Raid on Constanța

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Raid on Constanța
Part of the Black Sea Campaigns of the Eastern Front of World War II
Romanian scout cruiser Mărăști at sea.jpg
Romanian flotilla leader Mărăști
Date26 June 1941
LocationConstanța, Romania
Result Axis victory
Belligerents
Kingdom of Romania Romania
 Germany
 Soviet Union
Commanders and leaders
Horia Macellariu Soviet Union Filipp Oktyabrskiy
Strength
2 destroyers
1 minelayer destroyer escort
2 motor torpedo boats
1 anti-aircraft battery
1 coastal battery
1 cruiser
2 destroyer leaders
2 destroyers
Unknown number of bomber aircraft
Casualties and losses
Port facilities damaged 1 cruiser damaged
1 destroyer sunk
1 destroyer damaged
9 bombers destroyed
268+ killed
69 captured

The Raid on Constanța was an attack by the Soviet Black Sea Fleet on the Romanian port of Constanța on 26 June 1941, resulting in the only encounter between major warships in the Black Sea during World War II.

Background[edit]

Romanian minelayer Amiral Murgescu

After Romania joined the Tripartite Pact in November 1940, the Germans agreed to construct coastal artillery batteries to bolster obsolete Romanian coastal defences, including the Tirpitz battery south of Constanța, armed with three World War I-era 28 cm (11 in) SK L/45 guns. The battery was operated by 700 Kriegsmarine personnel,[1] although it was nominally under Romanian control like all Axis forces in Romania.[2]

Forewarned by Adolf Hitler about the scheduled date for German invasion of the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941,[3] the Romanian minelayers Amiral Murgescu, Regele Carol I and Aurora laid 1,000 mines between Cape Midia and Tuzla to protect Constanța between 16 and 19 June.[4]

On 22 June, as part of Operation Barbarossa, Romania launched attacks against Soviet airfields in Bessarabia, destroying 52 Soviet aircraft on the ground. A retaliatory Soviet bombing raid on Constanța, probably in an attempt to damage the port, was repelled by the Romanian Air Force.[5] The Romanian pilot Horia Agarici was credited with shooting down three Tupolev SB bombers down during the Soviet bombing raid, and was celebrated as a national hero in a propaganda song.[6] With the failure of the initial air attacks, Vice Admiral Filipp Oktyabrsky decided to launch a combined aerial and naval attack on Constanța and a seaborne assault on the Danube Delta.[5]

Bombardment[edit]

Two Leningrad-class destroyer leaders, Moskva and Kharkov, covered by the cruiser Voroshilov,[7][8][9] and the destroyers Soobrazitelnyy and Smyshlennyy,[10] were organized into a task force for the attack. The latter destroyer, however, ran aground en route and had to return to port.[11] The Soviets also had the battleship Pariskaya Komuna kept 100 miles (160 km) offshore to exploit any initial success, and surviving Soviet bombers also joined in the attack.[5]

The Voroshilov task force approached and shelled Constanța in the early hours of 26 June 1941, setting ablaze some fuel tanks and warehouses,[5] and damaging port infrastructure.[7] The Romanians were expecting a Soviet raid and their defences, consisting of the destroyer Regina Maria, the flotilla leader Mărăști and the German coastal battery Tirpitz,[7] were prepared to engage the Soviet ships. In ten minutes, starting from 03:58, Moskva and Kharkov fired no less than 350 shells from their 130 mm (5.1 in) guns. The two Romanian warships opened fire with their 120 mm (4.7 in) guns from a distance of 14 miles (22 km) at 04:12, and at 04:20, Kharkov was hit. The Tirpitz battery also opened fire at 04:22. Moskva was also damaged by the Romanian warships, her mainmast being brought down by a 120 mm shell while Kharkov was further damaged by Tirpitz.[12][13] The surprised Soviets began to withdraw, but sailed into a Romanian minefield. Moskva struck a mine and sank, with 268 sailors killed and 69 survivors captured by Romanians.[9][14] According to most sources, she was sunk by Romanian mines,[8] although shells from Regina Maria and the Tirpitz coastal battery[15] or an unintentional friendly fire torpedo attack by Soviet submarine Shch-206 have also been suggested as causes.[16] Voroshilov was also damaged by a mine that exploded when Soobrazitel'ny's paravanes triggered it.[17] The Romanian motor torpedo boats Viforul and Vijelia also tried to attack Kharkov, but were driven off by the rest of the Voroshilov task force.[12] The Soviets also lost nine Tupolev SB bombers to anti-aircraft fire during the battle,[5][8][9][12] two of them claimed by Amiral Murgescu and one by Mărăşti.[7][12] The remaining six aircraft were shot down by a Romanian AA battery of 102 mm Ansaldo guns.[18]

