Mediterranean Fleet

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Battleship HMS London enters Grand Harbor , Malta, 1915

The Mediterranean Fleet (German Mediterranean Fleet ) was a fleet association of the British Royal Navy . It existed from the second half of the 17th century until 1967. As the name suggests, the area of ​​responsibility of the fleet extended across the Mediterranean .

history

HMS Royal Oak during fleet maneuvers in the Mediterranean

The Mediterranean Fleet was one of the Royal Navy's most prestigious commands. The fleet defended the vital sea connections between Great Britain and the British possessions in the eastern hemisphere. The first commander in chief of the Royal Navy in the Mediterranean can be traced back to 1665. The fleet existed for more than 300 years until it was disbanded in 1967.

Malta , part of the British Empire since 1814, was the base and headquarters of the navy for most of its history .

In 1893 the Commander in Chief of the Fleet, Vice-Admiral Sir George Tryon , was killed in the sinking of his flagship HMS Victoria after colliding with HMS Camperdown . At the time, the Mediterranean Fleet, with ten battleships of the first rank and a large number of smaller ships, was the Royal Navy's largest fleet, twice the size of the Canal Fleet.

Two of the three battle cruisers of the Invincible-class aircraft carrier ( HMS Inflexible and HMS Indomitable ) were allocated in 1914 the Mediterranean fleet. You and HMS Indefatigable formed the core of the fleet at the beginning of the First World War and began the search for the German ships SMS Goeben and SMS Breslau .

In 1926 the modernized HMS Warspite became the fleet's flagship. Under the command of Admiral Roger Keyes (1926–1929) the fleet reached a peak of its efficiency. Under Keyes there were outstanding officers such as Dudley Pound (chief of staff), Ginger Boyle (commander of the cruiser squadron) and Augustus Agar (commander of a destroyer flotilla).

Second World War

The destroyer HMAS Nizam (G38) of the Royal Australian Navy arrives in Alexandria with troops evacuated from the island of Crete

The fleet was moved to Alexandria shortly before the outbreak of World War II . The reason was the threat to the fleet from a feared air attack from the Italian mainland. This decision left Malta almost undefended and led to the second major siege of Malta , but secured the existence of the fleet and thus the possibility of proceeding against the naval forces of the Axis powers in the Mediterranean in the further course of the war.

Vice-Admiral Sir Andrew Cunningham took command of the fleet on September 3, 1939. In 1940 the Italian fleet was attacked with torpedo planes in Taranto . The Regia Marina lost half of its battleships in one fell swoop. The main forces of the fleet at this time were the 1st battle squadron, the 1st and 3rd cruiser squadrons, destroyers and the aircraft carrier HMS Glorious .

The fleet was also involved in the Battle of Cape Matapan and the Airborne Battle of Crete . The task of the fleet was still to disrupt the German and Italian supply connections across the Mediterranean during the Africa campaign .

post war period

Admiral Mountbatten arrives aboard HMS Glasgow to take command of the fleet, 1952

After the end of the Second World War, units of the fleet were involved in the incident in the Strait of Corfu in 1946 . After the destroyer HMS Saumarez ran into a mine in the street, eleven mine clearance vessels, accompanied by the aircraft carrier HMS Ocean , two cruisers, three destroyers and three frigates cleared the street of mines in Operation Retail in November 1946 . Furthermore, units of the fleet took part in preventing Jewish immigration to Palestine . After Sir Arthur Power had assumed command of the Mediterranean Fleet (Commander-in-Chief Mediterranean), the Ocean , four destroyers and two frigates escorted the High Commissioner on board the cruiser HMS Euryalus in a show of force in May 1948 . These ships then covered the withdrawal of British troops to Haifa and the south via Gaza.

In July 1947, the main forces of the fleet, led by the carriers HMS Ocean and Triumph, visited Istanbul , the cruiser HMS Liverpool and the destroyers HMS Checkers and HMS Chaplet visited Sevastopol .

