1/2 Crown - Elizabeth II Battle of the Atlantic - Battle of the North Cape

The Battle of the North Cape, fought on 26 December 1943, ended with the sinking of the German battlecruiser Scharnhorst by HMS Duke of York and accompanying escorts — one of the last engagements in which a capital ship was sunk primarily by gunfire from another surface vessel. The Scharnhorst had sortied from Altenfjord to attack Allied convoy JW 55B, a mission that cost her all but 36 of her crew of over 1,900.

This Gibraltar issue is part of a broader commemorative series marking the Battle of the Atlantic, under which the North Cape action falls thematically. KM#1569 was struck by the Pobjoy Mint.