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«Outros que devem tanto a tão poucos»: os submarinos esquecidos: a Marinha Inglesa no Mediterrâneo: 1940 – 1943
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Entre 1624, quando o primeiro submersível desenhado pelo holandês Cornelius
Van Drebbel se aventurou no rio Tamisa, e o início da Segunda Guerra Mundial passaram
mais de três séculos. Desde então, os submarinos evoluíram em inúmeros aspetos
tecnológicos e construtivos, desde a propulsão diesel-elétrica ao casco duplo, do
desenvolvimento do periscópio, tubos de torpedos, sistemas de deteção e comunicação
até outras tecnologias, o que os tornou uma das armas mais temidas da atualidade. Este
vaso de guerra teve um papel decisivo, ainda que pouco conhecido, nas batalhas pelo
controlo do Mediterrâneo durante a segunda guerra mundial.
A ambição de Mussolini de expandir o seu império em África, conduziu a mais
de três anos de conflito entre as forças Aliadas e as do Eixo. Na África Oriental, após
vitórias breves os italianos acabaram por perder os seus territórios da Eritreia, Somália e
Abissínia para os ingleses. No Norte de África, as batalhas tiveram lugar nos desertos da
Líbia e do Egipto, e mais tarde nas costas de Marrocos, Argélia e Tunísia, onde quase
tudo tinha que ser importado por via marítima. Era por isso crítico garantir a segurança
das vias navais, pois quem dominasse o mar teria a capacidade de proporcionar os meios
para obter a vitória em terra.
No Mediterrâneo, desde o ataque à frota francesa em Mers-el-Kebir ao audacioso
raid aeronaval a Taranto realizado pela Royal Navy, até ao cerco à colónia inglesa de
Malta e às missões dos mergulhadores da Regia Marina nos portos de Alexandria e
Gibraltar, ambos os lados tentaram condicionar a capacidade militar e logística dos
opositores. Foi mais eficaz a Royal Navy nos anos que durou o conflito, e ainda que o
pêndulo da vitória tenha oscilado para um lado e para o outro, uma parte relevante dessa
vitória deveu-se à atuação da flotilha de submarinos.
Os submarinos ingleses apesar de alguma obsolescência, mas cuja fiabilidade
prevaleceu em detrimento da inovação, destacaram-se nas suas missões no Mediterrâneo.
Entre junho de 1940 e maio de 1943, afundaram um quarto dos navios mercantes, ou
quarenta por cento do total da tonelagem afundada pelos aliados. Também recolheram e
transportaram feridos, participaram em operações secretas e abasteceram Malta através
da missão tapete mágico, o que permitiu a sobrevivência e recuperação da ilha enquanto
base naval e aérea. Através deste papel múltiplo os submarinos foram decisivos no assegurar do triunfo aliado. Contudo a vitória não foi conseguida sem custo, pois dos cem
submarinos ingleses que operaram no Mediterrâneo até final de 1943, quarenta e quatro
foram afundados com a perda de mil novecentas e vinte e duas vidas, um rácio de oitenta
e quatro por cento de fatalidades, que foi uma das mais altas do conflito.
Between the year 1624, when the first submersible device designed by the dutchman Cornelius Van Drebbel dived into the Thames River, and the beginning of World War II more than three centuries have passed. During this period countless of changes were made in Submarine design and construction. From diesel-electric thrust to double welded hulls, periscopes, torpedo tubes, detection and communication systems and other innovations, led to the development of one of the most feared weapons nowadays. These vessels played a critical role, although a less noticeable one, in the battles that were fought for the control of the Mediterranean Sea during world war II. Mussolini’s ambition to expand its African empire led to a three-year conflict between Allied forces and the Axis armies. In eastern Africa, the Italians, after brief victories, end up losing Eritrea, Abyssinia, and Somalia to the British. In northern Africa the battles took place in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts and later, on the coasts of Morocco, Algeria, and Tunis. These were places where everything had to be imported by ship. That’s why it was so critical to assure the security of the naval lanes, for who did control the sea would have the ability to lead the advance and victory ashore. In the Mediterranean, from the attack on the French fleet in Mers-el-Kebir to the daring airborne strike on the Italian base of Taranto by the Royal Navy, to the siege of Malta and the frogmen missions on the Alexandria and Gibraltar harbours by the Regia Marina, both sides tried to cripple the enemy’s military and logistic capability. Throughout the three years of conflict the Royal Navy was more effective, even though the balance of power swinged frequently from one side to the other, victory came after a long and bloody war, and the submarine flotillas played a distinctive role in it. British submarines, although by some means outdated, have favoured reliability instead of innovation, but did excel in their missions in the Mediterranean. Between June 1940 and May 1943, they destroyed a quarter of the Italian merchant ships, or forty percent of all the tonnage sunk by allied forces. They recoiled wounded men from Malta, and supplied it through the Magic Carpet mission, which allowed the survival and its recovery as a naval and aerial base and carried undercover ops. Through these multiple tasks, British submarines played a decisive role in the allied victory, but success didn’t come without sacrifice, until the end of 1943 forty-four out of one hundred British submarines were sunk, with one thousand nine hundred twenty-two men losing their lives in the line of duty, an eighty-four per cent casualty ratio, one of the highest of the conflict.
Between the year 1624, when the first submersible device designed by the dutchman Cornelius Van Drebbel dived into the Thames River, and the beginning of World War II more than three centuries have passed. During this period countless of changes were made in Submarine design and construction. From diesel-electric thrust to double welded hulls, periscopes, torpedo tubes, detection and communication systems and other innovations, led to the development of one of the most feared weapons nowadays. These vessels played a critical role, although a less noticeable one, in the battles that were fought for the control of the Mediterranean Sea during world war II. Mussolini’s ambition to expand its African empire led to a three-year conflict between Allied forces and the Axis armies. In eastern Africa, the Italians, after brief victories, end up losing Eritrea, Abyssinia, and Somalia to the British. In northern Africa the battles took place in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts and later, on the coasts of Morocco, Algeria, and Tunis. These were places where everything had to be imported by ship. That’s why it was so critical to assure the security of the naval lanes, for who did control the sea would have the ability to lead the advance and victory ashore. In the Mediterranean, from the attack on the French fleet in Mers-el-Kebir to the daring airborne strike on the Italian base of Taranto by the Royal Navy, to the siege of Malta and the frogmen missions on the Alexandria and Gibraltar harbours by the Regia Marina, both sides tried to cripple the enemy’s military and logistic capability. Throughout the three years of conflict the Royal Navy was more effective, even though the balance of power swinged frequently from one side to the other, victory came after a long and bloody war, and the submarine flotillas played a distinctive role in it. British submarines, although by some means outdated, have favoured reliability instead of innovation, but did excel in their missions in the Mediterranean. Between June 1940 and May 1943, they destroyed a quarter of the Italian merchant ships, or forty percent of all the tonnage sunk by allied forces. They recoiled wounded men from Malta, and supplied it through the Magic Carpet mission, which allowed the survival and its recovery as a naval and aerial base and carried undercover ops. Through these multiple tasks, British submarines played a decisive role in the allied victory, but success didn’t come without sacrifice, until the end of 1943 forty-four out of one hundred British submarines were sunk, with one thousand nine hundred twenty-two men losing their lives in the line of duty, an eighty-four per cent casualty ratio, one of the highest of the conflict.
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Palavras-chave
História militar - Europa - 1940-1943 Guerra Mundial (1939-1945) - Operações submarinas inglesas - Mar Mediterrâneo Submarinos - Mar Mediterrâneo - 1940-1943 Teses de mestrado - 2022