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Under the Red Sea Sun
"This is the story of a few Americans who at a desperate time early in the war were by their country thrown into the worst hell hole on earth, and then promptly forgotten..."
By 1942, Mussolini’s forces were on the run in East Africa. In order to slow the Allied advance, the Italians used audacious tactics. One included making ports inoperable, leaving the Allies without the infrastructure necessary to continue the war effort. At Massawa, Eritrea, the fleeing Italians left the largest mass wreck in the world, turning a vital port into a tangle of shattered ships, cranes, and sunken dry docks. In order to continue the war effort and push back the Axis powers in Africa, the Allies enlisted famed naval salvage expert Commander Edward Ellsberg.
Ellsberg, a veteran miracle worker in raising sunken ships, was given his toughest assignment yet: He had to get the port open again with no budget, a handful of men, and few tools. The British had claimed the task was impossible—Massawa couldn’t be cleared. Under the Red Sea Sun is Ellsberg’s account of his work in the searing heat of Eritrea. Ellsberg navigates complicated American and British bureaucracies to build a ragtag group of international civilians and accomplish what was called “the Miracle of Massawa.”
By 1942, Mussolini’s forces were on the run in East Africa. In order to slow the Allied advance, the Italians used audacious tactics. One included making ports inoperable, leaving the Allies without the infrastructure necessary to continue the war effort. At Massawa, Eritrea, the fleeing Italians left the largest mass wreck in the world, turning a vital port into a tangle of shattered ships, cranes, and sunken dry docks. In order to continue the war effort and push back the Axis powers in Africa, the Allies enlisted famed naval salvage expert Commander Edward Ellsberg.
Ellsberg, a veteran miracle worker in raising sunken ships, was given his toughest assignment yet: He had to get the port open again with no budget, a handful of men, and few tools. The British had claimed the task was impossible—Massawa couldn’t be cleared. Under the Red Sea Sun is Ellsberg’s account of his work in the searing heat of Eritrea. Ellsberg navigates complicated American and British bureaucracies to build a ragtag group of international civilians and accomplish what was called “the Miracle of Massawa.”
500 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1946
49 people are currently reading
156 people want to read
About the author
Edward Ellsberg
57 books13 followersEdward Ellsberg (1891-1983) graduated first in his class from the United States Naval Academy in 1914. After he did a stint aboard the USS Texas, the navy sent Ellsberg to Massachusetts Institute of Technology for postgraduate training in naval architecture. In 1925, he played a key role in the salvage of the sunken submarine USS S-51 and became the first naval officer to qualify as a deep-sea diver. Ellsberg later received the Distinguished Service Medal for his innovations and hard work.
Rear Admiral Ellsberg was awarded the C.B.E. by His Majesty King George VI, and two Legions of Merit by the United States Government.
Rear Admiral Ellsberg was awarded the C.B.E. by His Majesty King George VI, and two Legions of Merit by the United States Government.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
April 1, 2021
When America was still neutral and the British Royal Navy under too much pressure to start salvage operations in the recently captured port of Massawa on the Red Sea, they agreed to open the port for them. Then Pearl Harbor happened and all available resources were dispatched there to raise the Pacific battle fleet. Against this backdrop, retired naval salvage officer Edward Ellsberg signed up for service again and was sent to fill the gap in Massawa and had to fight against the odds to scrape together personnel and equipment to do the job with.
What follows is a journey through the chaotic first months of the war for America and through the African continent to work miracles and in the end open the port of Massawa for a hard pressed Royal Navy in the Mediterranean. It took a herculean effort by Ellsberg and his men and ships to salvage the port under extremely difficult conditions where temperatures soared daily and the threat of booby traps were constant. This is a very good story what a great leader can do with determination and motivation during hard times. Highly recommended if you are interested in naval salvage.
What follows is a journey through the chaotic first months of the war for America and through the African continent to work miracles and in the end open the port of Massawa for a hard pressed Royal Navy in the Mediterranean. It took a herculean effort by Ellsberg and his men and ships to salvage the port under extremely difficult conditions where temperatures soared daily and the threat of booby traps were constant. This is a very good story what a great leader can do with determination and motivation during hard times. Highly recommended if you are interested in naval salvage.
