Chapter 27 Volume 1, Chapter 23, Major Tasks of the Admiralty

Only Naval War Admiralty's Operational Plan Submarine Raids Trawlers Equipped with Submarine Detectors Regulatory Escort Regime Blockade of Merchant Ships I Presided over the Minutes of the First Meeting The Need for Southern Irish Ports Base Fleet Security Insufficient Measures Hide and Seek My Visit Memories of Scapa Flow in U Bay Sinking of Bravery Cruiser Policy First month of submarine warfare paid off September Wider naval operations Polish Navy vigor Letter from President Roosevelt. After Hitler's violent attack on Poland and Britain and France declaring war on Germany, there followed a long, dreary interlude.This has surprised people all over the world.Mr. Chamberlain, in a private letter published by his biographer, referred to this period as the Obscure War. 【１】

[1] Fayling, op. cit., p. 424. I think this term is very appropriate and expressive, so I use it as the title of the second part of this book.French troops did not attack Germany.Their mobilization was complete, and they remained in touch across the front, but did not move.The Germans took no aerial action against Britain other than aerial reconnaissance; meanwhile, there were no air strikes against France.The French government has asked us to refrain from air strikes on Germany for the time being, thinking that this would provoke German reprisals on their undefended munitions factories. We just airdropped pamphlets, hoping to evoke the Germans' higher moral values.This bizarre situation of war on land and in the air has amazed people.France and England remained inactive, while within a few weeks the full force of the German war machine had destroyed or conquered Poland.Hitler certainly had no reason to be dissatisfied with this situation.

On the other hand, the fighting at sea was furious from the very beginning of the war, so that the Admiralty became the liveliest center of events.On September 3rd, all our ships were still sailing around the world, carrying out their normal business.Suddenly, they were attacked by well-placed German submarines, especially at the entrance to the sea to the west of Britain.At 9 o'clock that night, the 13,500-ton passenger ship Athena bound for foreign countries was hit by a torpedo and sank. 120 people were killed, 28 of whom were American citizens.The atrocity spread throughout the world within hours.In order to avoid any misunderstanding on the part of the United States, the German government immediately issued a statement that I had personally ordered a bomb to be placed on the ship in order to destroy the passenger liner and damage the relations between Germany and the United States.On the unfriendly side, some people believe this lie. 【１】

[1] See "Nuremberg Documents", Part IV, page 267 and following confession of the submarine captain. On September 5th and 6th, the Bosnia, the Huanghu, and the Leo Claro were sunk off the coast of Spain. All of these are important ships. My first abridgement to the Admiralty concerns the likely magnitude of the submarine threat in the immediate future: Chief of Naval Intelligence: September 4, 1939 Please give me a report on the strength of German submarines available and to be built in the next few months.Please distinguish between ocean-going and small submarines.Estimate the number of days and miles of endurance for each type of submarine.

I was immediately informed that the enemy had a total of sixty submarines and that by early 1940 there could be a hundred.On the fifth day they gave a more detailed answer, which should be studied. There are so many submarines with long-distance endurance capability, it can be seen that the enemy really intends to make their submarines start activities in extremely distant oceans as soon as possible. The Admiralty has extremely careful plans for increasing the number of our anti-submarine ships.In particular, preparations have been made to requisition eighty-six of the largest and fastest trawlers and equip them with submarine detectors; the refitting of the trawlers has reached a considerable stage.The wartime shipbuilding plan for the construction of destroyers, cruisers, and many auxiliary ships has also been drawn up in detail, and has been automatically implemented since the declaration of war.The last war has proved that the escort system has great advantages.For several days the Admiralty regulated the movements of all merchant ships.The captain is required to obey orders regarding the course and to join the convoy.But as our escorts were few in number, the Admiralty was obliged to adopt a policy of evasive navigation on the seas, and, at first, to confine its escorts to British ships, until the enemy engaged in unrestricted submarine warfare[1]. Along the eastern coast, but the sinking of the Athena overturned these plans. Since then, we have also adopted escort methods in the North Atlantic.

