Part XXII: Judgement Day

Undoubtedly, they all looked the part, the Italian uniforms saw to that, but what lay underneath hardly deserved to take up the mantle of their predecessors. To a man they had all been drummed out of either FMSh or the pre-war Gendarmerie as a part of Zog's unrelenting campaign against corruption. Rather than adapt to the Kingdom's ongoing development they had all chosen to retreat into the shadows, occupying themselves with petty thievery or drink, often both. To be fair, in another lifetime, Koçi might have been among their number. Then again, if the war could have been avoided for another year or two some of them would have done what Koçi did years ago: recognized that the old Albania was never coming back.

Unfortunately for the wretches drinking he was drinking with, the coming of the war justified their underlying belief in the temporary nature of Zog's Kingdom. They all likely said the right things and evacuated along with everyone else, but all the while they were waiting for the inevitable foreign victory. Zog's "death" and the fall of Tirana likely sealed the deal and provided an opening for all the cynicism, opportunism, and corruption that had been roiling inside to emerge. Though many of Koçi's true comrades in the LNÇ(2) were rightly furious with Zog for endangering his life and precipitating the mass defection of thousands, Koçi was beginning to think that it was not such a bad thing. If success after success had not changed the underlying attitudes of so many, perhaps the best way to move forward was to excise the corrupt flesh, or at worst amputate the gangrenous limb.

And nothing of value was lost…

Looking around the room once more, the stark difference between his experience with the Gendarmerie and this new Italian-dominated organization struck him all over again. Stirling, Percy, and the rest of the Englishmen had trained them relentlessly and pushed them hard dozens had dropped out or failed, leaving the few graduates understandably proud of their achievement. Despite all the lofty rhetoric to the contrary, these men had nothing of the sort to celebrate. With the overwhelming majority of the prewar Gendarmes now leading çetas in the mountains, the Italians were recruiting everyone with a pulse into their new Albanian Carabinieri formations in a foolish effort to put this entire campaign behind them. If you believed the papers, General Soddu was confident in the new Vërlaci regency's ability to keep the peace and was proclaiming that the Regia Esercito would be able to begin widescale withdrawals by the end of the year, leaving only a token observation/training force behind.

Of course, Koçi had long since learned to not believe everything in the papers, especially the new ones that had cropped up since the fall of Tirana. All the good journalists had all been evacuated to the mountains and were now busy making propaganda for the regime anyways. Still, there was undoubtedly some truth to the claims, the Italians had already diverted far too many troops to Albania and desperately wanted to expand their empire elsewhere. In order to do that, they needed to at least try to recruit some collaborators to at least take some of the pressure off. Still, given what he had seen so far, the new troops would struggle with even those more modest goals. The fact that he had been able to infiltrate the recruiting process so easily had far more to do with the new organization's massive deficiencies rather than the destruction of so many records during the retreat. Outside of the handful of competent figures who were genuine ideological anti-Zogists, the majority were either hopelessly corrupt or working for the resistance like Koçi.

Shame we couldn't get more soldiers here tonight…

Killing thieves and corrupt opportunists had its own kind of satisfaction, but given the ongoing conflict, killing actual soldiers was to be preferred. Still the attack needed to go forward, all around the country similar bombings were slated to take place as a part of the new offensive against collaborators. So far, the resistance had been focusing solely on military targets, a sharpshooter here, a roadside bomb there, an ambushed patrol in another place. They had left the collaborators alone as per orders, perhaps as a way to draw them out of the woodwork like one drew poison from a snakebite. That changed today, and in the grand scheme of things, Koçi doubted that the absence of the true soldiers would matter all that much. There would be plenty more bombings in the coming days.

Slowly, he stood and tried to retain his balance, thankful that he'd been talked out of his initial plan of using a submachine gun to mow them all down. With this much alcohol coursing through his veins, he'd be lucky to not piss all over himself.

"Where are you going Toni?" Private Anxhelo Çela asked from the seat next to him.

"Take a piss…" He slurred.

Part of him wondered if he could get away with enlisting the boy's help him make it out of the building. He seemed like a nice enough kid despite coming from a wretched family. The dad drank himself to death after being kicked out of the old Gendarmerie for running a protection racket and the mother had poisoned Anxhelo by blaming Zog ever since. Given how loyally he'd clung to Koçi's side after he'd stuck up for the boy during a mess hall altercation, Koçi wondered if a simple invitation was all that would be needed to join the resistance. Unfortunately for Anxhelo, it would probably be too suspicious to the rest of them. There may not be as many soldiers as he liked in the crowded bar, but there were still enough to make his life complicated if things didn't go to plan.