The battleship HMS Vanguard was posted to the Mediterranean fleet for six months in 1949. The Vanguard returned to the Mediterranean for a brief period in 1954 for a joint exercise with the Home Fleet .

For the period from 1952 to 1967, the Commander in Chief Mediterranean Fleet was also responsible as NATO Commander in Chief Mediterranean for all NATO subordinate forces in the Mediterranean region. Great Britain was heavily involved in the discussions about the NATO command structure. Britain's intention was to retain command of NATO forces in the Mediterranean, as British lines of communication with the Middle East and Southeast Asia crossed the Mediterranean. After the US Admiral Robert B. Carney as commander of NATO forces Southeastern Europe was appointed (C-in-C Allied Forces Southern Europe), was the relationship between him and the British commander of the Mediterranean Fleet, Admiral Edlesten, frosty. An apparently friendly offer from the noblest to Carney to use British communication facilities, since Carney did not have secure telecommunication connections, was brusquely with the words "I'm not about to play Faust to your Mephistopheles through the medium of communications!" rejected.

Ships of the fleet were involved in the 1956 war against Egypt known as the Suez Crisis .

With the collapse of the British Empire in the 1960s, the importance of the Mediterranean as a link between Great Britain and the possessions in the eastern hemisphere also declined. At the same time, during the Cold War, the focus shifted to the North Atlantic . As a result, the importance of the Mediterranean fleet declined until its dissolution in 1967. The fleet was reduced to a companion squadron (30th Escort Squadron with HMS Brighton , HMS Cassandra , HMS Aisne ) and a mine clearance squadron . The Beira Patrol deployments were reduced from four to two ships in 1966, and ultimately no more frigates were made available for this mission. Responsibilities and units of the fleet were handed over to the newly established Western Fleet . As a result of these changes, the United Kingdom relinquished the post of NATO Commander in Chief Mediterranean. The command area was eventually dissolved.

The Royal Navy is participating with one warship in the Standing Naval Force Mediterranean (STANAVFORMED) and another ship in the NATO Mine Countermeasures Force (South) .

