On 18 August 1915, HM Submarine E13 ran aground on the island of Saltholm off Denmark. She and another submarine were attempting to penetrate the Skagerrak to enter the Baltic in support of the Russian Navy. As the stricken submarine was in Danish and neutral waters, the Danes gave the commanding officer twenty-four hours to clear Danish waters or face internment. Notwithstanding Denmark's neutrality, before the end of the twenty-four-hour deadline, German navy ships attacked the submarine with gunfire and torpedoes, causing many casualties before the Danish Navy interceded. By then the submarine was a wreck and could not be floated off. The fourteen dead were returned to Britain for burial and the survivors interned for the rest of the war. The submarine was sold by the Danes for scrap in 1919.
Although HMS E13 was unfortunate, other submarines were able to penetrate the narrow and shallow waters between Denmark and Sweden to form the Royal Navy's Baltic Submarine Flotilla under the command of Francis Cromie. Their primary purpose was to stop the German's import of Swedish iron ore. This was done within a week of Cromie's arrival and the flotilla went on to support the Russian Navy with distinction for the following two years. However, the Russian Revolutions brought Russian Navy activities to a standstill and Cromie had to take command of the Russian submarines. There is much more to the tale of Cromie and the forgotten Baltic Submarine Flotilla and it can be found in my thrilling five-star-rated novel, Where the Baltic Ice is Thin.
Comments