Pedlar Palmer
Encyclopedia
Alfred Brian Palmer MBE
, DSC
(27 March 1899 Redfern, New South Wales
– 4 July 1993 Clearwater
, Florida
) was a Royal Navy Reserve captain and near the end of his career was the commander of the shore base HMS Furneaux in Brisbane
. He is known for his bravery in breaking the German
blockade of Tobruk
in the Second World War with his small schooner
Maria Giovanni. During the Second World War he was wounded several times and finally taken prisoner by the Germans, from which he attempted numerous escapes. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross
in 1941 for "courage, skill and devotion to duty in operations off the Libyan coast", and made a Member of the Order of the British Empire in 1944.
in 1830. After three voyages to New Zealand on the Daniel in November 1916 Palmer joined the Burrowa an Australian merchant sailing vessel (2902 gross tonnes). On 27 April Burrowa was attacked and sunk "sixty miles west of the Scilly Isles
" by a German submarine:
The crew spent two nights in a lifeboat. They were sighted by a patrol plane, picked up and taken to Penzance
. Palmer then served in the British navy until the end of the First World War.
Between the First and Second World Wars, Palmer was a merchant seaman serving on many Commonwealth Line ships. He was a crew member of the Carawa when it was run aground in the Galapagos islands. The crew members returned to Sydney on the steamers Australrange and Australmont in July 1920. In 1928, as the depression began, the Commonwealth line was sold and crews were retrenched.
He commanded a company of the Chinese Lancers in Shanghai and was a member of the volunteer reserve. On the outbreak of the Second World War he rejoined the Royal Navy, and first served as executive officer of HMS Medway (F25).
on 1 January 1941. Palmer was made skipper of the Maria Giovani in January 1941.
He "won fame through his cussedness on the Spud Run", and by his willingness to carry any cargo.
There is slight differences in how his ship was captured with one saying the *Italians* "trapped him by a ruse", and the other saying the *Germans* "kidded him" to make landfall in their territory, regardless Palmer and his crew became prisoners of war in Italy.
The supply of Tobruk by Palmer and others was known as the "Ferry Service
".
in 1947. He was convicted and sentenced to one year hard labour but the conviction was overturned on appeal.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
, DSC
Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom)
The Distinguished Service Cross is the third level military decoration awarded to officers, and other ranks, of the British Armed Forces, Royal Fleet Auxiliary and British Merchant Navy and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries.The DSC, which may be awarded posthumously, is...
(27 March 1899 Redfern, New South Wales
Redfern, New South Wales
Redfern is an inner-city suburb of Sydney. Redfern is 3 kilometres south of the Sydney central business district and is part of the local government area of the City of Sydney...
– 4 July 1993 Clearwater
Clearwater, Florida
Clearwater is a city located in Pinellas County, Florida, US, nearly due west of Tampa and northwest of St. Petersburg. In the west of Clearwater lies the Gulf of Mexico and in the east lies Tampa Bay. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 108,787. It is the county seat of...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
) was a Royal Navy Reserve captain and near the end of his career was the commander of the shore base HMS Furneaux in Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
. He is known for his bravery in breaking the German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
blockade of Tobruk
Tobruk
Tobruk or Tubruq is a city, seaport, and peninsula on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near the border with Egypt. It is the capital of the Butnan District and has a population of 120,000 ....
in the Second World War with his small schooner
Schooner
A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....
Maria Giovanni. During the Second World War he was wounded several times and finally taken prisoner by the Germans, from which he attempted numerous escapes. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross
Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom)
The Distinguished Service Cross is the third level military decoration awarded to officers, and other ranks, of the British Armed Forces, Royal Fleet Auxiliary and British Merchant Navy and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries.The DSC, which may be awarded posthumously, is...
in 1941 for "courage, skill and devotion to duty in operations off the Libyan coast", and made a Member of the Order of the British Empire in 1944.
Early life
Palmer's name at birth was Alfred O'Brien. He first went to sea on the Daniel, a 185 ton sailing vessel built in NorwayNorway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
in 1830. After three voyages to New Zealand on the Daniel in November 1916 Palmer joined the Burrowa an Australian merchant sailing vessel (2902 gross tonnes). On 27 April Burrowa was attacked and sunk "sixty miles west of the Scilly Isles
Isles of Scilly
The Isles of Scilly form an archipelago off the southwestern tip of the Cornish peninsula of Great Britain. The islands have had a unitary authority council since 1890, and are separate from the Cornwall unitary authority, but some services are combined with Cornwall and the islands are still part...
" by a German submarine:
The crew spent two nights in a lifeboat. They were sighted by a patrol plane, picked up and taken to Penzance
Penzance
Penzance is a town, civil parish, and port in Cornwall, England, in the United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is approximately 75 miles west of Plymouth and 300 miles west-southwest of London...
. Palmer then served in the British navy until the end of the First World War.
Between the First and Second World Wars, Palmer was a merchant seaman serving on many Commonwealth Line ships. He was a crew member of the Carawa when it was run aground in the Galapagos islands. The crew members returned to Sydney on the steamers Australrange and Australmont in July 1920. In 1928, as the depression began, the Commonwealth line was sold and crews were retrenched.
He commanded a company of the Chinese Lancers in Shanghai and was a member of the volunteer reserve. On the outbreak of the Second World War he rejoined the Royal Navy, and first served as executive officer of HMS Medway (F25).
Maria Giovanni
The Maria Giovanni was a 200 ton schooner captured from the Italians by the British destroyer DaintyHMS Dainty (D108)
HMS Dainty was a Daring class destroyer of the British Royal Navy....
on 1 January 1941. Palmer was made skipper of the Maria Giovani in January 1941.
He "won fame through his cussedness on the Spud Run", and by his willingness to carry any cargo.
There is slight differences in how his ship was captured with one saying the *Italians* "trapped him by a ruse", and the other saying the *Germans* "kidded him" to make landfall in their territory, regardless Palmer and his crew became prisoners of war in Italy.
The supply of Tobruk by Palmer and others was known as the "Ferry Service
Tobruk Ferry Service
The Tobruk Ferry Service was the name given to the force of Royal Navy and Royal Australian Navy ships involved in the supply of Allied forces involved in the Siege of Tobruk...
".
CNRRA Incident
Palmer was accused of embezzlement while working as Marine Superintendent of Waterways Transport for the Chinese National Relief and Rehabilitation AdministrationChinese National Relief and Rehabilitation Administration
The Chinese National Relief and Rehabilitation Administration was an organisation established by the government of the Republic of China to distribute relief aid after from 1945 to 1947...
in 1947. He was convicted and sentenced to one year hard labour but the conviction was overturned on appeal.
Later life
Palmer and his wife flew from Florida to Australia to attend a Rats of Tobruk reunion in 1977, where around 600 veterans marched through Sydney streets.Autobiography
- Pedlar Palmer of Tobruk (1981) Canberra, Australia: Roebuck Society. ISBN 0-909434-21-2
- The Pirate of Tobruk: a sailor's life on the Seven Seas, with Mary E. Curtis (1994), Annapolis, Maryland: United States Naval Institute. ISBN 1-55750-667-1.