Commander in Chief of the Mediterranean Fleet

Commander-in-chief from to flagship annotation
Augustus Hervey, 3rd Earl of Bristol 1763 ?
Sir Samuel Hood May 1783 October 1794
William Hotham October 1794 November 1795
John Jervis 1796 1799
George Elphinstone November 1799 1802
Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson May 1803 January 1805 after the Battle of Trafalgar died
Vice-Admiral Cuthbert Collingwood 1805 1811
Sir Edward Pellew 1811 1814
1814 1816
Sir Edward Pellew 1816 1816
1816 1825
Admiral Harry Burrard-Neale 1825 1830 (?)
Vice Admiral Henry Hotham March 30, 1831 April 19, 1833 died on April 19, 1833.
Vice-Admiral Pulteney Malcolm May 3, 1833 December 18, 1833
Vice Admiral Josias Rowley December 18, 1833 February 9, 1837
Admiral Robert Stopford February 9, 1837 October 14, 1841
Vice Admiral Edward Rich Owen October 14, 1841 February 27, 1845
Vice Admiral William Parker February 27, 1845 January 17, 1852
Rear Adm. James Dundas January 17, 1852 1854 Vice-Admiral December 17, 1852
Rear Adm. Edmund Lyons 1854 February 22, 1858 Vice-Admiral March 19, 1857
Vice-Admiral Arthur Fanshawe February 22, 1858 April 19, 1860 HMS Marlborough
Vice Admiral William Martin April 19, 1860 April 20, 1863 HMS Marlborough
Vice-Admiral Robert Smart April 20, 1863 April 28, 1866 HMS Marlborough , then HMS Victoria
Vice-Admiral Lord Clarence Paget April 28, 1866 April 28, 1869 HMS Victoria , then HMS Caledonia
Vice Admiral Alexander Milne April 28, 1869 October 25, 1870 HMS Lord Warden Admiral April 1, 1870
Vice-Admiral Hastings Reginald Yelverton October 25, 1870 January 13, 1874 HMS Lord Warden
Vice Admiral James Drummond January 13, 1874 January 15, 1877 HMS Lord Warden , then HMS Hercules
Vice Admiral Geoffrey Hornby January 5, 1877 February 5, 1880 HMS Alexandra Admiral June 15, 1879
Vice-Admiral Frederick Beauchamp Paget Seymour February 5, 1880 February 7, 1883 HMS Inconstant and HMS Alexandra Admiral May 6, 1882
Vice-Admiral Lord John Hay February 7, 1883 February 5, 1886 HMS Alexandra Admiral July 8, 1884
Vice-Admiral HRH the Duke of Edinburgh February 5, 1886 March 11, 1889 HMS Alexandra Admiral October 18, 1887
Vice Admiral Anthony Hiley Hoskins March 11, 1889 August 20, 1891 HMS Alexandra March 1889 - December 1889
HMS Camperdown December 1889 - May 1890
HMS Victoria onwards from May 1890 		Admiral June 20, 1891
Vice Admiral George Tryon August 20, 1891 June 22, 1893 HMS Victoria sunk on board HMS Victoria
Admiral Michael Culme-Seymour June 29, 1893 November 10, 1896 HMS Ramillies
Admiral John Hopkins November 10, 1896 July 1, 1899 HMS Ramillies
Admiral John Fisher July 1, 1899 1902 HMS Renown
Admiral Compton Domvile 1902 June 1905 HMS Bulwark
Admiral Lord Charles Beresford appointed May 1, 1905,
assumed command June 6, 1905 		February 1907 HMS Bulwark
Admiral Charles C. Drury appointed March 5, 1907 took
command March 27, 1907 		1908 HMS Queen
Admiral Assheton G. Curzon-Howe appointed November 20, 1908,
assumed command November 20, 1908 		1910 Exmouth
Admiral Edmund Poe appointed April 30, 1910 took
command April 30, 1910 		November 1912 HMS Exmouth
During the First World War, the fleet was divided into different units at different times. The commander-in-chief of the Allied naval forces in the Mediterranean, a French admiral, does not appear on this list. The exact designation of the post of the respective commander is listed in italics in the "Comment" column.
Admiral Sir Berkley Milne appointed June 1, 1912 took
command June 12, 1912 		August 27, 1914 Inflexible Commander-in-Chief Mediterranean
Vice Admiral Sir Sackville Carden September 1914 February 1915 Commander-in-Chief Mediterranean
Vice Admiral Sir Sackville Carden February 1915 March 16, 1915 Aegean
Rear Admiral Sir John de Robeck March 17, 1915 January 1916
(or May 1916?) 		HMS Lord Nelson Commander-in-Chief, Eastern Mediterranean
Rear Admiral Cecil Thursby August 1916 August 1917 Eastern Mediterranean
Vice-Admiral from April 1917
Rear Admiral Cecil Thursby April (?) 1915 May (?) 1915 Aegean
Rear Admiral Sydney Fremantle August 1917 9th (?) January 1918 Aegean
Rear Admiral Arthur Hayes-Sadler January 1918 Aegean
Rear Admiral Cecil Lambert April 2, 1918 ? Aegean
Rear Adm. Michael Culme-Seymour May 1918 ? Aegean
