Action of 28 January 1945
Encyclopedia
The Action of 28 January 1945 was an inconclusive naval battle of the Second World War
fought between two British Royal Navy
light cruiser
s and three Kriegsmarine
(German navy) destroyer
s near Bergen
, Norway
. The battle was both the last of many actions fought between British and German warships off Norway during the war and the second last surface engagement fought by the Kriegsmarine, and resulted in heavy damage to one of the German destroyers and light damage to another destroyer and both British cruisers.
Shortly after midnight on the night of 27/28 January, as the three destroyers of the German 4th Destroyer Flotilla were sailing from northern Norway to the Baltic Sea
, they were intercepted by the British cruisers and . In the resulting engagement, the destroyers Z31 and Z34 were damaged by gunfire but the German flotilla outran the slower British ships and escaped. All the German warships eventually reached the Baltic, though Z31 was delayed until repairs were completed in Norway.
s Z31, Z34, and Z38. By January 1945, these ships had been stationed in northern Norwegian waters for three and a half years, but had only occasionally put to sea during 1944. Due to Germany's deteriorating position, the flotilla was directed in January to leave Norwegian waters and return to the Baltic. The three destroyers departed Tromsø
on the 25th of the month.
The Royal Navy's Home Fleet conducted a number of attacks on German shipping travelling off the coast of Norway during January 1945. These included successful attacks by motor torpedo boats
on three escorted ships between 6 and 8 January and the interception of a convoy
by the heavy cruiser
and light cruiser
near Egersund
on the night of 11/12 January. On 27 January, the escort carriers , and departed the Home Fleet's main base at Scapa Flow
to conduct a raid against shipping near Vaago which was designated Operation Winded. The carriers were escorted by the heavy cruiser and six destroyers.
The British were alerted to the 4th Destroyer Flotilla's movement by Ultra
signals intelligence. The commander of the Home Fleet, Admiral Henry Moore, was informed that the destroyers had sailed on 27 January, shortly after the three carriers and their escort had put to sea. He believed that the German ships were likely to use a route between the coastal islands and the shore, as was common for the Kriegsmarine. If this route was used, it would be preferable for strike aircraft of No. 18 Group RAF
to attack the destroyers as Norway's inshore waters were protected by naval mine
s and coastal batteries
. Alternatively, the German ships could make a high-speed night passage outside of the coastal islands. In case an offshore route was used, Moore ordered Vice Admiral Frederick Dalrymple-Hamilton
, the commander of the 10th Cruiser Squadron, to sail with the cruisers Diadem and Mauritius and patrol off Bergen. The Home Fleet did not have any destroyers available to accompany Dalrymple-Hamilton's force, though Moore considered but decided against cancelling the carrier operation in order to free some of these ships.
, but continued their voyage. Contact was made between the two naval forces at 00:48 am on 28 January. At this time, the 4th Destroyer Flotilla was proceeding south and was located about 15 mi (13 nmi; 24.1 km) southwest of the Utvær lighthouse and 35 mi (30.4 nmi; 56.3 km) northwest of Bergen. The sea was calm and visibility was excellent due to a full moon. The British and German forces spotted each another simultaneously; at the time the cruisers were about 11 mi (9.6 nmi; 17.7 km) west of the 4th Destroyer Flotilla. Upon sighting the destroyers, the British ships fired star shells to illuminate the area and turned to the south on a course parallel to the German ships.
Z31 suffered extensive damage early in the battle. She was struck by seven 6 in (152 mm) shells, which caused her to catch fire, damaged her hydrophone
compartment and torpedo
transmitting stations and destroyed her forward gun turret
. Z31s speed was not affected, but casualties were heavy, with 55 sailors killed and another 24 wounded. After Z31 was damaged, Commander Karl Hetz on board Z34 assumed command of the 4th Destroyer Flotilla. Z34 made two torpedo attacks on the British cruisers in an attempt to force them to change course, but this was not successful. Z38 also tried to launch torpedoes, but had to break off this attack when her funnel caught fire and one of her boiler
tubes burst. Z34 suffered a hit on her waterline
during this period.
