As we commemorate the anniversary of the war in Europe, we will reflect on the role Cornwall played in that conflict, and especially how this part of Cornwall was affected by the build-up to the D-Day landings. My recent research has revealed a remarkable coincidence concerning the embarkations from the Fal estuary.
As is well known the Fal and Helford rivers played a role in the huge flotilla that was assembled to take the invasion force to Normandy, though the great distance from Cornish waters to Normandy meant that the part of the force that departed from Cornwall reached Normandy on D-Day+1.
Two embarkation sites were constructed on the Fal. What is now called Smuggler’s Cottage was a quiet spot where a ferryman had lived who rowed passengers from the Philleigh side to the Kea side. Although the ferry had stopped operating before the First World War it remained its tranquility. At Turnaware, where the Fal begins to open into Carrick Roads, nothing of substance existed. Both these sites were transformed as contractors drove roads down to the foreshore and constructed large ‘hards’ as well as piers against which ships
could dock.
Although the invasion did not take place until 1944 this plan dates from 1942, an indication of the early planning which took place for the invasion of Europe. [Plan courtesy of Nick Johnson.] Even before this Falmouth and the river Fal were a target for German bombers. My grandmother’s diaries record that on Easter Monday [14th April] 1941 at 4.30 am a ship was sunk at Tolverne [this was a small Free French warship and her remains still lie in Limekiln Creek], on 17th May Coombe was machine-gunned, on 6th July four bombs were dropped on Porth Kea [luckily neither event caused any casualties], on 26th May 1942 more bombs were dropped on Tolverne and on 6th August 1942 the Royal Cornwall Infirmary was bombed with fourteen people being killed.
On this extract from a LIDAR map (above) Tolverne is on the bottom left and in the wood on the right can be seen the remains of two bomb craters.
The wood in which the craters lie is called Polgerran wood and Polgerran [PF-1] was the official name of the embarkation site. Records show that ten Landing Ships Tank embarked at Polgerran and thirteen at Turnaware [PF-2].
These were big ships, 328 feet long with a beam of 50 feet, with less than 3 feet of draft towards the bow but over 7 feet at the stern. They had a ship’s company of 13 officers and 104 enlisted men, and many of these were gunners to man their considerable anti-aircraft armament. Their maximum speed was just over 11 knots with an endurance of 24,000 miles at a speed of 9 knots, and carrying just under 4,000 tons.
Their range was important as all the 1,052 ships were built in US navy yards and were then sailed across the Atlantic, an awful trip as being flat-bottomed they rolled terribly. On passage they carried a cargo of the smaller Land Craft Assault.
They were, of course, designed to be driven onto a beach where tanks, vehicles and troops would be discharged via a ramp. It is recorded that when LSTs were first being developed one of the problems was to find captains who were prepared to run their ships aground as it was contrary to all they had been taught.
Some of these LSTs had taken part in the invasion of Sicily in July 1943. After their arrival in Normandy they then took part in what was a shuttle service making umpteen trips to and fro, carrying supplies to the army, and this went on for several months until ports could be liberated, freed of mines and brought into operation. They also brought back casualties and prisoners of war. After the war in Europe ended a good number went to the Pacific theatre. And when the war ended many went into merchant service, a frequent use was as ferries between Greek islands or Pacific islands.
Of the 1,052 LSTs that were built only two survive, and they are now museum ships in the USA. The remarkable coincidence is that both the two survivors are LSTs that embarked from the Fal, LST 393 sailed from Tolverne and LST 325 from Turnaware.
(above) LST 325 on a Normandy beach. This would have been some days after the invasion as the beach is remarkably clear of the debris of war. [The website which records all these ships is www.navsource.org/archives/10/16/16idx.htm]
Note the size of her twin rudders and propellers. An anchor can be seen by the stern. This would have been dropped on approach and used to haul herself off again. Some of her anti-aircraft guns are clearly visible. The crew look remarkably relaxed, except for the figure between the rudders who appears to have spotted a problem.
LST 393 is pictured above at Muskegon on Lake Michigan, USA.
LST 325 is preserved at Evansville Indiana as a tribute to all those who served in Landing Ship Tank. See http://new.lstmemorial.org/virtualExhibit/vex1/index.htm
We will remember them
Nigel Baker
April 2025