Engelsk besøg

Der bliver ved med at dukke nyt op om Anden Verdenskrig. Denne henvendelse er fra Graham Handley og drejer sig om en af de allieredes både, der var blandt de første i Danmark efter befrielsen i 1945 og som også kom til Bornholm, som jo da var besat af russerne.

Læs hans historie den er rigtig god - og indbefatter osten "Gamle Oles Far". Jeg kan godt forstå hun ikke kunne glemme den:

My father visited Bornholm during 1945, whilst serving with the UK Royal Navy aboard ML 207. His ship was one of the first to reach Denmark when the German occupation ended and was tasked with mine clearing and patrol duties in Danish waters. He always spoke very highly of both Denmark and the Danish people and the fabulous welcome he received. In recognition for being one of the first Allied ships to arrive in Denmark, the Danish government sent a food parcel to each of the crew’s families, which they were very grateful for, and my grandmother often spoke about receiving. She also said the parcel contained a delicious but very smelly cheese, Gamle Oles Far. She said that she would never forget it!

The reason for my contacting you is to see if you can help solve a mystery with regard my father’s time at Bornholm. I imagine he was sweeping mine field around the island when his first visited, as did other ships from the same flotilla, including ML 207’s sister ship ML 206. On one particular occasion, they arrived at Bornholm in readiness to sail across the Baltic as part of a convoy that was delivering former German ships to the Soviet Union as war reparations. It is this visit that I am especially interested in. My father wrote a book detailing his wartime experiences, which he did not quite finish before he sadly passed away. I am attempting to complete the book on his behalf.
I wonder if you know of any information regarding the visits of the Royal Navy Minesweepers to Bornholm during 1945? I understand the island was occupied by Russian forces at the time so there must have been interaction between the British sailors and Russian troops, as well as the local population. Do you have any information relating to this? The reparations convoy I mentioned took place towards the end of 1945, I believe it was during December, though it could have been earlier. Having set sail the convoy encountered a devastating winter storm and had to turn back. My father has written a particularly graphic account of the experience. His ship was almost lost, I understand that some of the smaller German vessels actually sank.

Having had chance to undertake repairs, the convoy reformed off Bornholm and set off again. This time they did manage to deliver the German vessels to the Soviet Union. Unfortunately, my father does not explain exactly were the convoy was heading. It could have been St Petersburg or, more likely one of the Baltic States then occupied by Russia. I would love to know where the convoy were headed for and if there is any record of the Baltic storm.

Ekstrabladet 26. juni 1945

Out of interest I have a photograph of the crew of ML 206 whilst at Rønne in 1945. I thought that you would like to see it, you will find it attached. Not long after my father’s ship arrived in Copenhagen, at Danish Journalist came aboard and wrote an article that appeared in the Danish newspaper Ekstra Bladet. I have included a copy of this too for your interest. I have attached all 6 pages of the newspaper so’s to include the date, but the article relating to ML 207 appears on the last page.

I do hope you are able to help me uncover information regarding my father’s time at Bornholm or, at least point me in the right direction, perhaps by suggesting a contact, so that I can continue my research.