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H . M . S
. U N D I N E ( R 4 2 )
"U" Class Fleet
Destroyer ordered under the War Emergency Programme in April 1941 for build by
John I. Thornycroft at Woolston. The ship was laid down as Job No 4023 on 18th
March 1942 and launched on 1st June 1943 as the 6th RN ship to carry the name,
introduced in 184?. It was last used for a submarine lost in the Heligoland
Bight on 15th January 1940. Build was completed 23rd December 1943. After a
successful WARSHIP WEEK in March 1942 the ship and been 'adopted’ by
Windermere, then in the county of Westmoreland, now in Cumbria.
B a t t l e H o n o u r s
MEDITERRANEAN 1944 - ADRIATIC 1944 - NORMANDY 1944 - OKINAWA 1945
H e r a l d i c D a t a
Badge : On a Field Blue a
mermaid diving into water in base
barry wavy White and Blue.
D e t a i l s o f
W a r S e r v i c e
1 9 4 3
December
Contractors trials.
6th Commissioned for service in 25th
Destroyer Flotilla.
23rd Build completion and commenced
Acceptance Trials
1 9 4 4
January On
completion of trials and storing took passage for work-up with ships
of Home Fleet.
6th Dragged
anchor in Clyde and collided with HM Destroyer URANIA
30th Took passage to Mediterranean for duty
with Flotilla.
February On
arrival at Gibraltar deployed with Flotilla in Mediterranean
to
(Note : Service in support of landings at Anzio to be confirmed
March No Battle
Honour for ANZIO is recorded.)
April
1st Carried out bombardment in
support of operations to be confirmed
28th Routine docking and maintenance at
Malta.
May
Nominated for service in support of planned allied invasion of Normandy
with ships of 25th
Destroyer Flotilla (Operation NEPTUNE).
4th Passage to UK to rejoin Home
Fleet with calls at Algiers and Gibraltar.
13th Arrived at Scapa Flow and prepared for NEPTUNE
duties.
16th Carried out bombardment exercises
before joining Force G in Eastern Task Force.
(Note : Other destroyers in Force
G destroyers were :-
HM
Destroyers GRENVILLE, URSA, ULSTER, UNDAUNTED, URCHIN, JERVIS
and
H M Escort Destroyers PYTCHLEY, CATTISTOCK and COTTESMORE and Polish
ORP KRAKOWIAK.
30th Arrived at Greenock for Operation
NEPTUNE.
For details of
activities prior to and during Normandy landings see LANDINGS IN NORMANDY,
June 1944 (HMSO)
and OPERATION NEPTUNE by K Edwards).
June
3rd Part of escort for Convoy G12 to
Solent with HM Destroyer GRENVILLE.
(Note : This
comprised HM Cruisers ORION, AJAX, ARGONAUT and EMERALD forming
Bombarding Force "K")
4th Operation NEPTUNE postponed for
24 hours.
5th Netherlands Gunboat FLORES joined
Convoy G12.
Passage from Solent with Force "K".
6th Provided naval gunfire support
off GOLD Beach.
to
8th
9th Joined Eastern Task Force for patrol and
support duty.
11th Released from NEPTUNE
12th Deployed for defence of convoy to
Gibraltar.
19th Passage to Plymouth from
Gibraltar.
30th Transferred to Mediterranean for
support of military operations.
July
Passage to Naples to join operations with calls at Gibraltar, Algiers
and Malta.
16th Provided cover during allied re-occupation
of Corsica.
19th Deployed in support of military
operations on west coast of Italy.
to
21st
26th Taken in hand for repair in Malta.
August
Nominated for support of military operations in Adriatic.
11th On completion of repair took
passage to Taranto.
26th Commenced support and patrol
operations in Adriatic.
Deployed with HM Destroyers URCHIN, LOYAL and KIMBERLEY, HM River Gunboats
APHIS and SCARAB.
30th Bombarded
Pesaro.
September
Nominated for duty in Eastern Fleet after return to UK to give leave and
prepare for further
foreign service.
1st Bombarded Gothic Line.
6th Bombarded shore batteries at
Rimini in NW Adriatic.
(For details of Adriatic operations see THE LAST DESTROYER by K.
Mason, ENGAGE
THE ENEMY MORE CLOSELY by Corelli Bamett, WAR IN THE
MEDITERRANEAN
(HMSO) and Naval Staff History,).
10th Carried
out further bombardment of shore batteries.
15th Took passage to Chatham from Bari
with call at Gibraltar.
23rd Arrived at Chatham.
October At
Chatham for leave and preparation for service with Eastern Fleet.
November
18th
Took passage to Indian Ocean for duty with Flotilla with calls at
Algiers, Port Said
and Aden.
22nd Transferred to British Pacific Fleet
with Flotilla on formation..