Rear Admiral Richard Peirse December 1915 Commander-in-Chief, East Indies
Vice-Admiral from October 24, 1914.
Rear Adm. Sir Rosslyn Wemyss December 1915 June 1917 HMS Euryalus Commander-in-Chief, East Indies and Egypt Station
Rear Admiral Ernest Frederic Augustus Gaunt June 1917 ? Commander-in-Chief, East Indies
Rear Adm. Thomas Jackson July 1917 ? Egypt & Red Sea
Vice Admiral Sir Rosslyn Wemyss June 1917 July 1917 Commander-in-Chief Mediterranean
did not actually take command
Admiral Somerset Gough-Calthorpe August 26, 1917 July 25, 1919 Commander-in-Chief Mediterranean
Vice-Admiral Sir John de Robeck July 26, 1919 May 14, 1922 HMS Iron Duke
Vice-Admiral Vice-Admiral Sir Osmond de Beauvoir Brock May 15, 1922 June 7, 1925 HMS Iron Duke Admiral July 31, 1924
Admiral Roger Keyes June 8, 1925 June 7, 1928 HMS Warspite
Admiral Sir Frederick Field June 8, 1928 May 28, 1930 HMS Queen Elizabeth
Admiral Ernle Chatfield May 27, 1930 October 31, 1932 HMS Queen Elizabeth
Admiral William Fisher October 31, 1932 March 19, 1936 Resolution , later HMS Queen Elizabeth
Admiral Sir Dudley Pound March 20, 1936 May 31, 1939 HMS Queen Elizabeth
During the Second World War, the fleet was temporarily divided into different units. The exact designation of the post of the respective commander is listed in italics in the "Comment" column.
Admiral Sir Andrew B. Cunningham June 1, 1939
June 6, 1939
assumed command 		March 1942 HMS Warspite August 1939
HMS St Angelo (Base, Malta) April 1940
HMS Warspite February 1941 		Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean Fleet
Vice-Admiral Cunningham was appointed admiral on June 1, 1930, and on January 3, 1941 he was promoted to admiral
A / Admiral Sir Henry H. Harwood April 22, 1942 February 1943 HMS Warspite
HMS Nile (base, Alexandria) August 1942 		Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean Fleet Vice-Admiral Harwood was appointed acting admiral
Admiral Sir Andrew B. Cunningham November 1, 1942 February 20, 1943 HMS Hannibal (base, Algiers ) Naval Commander Expeditionary Force (NCXF) North Africa and Mediterranean
In the first half of 1943 the fleet was divided into a fleet command and a base command:
Mediterranean Fleet : C-in-C Med Fleet, 15th Cruiser Squadron, Cdre. (D)
Levant : C-in-C Levant, Alexandria, Malta, Port Said, Haifa, Bizerta, Tripoli, Mersa Matruh, Benghazi, Aden, Bone, Bougie, Philippeville
Levant was renamed Eastern Mediterranean in December 1943 .
Admiral of the Fleet Sir Andrew B. Cunningham February 20, 1943 October 15, 1943 HMS Hannibal (base, Algiers / Taranto) Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean Fleet
Admiral John HD Cunningham June 5, 1943 August 1943 HMS Nile (base, Alexandria) Commander-in-Chief, Levant
Admiral John HD Cunningham October 15, 1943 February 1946 HMS Hannibal (base, Algiers / Taranto) Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean Station & Allied Naval Commander Mediterranean
Vice-Admiral Sir Algernon U. Willis temporary October 14, 1943 December 1943 HMS Nile (base, Alexandria) Commander-in-Chief, Levant .
Vice Admiral H. Bernard Rawlings December 28, 1943 June 1944 HMS Nile (base, Alexandria) April 1944 Flag Officer, Eastern Mediterranean . From June 8, 1944 Sir H. Bernard Rawlings
Admiral Sir Algernon U. Willis 1946 1948 HMS St Angelo (Base, Malta)
Admiral Sir Arthur John Power 1948 1950 HMS St Angelo (Base, Malta) Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean
Admiral Sir John H. Edelsten 1950 1952 HMS St Angelo (Base, Malta) Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean
Admiral Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma 1952 1954 HMS St Angelo (Base, Malta) Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean
Admiral Sir Guy Grantham December 10, 1954 April 10, 1957 HMS St Angelo (Base, Malta)
Vice-Admiral Sir Ralph AB Edwards April 10, 1957 November 11, 1958 HMS St Angelo (Base, Malta)
Admiral Sir Charles Lambe November 11, 1958 2nd February 1959 HMS Phenicia (base, Malta)
Admiral Sir Alexander NC Bingley 2nd February 1959 June 30, 1961 HMS Phenicia (base, Malta)
Admiral Sir Deric Holland-Martin June 30, 1961 February 1, 1964 HMS Phenicia (base, Malta)
Admiral Sir John G. Hamilton February 1, 1964 5th June 1967 HMS St Angelo (Base, Malta)

