of the Germans were stationed. A British delegation parachuted onto Rhodes in an attempt to persuade the Italians to join the Allies. Despite the Italian armistice as many as 10,000 Italian Fascist loyalists remained loyal to Germany. On the 9th September 1943 a swift response from German troops attacked the Rhodes 40,000 strong garrison, which was forced to surrender on the 11th September 1943. The British, despite the setback on Rhodes, pressed ahead with the attempt to secure the other islands. The priority would be the two larger islands of Kos and Leros. The Allies knew the Germans were overstretched in the Aegean, and knew that by having control of these islands, and enjoying superiority in sea power plus RAF and SAAF aircraft, it was hoped an assault on Rhodes could be launched with the assistance of the Italians. On the 13th September 1943 units of the Special Boat Section (SBS) landed on Kos occupying the port facilities and airfield. Meanwhile, on the same day, thirty-eight Liberator bombers from North Africa bombed Rhodes, effectively grounding the German Luftwaffe. From the 14th – 17th September 1943 nearly 1,400 British servicemen arrived on the island and joined up with approximately 3,600 Italians soldiers from the original garrison. On the 17th September 1943 the German counter-attack began. Because of the RAF gunners on the ground and the South African Spitfires in the air, German Messerschmitt 109 and Junkers 88 aircraft met with varying success. Luftwaffe reinforcements and increased bombing continued into October 1943. The limited British aircraft cover was totally inadequate for the defence of the island. The consequences being they suffered heavy losses from bombing of the airfield coupled with aerial combat. By the 15th September 1943, on the Island of Leros, a total of 3,000 British soldiers had reinforced the existing 8,200 Italian defenders. The Battle of Leros began on the 26th September 1943 when the German Luftwaffe unleashed continuous bomb attacks on the island and would continue onto October and November 1943. The Dodecanese Campaign would continue into October/November1943. When the battle ended on the 16th November 1943 it was to be one of the last German victories of the war. The war in Europe had begun to turn in favour of the Allies.
On the Greek island of Cephalonia the massacre of the Italian Acqui Division was carried out by German soldiers from the 21st to 26th September 1943. The Acqui Division, consisting of 525 officers and 11,500 men had been in the Italian garrison since May 1943, and commanded by General Antonio Gandin. After Italy’s armistice in early September 1943, Gandin was in a dilemma. Should he surrender to the Germans or resist. Gandin requested instructions from his superiors who replied for him to do nothing. They should not join force with the Allies or Greek partisans should they arrive on Cephalonia. On the 11th September 1943 the Italian High Command sent instructions to Gandin to treat German troops as hostile and must be resisted. On the same day he was given an ultimatum by the Germans, fight with them, fight against them or surrender their arms peacefully. Gandin chose to negotiate with the Germans to find a solution. In return for a German promise not to bring in reinforcements, Gandin agreed to withdraw his soldiers from the island’s central “nerve centre”. On the 13th September 1943, Italian artillery officers ordered the battalion to open fire on the approaching German convoy carrying reinforcements. Two German landing craft were sunk and five German soldiers killed. On the same night upon learning of this development, Gandin presented his troops with a poll. Join the Germans, surrender or resist. The majority of the troops were in favour of resisting. Gandin’s negotiations with the Germans failed and on the 15th September 1943 the German Luftwaffe began to bomb the Acqui Division. On the ground initially the Acqui enjoyed superiority even taking 400 German prisoners. By the 17th September 1943, German reinforcements had arrived. With air superiority and greater combat experience of ground forces the resisting Acqui surrendered on the 22nd September 1943. The Acqui had lost 1,315 men and run out of ammunition. The few soldiers who managed to avoid being captured were assisted by the local population and the Greek resistance. In the meantime the Nazi leadership had issued an order for the Acqui to be executed for treason. The massacre began on the 21st September 1943 and lasted until the 26th September 1943. Including Gandin, 5,155 were executed. A further 3,000 drowned when the remainder of the Acqui were being transported by ship taking them to concentration camps. The transport ships carrying the remainder of the Acgui being sunk by Allied aircraft or mines. Out of the 12,000 strong Acqui Division, 9,500 were either massacred or drowned. Also killed fighting alongside the Acqui were 15 Greek partisans. German sources indicate their estimated losses were 300 killed during the Massacre of Acqui Division.