The organization of the convoy had been fully prepared, and the owners of the ships had been summoned for constant consultation on matters pertaining to their defense.In addition, orders have been given to the captains instructing them in the many unfamiliar situations which must be encountered in time of war, and they are provided with special signals and other equipment to enable them to join convoys.Merchant mariners face an unpredictable future with bold determination.Not content with passive tasks, they demanded arming. The use of artillery by merchant ships for self-defense has always been considered legal under international law.

The arming of sea-going merchant ships and the training of sailors for self-defense formed an important part of the plans immediately put into effect by the Admiralty.Forcing the submarine to attack under the sea surface instead of attacking with artillery fire on the sea surface not only gives the ship a greater chance of evasion, but also makes the attacking submarine waste its precious torpedoes, often consuming the torpedoes in vain and gaining nothing.Thanks to great foresight, the cannons used against submarines in the last war were preserved, but antiaircraft weapons still felt desperately lacking.It was not until many months later that merchant ships were adequately equipped to defend against air raids, but during this period they suffered heavy losses.From the very beginning we planned to equip 1,000 ships with at least one anti-submarine gun each within three months of the outbreak of war.This purpose has actually been achieved.

In addition to protecting our own shipping, we must drive German commerce from the seas, and prevent all German imports.We strictly enforce our blocking policy.A Department of Economic Warfare has been created with responsibility for directing policy, while the Department of the Navy is responsible for implementation.Enemy shipping, as in 1914, disappeared almost immediately on the high seas.Most of the German ships took refuge in the ports of neutral countries, or scuttled themselves when they were stopped midway. Nevertheless, before the end of 1939, fifteen enemy ships, totaling 75,000 tons, were captured by the Allies and put into use by us.The large German cruise ship Bremen initially hid in the Soviet Union's Murmansk harbor, but was able to return to Germany later on because the British submarine HMS Salmonfish completely followed international law and conventions and let it go. 【１】

[1] The submarine was commanded by Major Bickford.He was specially promoted for his repeated outstanding achievements, but shortly thereafter, he sank with the boat and died in the line of duty. I held the first meeting of the Admiralty on the evening of September 4th.Because of the importance of the issues discussed, before I went to bed in the middle of the night, I wrote down the conclusions of the meeting in my own words for circulation and compliance: September 5, 1939 (1) In the first phase of the war, when Japan remained silent and Italy remained neutral though hesitant, the sea entrance to England from the Atlantic seemed to be the main target of the enemy's attack.

(2) The escort system is being established.The so-called escort system refers specifically to anti-submarine escort.All questions about countering cruisers or heavy warships attacking at sea are beyond the scope of this article. (3) The First Sea Lord is considering sending all destroyers and escort ships available in the Eastern and Mediterranean theaters to the entrance to the sea west of Britain, with the aim of increasing the number of escort ships as far as possible to twelve ships.The ships are to be available for a period of one month until a large number of trawlers equipped with submarine detectors come into service.Reports should be prepared on the likely deliveries of such trawlers in mid-October.At least in the initial deliveries, it's probably best not to wait to get cannons on board and just rely on the use of depth charges.After the pressure is slightly relieved, the issue of gun loading can be reconsidered.