September 9, 2017
Under the Red Sea Sun provides an engaging first-hand look into naval salvage operations in a backwater of World War II. When the Italians evacuated Massawa, Eritrea in 1942, they left the largest deep-water port on the Red Sea in chaos. They had destroyed all the shore facilities, scuttled seventeen ocean-going vessels in the three harbors, and sunk two floating drydocks and a floating crane. The British didn't have the capabilities to remedy the situation, so the Americans sent Commander (later Rear Admiral) Edward Ellsberg. Ellsberg was the U.S. Navy's master of the arcane science of maritime salvage. His success was the result of a combination of technical expertise, years of experience, and relentless energy. Working at the last link of the logistics chain, Commander Ellsberg cleared the port and restored operations there with few men, little equipment, and no money. This is his personal account of the work in Massawa -- work which earned him the Legion of Merit from FDR and several letters of commendation from the British Admiralty.
Ellsberg is a polished memoirist who writes with wit and style. His account is often amusing and sometimes infuriating. He has mostly praise for his salvage crews, the Italian civilians and POWs working under him, as well as the many Sudanese and Eritrean laborers. His problems arose with U.S. and British civilian contractors who lacked the "Can Do" spirit in which the U.S. Navy takes such pride. Sometimes Ellsberg wondered just which side these contractors were on (He arrived at the answer: their own). I found the details of the creative techniques he used to raise the sunken ships and drydocks fascinating. Commander Ellsberg earned Five Stars from me for Under the Red Sea Sun
Ellsberg is a polished memoirist who writes with wit and style. His account is often amusing and sometimes infuriating. He has mostly praise for his salvage crews, the Italian civilians and POWs working under him, as well as the many Sudanese and Eritrean laborers. His problems arose with U.S. and British civilian contractors who lacked the "Can Do" spirit in which the U.S. Navy takes such pride. Sometimes Ellsberg wondered just which side these contractors were on (He arrived at the answer: their own). I found the details of the creative techniques he used to raise the sunken ships and drydocks fascinating. Commander Ellsberg earned Five Stars from me for Under the Red Sea Sun
October 9, 2024
In early 1942, one of the darkest periods of the Second World War, US Navy Salvage officer Commander Ellsberg, recently rejoined, was given a vital project. The Eritrean port of Massawa was the only potential maintenance facility between Alexandria, which was under imminent threat from Rommel, and Durban, 10,000 miles from the front in South Africa. Also, the drydocks at Alexandria were tied up keeping the two sabotaged British dreadnoughts afloat, meaning that no other ship could be repaired. Cargo ships, their hulls covered with years of barnacles and seaweed, were reduced to sailing at 6 knots--sitting ducks for Axis submarines. The fighting cruisers and destroyers of what was left of the British Mediterranean Fleet could not repair damage, and were being attrited to uselessness.
Unfortunately, Massawa had been comprehensively sabotaged by the Italians before it was captured. Every single machine in the shops had been battered with sledgehammers and vital parts thrown into the sea. The harbor was chock full of wrecked ships, with bombs blasted in their side. The floating crane was sunk, and both floating drydocks had been sunk with eight charges apiece to make sure they stayed at the bottom.
For this critical mission, Ellsberg's resources were practically nil: himself, and any civilians he could scrape up. Every single American Navy salvage diver and mechanic was at Pearl Harbor, getting the battleships back in action. The British had nothing they could offer, stretched as they were. And worse, Massawa was a legendarily awful station, combining brutal tropical sun with sweltering humidity.
Ellsberg is a talented memoirist, and makes the drama of engineering at the ends of the earth and the absurdity of his situation come alive. There is plenty of absurdity. The troop transport he took to Africa was comprehensively blacked out as a precaution against U-boats, except for the red and green running lights, which its rigid captain refused to shut off in case they collided with another ship at night. Ellsberg had to beg, borrow, and steal materials, while there was an entire warehouse of new salvage equipment under control of an incompetent British contractor (a monocled, safari-suit wearing Colonel Blimp) that he couldn't touch. The American contract seemed to be actively sabotaging Ellsberg, building two entire useless base housing facilities before starting on industrial buildings, messing up payroll for over six weeks in a row until a full-blown strike occurred, and illegally issuing orders replacing Ellsberg.
Against these obstacles, with a bare handful of American salvage professionals and a motley labor force of Eritreans, Italian POWs, Arab carpenters, and miscellaneous Sudanese and Indians, he somehow accomplished miracles. To give an example, he and his small crew went through every fragment of machinery the Italians had left behind and managed to assemble a working lathe and mill, which they then used to machine parts to repair the rest of the machinery. Work was accomplished under the most brutal conditions, broiling on steel decks under the sun and inside stifling compartments at well over 120 degrees (he brought out a thermometer once-and the reading was enough to prompt everybody to knock it off for the day) to patch holes and make various wrecks water and airtight so they could be salvaged.
