Capture of Saint Pierre and Miquelon
Part of theAmerican Theatre ofWorld War II
Surcouf, the lead vessel of the flotilla
Date 24 December 1941 Location Saint Pierre and Miquelon 46°46′40″N56°10′40″W / 46.7778°N 56.1778°W /46.7778; -56.1778 Result Free French victory Saint Pierre and Miquelon captured
Belligerents
Free France	Vichy France
Commanders and leaders
Charles de Gaulle Émile Muselier	Gilbert de Bournat Georges Robert
Strength
1 submarine 3 corvettes 230 men	Gendarmerie garrison
Casualties and losses
None	None

The islands ofSaint Pierre and Miquelon, acolony of France off the coast ofNewfoundland, were taken over byFree French Naval Forces on 24 December 1941. At the time, the islands' authorities had sworn their allegiance to theVichy French government.

Following thearmistice of 22 June 1940, the administration of the islands had been under the control of the Vichy government, represented by the administratorGilbert de Bournat.^[1] The presence of Vichy-administered islands off the coast ofCanada caused significant concerns for its government. The Canadian government considered the possibility that theAxis might useSaint Pierre and Miquelon as a base of operations. The colony's proximity to Canada andNewfoundland could offer German submariners an excellent position to re-supply and coordinate attacks upon Allied convoys. This was helped by the fact that the islands were able to communicate to the French mainland by means of wireless communication and transatlantic cables. It was feared that the islands' authorities could transmit vital information to Vichy France and inform German submarine crews about meteorological conditions, the movements of Allied warships and the progression of convoys. There was also concern that local fishery products could be sent to Germany through mainland France and, in turn, contribute to the Axis war effort.^[2]

Even before the armistice, thegovernment of Newfoundland called for an invasion of Saint Pierre and Miquelon. After consultations with theUnited Kingdom, it was recommended that Newfoundland should discuss the issue with the Canadian government. However, an invasion did not come to fruition as Canada's War Cabinet refused to initiate an action for fear of offending the American State Department, although the Canadian military secretly prepared an expeditionary unit, "Force Q", to prepare to carry out an invasion. Concerns grew throughout 1941 as theBattle of the Atlantic reached Canadian waters. TheCanada–United States Permanent Joint Board on Defence had unanimously agreed on 10 November 1941 that the existence of an uncontrolled and high-powered wireless transmitting station on the islands constituted a potential danger to the interests of Canada and theUnited States. However, the United States vigorously opposed any forceful attempt to take control of the islands, seeing such action as undermining its asserted sovereignty over the Western Hemisphere and inviting war into the northwest Atlantic.^[2]

During this time,Charles de Gaulle sent AdmiralÉmile Muselier to investigate the possibility of invading the islands.^[3] Despite continued objections from the United States, de Gaulle ordered the capture of Saint Pierre and Miquelon.^[4]

On 23 December 1941, a French flotilla consisting of the submarineSurcouf and three corvettes,Mimosa,Aconit andAlysse, carrying 230 men sailed from Halifax under the pretext of a training mission. Acting against the orders ofRoyal Canadian Navy Rear AdmiralLeonard W. Murray, at 3 am on 24 December 1941, the flotilla arrived off the port ofSaint-Pierre and disembarked 230 armed sailors. After meeting no resistance, the Free French forces captured the islands in only 20 minutes.^[2]

After the arrest of Governor de Bournat, the Free French authorities organized aplebiscite on 25 December 1941. Males of 18 years and over were given a choice of "rallying to Free France or collaborating with Axis powers". Close to 98 per cent of the male population voted in favour of Free French administration.^[2]

News of the capture reached the United States with Secretary of StateCordell Hull calling the capture a violation of prior agreements between the US and Allied powers and of US territorial doctrine, asserting that it was a "provocation to war in American waters between Vichy and de Gaulle," and comparing the Free French takeover to Axis aggression. The US considered dispatching naval forces to remove the Free French forces, but ultimately chose to propose a compromise that would see the islands demilitarized under US, British and Canadian supervision, with Free French ships redeploying to the Atlantic theatre.^[2]

In January of 1942, Canada demobilized Force Q, foreclosing the possibility that it would invade the islands. The dispute with the US formally came to an end in February of 1942 following Hull's recommendation to drop the matter for the duration of the war in the interest of unity among the Allied forces. Historians Cecil Lingard and Reginald Trotter criticized Hull's role in creating the dispute with the Free French, arguing that his personal hubris and inflated sense of US hegemony created an unnecessary conflict between allies.^[2]

• Battle of Réunion (28 November 1942)

• Aron, Robert (1964).Grands dossiers de l'histoire contemporaine. Paris: CAL (Club des amis du livre).

• Thomas, Martin (1997)."Deferring to Vichy in the Western Hemisphere: The St Pierre and Miquelon Affair of 1941".The International History Review.19 (4):809–835.doi:10.1080/07075332.1997.9640805.ISSN 0707-5332.JSTOR 40108145.
• Christian, William A., Jr. (1969).Divided Island: Faction and Unity on Saint Pierre. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. pp. 77–100.ISBN 978-0-674-21289-3.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
• Courteaux, Olivier (2013).Canada between Vichy and Free France, 1940-1945. Toronto, ON: University of Toronto Press. pp. 116–39.ISBN 9781442661271.

• 20th century in Saint Pierre and Miquelon
• Free French Naval Forces
• Battles and operations of World War II involving France
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• Bilateral relations of the Dominion of Newfoundland
• Military battles of Vichy France
• American theater of World War II
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• French colonial empire in World War II

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