Besides, he already was endangering one accomplice. Right on cue the bartender appeared as he "stumbled" into a table and knocked over a few glasses. Placing an arm around Koçi's shoulder, the man helped guide him through the tobacco smoke choking the air and out of the bar's door. When both of them were sure that they were not being followed, Koçi nodded and the man reached down to uncover the switch the resistance had hidden days earlier.

"Cover your ears."

With a nod, the bartender placed one hand over his ear and flicked the switch with the other before throwing himself to the ground like Koçi. Though not deafening, the blast was loud enough to be unpleasant when combined with the heat and the debris from the damaged brick walls. For a brief moment, the entire city seemed to fall silent only for the piercing cries of wounded and dying men to fill the night. Koçi doubted if any of them would make it to the morning. In addition to an old 60mm high explosive shell, they'd hidden nail bombs in each of the corners and wired the whole thing to go off at once. Then there were the boobytraps, which judging from the size of the explosion, hadn't gone off leaving them for the first people to reach the scene.

Italians with any luck… hopefully the people still in this city don't have to learn how to treat collaborators the hard way…

Neither Koçi nor the bartender were going to stick around to find out. The debris was still settling when the two of them donned their disguises and boarded the cart they'd arranged for ahead of time. As long as no one saw them change, they'd appear to the world as just a couple of Jevgs (3) with a cart full of hay for their herds. Hopefully they wouldn't look to closely, nor ask themselves why they were so nervous or forcing their poor mule to haul a load of hay in the middle of the night. Even then, Koçi's drunkenness should be enough to convince most of the veracity of their story as long as they didn't question the bartender who was consumed with trying to not let his nerves show and utterly failing.

Finding an ideologically convinced accomplice in Vlora had been impossible given that most of the pro-Zogist population was still in the hillside villages, but with the navy beginning to resume operations it wasn't too difficult to find an opportunist. With any luck they'd be able to make it to their rendezvous with the Navy caique in the Narta Lagoon (4) so the bartender could meet his family and begin the journey to their new life in Alexandria. It may not have been the life Koçi would have chosen if their roles were reversed, but it was certainly an improvement to living under Italian occupation, especially if you could draw a salary from one of the King's business concerns. Koçi would probably never know as he wouldn't be accompanying them on their long journey south. Instead, the caique would drop him off at Borsh, where he'd hopefully rendezvous with another çeta and report back to HQ, probably for a new assignment around Saranda given the fact his cover had been blown here.

They were a few blocks away when the sound of the boobytraps being triggered reached them. Under normal circumstances the small explosions probably would have been inaudible, drowned out by the walls of the buildings, but with so much of the city still in ruins, both Koçi and the bartender heard them.

"You did what you had to." He said quietly as the faint sounds of more screaming filled the air. "For your family."

The bartender managed a shaky nod.

"For my family..."

Notes

1. Following their invasion in OTL the Italians disbanded the Royal Albanian Gendarmerie and completely incorporated it into the Carabinieri along with uniforms. TTL is no different only the Italians have far fewer collaborators at this point than they did in OTL.

2.Lëvizja Nacional-Çlirimtare or National Liberation Movement

3. A term used to refer to Albania's migratory Romani community.

4. Lagoon north of Vlora.

(Excerpted from Shawn Anthony "World War 2 Day By Day" 2000)

03/07/1940

-ORAN: Admirals James Somerville and Marcel Gensoul reach an agreement to demilitarize the French fleet in situ at Mers-el-Kébir. Under the watchful eyes of British sailors the French sailors ensure that their ships are rendered incapable of resuming combat operations without months of work from a major shipyard. Though the Germans are deeply disappointed with these developments, the Italians are satisfied and agree to oversee the maintenance of the French fleet in its demilitarized state pursuant to the terms of the Franco-Italian Armistice.

-DAKAR: Admiral Onslow negotiates a similar deal with the commander of the incomplete battleship RICHELIEU Rear-Admiral Plançon. Under the watchful eyes of the HMS HERMES' aircraft, work begins immediately.

-UNITED KINGDOM: French vessels in British ports either agree to continue fighting alongside their former allies like the submarine RUBIS or agree to be demilitarized like the battleships PARIS and COURBET as well as the submarine raider SURCOUF. Unlike French ships in Algeria or Senegal, work on the vessels' demilitarization does not begin immediately.

-ALEXANDRIA: Cordial relations between Admirals Cunningham and Godfroy result in a similarly less intrusive demilitarization with no lasting damage done to the ships.(5)

…

05/07/1940

…

-MADAGASCAR: Facing mounting pressure from both pro-Vichy and pro-Gaullist factions to declare one way or the other, Governor Jules Marcel Jules de Coppet makes another broadcast to the people of Madagascar in which he formally joins the fledgling Free French movement. However, he does so only after requesting aid from South Africa in restoring order, a fact which will be later seized upon by Vichy to stoke the latent fears of British aggression known as Fashoda syndrome in the French colonies.