This is a story of endurance under the worst conditions, because it had to be done, and of leadership and persuasion. One anecdote sticks out. Ellsberg had hired large numbers of Eritreans as scrapers and painters, since they were the only group available in the numbers needed for this key jobs. The British regarded the Eritreans as some of the worst laborers in their entire Empire, and objectively, the average Eritrean of 1942 was scrawny, undernourished, entirely uneducated, and had spent their entire life get cooked by tropical heat. They were not doing their jobs, and could not be berated into working at any pace faster than a crawl. And their payrate was fixed at a miserable sum that could not be increased. Ellsberg gathered their sheiks (hiring was collective by tribe and managed by the sheiks) and explained that this job took three days. If it was not done on three days, they'd be fired and never hired again. If it was done faster than three days, they got paid for three. The Eritreans did it in two.
As he put it, "There is no worst labor in the world. Touch the proper chords-pride, incentive to produce, whatever fits the situation--and men will be found men, whatever their color, whatever their physique."
Unfortunately, Massawa had been comprehensively sabotaged by the Italians before it was captured. Every single machine in the shops had been battered with sledgehammers and vital parts thrown into the sea. The harbor was chock full of wrecked ships, with bombs blasted in their side. The floating crane was sunk, and both floating drydocks had been sunk with eight charges apiece to make sure they stayed at the bottom.
For this critical mission, Ellsberg's resources were practically nil: himself, and any civilians he could scrape up. Every single American Navy salvage diver and mechanic was at Pearl Harbor, getting the battleships back in action. The British had nothing they could offer, stretched as they were. And worse, Massawa was a legendarily awful station, combining brutal tropical sun with sweltering humidity.
Ellsberg is a talented memoirist, and makes the drama of engineering at the ends of the earth and the absurdity of his situation come alive. There is plenty of absurdity. The troop transport he took to Africa was comprehensively blacked out as a precaution against U-boats, except for the red and green running lights, which its rigid captain refused to shut off in case they collided with another ship at night. Ellsberg had to beg, borrow, and steal materials, while there was an entire warehouse of new salvage equipment under control of an incompetent British contractor (a monocled, safari-suit wearing Colonel Blimp) that he couldn't touch. The American contract seemed to be actively sabotaging Ellsberg, building two entire useless base housing facilities before starting on industrial buildings, messing up payroll for over six weeks in a row until a full-blown strike occurred, and illegally issuing orders replacing Ellsberg.
Against these obstacles, with a bare handful of American salvage professionals and a motley labor force of Eritreans, Italian POWs, Arab carpenters, and miscellaneous Sudanese and Indians, he somehow accomplished miracles. To give an example, he and his small crew went through every fragment of machinery the Italians had left behind and managed to assemble a working lathe and mill, which they then used to machine parts to repair the rest of the machinery. Work was accomplished under the most brutal conditions, broiling on steel decks under the sun and inside stifling compartments at well over 120 degrees (he brought out a thermometer once-and the reading was enough to prompt everybody to knock it off for the day) to patch holes and make various wrecks water and airtight so they could be salvaged.
This is a story of endurance under the worst conditions, because it had to be done, and of leadership and persuasion. One anecdote sticks out. Ellsberg had hired large numbers of Eritreans as scrapers and painters, since they were the only group available in the numbers needed for this key jobs. The British regarded the Eritreans as some of the worst laborers in their entire Empire, and objectively, the average Eritrean of 1942 was scrawny, undernourished, entirely uneducated, and had spent their entire life get cooked by tropical heat. They were not doing their jobs, and could not be berated into working at any pace faster than a crawl. And their payrate was fixed at a miserable sum that could not be increased. Ellsberg gathered their sheiks (hiring was collective by tribe and managed by the sheiks) and explained that this job took three days. If it was not done on three days, they'd be fired and never hired again. If it was done faster than three days, they got paid for three. The Eritreans did it in two.
As he put it, "There is no worst labor in the world. Touch the proper chords-pride, incentive to produce, whatever fits the situation--and men will be found men, whatever their color, whatever their physique."
