Page 323 - Il Mediterraneo quale elemento del Potere Marittimo - Atti 16-18 settembre 1996

COMBAT ACTIO~'S OF THE POLISH ~t\VY VESSELS IN THE ~IEDITERRANEAN 309

one ofher assignments was escorting the 1st Battleship Squadron, Force H (battle-
ships HMS Rodney and HMS Nelson, and aircraft-carrier HMS lndomitable).
During the Allies' landing operation in Sicily (Operation "Husky") begun on
lO July 1943, Poland's Navy was represented by the above described vessels, i.e.
3 destroyers and 2 submarines, and also 7 troops and equipment transport ships
6.e. Batory, Sobieski, Kosciuszko, Nat·wik, Lrtblin, Lwow, and Lewant). The submarine
Soko/ patrolled che area around the Liparyan Islands, and rhe Dzik with 3 British
submarine set up a blockade in the Bay of Tarent. On 19 July, she hindered the
attack of a German submarine on the British vessel her - HMS Unshaken; although
none of the four Dzik 's torpedoes hit the enemy, che German submarine promptly
escaped from the site of the attack. However, che destroyers Krakowiak (included
into Escort Group S) and Slazak (Escort Group T) protected rhe landig of convoys
carrying the troops of Britain's 8th Army. Among the carriers, there were Polish
transport ships i.e. the Batory, Sobieski, Kosciuszko, and Narwik heading for their lan-
ding sectors. The destroyers also provided the landing troops with artillery sup-
port. Between 29 July and 24 August, the destroyers sailed in convoys between
Gibraltar and Alexandria, and Haifa (as pare of 48 EG), after which, on 27 Au-
gust, they were transferred to Force V. However, che Piorrm included into the 24th
Destroyer Flotilla protected the ist Battleship Squadron, which was supporting the
landing operation on the side of the lonic Sea (6-7 July), and she also escorted the
torpedo-damaged aircraft carrier HMS Indomitab/e ( 16 July). Moreover, together with
the light cruiser HMS Aurora and 7 British destroyers, she patrolled the warers of
South Calabria ( 18 July), rho se of the Ba y of Squillace, she repelled Luftwaffe raids
over La Valetta's Great Harbour (20 July, Malta). Finally, operating in concert with
2 British light cruisers and 5 destroyers, she shelled Crotone (21 July), but in Au-
gust, she patrolled the Strait of Messina and protected (acting with 2 British crui-
sers and 4 destroyers) the battleships HMS Nelson and HMS Rodney engaged in che
barrage of che Italian coastal artillery batteries in che area of Cap Fellaro. In turn,
the transport ships Lublin, Lwow and Lewant carried supplies for the fighting Allies
till the end of August.
As far as the following landing operations are concerned - that is the landing
in Calabria (Operation "Baytown") and that in the Bay ofSalerno (Operation .. Ava-
lanche"), which coincided with the armstice (3 September 1943) and surrender
of ltaly (8 September 1943), it should be noted that Polish naval vessels and tran-
sport ships were engaged in combat actions of the above operations (•). The Po-
lish Navy destroyer Piorun escorted the bactleships of the 2nd Squadron i.e. HMS
Valiant and HMS Warspite, which shelled Reggio di Calabria (2 September) and
protected the ist B~ttleship Squadron (HMS Rodney, HMS Ne/son, and aircraft-carrier
HMS Formidab/e). During that mission, o n 8 September, she shot down an ltalian
torpedo-bearing aircraft, and also she fought German Submarines and torpedo-
boats in the waters of Calabria (o n 23 September, she escorted the monitor Roberts
during the passage to Malta). The destroyers Krakowiak and Slazak as part of