Mediterranean

The Second World War

Date

1940 - 1945

Geographical parameters

The whole of the Mediterranean, the western limit being a line joining Cape Spartel and Cape Trafalgar.

Context

Eligible to all “ships and submarines which took part in successful actions that are not covered by any of the named Battle Honours for area. That is to say, the destruction of an enemy ship or submarine which was effected during and in connection with a recognised campaign, e.g. SICILY 1943, is regarded as an incidental item of the campaign, and not as qualifying for a separate Battle Honour award. If however, the success was unconnected with any named operation for which a Battle Honour is granted, then it will qualify for the general award of MEDITERRANEAN with the year date(s). Minor bombardments will also qualify for this award. An area battle honour formally entitled “Mediterranean 1940-45” with year dates according to the service of the unit concerned ^{Footnote 1}.

Description

On 13 January 1943, off the coast of Algeria, convoy TE 13 was spotted by the German submarine U 224. The boat’s captain was fixated on his target, a 14,000 ton oil tanker, and so missed the approach of His Majesty’s Canadian Ship Ville de Québec, a Flower-class Corvette. Having picked up the submarine on its radar Ville de Québec charged toward its enemy which conducted a last minute crash dive. Damaged by the underwater explosions of the depth charges, the submarine surfaced, albeit with its bow 20 feet in the air. The Canadian ship then closed in to ram, all the while peppering the submarine with fire from its Oerlikon machine guns as the two vessels were too close for the Canadian’s 4-inch gun to bear on the target. The collision knocked a single German officer from the top of the conning tower before the submarine rolled over and sank, taking the remainder of its crew with it.

Following the sinking of the submarine U 224 by HMCS Ville de Québec, the latter’s sister ship, HMCS Port Arthur, was tasked with rescuing the sole survivor of U 224 from the water. Just 6 days after that action, Port Arthur, escorting convoy MKS 6, picked up a contact and immediately attacked with a depth charge pattern. The enemy submarine that they were attacking had been previously damaged by an American aircraft but Port Arthur’s assault caused further damage with the result that the submarine’s captain was forced to surface right in front of a British corvette, HMS Antelope. The Italian submarine Tritone (this name translates into English as ‘Triton’ – a Greek sea god) then put up the white flag, sinking a few minutes later.

HMCS Regina, a Flower-class Corvette, was a part of the escort for convoy KMS 8 in transit from the United Kingdom to the Mediterranean in February 1943. On 7 February 1943 the Corvette picked up a radar contact which turned out to be the Italian submarine Avorio (the name translates into English as ‘Ivory’). The time of the contact was late evening and the Italian boat had surfaced to recharge its batteries. Taken by surprise by the Canadian ship the submarine carried out a crash dive but was damaged by Regina’s quickly fired depth charges. The damaged submarine, forced to re-surface, engaged the Canadian ship. In the ensuing fight Regina’s 4-inch gun obtained several hits on the submarine’s conning tower. Several members of the Italian crew jumped into the water while others raised their hands in surrender. Regina’s captain had been attempting to ram the enemy but stopped instead to take on survivors and dispatch a boarding party. Although an attempt was made to tow the damaged submarine to a North African port it sank about five hours after capture.

Awarded to:

Ships in commission

• HMCS Regina - 1943 ^{Footnote 2}
• HMCS Ville de Québec - 1943 ^{Footnote 3}

Ships not currently in commission

• HMCS Port Arthur - 1943 ^{Footnote 4}
• HMCS Restigouche - 1943 ^{Footnote 5}