Capture of Saint Pierre and Miquelon | |||||||
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Part of the American Theatre of World War II | |||||||
![]() Surcouf, the lead vessel of the flotilla | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
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Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Strength | |||||||
| Unknown number of gendarmes from the gendarmerie | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
None | None |
The capture of Saint Pierre and Miquelon was the successful takeover of the islands of Saint Pierre and Miquelon, an overseas collectivity of France off the coast of Newfoundland, on 24 December 1941 by Free French Naval Forces. At the time, the islands' authorities had sworn their allegiance to the Vichy French government.
Following the armistice of 22 June 1940, the administration of the islands had been under the control of the Vichy government, represented by the administrator Gilbert de Bournat. [1] The presence of Vichy-administered islands off the coast of Canada caused significant concerns for its government. The Canadian government considered the possibility that the Axis might use Saint Pierre and Miquelon as a base of operations. The colony's proximity to Canada and Newfoundland could offer German submariners an excellent position to re-supply and coordinate attacks upon Allied convoys. This was helped by the fact that the islands were able to communicate to the French mainland by means of wireless communication and transatlantic cables. It was feared that the islands' authorities could transmit vital information to Vichy France and inform German submarine crews about meteorological conditions, the movements of Allied warships and the progression of convoys. There was also concern that local fishery products could be sent to Germany through mainland France and, in turn, contribute to the Axis war effort. [2]
Even before the armistice, the government of Newfoundland called for an invasion of Saint Pierre and Miquelon. After consultations with the United Kingdom, it was recommended that Newfoundland should discuss the issue with the Canadian government. However, an invasion did not come to fruition as Canada's War Cabinet refused to initiate an action for fear of offending the American State Department. Concerns grew throughout 1941 as the Battle of the Atlantic reached Canadian waters. The Canada–United States Permanent Joint Board on Defence had unanimously agreed on 10 November 1941 that the existence of an uncontrolled and high-powered wireless transmitting station on the islands constituted a potential danger to the interests of Canada and the United States. However, the United States vigorously opposed any forceful attempt to take control of the islands. [2]
During this time, Charles de Gaulle sent Admiral Émile Muselier to investigate the possibility of invading the islands. [3] Despite continued objections from the United States, de Gaulle ordered the capture of Saint Pierre and Miquelon. [4]
On 23 December 1941, a French flotilla consisting of the submarine Surcouf and three corvettes, Mimosa, Aconit and Alysse, carrying 230 men sailed from Halifax under the pretext of a training mission. Acting against the orders of Canadian Rear Admiral Leonard W. Murray, at 3 am on 24 December 1941, the flotilla arrived off the port of Saint-Pierre and disembarked 230 armed sailors. After meeting no resistance, Free French forces captured the islands in only 20 minutes. [2]
After the arrest of Governor de Bournat, the Free French authorities organized a plebiscite on 25 December 1941. Males of 18 years and over were given a choice of "rallying to Free France or collaborating with Axis powers". Close to 98 per cent of the male population voted in favour of Free French administration. News of the capture reached the United States with Secretary of State Cordell Hull calling the capture a violation of the Monroe Doctrine. He compared the capture of the islands by the Free French to Nazi and Japanese aggression. [2]
Saint Pierre and Miquelon, officially the Overseas Collectivity of Saint-Pierre and Miquelon, is a self-governing territorial overseas collectivity of France in the northwestern Atlantic Ocean, located near the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. An archipelago of eight islands, St. Pierre and Miquelon is a vestige of the once-vast territory of New France. Its residents are French citizens; the collectivity elects its own deputy to the National Assembly and participates in senatorial and presidential elections. It covers 242 km2 (93 sq mi) of land and had a population of 6,008 as of the March 2016 census.
Surcouf was a large French gun-armed cruiser submarine of the mid 20th century. She carried two 203 mm guns as well as anti-aircraft guns and a floatplane. Surcouf served in the French Navy and, later, the Free French Naval Forces during the Second World War.
Free France was a political entity claiming to be the legitimate government of France following the dissolution of the Third Republic during World War II. Led by General Charles de Gaulle, Free France was established as a government-in-exile in London in June 1940 after the Fall of France to Nazi Germany. It joined the Allied nations in fighting Axis forces with the Free French Forces, supported the resistance in Nazi-occupied France, known as the French Forces of the Interior, and gained strategic footholds in several French colonies in Africa.
The diplomatic relations between Canada and the French Republic are friendly, the importance of which centres on the history of French immigration to Canada. Canadians of French heritage make up the majority of native speakers of French in Canada, who in turn account for about 22 percent of the country's total population. The small French Territorial Collectivity of Saint Pierre and Miquelon is situated off the coast of Atlantic Canada.
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The Armistice of Saint Jean d'Acre concluded the Syria-Lebanon Campaign of World War II. The Armistice, signed on 14 July 1941, was between Allied forces in the Middle East under the command of British General Henry Maitland Wilson, and Vichy France forces in Syria and Lebanon, under the command of General Henri Dentz, Commander in Chief of the Army of the Levant and as High Commissioner of the Levant.
Saint-Pierre is the capital of the French overseas collectivity of Saint Pierre and Miquelon, off the coast of the Canadian island of Newfoundland. Saint-Pierre is the more populous of the two communes (municipalities) making up Saint Pierre and Miquelon.
Robert Aron (1898–1975) was a French historian and writer who wrote a number of books on politics and European history.
The history of Saint Pierre and Miquelon is one of early settlement by Europeans taking advantage of the rich fishing grounds near Saint-Pierre and Miquelon, and is characterized by periods of conflict between the French and British.
Émile Henry Muselier was a French admiral who led the Free French Naval Forces during World War II. He was responsible for the idea of distinguishing his fleet from that of Vichy France by adopting the Cross of Lorraine, which later became the emblem of all of the Free French. After entering the French Naval Academy in 1899, he embarked on a brilliant and eventful military career. He ran unsuccessfully in the legislative elections of 1946 as vice-president of the Rally of Republican Lefts and then entered private life as a consulting engineer before his retirement in 1960. He is buried in the cemetery of St. Pierre, at Marseilles.
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The French State, popularly known as Vichy France, as led by Marshal Philippe Pétain after the Fall of France in 1940 before Nazi Germany, was quickly recognized by the Allies, as well as by the Soviet Union, until 30 June 1941 and Operation Barbarossa. However, France broke with the United Kingdom after the destruction of the French Fleet at Mers-el-Kebir. Canada maintained diplomatic relations until the occupation of Southern France by Germany and Italy in November 1942.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Saint Pierre and Miquelon:
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Vichy France, officially the French State, was the French rump state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. It was named after its seat of government, the city of Vichy. Officially independent, but with half of its territory occupied under the harsh terms of the 1940 armistice with Nazi Germany, it adopted a policy of collaboration. Though Paris was nominally its capital, the government established itself in the resort town of Vichy in the unoccupied "free zone", where it remained responsible for the civil administration of France as well as its colonies. The occupation of France by Nazi Germany at first affected only the northern and western portions of the country, but in November 1942 the Germans and Italians occupied the remainder of Metropolitan France, ending any pretence of independence by the Vichy government.
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