December
11th Joined British Pacific Fleet at
Trincomalee.
1 9 4 5
January
4th Escorted ships of Task Force 65 for
air attacks on oil refineries at Pankalan Brandan, Sumatra
(Operation
LENTIL - Part of Operation OUTFLANK Series – attacks on Sumatran oil
installations.)
(Note : Force 65 comprised :
H M
Aircraft Carriers IMPLACABLE, VICTORIOUS INDEFATIGABLE, HM Cruisers
SUFFOLK, CEYLON, ARGONAUT and BLACK PRINCE, HM Destroyers
KEMPENFELT, WHELP, WAGER, GRENVILLE, URANIA, UNDAUNTED and URSA
(For
details of operations in Indian Ocean see OPERATION PACIFIC by E. Gray, THE
FORGOTTEN FLEET by J Winton and ENGAGE THE ENEMY MORE CLOSELY and
WAR WITH JAPAN, Volume
VI (HMSO).
16th . Passage to SUMATRA with the ships of
BPF. Joined m Battleship KING GEORGE V, H M
Aircraft Carriers INDOMITABLE, ILLUSTRIOUS, VICTORIOUS and INDEFATIGABLE,
HM
Cruisers ARGONAUT, BLACK PRINCE and EURYALUS with m Destroyers
GRENVILLE,
URSA, UNDAUNTED, KEMPENFELT, WAKEFUL, WHIRLWIND, WAGER and WHELP.
20th Refuelled from Task Force 69.
24th Deployed with TF63 during air attacks
by carriers on an oil refinery at Pladjoe, Sumatra after delay
due to adverse weather (Operation MERIDIAN ONE).
26th Deployed with screen for TF63 during
further series of attacks on the refinery at Soengi-Gerong,
Sumatra near Palembang
(Operation MERIDIAN TWO).
Under retaliatory air attacks (For details see above references).
29th Carried out rescue of aircrew from
two aircraft from carriers
. 30th Replenished and took passage to
Sydney with call at Fremantle.
February
10th Arrived at Sydney.
11th Prepared for service with US Navy
Task Force in Pacific.
to Pennant Number for visual
signalling purposes changed to D26 to conform with US Navy
27th identity used for destroyers.
(Note :Exercises carried out included US Navy signalling procedures and
manoeuvring
See THE
FORGOTTEN FLEET, OPERATION PACIFIC) and WAR WITH JAPAN
(HMSO.).
28th Took passage to Manus with snips of
BPF designatad as Task Force 113.
March
Exercised on passage to Manus.
7th On arrival future deployment
undecided by internal US wrangling. See above references
.
Waited for decision by US Joint Chiefs of Staff.
. 15th Allocated for service with 5th US
Fleet and given new identity -Task Force 57.
18th Sailed for Ulithi as part of screen
for ships of Task Force 57-
(Note: TF57 comprised :-
HM Battleships KING GEORGE V and HOWE, HM Aircraft Carriers
INDOMITABLE, VICTORIOUS, ILLUSTRIOUS,
INDEFATIGABLE, HM
Cruisers SWIFTSURE, GAMBIA (RNZN), BLACK PRINCE, ARGONAUT,
EURYALUS, HM Destroyers GRENVILLE, ULSTER, URANIA, UNDINE,
UNDAUNTED, QUICKMATCH, QUIBERON,
QUEENBOROUGH,
KEMPENFELT, WHIRLWIND and WAGER.
20th Joined 5th US Fleet at Ulithi.
23rd Sailed from Ulithi with TF57 to
operational area off Sakishima Gunto
. 26th Part of screen during air attacks
on airfields in Sakishima Gunto Group.
(Note : Provision in support during Okinawa landings Operation ICEBERG
ONE)
. 27th Rescued crew from crashed aircraft.
April
Screening duties with TF57 in continuation.
Carried out radar picket duties.
21st Took passage to Leyte with TF57 on
completion of 6th strike period.
23rd Arrived at Layte for repair and
replenishment.
Future deployment of TF57 under consideration
27th Proposal to transfer BPF to SW
Pacific area cancelled. BPF to remain with 5th Fleet as Task
Force 57-
May
1st Took passage to operational area
from Leyte with TF57 for continuation of attacks on
Sakishima Gunto Group (Operation ICEBERG TWO).
(Note: Other ships in Task Force 57 were :-
HM Battleships KING GEORGE V, HOWE. HM Aircraft Carriers
INDOMITABLE, INDEFATIGABLE, FORMIDABLE, VICTORIOUS, HM
Cruisers SWIFTSURE, UGANDA (RCN), GAMBIA (RNZN), EURYALUS and
BLACK PRINCE with HM Destroyers GRENVILLE, URSA, URCHIN,
UNDAUNTED ,URANIA, QUILLIAM ,QUIBERON, QUICKMATCH,
QUEENBOROUGH, QUALITY, KEMPENFELT, WHIRLWIND and WESSEX.