(4) The Secretary of Trade should be able to make a daily report on the inward voyages of all British ships approaching the British Isles.To this end, an additional office and clerical staff can be added, if necessary.A large-scale route chart should be prepared, marking every morning all ships within two days, preferably three days, of the coast of our country. The guidance or management of each ship must be foreseen and stipulated in advance, so that Each ship is dealt with individually, within our capabilities.This measure will be implemented within 24 hours, please make suggestions to supplement and improve in the future.At the same time, it should maintain necessary contact with the Ministry of Trade or other relevant departments and submit a report. (5) To-morrow also the Department of Trade should prepare plans to provide that every captain or owner of a merchant vessel coming from the Atlantic (including the Bay of Biscay) should be visited by a qualified naval officer upon arrival.He shall examine the record of the voyage, including the meandering voyage, in the name of the Secretary-General of Trade.If there is any violation or disobedience to the instructions of the Ministry of the Navy, the personnel of the Ministry of the Navy should point it out; if there is a serious violation of the instructions, they should be punished, and the most serious ones should be dismissed, so as to punish everyone.The Admiralty assumes responsibility, and merchant captains must obey orders.The personnel and rules of the program, as well as the appropriate penalties, should be worked out in detail. (6) At present, it seems best that the merchant shipping route should still be moved from the Mediterranean to the Cape of Good Hope route.However, this does not apply to fleets transporting troops.Any merchant ship, if it can afford it, can of course join the convoy.These convoys, however, should sail only once in a while, that is, not more than once in a month or three weeks, and should not be regarded as protection of the trade, but as part of naval operations. (7) For all the above-mentioned reasons, during this period, that is, during the first six weeks or two months after the war began, all ships except naval operations or voyages to the coast of Egypt were prohibited from entering or leaving the Red Sea. (8) This unpleasant situation will gradually ease after the delivery of the trawler equipped with submarine detectors.Secondly, it depends on the decision of Italy's attitude.We cannot be sure that Italy's indecision will become clear in the next six weeks, although we should press on to press His Majesty's Government to bring about an outcome in our favor as quickly as possible.At the same time, our heavy ships in the Mediterranean should be on the defensive, so that they would no longer need the certain destroyer protection which is necessary for them to approach the Italian coast. (9) With regard to any one of the five (or seven) German heavy warships coming out suddenly to attack, this problem would be a particularly serious incident for the Navy, requiring special planning.The Admiralty was unable to provide escort ships for the Merchant Convoy against serious sea attack.If these attacks happen, the main fleet can only be dispatched to deal with them and conduct naval battles. The main fleet will organize the necessary search fleet to attack the enemy. Before the results are obtained, the merchant ships should stay as far away from the scene as possible. The Secretary of the Admiralty submits the above sections to his naval colleagues for consideration, criticism and correction, and wishes to receive advice as to how to proceed in accordance with the above principles. The organization of convoys of merchant ships to foreign countries was carried out almost immediately.By September 8th three principal routes were open, namely, the seas to the west from Liverpool and the Thames, and the coastal convoy between the Thames and the Forth.Personnel managing convoys at these ports, and many others at home and abroad, are included in the operational plan and have begun to be dispatched.At the same time, all ships sailing to foreign countries in the English Channel and Irish Sea, those not included in the convoy, were ordered to sail to the two ports of Plymouth and Milford, and all separate export voyages were cancelled.Overseas, the specific steps of organizing the return escort team are