by gerald hall
“You want us to deliver the mines for you, Capitaine?”
“We need your help to deliver only some of them, Sir. We have started some mine-laying using mines launched through submarine torpedo tubes. Many of our submarine captains are not overly pleased about replacing some of their torpedoes with mines, of course. We also have people already designing special mine-delivery modules to fit onto existing submarines so that our commanders will not have to give up their torpedoes. However, one of your submarines would be especially helpful because of its size.”
“You are talking about Surcouf, aren’t you?” Admiral Muselier warily asked.
“Yes, Monsieur Amiral. We know that you have already been using her to attack Japanese shipping and even some of their island garrisons with her guns. But Surcouf has had some near-disastrous encounters with Japanese aircraft and escort ships that she was very fortunate to escape from. What we propose is to convert her to be able to deploy large numbers of naval mines. We would take her into an Australian shipyard and upgrade her in a variety of ways. We know that Surcouf is badly in need of a refit anyway.”
Admiral Muselier grimaced for a moment. Surcouf had indeed had problems during the last two raids due to the amount of time that it took her to dive. However, she was too important of a unit to completely sideline. Yet at the same time, the French admiral needed to find a use for Surcouf that would not risk her loss. He was very curious about what the British had in mind. He also wanted to know just how much the British knew about the submarine’s operations and how they learned about them.
“We would have to remove her scout plane, her motor boat and her external torpedo tubes in order to add the mine-laying equipment. Once that work has been completed, she would have the potential then of being able to sink far more enemy ships with considerably less risk. This will be especially true after we upgrade her to use a snorkel device and give her new batteries. Surcouf will be able to operate underwater for far longer this way.” Captain Robinson continued.
“This is an intriguing proposal that you have here. I must say that such operations would take away the thrill of directly attacking and sinking enemy shipping for her crew. However, if we are able to slip in under the nose of the enemy and shut down his ports, that would have its own sense of accomplishment as well.”
“Surcouf will still have the ability to engage the enemy with her main torpedoes and her guns after these modifications have been completed.
However, she would be better able to do so and escape to fight again after she has delivered her load of mines. Then she can enjoy the triumph of her efforts for months to come. Don’t you agree, Monsieur Amiral?”
“I will have to bring this proposal to the attention of Surcouf’s Capitaine. I believe that his opinion on this matters as well. But what you want to do has considerable merit, I must admit.”
“I understand. Incidentally, we have learned that the Japanese have already started using their own dedicated mine-laying submarines to begin to lay offensive minefields against us. One of the Australian submarines sank just such a submarine a short while ago. We truly believe that we must shut down the enemy’s ports before they have the opportunity to shut down our own ports, including the one here at Haiphong.” Captain Robinson said just before he turned to leave Admiral Muselier’s office.
Just after Captain Robinson’s departure, Admiral Muselier picks up the phone on his desk and asks for Surcouf’s captain to come to the Admiral’s office.
“I hate it when the damned British are the ones who come up with a good idea when a Frenchman should have thought of it in the first place.” The Admiral grumbled out loud while standing by the window and looking out over the harbor.
French Naval Shipyard
Toulon, France
January 28, 1943
Captaine de frigate Francois Combs drove his car that morning to the naval shipyards at Toulon on what he felt was a special occasion. It was going to be the beginning of sea trials for the first two new major French warships since the signing of the peace treaty with Germany.
It had taken months of negotiations with the Germans to obtain permission to resume construction on Jean Bart and Joffre. Virtually the entire French navy, except for a few cruisers and destroyers, had either been destroyed in battle or had defected to join the renegades of the so-called ‘Free French Navy’.
Now, the French Navy would have two of the most modern and innovative warships in the world, Francois felt. Both of the newly commissioned ships would be capable of operating dozens of aircraft from their flight decks.
The aircraft carrier Joffre would be the first French aircraft carrier built from the keel up for that purpose. The Jean Bart had been built originally as a sister ship to the battleship Richelieu. But she could not be completed prior to the German military victory over the French. Only half of her main armament had been installed and practically none of her secondary weapons were aboard as well.
The Germans would not allow the French Navy to complete Jean Bart as a battleship. The Vichy government did not have the financial means to produce more of Jean Bart’s thirty-eight centimeter main guns after the sabotage of the production plant by the Resistance in any event. However, at the suggestion of the German representative to the Vichy government, the French Navy began a project to convert the Jean Bart to a hybrid configuration.
Jean Bart still had her four main guns in a quadruple turret forward. But above the main deck, the ship had been gutted and reconstructed with a large hangar and flight deck aft of the turret. A large island on the starboard side of the flight deck contained the bridge, the funnel and a main battery fire control director for Jean Bart’s big guns. In sponsons along the sides of the flight deck, the large warship had four pairs of twin ten-centimeter antiaircraft guns. In addition to those weapons, the island and flight deck edges had several dozen thirty-seven and twenty-five millimeter antiaircraft guns to deal with close-in defense. Finally, a pair of fourteen-centimeter guns in casemates on each side of the warship’s stern protected the rear of the ship from surface threats. These weapons had been salvaged from other French warships that had been sunk in port by the Germans or by their own crews.
