Hitler’s Pre-Emptive War: The Battle for Norway, 1940 by Henrik Lunde (the reader ebook .TXT) 📕

navigation officer appears to have made a slight mistake in the ship’s dead-reckoning position, due perhaps to over-compensation for current and wind. However, the ships were probably not much over one mile apart. Captain Warburton-Lee signaled his ships at 0343 hours (GMT), “I am steering for the entrance of Narvik Harbour.”12 The British destroyers headed for the harbor entrance at eight knots, on the same course as Diether von Roeder. Both sides were unaware that the enemy was so close to hand.

The first light of dawn was beginning to break when land appeared off the lead British destroyer’s port bow. It should have been the Framnes Peninsula if navigation had been on the mark. However, it turned out to be Emmenes, on the other side of the harbor entrance. This three kilometer mistake in navigation turned out to be very fortunate for the British, since it prevented them from running into Diether von Roeder and giving the German destroyers some warning of the impending attack.

The British made a course adjustment towards the harbor and despite an increase in speed to 12 knots, the fortuitous delay resulted in Diether von Roeder entering the harbor just moments before the British. It took the British six minutes to reach the harbor entrance. By this time, it was light enough to see a large number of ships anchored in the harbor, but the enemy destroyers were not yet detected.

Warburton-Lee dispatched the destroyers Hotspur and Hostile to the northeast to prevent any enemy ships that could be outside the harbor from interfering with the attack and to cover any possible shore batteries on Framnes. He entered the harbor alone with the Hardy, telling Hunter and Havock to await their turn to attack. The visibility had now improved to almost one mile, but the haze of the breaking dawn kept the British from immediately seeing the German destroyers. Two of these, Hermann Künne and Hans Lüdemann, were refueling on opposite sides of Jan Wellem. Anton Schmitt was behind the tanker, waiting its turn to refuel. Diether von Roeder had just dropped anchor west of the city pier, and the German flagship, Wilhelm Heidkamp, was further to the south.

Hardy slid quietly by some of the merchant ships and sighted Anton Schmitt and Wilhelm Heidkamp through a gap between the merchant ships. Bonte’s ensign was observed flying from Wilhelm Heidkamp’s mast.

The alarm had not sounded as the British broke out their battle flags. Warburton-Lee ordered the engine engaged slightly in order to maneuver into torpedo position. The two German ships were stationary and it was difficult to miss them at this short range. Torpedoes were launched and Warburton-Lee instinctively swung Hardy around and headed back for the harbor entrance at 20 knots. The time was 0430 hours (GMT). The first torpedo missed its target and hit a merchant ship. The second found its mark. The violent explosion detonated the aft magazine on the Wilhelm Heidkamp, blowing off the ship’s stern. The massive explosion tore off the three aft guns and munitions continued to explode for several minutes. Captain Bonte never knew what happened. He and 81 of his crew died instantly. Wilhelm Heidkamp’s skipper, Lieutenant Commander Hans Erdmenger, miraculously escaped death and he managed to secure his wrecked ship to the Swedish transport Oxelösund in order to save the wounded and some of the valuable equipment. Wilhelm Heidkamp remained afloat until April 11.

Two additional German destroyers were sighted as Hardy exited the harbor at high speed, the Hermann Künne refueling alongside Jan Wellem, and Diether von Roeder. Hardy fired a salvo of three torpedoes at the German warships but they missed and detonated against the piers in the northeast corner of the harbor.

Hunter now entered the harbor. Lieutenant Commander Lindsay de Villiers, Hunter’s skipper, was less discriminating in picking his targets. He fired the ship’s torpedoes into the crowded harbor at the same time as he opened up with his guns. The resulting chaos was indescribable. Anton Schmitt’s crew came on deck thinking they were under air attack. This thought was quickly dispelled when a shell hit the forward part of the ship. Lieutenant Commander Böhme was trying to leave his cabin when a torpedo from Hunter hit the ship’s forward turbine room. The explosion jammed the cabin door, trapping him inside. The German warships were now returning fire and Hunter laid smoke as she exited the harbor. Havock entered the harbor as Hunter exited. Her task was more difficult than that of her predecessors. The Germans were now aware that they were under a surface attack and the visibility that had been tolerable 15 minutes earlier was again very limited because of all the smoke from gunfire and burning ships. Havock’s skipper, Lieutenant Commander Rafe E. Courage, spotted Hermann Künne alongside Jan Wellem and opened fire on these two ships. No hits were scored. Hermann Künne had sufficient steam pressure to maneuver away from the tanker. This was done with a great sense of urgency and without taking time to detach the wires and hoses connecting it to Jan Wellem. Commander Courage now turned his attention to Anton Schmitt and gave that ship his full attention. A salvo of three torpedoes was fired at the German warship. The first two torpedoes hit two merchant ships. The third torpedo hit Anton Schmitt in the aft boiler room just after Böhme had managed to open the jammed door to his cabin and was on his way to the quarterdeck. Böhme was thrown overboard by the explosion. He was wearing a life jacket and this saved his life. German and Norwegian sources report that two torpedoes hit Anton Schmitt amidships and that the destroyer broke in two and sank almost immediately.

Hermann Künne had managed to back away from Jan Wellem and it was located less than 50 meters from Anton Schmitt when the latter received the second torpedo hit. The tremendous explosion sent shock waves through Hermann Künne and temporarily made its engines inoperable. As the forward part of Anton