being accelerated.The earliest of these departed from Freetown on September 14 and from the port of Halifax in Nova Scotia on the 16th.Before the end of the month, normal ocean-going convoys had set sail, with outbound convoys departing from the Thames and Liverpool, and returning convoys departing from Halifax, Gibraltar and Freetown. Our urgent need to feed our island nation and to develop our fighting power is now seriously hindered by the sudden refusal of our use of the ports of Southern Ireland.Our number of destroyers was supposed to be insufficient, and for this reason their endurance was further severely curtailed. First Sea Lord and others September 5, 1939 The heads of relevant departments should prepare a special report on the problems arising from the so-called neutrality of the so-called Irish Free State, to be prepared by the First Sea Lord and Naval Staff to Secretary of the Navy.Various considerations thus arose: (1) What was the opinion of the Intelligence Service on the possibility of Irish dissatisfaction in the ports of West Ireland feeding German submarines?If they could drop bombs on London[1], wouldn't they be fueling German submarines?We must exercise the utmost vigilance. 【1】This is a crime that has nothing to do with the war (2) The increased range of our destroyers due to the inability to use Bellehaven or other anti-submarine strongholds in southern Ireland must be studied, and the advantages to be gained by these facilities should be pointed out. The Admiralty should realize that we may not be able to get a satisfactory result, because the question of Irish neutrality has given rise to a political dispute which has never been encountered before, and the Admiralty is not sure that he will be able to resolve it.However, all circumstances should be presented for consideration. After the establishment of the escort system, the Navy's second major need is to find a safe base for the fleet.On September 5th at ten o'clock in the afternoon I held a long meeting on this subject.This brings back many old memories in me.In the war against Germany, Scapa Flow was a real strategic point from which the British Navy could control the North Sea exit and enforce the blockade.During the last war, our Grand Fleet was not considered sufficiently superior force till the last two years to move south to Rosyth Bay, where it had access to a first-rate shipyard.However, Scapa Flow is clearly in the best position because of its distance from the German air base, and the Admiralty has clearly selected it as the naval base in the operational plan. In the autumn of 1914 a feeling of uneasiness suddenly arose in our Grand Fleet.Everyone has said that the German submarine has followed them into the port. At that time, no one in the Admiralty believed that a submerged submarine could pass through the only complicated and fast-moving channel into Scapa Lake.The current at the mouth of Pentland was very strong, at about eight or ten knots an hour, and was then considered to be a strong hindrance.At that time, there were about a hundred ships forming the large fleet, and in this huge array, a feeling of doubt and fear suddenly spread.On two or three occasions, especially on October 17, 1914, the alarm went out that a submarine had been found in the moorings.So the guns were fired, the destroyers searched the sea, and the entire huge fleet sailed overseas in a hurry and angrily.The final result proved the Admiralty correct.In that war, not a single German submarine was able to overcome the dangers of this channel.Until 1918, right at the end of the war, a German U-boat attempted to break in, only to be destroyed in the desperate attempt.Nevertheless, I have very vivid but unpleasant recollections of the circumstances, and of our best efforts to seal all the entrances and reassure the fleet. Now, in 1939, there are two dangers to be considered: (1) the old danger, the intrusion of submarines; (2) the new danger, the air attack.In meetings, I found that in neither of these areas was further precaution taken to defend against modern attack methods.This surprised me.At the three main entrances, new anti-submarine water fences have been installed, but these are just barbed wire.At the narrow and crooked entrance to the east of Scapa Flow, only the remains of a few blockade ships placed there in the previous war were fortified, and now two or three blockade ships have been added, although the defense