Themes

Conflict and Change

• Introduction

• In Focus: 1900

• In Focus: World War One

• In Focus: Interwar

• In Focus: World War Two

• In Focus: Post War Conflict

• In Focus: Cold War Climate

• In Focus: Falklands and Beyond

  • Surface Fleet

  • Submarines

  • Royal Marines

  • Fleet Air Arm

• Special Exhibition: Falklands 25

Learning

• How To: Understand Propaganda

• Propaganda Image Galleries

• Education Project: Sea With Your Own Eyes

The Gulf War

Article highlights

• At war with Iraq

• NBC threat

• Operating in the Gulf

• HMS Gloucester

Operating in the Gulf

The Gulf War was not an operation in the open ocean where commanders could employ regular battle tactics. In the narrow straits of the Persian Gulf the ships had very little room for manoeuvre and had to think about the effects of how they operated on the rest of the international fleet.

The Royal Navy had learned this lesson during the Falklands War when close-quarters fighting under air attacks in San Carlos Waters alerted them to the need to be aware of the other ships in the area.

Here Commander Iain Henderson of HMS London explains the difference in tactics in the Gulf to past exercises -

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Commander Iain Henderson of HMS London on the restrictions of fighting in the Persian Gulf. Gulf War 1991. (RNM)

To read a transcript of this oral history follow the link

HMS London (1984). (RNM)

Journalist David Cragg describes what the ships and crew of the Royal Navy did during operations in the Gulf.

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David Cragg on the work of the Royal Navy’s ships during the Gulf War.(RNM)

To read a transcript of this oral history follow the link

The expertise of the Royal Navy after the Falklands conflict proved to be very valuable to the United States during the Gulf War, especially with their amphibious operations.

Here Commander Henderson comments on how the Commodore Craig, Senior British Naval Officer in the Middle East, aided the Americans -

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Commander Iain Henderson on how the Royal Navy helped the United States with its amphibious knowledge. (RNM)

To read a transcript of this oral history follow the link

There was also a huge emphasis on the work of the British minesweepers, who were considered to be the best in the world.

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Commander Iain Henderson on the Royal Navy’s mine hunting capabilities and how they came in handy to the US Navy. (RNM)

To read a transcript of this oral history follow the link