Traditionally, in the Royal Navy, facilities located on land were also referred to with a ship name and therefore had the addition "His / Her Mjasty Ship (HMS)". HMS St Angelo was located in Fort St. Angelo, HMS Phenicia below the Lascaris Battery, both in Malta.

literature

  • Eric J. Grove: Vanguard to Trident . Naval Institute Press / The Bodley Head, London 1987

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Naval Biographical Database .
  2. ^ Commissioned ships of the Royal Navy , from the Sunlight Almanac , 1895
  3. ^ Leo Niehorster : Mediterranean Fleet, September 3, 1939 , accessed May 9, 2015.
  4. ^ Groves, 1987, p. 154.
  5. ^ Sean Maloney: To Secure Command of the Sea . University of New Brunswick thesis, 1991, pp. 258-261.
  6. ↑ Maloney thesis, p. 261.
  7. ↑ Groves: Vanguard to Trident . 1987, p. 297.
  8. ^ A b Principal Royal Navy Commanders-in-Chief 1830-1899
  9. ↑ a b Hotham family tree
  10. ↑ Arthur Fanshawe on-line biography
  11. ↑ William Fanshawe Martin on-line biography
  12. ↑ mHistoryHMS Marlborough
  13. ↑ Robert Smart on-line biography
  14. ↑ Lord Clarence Edward Paget on-line biography
  15. ↑ Alexander Milne on-line biography
  16. ^ Hastings Reginald Yelverton on-line biography
  17. ↑ James Robert Drummond on-line biography
  18. ↑ Geoffrey Thomas Phipps Hornby on-line biography
  19. ↑ Frederick Beauchamp Paget Seymour on-line biography
  20. ↑ Lord John Hay on-line biography
  21. ↑ P222, Parkes, Oscar British Battleships , pub Seeley, 1957, and Naval Institute Press, 1990. ISBN 1-55750-075-4
  22. ↑ p222, 320, 336, Parkes, Oscar British Battleships , pub Seeley, 1957, and Naval Institute Press, 1990. ISBN 1-55750-075-4
  23. ↑ George Tryon on-line biography
  24. ↑ p362, Parkes, Oscar British Battleships , pub Seeley, 1957, and Naval Institute Press, 1990. ISBN 1-55750-075-4
  25. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n p232 SWC Pack, Sea Power in the Mediterranean , pub Arthur Baker Ltd 1971, ISBN 0-213-00394-5
  26. ↑ Compton Edward Domville [sic] on-line biography
  27. ↑ Navy List July Dec 1906
  28. ↑ p267 & 282 Geoffrey Bennett Charlie B, a Biography of Admiral Lord Beresford of Metemmeh and Curraghmore GCB GCVO LLD DCL , pub pub Peter Dawnay, Ltd, 1968.
  29. ↑ P508, Beresford, Lord Charles, The Memoirs of Admiral Lord Charles Beresford , pub Methuen, 1914th
  30. ^ Navy List July 1908
  31. ^ Navy List Jan 1909
  32. ^ A b Janus: The Papers of Reginald McKenna
  33. ^ Navy List Jan 1911
  34. ^ Navy List Feb 1913
  35. ↑ p287,289 & 422 Geoffrey Miller, Superior Force: The conspiracy behind the escape of Goeben and Breslau , pub Hull, 1996, ISBN 0-85958-635-9
  36. ↑ First World War.com Who's Who: Sir Berkeley Milne
  37. ↑ p76, Halpern, Paul G The Naval War in the Mediterranean from 1914 to 1918 , pub Naval Institute Press, 1987. ISBN 0-87021-448-9
  38. ↑ a b Sackville Hamilton Carden career
  39. ↑ a b Carden, Sir Sackville Hamilton (1857–1930)
  40. ↑ a b First World War.com Who's Who: Sir Sackville Carden
  41. ^ RN World War I Flag Officers says initially Malta.