…

07/07/1940

ALBANIA: Italian troops under Colonel Scalatti advance south from their foothold at Shengjin to the nearby city of Lezha where they are engaged by remnants of General Moisiu's garrison. Stationed in the ruins of Lezha castle, Moisiu's men are able to delay Scalatti long enough for the bridges over the River Mat to be blown and thus prevent an attack on Albanian positions around Tirana from the North.

…

-MADAGASCAR: Despite lofty rhetoric from de Coppet, the local reaction to the arrival of the first South African troops is decidedly mixed, particularly from the French military forces stationed on the island.

…

09/07/1940

-MALTA: Two convoys MF1 and MS1 depart Malta for Alexandria carrying civilians and dockworkers. Admiral Cunningham's fears of sizeable Italian resistance prove to be unfounded as the ongoing debacle in Albania has become the center of attention and draws away most of the forces capable of responding to such a move.

10/07/1940

-LONDON: De Gaulle and Churchill sign the "Chequers Agreement" which formally recognizes the Free French Movement's legitimacy and gives it all the financial resources and independence of a government in exile. Immediately upon signing, de Gaulle and several members of his staff set off on a harrowing aerial journey to Madagascar.(6)

…

-TAKORADI: A small Anglo-French advance force arrives under the command of Captain H.K. Thorold to begin preparations for establishing an air-ferry route from Ghana to Egypt. At the same time Albanian air crew begin to be ferried from Alexandria to other airfields along the route to make similar preparations. The Royal Albanian Air Corps' continued use of captured Italian aircraft leads to several incidents of friendly fire which, while resulting in no casualties, contributes to the continued degradation of the small fleet of aircraft captured in June 1940. (7)

11/07/1940

-ALBANIA: Italian forces relieve the battered remnants of the initial invasion force and succeed in taking the port of Vlora with heavy casualties. Albanian forces withdraw in good order and take up positions in the hills outside of the city.

…

12/07/1940

…

-MADAGASCAR: General Charles de Gaulle arrives in the capital Antananarivo after a harrowing 2-day journey. Mere hours after landing he delivers the "Tananarive Manifesto" which, though not appreciated at the time, will go down in history as a turning point for the fledgling Free French movement. De Gaulle announces the formation of the Empire Defense Council and calls on all French colonies to regard the Vichy government as an illegal entity.

…

13/07/1940

…

-NEW HEBRIDES: Governor Henri Sautot of the New Hebrides publicly announces his support for de Gaulle, becoming the first colony to do so after the Tananarive Manifesto. (8)

15/07/1940

-MEDITERRANEAN: OPERATION HURRY is executed by Royal Navy Forces and succeeds in striking Italian airfields in Sardinia as well as merchant vessels offloading at the Albanian port of Saranda. Both operations serve as cover for the HMS ARGUS which is able to ferry 12 Hawker Hurricanes to Malta. All 12 aircraft land without incident and bolster the half dozen fighters already protecting the island from Italian air attacks. RN casualties are light, but damage to the HMS EAGLE from Italian bombs forces her out of action for six weeks.

…

-MADAGASCAR: De Gaulle and de Coppet begin to negotiate with Smuts for the withdrawal of South African troops, claiming that the response to de Gaulle's arrival has stabilized the situation to the point that they are no longer needed. Though skeptical, after conferring with Churchill, Smuts agrees to halt further deployment plans and begin to work out a timetable for the withdrawal of the existing units.

…

16/07/1940

…

-CHAD: Governor Félix Éboulé of Chad defies his superior, Governor Pierre Boission of French Equatorial Africa and opts to side with De Gaulle. (9)

CAMEROON: Gaullists under the leadership of M. Mauclere, the colony's Director of Public Works, seize control and declare its allegiance to the Free French movement. The Gaullists enjoy strong support from planters who fear a return of German settlers from the nearby Spanish island of Fernando Po. Cameroon had been a German possession before World War I. (10)

…

18/07/1940

…

FRENCH EQUATORIAL AFRICA: Governor of Ubangi-Shari, Pierre de Saint-Mart declares for de-Gaulle as does the Governor of Gabon Georges Masson. In the former case a group of pro-Vichy officers attempt a coup but narrowly fail. In the latter case, Governor Pierre Boission works with Gabon's conservative and influential bishop Louis Tardy as well as the naval commander at Libreville to arrange for Masson's arrest and consolidate pro-Vichy control in the region. (11)

19/07/1940

…

-FRENCH SOMALILAND: In a tense vote, a narrow majority of the colony's administrative council votes to side with General Paul Legentillhomme and continue to fight alongside the British. Though many figures within the colony are unhappy with the decision, Madagascar's allegiance to de Gaulle effectively cuts them off from Vichy's efforts to resupply them. A handful of figures remain loyal to Petain and cross the border to set up an alternative colonial government in Assawa under Petain's personal representative Gaëtan Germain. On the same day, Mussolini approves the Duke of Aosta's request to study an offensive aimed at severing the connection between French and British Somaliland.(12)

…

20/07/1940

…

-FRENCH INDOCHINA: Having failed in his efforts to rally the colony to de Gaulle, General Catroux formally resigns his position as Governor of French Indochina and allows Admiral Jean Decoux to take his place…(13)

…

21/07/1940

…

-MADAGASCAR: Confident in de Coppet's ability to maintain order in the colony, General de Gaulle departs for French Equatorial Africa to rendezvous with troops under Leclerc and bring an end to Vichy control in Gabon.

