QUILLIAM-Class Fleet Destroyer ordered on 2nd April 1940 with the 3rd Emergency
Flotilla from Hawthorn Leslie, Newcastle.
The ship was laid down on 6th November 1940 and launched on 1st June 1942 as the 7th RN warship to bear carry the name, introduced
in 1895. It was previously used by a destroyer built in 1895 and sold in 1919. Build was completed on 7th January 1943 at a cost of £436,576 excluding the equipment which was supplied by the Admiralty such as
armament, wireless and radar equipment. After a successful WARSHIP WEEK for National Savings in
March 1942 she was adopted by the civil community of Islington in Greater London.
B a t t l e
H o n o u r s
SICILY 1943 - SALERNO 1943
- MEDITERRANEAN 1943
H e r a l d i c
D a t a
Badge On a Field per fess Blue and Green. a quail
White.
M o t t o
I will be prompt at a signal
D e t a i l s o f
W a r S e r v i c e
(for more ship information,
go
to Naval History Homepage
and type name in Site Search)
1 9 4 2
December Contractor's trials and
commissioning.
1 9 4 3
January
7th Build completion
and commenced Acceptance Trials.
On completion of
trials and service took passage to Scapa Flow.
February On completion of work-up at
Scapa Flow deployed with Home Fleet at Scapa Flow.
Nominated for
escort of joint military convoy WS27 and KMF10A during passage from
Clyde.
(Note: WS27 was
destined for Middle East via Cape of Good Hope and KMF10A for
Mediterranean via Gibraltar.
Ship was intended to
join the rest of the Flotilla in Indian Ocean,)
27th Joined Convoy WS27 in Clyde with HM Battleship MALAYA, HM Destroyers RAIDER,
QUADRANT,
QUEENBOROUGH and WOLVERINE as Ocean Escort during Atlantic
passage.
March
2nd Remained with WS27 when KMF10A
ships detached for passage to Gibraltar.
5th HMS QUADRANT detached from escort.
8th Detached from WS27 with HMS
QUEENBOROUGH and RAIDER on arrival at Freetown.
Retained at
Freetown for Atlantic convoy defence.
(Note: Intended
transfer to Indian Ocean was cancelled to due to future requirements in
support of planned allied landings in Mediterranean.)
11th Deployed for escort of WS27 with
HMS QUEENBOROUGH and HMS RAIDER during
passage to Durban.
24th Detached from WS27 with HMS
QUEENBOROUGH and HMS RAIDER on arrival at Durban.
April Passage to Freetown to resume
Atlantic duties.
Nominated for
return to UK to join Flotilla.
29th Took passage from Freetown with HM
Destroyer QUALITY to join Flotilla at Scapa Flow.
May Joined Flotilla and deployed
for Home Fleet duties at Scapa Flow.
June Nominated for support
of allied landings in Sicily (Operation HUSKY)
Passage to
Gibraltar as part of screen for Home Fleet major units detached for support of
planned landings
in Sicily.
July Deployed in Malta to
prepare for planned allied landings.
8th Sailed from Malta as part of
screen for Battleships NELSON, RODNEY, WARSPITE,
VALIANT, HM
Aircraft Carriers INDOMITABLE, FORMIDABLE HM Cruisers
AURORA PENELOPE, CLEOPATRA and EURYALUS with HM
Destroyers
QUILLIAM, QUEENBOROUGH, ISIS, FAULKNOR,
ECHO, INTREPID, RAIDER,
ECLIPSE, FURY,
INGLEFIELD, ILEX, TROUBRIDGE, TYRIAN, TUMULT, OFFA,
Greek destroyer
VASILISSA OLGA and Polish destroyer ORP PIORUN in western
Mediterranean.
10th Deployed with above ships in
western Mediterranean to provide cover against
interference
by Italian
surface ships to allied landings
For details see
ENGAGE THE ENEMY MORE CLOSELY by Corelli Barnett and
Naval Staff
History).
12th Deployed for interception patrol
after landings established.
14th Deployed with HM Cruisers
CLEOPATRA and EURYALUS with HM Destroyer
QUILLIAM of east
coast of Sicily.
August Mediterranean deployment
for support of operations in continuation.
21st Carried out bombardment of
Italian mainland from Straits of Messina.
31st Part of screen for HMS NELSON,
HMS RODNEY and HM Cruiser ORION during
preliminary
bombardment of Italian coast between Reggio Calabria and Pessaro before
landings on
mainland of Italy (Operation BAYTOWN).
September Carried out bombardment with HM
Destroyers OFFA, PETARD, QUEENBOROUGH,
QUILLIAM,
TARTAR, TROUBRIDGE, TYRIAN and ORP PIORUN
Screening
duties in continuation.
2nd Carried out bombardment south of
Reggio.
9th Part of screen for HM
Battleships NELSON, RODNEY, WARSPITE, VALIANT, HM
to Aircraft Carriers ILLUSTRIOUS,
FORMIDABLE with HM Destroyers QUILLIAM.,
16th QUEENBOROUGH, PETARD, TROUBRIDGE,
TYRIAN, TUMULT, OFFA,
FAULKNOR,
INTREPID, ECLIPSE, INGLEFIELD, FURY, ILEX, ECHO, RAIDER,
Polish ORP
PIORUN, Greek VASILISSA OLGA, Free French destroyers LE TERRIBLE and
LA FANTASQUE
for gunfire support during allied landings at Salerno.
(Operation
AVALANCHE - For details see above references).
Carried out
interception patrols against submarine and E-Boat attacks on ships off beach
head.
Provided naval gunfire support during
enemy counter-attacks.
October Transferred to Adriatic for
support of military operations and convoy defence.
22nd Intercepted and captured enemy
mercantile during Adriatic patrol
November Adriatic deployment based at
Bari in continuation.
15th During patrol in Adriatic struck
mine in barrage laid by U453 off Bari on 25th October.
16th Beached south of Bari to await
salvage.
December Taken in tow to Bari for
temporary repair.
1 9 4 4
January Under temporary repair to
allow passage for permanent repair at Taranto.
to Passage to Taranto
under tow
April Repair arranged in
Malta.
Prepared for tow
at Taranto
May Passage under tow to
Malta.
18th Capsized and sank in Gulf of
Taranto in position 40.05N, 17.52E whilst in tow.
Addendum
CONVOY ESCORT MOVEMENTS of HMS
QUAIL
by Don Kindell
These convoy lists have not been cross-checked
with the text above
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Date convoy sailed
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Joined convoy as escort
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Convoy No.
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Left convoy
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Date convoy arrived
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19/04/43
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19/04/43
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CF 012
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28/04/43
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28/04/43
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29/04/43
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29/04/43
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CF 012A
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unknown
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10/05/43
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(Note on Convoys)
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