Operation Felix

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BigRich
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Operation Felix

#1

Post by BigRich » 21 Feb 2003, 19:21

Can I get info on Operation Felix, I know that it involved Spain and Germany, and they wanted to gain control of the Moroccoan Part of Gibraltar Straight. Did it ever happen? Did Spain do anything else with Germany? I know it was a "nonbellergent" country, but I am just wondering I always thought Spain was neutral.

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Polynike
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#2

Post by Polynike » 22 Feb 2003, 01:30

operation felix was the plan to capture gibraltar.franco would not allow hitler to move troops through spain and therefore the plan did not go through....the germans estimated that the Rock would fall in 3 days with a high number of casualties

try these sites for more info

http://dotcom.gi/mag/stories/operation_felix.htm

http://www.gibnet.com/texts/hitler.htm

http://www.sonic.net/~bstone/history/felix.shtml

hope this helps


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USAF1986
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#3

Post by USAF1986 » 22 Feb 2003, 08:32

Hi! If you can find a copy, I highly recommend Charles B. Burdick's Germany’s Military Strategy and Spain in World War II (Syracuse University Press, New York, 1968). This excellent book is devoted to German-Spanish relationships during WWII with extensive coverage of the German plans for Operation "Felix." Burdick spent many years corresponding with and interviewing many of the German generals and other senior officers involved in the planning of "Felix." HIGHLY recommended reading!

Here is a brief overview of the forces tasked with carrying out the original plan of Operation "Felix":

Placed under the general command of Generalfeldmarschall Walter Reichenau’s 6th Army, Generalleutnant Ludwig Kübler’s XXXXIX Mountain Army Corps would control the attack on the fortress of Gibraltar itself. In conjunction with heavy Luftwaffe support, the massed fire of over 200 heavy artillery pieces and Nebelwerfers, and 150 “Brandenburg” special operations troops, Gebirgsjäger-Regiment 98 (Oberst Egbert Picker) and Infantry Regiment “Großdeutschland” would attack from La Linea across the 1,450 meter-long Neutral Ground and assault the southwest corner of the Rock after a reinforced pioneer unit (Oberst Franz Geiger) seized and cleared the area in front of it. Additionally, General der Panzertruppe Rudolf Schmidt’s XXXIX Army Corps (Motorized) of three divisions (SS-Totenkopf-Division, 16th Panzer Division, and 16th Motorized Infantry Division) would provide flank protection against possible British amphibious landings in Spain or Portugal.

Also, issue 21 of After the Battle magazine features an excellent in-depth article of Gibraltar during WWII with coverage of the planned Operation "Felix." This issue is still available from RZM Imports, Inc. (see that company's website).

Regards,
Shawn

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Polynike
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#4

Post by Polynike » 22 Feb 2003, 13:03

i think that issue of after the battle is available locally so ill try and get a copy and scan some pics to post here

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Polynike
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#5

Post by Polynike » 22 Feb 2003, 13:26

not being biased or anyhting here but the germans would have had a great deal of problems in getting thru this.... view from the neutral ground as the germans would have seen the North Face and a view from the air
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BigRich
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#6

Post by BigRich » 24 Feb 2003, 17:48

Thanks alot guys......

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tigre
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Re: Operation Felix

#7

Post by tigre » 29 Jul 2020, 19:49

Hello to all :D; an old thread but still....., speaking of intense espionage and reconnaissance tasks from Spanish soil, here is a complement......

Unternehmen "Felix".

Gibraltar, originally from the Arabic "Jebel al Tarik", rock of Tarik, has always had a special sound and nimbus. In ancient times it formed the legendary "Pillars of Hercules" under the name "Calpe" along with the one located south of "Abila", the reef of Ceuta that projects into the sea. In 710, the Arab General Tarik and his Arab hosts crossed from Africa to Europe, conquering almost all of Spain with his colleague Musa, who then remained under Moorish rule for more than 700 years. Throughout this period, the Strait of Jebel al Tarik, along with the sites of Tarifa and Cádiz, retained their great military importance.

