it is unfortunate that a thread supposed to be dealing solely with the Court martial threat has restarted other debates.
The only relevant fact is that both Leach and Wake-Walker stayed in their positions of trust and enormous responsibility, were not censured in any way by Pound and so therefore the threat whatever it was, if it existed, was not followed through. Reasons to justify this fact have been postulated by those asserting conspiracy.
The trouble is we are not dealing with opinions pretending to be facts, but intuitions doing so. Opinions can be swayed by evidence. Intuitions cannot.
Here is an "intuition" dressed up as a fact
Since no-one has Pound's 28th May letter we do not know Pound asked for even a Board of Inquiry. It is also not a fact that a B of I automatically leads to a Court Martial. We infer from Tovey's letter of 30th May there was a request for Tovey to conduct a Board of inquiry, motive unknown. Tovey supplied information to Roskill between 10 and 20 years after the events. None of the information mentioned a Board of Enquiry, or referred to the actual letters that existed. They referred to a phone call about which no corroborating evidence exists.1) It is a fact that on May 28th, 1941 Adm Pound asked a Board of Inquiry -> Court Martial to Adm Tovey and it is a fact that after the war Adm Tovey explained the whole situation to Stephen Roskill in writing.
Another example of an "intuition" dressed up as a fact:
Pound's green ink reply says he will take Tovey's report with him, one presumes when he sails with Churchill and Leach in a few days' time. Nowhere are Court Martials, Board of Inquiry or disciplinary measures mentioned. Nowhere is an investigation mentioned. This is two months after the action. A month and a half later, Pound suggests to Alexander that they tell the War Cabinet a thorough investigation has been made. There is no sign any such investigation was made, or even contemplated. Thus it never "had to be investigated". Tovey confirms he, as C-in-C, heard no more about it after he alleges a threat was made on the 30th May.ADM 205/10 is stating that the PoW retreat was an aspect that had to be investigated.
Alexander's memo to the PM offers to make a report, "if necessary" therefore it did not qualify as "had to be investigated". His closing sentence makes it clear only Churchill's opinion, and not any underlying real concerns, would motivate such a report.
It is disappointing is that those misrepresenting their intuitions as facts, claim to be in possession of further actual factual evidence, but they refuse to show it in the spirit for which this forum exists. The reason for withholding it is clear.
All the best
wadinga