Angus Konstam, Convoy PQ-17 1942 (Osprey, 2025)
In 1941, the Germans launched an invasion of the Soviet Union, putting the latter under severe pressure. They needed Allied supplies, most of which had to be delivered by sea from the UK via Iceland. That still meant running the gauntlet past German-held Norway. Though slow to react, by mid-1942, the Germans had deployed a small battlefleet to Norwegian waters, led by the battleship Tirpitz. That obliged the Royal Navy to maintain a fleet off Norway to protect the convoys. For the merchant ships, this was exceedingly dangerous work made even worse if the escorts withdrew, which is exactly what happened to Convoy PQ-17. Angus Konstam brings that story to us in Osprey’s newest Campaign volume.
On 27 June, convoy PQ-17, consisting of 36 merchant ships, most of them American, sailed from Iceland bound for Archangel in northern Russia. On hearing the Tirpitz fleet might intercept, the allies ordered the convoy to scatter, and the British ships withdrew. PQ-17 was on its own. Only 11 ships got through, the rest falling to the luftwaffe and U-boats, but the Tirpitz had never sailed. Konstam surveys the commanders on both sides in the convoy war then moves on to the ships, aircraft, and submarines. The respective plans come under Konstam’s review, which amount to getting the convoy intact to Archangel for the Allies, and the ambition of the Germans was to stop them, though there was much more than that needed to achieve victory. Then Konstam begins his narrative of the operation, the tension ratcheting up as the convoy sailed east from Iceland. The U-boats attacked first but were beaten off. Then the luftwaffe arrived, but to little effect as the convoy escorts saw them off too. But then came the fatal order to scatter. Konstam analyses this, noting that the Royal Navy believed that the Tirpitz group had sailed, but the decision to scatter, based on incomplete information, was a terrible mistake. Then the slaughter began – the graphic map of sinkings illustrates Konstam’s terrible tale. In his conclusion, Konstam leaves no doubt that the destruction of convoy PQ-17 was a complete disaster for the Allies, and that the subsequent inquiry laid the blame at the wrong door.
The fate of Convoy PQ-17 is a tragic story, and one that is well told by Angus Konstam. That is something that you might expect from such a prolific naval historian. While the format for the Campaign series is quite formulaic, Konstam lays out the disaster step by step, sinking after sinking. He also pulls no punches when it comes to apportioning blame for the disaster. Osprey provides its usual high quality graphic support for Konstam’s text. Anyone interested in the convoys will appreciate this book.