Joffre had been completed in her planned configuration with a flight deck that was offset to port to compensate for the mass of her large island structure. The carrier was armed with four twin turrets, each armed with thirteen-centimeter dual-purpose naval rifles. The turrets were superimposed, fore and aft, of the main island structure like in the German aircraft carrier Graf Zeppelin. Like Jean Bart, Joffre was also armed with dozens of lighter weapons for close defense against enemy aircraft.
Both warships were festooned with flags and bright banners in preparation for their first sea trials. The only things that seemed to be missing were aircraft on their flight decks.
Francois saw that his friend, Captaine Pierre Dassault was standing on the pier looking at the two French warships.
“Isn’t this a wonderful morning for the French Navy, Pierre?” Francois proudly said as he walked up to exchange salutes.
Pierre returned the salute but then immediately looked back at the towering battleship-carrier docked next to him. Francois’ friend did not appear to be nearly as enamored with what he was looking at.
“Captaine, aren’t you the least bit concerned about how willing the Boche were to allow us to construct these warships? It is hardly the act of a conquering power to allow its conquests to rebuild their arms.” Pierre calmly asked.
“I don’t care about motives. I only care that we finally have ships under the French flag that are larger than a mere light cruiser. Soon, we will have an entire flotilla of new large destroyers to operate with them as well. Then French sailors will, once again, be able to have pride in our navy.”
“Honestly, Francois. I was far prouder when our ‘renegades’ bravely fought the Fascist fleet on the way to Alexandria.”
“But what are they doing now? They are being lapdogs to the Eng
lish both in the Mediterranean and in the Far East.”
“You don’t honestly believe that garbage that is coming out of the mouths of the Vichy government. You know that everything that they say comes out with a German accent. The Germans are the ones actually running things in Paris, regardless of what the treaty says.”
“You need to be very careful about what you are saying, Pierre. There are many here who would consider your words to be treasonous.”
“Treasonous to whom? France or Germany? I am simply saying that we must be very concerned about what we are actually accomplishing here and who would truly benefit from it. We are building aircraft carriers, yet our aircraft factories have yet to produce a single aircraft capable of operating from them. Yes, I know the reports of how much work is being done on building the best carrier-borne aircraft in the world for our ships to use.
So, I can’t help but wonder who would benefit from these ships being constructed. Are the Boche simply having France waste its resources and attention on building a pair of white elephants? Or do the Boche have plans of their own for our shiny new ships?”
“We would never allow the Boche to take control of our warships, Pierre.” Francois emphatically insisted.
“Tell me, my friend. What could we do to stop them if the Boche decided otherwise?” The other French officer said with a shrug of his shoulders.
Francois said nothing in reply. He knew that Pierre was correct. Still, Francois did not want to abandon all hope for the French Navy. He could see just across the shipyard at the four new heavy destroyers that were under construction. These warships were based on the large Mogador-class destroyers. Two of the new ships, Kléber and Desaix, already had their four twin-gun turrets mounted. Their thirteen-centimeter dual-purpose guns combined with the latest French automatic antiaircraft cannons and twelve fifty-five centimeter torpedo tubes would give these ships an extremely powerful armament.
Even Francois did not want the Germans to get their hands on those new warships, much less Jean Bart and Joffre. Unfortunately for Francois and his hopes, the Germans were indeed planning on seizing all of the French Navy’s newest and finest ships when the time was ripe. However, the Germans were quite willing to wait patiently until the French had expended their own resources constructing the ships first.
Chapter Thirteen:
German High Command Headquarters
Berlin, Germany
February 7, 1943
It was late in the night just outside of the large gray structure. A pair of men had met outside, just out of earshot of any guards. One of the men was in uniform while the other wore a long, dark civilian overcoat and fedora hat that differed little from the common outfits worn by Gestapo agents.
“This war is going to end up being an unmitigated disaster for Germany. That madman has forced us into a two-front war that is bleeding us dry. The only thing keeping us from collapsing right now is that the Americans have been too hesitant to get involved in Europe. You can be sure that Churchill has been pushing every day for the Americans to commit their vast industrial resources and equally vast military potential against us.
We have neutralized the French and virtually the rest of Europe. We honestly don’t need to conquer the Englanders to achieve our national goals. We just need to defeat the Bolsheviks. If we can find some way for a détente with England, then we can focus our efforts to the East and crush Stalin. We already know that Stalin is equally determined to destroy us, even before Hitler launched Operation Barbarossa.” The shadowy uniformed figure said with a Prussian accent.
“Right now, Hitler is the problem. He has already cost us hundreds of thousands of unnecessary casualties with his childish ‘no retreat’ orders. We can defeat the Red Army if we have the tactical flexibility at our fingertips to adapt to the tactical situation.
Then there is Hitler’s prioritization of resources. I know that he despises the Juden and wants to eliminate them as an influence on Europe. But to give priority for critical transport to moving Juden to camps over sending supplies to our troops. That is utter madness.”
