"Mimi" and "Tutu" ( eng. HMS Mimi and HMS Toutou ) - armed powerboats of the British Royal Navy , which took part in the First World War . They were famous for participating in battles for Lake Tanganyika , and also because of the names given to these small ships by their eccentric commander, Lieutenant Commander . Very unusual for the Royal Navy names are translated from French as "Meow-meow" and "Woof-woof." On December 26, 1915, the boats attacked the Germanic steamer “Kingani” and captured it. After repair, the Kingan became part of the British fleet under the name Fifi , which is no less unusual for the British. On February 9, 1916, “Fifi” and “Mimi” sank the German armed ship “Hedwig von Viessman”. In the future, the British flotilla rendered ineffective support to the advancing British forces. At the end of the war, “Mimi” and “Tutu” were used as transports for some time.
"Mimi" and "Tutu" | |
---|---|
English HMS Mimi and HMS Toutou | |
Mimi in 1915 Visible gun and machine gun | |
Service | |
Great Britain | |
Organization | Royal Navy |
Manufacturer | John I. Thornycroft & Company |
Construction started | 1915 |
Launched | 1915 |
Status | fate unknown |
Main characteristics | |
Length | 12 m (40 ft) |
Engines | 2 petrol engines |
Power | 2 × 100 l. with. (75 W ) |
Mover | 2 propellers |
Travel speed | 19 knots (35 km / h ) |
Armament | |
Artillery | bow 47 mm Hotchkiss gun , 1 Maxim machine gun |
Episodes of the history of the British flotilla in Tanganyika are used by Cecil Forester in the novel , published in 1935. In 1951, the eponymous film adaptation of the novel with Humphrey Bogart and Katherine Hepburn appeared in the lead roles.
Content
Construction and construction
The future Mimi and Tutu were built by Thornycroft at the beginning of the First World War, commissioned by the Greek Air Force [1] . The British Admiralty requisitioned the boats, wishing to use them on the internal African waterways threatened by German colonial troops. Both boats belonged to a forty-foot type (about 12 meters long), carried two petrol engines with a capacity of 100 liters. with. and two propellers , allowing it to reach a speed of 19 knots (35 km / h ). The armament of both boats consisted of a 47-mm gun Hotchkiss mounted on the nose, and one machine gun Maxim . The gun could only shoot forward in the nose, since due to the strong recoil, firing at any of the sides would lead to the destruction of the hull. Designers believed that this limitation can be compensated by the excellent maneuverability of boats.
On June 8, 1915, the boats passed tests on the Thames , and in the middle of the same month they were loaded onto a ship bound for Cape Town . For the transportation of boats on land were made special wagons and keel blocks .
Service
Journey to Lake Tanganyika
The boats formed the core of the expedition, the purpose of which was to establish the superiority of the Entente on the strategically important African lake Tanganyika . The expedition commander was appointed eccentric naval officer - the oldest lieutenant-commander of the fleet [2] . In early July, after a seventeen-day voyage on the ocean, the expedition arrived in Cape Town . About 4800 km (3000 miles) remained to the destination - by train, on foot and by water.
In Cape Town, boats and other property were loaded onto a train en route to Elizabethville ( Belgian Congo ), and then to the village of Fungurume, where the railway line ended. On August 6, the unloading of boats and equipment was completed, after which the expedition headed for Bush . The boats and equipment carried oxen sleds and two steam tractors , and many porters were hired among the local population. The expedition moved over rough terrain: there were mountains and thick vegetation, and rivers. During the journey about 150 bridges were built [3] . Sometimes to overcome obstacles had to build complex lifting devices.
Within a month and a half, the expedition traveled 235 km (146 miles) from Fungurume and on October 1, 1915 reached Bukama [4] - the beginning of the narrow-gauge railway line Sankisia — Bukama. In Bukame, boats and cargo were prepared for sailing along the Lualaba River . The river was shallow and the way to Kabalo took seventeen days. The boats were installed on rafts from barrels that had a small draft , but they often had to be dragged along bypassing the shoals. On October 22, the expedition reached Kabalo [5] . People and cargo were loaded onto the railway, on which about 200 miles were traveled to Tanganyika. On October 26, 1915, the expedition arrived at the Belgian river port of Lukuga, located near the coast of Tanganyika.