The island of Corfu had been occupied by the Italians since April 1941 following the Greco-Italian War. Italy and Germany had co-joined as the Axis Powers and when Italy surrendered to the Allies on the 8th September 1943 Germany were the sole occupiers of the Greek Islands. On the 14th September 1943 the Nazi’s began to take control of the island with bombing raids by the Luftwaffe. Most of the historic buildings, churches, markets and especially the Jewish quarter of Evraiki were destroyed by the Nazi bombing raids. What Italian occupiers still on the island capitulated and the Germans took over the Corfu occupation on the 27th September 1943.
(Pacific)
All the actions in the Pacific during September 1943 were concentrated in the New Guinea theatre of the war.
The Japanese had a base at Lae from early 1942 and the Allied intention was to capture this base. The plan was for an amphibious landing by the Australian 9th Division onto the beach east of the town. They were supported by U.S. naval forces of the 7th Amphibious Force. The initial landing of one brigade on the 4th September 1943 was on two beaches. These beaches are located approximately 17 miles (27 km) east of Lae. Five U.S. destroyers preceded the landing with a short naval bombardment. The landing was unopposed because the small number of Japanese land forces guarding the shore chose to abandon their posts. There was Japanese resistance from the air when six Zeke fighters and three Betty bombers attacked the landing craft. Twelve bombs were dropped by the bombers, and hit the deck of USS LCI – 339. The conning tower was badly damaged and the ship caught fire and was stranded on the beach. The Australians suffered eight killed and 45 wounded. Having secured the beaches with approximately 8,000men, a second brigade landed to expand the beachhead. The landing was carried out in conjunction with a U.S. airborne landing at Nadzab airport complex, which is located north-west of Lae. Having secured the airport on the 5th September 1943 the U.S. 7th Amphibious Force advanced on Lae. In the meantime the Australian 9th Division began their advance along the beach toward Lae. The narrow beaches had dense jungle and mangrove swamps edging up to them. Bad weather and stiff resistance by Japanese defenders hampered their advance. Various Japanese assaults delayed the Australian advance for a few days. With Lae being threatened by encirclement, the Japanese began a withdrawal northwards on the 8th September 1943. Entering Lae on the 16th September 1943, the U.S. 7th Division arrived a day before the Australian 9th Division, thus securing an Allied victory.
The Battle of Finschhafen was fought between Australian and Japanese forces from the 22nd September – 24th October 1943. Finschhafen had been occupied by the Japanese from March 1942 in order protect Lae. The importance of capturing Finschhafen was to enable the Allies to construct airfields and naval facilities for the upcoming New Britain Campaign. Following the successful capture of Lae the Allies wished to exploit their success with an advance to Finschhafen. The town is located 50 miles (80 km) east of Lae but on the coast to the north. The Australian 20th Infantry Brigade landed at Scarlet Beach on the 22nd September 1943. Scarlet Beach is located 6.2 miles (10 km) north of Finschhafen. With the assistance of the Australian artillery the beach was secured. The Japanese were expecting an attack on Finschhafen. Allied intelligence had estimated a strength of between 350 and 2,100 Japanese defenders in the region. However, approximately 4,000 to 5,000 Japanese troops were spread out in a series of outposts around Sattenberg mission station. The outposts were located 7.5 miles (12 km) northwest of Finschhafen. The Japanese were ordered to launch an attack on the Australian forces following the landing at Scarlet Beach. On the 23rd September 1943 the 20th Brigade’s drive to Finschhafen began. Some of the brigade remained at Scarlet Beach to secure the beachhead from a Japanese attack and also to improve road conditions. About 300 Japanese sailors and marines from the Sattenberg naval garrison established themselves in a position to block the Australian advance. Their orders were to slow down the advance, then withdraw back to Sattenberg. The Japanese naval commander decided to continue holding his position. He succeeded in delaying the Australian advance until the 26th September 1943. By attacking flanks the Australian troops overcame the Japanese defenders. The Battle of Finschhafen continued until the 24th October 1943.