After Z34 was damaged, Hetz decided to turn to the north and attempt to outrun the British cruisers. Z34 fired a third salvo of torpedoes as the flotilla made this turn, again without result, and the three ships laid smoke screens in an attempt to conceal their position. The two cruisers also turned north to chase the German ships. This led to a running battle in which Mauritius sustained a hit on her mess
deck that did not cause any casualties and Diadem was struck on her boat deck by a shell six minutes later that killed one man and wounded three. The German destroyers were capable of making 38 knots (20.7 m/s) while Diadem had a maximum speed of 32 knots (17.4 m/s) and Mauritius 31 knots (16.9 m/s). As a result, the German vessels gradually pulled ahead and came under the protection of shore batteries at about 2:00 am. The British ships broke off the pursuit and returned to Scapa Flow after these batteries fired on them.
south of Stavanger
during daylight hours. They put to sea again on the evening of 29 January and eventually reached Kiel
in Germany on 1 February.
At Bergen, Z31 received initial repairs, which included removing the wreckage of her forward turret. She departed the town on 8 February bound for Horten
. After arriving safely in this port she received further repairs and had her anti-aircraft armament upgraded. Her forward turret was not replaced, but a 4.1 in (104.1 mm) gun was mounted instead; this was intended to be a temporary measure but remained in place for the remainder of her career. After these repairs were completed, Z31 eventually reached Gotenhafen
on 15 March. The last German destroyer remaining in northern Norwegian waters, Z33
, sailed for Germany on 5 February 1945 but ran aground while en-route and suffered further damage in the Allied "Black Friday"
air raid on the ninth of the month. Following repairs, she arrived at Swinemünde
on 2 April.
The action of 28 January was the last battle to be fought between British and German warships in Norwegian waters during World War II. It was also the second last surface action fought by the Kriegsmarine, with its final engagement taking place on 18 March 1945 when a force of two torpedo boat
s and a destroyer was defeated by two British destroyers in the Battle of the Ligurian Sea on 18 March 1945. By this time, most of the Kriegsmarines remaining warships were stationed in the Baltic Sea where they supported German military operations and the evacuation of civilians
until the end of the war in May.
Both the British and German navies were dissatisfied with the results of the battle. The British were disappointed with the action's inconclusive result, and Admiral Moore regretted his decision to not cancel the escort carrier operation so that destroyers could be attached to the cruiser force. This was unrealistic, however, as the combination of excellent visibility on the night of 27/28 January and the superior speed of the German destroyers meant that the British had no ability to force a result. In a post-war assessment, First Sea Lord
Admiral Andrew Cunningham
endorsed the tactics Dalrymple-Hamilton used during the engagement, but stated that the size of the British force was "inadequate". The Kriegsmarine was also unsatisfied with the conduct of the battle, with German naval authorities believing that the destroyers should have taken shelter in coastal waters after they were sighted by Allied aircraft on the evening of 27 January.
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
fought between two British Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
light cruiser
Light cruiser
A light cruiser is a type of small- or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck...
s and three Kriegsmarine
Kriegsmarine
The Kriegsmarine was the name of the German Navy during the Nazi regime . It superseded the Kaiserliche Marine of World War I and the post-war Reichsmarine. The Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches of the Wehrmacht, the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany.The Kriegsmarine grew rapidly...
(German navy) destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
s near Bergen
Bergen
Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. The battle was both the last of many actions fought between British and German warships off Norway during the war and the second last surface engagement fought by the Kriegsmarine, and resulted in heavy damage to one of the German destroyers and light damage to another destroyer and both British cruisers.
Shortly after midnight on the night of 27/28 January, as the three destroyers of the German 4th Destroyer Flotilla were sailing from northern Norway to the Baltic Sea
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
, they were intercepted by the British cruisers and . In the resulting engagement, the destroyers Z31 and Z34 were damaged by gunfire but the German flotilla outran the slower British ships and escaped. All the German warships eventually reached the Baltic, though Z31 was delayed until repairs were completed in Norway.
Background
The Kriegsmarines 4th Destroyer Flotilla comprised the Narvik-class destroyerNarvik class destroyer
The Zerstörer 1936A-class destroyers, or Narvik-class destroyers as they were known to the Allies, were a class of German destroyers of the Second World War...
s Z31, Z34, and Z38. By January 1945, these ships had been stationed in northern Norwegian waters for three and a half years, but had only occasionally put to sea during 1944. Due to Germany's deteriorating position, the flotilla was directed in January to leave Norwegian waters and return to the Baltic. The three destroyers departed Tromsø
Tromsø
Tromsø is a city and municipality in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Tromsø.Tromsø city is the ninth largest urban area in Norway by population, and the seventh largest city in Norway by population...
on the 25th of the month.
