The British Modern Military History Society

THE British Modern Military History Society will resume live talks at Woodcote village hall when it is considered safe to do so.

Both the July talks will be on Zoom due to the covid-19 restrictions.

Our meeting on Tuesday, July 6 at 2pm will be a talk by Lucy Betteridge-Dyson on “The Real War Horse”.

She will explore the equine contribution in the Great War, looking at the role that donkeys, mules and horses played in the conflict, where they came from, their war experience and how they are remembered today.

On Wednesday July 14 at 7.30pm Col David Vassallo will give a talk on “Malta GC and Operation Pedestal”.

From 1940 into 1942 Malta faced relentless attacks by the Luftwaffe and Italian air force. The Royal Navy and Royal Air Force were heavily engaged in defending the island and attempting to keep it supplied.

Malta provided a base to disrupt Axis supply lines to Libya and also for supplying British armies in Egypt.

In late 1940, following the success of the Royal Navy in managing to inflict a number of defeats on the Italian navy, Luftwaffe units were sent to the central Mediterranean region. During January 1941 they were immediately successful in limiting British operations.

Following Hitler’s invasion of Russia in June that year these units were moved to the Eastern Front.

This allowed British submarines and aircraft from Malta to go on the offensive, with the aim of crippling the Axis supply lines and causing major logistical problems for Rommel’s Afrika Korps.

However, the German aircraft returned in December and helped to restore the supply route and effectively neutralise Malta as a base for Allied operations.

The Luftwaffe and Italian air force then laid siege to Malta, bombing key military installations, towns and supply convoys. This caused significant shortages of food and ammunition for the island’s population and service personnel.

The Royal Navy ran a number of heavily protected convoys sailing from Gibraltar in the west and Alexandria in Egypt in attempts to resupply the island. These hard-fought convoys suffered considerable losses in crews and ships.

Operation Pedestal was a convoy that reached Malta in August 1942 and may be regarded as a significant turning point in the siege of Malta, despite suffering very heavy casualties.

David’s talk will cover life under siege in Malta and the subsequent attempts to bring in the much-needed aircraft, food, fuel, ammunition and supplies on Operation Pedestal.

For more details of all our talks and to register for them, visit www.bmmhs.org or email us on zoom@bmmhs.org

Thank you to everyone who has supported us and made donations to help keep us going.

Pauline Garrett