23/07/1940

…

-ITALIAN EAST AFRICA: Eager for a victory to offset the ongoing debacle in Albania, Mussolini chooses to believe reports of low morale in French Somaliland and orders the Duke of Aosta to launch his planned offensive to sever the colony's connection with British Somaliland and plan a further offensive to depose the new Free French regime and enforce Vichy French rule.

…

28/07/1940

…

-MALTA: The first Short Sunderland flying boats from 230 Squadron begin to operate from Malta.

-PLYMOUTH: Admiral Émile Muselier raises the Free French Flag over the Battleship COURBET with help from the members of her crew and those of her damaged sister ship PARIS who have opted to join the Free French. Though obsolete, the COURBET becomes the largest ship in the Free French fleet due to this action and serves to boost the morale of the roughly 30,000 Frenchmen who have chosen to continue the fight rather than be repatriated. (14)

…

30/07/1940

…

-TAKORADI: 360 officers and airmen disembark to facilitate airfield operations involved in the Takoradi air route. (15)

01/08/1940

…

-ALBANIA: Battle of Vorë begins as Italian forces attack Vehib Pasha's positions around Shijak and the Erzen river…

…

-FRENCH SOMALILAND: Italian forces under Lieutenant General Bertoldi attack the fortress of Loyada on the border between French and British Somaliland. Bolstered by the arrival of the Black Watch, as well as 2 3-inch AA guns from the 23rd Battery Hong Kong and Singapore Brigade RA as well as a 3pdr saluting gun off the HMAS Hobart(16), Legentilhomme's force responds admirably and repels the initial Italian attacks. Raiding actions by the Camel Corps and Illalos(17) further complicate the Italian attack. (18)

…

03/08/1940

…

-FRENCH SOMALILAND: Having suffered heavier casualties than anticipated in his failed attempts to capture Loyada and fearing a British attack on his flanks, Lt. Gen. Bertoldi withdraws to more easily defended positions. This withdrawal comes at a crucial juncture for the battered garrison of the fortress who are running desperately short of ammunition and the fledgling Free French movement. De Gaulle seizes upon the victory in his ongoing efforts to win over other colonies to the Free French cause…

…

04/08/1940

…

-SCAPA FLOW: The HMS FURIOUS completes refitting and is immediately pressed into service as an aircraft ferry to move aircraft to the Mediterranean using the newly established Takoradi route. She sails for Liverpool where she will take on her first cargo, 30 ex-French Curtiss H-75a (Mohawk Is) intended for the Royal Albanian Air Corps, 9 Fairey Fulmars, 6 of which will be sent to Alexandria to bolster the air defenses of the HMS Eagle, and 3 crated Hawker Hurricanes. In the unlikely event of an attack the Mohawks and Hurricanes are to be pushed over to allow the Fulmars to defend the ship. (19)

…

05/08/1940

…

-ITALIAN EAST AFRICA: In light of the high morale seen from the Free French forces at the Battle of Loyada, Mussolini orders the Duke of Aosta to revert to his previously held defensive posture and cease all preparations for further offensive action against either French or British Somaliland. (20)

…

14/08/1940

…

-MALTA: Elements of the 7th cruiser squadron led by the HMAS Syndey deliver vital reinforcements to Malta consisting of the 2nd Battalion York and Lancaster Regiment, 1 heavy AA battery, 1 light AA battery, plus supplies from Port Said. (21)

…

27/08/1940

…

-LIBREVILLE: Gaullist forces under Leclerc and Koenig bring an end to the Battle of Gabon. Pierre Boission evades capture by fleeing to Equatorial Guinea where he is interned by Portuguese authorities.

…

30/08/1940

…

-INDOCHINA: Vichy signs the Matsuoka-Henry Pact and yields to Japanese demands for an end to shipments of war material to the Chinese nationalists via the Hanoi - Kunming railway, grants Japanese forces transit rights and access to military facilities in Indochina and the right to station troops in Tokinchina. Japan agrees to recognize continued French sovereignty over Indochina. Vichy reciprocates with formal recognition of Japan's "pre-eminent" role in the Greater East Asia Co-prosperity Sphere.