The Royal Navy's Home Fleet conducted a number of attacks on German shipping travelling off the coast of Norway during January 1945. These included successful attacks by motor torpedo boats
Motor Torpedo Boat
Motor Torpedo Boat was the name given to fast torpedo boats by the Royal Navy, and the Royal Canadian Navy.The capitalised term is generally used for the Royal Navy boats and abbreviated to "MTB"...
on three escorted ships between 6 and 8 January and the interception of a convoy
Convoy
A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support, though it may also be used in a non-military sense, for example when driving through remote areas.-Age of Sail:Naval...
by the heavy cruiser
Heavy cruiser
The heavy cruiser was a type of cruiser, a naval warship designed for long range, high speed and an armament of naval guns roughly 203mm calibre . The heavy cruiser can be seen as a lineage of ship design from 1915 until 1945, although the term 'heavy cruiser' only came into formal use in 1930...
and light cruiser
Light cruiser
A light cruiser is a type of small- or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck...
near Egersund
Egersund
The town of Egersund was established as a municipality January 1, 1838 . It was merged with the surrounding municipality of Eigersund January 1, 1965....
on the night of 11/12 January. On 27 January, the escort carriers , and departed the Home Fleet's main base at Scapa Flow
Scapa Flow
right|thumb|Scapa Flow viewed from its eastern endScapa Flow is a body of water in the Orkney Islands, Scotland, United Kingdom, sheltered by the islands of Mainland, Graemsay, Burray, South Ronaldsay and Hoy. It is about...
to conduct a raid against shipping near Vaago which was designated Operation Winded. The carriers were escorted by the heavy cruiser and six destroyers.
The British were alerted to the 4th Destroyer Flotilla's movement by Ultra
Ultra
Ultra was the designation adopted by British military intelligence in June 1941 for wartime signals intelligence obtained by "breaking" high-level encrypted enemy radio and teleprinter communications at the Government Code and Cypher School at Bletchley Park. "Ultra" eventually became the standard...
signals intelligence. The commander of the Home Fleet, Admiral Henry Moore, was informed that the destroyers had sailed on 27 January, shortly after the three carriers and their escort had put to sea. He believed that the German ships were likely to use a route between the coastal islands and the shore, as was common for the Kriegsmarine. If this route was used, it would be preferable for strike aircraft of No. 18 Group RAF
No. 18 Group RAF
No. 18 Group of the Royal Air Force was a group active from 1918 to 1919, and from 1938 to 1996.- 1918 - 1919 :The Group was initially formed on 1 April 1918 in No 4 Area. It was transferred to North-Eastern Area, 8 May 1918...
to attack the destroyers as Norway's inshore waters were protected by naval mine
Naval mine
A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, an enemy vessel...
s and coastal batteries
Coastal artillery
Coastal artillery is the branch of armed forces concerned with operating anti-ship artillery or fixed gun batteries in coastal fortifications....
. Alternatively, the German ships could make a high-speed night passage outside of the coastal islands. In case an offshore route was used, Moore ordered Vice Admiral Frederick Dalrymple-Hamilton
Frederick Dalrymple-Hamilton
Admiral Sir Frederick Hew George Dalrymple-Hamilton KCB was a British naval officer who served in World War I and World War II.-Naval career:...
, the commander of the 10th Cruiser Squadron, to sail with the cruisers Diadem and Mauritius and patrol off Bergen. The Home Fleet did not have any destroyers available to accompany Dalrymple-Hamilton's force, though Moore considered but decided against cancelling the carrier operation in order to free some of these ships.
Battle
Contrary to British expectations, the commander of the 4th Destroyer Flotilla, Captain H.F. von Wangenheim, chose to take the faster route outside of the coastal islands. On the evening of 27 January, the destroyers were spotted and attacked by British aircraft whilst west of SognefjordSognefjord
The Sognefjord is the largest fjord in Norway, and the second longest in the world. Located in Sogn og Fjordane county, it stretches inland to the small village of Skjolden...
