Battle of the Caribbean: Difference between revisions
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==Axis operations== |
==Axis operations== |
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===Attack on Aruba=== |
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A German submarine shelled a [[Standard Oil]] refinery Dutch-owned [[Aruba]] and ships that were near the entrance to [[Lake Maracaibo]] on February 16, 1942. Three [[Tanker (ship)|tankers]], including the Venezuelan ''Monagas'', were sunk. A Venezuelan gunboat, {{Ship|Venezuelan gunboat|General Urbaneta||2}}, assisted in rescuing the crews.<ref>{{Citation |
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German and Italian submarines under [[Commander]] [[Werner Hartenstein]] launched a coordinated strike against the [[Standard Oil]] refinery on Dutch-owned [[Aruba]] and Allied [[oil tanker]]s in the area on February 16, 1942. Four tankers were sunk and others were damaged. A Venezuelan [[gunboat]], {{Ship|Venezuelan gunboat|General Urbaneta||2}}, assisted in rescuing the crews of several torpedoed vessels. An American [[A-10 Havoc]] [[light bomber]] skirmished with one of the German U-boats but was unsuccessful in defeating it. <ref>{{Citation |
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|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,884455,00.html |
|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,884455,00.html |
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|title=Shells at Aruba |
|title=Shells at Aruba |
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|isbn=0870212958 |
|isbn=0870212958 |
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|oclc=15696006}}</ref> |
|oclc=15696006}}</ref> |
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===Other Operations=== |
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An oil refinery on [[Curaçao]] was [[Bombardment of Curacao|shelled]] on April 19th, 1942 by [[German submarine U-130|''U-130'']] under [[Captain at Sea|Captain]] [[Ernst Kals]]. The small engagement ended in a German failure. Kals ordered the bombing of several petroleum storage tanks but after only five shots, a Dutch shore battery responded which forced him to abort. Later a German U-boat attacked a merchantship off Curacao and was engaged by Dutch anti-aircraft and naval gun batteries but again the submarine escaped harm.<ref>[http://www.lago-colony.com/AMERICANS_IN_ARUBA/COAST%20ARTILLERY%20COMMAND.htm The United States Coast Artillery Command on Aruba and Curaçao in World War II] ''The Coast Defense Study Group Journal, Volume 11, Issue 2''.</ref> |
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===Attacks on Allied Shipping=== |
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| ⚫ | On September 11th, 1942 German U-Boat [[German submarine U-514|''U-514'']], under Kapitänleutnant Hans-Jürgen Auffermann, torpedoed the Canadian steam merchant {{SS|Cornwallis}} off the coastline of [[Bridgetown]]. The ship sank in shallow waters, but was raised and towed to [[Trinidad]] in December 1942 and later towed to [[Mobile, Alabama|Mobile]], arriving on 24 January 1943. The ship was repaired and returned to service in August 1943, but was torpedoed a second time, this time by [[German submarine U-1230|''U-1230'']] on 3 December 1944 in the [[Gulf of Maine]], and sank.<ref name=untold>{{cite book |authorlink=Humphrey Metzgen |coauthors= |title=Caribbean wars untold |year=2007 |publisher=[[University of West Indies Press]] |quote= | url=http://books.google.com/books?id=a59YIzh9y18C&pg=PA160&lpg=PA160&dq=SS+Cornwallis+World+War+II&source=bl&ots=bQMGxCPs45&sig=BbnhFaN-XWbZ0H_f2S4iLmNsYVg&hl=en&ei=fx5RSvDWM5DIMK_1xPUP&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1 |isbn=9766402035 }}</ref><ref>[http://www.uboat.net/allies/merchants/ships/3382.html Cornwallis (Steam merchant)]</ref><ref>{{cite book |authorlink=Gaylord T. M. Kelshall |title=The U-boat war in the Caribbean |year=1994 |publisher=Naval Institute Press | url=http://books.google.com/books?id=5FVTihRxCo4C&printsec=frontcover&hl=en&source=gbs_navlinks_s#v=onepage&q=&f=false |isbn=1557504520 }}</ref> |
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| ⚫ | German U-boats sank two Mexican tankers, ''[[Potrero del Llano]]'' on 14 May 1942 by [[Reinhard Suhren]]'s [[German submarine U-564|''U-564'']] off Florida, and ''[[Faja de Oro]]'' on 21 May 1942 by [[Hermann Rasch]]'s [[German submarine U-106 (1940)|''U-106'']] off [[Key West]]. This prompted Mexico to declare war on Germany on 1 June 1942. |
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An oil refinery on [[Curaçao]] was shelled on 19 April.<ref>[http://www.lago-colony.com/AMERICANS_IN_ARUBA/COAST%20ARTILLERY%20COMMAND.htm The United States Coast Artillery Command on Aruba and Curaçao in World War II] ''The Coast Defense Study Group Journal, Volume 11, Issue 2''.</ref> |