Unique is the fact that since its conquest by Admiral Sir George Rooke and the Landgraf (*) Georg of Hesse in 1704, the "rock" has withstood all attacks, all sieges and all political efforts to be recovered until our days. However, its location as a block at the entrance to the western Mediterranean, its structure and appearance as a rock, as well as its extension in an underground fortress is unique.

When Hitler started the war with Poland in September 1939, Gibraltar was not discussed. After the fall of France in June 1940, the German occupation zone in northern France directly bordered with General Franco's Spain. On the basis of good relations during the Spanish Civil War, Adolf Hitler and Generalissimo Franco met in Hendaye, French Basque country, in October 1940 and discussed the circumstances under which Spain would enter the war.

Despite the lack of clarity about the state of Spain in the course of the war, specific attack operations were planned against the rock of Gibraltar by the High Command of the Wehrmacht. Therefore, it was planned to conquer the British naval base in Gibraltar in 1941 to gain control of the maritime connection between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. Furthermore, connections between Britain and its Mediterranean bases in favor of the Axis would have been interrupted. Malta's supply operations were almost always carried out mainly from Gibraltar. Had Gibraltar fallen, Malta would no longer have been sustainable, which would have resulted in extremely favorable conditions for axis operations in North Africa.

Unternehmen »Felsennest«: how the Brandenburgers wanted to conquer Gibraltar.

When a certain Mr. Guillermo with his driver and a partner arrived in Madrid on July 23, 1940 after a tour of northern Spain, he called the German embassy on Calle Castellana from a private apartment. The extension number referred him to the Kriegsorganisation Spain (KO Spain). Oberstabsintendant Franzenbach, the head of finance for this department, responded. He had been waiting for this call. When he heard that "uncle" had arrived, he was relieved, because now he was sure that Admiral Canaris, no one else, had arrived in Madrid undetected.

Oberstabsintendant Franzenbach immediately passed the message on to the head of KO Spain, Fregattenkapitän Wilhelm Leißner. In Madrid this functioned as the "honorary attaché" Gustav Lenz. When "Uncle Guillermo" arrived at the embassy, ​​his companion turned out to be Oberstleutnant Hans Piekenbrock, head of Department I (Geheimer Meldedienst) in the Abwehr.

Admiral Canaris told the astonished head of this department that a German command of several experts from the army and the air force would be coming to Spain shortly to verify if there was a possibility of conquering the British fortress of Gibraltar and, therefore, block the move from the Royal Navy to the Mediterranean, to Malta and Alexandria, and therefore also paralyze the oil supply from these bases.

(*) Noble title between count and duke.

Sources: Gebirgstruppen im Kampf um Festungen : die deutsche Planung zum beabsichtigten Angriff auf Gibraltar.
http://www.nexusboard.net/showthread.ph ... did=296771 (offline)
http://www.gebirgsjaeger.4mg.com/kopold7.htm
http://stonebooks.com/history/felix.shtml
The Brandenburger Commandos: Germany's Elite Warrior Spies in World War II.
Nazi Spymaster: The Life and Death of Admiral Wilhelm Canaris.

Cheers. Raúl M 8-).
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The Rock of Gibraltar..............................................
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hucks216
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Re: Operation Felix

#8

Post by hucks216 » 29 Jul 2020, 22:16

Unterlagen der Ia-Abteilung des Infanterieregiments „Großdeutschland“: Regiments- und Bataillonsbefehle für den Angriff gegen die Festung Gibraltar -
https://wwii.germandocsinrussia.org/de/ ... rid/zoom/1

Unterlagen des Amts Ausland/Abwehr im OKW: Auswertungsbericht von v-Mann-Nachrichten über die britischen Befestigungen auf Gibraltar und zur Stärke der dort befindlichen Garnison -
https://wwii.germandocsinrussia.org/de/ ... rid/zoom/1

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tigre
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Re: Operation Felix

#9

Post by tigre » 29 Jul 2020, 22:23

Thanks for that complement, very good documents indeed :wink:. Cheers. Raúl M 8-).

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tigre
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Re: Operation Felix

#10

Post by tigre » 05 Aug 2020, 16:38

Hello to all :D; more.........................................