has increased. , but the situation remains worrying.Given the size, speed, and horsepower of modern submarines, the previous notion that rough torrents would be sufficient to prevent a submarine from passing through the entrances of these channels is no longer convincing to those responsible.As a result of my second evening meeting at the Admiralty, numerous orders were issued for additional barbed wire installations and ships blocking the entrances. The new danger from the air had been almost entirely ignored in the past.Apart from the protection of the naval oil depot on Hoy and the destroyer moorings by two squadrons of anti-aircraft guns, there was arguably no air defense at Scapa Flow.While the fleet was stationed, there was an airfield near Kirkwall which could be used by naval aircraft, but was not equipped for the RAF's direct participation in the defense; and the radar stations along the coast, although available, were not entirely effective.The plan to base two RAF fighter squadrons at Wick was approved.But this measure cannot be realized before 1940.I demand a plan of immediate action, but our air defenses are so strained, our remedies are so limited, and our vulnerability to air attack, including all of great London, is so great that it would be futile to ask too much .On the other hand, there are now only five or six huge ships that need air protection, and these ships are themselves equipped with powerful air defense equipment.In order to make things go smoothly, the Admiralty was prepared to send two squadrons of naval fighter jets there for protection while the fleet was in Scapa Flow. The most important point seemed to be that the batteries should be completed in the shortest possible time, and that at the same time there was nothing to be done but to continue the hide-and-seek policy which we were forced to adopt in the autumn of 1914.On the west coast of Scotland, there are many moorings surrounded by land. As long as the indicating barbed wire is installed and continuous patrols are made, it is easy to prevent submarine attacks.In the last war we found concealment as an effective security; but even then a plane, probably fueled by traitors, in an aimless flight, prying out of curiosity, used to fill us with terror.The range of the aircraft now exposes the whole of the British Isles to photographic surveillance aircraft at all times, so that there is now no reliable method of concealment from a large-scale submarine or aerial attack.However, the number of ships to be protected is not large, and they can often move back and forth, so we can only happily take this risk until we have no other way. I feel it is my duty to inspect Scapa Flow as soon as possible.I have not seen Commander-in-Chief Sir Forbes since June 1938, when Lord Chatfield accompanied me to visit the Anti-Submarine School in Portland Harbor.I therefore took leave of absence from the daily cabinet meetings, and, with a few entourages, went to Wick on the evening of September 14th.I spent most of the next two days inspecting the port entrance and the fences and barbed wire.I am sure that the equipment is as good as it was in the last war, and that important additions and improvements are being or are being made to them.I stayed with the Commander-in-Chief on HMS Nelson, and discussed with him and his senior officers not only Scapa Flow, but the whole naval problem.The rest of the fleet was hiding in Yo Bay.The Admiral and I went there on the 17th in the Nelson.After we had entered the sea through the portal, I was surprised to find that the huge ship was not escorted by a destroyer.I said: I thought that even a battleship must be escorted by at least two destroyers before it can enter the sea.But the Admiral replied: Of course, that is what we would like; but we do not have enough destroyers to enforce such a rule.There are a lot of patrol boats around, and we won't be able to enter Minch Strait in a few hours. This day, like all other days, is very lovely.Everything is going smooth. In the evening we moored in Yu Bay, where four or five of the great ships of our home fleet were gathered.The narrow mouth into the bay is blocked by several barbed wire fences, and countless patrol boats and sentry ships equipped with submarine detectors and depth charges are shuttling back and forth.With the majestic purple peaks of Scotland towering all around me, my thoughts go back to another September, twenty-five