The land and sea Battles of Vella Lavella began on the 15th August 1943 when U.S. troops invaded the Japanese occupied island. By the end of August 1943 U.S. troops were advancing toward the Japanese supply depot at Horaniu. During early days of September 1943 the Japanese sought to avoid decisive engagement in the various skirmishes along the coast. The Japanese garrison withdrew to the north-east of the island, in readiness for evacuation. On the 14th September 1943 Horaniu was captured by the Americans. In mid-September 1943 the Americans were relieved by New Zealand troops of the 3rd Division. On the 25th September 1943, the New Zealanders began their advance with 3,700 troops. Two NZ Infantry Divisions were involved, the 35th advanced along the western coast and the 37th advanced along the eastern and northern coasts. Progress was slow owing to the thick jungle and torrential rain which prevented the use of armoured vehicles. By the 6th October 1943 the 35th and 37th were close to linking up after various skirmishes with the isolated Japanese troops, 598 Japanese personnel were evacuated from the island on the 6th/7th October 1943 by three destroyer-transporters.
(Other Theatres)
German battleships Tirpitz, Scharnhorst and battle cruiser Lützow were based in northern Norway. Operation Source was designed to neutralise them in September 1943 with attacks by British X-Class midget submarines. The X-Craft was a fully submersible mini submarine 51’ 0” (15.5 m) long and 5’ 6” (1.68 m) in diameter and displaced 30 tons when submerged. It was powered on the surface by a 4-cylinder diesel engine capable of 6.5 knots (12 km/h). When submerged a 30 hp battery driven motor provided the propulsion giving a speed of 5.5 knots (10.1 km/h). To each side, was one 4,400 lb detachable Amatol Charge which was detonated by time-fuse. The three or four man crew consisted of the submarine commander, a pilot and an engineer and one other. British Prime Minister Winston Churchill supported the operation, after the Royal Navy had received reports supplied by the Norwegian resistance. The operation was based in Port Bannatyne on the Isle of Bute and X-Craft were towed across the North Sea by conventional submarines. Six X-Craft were used for the attack and manned by passage crews whilst being towed. Tirpitz was docked atKäfjord and was to be attacked by X5, X6 and X7. Scharnhorst was also docked at Käfjord and was to be attacked by X9 and X10. Lützow was to be attacked by X8 in Langfjord. Having left Scotland X9 (Scharnhorst) was being towed in heavy seas on the 16th September 1943 when her towline parted. With bow-down trim for the conditions X9 plummeted down and was lost with all her crew on board. Mechanical problems resulted in the abandonment of X10 (Scharnhorst) who returned to her towing submarine for her exit back to Scotland. The damage was bad enough that the midget was scuttled in the North Sea on the 3rd October 1943. Scharnhorst was not at her moorings but on exercise at the time. Another X-Class scuttled in the North Sea was X8 (Lützow). The attached charges developed severe leaks and had to be jettisoned. These exploded and badly damaged X8 which had to be scuttled on the 17th September 1943. The remaining three X-Class midget submarines successfully negotiated the anti-submarine defences to attack Tirpitz on the 22nd September 1943. Unconfirmed rumours indicated X5 may have been successful in placing the explosive charges but she disappeared with all her crew. X6 and X7 were successful in dropping their explosive charges under Tirpitz but were unable to escape as they were observed and attacked by the battleship. Two members of the crew were killed and the six remaining crew were captured after X6 and X7 had been abandoned. Once captured the crewmen informed German captain Hans Meyer there would be explosions under the ship within the hour. Meyer had not been able to move Tirpitz when the charges exploded and she suffered severe structural and mechanical damage. She was out of action until April 1944 whilst she received a full scale repair operation. For the British, six midget submarines were lost, ten crewmen were killed and six were held in captivity until the end of the war. For this action two Victoria Cross’s (VC) were awarded, one to Lt Donald Cameron (X6) and one to Lt Basil Place (X7). Lt John Lorimer (X6), Sub Lt‘s Richard Kendall (X6) and Robert Aitken, (X7) were awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO). Sub Lt Edmund Goddard (X6) was awarded the Conspicuous Gallantry Medal (CGM). Lt John Smart (X8) was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE). Lt Henty Henty-Creer (X5) was not decorated but was mentioned in dispatches.
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The Bay Museum & Research Facility 