Unternehmen »Felsennest«: how the Brandenburgers wanted to conquer Gibraltar.

Canaris then led Piekenbrock to the headquarters of the Spanish General Staff. General Juan Vigón Suero-Díaz, his Chief and Canaris's friend, received the high German guests and at the same time called Colonel Martínez Campos when Canaris explained the German plan.

The Head of the Spanish General Staff immediately organized a special audience with the Spanish Head of State, General Franco. The Caudillo was impressed by this plan, although he indicated that the British fleet would be a very strong enemy. Even so, it seemed clear to Admiral Canaris that Franco, and therefore Spain, would participate.

To conquer Gibraltar and go to war on the axis side, the Spanish demanded important parts of the French colonial territory. Realizable wishes when it comes to dominating the Mediterranean Sea, but Hitler refused and carelessly dismissed an opportunity that was decisive for war!

Meanwhile, members of the special staff for Operation Gibraltar had arrived in Madrid. Lieutenant Colonel of the Spanish secret service Ramón Pardo was assigned as guide and liaison. It should instruct the Germans and give the necessary technical information.

The leaders of this group were:

Oberstleutnant Hans Mikosch, who as commander of Pionier Btl 51 received the Knight's Cross on May 21, 1940 in the west and then later as the 201st soldier received the Oak Leaves on March 6, 1943. His last rank was Generalleutnant.

Major Wolfgang Langkau of the Jüterbog Artillery School HQ and Hauptmann (Hauptleute) of the paratrooper troop Rudolf Witzig, who as Head of the Assault Group "Granite" had conquered Eben Emael and received the Knight's Cross and Hauptmann Osterecht.

On July 24, this group was directly in front of Gibraltar and made its surveys. Lieutenant Colonel Pardo gave the German group the opportunity to observe Gibraltar directly from La Linea. Then from the Punta Gamero lighthouse, they were able to observe and measure all the western defenses of the rock with precision.

Sources: Gebirgstruppen im Kampf um Festungen : die deutsche Planung zum beabsichtigten Angriff auf Gibraltar.
http://f6365.nexusboard.de/topic.php?topic=296771 (offline)
http://www.gebirgsjaeger.4mg.com/kopold7.htm
http://stonebooks.com/history/felix.shtml
The Brandenburger Commandos: Germany's Elite Warrior Spies in World War II.
Nazi Spymaster: The Life and Death of Admiral Wilhelm Canaris.

Cheers. Raúl M 8-).
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Gibraltar airfield full of British aircraft ...........................................
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Ironmachine
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Re: Operation Felix

#11

Post by Ironmachine » 06 Aug 2020, 08:15

Gibraltar airfield full of British aircraft ...........................................
That last picture was very likely taken at a much later date. Maybe in 1942, around the date of Operation Torch.

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tigre
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Re: Operation Felix

#12

Post by tigre » 12 Aug 2020, 15:40

Hello to all :D; more.........................................

Unternehmen »Felsennest«: how the Brandenburgers wanted to conquer Gibraltar.

Wearing Spanish military uniform, Oberstleutnant Mikosch flew the Seville-Ceuta civil flight route, which was flying near the Gibraltar exclusion zone.

Hauptleute (captains) Witzig and Osterecht searched the entire area for landing opportunities for paratroopers and airborne troops, while Admiral Canaris drove through the area with Piekenbrock. At Algeciras, where the Abwehr had three houses on its western shore, from which they had a view of the enemy port, he observed the traffic there through excellent binoculars.

It was a particular pleasure for him to spy on a few British officers at the Reina Maria Cristina hotel in Algeciras. Spanish army posts on the border told him what they knew about the fortress. What Admiral Canaris had in mind was the conquest of Gibraltar, the closure of the Mediterranean for the British fleet and, as a final consequence, the end of the war against England.

After France was defeated in a six-week campaign, General Franco, who had issued a strict "no" to the German plans to conquer Gibraltar in 1939, declared on June 10, 1940: "Spain is no longer neutral, it just isn't belligerent. " As confirmation of this, on June 12, he had Spanish troops march to Tangier in Morocco, and the first transfers of Spanish enthusiasts chanted enthusiastically: "Gibraltar for Spain!"