November 12, 2017
An Inspiration
This fascinating story of salvage operations on the Red Sea during the first year of America's participation in WWII only burnishes the remarkable reputation of the Greatest Generation. The suffering, the determination and the majesty of the efforts by Captain Ellsberg and his multinational crews is captured in a tale every American should know. The author's ability to bring you close to the scenes of success and tragedy, of humor and despair, dark waters and resolute mariners struggling to master machinery and the sea, makes this long and handsomely wrought tale a humbling testament to the American spirit in the worst of times and the cruelest of climes. Finest hours, indeed. Get you some.
This fascinating story of salvage operations on the Red Sea during the first year of America's participation in WWII only burnishes the remarkable reputation of the Greatest Generation. The suffering, the determination and the majesty of the efforts by Captain Ellsberg and his multinational crews is captured in a tale every American should know. The author's ability to bring you close to the scenes of success and tragedy, of humor and despair, dark waters and resolute mariners struggling to master machinery and the sea, makes this long and handsomely wrought tale a humbling testament to the American spirit in the worst of times and the cruelest of climes. Finest hours, indeed. Get you some.
May 26, 2017
If you like engineering or salvage, read this book. If the thought of raising a ship from the bottom of the ocean gets your blood pumping, read this book. Ellsberg tells his unique tale in a very exciting voice, and makes his true life adventures read like a cliff-hanger. He goes into detail about his world, his troubles, and his powerful go-get-em spirit that helped contribute to the allied war effort In world war 2.
A note for the modern reader - there are terms and phrases that can offend the modern reader. I would recommend that you forgive the author for these words and remember this book was written in 1949, in a society that was far less conscious of the power of words and phrases.
A note for the modern reader - there are terms and phrases that can offend the modern reader. I would recommend that you forgive the author for these words and remember this book was written in 1949, in a society that was far less conscious of the power of words and phrases.
April 4, 2016
Read this first for High School Summer Reading 1964 and have always remembered it fondly as being so much more engrossing than I had expected for a non-fiction book about WWII. Bought a copy years ago for nostalgia's sake and I plan to re-read it soon. In my diary I gave it 4+ stars. I bought a used copy years later which I still own... hoping to reread one day.
October 27, 2019
Thrilling. I knew nothing about ships, salvaging or ports used; not the accomplished hero's
This book is exciting, well written, understandable to the layman. Every president, congressman and senator should be required to read this book. Let alone any American.
This book is exciting, well written, understandable to the layman. Every president, congressman and senator should be required to read this book. Let alone any American.
August 27, 2016
Surprisingly readable, considering how in-the-weeds it gets about a salvage operation on a minor (er, less-known) front of the second World War. The first half, describing in detail the tough journey to Eritrea, the apocalyptic climate there, and raising of the first few salvage ships, is particularly good.
In the second half, the story sort of putters around... a few more ships get raised, but the drive isn't as easy to track. And it ends pretty abruptly, though that's not much of a complaint considering this is a memoir and that's just what happened. (By the way, that abrupt ending dovetails almost perfectly with my reading of "I Didn't Do It For You," which is all about how countries used Eritrea and then abruptly ditched it over the course of the 1900s.) Anyway, all that stuff doesn't hold up to the account of getting the first dry dock up and running.
Edward can be funny as a character, as he seems like at least a slightly unreliable narrator. He's obviously very competent and worked some near-miracles in hellish conditions. But he also is pretty quick to dismiss people for being idiots, and we don't hear the explanation for why some people kept trying to get him removed from his job, except that those people were idiots. And he's maybe a little racially... of the era? It's not really a problem, it actually gives the story a more unique voice. I guess he was just a tough Navy Captain who yelled a lot and got things done. Fair enough!
In the second half, the story sort of putters around... a few more ships get raised, but the drive isn't as easy to track. And it ends pretty abruptly, though that's not much of a complaint considering this is a memoir and that's just what happened. (By the way, that abrupt ending dovetails almost perfectly with my reading of "I Didn't Do It For You," which is all about how countries used Eritrea and then abruptly ditched it over the course of the 1900s.) Anyway, all that stuff doesn't hold up to the account of getting the first dry dock up and running.
Edward can be funny as a character, as he seems like at least a slightly unreliable narrator. He's obviously very competent and worked some near-miracles in hellish conditions. But he also is pretty quick to dismiss people for being idiots, and we don't hear the explanation for why some people kept trying to get him removed from his job, except that those people were idiots. And he's maybe a little racially... of the era? It's not really a problem, it actually gives the story a more unique voice. I guess he was just a tough Navy Captain who yelled a lot and got things done. Fair enough!
