Last weeks’ heatwave, nicknamed ‘Lucifer’, caused havoc in various European countries, with temperatures reaching over 40C. Malta was not spared from ‘Lucifer’ but to my knowledge, except for the huffing and puffing, we have bravely weathered the heatwave. But there is currently at least one other hot-headed despot who is making worldwide news, and if the person in-charge is allowed the press the red-button, the consequences would be disastrous to mankind. The world is facing a nuclear war threat, this time from North Korea. North Korea is drawing up plans to launch a missile attack near Guam in the Western Pacific. World leaders expressed alarm last Friday at the warlike language emanating from North Korea and the United States, but sought to calm their citizens’ fears of a nuclear war. The world is once again experiencing a similar situation to that of fifty-five years ago. Back then from the moment when the world learned that the former Soviet Union had secretly placed nuclear-armed missiles in Cuba, the world stood still for fourteen days in October 1962, as John F. Kennedy and Nikita Khrushchev worked to reach a compromise to avoid a nuclear war.
But ‘Lucifer’ or not, with good reason Malta and Gozo are in a festive mood today, August 15. This year Malta is celebrating the 75th anniversary of the arrival of the convoy code-named Operation Pedestal, commonly known as the Santa Marija Convoy. Of course, it is a public holiday, and around this time of the year, various business units close for the summer shutdown. Similarly many employees also seek to take some days off from work. The younger generation flock to Gozo in droves, while police officers step up the raids on illegal drugs, normally followed by a press statement indicating the number of arrests made and the quantity of drugs seized. Mind you, the police should be applauded for taking such action, but I still believe that there are by far more serious allegations in which individuals holding public office have as yet been allowed to walk scot-free.
Back to the public holiday, whether one gives more weight to the bravery of our fathers or to the fact that the feast of the Assumption of Our Lady is celebrated in seven localities, is a matter of choice. But whatever the choice, the two events are now intertwined and form part of our history, and is well narrated by various local historians.
Back in 1940, on June 10, Mussolini declared war. The following day, Italian bombers attacked Malta, mainly our harbours. The Islands were high on the enemy's agenda. Stuka bombers based in Sicily pounded Malta heavily. Seventy-five years ago, Malta was on the verge of surrender. It is probably Malta’s most dreadful period during World War II. People were starving and no ammunition was left to defend the Islands. It was abundantly clear, Malta was about to surrender in the first week of September 1942. It was a do or die situation. In an attempt to save the situation, a convoy made up of three aircraft carriers - the HMS Eagle, the HMS Indomitable and the HMS Victorious, the battleships HMS Nelson and HMS Rodney, seven cruisers, 32 destroyers, eight submarines and other units with the code-name Operational Pedestal entered the Mediterranean basin on the night of August 10, 1942.
The supply convoy, or rather the wreckages that were left after it was heavily bombed, limped into Grand Harbour on August 15. The SS Ohio entered the Grand Harbour fastened between two destroyers and a tugboat. The severely damaged oil tanker played a fundamental role in Operation Pedestal. Although the Ohio reached Malta successfully, she was so badly damaged that she had to be effectively scuttled in order to offload her cargo, and never sailed again.
The Santa Marija Convoy brought just enough food and an adequate supply of ammunition to keep the enemy at bay. Malta’s batteries, in today’s jargon, were re-charged. Out of the 85,000 tons of supplies loaded on the merchant ships, only about a third was saved, with the rest ending on the bottom of the sea. Nonetheless, it was enough to stave off Malta from surrendering.
Seventy-five years ago, on the feast of Santa Marija, the crews on the ships limping into the Grand Harbour were greeted by the crowds who lined the bastions while the bands played the God Save the King and other morale-raising tunes.
Although times have changed, “it is important that we know where we come from, because if you do not know where you come from, then you don't know where you are, and if you don't know where you are, you don't know where you're going. And if you don't know where you're going, you're probably going wrong” - Terry Pratchett.
Gejtu Vella
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