I - 126 : Naval Battles around Crete in WW2

Aerial View of La Valetta in Malta, the Royal Navy's Mediterranean Base from 1814 - 1937

The seas around Crete where we sail this summer were hotly contested during the 2nd World War. Not only during the German invasion in May 1941, but also before and after. What made these waters so important? And why was there less naval activity around Malta, the former base of the Royal Navy? Many know about the Siege of Malta from 1940 – 1943 conducted mainly from the air. The waters around Crete saw much more naval action.

Map of the Central Mediterranean in 1812 - Malta was occupied by Britain since 1800

Since 1814, Malta was the Royal Navy’s fleet base in the Mediterranean. The command of the Mediterranean Fleet was the most prestigious command in the Royal Navy. A full third of the ships of the line or dreadnaughts were assiged to it. Its original task was to keep the Spanish and French fleet in check. Monitoring Toulon and Cartagena was its most important job. Later, after the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, the defense of the British sea lanes to India became its primary mission.

The Royal Navy deployed its first Torpedo Bomber, the Short 81, in 1919 on the HMS Hermes

In the age of guns, even the big 40.6 cm guns, Malta was a safe place. The gun's range was max 35 km. The distance between Malta and Sicily is 80 km. The Royal Navy built shipyards on the island, it was an important bunker station for coal and oil. The port in La Valetta was well defended by big batteries against naval attacks. Then, in 1903, the Wright brothers in the US invented the plane. Only a dozen years later, in WW1, planes were used as fighters and bombers (1914 - 1918). The torpedo bomber was invented even earlier. First trials were made in 1912. By 1913, the Royal Navy deployed its first torpedo plane, the Short 81, on the cruiser HMS Hermes. It was a sea plane launched from a catapult and landing on water. It carried one small 370 kg torpedo. Truly revolutionary though was its range of 200 km. Also, it could stay airborne for 5 h. Suddenly, Malta was within range of Sicily.

The Corriere della Sera celebrated the "Victory" over Ethiopia in 1936 with a Special Edition

It took a while for the new reality to sink in. In 1918, the Royal Navy was the undisputed Master of the Oceans. Its size was bigger than all other navies combined. The advantage was not to last. Within less than ten years, Italy’s new dictator Mussolini had launched a rearmament program which made his country the Mediterranean’s strongest nation. By mid 1930, Italy had a modern fleet and airforce which could challenge the Royal Navy. It dawned on the First Sea Lord that Malta was not a safe place any more. When Italy attacked Ethiopia in 1935, it became a military rival to the British. An attack on Malta moved from an unlikely possibility to a real threat.

View over the Bay of Navarino from the Hills east of Pylos - The Royal Navy's Port X

Initially, the Royal Navy planned to upgrade Malta’s air defences. After some back and forth, this option was ruled out. Air defence was not sophisticated enough yet. Also, the Royal Airforce did not have spare fighters to permanently station a squadron on the island. In September 1935, the Royal Navy moved out of Malta, leaving only a few ships behind. Most of the fleet would go to Alexandria, some ships were dispatched to Haifa and Cyprus. Secretly, the Royal Navy’s selected the Navarino Bay as its new Mediterranean base.

The Battleship HMS Queen Elizabeth in Alexandria protected by Torpedo Nets

The Royal Navy planned - with or without consent of the Greek government - to occupy the bay and build new docks, maintenance facilities and a run way. Navarino Bay, where we will end this year’s sailing, is a good deep-water harbor, more central than Haifa or Cyprus and was out of reach of Italian war planes. It would have brought Britain to the brink of war with Greece though, a sovereign state nonetheless and former ally. It was also expensive – all major facilities would have to be constructed. The plan did not survive cabinet scrutiny and was dropped soon there after.

The upgraded Port of Alexandria with the Royal Navy in 1941

The Royal Navy settled for Alexandria instead. The modernization of its port was cheaper and Egypt a de-facto colony of the British Empire. In June 1937, it became the Royal Navy’s new base for the Mediterranean.

Nobody anticipated that only three years later the Royal Navy would see action and battle the Regia Marina (Italy’s Navy) for supremacy. With the benefit of hind sight, the choice of Alexandria was right. It allowed the defence of the Middle East with its vital oil, blocked the Suez Canal and denied the link-up of the Italian with the Japanese fleet and was a perfect base for attacking the Axis supply lines from Italy to North Africa. Had the Eastern Med been lost, the conseuquences for the British Empire would have been far reaching. We tend to forget that the Japanese Navy tried to establish submarine bases in Madagascar in 1941 - 1942. With the Suez Canal in Axis hand, Japan, Germany and Italy could have joined forces.

The Decision to move the Royal Navy away from Malta was wise - it would not have survived being completely encircled by the Axis - Map of the Mediterranean in Summer 1942

Made a list of the most important naval battles that took place in the Eastern Med between 1940 and 1942. Many were close to Crete and underline why Germany needed to control the island. The fight stood for strategic control of oil and India. The words underlined lead to wikipedia or other articles which describe the events better than I could:

• The blockade runs to Malta which allowed the island to survive the siege but came with heavy losses, like the sinking of the carrier HMS Ark Royal.

• The carrier attack on the Italian fleet in Taranto in Nov 1940.

• The destruction in 1941 of British Force K whilst intercepting German-Italian convoys to North Africa.

• The Battle of Mapatan in March 1941 west of Crete where Italy lost three heavy cruisers, two destroyers and its will to fight

• Operation “Vigorous Vice”, a failed attempt to supply Malta from the east.

• The occupation of Crete in May 1941 which cost the Royal Navy 12 destroyers and several damaged cruisers.

• Last but not least the raid of Italian frogmen on the two British battleships Queen Elizabeth and Valiant in December 1941 in Alexandria. For months it reduced the Royal Navy to a fleet with a few cruisers and destroyers.

Aerial Photo of Queen Elisabeth (2) and Valiant (1) sunk in shallow Waters

The Royal Navy's losses in the Mediterranean were severe. But eventually it prevented the Axis from controlling it. After 1943, the Royal Navy won the upper hand again. Had Germany and Italy won, Iraq’s oil fields would have been theirs. The pipelines from Kirkut ended in Tripoli and Haifa. There was enough oil to supply the German Wehrmacht with the fuel it needed to win WW2. The British sailors - fighting these violent naval engagements - may not have understood the full context. But the British High Command did. The grisly losses during the years 1941 and 1942 were the Free World's first step to victory. We would not be able to peacefully sail around Crete had it not been for the British sailors. We shall remember them during this summer.

The Royal Navy's Losses during the Evacuation of the Land Forces from Crete in May 1941