Taranto 1940: 'A Glorious Episode'

A. J. Smithers

Nov 1995 · Pen and Sword

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In the long history of the British Isles few years can stand in comparison with 1940 in terms of unrivalled gloom. The fiasco in Norway, the evacuation of the BEF from Dunkirk, the fall of France and the entry of Italy into the war were hardly offset by the success of the Royal Air Force in the Battle of Britain and the failure of the Italian troops in their attempted invasion of Egypt. Near the end of the year, however, there occurred an event which is remarkable not only for its dramatic effect on the course of the war but for the fact that it has virtually disappeared from public memory. This was the sinking of the better part of the Italian Fleet in Taranto harbour which, at one stroke, gave the Royal Navy control of the Eastern Mediterranean, somewhat ironically referred to by the Italians as Mare Nostrum. Perhaps even more remarkable, as A.J. Smithers describes in this book, enlivened as always and as critics have frequently remarked, by his mordant wit and extraordinary breadth of knowledge, was the means by which this feat was achieved In November, 1940, the areal torpedo was in its infancy, while its carrier, the Swordfish, known as the 'Stringbag', looked more like something left over from the previous war. But, flying at night and against all the odds, the pilots and observed achieved their objective and with one mighty stroke totally altered the balance of maritime power in the Mediterranean, at last for the foreseeable future.

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The Author : A.J. Smithers was born in 1919 and educated at Dover College. He served with the 4th Buffs (TA) in which he was commisioned in 1937 and later with the B.E.F. in France. Subsequently he served in West Africa, India, and Burma and at the end of the war was with H.Q.21 Army Group (D.A.A.G War Crimes) from 1945–1946. He left the army in 1946 and took up the study of Military History. Among his published works are The Man Who Disobeyed, Sir John Monash, a life if Dornford Yates and The Kaffir Wars.