At the Battle of the North Cape, Admiral Bruce Fraser stripped conventional destroyers from the Arctic convoys for the action against Scharnhorst. He left Tribal-class destroyers with the merchant ships because their heavy gun batteries could make an attacker pay dearly. That choice gave Fraser more torpedoes and aggressively led destroyers for the battle while retaining a credible convoy guard. Specialized Tribal firepower freed the other destroyers for a different tactical role.
Notable Point · 10:53-11:23
Why Fraser left the Tribals guarding the North Cape convoys
Fraser could detach torpedo-armed destroyers to hunt Scharnhorst because the Tribals supplied enough gun power to protect the Arctic convoys.