“I agree, comrade. We must do something about this soon. So now, let’s see if we can nudge Hitler to stick to his travel plans for once. This time, he has an appointment that he must not miss.” The trench coat-clad agent working indirectly for Harold noted. While the agent was not sure of the man’s exact identity, he did recognize that the older German was wearing a general officer’s uniform.
Adolf Hitler’s Personal Condor Transport
Somewhere over Western Ukraine
February 15, 1943
“Herr Führer, we have just received a report that Soviet fighters are massing less than fifty kilometers away from General Guderian’s field headquarters. The risk to you is far too great to fly there, I believe. Therefore, I strongly recommend that we continue on to our original destination of Walki near Poltava to visit Heeresgruppe B Headquarters there.” Hauptmann Fredrick Klausman formally told the Nazi leader after walking back from the transport’s cockpit.
Hitler thought for a few moments before responding. He always had this uncanny sense of knowing when danger lurked around the corner. This sense had always served him well over the years in avoiding multiple assassination attempts. He would unexpectedly change travel plans on what appeared to be a whim as a result of this sense of danger. He felt it once again here. Was the threat at his planned visit to Poltava or was it the new report of enemy aircraft massing near his intended new destination? Unfortunately, even the specially outfitted Focke-Wulf 200 Condor transport aircraft that Hitler was aboard would be no match for swarms of Soviet Yak fighters, even with the transport’s normal escort force of Messerschmitt fighters.
A conflicted Hitler finally scowled, “Very well. Resume your course toward Poltava, Hauptmann. But send no radio transmissions to anyone. I do not want to take any further risks on this journey.”
The Nazi leader fidgeted nervously for the next forty-five minutes until the Condor began to make its final approach to the airstrip at Walki. There were three Condors flying together so that no one could be able to determine which one Hitler was in.
To the casual observer, everything seemed to be in order. German soldiers stood at the ready all along the airfield. There were numerous vehicles lined up at one end of the runway with a group of German officers clearly standing next to them. The officers were all wearing their standard issue gray uniform great coats.
On the surface, all seemed to be in order. But there was still something in the air that unnerved Hitler as his transport touched down on the snow-covered grass runway. The other two Condors had already landed and each had a cordon of German troops surrounding them. But they had been kept some distance away from Hitler’s Condor.
First to exit the Führer’s Focke-Wulf were two squads of Hitler’s personal bodyguards. They joined a company of elite SS bodyguards that had been flown to Poltava a few hours earlier. Other groups of SS troops had been transported at the same time to half a dozen other possible landing sites to help deceive any potential assassins as to Hitler’s final destination.
Finally, Hitler exited the transport, accompanied closely by two of his personal aides. He walked out towards the group of senior officers waiting about fifty meters away. The German leader recognized Army Group B’s Chief of Staff General Hubert Lanz as well as Colonel Count von Strachwitz, the commander of the Grossdeutschland Tank Regiment. They were standing together with several other senior German officers. Hitler was about halfway there when he noticed that none of his bodyguards that had arrived earlier were armed. Each of them did have an armed Wehrmacht soldier standing behind him however.
One of the bodyguards attempted to blurt out a warning, but was immediately struck over the head by a rifle butt wielded by the soldier behind him.
Hitler’s bodyguards that had traveled with him attempted to bring their weapons to bear on the soldiers now surrounding the Führer. But the SS were either quickly disarmed by German soldier
s that had slipped in behind them and had been waiting for just such a move. Other troops loyal to General Lanz quickly stormed the Condor and overwhelmed the crew so that they could not bring the transport’s weapons to bear on Hitler’s captors.
Hitler and his aides were immediately disarmed and stood there as the group of senior German officers that were waiting nearby walked up.
“Adolf Hitler, you are under arrest for usurping the lawful government of the German state. You are also charged with multiple additional capital crimes against the German people and state.” General Lanz declared.
Hitler refused to consider himself a prisoner. In fact, he stood up even straighter and spoke as though he still was in charge there.
“How dare you assume that you have any authority over me, traitor. I speak and act for the German people. You are nothing but a coward and a Communist.”
“No, Herr Hitler. You are the one who is the real traitor. You have betrayed the German people and caused them untold death and destruction. Hundreds of thousands of brave German soldiers have died unnecessarily because of your orders here on the Eastern Front as well. We are here to bring an end to your National Socialist regime, once and for all.” Colonel von Strachwitz interjected.
Another officer with General Lanz drew his Luger and waved it in a threatening manner while walking towards Hitler. But all of the strength and bluster that Hitler showed the world began to crumble now as he saw the muzzle of the Luger pointed at him.
Hitler carried with him a cyanide capsule in the event that his aircraft would ever be forced down behind enemy lines. He was terrified of the idea of facing captivity at the hands of the Soviets. The Nazi leader never dreamed that he would be facing imprisonment by his own countrymen however. Hitler refused to submit to the humiliation of a trial that knew would be stacked against him.
