TNA MT 40 66

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1640.
COPY.
H.M.T. "BEN-MY-CHREE",
c/o G.P.O., LONDON.
3608M Istema
Mr. R. W. Cannell,
3rd. July, 1940.
General Manager.
104
Dear Sir,
In
Taby
JIOGY
In answer to your letter, herewith are details of the part
played by the "MONA'S QUEEN" in the recent operations off the Dutch,
I
SEAL
Belgian and French coasts. The facts and circumstances are very plainly
remembered by me, although I may not be quite certain as to the exact
dates, I think I won't be very far off the mark.
TOTAL
Firstly, our experiences started when we left Dover for
List
Rotterdam on the 14th. May intending to evacuate Dutch troops etc.
Unfortunately we did not succeed in that because when we arrived at the
mouth of the River Maas, the place was a raging inferno, even the river
was afire with oil from destroyed tanks. We did our best but were
beaten back. German bombers were overhead and tried to get us, but did
not succeed as we HERE were very often enveloped in dense and choking
smoke. Finally we were ordered to return to Dover and arrived there on
the evening of the 15th. May. We left Dover again that night for Ostend
and arrived off Ostend following morning, the authorities there would
not let us in and we had to anchor. Whilst laying at anchoré we were
attacked twice with bombers, but with our Lewis guns and the guns of a
small Dutch vessel we beat them off. We entered Ostend about noon in
spite of the fact that magnetic mines had been dropped in the harbour.
They had swept up some of them, not all. In Ostend we embarked
British, Dutch, French and Belgian refugees, men, women and children.
We left Ostend about 5-30 p.m. (16th) and arrived Folkestone at 10 p.m.
Owing to the trouble with passports etc. we did not get away from that
port until noon (17th.) when we were ordered to Southampton. When we
arrived at Netley Anchorage, we got orders to fill up with fuel and water
and return to Ostend and to call at Dover for stores, arriving in Dover
on the 18th. The Ostend trip was cancelled as the Germans had already
got there. Then on the 19th. we went to Boulogne and as far as I can
remember that was the night that G.H.Q. at Boulogne was bombed and we
took home, amongst others, the Duke of Gloucester and his staff. The
Duke was wounded. Arrived back at Dover on the 20th. We then loaded
Canadian troops and stores for Dunkirk, but after they had been aboard
all day that sail was off. Then we loaded about 400 tons of all kinds
of ammunition and embarked the Irish and Welsh Guards, also a demolition
squad of R.E's for Boulogne. It took fourteen hours at Dover, with
cranes to load the ammunition, but with the work of my crew and a few
willing soldiers we had the stuff landed in three hours. Then we
embarked as many troops as we could carry (amongst them there were many
wounded). Units from all Allies, British, French, etc., also women and
children and we left Boulogne just as the Germans were coming in. We
had only left, in fact were between the Pier Heads, when a squadron of
Heinkels dived on to the berth which we had just vacated and practically
blew it to pieces. However, we got back to Dover safely and
disembarked our troops. On 24th. May we were ordered to go to anchorage
in the Downs for a little rest as Dover harbour was getting rather
congested. We were at anchor in the Downs on Saturday evening. Next
day at noon we got orders and a route for Dunkirk, so we accordingly
set off as per instructions. Our route took us about 4 miles off Calais
to a certain buoy. On nearing the position I could not see the buoy,
but saw a buoy a little further inshore and steamed towards it to make
certain. On nearing the buoy I saw it was not the buoy on the
instructions and ordered the helm hard aport. Immediately hell was let
loose on our ship. We were shelled from the shore by single guns and
1.