…

-MEDITERRANEAN: OPERATION HATS begins as the HMS ILLUSTRIOUS, HMS VALIANT, and the AA cruisers COVENTRY AND CALCUTTA sail through the central Mediterranean to Alexandria under the cover of both Force H and the Mediterranean fleet under Cunningham. In addition to these forces, the HMS ARGUS is tasked with delivering another 12 Hawker Hurricanes to bolster Malta's air defenses while several other vessels deliver additional supplies and reinforcements including a battery of 16 mobile 3.7inch AA guns and ammunition. (22)

…

31/08/1940

…

-ALBANIA: Battle of Tirana begins…

…

03/09/1940

…

-MALTA: The first Blenheim I bombers of 84 Squadron arrive at Luqa airfield from Egypt in an attempt to bolster the island's reconnaissance and strike capabilities.(23)

…

06/09/1940

…

-MALTA: 3 Glenn Martin 167F "Maryland" attack bombers safely land at Luqa airfield after completing a perilous journey over German occupied France and Northern Italy. These aircraft and their pilots are incorporated into No.80 Squadron as their aircraft's superior speed makes them a far better choice for reconnaissance missions over Italy…(24)

…

07/09/1940

…

-ALBANIA: Vehib Pasha's rearguard begins to move south to Elbasan bringing the Battle of Tirana to an end. Though bolstered by the defection of tribal militias under Xhelal Zogu, the heavy casualties suffered by the Italians in the battle combined with ongoing logistical difficulties impede their efforts to pursue the Albanian army and the wounded King Zog…

…

13/09/1940

…

-EGYPT: In accordance with Mussolini's order of September 7, General Graziani launches his invasion of Egypt with the forces at his disposal…

…

15/09/1940

…

-DAKAR: General de Gaulle and Admiral Muselier arrive off the coast of Dakar at the head of a small flotilla of Free French ships led by the elderly battleship COURBET. A meeting is arranged with Governor Louis Cayla who has remained loyal to Vichy thus far but is rumored to have Gaullist sympathies. Though he is confident that his fortifications could repel the Gaullist attack, Cayla is unwilling to shed French blood and declares for Free France handing de Gaulle his largest victory to date. For, in addition to providing a strategic port and airbase for the ongoing Battle of the Atlantic, Belgian and French gold reserves alongside the demilitarized and incomplete Battleship RICHELIEU fall into Gaullist hands.(25)

…

17/09/1940

…

-ALBANIA: In a daring mission, the 7th cruiser squadron under Admiral Tovey sails northwest of Crete and launches a Supermarine Walrus aircraft off the HMS ORION to evacuate King Zog from Albania. Despite navigating over unfamiliar terrain and at night, the aircraft is able to land at Lake Ohrid only to find that King Zog has ordered General Vehib Pasha, the "Demon of Durres" to take his place on the aircraft. Fearing interception, the pilot reluctantly accepts his new passenger and manages to return to the ORION without incident. Thoroughly confused and conflicted, Tovey reluctantly conveys General Pasha to Alexandria where he assumes control of the Albanian Forces in Egypt to considerable fanfare.

…

Supermarine_Walrus.jpg

The Supermarine Walrus aircraft involved in the evacuation of Vehib Pasha from Albania​

30/09/1940

…

-MALTA: The completion of the airfield improvement projects undertaken by Maltese and Albanian labourers is marked by the arrival of the first Wellington bombers of 148 squadron arrive at Luqa airfield further bolster the strike capabilities of the growing RAF contingent on the Island.(26)

…

04/10/1940

…

-ALBANIA: Battle of Korça ends with the Royal Albanian Army's retreat into the mountains along the Greek border and dissolution into armed guerrilla bands…

….

05/10/1940

…

-ALBANIA: In a triumphant ceremony in the new capital of Elbasan, Ciano and the new Regent of Albania Shefqet Vërlaci declare victory over Zog's loyalists and formally sign the Pact of Elbasan which effectively transforms Albania into a part of the Italian Empire under the guise of additional assistance…

…

21/10/1940

…

-MEDITERRANEAN: 31 Swordfish bombers armed with a mixture of Torpedoes, Bombs, and Flares take off from the ILLUSTRIOUS and EAGLE to attack the Italian fleet at Taranto as a part of OPERATION JUDGEMENT…

Notes

5. See Part XIX.

6. Occurs earlier than OTL due to Albanian diplomatic support.

7. Again a bit earlier than OTL due to an earlier focus on the Mediterranean. Also unlike OTL this is a multinational effort.

8. He was the first in OTL as well.

9. TTL's situation is more complicated than the one in OTL as Éboule became the governor of French Equatorial Africa after Boission was sent to Dakar to replace Leon Cayla who had been sent to Madagascar to replace de Coppet who resigned after the British attack on the French Fleet. In TTL Boission is still in charge at Brazzaville and Éboule is technically his subordinate in Chad.

