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|---|---|
| Operational scope | Naval operation |
| Planned by | Kriegsmarine |
| Objective | Destruction of Convoy JW 51B |
| Date | Began 30 December 1942 |
| Executed by | Group Command North |
Operation Rainbow (Unternehmen Regenbogen) was a 1942 sortie into the Arctic Ocean by warships of the Nazi German Kriegsmarine (German Navy) during the Second World War. The operation culminated in the Battle of the Barents Sea.
Following the hard-fought Convoy PQ 18 and the disastrous Convoy PQ 17 battles in the summer and autumn of 1942, the Allied supply convoys to the Soviet Union had been temporarily suspended. In December 1942 they started again with a new JW/RA convoy series. Against this possibility, the Kriegsmarine had concentrated a large force of surface vessels and U-boats, supported by aircraft from the Luftwaffe (German Air Force).
Regenbogen was based on a plan to intercept the next Allied convoy to Murmansk. A patrol line of four U-boats was established off Bear Island and a surface force consisting of the cruisers Admiral Hipper and Lützow with six destroyers was assembled at Altafjord. In the event of a convoy report the fleet would sail as two battle groups; one to engage the expected cruiser escort and the other to attack the convoy. The German force was handicapped by strict orders from Adolf Hitler not to take excessive risks with the capital ships, which led to a general loss of aggression. Regenbogen was also hampered by an additional aim of sending Lützow into the Atlantic following the action, which also led to a reluctance to take risks. [1]
On 22 December 1942 Convoy JW 51B sailed for Murmansk and was detected by U-354 on 30 December and the German flotilla sailed from Altafjord the same day. In the Battle of the Barents Sea, Regenbogen had some success; Hipper was able to draw off the escort as planned, allowing Lützow to close with the convoy. Excessive caution by the captain of Lutzow caused him to break off the attack having caused little damage.
The failure of the operation can be attributed to the spirited defence made by the convoy escort and the restrictive and contradictory orders given by Hitler to the force commander. Hitler was furious when he heard about the dismal performance of the Navy. He subjected Grand Admiral Erich Raeder, the head of the Kriegsmarine, to a 90-minute tirade, in which he berated the uselessness of the German surface fleet and announced a decision to scrap all its ships and use its guns and men as shore defences. Raeder felt unable to continue without the confidence of his leader and offered his resignation, which was accepted. Raeder was replaced by Admiral Karl Dönitz, the commander of the U-boat fleet. [2]
| Ship | Flag | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Admiral Hipper |  Kriegsmarine | Admiral Hipper-class cruiser | Sailed 30 December |
| Lützow | Kriegsmarine | Deutschland-class cruiser | Sailed 30 December |
| Z4 Richard Beitzen | Kriegsmarine | Type 1934-class destroyer | Sailed 30 December |
| Z6 Theodor Riedel | Kriegsmarine | Type 1934A-class destroyer | Sailed 30 December |
| Z16 Friedrich Eckoldt | Kriegsmarine | Type 1934A-class destroyer | Sailed 30 December |
| Z29 | Kriegsmarine | Type 1936A-class destroyer | Sailed 30 December |
| Z30 | Kriegsmarine | Type 1936A-class destroyer | Sailed 30 December |
| Z31 | Kriegsmarine | Type 1936A-class destroyer | Sailed 30 December |
The Arctic convoys of World War II were oceangoing convoys which sailed from the United Kingdom, Iceland, and North America to northern ports in the Soviet Union – primarily Arkhangelsk (Archangel) and Murmansk in Russia. There were 78 convoys between August 1941 and May 1945, sailing via several seas of the Atlantic and Arctic oceans, with periods with no sailings during several months in 1942, and in the summers of 1943 and 1944.
The Battle of the Barents Sea was a World War II naval engagement on 31 December 1942 between warships of the German Navy (Kriegsmarine) and British ships escorting Convoy JW 51B to Kola Inlet in the USSR. The action took place in the Barents Sea north of North Cape, Norway. The German raiders' failure to inflict significant losses on the convoy infuriated Hitler, who ordered that German naval strategy would henceforth concentrate on the U-boat fleet rather than surface ships.
Admiral Hipper was the lead ship of the Admiral Hipper class of heavy cruisers which served with Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II. The ship was laid down at the Blohm & Voss shipyard in Hamburg in July 1935 and launched in February 1937; Admiral Hipper entered service shortly before the outbreak of war, in April 1939. The ship was named after Admiral Franz von Hipper, commander of the German battlecruiser squadron during the Battle of Jutland in 1916 and later commander-in-chief of the German High Seas Fleet. She was armed with a main battery of eight 20.3 cm (8 in) guns and, although nominally under the 10,000-long-ton (10,160 t) limit set by the Anglo-German Naval Agreement, actually displaced over 16,000 long tons (16,260 t).
Operation Berlin was a raid conducted by the two German Scharnhorst-class battleships against Allied shipping in the North Atlantic between 22 January and 22 March 1941. It formed part of the Battle of the Atlantic during World War II. The Scharnhorst and Gneisenau sailed from Germany, operated across the North Atlantic, sank or captured 22 Allied merchant vessels, and finished their mission by docking in occupied France. The British military sought to locate and attack the German battleships, but failed to damage them.
Operation Sportpalast, also known as Operation Nordmeer, was a German naval raid between 6 and 13 March 1942 against two of the Allied Arctic convoys of World War II as they passed through the Norwegian Sea. It was conducted by the battleship Tirpitz, three destroyers and eight submarines. The German ships were unable to locate either of the convoys but sank a merchant vessel that was sailing independently. The Allies attempted to intercept the German force, also without success.
