Here is the RESOLUTION being towed by Barham, 26 Sept., 1940 (?). A French sub had torpedoed her off Dakar during the aborted invasion attempt by the Free French and British.
Also, a photo of her in better days.
Info about the attack from internet:
The attack on Dakar was code named “Operation Menace.” Free French troops led by Gen. de Gaulle were carried on ships escorted and supported by units of the Home Fleet and Force H under the command of Vice-Adm. John Cunningham. They included the battleships HMS Barham and HMS Resolution, the carrier HMS Ark Royal, three heavy cruisers, two light cruisers and 10 destroyers and other ships that carried the British landing force of 4,300 and 3,600 Free French troops.
The Vichy naval forces at Dakar were commanded by Pierre François Boisson. These forces included the unfinished battleship Richelieu, the Montcalm and George-Leygues, four destroyers and several submarines. There were also air units that included American-made Glenn Martin bombers and Curtiss Hawk 75A fighters.
The attack on Dakar began on Monday, Sept. 23, 1940. French aircraft flew off from the carrier HMS Ark Royal and landed at Ouakam aerodrome within Dakar. Propaganda leaflets were dropped over the town by Fleet Air Arm aircraft.
De Gaulle’s representatives entered Dakar Harbor in a motor boat flying the French flag, and a white flag of peace — but were fired upon — and nothing further was heard from them. The next step was a landing of British and the 2,400 Free French troops, which was repulsed after a short, but sharp, action, by French troops loyal to the Vichy Government. This led de Gaulle to declare that he did not want to shed the blood of Frenchmen for Frenchmen. The action now settled into a duel between the Royal Navy battleships and heavy cruisers, and the French battleship Richelieu, French cruisers, destroyers and submarines.
The guns of the French fort at Dakar were also involved in bombarding Royal Navy warships. As a result, a French submarine was sunk, a large destroyer disabled and the heavy cruiser HMS Cumberland heavily damaged.
On Sept. 24, there was a duel between the French battleship Richelieu and the British battleship HMS Barham. The Barham was hit twice by the shore batteries manned by ratings from the Richelieu. In the engagement the Richelieu was struck by two 15-inch shells from Barham, but the damage was not serious. During these engagements, the French made use of an ingenious device to distinguish the spotting of their shell bursts. Each salvo was marked by a certain color, Richelieu used yellow, the forts white, and the cruisers green and red.
The action continued on Sept. 25.
As the Royal Navy force began to withdraw, the battleship HMS Resolution was struck by a French submarine torpedo, and took on a heavy list to port. In the meantime, Vichy French Martin bombers attacked the stricken ship and dropped large bombs. French fighters were also busy, one Curtiss Hawk fighter shot down a Royal Navy observation plane. The attacking force now left the Dakar area, with the battleship HMS Barham taking HMS Resolution under tow with the heavy cruiser HMAS Australia supporting them as they withdrew at a slow speed.
The attack on Dakar was a debacle for the Royal Navy. Two battleships were damaged, one of them seriously, two heavy cruisers were heavily damaged and two destroyers also seriously damaged. Aircraft were also destroyed and the landing force was repulsed.
OOPZ...........DFO
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.