10. Earlier than OTL. M. Mauclere's leadership role is from OTL though as he formed a pro-Gaullist group in July 1940 in OTL as well. The benefit of no Operation Catapult is that this group is much more popular.

11. Also earlier than OTL. St. Mart narrowly avoided getting overthrown by a coup in OTL. In OTL Boisson left in July to take up his post as Cayla's replacement in Dakar leaving a General Husson in charge in Brazzaville. In TTL he has no other choice than to stay and fight.

12. I debated this one, but I think given the linkages between Madagascar and French Somaliland plus the figures involved make French Somaliland joining the Free French more likely in TTL. The Italian offensive planning is from OTL

13. I just don't see the events of TTL changing what happened in Indochina. Neither side seemed interested in provoking the Japanese in 1940.

14. This is roughly 3x the number that joined the Free French in OTL but is still about half of the French troops stationed in the UK. This is because, while I agree that Catapult was important in determining some Frenchmen's decisions to be repatriated, I think there were other factors at play as well particularly de Gaulle's questionable legitimacy.

15. Earlier than OTL due to earlier focus on Mediterranean due to Zog.

16. These forces were all sent to British Somaliland after French Somaliland aligned with Vichy. The Black Watch was originally destined for French Somaliland, the other guns are sent there in TTL because Legentilhomme seemed to be one step ahead of the Italians. In OTL all 3 guns were sent to Berbera in British Somaliland.

17. Pro-British Somali militia who served alongside the Camel Corps and acquitted themselves quite well by all accounts in OTL.

18. The Italians attacked Loyada in OTL on August 1st as well, only to find a demoralized French garrison put up minimal resistance. TTL is different.

19. In OTL the FURIOUS was pressed into service as an aircraft ferry a few months later and played a role in ferrying aircraft to the Eastern Med (Via Takoradi) during the Greek Campaign. In TTL the earlier focus on the med coupled with increased need means that she's pressed into service much earlier. As a result the RN doesn't engage in the same kind of anti-shipping operations in the North Sea. As for the Albanians using ex-French H-75as, keep in mind that due to the pre-war ties between Albania and Italy, Zog was publicly planning to buy Italian fighters so the Albanian pilots should be able to use the metric gauges and reversed throttles of the formerly French fighters. More on this in future updates.

20.The main reason the Italians launched this attack in TTL was because they believed reports of poor morale in French Somaliland. The defeat at Loyada prompts them to re-evaluate this assessment and return to their previously held defensive posture.

21. In OTL these units (plus a few more which aren't needed in TTL) were all sent to Crete after the Italian invasion. Some of them were originally earmarked for Malta and TTL's earlier focus on Malta means that they get sent earlier.

22. Everything is from OTL except for the ARGUS' club run, and 8 additional 3.7inch AA guns which were sent to Suda Bay in November in OTL but are sent to Malta in TTL.

23. This squadron was sent to Greece in late 1940 in OTL along with another Blenheim Squadron and a squadron of Gladiators.

24. Blenheim bombers stationed at Malta were used for maritime patrol duties in OTL after one too many were intercepted over Italy.

25. Cayla allegedly had Gaullist sentiments up until Operation Catapult. See #9 for more details.

26. The Wellingtons arrive earlier due to the runway work and earlier efforts at reinforcing Malta.

(Excerpted from James Butler ed. "History of the Second World War: The Mediterranean and the Middle East Vol.1 Early Successes Against Italy (to May 1941)" 1954)(27)

…The reluctance of the Italian battlefleet to force an issue at sea had caused Admiral Cunningham to consider for some time past the possibility of attacking it in harbour. He was not alone in doing so, for as early as 1935 his predecessor Admiral Pound had foreseen such an eventuality and ordered his subordinate Lumley Lyster to draw up plans for a pre-emptive aerial strike. Little had changed by 1940 as the Italian fleet was still mainly concentrated at Taranto, where it was ideally situated for controlling the Central Mediterranean. The only real difference lay in the two Littorio class 15-inch battleships both completed in May 1940. Following their workups both moved to Taranto, where by October all six battleships, together with numerous cruisers, destroyers, and auxiliaries, were berthed safe from surface attack but ready to threaten British convoys should an advantageous situation arrive. Little did they know that their fleet's security would be short lived.