Aftermath[edit]

The failure of the raid on Constanța together with the damage suffered by the Black Sea Fleet caused fleet commander-in-chief Admiral Filipp Oktyabrsky to be much more cautious in his use of surface warships.[14] The next engagement between surface units of the Soviet and Romanian navies would only take place on 18 August, during the Siege of Odessa.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Paterson, chapter 5
  2. ^ Kirchubel, p. 41
  3. ^ Rohwer, p. 78
  4. ^ Hervieux, p. 70
  5. ^ a b c d e Trigg, pp. 81–82
  6. ^ "Horia Agarici, "Salvatorul Constanţei", comemorat în oraşul pe care l-a salvat. Eroul a decolat cu aparatul defect şi a doborât trei avioane inamice" (in Romanian). Adevărul. 23 June 2016. Retrieved 26 November 2017.
  7. ^ a b c d Hervieux, pp. 70–71
  8. ^ a b c Forczyk, p. 39
  9. ^ a b c Yakubov & Worth 2008, p. 112
  10. ^ Yakubov & Worth 2009, p. 92
  11. ^ Yakubov & Worth 2008, p. 113
  12. ^ a b c d Nicolae Koslinski, Raymond Stănescu, Marina română in al doilea război mondial: 1941-1942 (in Romanian)
  13. ^ Hervieux, p. 71
  14. ^ a b Forczyk, p. 33
  15. ^ Feri Predescu (26 June 2015). "26 iunie 1941- Primul atac al Flotei Sovietice, respins de Forţele Navale Române. Viceamiralul Petre Zamfir, participant la scufundarea distrugătorului „Moskva"" [June 26th 1941 – The First Attack of the Soviet Navy, repelled by the Romanian Navy. Rear Admiral Peter Zamfir, Participant in the Sinking of the Destroyer "Moskva"]. Evz.ro. Retrieved 11 July 2016. (in Romanian)
  16. ^ Rohwer, p. 83
  17. ^ Rohwer, pp. 82–83, 101
  18. ^ Adrian Storea, Gheorghe Băjenaru, Artileria română în date și imagini (Romanian artillery in data and pictures), p. 110 (in Romanian)

Bibliography[edit]

  • Bernád, Dénes; Karlenko, Dmitriy; Roba, Jean-Louis (2007). From Barbarossa to Odessa: The Luftwaffe and Axis Allies Strike South-East, June-October 1941. Midland. ISBN 978-1-85780-273-3.
  • Forczyk, Robert (2014). Where the Iron Crosses Grow: The Crimea 1941–44. Osprey Publishing. ISBN 978-1-78200-625-1.
  • Hervieux, Pierre (2001). "The Romanian Navy at War, 1941–1945". In Preston, Antony. Warship 2001–2002. London: Conway Maritime Press. pp. 70–88. ISBN 0-85177-901-8.
  • Kirchubel, Robert (2003). Operation Barbarossa 1941 (1): Army Group South. Campaign 129. Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 1-84176-697-6.
  • Paterson, Lawrence (2016). Steel and Ice: The U-boat Battle in the Arctic and Black Sea 1941-45. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-59114-258-4.
  • Rohwer, Jürgen (2005). Chronology of the War at Sea 1939-1945: The Naval History of World War Two (Third Revised ed.). Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-59114-119-2.
  • Trigg, Jonathan (2013). Death on the Don: The Destruction of Germany's Allies on the Eastern Front. The History Press. ISBN 978-0-7509-5189-0.
  • Yakubov, Vladimir & Worth, Richard (2009). "The Soviet Light Cruisers of the Kirov Class". In Jordan, John. Warship 2009. London: Conway. pp. 82–95. ISBN 978-1-84486-089-0.
  • Yakubov, Vladimir & Worth, Richard (2008). "The Soviet Project 7/7U Destroyers". In Jordan, John & Dent, Stephen. Warship 2008. London: Conway. pp. 99–114. ISBN 978-1-84486-062-3.

External links[edit]