years ago, when I visited Sir John Jellicoe and his captains in this very bay, and found their warships In long lines, anchored in the harbor, just as we are now, at the mercy of unpredictable fate.Most of the captains and admirals at that time were dead or long retired.When I visit ships separately now, the senior officers in charge introduced to me were, long ago, young captains or even warrant officers.Before the last war I had prepared for three years and was thus able to meet and approve most of the senior officers, but now these were new characters and new faces.Nothing had changed in perfect discipline, manners and manners, and the customary naval ceremonies, but the uniform and service were of a very different generation.There are only ships, most of which were built during my tenure, none of which are new.This is really a bizarre experience, as if suddenly returning to the previous life.Of the positions I held so many years ago, I seem to be the only one who has survived to this day.But that is also not true; for the danger also continues.Dangers from below the waves, made more serious with more powerful submarines; dangers from the air, not only to discover your hiding place, but also to make more serious or devastating attacks! On the morning of the 18th I inspected two more warships, and as I had established absolute confidence in the Commander-in-Chief during my visit, I drove from Ewwan to Inverness, where I took the train which awaited us.On the way, we had a picnic next to a sparkling clear stream in the hot sun.A lot of past events are running through my mind, making it difficult to get rid of them. For God's sake, let's sit on the ground, Tells the sad story of the death of kings. No one has ever traveled the same dreadful journey twice during such an interval.No one has ever felt as we do the dangers and responsibilities of being at the top, and at the same time, no one has felt as I have when personal prestige is low and the Admiralty suffers if important ships sink and things go awry. What a treat.If we really have to relive the past, will I have to endure the pain of being dismissed again?Fisher, Wilson, Badenburg, Jellicoe, Betty, Paknam, Sturdy, [1] they are all gone! i feel like like a lonely man, Wandering in the empty banquet hall, The lights have gone out, The garlands have withered, People have dispersed, only he is still there! 【1】All of the above are famous British admirals.translator What is it like to be irrevocably cast again into the greatest and infinite suffering?Poland was in dire straits; France's old warlike zeal was now almost entirely subdued; the Russian colossus was no longer an ally, or even a neutral, but might well become an enemy.Italy is no friend.Japan is not an ally either.Will America join us again?The British Empire, whole and honorably united, was ill-prepared and inadequately equipped for battle.We still command the seas, but we are woefully behind in numbers when it comes to the airplane, the new decisive weapon.The overall outlook seems rather bleak. We caught a train at Inverness, and spent the afternoon and night on our way to London.When we alighted at Euston next morning, I was greatly surprised to see the First Sea Lord on the platform.Admiral Pound looked extremely serious. I have some sad news to tell you, Minister.The Bravery was sunk last night in the Bristol Channel.Intrepid is one of our oldest aircraft carriers, but was a much-needed ship at the time.I thank him for coming to tell me the news himself.I said: In the conduct of such a war, such things are bound to happen from time to time.I've seen a lot of them before.With that, I head back to shower and get ready for another day of hard work. There was a gap of two or three weeks between the outbreak of the war and the completion of our small anti-submarine auxiliary fleet. In order to make up for this shortcoming, we decided to use aircraft carriers more liberally to help escort the large number of unarmed ships approaching our coast at that time. , Unorganized and unescorted ships entering port.This is a risky approach that must be taken.The Bravery, protected by four destroyers, was tasked with such a task.On the evening of the 17th, two of the destroyers went to search for a submarine that was attacking a merchant ship.In the twilight, when the Valiant turned to face the wind so that her plane could land on the deck, she happened to happen to be the same German