January 28, 2025
good book on a neglected subject
Nicely detailed account on salvage of military shops in WW2. Well written an engaging prose. Wars are won by good planning in all parts of the effort. I enjoyed it.
Nicely detailed account on salvage of military shops in WW2. Well written an engaging prose. Wars are won by good planning in all parts of the effort. I enjoyed it.
December 22, 2025
This was a fascinating look into the world of underwater salvage as practiced by the author Edward Ellsburg. This book covers his return to active service in the US navy and subsequent salvage work at the Eritrea port of Massawa.
When this port was captured from the Italians the Italians sand a substantial number of merchant vessels and 2 dry docks in the port to both block usage of the port and deny the vessels to the allies. The dry docks were especially valuable in the middle east where there was a significant backlog of damaged vessels needing repair.
At the time the main focus of US salvage was recovering the vessels that had been sunk at Pearl Harbour. This meant that Ellsburg had negligible resources available and had to source what he could locally. Additionally the port was a very unpopular posting due to the extreme heat and nearly complete lack of amenities so finding crew was a challenge.
This book details all the tricks and favours he had to call in to overcome these shortages to achieve the salvage. At times funny and other times dramatic as weather doesn't cooperate nor do the wrecks at times. For those interested he also goes into the detail of the salvage work and how he overcame the challenges involved.
5 stars
When this port was captured from the Italians the Italians sand a substantial number of merchant vessels and 2 dry docks in the port to both block usage of the port and deny the vessels to the allies. The dry docks were especially valuable in the middle east where there was a significant backlog of damaged vessels needing repair.
At the time the main focus of US salvage was recovering the vessels that had been sunk at Pearl Harbour. This meant that Ellsburg had negligible resources available and had to source what he could locally. Additionally the port was a very unpopular posting due to the extreme heat and nearly complete lack of amenities so finding crew was a challenge.
This book details all the tricks and favours he had to call in to overcome these shortages to achieve the salvage. At times funny and other times dramatic as weather doesn't cooperate nor do the wrecks at times. For those interested he also goes into the detail of the salvage work and how he overcame the challenges involved.
5 stars
February 28, 2023
According to the author experts are "...people who know so much about how things have been done in the past that they are usually blind to how they can be done in the future."
As others have pointed out this book is a bit dated. My favorite World War II memoir is Naples '44. This isn't as well written as that but, Ellsberg is a good writer of clear and straight forward prose. Anyone whosever ever been a consultant, contractor, or project manager working overseas will recognize some of the issues Ellsberg faces. Sadly some of them are still with us today. No longer with us are some of the authors expressions such as "go hang" as an alternative to "get lost."
The author visited some amazing places in this book including Nigeria and Egypt. Yet, he rarely offers descriptions of these places other then Eritrea and Khartoum (based on his discription I am pretty sure I know what hotel he stayed at in Khartoum -- but, only barely).
As others have pointed out this book is a bit dated. My favorite World War II memoir is Naples '44. This isn't as well written as that but, Ellsberg is a good writer of clear and straight forward prose. Anyone whosever ever been a consultant, contractor, or project manager working overseas will recognize some of the issues Ellsberg faces. Sadly some of them are still with us today. No longer with us are some of the authors expressions such as "go hang" as an alternative to "get lost."
The author visited some amazing places in this book including Nigeria and Egypt. Yet, he rarely offers descriptions of these places other then Eritrea and Khartoum (based on his discription I am pretty sure I know what hotel he stayed at in Khartoum -- but, only barely).
August 8, 2018
Fascinating read.
November 7, 2022
While the writing is slow and drawn out at times, the story is incredible!
April 19, 2024
A heartfelt journey into an obscure theater of WWII.
March 20, 2019
While a bit dated, the story is well written and was mostly an enjoyable read. Really fun read.
July 6, 2016
True story about Commander Edward Ellsberg's WWII mission to salvage sunken ships and sabotaged dry docks in a harbor on the Red Sea and the mission's critical role in helping to win the war for the allies. Great motivational ideas for an MBA Management Course (p. 177). Good quote "Experts" (p. 187)
December 26, 2022
His writing style is compelling and authoritative; clear and interesting.
A hard book to put down, I really liked the book.
A hard book to put down, I really liked the book.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews