September Deployed as Flagship of 5th Cruiser
Squadron, China Station
with HM Cruisers KENT, DORSETSHIRE and BIRMINGHAM.
6th Carried
out search with ships of Squadron for German shipping in
Andaman Islands area.
27th Arrived
at Colombo after transferred to East Indies Station.
28th Took passage to Calcutta.
October
2nd Escorted
convoy from Calcutta for part of passage to Singapore.
5th Detached
to join HM Aircraft Carrier EAGLE and HM Cruiser
DORSETSHIRE in Hunting Force I for interception patrol.
6th Return
passage to Colombo for docking.
11th Sailed for patrol after docking.
November
3rd Returned
to Colombo from patrol.
10th Sailed
with HMS DORSETSHIRE to join HMS EAGLE and HM
Destroyers VENDETTA (RAN) and WATERHEN
(RAN) in search
for German
battlecruiser GRAF SPEE in area south of Ceylon.
18th Returned
to Colombo.
25th Took passage from Colombo to resume patrol.
December
8th At Diego
Suarez and attached to South Atlantic Station.
12th At Durban.
14th Sailed for patrol in Indian Ocean from Durban.
22nd Took passage
from Durban to Simonstown for interception
patrol
duties in South
Atlantic.
26th At Simonstown.
(Note: For details of interception
patrol duties see THE BLOCKADERS
by P Kemp,
ARMED MERCHANT CRUISERS by K Poolman
and AXIS BLOCKADE RUNNERS by M Bryce.)
1 9 4 0
January
2nd Sailed
for patrol.
11th Returned
to Capetown.
25th Sailed for patrol.
30th Returned
to Capetown.
(Note:
HM Cruiser HOBART (RAN) and HMS EAGLE were also
deployed in South
Atlantic for interception and
trade defence.)
February Transferred to Freetown.
Patrol
duty in continuation.
March Passage to Freetown from patrol
4th Arrived
at Freetown.
April Interception
patrol and trade defence in continuation based at Freetown.
May Passage
to Simonstown on release from Patrol.
June Patrol duties
in continuation based at Simonstown.
24th Took passage from Simonstown to UK for repair.
July Under
repair in Liverpool commercial shipyard.
August Post repair trials
5th Joined
military convoy WS2 on departure from Liverpool as Ocean
Escort
during Atlantic passage.
25th Arrived
at Capetown.
31st Deployed as Ocean Escort for WS2 during passage to Durban.
September
3rd Detached
from WS2 after relief by HM Armed Merchant Cruiser
KANIMBLA.
Took passage to Freetown for support of landings by Free French
troops at
Dakar (Operation MENACE).
13th Joined
HM Cruiser CUMBERLAND, HM Sloops MILFORD and
BRIDGEWATER in escort of military convoy on passage to
Freetown from Gibraltar.
15th Arrived
at Freetown.
18th Deployed
with HM Cruiser DELHI in search for Vichy French
warship on passage from Dakar to Gabon, French Guinea.
19th Intercepted
cruiser PRIMAGUET and tanker TARN in Gulf of
Guinea and persuaded them to return to Casablanca rather than
being forced
into a naval engagement.
(Note: Tanker was intended to replenish
Vichy French cruisers
recently
arrived in Dakar. See HMS CUMBERLAND.
PRIMAGUET remained in Vichy French
control until
being sunk
by US ships in November 1942).
Escorted Vichy
French ships during passage to Casablanca.
October West
African deployment in continuation.
Nominated for return to UK for escort of military convoy and took
passage
to UK.
November
2nd Joined
military convoy WS4 in Clyde as Ocean Escort during passage
to Aden.
December
18th Detached from WS4 on arrival at Aden.
Resumed trade defence and patrol
duties and took passage to
Capetown.
1 9 4 1
January Deployed
for interception patrol and convoy defence based at
Simonstown.
February
2nd Taken
in hand for refit and docking at Simonstown.
AA
Armament improved by addition of 20mm weapons.
