NEW LIGHT ON NAVAL ACTIONS

Chronicle (Levin), 26 August 1947, Page 8

NEW LIGHT ON NAVAL ACTIONS

LONAoN, August 21. German doeuments released by the Admiralty diselose that the sinking of the liaer Athenia without warning 2000 miles west of the Hebrides a few hours after the deelaration of wai* was a mystery to Hit'Ier and the German Nayal Staff until a U-boat retumed. to harbour. • It was then aseertained that the U30, under the command of Lieutenant Lemp, had sunk the Athenia. Lemp was aware tliat he had disobeyed instructions, but- pleaded that he was _over-excited by the sudden. deelaration of wai*. It was his first act of war. He was severely reprimanded and the ship's eompany was ordered to observe the strietest secrecy. Very few ofiicers were informed of the truth and even the naval staff was kept in ignorance for some time. Lemp was killed when another submarine to which he was transferred was sunk. , The doeuments also diselose how a U-boat In the second month of the war piereed the hitherto impenetrable Seapa ITow, and, unseathed, stole out again after- firing torpedoes which tore through the hull of the 29,000-ton battleship^ Royal Oak, killing 810 offieers and men. The U47 was eommanded by Lieutenant Prien, who had been seleeted for the( task by Admiral Raeder. It lay ( submerged off the Orkneys, waiting for a ehanee to sneak into Scapa Flow. A eareful snrv.ey had revealed the weakness of the defenee. With slcilful navigation it was possible to pass either between the three bloekships or at the side of them elose to the sliore. Prien wrote in his log: "The English have been kind enough to switeh on alJ the eoastal lights, so that 1 can obtain the most exaet fix. " . Describing the firing of five torpedoes, two of whieh hit their targets. he said: "There is a ioud expiosion, then come eolumns of water, followed by eolumns of fire, and splinters fiy through the air. The harbour springs to life. On the land, 200 yards away, cars roar along the roads. A battleship has been sunk in a seeond. ' ' The doeument reveals that the suecess of this operation considerably enhapced Hitler's opinion of the German navy. Admiral Raeder reported on the operation and at the same time obtained virtual permission for unre stricted naval warfare against British and Erench merehant ^hipping. The German doeuments also reveal that suecessful British propaganda eonvmeed the eaptain of the pocket battleship, Graf Bpee, that a powerful British fleet awaited fiim in the viein'* ity of the River PJate estuary if he left Mpntevideo with his damaged ship, and^ that this knowledge caused him to decide to scuttle the Graf Spee, instead of again ehallenging the British force. Actually the eruiser force eonsisted of the Ajax, the Achilles and the Exeter, under Admiral Harwood, which had severely damaged the Graf Spee in the running fight and forced her to put into Montevideo, but Captain Langsdorf, who eommanded the Graf Spee, and the whole German naval intelligenee service were convinced that the aireraft-carrier Ark Royal and the battleship Renown had joined Captain Harwood 's force. In f.act they were luany thousands of miles away.