The Road to Russia: Arctic Convoys 1942-45 by Bernard Edwards

Author:Bernard Edwards
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Bisac Code 1: HIS027100: HISTORY / Military / World War II
ISBN: eBook ISBN: 9781783379415
Publisher: Pen and Sword
Published: 2002-01-22T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter Nine

As May moved into June and the wild flowers bloomed in the hedgerows of Britain, the threat of invasion had become only a distant memory, but out in the Atlantic the battle raged unchecked. Since the beginning of the year, the U-boats had already accounted for 438 Allied ships, totalling a staggering 2,375,000 tons. In the Mediterranean, the island of Malta was under siege and the necessity to force through convoys under constant air attack to supply the island was another heavy drain on the resources of the Royal Navy.

Far to the east, in Soviet Russia, the land war had entered a new and more terrible phase. The snows had at last receded, making way for the launch of Hitler’s latest initiative, Operation ‘Blau’, and once again the German armies were sweeping southeastwards. The River Donets had been crossed, and the oilfields of Baku and Grozny, on the shores of the Caspian Sea, seemed to be within reach of the advancing panzers. Beyond that lay Iran and her oil, and also the open back door to the Soviet Union, through which an increasing amount of Allied aid was now passing.

Russia’s massive reserves of manpower would prove sufficient to absorb and halt the German advances before the oilfields were reached, but this did not still the clamour for the Allies to pour in more and more aid. In the face of Churchill’s reluctance to commit more ships to the Arctic convoys, Stalin began to accuse Britain of failing to support Russia in her greatest hour of need. This was, to say the least, hypocritical, coming from a man who had, when it suited his ends, signed a pact with Hitler and, up until the time Germany turned on Russia was completely indifferent to the fate of Britain, then being bombed into submission by the Luftwaffe. Nevertheless, Churchill and Roosevelt, busy planning an invasion of occupied Europe from the west, were aware of the vital role Russia was playing in sapping the strength of the German armies. The attack on PQ 16, despite its huge escort, had been a salutary shock but the need, not only to continue the Arctic convoys but to enlarge on them, was paramount. The huge backlog of loaded ships waiting for convoy to Russia on both sides of the Atlantic had now risen to over 100. Action was needed urgently.

Convoy PQ 17, the largest convoy yet to attempt the Arctic run to Russia, began assembling in Hvalfjord in early June and by the third week of the month the fjord was sheltering forty heavily loaded merchantmen. Twenty-two United States ships dominated the fleet, and anchored with them were thirteen British, two Panamanian, two Russian and one Dutch ships. This assembly of tramps and cargo liners carried in their holds a total of 156,492 tons of cargo for Russia including 594 tanks, 297 aircraft and 4246 military vehicles, said to be enough to equip an army of 50,000 men and worth $700 million. Among the ships was

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