22nd Refit
work completed
28th Sailed
to join military convoy WS6 as Ocean Escort during passage
to Middle East from Freetown.
March
13th Joined
HMS BIRMINGHAM and HMS PHOEBE as relief in
WS6
Ocean Escort for HM Armed Merchant Cruiser CATHAY.
April
15th Detached from WS6 on arrival at Aden.
Resumed
trade defence and convoy escort duties in Indian Ocean
May At Mombasa
7th During
passage from Mombasa to Seychelles intercepted Distress
Signal from tanker BRITISH PREMIER
being attacked by German
commerce
raider PINGUIN in position 5o miles north.
8th Ships
aircraft reported sighting of mercantile identified as being
Norwegian TAMERLANE.
Intercepted ship and ordered her
to stop enforced by two rounds.
Vessel then opened fire which temporarily
damaged steering gear.
In subsequent exchange of fire PINGUIN
sank after an explosion.
Rescued 82 survivors of whom 22 were
prisoners from captured ships.
(For full details of problems related
to identification of merchant
ships see
WAR AT SEA by SW
Roskill and WAR WITH JAPAN
(HMSO).
Passage to Durban
June Under
repair at Durban.
10th Resumed
trade defence duties on completion of repair.
July
11th Joined
specially formed military convoy WS9A2 at Durban
as Ocean Escort during passage to Aden.
Embarked passengers.
19th Detached from WS9A2 on arrival at Aden and landed passengers.
20th Trade
defence and patrol in Indian Ocean resumed.
August Indian Ocean deployment in continuation.
to
November
December
28th Joined
military convoy WS12ZA as Ocean Escort during passage
to Bombay.
1 9 4 2
January
6th Detached
on arrival of WS12ZA at Bombay.
Retained in Bombay for escort of convoys to and from Singapore.
February Convoy defence and covering duties
in Bay of Bengal.
(Note: Evacuation convoys were on
passage from Singapore and
ports in
Dutch East Indies. See WAR WITH JAPAN.
March
1st Sailed
from Colombo with HM Battleship ROYAL SOVEREIGN,
HM Destroyers EXPRESS, VAMPIRE (RAN),
NIZAM, HM
Armed Merchant Cruiser MANOORA (RAN)
and HM Corvette
HOLLYHOCK as escort for military
convoy SU1 during passage
to Fremantle.
(Note: This convoy of 12 troopships
was taking 11,000 ANZAC
troops back
to Australia from Middle
East service after the
Japanese threat
to Australia and New Zealand).
14th Detached
from SU1 on arrival at Freetown and took passage to
Ceylon to rejoin newly formed Eastern Fleet.
31st Joined
HM Battleship WARSPITE, HM Aircraft Carriers
FORMIDABLE and INDOMITABLE, HM Cruisers
ENTERPRISE,
EMERALD and DORSETSHIRE screened
by six destroyers
as Force
A in position south of Ceylon.
April
1st Deployed
with Force A in unsuccessful search for Japanese naval
force reported on passage
toward Ceylon.
3rd Detached
from Force A with HMS DORSETSHIRE for escort
of military convoy SU4 during passage in Indian Ocean.
4th Recalled
to join Force A again with HMS DORSETSHIRE after
Japanese warships had been sighted.
(See WAR WITH JAPAN and THE FORGOTTEN FLEET by
J.Winton).
5th Sighted
during return passage to Force A by aircraft from Japanese
cruiser
TONE.
Came under heavy and sustained attacks
by dive bombers from the
aircraft
carriers AKAGI, SORYU and HIRYU..
Deficient AA armament overwhelmed
and careful manoeuvring
by enemy
aircraft gave ship little defence and she was quickly
disabled.
Sank within 15 minutes with heavy casualties including
190 killed or missing.
(Casualty List -
note on casualties)
(Note: Some 6 minutes after HMS DORSETSHIRE
was
sunk by
similar attacks).
6th 1,122
survivors from the two cruisers were rescued by HMS
ENTERPRISE and destroyers PALADIN and PANTHER.