For the arrival of the Illustrious in September 1940, brought with it not only one of the Navy's most modern carriers but none other than Lumley Lyster, the author of the 1935 Taranto Raid plan, now a Rear Admiral. Upon arriving in Alexandria, his old war plan quickly gained acceptance as a means with which to deal a potentially devastating blow. Though the potential for a pre-emptive surprise attack no longer existed due to the state of war, both Admiral Cunningham and Rear Admiral Lyster were confident that significant prospects for success existed. Much of this confidence sprang from new intelligence reports which indicated severe deficiencies in Italian anti-aircraft training and torpedo defense both of which were aggravated by material shortages of torpedo nets and hydrogen for barrage balloons.(28)

Knowing that such an advantage would not last for long, both Admirals pressed forward with their plan to attack the battleships with torpedo-bomber aircraft launched from carriers. The Swordfish were to be launched from their carriers at a distance which made it necessary to fit them with extra fuel tanks. These became available when the Illustrious joined the Mediterranean Fleet in September, after which the crews underwent special training in night flying. Though rushed, by the time the Illustrious left Alexandria on October 18, her crews had successfully closed the gap with their more experienced comrades onboard the Eagle. Still, in light of the latter's experience and due to time constraints, Rear Admiral Lyster opted to ensure that each wave of the attack comprised aircraft from both carriers. Thus, on the night of October 21 –Trafalgar Day—thirty-one Fairey Swordfish bombers took off into the darkness towards Taranto.(29)

The use of torpedoes made the operation particularly hazardous, as it forced the aircraft to come down very low. The possible dropping positions were known to be restricted by balloons and net obstructions, and for this reason not more than six torpedo-bombers were to be used at a time. The attack was planned to be delivered by two waves, about one hour apart. In each wave there would be two aircraft whose task was to illuminate the battleships by dropping a line of flares to the eastward of the anchorage. In order to distract attention and to keep the searchlights pointing upwards where they would not dazzle the torpedo droppers, bombing attacks were to be made on the ships in the inner harbour by four aircraft from each wave. The remainder of the aircraft were to be armed with torpedoes and divided into sub-flights of 3.(30)

A great deal depended upon the detailed information about the position of the ships. For several days previously, and right up to the hour of the attack, aircraft of No. 84 Squadron (Glenn Martin) and No. 230 Squadron (Sunderland) from Malta kept a close watch on the approaches to the port for any arrivals or departures. The photographs taken by the Glenn Martins showed clearly the positions of the ships and of the principal defences, including the anti-torpedo nets and the numerous barrage balloons.(31) The latest photographs were flown to Illustrious in the afternoon of October 20th; they showed five battleships berthed in the outer harbour, and a flying-boat reported the sixth entering. By the time the Swordfish took off the whole Italian battlefleet was anchored in the outer harbour, and each member of the aircrews knew the position of every unit.

Shortly before 9 p.m. the first wave of 15 Swordfish from Nos. 813, 815, 819, and 824 Squadrons, led by Lieutenant-Commander K. Williamson, was formed up and away, having been flown off from a position 170 miles to the south-east of Taranto. Two hours later, as they were approaching the target area from the south-west, the flash of anti-aircraft guns showed them that the defences were already alert. Just before 11 p.m. the flare-droppers and bombers left the formation to carry out their respective tasks, while the torpedo-bombers made off to westward to get into position for the final approach. The three sub-flights of three then dived towards the anchorage in the face of intense fire from the shore batteries supplemented by the close range weapons in the warships. The aircraft came down as low as 30 feet above the water to launch their torpedoes. The moon was three-quarters full, and to the eastward the flares were outlining the battleships perfectly. The leader attacked the southernmost battleship, the Cavour, and his torpedo struck home under the foc's'le as the aircraft, badly damaged, crashed near the floating dock. One minute later the Littorio was struck under the starboard bow by a torpedo dropped by the second sub-flight. Her sister ship the Vittorio Veneto was hit several minutes later by a torpedo from the third sub-flight. The other torpedoes either missed, exploded prematurely, or failed to go off, though they were all dropped from close range. Meanwhile, the flare-dropping aircraft, their main task completed, bombed the oil storage depot before making out to sea, and the other bombers attacked vessels in the inner harbour and started a fire in a hangar. In spite of the heavy fire all the aircraft of the first wave with the exception of the leader, who with his observer was made prisoner, were safely back 4½ hours after taking off.

Taranto raid.jpeg

Artist's impression of the Raid on Taranto​

The second wave, its strength bolstered to sixteen by an additional aircraft from 824 Squadron, and led by Lieutenant-Commander J. W. Hale, appeared in the target area shortly before midnight. The tactics were the same, and once again the targets were successfully illuminated by the flares. From about 4,000 feet the ten torpedo-bombers began their dive, and as before they continued it to a very low height above the water. One torpedo struck the Duilio on the starboard side and another hit the damaged Littorio but the torpedo that failed to explode. The Vittorio Veneto then received its second hit of the night quickly followed by the Guilio Cesare and the 8-inch cruiser Goriza, the latter by an aircraft which was then shot down. In the inner harbour the cruiser Trento was attacked, and another fire was started ashore. By three o'clock in the morning the second wave arrived back, having, like the first, lost one aircraft. Though the initial plan called for a second strike the next day, fuel concerns,(32) coupled with poor weather prompted Rear Admiral Lyster and the Commander-in-Chief to abandon this phase of the attack and retreat to Alexandria.

