Toulon Naval Base, two years after the Scuttling of the French Fleet on 27 Nov 1942
In November 1942, London was shrouded in the worst fog for a decade. New York had a mild winter and not seen any snow yet whilst Moscow was deeply frozen. Most people went after their own business. Few realized that the Second World War had reached its turning point. Least of them the people living in unoccupied France. On the 11th of November 1942, German tanks rumbled south over the armistice lines. All of France was now under German control. The war just seemed getting worse. But within a good two weeks, the French noticed that something had changed.
The occupation of the rest of France was Hitler’s response to the landing of American and English troops in Morocco and Algiers on 7th of November 1942. The Mediterranean had become a new front line. Four days later, on 11 November, the 2nd battle of El-Alamein (Egypt) was over. General Montgomery and his 8th Army had broken through the defensive positions of the German Africa Korps and Italian Army under General Rommel.
A destroyed German Panzer IV in the Desert of El-Alamain
Less than two weeks later, on 23rd of November, the Red Army encircled the German 6th Army in Stalingrad. Half around the globe, US Marines defeated Japanese counterattacks on Guadalcanal. The swell of Axis power had reached its high tide. From now on, Germany, Italy and Japan were on the defensive.
The Red Army near Stalingrad, just after the German 6th Army was encircled
When we visit Toulon during our second week, we will anchor in the Baie de Lazaret. It is the place of the old Lazarette where sailors had to quarantine for 40 days before they were admitted to the harbor. People had learned their lessons from the Black Death in 1347. The Baie de Lazaret was also the final resting place of the proud French battlecruiser Strasbourg, once the flag ship of the French High-Sea Fleet. In 1948, it was dismantled in this bay. Its steel sold for scrap.
The Strasbourg was a "Dunkerque" Class Battleship - could not find a Plan of Strasbourg
What happened in Toulon on 27th of November 1942 was another turning point in the Second World War. Maybe not as decisive as the events described above but it shortened the war in the Mediterranean considerably. Before telling what happened, I need to quickly recap some history to provide context.
After the defeat of the France by Nazi Germany in June 1940, an armistice was signed between the German Reich and France. It had five main points:
1. France had to dissolve its army
2. The northern and western part with the Atlantic coast remained occupied by Germany to continue its fight against Great Britain.
3. France was allowed to keep its High-Sea Fleet to protect its colonial interests – Germany promised not to put its hands on it
4. France was forced to stay neutral during the remainder of the war
5. France had to pay large reparations and support Germany with millions of laborers for the war effort
The British government did not trust this arrangement. It wanted the French Fleet in its custody. In July 1940, the Royal Navy attacked the French naval base in Oran, sinking one battleship and damaging five. The French had refused to surrender. Units which could, were ordered to return to France. Most of the French Navy was stationed in Toulon after 1940.
Location of the French Ships on 27 Nov 1942 - Colour indicates the Severity of Damage
But the fleet was not in good shape and deteriorated fast. There was little fuel. The total diesel stock in Toulon was 40’000 tons only. The German had confiscated most of the ammunition, there were no training exercises, recruiting new seamen was illegal, spare parts had to be made locally, the fleet could not be modernized. Whilst the US and Royal Navy now had radar and could fight at long distance and at night, the French Navy had almost none. Still, it was the remaining pride of the nation. The one thing that was not in the hands of the Germans.
A German Panzer IV of the 7th Armoured Division in Front of one of the burning Ships
After the 11th of November, when German tanks started rolling into unoccupied France, events precipitated. Would the German Forces seize the French Fleet? Hitler promised the French government in Vichy that the Wehrmacht would not touch it and stop outside Toulon. For a few days they actually did. But on the 27th , Hitler revoked his order. At 04.25 am German tanks of the 7th Armored Division attacked the French naval base. It took them an hour to break the resistance of the French Marines – an hour which gave the sailors enough time to execute the scuttling of the fleet as ordered by Admiral de Laborde. Little after 6 am, the first demolition charges went off.
The French Admiral Jean de Laborde, the Commander of France's High-Sea Fleet (right)
Within the next few minutes, 3 battle ships, 7 cruisers, 15 destroyers, 13 torpedo boats and 12 submarines were scuttled and sank. 12 sailors died, 78’888 were taken prisoners. A few units disobeyed. Two submarines and a small cutter reached Algiers, one submarine Oran, another one Barcelona. The English and American press celebrated the scuttling of the French fleet as victory. So did the free French press under De Gaulle, albeit with a bitter undertone. He had preferred the French Fleet to fight its way out - not to be scuttled.
One of the scuttled French Cruisers - could not find out its name
The Germans did not really care about the outcome. They wanted the fleet but did not have the personnel to man it. They would have dismantled it and used the guns for coastal defense as they did with the few they salvaged. The Regia Marina, the Italian Navy, was unhappy though. They had counted on the French ships to compensate for the losses suffered from the battles with the Royal Navy in 1941 and 1942. Not getting them meant that the Regia Marina’s war was over. It could not operate as a cohesive force any longer and put up no resistance against the invasion of Sicily and Italy later in 1943.
Many smaller Ships were scuttled too - there were no Cutters left after Nov 1942
The scuttling of the French fleet had the expected aftermath. After the war, the French High Court of Justice investigated Admiral de Laborde's decision. The court condemned him to death for treason and preventing the fleet from joining the Free French Forces in Algiers. His sentence was later converted to life-long prison. In 1951 he was released. His opponents had made the argument that he could have saved the fleet by leading it out of Toulon immediately after the 11th of November.
Toulon was under a Cloud of heavy Smoke for several Days - the Strasbourg on the right
There are a lot of "ifs" in this accusation. With only 40’000 tons of fuel in Toulon, there was not enough for the entire fleet. The Strasbourg, the Admiral flag ship, alone needed 10%. Many ships were undergoing repairs and unfit to set sail. Many more had only skeleton crews - insufficient to both run and defend them. Last but not least the fleet had little air defense ammunition. It would have been an easy target for the German Luftwaffe. But it also could have worked. Maybe half to two thirds of the fleet could have made it to Algiers. Admiral de Laborde would be a national hero today. We will never know. These are "49:51" decisions which can go either way. To his last day, the Admiral maintained that he made the best decision possible. He was definitely not a coward. A look at his career and his decorations from the First World War tell us.
The Baie de Lazaret today - difficult to believe that Strasbourg stayed here for years
The scuttled fleet burnt for days in the harbor. Neither the Germans nor the Italians had the capacity to lift and repair it. A few ships were scavenged. The scuttled fleet was only raised and dismantled after the war. The Bay of Toulon remained until 1947 an environmental hazard. Too much oil and poisonous chemicals had spilled into the sea. Watching the scenery from the Baie de Lazaret today, it is difficult to imagine the days in November 1942 when black smoke clouded the sun. It was a sign though for the French that the war was turning. Their fleet could not be used to fight the US, British and Free French under De Gaulle who were to land on their shores in June and August 1944.