Battle of Ellev Point

Battle of Ellev Point
Part of the Second Great War
MNS Alinghälla firing her 6" guns during the night action of the Battle of Ellev Point.
Date October 27th - 28th, 1943 Location Off Ellev Point, Southern Crostenian Ocean Result Talmerian tactical victory, Mestran strategic victory
Belligerents
Mestra Template:Country data Kærgård Kærgård	Template:Country data Talmeria Talmeria
Commanders and leaders
Kristoffer Asplund	Template:Country data Talmeria Petras Sepetys
Strength
1 battleship 1 heavy cruiser 4 light cruisers 17 destroyers	1 battlecruiser 3 heavy cruiser 1 light cruisers 5 destroyers
Casualties and losses
3,416 killed 489 wounded 1 battleship lightly damaged 1 heavy cruiser damaged 2 destroyers damaged 2 light cruisers damaged 2 light cruisers sunk 3 destroyers sunk	2,130 killed 791 wounded 41 captured 2 heavy cruisers sunk

The Battle of Ellev Point was a Great War naval battle that occurred on October 27th, 1943, as part of the Arktos Campaign. The Talmerian heavy cruiser force, on a operation to break out of the Southern Crostenian Ocean to attack Crostenian convoys of war material from Mestra to fronts in Northern Sule and the Tromstad Islands, was brought to battle and stopped by the Royal Mestran Navy's Southern Fleet, including a destroyer from Kærgård, offf Ellev Point, Antart.

The battle was one of the last large scale battles between the Mestran and Talmerian navy's, with the outcome being the continued blockade of Talmerian ships in the Southern Crostenian Ocean, further increasing the Mestran advantage in large surface units.

Background

In late September to mid October 1943, Mestran ships of the Southern Fleet covered troop movements in Talmeria, Monika Nordberg, a cryptanalyst at Östshamn Manor made a success, breaking into the Talmerian naval Enigma. The first message read "Today's the day forward seven," was followed by a week later by a second message reporting the sailing of a Talmerian battle fleet composed of three heavy cruisers, three light cruisers, and five destroyers to attack merchant convoys supplying the fronts in Northern Sule and the Tromstad Islands. The interception was hidden by the Talmerians by ensuring the reasoning for detecting and interception of the fleet was a carefully directed reconnaissance aircraft.

As further deception, Admiral Asplund made a quiet exit after dark from a dinner party in Svendgård to avoid being seen boarding his flagship, the battleship MNS Elgård. He had arrived at the manor the same afternoon with his suitcase for an overnight stay and sept some time in the nearby golf course in view of the Secrazchaki consul. An evening party was also advertised on his flagship for later in the evening but wasn't meant to take place.

At a similar time there was a intelligence failure on the axis side, which involved the Talmerians to be falsely informed that the Mestran Southern fleet had no operation aircraft carriers or battleships. However, the Southern Fleet had three battleships and two aircraft carriers.

Prelude,

Opposing forces

The CUFS force was the Mestran Southern Fleet, consisting of the fleet carriers Båhus and Mjoskastellet, however they wouldn't sortie over bad weather coming into the area, along with the two battleships Harsund and Hallund because they wouldn't be able to keep up with the main fleet. In place of the two older battleships, MNS Elgård would lead, being the only capital ship in the main fleet. The main fleet was comprised of the 17th Destroyer Flotilla (MNS Olaf, Henning, and KæNS Edvin Thomsen, commanded by Commander "Jarl" Narum, KæNS), and the 11th Destroyer Flotilla (MNS David, Oddmund, Otto, and Roy, commanded by Mikael Wangsness); also present were MNS Svenn and Sverre. Force R, under Admiral Sir Petter Sundahl Hendriksen, consisted of the Mestran light cruisers MNS Meland, Alinghälla, Esgård, and Paulsrud, the Mestran destroyers MNS Kent, Arve, and Jonathan. The Kærgård KæNS Blönströnd had returned to Svendgård. Other allied warships in harbour and on patrols where available; MNS Aksel, Ørjan, and Bjørn where on submarine patrols around the islands, and MNS Alf, Melgaard, Moland, and Saetern and KæNS Rikke Kolstad were nearby.

The Talmerian Fleet was led by Admiral Svotelis' flagship, the modern battlecruiser Bendaravicius, screened by the light cruiser Kestas. The fleet also included half of the Talmerian heavy cruiser force; Ceslovas and Vaiciulionis, with 2 destroyers (Vainius Rumbutis and Osvaldas Palcauskas) of the 3rd Flotilla; and the heavy cruiser Izaokas Danenas, accompanied by 3 destroyers (Vincas Kuzminskas, Kazimieras Liaudanskas, and Aidas Pakalnis) of the 4th Flotilla. Two more light cruisers where in the area, Aleksandras and Nomica, but where not ordered to join in on the engagement. Only 2 of the Talmerian ships would have radar, mainly the battlecruiser and light cruiser, compared to all the Mestran ships having radar.