In his official Dispatches, Admiral Fraser stated that 'no ship saw the enemy sink' but, regardless of this, he proceeded to record an official position for that sinking.Īlmost 60 years later, a Norwegian underwater survey vessel searched the 25 square kilometres of the seabed surrounding that official position. Admiral Fraser signalled: 'Has Scharnhorst sunk?' and a destroyer replied that she has already picked up survivors.įraser then signalled Home Fleet Headquarters ' Scharnhorst sunk'. The Scharnhorst had disappeared when HMS Belfast attempted to deliver its second torpedo attack. The commander of Scharnhorst broadcast to his crew that 'I shake you all by the hand for the last time'. A total of 55 torpedoes are fired at Scharnhorst, and 11 found their target. The destroyer HMS Saumarez was hit, and 11 British seamen were killed outright. On board HMS Duke of York, Admiral Fraser ceased firing, and ordered his combined forces to attack with torpedoes. However, her escape bid was foiled when one of her boiler rooms took a direct hit, slowing her dramatically. One of those destroyers was the Royal Norwegian Navy's destroyer Stord. The hammer was Force Two - the battleship Duke of York, the cruiser Jamaica, and four destroyers, which were approaching from the west. Shadowing the westbound convoy, and forming the anvil for the attack, was Force One - the cruisers, Belfast, Norfolk and Sheffield. The Scharnhorst set sail, unaware that she was being lured into a carefully constructed Royal Navy trap with two convoys providing the bait. On Christmas Day, Doenitz signalled Scharnhorst: 'The enemy is attempting to aggravate the difficulties of our eastern land forces in their heroic struggle by sending an important convoy of provisions and arms to the Russians. 'Lucky', that is, until she was sunk by HMS Duke of York. With her flared "clipper" bow and an extraordinary top speed of 33 knots, she had been described as one of the most beautiful warships ever built. 'Lucky' Scharnhorst, as she was known in Germany, was a focus for national pride.
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