  42. ↑ First World War.com Who's Who: Sir Sackville Carden says "His was started with an appointment (surprising to many) as commander of British naval forces in the Mediterranean in September 1914, where he Replaced Sir Berkeley Milne."
  43. ↑ p76, Halpern, Paul G The Naval War in the Mediterranean from 1914 to 1918 , pub Navl Institute Press, 1987. ISBN 0-87021-448-9
  44. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m RN World War I Flag Officers
  45. ↑ Janus: The Papers of Admiral Sir John de Robeck
  46. ↑ John de Robeck career
  47. ^ A b Janus: The Papers of Admiral of the Fleet Lord Wester Wemyss
  48. ↑ Cecil Fiennes Thursby's career
  49. ↑ Cecil Fiennes Thursby career
  50. ↑ Sydney Robert Freemantle says that he was named Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff from January 10, 1918 to May 1, 1919 .
  51. ^ Arthur Hayes-Sadler's career
  52. ↑ Cecil Foley Lambert's career
  53. ↑ Richard Henry Peirse's career
  54. ^ Ernest Frederic Augustus Gaunt's career
  55. ^ Janus: The Papers of Admiral of the Fleet Lord Wester Wemyss "In June 1917 Wemyss was promoted Vice-Admiral and it was first intended that he should take command of all British ships in the Mediterranean with his headquarters in Malta."
  56. ↑ p323 Geoffrey Miller, Superior Force: The conspiracy behind the escape of Goeben and Breslau , pub Hull, 1996, ISBN 0-85958-635-9
    p80, Admiral Sir William James, Admiral Sir William Fisher , pub Macmillan, 1943.
    Somerset Gough -Calthorpe career
    RN World War I Flag Officers
  57. ↑ p85 & 94, Admiral Sir William James, Admiral Sir William Fisher , pub Macmillan, 1943.
    John de Robeck career
  58. ↑ p92, Admiral Sir William James, Admiral Sir William Fisher , pub Macmillan, 1943.
    Osmond de Beauvoir Brock career
  59. ^ Roger Keyes career
  60. ↑ a b p121 Admiral Sir William James, Admiral Sir William Fisher , pub Macmillan, 1943rd
  61. ^ Ernle Chatfield's career ( Memento from September 27, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
  62. ^ Papers of Admiral Fisher
    Admiral Sir William James, Admiral Sir William Fisher , pub Macmillan, 1943.
    Dudley Pound career history ( Memento of September 27, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
    Admiral Sir William Fisher's career
  63. ↑ p121 & 123 Admiral Sir William James, Admiral Sir William Fisher , pub Macmillan, 1943rd
  64. ↑ p140 Admiral Sir William James, Admiral Sir William Fisher , pub Macmillan, 1943.
    Dudley Pound career history ( Memento of 27 September 2007 at the Internet Archive )
    Andrew Cunningham's career ( Memento of 27 September 2007 at the Internet Archive )
  65. ↑ a b c Andrew Cunningham career ( Memento from September 27, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
  66. ↑ a b c d e World War II RN Officers C
  67. ↑ a b c d e f g h i Royal Navy Mediterranean Fleet + Levant / Eastern Mediterranean
  68. ↑ Sir Henry Harwood Harwood career
  69. ^ Papers of Admiral Sir Algernon U. Willis , accessed June 2008
  70. ↑ List from 1954 to 1964 from list at AFNORTH article
  71. ↑ Eric J. Grove: Vanguard to Trident . Bodley Head, London 1987, p. 297