Convoy QP 3

Convoy QP 3
Part of Arctic Convoys of the Second World War
The Norwegian and the Barents seas, site of the Arctic convoys
Date 27 November – 12 December 1941 Location Arctic Ocean Result British victory
Belligerents
Royal Navy   Merchant Navy	Luftwaffe   Kriegsmarine
Commanders and leaders
	Hans-Jürgen Stumpff Hermann Böhm

Convoy QP 3 was an Arctic convoy that sailed from Arkhangelsk in the USSR on 17 November 1941 to Iceland and terminated at Kirkwall in Orkney on 12 December 1941.

Voyage

Convoy QP 3 sailed from Arkhangelsk in the Soviet Union on 27 November 1941. Arcos and Kuzbass suffered defects and turned back to Arkhangelsk. The remaining ships dispersed on 3 December. The Soviet ships Andre Marti and Revolutsioner made for to Kirkwall in Scotland. ^[1] The six British ships docked at Seyðisfjörður in Iceland on 7 December. Once loaded with timber, the ships were escorted to Kirkwall from 9 to 12 December by the Shakespearian-class trawlers HMT Macbeth and HMT Hamlet. There was no German interference in the voyage. ^[2]

Allied order of battle

Merchant ships

Arkhangelsk to Seyðisfjörður ^{[2] [a]}

Name	Year	Flag	GRT	Notes
Arcos	1918	Soviet Union	2,343	27–29 November, defects, returned Arkhangelsk
Andre Marti	1918	Soviet Union	2,352	27 November – 3 December, Seyðisfjörður
Empire Baffin	1941	Merchant Navy	6,978	27 November – 3 December, Seyðisfjörður
Harpalion	1932	Merchant Navy	5,486	27 November – 3 December, Seyðisfjörður
Hartlebury	1934	Merchant Navy	5,082	27 November – 3 December, Seyðisfjörður
Kuzbass	1914	Soviet Union	3,109	27–29 November, defects, returned Arkhangelsk
Orient City	1940	Merchant Navy	5,095	Convoy Commodore; 27 November – 3 December, Seyðisfjörður
Queen City	1924	Merchant Navy	4,814	27 November – 3 December, Seyðisfjörður
Revolutsioner	1936	Soviet Union	2,900	27 November – 3 December, Seyðisfjörður
Temple Arch	1940	Merchant Navy	5,132	Vice-convoy Commodore; 27 November – 3 December, Seyðisfjörður

Russia to Iceland

Arkhangelsk to Seyðisfjörður ^[2]

Name	Flag	Type	Notes
HMS Kenya	Royal Navy	Fiji-class cruiser	28 November – 3 December 1941
HMS Bedouin	Royal Navy	Tribal-class destroyer	28 November – 2 December 1941
HMS Intrepid	Royal Navy	I-class destroyer	28 November – 2 December 1941
HMS Bramble	Royal Navy	Halcyon-class minesweeper	27–28 November 1941
HMS Gossamer	Royal Navy	Halcyon-class minesweeper	27 November – 10 December 1941
HMS Hussar	Royal Navy	Halcyon-class minesweeper	27 November – 9 December 1941
HMS Seagull	Royal Navy	Halcyon-class minesweeper	9 –December to 12 December 1941
HMS Speedy	Royal Navy	Halcyon-class minesweeper	27–28 November 1941

Iceland to Scotland

Merchant ships, Seyðisfjörður to Kirkwall ^[2]

Name	Year	Flag	GRT	Notes
Empire Baffin	1941	Merchant Navy	6,978	9–12 December 1941
Harpalion	1932	Merchant Navy	5,486	9–12 December 1941
Hartlebury	1934	Merchant Navy	5,082	9–12 December 1941
Orient City	1940	Merchant Navy	5,095	Convoy Commodore, 9–12 December 1941
Queen City	1924	Merchant Navy	4,814	9–12 December 1941
Temple Arch	1940	Merchant Navy	5,132	Vice-convoy Commodore, 9–12 December 1941