4th After arrival in area detached with
ships of 25th Destroyer Flotilla to screen HMS KING
GEORGE V, HMS HOWE, HMS SWIFTSURE, HMS
BLACK PRINCE, HMS
EURYALUS, HMS
GAMBIA and HMS UGANDA during bombardment of airfields on
Miyako Shima.
(Note : During this
bombardment the aircraft carriers of TF57 came under sustained attack
by
bombing including KAMIKAZE aircraft.)
Bombardment
curtailed and force returned to rejoin aircraft carriers).
5th Deployment with screen for Task
Force in continuation
to (For details see above references
and Naval Staff History).
25th
26th Passage to Sydney BPF ships via
Manus.
(Note: HMS KING
GEORGE V with HMS TROUBRIDGE, HMS TENACIOUS and
HMS
TERMAGANT were detached for passage to Guam).
June
5th Arrived at Sydney for rest and
recuperation period.
(Note: Ships of BPF were transferred to US 3rd Fleet during this period
owing to a
re-organisation of US Navy command structure in Pacific and were
re-designated
Task Force
37).0
28th Sailed with Task Force 37 from
Sydney for Manus.
(Note: Task Force 37 comprised :-
HM
Battleship KING GEORGE V, HM Aircraft Carriers FORMIDABLE,
VICTORIOUS, IMPLACABLE, HM Cruisers NEWFOUNDLAND, ACHILLES
(RNZN), UGANDA (RCN), EURYALUS, GAMBIA (RNZN) and BLACK PRINCE
with HM Destroyers
QUIBERON, QUADRANT, QUALITY., QUICKMATCH,
TROUBRIDGE, TENACIOUS, TERMAGANT, TEAZER, TERPSICHORE,
GRENVILLE, UNDAUNTED, URANIA, URCHIN. UNDINE and ULYSSES.
July
4th Arrived at Manus with BPF.
6th Sailed for operational area with
TF37.
(Note : HMS
IMPLACABLE detached because of machinery
defect and joined later)
17th Part of Task Group 37.1.2 as
escort for TF37 carriers during combined attacks on targets in
Tokyo and Yokohama.
18th Deployment with screen for major
ships of Task Force 37 in continuation off Japan,
to (See above references, HMS INDEFATIGABLE joined TF37 with HM Destroyers
28th WAKEFUL, WRANGLER and BARFLEUR on 20th
July).
(Operation
OLYMPIC - Initial Phase)
29th Bombarded factories and other
targets near Hamamitsu, South Honshu with HMS KING
GEORGE V, HMS
ULYSSES and HMS URANIA.
30th Engaged surface craft after radar
detection.
August
1st Deployment off Japan with 3rd US
fleet in continuation for series of Joint RN/USN
to air attacks and bombardments of targets in
North Honshu and Hokkaido.
11th
12th Withdrawn from forward area with
BPF ships not transferred to Task Force 38 as new
Task Group 38.5
(Note: TG36.5 comprised:
HMS
KING GEORGE V, HMS INDEFATIGABLE, HMNZS GAMBIA, HMS
NEWFOUNDLAND, HM Destroyers BARFLEUR, NAPIER (RAN), NIZAM (RAN),
WAKEFUL,
WRANGLER, TROUBRIDGE, TERMAGANT, TENACIOUS and
TEAZER.)
(For
details of an BPF operations in Pacific see OPERATIC*! PACIFIC by E
. Gray,
THE FORGOTTEN FLEET by John Winton, TF57 by Peter Smith, Naval Staff
Staff History and WAR WITH JAPAN (HMSO).
Passage to Sydney
via Manus.
24th Arrived Sydney.
Reverted to RN
control.
(Note: Ship had been 50 days at sea since leaving Sydney on 6tn July)
Statistical Data
Total miles
steamed from commissioning: - 128,928
miles.
Days at sea since
commissioning - 127 out of 664 days.
P o s t W a r N o t e s
HMS UNDINE refitted in Melbourne before rejoining the Flotilla in
the BPF. She remained in far East and was deployed mainly in Japanese waters for support of the allied
occupation forces until return to Australia early in
1946. The ship sailed from Sydney to UK in January 1946. calls
were made during passage to Harwich at Melbourne, Fremantle, Colombo, Bombay and Aden., After arrival on
29th March the ship reduced to Reserve and was laid-up in the Reserve Fleet until 1952. Selected for
conversion as an A/S Frigate by a commercial shipyard in the Clyde, on completion she re-commissioned for
service in the Mediterranean .In 1960 this ship
was
again placed in Reserve and put on the Disposal List in 1965. She was de-equipped before tow and sold for breaking up at a breaker's yard in Newport
during November 1965.
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