How effective was the Royal Navy in the Mediterranean

[aurora]

The Battle of Crete in particular cost the Royal Navy 2 Battleships damaged,1 aircraft carrier damaged.3 cruisers sunk,7 cruisers damaged,8 destroyers sunk and 8 damaged-all by Axis air attack and this attrition would continue.

aurora

[aurora]

By the end of 1941 the serviceable ships of the Mediterranean Fleet had been reduced to three cruisers and a handful of destroyers. Fifteen Allied destroyers and 158 merchant ships had been sunk in the Mediterranean during the course of the year.1942 saw a further 73 vessels lost (Naval and Maritime) to enemy action.These grievous losses
incurred by the Royal and Merchant Navies could no longer be justified for keeping Malta going-however much it was a duty of honour

aurora

[pgollin]

By the end of 1941 the serviceable ships of the Mediterranean Fleet had been reduced to three cruisers and a handful of destroyers. Fifteen Allied destroyers and 158 merchant ships had been sunk in the Mediterranean during the course of the year.1942 saw a further 73 vessels lost (Naval and Maritime) to enemy action.These grievous losses
incurred by the Royal and Merchant Navies could no longer be justified for keeping Malta going-however much it was a duty of honour

aurora

.

HOWEVER, Crete was reasonably successfully evacuated, Malta WAS kept going (causing great losses to the Axis cause and the Mediterranean Fleet supported the land operations in North Africa unlike the Italian navy.

.

[RF]

The key point is that they survived, and in doing so caused major consequences for the Germans, as Churchill's dispersion strategy for German resources started to work. The battle for Crete in that respect was crucial.

[aurora]

Quote pgollin
"HOWEVER, Crete was reasonably successfully evacuated, Malta WAS kept going (causing great losses to the Axis cause and the Mediterranean Fleet supported the land operations in North Africa unlike the Italian navy."

No- I do not think that Crete was reasonably successfully evacuated-The Royal Navy had rescued about 16000 soldiers from 23000 and mounting this operation could be likened to a great sea battle.Cunningham had deployed four battleships,one carrier,eleven cruisers, a minelayer and 32 destroyers,Out of this total- two battleships and the carrier were seriously damaged -Warspite and Formidable in particular.Three cruisers were sunk and five damaged -some badly,in addition six destroyers were sunk and seven had varying degrees of damage.
So with a complete destruction as a fighting force of a second Expeditionary Force on Greek soil and the effective halving of the operational strength of the Mediterranean Fleet and it's knock on effect on morale.SUCCESS certainly not.
Coming to the Malta convoys-Excess,Halberd,Vigorous,Harpoon and Pedestal cost 32 merchant shops sunk and 15 damaged and this just kept Malta going-it is not any wonder that Malta was called "the Verdun of WW2" by some historians-how this caused great losses to the Axis cause,other than the Malta based Naval strike forces-Forces K and Q and the 10th Submarine Flotilla (which you have not mentioned)all played havoc with Rommel's supply lines

[pgollin]

.

So you think saving 16,000 soldiers is a failure ?

I'm glad you weren't a general in WW2.

( I won't repeat Cunningham's extremely famous quote about the episode. )

.

[aurora]

.

So you think saving 16,000 soldiers is a failure ?

I'm glad you weren't a general in WW2.

( I won't repeat Cunningham's extremely famous quote about the episode. )

.

Oh! come now!- there's absolutely no need for such talk-I did not say the Evacuation of Crete was a failure-I said it was not a reasonable success and explained why.Hereunder a little quote from ABC's "A Sailor's Odyssey" :-
"So ended the battle of Crete,and a disastrous period in our naval history-a period of great tension and anxiety such as I have never experienced before or since-----dreading the telephone which was the usual harbinger of bad news of loss or damage; but with it all there was an intense pride ,which was fully justified,that our seamen never flinched from standing up to conditions almost beyond human endurance"

[alecsandros]

.

So you think saving 16,000 soldiers is a failure ?

I'm glad you weren't a general in WW2.

( I won't repeat Cunningham's extremely famous quote about the episode. )

.

... They saved about 50% of the total Commonwealth force, and some Greek soldiers and civillians.
Still, the bulk of the combined Allied army (initialy around 42000 Commonwealth + Cretan soldiers) was lost.

The Royal Navy had big troubles from May 1941 onwards...

[aurora]

"The Royal Navy had big troubles from May 1941 onwards..." Exactly what I have been trying to get across alecsandros-although the Royal Navy did not stumble and fall-it had a tough time keeping the enemy "outside the gate"; and it was only truly alleviated after the Allied Landings in French North Africa opening a Second Front, which in time, took the weight off the British 8th Army in Tunisia -thus shortening the war in the Desert and taking Malta out of the battle zone.

[pgollin]

.

So you DID avoid the famous quote !

IF the RN "stumbled" (remembering that the Med was a secondary theatre) what adjective would you use for the Axis who failed to supply the North African front properly, and nor did the navy support the land battle ? (An honourable mention must go to the Luftwaffe and U-Boats which did well despite small numbers).

.

[aurora]

I stated
"but with it all there was an intense pride ,which was fully justified,that our seamen never flinched from standing up to conditions almost beyond human endurance"

Is that statement not good enough for you??

You stated
"IF the RN "stumbled" (remembering that the Med was a secondary theatre) what adjective would you use for the Axis who failed to supply the North African front properly, and nor did the navy support the land battle ? (An honourable mention must go to the Luftwaffe and U-Boats which did well despite small numbers)".

I can see all the words- but I cannot understand just what you are driving at-the subject matter at hand is "How effective was the Royal Navy in the Mediterranean" not an evaluation of the Luftwaffe nor the Uboat arm.The status of the Mediterranean ToO is also irrelevant.