Around one in the morning ten Wellingtons from 148 Squadron on Malta arrived to add insult to injury in keeping with the Prime Minister's insistence that the raid utilize all available resources.(33) Originally intended for the inner harbour and naval oil tanks, the fires, explosions their strike caused were overshadowed by their impact on Italian damage control efforts. A 250-pound bomb dropped prematurely from Plt. Off. G.K. Noble's Wellington in the face of intense AA fire detonated near the damaged Littorio and set off a catastrophic chain of events. Though not capable of causing significant damage on its own, the near miss set off the magnetic duplex pistol in the unexploded torpedo lodged in the battleship's keel. The resulting explosion transformed the difficult task facing the ship's damage control crews into an impossible one as the ship's back broke and she rapidly settled on the harbour floor. From the photographs taken on the 22nd the success of the main operation could be judged. They showed both the Cavour and the Littorio beached and apparently abandoned. Eventually, the Italians would raise both ships but neither ever went to sea again. The other vessels struck during the attack, Vittorio Veneto, Duilio, and Goritza were shown to be seriously damaged but undergoing repairs. Results in the inner harbour were more difficult to assess: photographs suggested that two cruisers had been damaged, but it now appears from the Italian Admiral's report that two hits had been scored with bombs that failed to explode. But the main object had been successfully achieved. Two thirds of the Italian battlefleet had been put out of action, at least temporarily, by the expenditure of nineteen torpedoes and for the loss of two aircraft. The Commander-in-Chief was guilty of no exaggeration in describing the result as the most fitting Trafalgar day celebration to date.

The Italian losses on the night of October 21st were not all confined to Taranto. While the Illustrious, Eagle, and their escorts were waiting off the coast of Cephalonia for her aircraft to return, a force consisting of the cruisers Orion, Sydney, Ajax, and the destroyers Nubian and Mohawk, under the command of the Vice-Admiral, Light Forces, was finally raiding the convoy route between Albania and the Italian mainland. Keeping his force concentrated on account of the bright moonlight, Admiral Pridham-Wippell steered up the middle of the Straits of Otranto, crossed the Brindisi—Valona line, and at about 1 a.m. turned to the southward. A few minutes later a convoy of four merchant vessels with two escorts was sighted about eight miles away on the port bow, steaming in line ahead towards Brindisi. In the short engagement which followed, all four merchant vessels (totalling 16,938 tons) were sunk, though the escorts managed to escape.(34)

The remainder of the covering operations for Operation Judgement experienced similar degrees of success, all of which were similarly overshadowed by the immense strategic, tactical, and propaganda victory wrought by the Taranto Raid. Swordfish bombers from the Ark Royal once again bombed Italian airfields on Sardinia with middling results. This in turn helped distract from the Argus ferrying another dozen Hurricanes within ferry range of Malta and another fast convoy carrying key military stores entering Grand Harbour.(35)

Admiral Cunningham's success at Taranto made a profound impression throughout the world, for here was proof indeed that a fleet was no longer safe in harbour. The effects in the Mediterranean were immediate, for on October 22nd every major Italian warship capable of steaming left Taranto for more secure ports on the west coast of Italy, thus further reducing the threat to our Mediterranean convoys…

Notes

27. This portion of the update is adapted from the OTL publication of the same name.

28 In OTL the Italians did have issues coordinating the use of their searchlights during the attack and were suffering shortages of hydrogen and torpedo netting. What netting they did have was deployed to counter impact pistols and not the magnetic duplex pistols used by the Fleet Air ram. I wonder how the British could be getting this information?

29. In both waves of OTL's attack were launched by aircraft from both carriers only in OTL the Eagle had problems with her aircraft fueling system caused by some earlier near misses and did not participate. In TTL the Eagle is hit on July 15 which causes similar damage that is properly repaired well before the battle.

30. This is all according to Lyster's original plan.

31. In OTL Italian defenses increased over the course of October and November as reconnaissance flights continued. Some of this increase was offset by a strong windstorm on Nov. 6 which blew away a number of barrage balloons. In TTL as the attack is taking place earlier, there are fewer defenses in place.

32. Nothing in TTL changes the fueling problems that plagued the Med Fleet in OTL. To completely ignore them would be even more lopsided than this update already was. I have no idea about the weather though so if someone wants to correct me feel free.

33. In OTL the Wellingtons attacked 2 days after the attack.

34. A similar raid took place in OTL during Operation Judgement.

35. MALTA STRONK More on this in Part XXIV