U-boat in this unforeseen voyage because of the one per cent chance. meet.Of a total of 1,260 sailors, 500 were drowned, including Captain Macaig Jones, who was martyred in the ship.Three days ago, another of our aircraft carriers, which later became the well-known HMS Ark Royal, was attacked by submarines under the same circumstances.Fortunately the torpedoes missed, and the submarine itself was immediately sunk by the destroyers escorting it. Chief among our naval problems is how to deal effectively with the raiders on the surface, which inevitably will appear in the near future, as in 1914. On September 12th I sent the following abridged: Secretary of the Admiralty to First Sea Lord: 12 September 1939 cruiser policy In the past we have attempted to use cruisers to protect our trade from sudden raids; and as the extent of the seas which must be controlled is so great, the principle is that the more cruisers the merrier.Even small cruisers can be useful in searching for enemy raiders or cruisers, and in the case of Emden we had to gather more than twenty warships to capture her.However, if we take a long-term view of cruiser policy, we seem to have a need for a new search fleet.Assuming that a cruiser unit composed of four warships can search the sea for 80 miles, a cruiser escorted by an aircraft carrier can search for 300 miles. If the movement of the ships is included, it should be It can cover four hundred miles.On the other hand, we must understand that future raiders are powerful warships that would be more than willing to fight individual warships if given the opportunity.Just increasing the number of weak small cruisers is by no means the way to eliminate powerful raiders on the sea.In fact, they are at the mercy of enemy ships.Even if the raider ends up surrounded by them, it will destroy one of the weaker cruisers and break out. Every search fleet must have the power to search, capture and destroy enemy ships.For this purpose we need many cruisers superior to the 10,000-ton class, or a combination of two of our own 10,000-ton cruisers.These fleets must be escorted by small aircraft carriers carrying about a dozen or twenty-four aircraft, and their displacement should be as small as possible.An ideal search fleet should consist of one cruiser capable of killing the enemy or two cruisers with insufficient force against the enemy, plus an aircraft carrier, four ocean-going destroyers, plus two or three refined fast tankers.A fleet composed of this formation can prevent submarine attacks when patrolling the sea, can search a vast sea area, and can destroy any raid ships found sailing alone. The policy of organizing the search fleet discussed in this abbreviation, that of creating a balance of power capable of sweeping wide seas and subduing any raider within the search range, has been extended within our power.This issue will be discussed in a later chapter.The task force system adopted by the Americans later expanded this method further, and thus made a significant contribution to naval warfare technology. Towards the end of the month I thought I had better get the House of Commons a fairly complete idea of ​​what had happened and why. Secretary of the Navy to the Prime Minister: September 24, 1939 Shall I give a more detailed report to the House on anti-submarine warfare and the general naval situation than you have given in your speech?I can speak for twenty-five or thirty minutes on this issue.I thought it would be beneficial. In any event, the sixty journalists I interviewed privately that day were obviously very relieved to hear what I could offer.If you think this idea is good, I might as well state it in my speech, and I will report in more detail in a later discussion.I think the report should be presented on Thursday because the budget is scheduled for Wednesday. Mr. Chamberlain readily agreed.He therefore told the House of Commons in his speech on the twenty-sixth that after his speech I would report on the war at sea.This is the first time I have spoken to Parliament other than answering questions since I joined the Cabinet.I report good news.In the first seven days after the declaration of war we lost in tonnage equal to half the tonnage lost in a week in April in 1917, the year when the submarine raids of the last war were at their height.We have made progress in the following areas: first, the introduction of the convoy system; second, the intensification of