The fact that Gibraltar was one of the most important, if not the most important, British fortresses outside the motherland was understood from its location at the entrance to the Mediterranean. The owners of Gibraltar ruled the Mediterranean. And with it, Malta also stood or fell!

A few days later, the Spanish ambassador Marques de Magaz had declared to the Secretary of State in the German Foreign Ministry, Freiherr von Weizsäcker, that Spain claimed not only Gibraltar, but all of Morocco, the Oran region and other parts of the Sahara. With this, his country would join the war along with Germany. This entry also included support for German troops who wanted to take possession of Gibraltar.

Sources: Gebirgstruppen im Kampf um Festungen : die deutsche Planung zum beabsichtigten Angriff auf Gibraltar.
http://f6365.nexusboard.de/topic.php?topic=296771 (offline)
http://www.gebirgsjaeger.4mg.com/kopold7.htm
http://stonebooks.com/history/felix.shtml
The Brandenburger Commandos: Germany's Elite Warrior Spies in World War II.
Nazi Spymaster: The Life and Death of Admiral Wilhelm Canaris.

Cheers. Raúl M 8-).

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tigre
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Re: Operation Felix

#13

Post by tigre » 19 Aug 2020, 21:26

Hello to all :D; more.........................................

Unternehmen »Felsennest«: how the Brandenburgers wanted to conquer Gibraltar.

All of this had trapped Admiral Canaris in his planning and had resulted in the swift preparations just described. The fact that the "Brandenburgers" had achieved a great number of spectacular successes in the western campaign was of great importance to the reputation of Canaris. Now the Admiral and head of the German Abwehr wanted to reuse the "Brandenburgers", smuggle them through Spain and take possession of the British fortress by a coup. He also selected III. Battalion commanded by Hauptmann Hans-Joachim Rudloff, which had been so successful in the West.

Canaris sent Hauptmann Rudloff to southern Spain. But now the matter became critical and on July 6, 1940, Canaris rushed to report to the Army Chief of Staff, General Franz Halder (promoted to Colonel General on July 19).

When Hauptmann Rudloff returned from Spain, it had bad news in his luggage. The attempt to smuggle larger groups of "Brandenburgers" through Spain without British espionage noticing was out of the question. On the other hand, in the port of Ceuta, off Gibraltar, there were no crane systems to put heavy artillery from ships ashore.

Just as Admiral Canaris was about to let these Gibraltar archives fade into oblivion, Hitler and his advisers suddenly updated the plan. Generalmajor Jodl, head of the Wehrmacht Leadership Department (Wehrmachtführungsamtes), had drawn up, as Hitler's planning director, a memorandum entitled "Continuation of the fight against England." The taking of Gibraltar occupied a large part of it.

Hitler waited a few more days thinking that he would hear a peace offer from England, which should logically happen after France was shattered. On July 15, Hitler issued "Führer's Instruction No. 16", the core of which specified: "Since England, despite its desperate military situation, still shows no sign of willingness to reach an understanding, I have decided to prepare and , if necessary, carry out a landing operation against England. "

Thus was born "Operation Sea Lion", which meant that Gibraltar was once again on the table. But not entirely, because Hitler feared the implementation of "Sea Lion" and tended again to see Gibraltar as a less dangerous undertaking.

Sources: Gebirgstruppen im Kampf um Festungen : die deutsche Planung zum beabsichtigten Angriff auf Gibraltar.
http://f6365.nexusboard.de/topic.php?topic=296771 (offline)
http://www.gebirgsjaeger.4mg.com/kopold7.htm
http://stonebooks.com/history/felix.shtml
The Brandenburger Commandos: Germany's Elite Warrior Spies in World War II.
Nazi Spymaster: The Life and Death of Admiral Wilhelm Canaris.

Cheers. Raúl M 8-).
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The perspective from Algeciras .......................................................
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tigre
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Re: Operation Felix

#14

Post by tigre » 26 Aug 2020, 17:50

Hello to all :D; more.........................................