Escorts, Iceland to Scotland

Seyðisfjörður to Kirkwall ^[2]

Name	Flag	Type	Notes
HMT Hamlet	Royal Navy	Shakespearian-class trawler	9–12 December 1941 Seyðisfjörður–Kirkwall
HMT Macbeth	Royal Navy	Shakespearian-class trawler	9–12 December 1941 Seyðisfjörður–Kirkwall

Notes

1. Convoys had a standard formation of short columns, number 1 to the left in the direction of travel. Each position in the column was numbered; 11 was the first ship in column 1 and 12 was the second ship in the column; 21 was the first ship in column 2. ^[3]

Footnotes

1. Woodman 1994, pp. 45−46.
2. Ruegg & Hague 1993, p. 23.
3. Ruegg & Hague 1993, inside front cover.

References

• Ruegg, R.; Hague, A. (1993) [1992]. Convoys to Russia: Allied Convoys and Naval Surface Operations in Arctic Waters 1941–1945 (2nd rev. enl. ed.). Kendal: World Ship Society. ISBN   0-905617-66-5.
• Woodman, Richard (1994). Arctic Convoys 1941–1945. London: John Murray. ISBN   978-0-71-955079-9.

Further reading

• Boog, H.; Rahn, W.; Stumpf, R.; Wegner, B. (2001). The Global War: Widening of the Conflict into a World War and the Shift of the Initiative 1941–1943. Germany in the Second World War. Vol. VI. Translated by Osers, E.; Brownjohn, J.; Crampton, P.; Willmot, L. (Eng trans. Oxford University Press, London ed.). Potsdam: Militärgeschichtliches Forschungsamt (Research Institute for Military History). ISBN   0-19-822888-0.
• Cain, T. J.; Sellwood, A. V. (1976). HMS Electra. London: Futura. ISBN   978-0-86007-330-7.
• Claasen, A. R. A. (2001). Hitler's Northern War: The Luftwaffe's Ill-fated Campaign, 1940–1945. Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas. ISBN   0-7006-1050-2.
• "Convoy QP.3". Arnold Hague Convoy Database. ConvoyWeb. Retrieved 8 November 2024.
• Hancock, W. K.; Gowing, M. M. (1949). Hancock, W. K. (ed.). British War Economy. History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Civil Series. London: HMSO. OCLC   630191560.
• Hinsley, F. H. (1994) [1993]. British Intelligence in the Second World War: Its Influence on Strategy and Operations. History of the Second World War, United Kingdom Military Series (2nd rev. abr. ed.). London: HMSO. ISBN   978-0-11-630961-7.
• Hobbs, David (2022). The Fleet Air Arm and the War in Europe 1939–1945. Barnsley: Seaforth (Pen & Sword). ISBN   978-1-5267-9979-1.
• Kahn, D. (1973) [1967]. The Codebreakers: The Story of Secret Writing (10th abr. Signet, Chicago ed.). New York: Macmillan. LCCN   63-16109. OCLC   78083316.
• Kemp, Paul (1993). Convoy! Drama in Arctic Waters . London: Arms and Armour Press. ISBN   1-85409-130-1 – via Archive Foundation.
• Macksey, K. (2004) [2003]. The Searchers: Radio Intercept in two World Wars (Cassell Military Paperbacks ed.). London: Cassell. ISBN   978-0-304-36651-4.
• Paterson, Lawrence (2016). Steel and Ice: The U-boat Battle in the Arctic and Black Sea 1941–45. Stroud: The History Press. ISBN   978-1-59114-258-4.
• Rohwer, Jürgen; Hümmelchen, Gerhard (2005) [1972]. Chronology of the War at Sea, 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two (3rd rev. ed.). London: Chatham. ISBN   978-1-86176-257-3.
• Roskill, S. W. (1957) [1954]. Butler, J. R. M. (ed.). The War at Sea 1939–1945: The Defensive. History of the Second World War United Kingdom Military Series. Vol. I (4th impr. ed.). London: HMSO. OCLC   881709135. Archived from the original on 27 February 2022.