HNoMS Sæl

HNoMS ''Sæl'' was the penultimate vessel of the ten 1. class torpedo boats of the Royal Norwegian Navy. She was built at the Royal Norwegian Navy Shipyard in Horten in 1901, with yard number 85. She was to see close to 40 years service with the Royal Norwegian Navy, taking part in the preparations for war in connection with the dissolution the union with Sweden in 1905, enforcing Norwegian neutrality during the First World War and opposing the German invasion of Norway in 1940. She was lost in battle with ''Kriegsmarine'' vessels at Ånuglo in the Hardangerfjord on 18 April 1940.

Name

Sæl is the pre-1917 Reform Bokmål version of the Norwegian word ''sel'', meaning seal.

Characteristics

''Sæl'' was reasonably seaworthy in calm seas, with little engine noise and no bow water. The intent behind her design was to enable her to attack enemy shipping in both open seas and close to shore with the least possible chance of being spotted before launching torpedoes at her targets.Hegland & Lilleheim 1998: 21 The 37 mm gun armament was placed one on each side of the ship, making it impossible for both her QF guns to fire at one target simultaneously.Hegland & Lilleheim 1998: 57

Early career

Tension with Sweden

Having been launched as the penultimate of the ten 1. class torpedo boats built for the Royal Norwegian Navy, HNoMS ''Sæl'' was amongst the front-line RNoN units mobilised in connection with the tense political conditions between Norway and Sweden as the Norwegians dissolved the 91-year-old personal union between the two countries.

As the two countries appeared on the brink of war in the autumn of 1905, the Royal Norwegian Navy carried out exercises involving almost its entire force. By the time the Karlstad negotiations met with success and Sweden recognised the independence of Norway on 23 October 1905, '' Sæl'' and many of the other Norwegian ships were patrolling the Oslofjord in expectation of a Swedish naval attack against the country's capital Oslo and the central military and industrial area of Eastern Norway.

First World War

During the First World War, Norway declared herself a neutral country and took no active part in the war. ''Sæl'' served throughout the war years escorting merchant ships in Norwegian waters and guarding the coast against neutrality violations. The Norwegian torpedo boats spent the war spread along the coast with orders to confront and board any warship that approached the coast of Norway, even though they might not necessarily enter Norwegian territorial waters. In the run-up to the war ''Sæl'' had been part of a large Norwegian naval manoeuvre during the International Yacht Racing Union's fourth annual Europe week sailing regatta, held in Horten 14 to 21 July 1914.

Inter-war years

Among the missions given the Norwegian torpedo boat force after the First World War was apprehending rum runners during Norway's 1919–1926 prohibition. On one occasion in the autumn of 1924 the customs patrol boat ''Bjørnen'' discovered the smuggler ship ''Paul Weber'' off Halten in Sør-Trøndelag. ''Paul Weber'' was operated by a group of smugglers led by the flamboyant Paul Weber. ''Bjørnen'' called for assistance from ''Sæl'' to capture the smuggler. ''Sæl'' caught up with ''Paul Weber'' off the island of Frøya and opened fire, using live rounds, and lighted up the smuggler vessel with her searchlights. After a chase among the skerries, and numerous live warning shots, the ''Paul Weber'' surrendered to the torpedo boat.

Second World War

At the outbreak of the Second World War, the close to 39-year-old ''Sæl'' and 16 other torpedo boats of three classes were taken out of reserve and mobilised in five divisions. ''Sæl'' was part of the 4th Torpedo boat Division in the 2nd Naval District together with HNoMS ''Storm'' and HNoMS ''Brand''.Hegland & Lilleheim 1998: 50 The divisions were purely administrative units, with each torpedo boat spread singly on the coast from Oslofjord to Trøndelag. For the 4th Torpedo boat Division, deployed to the south western Vestlandet region, the war initially entailed coastal guard duties and hailing Norwegian merchant ships as they left Norwegian waters, handing over the latest news reports and wishing them a safe voyage.

Norwegian Campaign

Attempted defence of Bergen

In the morning of 8 April 1940, on the eve of the German invasion of Norway, ''Sæl'' was docked at the Marineholmen naval base in Bergen between patrol missions. By 02:30 on 9 April she had finished coaling,Hegland & Lilleheim 1998: 53 having been ordered to make war preparations the previous day, and moved south towards her blocking position in the Lerøy area in the approaches to Bergen. Due to a lack of information as the position of the intruding German forces she sailed on a collision course with the German ''Kampfgruppe 3''. When the German ships were spotted by ''Sæl'' they were at such close range that the Norwegians had to make evasive manoeuvres to avoid a collision and were unable to launch a torpedo. As the ''Kriegsmarine'' ships passed her at only 10–15 metres distance, ''Sæl'' turned around and gave chase in the hope of catching up with the Germans and get within range for a torpedo shot. As dawn was soon approaching ''Sæl'''s commander, '' Fenrik'' (Ensign) L. Gulbrandsen, decided to disengage and temporarily place his ship in cover behind the Bratholmen islet.