Fighting in Tanganyika
At the end of December 1915, both boats launched the water and on December 26 they went into battle for the first time. The German flotilla on Tanganyika felt quite confident, as it had previously managed to ensure its superiority. A German steamer, the Kingani, armed with a 37-mm turret gun, passed by the base of the British "flotilla". The commander of the Kingan, Junge, suddenly noticed the speedboats pursuing him and immediately gave the order to add speed. The first was Mimi with Spicer-Simson on board. The British quickly reduced the distance and soon their guns and machine guns opened fire on a German steamer. The speed allowed both boats to enter the "dead zone" of the gun of the ship. During the battle, which lasted 11 minutes, the British shell hit the Kingan gun, broke through his shield and killed the ship’s commander and two non-commissioned officers with splinters. Other shells pierced the hull below the waterline , the ship began to take outboard water. Soon the senior mechanic steamer lowered the flag. Junge and three others were buried. After the repair, "Kingan" joined the fleet under the name " Fifi " ( English HMS Fifi ) [7] . Spicer-Simson said that the name translates from French as "Chik-tweet", and that this idea was given to him by the wife of one of the Belgian officers, who kept a bird cage at home.
On February 9, 1916, the flotilla again went into battle, attacking the German armed steamer . Tutu, which was damaged in the last battle, did not participate in the pursuit. The Fifi, chosen by Spicer-Simson’s flagship , and the Mimi, commanded by Sub-Lieutenant Wainwright, set off in pursuit of the departing steamer. The speeds of “Fifi” and “Hedwig von Wissmann” were approximately equal (15 and 17 km / h, respectively), which did not allow the British flagship to overtake the enemy. The commander of the faster Mimi (35 km / h) decided at full speed to approach the Germans from the stern, leading a disturbing fire. Wainwright believed that the German commander would be forced to deploy the steamer in the direction of the Mimi in order to impose on it its main armament, which was located on the bow. This hitch will allow the British flagship to reduce the distance and join the battle. So it happened. While Mimi and Hedwig von Wissmann were circling in place, Fifi approached and after some delay due to the jammed gun she managed to damage the German steamer with two shells. The German commander gave the order to leave the sinking and burning ship. On Hedwig von Wiessman, five Africans and two Germans were killed [8] . The British raised from the water the survivors and seized the German naval flag - the first such trophy of the British, taken in that war [9] . For this fight, Wainwright was awarded the Cross For Outstanding Merit [10] .
There were still German ships on the lake. The strongest of them was the Graf von Götzen , armed with one of the 105-mm guns from the Königsberg cruiser, which was submerged in the Rufiji delta. Spicer-Simson did not dare to attack the Germans again, confining himself to ineffective support for ground operations. Mimi no longer fought, then was allegedly bred in sludge and flooded in the 1920s.
In culture
British writer Cecil Scott Forester used fragments of the story "Mimi" and "Tutu" in the novel "The African Queen" , published in 1935 [11] . At the end of the novel, the captured protagonists rescue powerboats Amelia and Matilda, capturing the German steamer Konigin Louise. The base of the boats in the novel is called Port Albert, while in real history the boats operated from the base in Albertville.
In 1951, a novel of the same name appeared on the screen , in which Humphrey Bogart and Katharine Hepburn played the main roles. In the script, the boats were abandoned, but the scene remained the same. For this role, Bogart received his only Oscar (for the best male role). Bogart considered this role the best in his career [12] .
Notes
- ↑ Miller, Battle for the Bundu, 1974 , p. 198.
- ↑ Galinia, 2009 , p. sixteen.
- ↑ Miller, Battle for the Bundu, 1974 , p. 200
- ↑ Foden, Mimi and Toutou Go Forth, 2004 , Chapter 10, p. 46.
- ↑ Foden, Mimi and Toutou Go Forth, 2004 , Chapter 11, p. 54.
- ↑ Foden, Mimi and Toutou Go Forth, 2004 , Chapter 11, p. 55.
- ↑ Miller, Battle for the Bundu, 1974 , p. 205.
- ↑ Foden, Mimi and Toutou Go Forth, 2004 , p. 225.
- ↑ Foden, Mimi and Toutou Go Forth, 2004 , p. 226.
- ↑ Miller, Battle for the Bundu, 1974 , p. 208.
- ↑ Foden, Mimi and Toutou Go Forth, 2004 , Chapter 23.
- ↑ Meyers, 1997 , p. 258.
Literature
- Galinya V. A. The Last Ship of the Empire // Science and Technology. - 2009. - № 12 . - pp . 14-18 .
- Magee, Frank J. Transporting the War of the Nighs // National Geographic . - 1922. - № XLII / 4 .
- Spicer-Simson, Geoffrey. The Operations on Lake Tanganyika in 1915 // RUSI Journal. - No. 79 .
- Shankland, Peter. The Phantom Flotilla. - London: Collins, 1968. - ISBN 0-00-241639-5 .
- Miller, Charles. Battle for the Bundu: The First World War in East Africa. - New York: McMillan Publishing, 1974. - ISBN 0-02-584930-1 .
- Meyers, Jeffrey. Bogart: A Life in Hollywood. - London: Andre Deutsch Ltd., 1997. - ISBN 0-233-99144-1 .
- Foden, Giles. Mimi and Toutou Go Forth: The Bizarre Battle for Lake Tanganyika. - London: Penguin, 2004. - ISBN 0-7181-4555-0 .