, but continued their voyage. Contact was made between the two naval forces at 00:48 am on 28 January. At this time, the 4th Destroyer Flotilla was proceeding south and was located about 15 mi (13 nmi; 24.1 km) southwest of the Utvær lighthouse and 35 mi (30.4 nmi; 56.3 km) northwest of Bergen. The sea was calm and visibility was excellent due to a full moon. The British and German forces spotted each another simultaneously; at the time the cruisers were about 11 mi (9.6 nmi; 17.7 km) west of the 4th Destroyer Flotilla. Upon sighting the destroyers, the British ships fired star shells to illuminate the area and turned to the south on a course parallel to the German ships.
Z31 suffered extensive damage early in the battle. She was struck by seven 6 in (152 mm) shells, which caused her to catch fire, damaged her hydrophone
Hydrophone
A hydrophone is a microphone designed to be used underwater for recording or listening to underwater sound. Most hydrophones are based on a piezoelectric transducer that generates electricity when subjected to a pressure change...
compartment and torpedo
Torpedo
The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...
transmitting stations and destroyed her forward gun turret
Gun turret
A gun turret is a weapon mount that protects the crew or mechanism of a projectile-firing weapon and at the same time lets the weapon be aimed and fired in many directions.The turret is also a rotating weapon platform...
. Z31s speed was not affected, but casualties were heavy, with 55 sailors killed and another 24 wounded. After Z31 was damaged, Commander Karl Hetz on board Z34 assumed command of the 4th Destroyer Flotilla. Z34 made two torpedo attacks on the British cruisers in an attempt to force them to change course, but this was not successful. Z38 also tried to launch torpedoes, but had to break off this attack when her funnel caught fire and one of her boiler
Boiler
A boiler is a closed vessel in which water or other fluid is heated. The heated or vaporized fluid exits the boiler for use in various processes or heating applications.-Materials:...
tubes burst. Z34 suffered a hit on her waterline
Waterline
The term "waterline" generally refers to the line where the hull of a ship meets the water surface. It is also the name of a special marking, also known as the national Load Line or Plimsoll Line, to be positioned amidships, that indicates the draft of the ship and the legal limit to which a ship...
during this period.
After Z34 was damaged, Hetz decided to turn to the north and attempt to outrun the British cruisers. Z34 fired a third salvo of torpedoes as the flotilla made this turn, again without result, and the three ships laid smoke screens in an attempt to conceal their position. The two cruisers also turned north to chase the German ships. This led to a running battle in which Mauritius sustained a hit on her mess
Mess
A mess is the place where military personnel socialise, eat, and live. In some societies this military usage has extended to other disciplined services eateries such as civilian fire fighting and police forces. The root of mess is the Old French mes, "portion of food" A mess (also called a...
deck that did not cause any casualties and Diadem was struck on her boat deck by a shell six minutes later that killed one man and wounded three. The German destroyers were capable of making 38 knots (20.7 m/s) while Diadem had a maximum speed of 32 knots (17.4 m/s) and Mauritius 31 knots (16.9 m/s). As a result, the German vessels gradually pulled ahead and came under the protection of shore batteries at about 2:00 am. The British ships broke off the pursuit and returned to Scapa Flow after these batteries fired on them.
Aftermath
Early in the morning of 28 January, the 4th Destroyer Flotilla resumed its journey south and put into Bergen. Z31 entered one of the town's docks to be repaired while Z34 and Z38 departed on the evening of 28 January. The two ships were attacked from the air the next day but did not suffer any damage and sheltered in a fjordFjord
Geologically, a fjord is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created in a valley carved by glacial activity.-Formation:A fjord is formed when a glacier cuts a U-shaped valley by abrasion of the surrounding bedrock. Glacial melting is accompanied by rebound of Earth's crust as the ice...
south of Stavanger
Stavanger
Stavanger is a city and municipality in the county of Rogaland, Norway.Stavanger municipality has a population of 126,469. There are 197,852 people living in the Stavanger conurbation, making Stavanger the fourth largest city, but the third largest urban area, in Norway...
during daylight hours. They put to sea again on the evening of 29 January and eventually reached Kiel
Kiel
Kiel is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 238,049 .Kiel is approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the north of Germany, the southeast of the Jutland peninsula, and the southwestern shore of the...
in Germany on 1 February.
