Assault on Kerguelen (Great White South)


 * This article is about the assault on Kerguelen during . For the Napoleonic-era conflict on Kerguelen, see .

The Assault on Kerguelen (: Assaut sur Kerguelen; : Anschlag von Kerguelen) was an attack by and n forces on the Vichy-controlled  during.

Events
In July 1940, after the German victory in the, the islands' , , pledged his support for the Vichy regime, bringing Kerguelen under Axis control. This was a controversial decision which starkly divided the Kerguelaine people, and soon provoked a civilian opposition movement to his government, led by former Council President.

Omnès' dedication to the eventually resulted in a more violent confrontation between his supporters (including much of the police force, gendarmerie and local military) and his opposers. It is thought that up to 200 people may have been killed during his tenure.

After almost a year, in April 1941, deployed around 200 troops to Kerguelen, hoping to establish a significant military presence which could be used to aid in naval warfare in the Indian Ocean; as well as launching attacks on Africa,, Asia, and even. , the commander of Germany's forces in, flew to Kerguelen to oversee this operation.

However, the German presence on the islands alarmed the local resistance movement, prompting them to smuggle details of the German plans to, ; where Free French General had his headquarters. Fournier used the plans to convince other Allied military commanders in to authorize an assault on Kerguelen; and hurriedly planned an attack in coordination with n General.

On April 16th, Australian and Free French forces reached Kerguelen by sea, and disembarked on the southwest coast of the main island. Marching through small fishing villages, where support for Omnès' government was weakest, the Allied troops did not encounter any resistance, but as they approached the capital,, the Vichy and German forces were alerted to their presence. Following a short firefight around Port-aux-Français, the Vichy government surrendered and Henri Le Pennec took over as Council President.

Aftermath
For a few weeks following the battle, Free French forces sailed between the various islands of Kerguelen to deliver the news of the Vichy forces' defeat. Allegedly, the inhabitants of the were unaware that Kerguelen had ever been under Vichy control.

After the liberation of Kerguelen, General Fournier established his headquarters there, making it the high command of the Free French forces in Antarctica. Omnès and his most loyal supporters were placed in military prison until a trial could be arranged after the end of the war. The German troops on Kerguelen were transported to, where they were interned in POW camps.

Limited pro-Vichy activity continued after the liberation, but was inconsequential. The Kriegsmarine continued to harass Kerguelaine naval activities until the end of the war, but there were no more land attacks on the islands.

This assault also marked the last time General took part in a field operation. The following year, he was made.