The Steep Atlantick Stream

The Steep Atlantick Stream written by Robert Harling and published by

Seaforth Publishing - £14.99 - Hardback - Pages 232

First published in 1946, this atmospheric memoir of the Battle of the Atlantic offers one of

the most original accounts of war at sea aboard a corvette, escorting convoys in both the

North and South Atlantic. The author, an RNVR lieutenant, experienced the terrors of

U-boat attacks and the hardships of autumn gales as well as the relief of shore runs in

ports as far apart as Halifax and Freetown.

The narrative begins with Harling’s voyage from the Clyde to New York on the Queen Mary (or QM, as she was known during her martial career), on route to join a newly-built corvette in Halifax, Nova Scotia. He was to be her First Lieutenant, and his service at sea started in the spring of 1941, just as the battle of the Atlantic was entering its most crucial stage. During the first east-bound convoy he was to experience attacks by U-boats, the loss of merchant vessels and a steep learning curve as the ship’s crew struggled to live in the harsh wartime conditions. Later that summer they made return voyages to Iceland where runs ashore offered some solace from dangerous days at sea. Time was also spent in the South Atlantic with voyages to Freetown and Lagos, before a short interlude when he experienced the excitement of fighting with Coastal Forces. The corvette subsequently returned to escorting convoys from Halifax to Europe.

His narrative is both serious and humorous, and his picture of wartime Britain, his descriptions of being buffeted by great storm-tossed seas in the ‘cockleshell corvettes’, and the recounting of grim losses are all too real and authentic. His story ends as he leaves his ship after a violent cold developed into pneumonia, and soon afterwards he hears the heart-breaking news of her loss, along with the captain and half the crew, after being torpedoed. He is left to ponder on the many tombless dead consigned by the war to the Steep Atlantick Stream.

This is a small book but reflects the small world of these ships that the sailors had to live in. A story about a small corvette having to join forces with other likely crews to help face down the threat of U-boats in the Atlantic in WW2. This book is written by the crewman on board and conveys the ups and downs of being at sea during the lively times and the down times. This book was first published in 1946, but the book holds up well and I really enjoyed the camaraderie and humour within the book.