84 year-old Jack Harrison, ex Royal Navy and from Belper in Derbyshire, visited Loch Ewe, at the end of November 2009, as a guest of the owners of Pool House, Poolewe.

Pool House is the former Admiralty House, HQ of the Arctic Convoys which mustered and sailed from there to Murmansk in the infamous Arctic or Russian Convoys.

Many naval personnel, assigned to duty on convoy escort ships, were trained for this specific service in Argyll – in Tobermory on the Isle of Mull, by Vice Admiral Sir Gilbert Stephenson, known as ‘the terror of Tobermory’. Broadcaster Richard Baker has written a biography of Stephenson under that title.)

During World War II, Jack Harrison sailed from Loch Ewe where the convoys assembled prior to their dangerous return voyage to northern Russia.  Jack was Radar Operator on HMS Diadem during this period and is joint founder, together with the owners of Pool House, of the museum devoted to the Russan convoys.

During his visit Jack went to the Russian Convoy Club Memorial sited at the Eastern entrance to Loch Ewe – and to the building in the village of Aultbea, which is to become the museum, housing detailed convoy stories and memorabilia.

He also paid a nostalgic visit to other places in the locality which mean a lot to him in memories of that other time.

Jack Harrison’s ship, HMS Diadem (above, on convoy escort duty in 1944), saw a lively and varied wartime service. She not only did several periods of escort duty with the Arctic Convoys but provided cover for carrier-based air raids on the Battleship Tirpitz, sister ship of the  now legendary Bismarck, in her lair on a Norwegian fjord.

Diadem then became part of Force G, off Juno Beach in the Normandy landings, later in 1944.

Interestingly, there’s a Argyll connection with Tirpitz as well as with the Arctic Convoys. As For Argyll has reported before, Tirpitz was eventually done for by midget submarines tested in Loch Striven and manned by personnel staying at a naval HQ across the water in Rothesay on Bute.

Mike Rowlands

The photographs above show Jack Harrison looking out over Loch Ewe and at Pool House with the Bell of the SS Henry Bacon.

This was the liberty ship sunk on her return voyage from Murmansk, carrying survivors from the Norwegian Island of Soroy, evacuated by HMS Zambesi. The crew on the Henry Bacon made sure that all the people from Soroy were put into the lifeboats first. Evey one of them survived but few aboard the Henry Bacon were as fortunate.

We have published both Roy Elwood’s and Derek Hirst’s stories of the evacuation of Soroy; a brief account of the fatal convoy of the SS Henry Bacon; and a short account of Jack Harrison’s own experiences. (Enter SS Henry Bacon in the Search box at the top right of this screen and you’ll find them all.)

The photograph of HMS Diadem, which is in the public domain,  shows her on patrol, on escort duty with an Arctic Convoy in 1944.

Related Posts

• Roy Elwood on Arrochar, tuning torpedoes and climbing the local dance floor (1)
• Remembrance Day 2009 (7)
• Derek Hirst on the evacuation of Soroy as Channel 4 airs Arctic Convoy series (2)
• Jack Harrison – another link in the story of the Arctic Convoys at Loch Ewe (1)
• Vera Lynn records interview for Snowbow documentary on Arctic Convoys (1)

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