At Bergen, Z31 received initial repairs, which included removing the wreckage of her forward turret. She departed the town on 8 February bound for Horten
Horten
is a town and municipality in Vestfold county, Norway—located along the Oslofjord. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Horten. The municipality also includes the villages of Borre, Åsgårdstrand, Skoppum, and Nykirke....
. After arriving safely in this port she received further repairs and had her anti-aircraft armament upgraded. Her forward turret was not replaced, but a 4.1 in (104.1 mm) gun was mounted instead; this was intended to be a temporary measure but remained in place for the remainder of her career. After these repairs were completed, Z31 eventually reached Gotenhafen
Gdynia
Gdynia is a city in the Pomeranian Voivodeship of Poland and an important seaport of Gdańsk Bay on the south coast of the Baltic Sea.Located in Kashubia in Eastern Pomerania, Gdynia is part of a conurbation with the spa town of Sopot, the city of Gdańsk and suburban communities, which together...
on 15 March. The last German destroyer remaining in northern Norwegian waters, Z33
German destroyer Z33
Z33 was a German that saw service during World War II. She was commissioned in the Kriegsmarine in February 1943 and served in Norwegian waters until March 1945. She was decommissioned from the Kriegsmarine in late April 1945 but was handed over to the Soviet Union in December that year...
, sailed for Germany on 5 February 1945 but ran aground while en-route and suffered further damage in the Allied "Black Friday"
Black Friday (1945)
On 9 February 1945 a force of Allied Bristol Beaufighter aircraft suffered heavy casualties during an unsuccessful attack on German destroyer Z33 and escorting vessels; the operation was labelled "Black Friday" by the surviving Allied aircrew...
air raid on the ninth of the month. Following repairs, she arrived at Swinemünde
Swinoujscie
Świnoujście is a city and seaport on the Baltic Sea and Szczecin Lagoon, located in the extreme north-west of Poland. It is situated mainly on the islands of Uznam and Wolin, but also occupies smaller islands, of which the largest is Karsibór island, once part of Usedom, now separated by a Piast...
on 2 April.
The action of 28 January was the last battle to be fought between British and German warships in Norwegian waters during World War II. It was also the second last surface action fought by the Kriegsmarine, with its final engagement taking place on 18 March 1945 when a force of two torpedo boat
Torpedo boat
A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval vessel designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs rammed enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes, and later designs launched self-propelled Whitehead torpedoes. They were created to counter battleships and other large, slow and...
s and a destroyer was defeated by two British destroyers in the Battle of the Ligurian Sea on 18 March 1945. By this time, most of the Kriegsmarines remaining warships were stationed in the Baltic Sea where they supported German military operations and the evacuation of civilians
Flight and evacuation of German civilians during the end of World War II
Plans to evacuate German population from the occupied territories in Central and Eastern Europe and from Eastern Germany were prepared by German authorities at the end of World War II. However, the evacuation in most of the areas was delayed until the last moment, when it was too late to conduct it...
until the end of the war in May.
Both the British and German navies were dissatisfied with the results of the battle. The British were disappointed with the action's inconclusive result, and Admiral Moore regretted his decision to not cancel the escort carrier operation so that destroyers could be attached to the cruiser force. This was unrealistic, however, as the combination of excellent visibility on the night of 27/28 January and the superior speed of the German destroyers meant that the British had no ability to force a result. In a post-war assessment, First Sea Lord
First Sea Lord
The First Sea Lord is the professional head of the Royal Navy and the whole Naval Service; it was formerly known as First Naval Lord. He also holds the title of Chief of Naval Staff, and is known by the abbreviations 1SL/CNS...
Admiral Andrew Cunningham
Andrew Cunningham, 1st Viscount Cunningham of Hyndhope
Admiral of the Fleet Andrew Browne Cunningham, 1st Viscount Cunningham of Hyndhope KT, GCB, OM, DSO and two Bars , was a British admiral of the Second World War. Cunningham was widely known by his nickname, "ABC"....
endorsed the tactics Dalrymple-Hamilton used during the engagement, but stated that the size of the British force was "inadequate". The Kriegsmarine was also unsatisfied with the conduct of the battle, with German naval authorities believing that the destroyers should have taken shelter in coastal waters after they were sighted by Allied aircraft on the evening of 27 January.