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===Sunken U-boats=== |
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| ⚫ | On |
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| ⚫ | German U-boats sank two Mexican tankers, ''[[Potrero del Llano]]'' on 14 May 1942 by [[Reinhard Suhren]]'s [[German submarine U-564|''U-564'']] off Florida, and ''[[Faja de Oro]]'' on 21 May 1942 by [[Hermann Rasch]]'s [[German submarine U-106 (1940)|''U-106'']] off [[Key West]]. This prompted Mexico to declare war on Germany on 1 June 1942. |
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==References== |
==References== |
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Revision as of 03:10, 12 July 2010
| Battle of the Caribbean | |||||||
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| Part of Battle of the Atlantic | |||||||
 The Antilles, Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico. | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 Royal Navy.svg){kind=small} United States Navy Royal Canadian Navy Cuba  Netherlands |
 Kriegsmarine Marina Militare | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
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Sir Percy Noble Sir Max K. Horton Ernest J. King |
Erich Raeder Karl Dönitz | ||||||
The Battle of the Caribbean was fought during World War II, from 1939 until 1945. German U-boats and Italian submarines attempted to disrupt the Allied supply of oil and other material. They sank shipping in the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico. They also attacked coastal targets in the Antilles. Improved Allied anti-submarine warfare eventually drove the Axis submarines out of the Caribbean region, resulting in an Allied victory.
Axis operations
Attack on Aruba
German and Italian submarines under Commander Werner Hartenstein launched a coordinated strike against the Standard Oil refinery on Dutch-owned Aruba and Allied oil tankers in the area on February 16, 1942. Four tankers were sunk and others were damaged. A Venezuelan gunboat, General Urbaneta, assisted in rescuing the crews of several torpedoed vessels. An American A-10 Havoc light bomber skirmished with one of the German U-boats but was unsuccessful in defeating it. [1][2]
Other Operations
A German submarine shelled the island of Mona, some 40 miles from Puerto Rico, on March 3rd, 1942. No damage or casualties resulted.[3]
An oil refinery on Curaçao was shelled on April 19th, 1942 by U-130 under Captain Ernst Kals. The small engagement ended in a German failure. Kals ordered the bombing of several petroleum storage tanks but after only five shots, a Dutch shore battery responded which forced him to abort. Later a German U-boat attacked a merchantship off Curacao and was engaged by Dutch anti-aircraft and naval gun batteries but again the submarine escaped harm.[4]
Attacks on Allied Shipping
On September 11th, 1942 German U-Boat U-514, under Kapitänleutnant Hans-Jürgen Auffermann, torpedoed the Canadian steam merchant SS Cornwallis off the coastline of Bridgetown. The ship sank in shallow waters, but was raised and towed to Trinidad in December 1942 and later towed to Mobile, arriving on 24 January 1943. The ship was repaired and returned to service in August 1943, but was torpedoed a second time, this time by U-1230 on 3 December 1944 in the Gulf of Maine, and sank.[5][6][7]
German U-boats sank two Mexican tankers, Potrero del Llano on 14 May 1942 by Reinhard Suhren's U-564 off Florida, and Faja de Oro on 21 May 1942 by Hermann Rasch's U-106 off Key West. This prompted Mexico to declare war on Germany on 1 June 1942.
Sunken U-boats
References
- ^ Shells at Aruba, Time Magazine, February 23, 1942, retrieved 2007-12-09
- ^ Schenia, Robert L., Latin America: A Naval History 1810–1987, Annapolis, Maryland, United States: Naval Institute Press, ISBN 0870212958, OCLC 15696006
- ^ "Puerto Rican Isle Shelled by Enemy." The New York Times, March 4, 1942.
- ^ The United States Coast Artillery Command on Aruba and Curaçao in World War II The Coast Defense Study Group Journal, Volume 11, Issue 2.
- ^ Caribbean wars untold. University of West Indies Press. 2007. ISBN 9766402035.
{{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ Cornwallis (Steam merchant)
- ^ The U-boat war in the Caribbean. Naval Institute Press. 1994. ISBN 1557504520.
External links
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- World War II battle stubs
- History of Aruba
- U-boats
- History of the Caribbean
- Battles and operations of World War II
- Military history of the Atlantic Ocean
- Naval battles of World War II involving Germany
- Naval battles of World War II involving Canada
- Naval battles of World War II involving the Netherlands
- Naval battles of World War II involving the United Kingdom
- Naval battles of World War II involving the United States