Hardangerfjord

After Bergen was seized by German forces on 9 April, ''Sæl'' relocated to the Hardangerfjord to continue fighting the German invasion. She arrived at Uskedal in Kvinnherad on 12 April, and on 17 April helped a prize crew led by ''Fenrik'' Schau from the ''Trygg'' class torpedo boat HNoMS ''Stegg'' escort the captured 6,567 ton iron ore laden German cargo ship ''Afrika'' into the port of Odda. After being greeted with jubilation and singing by the local population at Odda, ''Sæl'' was ordered back to Uskedal that same evening. At Uskedal ''Sæl'' formed the Hardangerfjord Naval District () together with the minelayer ''Tyr'' and five patrol boats.

Battle with German E-boats

The next day, 18 April, HNoMS ''Stegg'' was despatched to Langenuen in Austevoll to intercept four merchant ships, leaving ''Sæl'' alone in the area. Soon afterwards, an alarm went out in Uskedal warning that three German E-boat fast attack craft were entering the Hardangerfjord. In response, district commander '' Orlogskaptein'' (Lieutenant Commander) Ulstrup – the former commander of the mine layer ''Tyr'' – gave an oral order that ''Sæl'' was to avoid contact with the superior enemy force. Ulstrup felt that the poorly armed, slow and not very manoeuvrable ''Sæl'' would not stand a chance against the three fast and modern opponents.

The fact that Ulstrup's order was given orally led to a fatal misunderstanding. By the time word reached ''Fenrik'' Gulbrandsen, he understood the order to mean that he was to attack and destroy the three E-boats. Believing to be obeying orders, Gulbrandsen sailed ''Sæl'' into the fjord to confront the German vessels.

At 16:00 the crew of the ''Sæl'' spotted two of the E-boats moving at great speed southwards from the Lukksund Narrows between Tysnesøy Island and the mainland. At a distance of ''Sæl'' opened up with her bow gun and for five minutes exchanged fire with the German ships. One of the E-boats was hit by several 37 mm rounds and left dead in the water and listing to the side. Soon after, one of ''Sæl'''s guns was knocked out by a German 20 mm shell, and shortly thereafter the firing lanyard on the other gun snapped. With multiple rounds hitting the Norwegian torpedo boat's bow, the E-boats moved into point blank range, riddling ''Sæl'' from bow to stern. As the third E-boat arrived on the scene, three torpedoes were fired at ''Sæl'', the two first going under the hull and the third hitting a small rock right in front of her. The explosion caused by the last torpedo further damaged the bow of the Norwegian ship and caused water to start flooding her. With the 7.92 mm Colt machine gun providing cover fire, ''Fenrik'' Gulbrandsen beached his vessel at full speed to save the crew. During that last manoeuvre ''Sæl'' hit an underwater rock and was left grounded with her stern sticking out of the water. At 16:25 Gulbrandsen ordered the crew to abandon ship. Although one man had suffered a lung shot and six others had minor grazing wounds, all 21 crew members made it ashore.

Sinking

Later in the evening of 18 April the crew of the ''Sæl'' attempted to moor their vessel to prevent it from slipping under. At high tide ''Sæl'' disappeared beneath the waves at Ånuglo, still flying the Norwegian war flag.

After the battle, a Norwegian motorboat brought the wounded to the hospital in Rosendal.

The wreck today

The wreck of HNoMS ''Sæl'' was relocated in 1968 by the Royal Norwegian Navy's Mine Diver Command who found her at depth, intact with ammunition, mines and torpedoes on board. The ammunition was removed, but the mines and torpedoes were blown up on site, resulting in the complete destruction of the torpedo boat's midsection and leaving only the bow and stern still mostly intact, making her a popular dive site.

Notes

Bibliography

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Sael
Maritime incidents in April 1940
Ships built in Horten
Torpedo boats of the Royal Norwegian Navy
World War II torpedo boats of Norway
World War II shipwrecks in the North Sea
1901 ships
Ships sunk with no fatalities