Unternehmen »Felsennest«: how the Brandenburgers wanted to conquer Gibraltar.

On October 2, 1940, the following daily order was issued:

Ib V: 35051/40 geheim (secret) Berlin, October 02, 1940
Participation of the Abwehr II in an attack on Gibraltar

A: Special actions:
Sabotage of the following targets:

1. Fuel supply systems.
a) coal,
b) liquid fuel.

2. Aerodrome, maritime station.
a) repair shop,
b) aircraft.

3. Power plant.

4. Seawater distillation plants.

5. Gas works.

B: Employment of the Lehrbataillons battalion »Brandenburg« z.b.V. 800:
Perform the following tasks before the attack begins:

1. Cut or blow up the iron fence that separates the English area from the neutral zone.

2. Prevent the path to the west of the flood basin from being blown at the northwest edge of the rock.

3. Prevent the drilling from east to west at the north foot of the rock (Devil's Tower) from being blown up.

4. Tasks 2 and 3 are to be carried out in part with speedboats and, if necessary, in English uniform or civilian clothes.
Further deployment to distant targets does not appear to be promising due to the strong guard at the beginning of the attack and will depend on the respective combat activities. Three officers and 100 men are required for the established tasks.

An addendum to the special actions was published on the same day under registration number 1694/152. Detail:

Enclosure 1 16941152 Special Actions:

1. Conling Island fuel depot,

2. Sandy Bay Oil Tanks,

3.Admirality Mole carbon deposit,

4. Aerodrome runway,

5. Seaplane station,

6. Power plant,

7. Sea water distillation plant.

Tasks of the Lehrregiments z.b.V. Brandenburg 800:

1.Blowing up the iron fence,

2. Prevention of road closures,

3. Prevention of blasting at the north foot of the rock.

The commandos for these missions were assembled by parts of the 5th Company, the Hunter Platoon (Jägerzug) under Leutnant Hettinger, and a 100-man battle group under Oberleutnant Graf Thun.

Sources: Gebirgstruppen im Kampf um Festungen : die deutsche Planung zum beabsichtigten Angriff auf Gibraltar.
http://f6365.nexusboard.de/topic.php?topic=296771 (offline)
http://www.gebirgsjaeger.4mg.com/kopold7.htm
http://stonebooks.com/history/felix.shtml
The Brandenburger Commandos: Germany's Elite Warrior Spies in World War II.
Nazi Spymaster: The Life and Death of Admiral Wilhelm Canaris.
https://elpais.com/cultura/imagenes/201 ... grande.jpg

Cheers. Raúl M 8-).
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image014.jpg
Plan of the "Rock"............................................

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tigre
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Re: Operation Felix

#15

Post by tigre » 02 Sep 2020, 14:57

Hello to all :D; more.........................................

Unternehmen »Felsennest«: how the Brandenburgers wanted to conquer Gibraltar.

In a final conversation with the Spanish caudillo, Franco, on October 23, Hitler tried in vain to get Franco away from his reticence and to immediately begin this action. This conversation in Hendaye made Hitler realize that no help could be expected from Spain and General Franco unless he, Hitler, consented to Franco's further acquisition of territory in North Africa. Out of consideration for France and England, Hitler could not make up his mind.

After the incursion of Italian troops from the Albanian southern border into Greece on October 28, 1940, which was immediately followed by massive British intervention, Hitler had to act immediately with regard to Gibraltar. To that end, it issued the following directive:

http://www.gibnet.com/texts/hitler.htm

Sources: Gebirgstruppen im Kampf um Festungen : die deutsche Planung zum beabsichtigten Angriff auf Gibraltar.
http://f6365.nexusboard.de/topic.php?topic=296771 (offline)
http://www.gebirgsjaeger.4mg.com/kopold7.htm
http://stonebooks.com/history/felix.shtml
The Brandenburger Commandos: Germany's Elite Warrior Spies in World War II.
Nazi Spymaster: The Life and Death of Admiral Wilhelm Canaris.

Cheers. Raúl M 8-).

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