arming all our merchant ships; and third, a counter-offensive against German U-boats.In the first week, 65,000 tons of ships were sunk by submarines; in the second week, 46,000 tons; and in the third week, 21,000 tons.In the past six days we have lost only nine thousand tons. [1] In my speeches, I have always followed the habit of preferring to play low-key and avoid all optimistic forecasts. This is a lesson taught to me by painful experience in the past.I say: one should not take these reassuring figures too seriously, because war is full of unpleasant surprises.But we can certainly say that, as far as these figures are concerned, we really need not have any undue disappointment or alarm. In addition, neutral and allied ship losses totaled fifteen ships.Thirty-three, five hundred and twenty-seven tons. Meanwhile (I go on), our whole vast trade all over the world continues without hindrance, or notable reduction.A large number of fleets transporting troops arrived at their destination safely under escort.Enemy ships and trade were cleared from the sea.The number of German ships now in hiding in German ports or interned in neutral ports exceeds two million tons. During the first two weeks of the war we actually intercepted, took possession of, and converted to our own use more German merchant ships than in our The loss in his own merchant ships was 67,000 tons more.I would like to remind everyone once again not to draw overly optimistic conclusions.But in fact we did have more domestic supplies this afternoon than we would have had had there been no declaration of war and no submarine activity.In this proportion, we may say without presumptuousness that it will be a long time before we are starved to submission. German submarine captains often went out of their way to behave humanely.We know they have informed us and are trying to get the sailors to port.A German captain himself had wired me the location of the British ship he had just sunk, and asked for a ship to be sent to rescue it.He signed the telegram U-boat.I hesitated at the time as to how to deliver the return call, but he is now in our hands with all the favours. The number of German U-boats sunk in the first fortnight of the war, even at the safest estimate of six or seven,[1] is one-tenth of all U-boats owned by the enemy at the time war was declared, and perhaps是在積極活動中的所有潛艇中的四分之一，甚至三分之一。但英國對於潛艇的攻勢只剛剛開始。我們搜索艦隊的實力正日益強大。到十月底時，我們希望搜索艦隊的實力能達到戰爭開始時的三倍。 【１】我們現在知道，一九三九年九月中，只有兩艘德國潛艇被擊沉。 這次費時僅二十五分鐘的發言，受到了下院的熱烈歡迎。 事實上，它紀錄了德國潛艇最初對我們貿易進行襲擊的失敗。 我所擔憂的是將來，但是我們為一九四一年所作的準備，現在在我們的巨大資源所許可的範圍以內，正按照最大的規模盡快地進行著。 到了九月底，我們對於海戰最初的交鋒的結果，幾乎沒有什麼不滿。我感到我已經勝任愉快地接管了這個我所熟悉的而又偏愛的重要部門。我現在了解海軍部正在進行什麼工作，以及將來會有什麼任務。我知道一切事務的頭緒。我訪問了所有的主要軍港，並會見了所有的總司令。按照創設海軍部的特准狀，海軍大臣就海軍部的一切事務對英皇和議會負責。我確實感到自己應該準備不但在形式上，而且在事實上履行這種責任。 大體上說，九月分對於海軍是順利而又有收穫的。我們完成了由和平時期轉入戰時的這個重大的、微妙的和危險的過渡階段。一個遍及世界的貿易，突然受到違背正式國際協定的無限制潛艇戰的打擊，在最初幾個星期中是沒有辦法不受損失的；但護航制度現在已順利進行，幾十艘商船每天離開港口，各自在船尾上安裝一門大炮，有時使炮位適於高角射擊，同時，派有少數有訓練的炮手。裝備著潛艇探測器的拖網船和帶有深水炸彈的其他小艇，都由海軍部在戰爭爆發前已經妥為準備。他們現在參加服役的數量每天也不斷增加，並都有經過訓練的水手。我們都確信潛艇對於英國貿易的第一次攻勢，已經被粉碎，而其威脅亦受到了徹底的和堅強的控制。顯然，德國將大量建造潛艇，其數目當以百計，而且，毫無疑問，無數的潛艇也正在造船架上，在各種不同的完成階段中。我們預料，在十二個月或最多在十八個月中，主要的潛艇戰必然會發生。但到那時候，我們希望我們優先製造的大批新的小艦隊和反潛艇船隻，當能準備就緒，以相稱的和有效的優勢給潛艇以迎頭痛擊。不幸的是高射炮，特別是三‧七吋口徑的和雙筒自動式的，仍感非常的缺乏，只能在幾個月後才能改善；但在我們資源所能及的限度內，我們已採取了種種措施，以保衛我們的海軍軍港；同時，我們的艦隊雖然能夠控制海洋，但仍然必須繼續採取捉迷藏辦法。 就更廣泛的海軍作戰而論，敵人對於我們的地位還沒有做斷然的挑戰。在地中海的交通經過短期的中斷後，我們的船隻不久重新通過這個寶貴的走廊來往。同時，輸送遠征軍前往法國的工作亦順利進行著。在北方某處的本土艦隊本身，隨時準備阻截敵人少數重型軍艦的突擊。對德國實行封鎖的方法，與上次大戰中所採取的方法相類似。北方的巡邏線設在蘇格蘭和冰島之間，到第一月結束時，運往德國的貨物被截獲的，共計將近三十萬噸，而我們在海上因敵人的行動而損失的有十四萬噸。在海外，我們的巡洋艦正在搜捕德國船隻，同時保護我們的船隻，使它們不受襲擊艦的襲擊。因此德國的航運完全停頓。到九月底，德國停留在外國港口內不能活動的船隻，達到三百二十五艘，將近七十五萬噸。因此，落到我們手中的實在不多。 我們的盟國亦有貢獻。在控制地中海方面，法國負擔了一部分重要的工作。在本國領海和比斯開灣中，它們也幫助我們進行反潛艇戰。而在中大西洋，以達喀爾作為基地的一支強大的海軍力量，成為盟國對付海上襲擊艦的計劃中的一部分。 年輕的波蘭海軍大顯身手。在戰爭的初期，三艘新式的驅逐艦和兩艘潛艇威爾克號和奧澤爾號由波蘭逃出，抗拒了德國在波羅的海的海軍，終於到達了英國。潛艇奧澤爾號的逃亡真是一首史詩。它在德國侵入波蘭時由格丁尼亞港出發，最初在波羅的海駛行，九月十五日進入中立港口塔林，把患病的艇長送到岸上。愛沙尼亞當局決定把潛艇扣留，派了一個衛兵守在艇上，並拿走了它的航海圖和大炮的尾栓。但它的指揮官毫不沮喪，在制服了看守的衛兵以後，把潛艇駛出港口。在以後的幾個星期中這條潛艇繼續受著海面和空中巡邏隊的追捕，但是即便沒有航海圖的幫助，最後仍由波羅的海逃入北海。在北海中，它以微弱的無線電訊，將其假定的位置通知了英國的電台，在十月十四日，它被一艘英國驅逐艦找到，並護送到達安全地帶。 在九月中，我收到了羅斯福總統的一封私人信件，感到很高興。我在上次大戰中，同他僅有一面之緣。那是在格雷飯店的一次晚宴上。他年富力強，儀表堂堂，給我的印象頗深，但當時沒有機會攀談，僅略一招呼而已。 羅斯福總統致邱吉爾先生。一九三九年九月十一日因為你和我在上次世界大戰中擔任類似的職位，所以我要你知道，你重返海軍部，我是多麼愉快。我深知你的問題由於新的因素而變得更加複雜，但本質卻沒有多大的差別。我希望你和首相了解，如果你們有什麼事要告訴我，我隨時歡迎你們直接和我聯繫。你可以經常把封好的信，通過你們的外交郵袋或我的外交郵袋寄給我。 你在當前這些事情發生以前能將《馬爾巴羅傳》全書完成，使我感到愉快這書我已閱讀過，深感津津有味。 我迅速地給了他回信，信末署名海軍人員。這樣，我們便開始長期而值得紀念的通信雙方都有近一千封之多，直到五年多以後他去世時為止。