Convoy PQ 1 was the first of the Arctic Convoys of the Second World War to have the code prefix PQ, which was chosen from the initials of Commander Phillip Quellyn Roberts, an operations officer in the Admiralty. The Western Allies used the Arctic route to supply the Soviet Union after the beginning of Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion, which began on 22 June 1941.
Convoy PQ 2 was the third of the Arctic Convoys of the Second World War by which the Western Allies supplied the Soviet Union after Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion, which began on 22 June 1941. The convoy sailed from Scapa Flow and arrived safely at Archangelsk.
Convoy PQ 18 was an Arctic convoy of forty Allied freighters from Scotland and Iceland to Arkhangelsk in the Soviet Union during the Second World War. The convoy departed Loch Ewe, Scotland on 2 September 1942, rendezvoused with more ships and escorts at Iceland and arrived at Arkhangelsk on 21 September. An exceptionally large number of escorts were provided by the Royal Navy in Operation EV, including the first escort carrier to accompany an Arctic convoy. Detailed information on German intentions was provided by the code breakers at Bletchley Park and elsewhere, through Ultra signals decrypts and eavesdropping on Luftwaffe wireless communications.
Unternehmen Rösselsprung was a plan by the German Navy to intercept an Arctic convoy in mid-1942. It was the largest operation of its type mounted by the Kriegsmarine and resulted in the near-destruction of Convoy PQ 17. The success of the operation was indirect none of the ships engaged the convoy, its losses inflicted by U-boat and aircraft attacks. Despite not making contact with the convoy a number of the ships of Unternehmen Rösselsprung were damaged and the heavy cruiser German cruiser Lützow (1940), ran aground in thick fog, needing three months of repairs.
Operation FB took place as part of the Arctic Convoys of the Second World War. The operation consisted of independent sailings by unescorted merchant ships between Iceland and Murmansk. In late 1942, the Allies had taken the offensive against Germany but the dispatch of supplies to the USSR by convoy via the Arctic route was suspended, due to the demands of the Mediterranean campaign. Convoy PQ 19 was cancelled because the Home Fleet diverted ships to the Mediterranean for Operation Torch which would have had to be postponed for three weeks had ships been provided for Convoy PQ 19.
Convoy PQ 14 was an Arctic convoy sent from Britain by the Western Allies to aid the Soviet Union during the Second World War. Convoys from Britain had been despatched since August 1941 and advantage had been taken of the perpetual darkness of the Arctic winter. German operations against the convoys had been muted due to the need to support Operation Barbarossa, confidence in imminent victory and the small size of the convoys. In late 1941 and early 1942 the Luftwaffe and Kriegsmarine had reinforced Norway with aircraft and ships.
Convoy PQ 11 was an Arctic convoy sent from Britain by the Western Allies to aid the Soviet Union during the Second World War. The voyage took place amidst storms, fog and the almost permanent darkness of the Arctic winter. The convoy was not found by German U-boats or reconnaissance aircraft from Norway and reached at Murmansk without loss.
Convoys PQ 9/10 was an Arctic convoy sent from Britain via Iceland by the Western Allies to aid the Soviet Union during the Second World War. The departure of Convoy PQ 9 on 17 January had been delayed after the Admiralty received reports of a sortie by the German battleship Tirpitz.
Operation Doppelschlag was a German plan for a sortie in 1942 during the Second World War into the Arctic Ocean by the Kriegsmarine. The operation followed Operation Rösselsprung, against Convoy PQ 17 in July 1942 to attack convoy PQ 18 the next Arctic convoy of the Western Allies.
Convoy JW 51A was an Arctic convoy sent from Great Britain by the Western Allies to aid the Soviet Union during World War II. It sailed in December 1942, reaching the Soviet northern ports at the end of the month. Convoy JW 51A was not detected or attacked by German forces and arrived without loss.
Convoy JW 51B was an Arctic convoy sent from United Kingdom by the Western Allies to aid the Soviet Union during the Second World War. It sailed in late December 1942, reaching the Soviet northern ports in early January 1943.
Arctic naval operations of World War II were the World War II naval operations that took place in the Arctic Ocean, and can be considered part of the Battle of the Atlantic and/or of the European Theatre of World War II.
Convoy QP 14 was an Arctic convoy of the QP series which ran during the Second World War. The convoy was a return journey of Allied ships from the port of Archangelsk in the Soviet Union to Loch Ewe in the west of Scotland. The British planned to send Convoy PQ 18 from Iceland to Murmansk and when the convoys crossed transfer much of the escort force from the outbound convoy to Convoy QP 14 and escort back it through the most dangerous waters off Norway.
Operation Orator was the code name for the defence of the Allied Arctic convoy PQ 18 by British and Australian air force units, based temporarily in North-West Russia, against attack by the German battleship Tirpitz and other Kriegsmarine surface vessels. The wing, known as the Search & Strike Force, was commanded by Group Captain Frank Hopps and its maritime strike element was the Leuchars Wing, comprising No. 144 Squadron, Royal Air Force (RAF) and No. 455 Squadron, Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) equipped with Handley-Page Hampden TB 1 torpedo bombers.
Convoy QP 1 was the first of the Arctic Convoys of the Second World War by which the Allies brought back ships that begun carrying supplies to the Soviet Union after Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of 22 June 1941. The convoy sailed from Murmansk and arrived safely at Scapa Flow in Orkney.
