Sinking of Galatea

14–15 December 1941, Off Alexandria, Egypt

German success; Galatea sunk

German U-boats had passed into the Mediterranean in the autumn of 1941 and within weeks sank Ark Royal and Barham. On the night of 14–15 December the cruiser Galatea was returning to Alexandria with destroyers after a fruitless sweep for Italian convoys when U-557, under Ottokar Paulssen, hit her with torpedoes just outside the harbour. She capsized and sank in about three minutes, and 469 men were killed. Two days later U-557 herself was rammed by mistake by the Italian torpedo boat Orione off Crete and lost with all hands.