HMS Edinburgh's movements April - October 1941
- 15 April
- Edinburgh anchored in Scapa Flow at 2105, having come from Gibraltar.
- 16-18 "
- At Scapa Flow. (I joined on the 16th from the transit ship Dunluce Castle).
- 19 "
- Left SF for a minelaying operation in the Denmark Strait.
- 27 "
- Arrived Reykjavik 0635.
- 28 "
- Left Reykjavik.
- 29 "
- Arrived Scapa Flow 1814.
- 30 April-4 May
- At Scapa Flow.
- 5 May
- At Scapa Flow.Left SF for Operation EB - capture of the weather
ship Muenchen, which occurred on 7
May in position 67° 12'N 3° 36'W.
- 10 May
- At Scapa Flow.Arrived Scapa Flow 2009.
- 11-13 May
- At Scapa Flow.At Scapa Flow.
- 14 May
- At Scapa Flow.At sea, exercising guns.
- 15 "
- At Scapa Flow.Back at Scapa Flow 1830.
- 16 "
- At Scapa Flow.At sea, exercising guns.
- 17 "
- At Scapa Flow.Back at SF 0146.
- 18 "
- At Scapa Flow.Left SF, headed south.
- 19-27 May
- At Scapa Flow.At sea.
At 1450 on 22 May intercepted German blockade runner Lech
in position 44°
57'N 21° 54W. Took part in Bismarck hunt.
- 28 May
- At Scapa Flow.Arrived Londonderry 1559. At 2030 Captain Faulkner joined to take
command from
Commodore Blackman. 2259 left Londonderry.
- 29 "
- At Scapa Flow.Arrived Scapa Flow 1433.
- 30-31 "
- At Scapa Flow.At SF.
- 1 June
- At Scapa Flow.Left SF 1124, headed north.
- 2-11 "
- At Scapa Flow.At sea in northern waters.
- 12 "
- At Scapa Flow.Arrived Hvalfjord (Iceland) 0005.
- 13-14 "
- At Scapa Flow.At Hvalfjord.
- 15 June
- At Scapa Flow.Left Hvalfjord 2121.
- 16-17 "
- At Scapa Flow.At sea.
- 18 "
- At Scapa Flow.Arrived Scapa Flow 1844.
- 19-22 "
- At Scapa Flow.At SF.
- 23 "
- At Scapa Flow.Left SF for torpedo firing exercises 0616. Back in SF 1915.
- 24 "
- At Scapa Flow.Left SF to-exercise guns 0922. Back in SF 1410.
- 25 "
- At Scapa Flow.Left SF, headed south.
- 26 "
- At Scapa Flow.Arrived Greenock 1520.
- 27-28 "
- At Scapa Flow.At Greenock.
- 29 "
- At Scapa Flow.Left Greenock 0258, headed south.
- 30 June - 9 July
- At Scapa Flow.At sea, with convoy.
- 10 "
- Arrived Gibraltar 1430.
- 11-19 July
- At Gibraltar.
- 20 "
- Left Gibraltar 0204 for Operation Substance (convoy to Malta).
- 24 "
- Arrived Malta 1150. Left Malta 1713, headed west.
- 27 "
- Arrived Gibraltar 0730.
- 28 July - 7 August
- At Gibraltar.
- 8 August
- Left Gib 0900 to relieve HMS London as ocean escort to convoy WS10 as far as
Simonstown.
- 9 - 16 "
- At sea.
- 17 August
- Arrived Freetown 0730.
- 21 "
- Left Freetown.
- 22 August - 1 September
- At sea.
- 2 "
- Arrived Simonstown 1350.
HMS Edinburgh's logs for September and October are not available.
But I was able to check the ship's
movements from Rear Admiral Syfret's report to
Vice Admiral Somerville (commanding Force H)
as far as
the September convoy to Malta (Operation Halberd) was concerned.
Edinburgh must have been back at
Gibraltar from Simonstown around 20 September.
- 24 September
- Left Gibraltar 1230 to RV with the Malta convoy.
- 28 "
- Arrived Malta 1315. Left Malta 16300
- 1 October
- Arrived Gibraltar, 0710.
As no log for October is available I have no details of the trip from Gibraltar to Scapa Flow.
But according
to my Service Certificate I left the ship on 20 October to return to Devonport Barracks
for onward draft to
HMS King Alfred at Hove.
Because of the chaotic state of the railways due to the bombing of many cities,
the journey from
Thurso to Plymouth lasted 49 hours!
Colin Kitching
November 1995