1 9
3 9
August
Commissioned with Reservist
shop’s company
9th
Attended Reserve Fleet Review by HM
King George VI in Weymouth Bay
War Station
nominated
September
Deployed with 11th Destroyer
Flotilla in Channel for convoy
defence
and
anti-submarine patrol.
(Note:
Other ships in Flotilla were:
HM Destroyers
MACKAY (Leader), VANQUISHER, WALKER,
VERSATILE,
WALKER, WARWICK, WHIRLWIND and
WINCHELSEA.)
7th
Escorted outward Convoy OB1 during
initial stage of passage
from
Liverpool to Dispersal Point in SW
Approaches with HM Destroyer
VERSATILE.
10th
Detached from OB1 on dispersal and
took passage to join
outward
Convoy OB4
during passage in SW Approaches.
15th
Joined HM Destroyers VERSATILE and
VIVACIOUS escorting Convoy
OB4.
16th
Detached from OB4 and returned to
Plymouth.
For details of
Convoy identities and dates of
passage see THE ALLIED
CONVOY SYSTEM
1939-45 by A
Hague.)
October
Channel deployment in
continuation.
to
(For
details of naval activities in this
period see ENGAGE THE
December
ENEMY
MORE CLOSELY by C Barnett and the
Naval Staff History.
1 9
4 0
January
Convoy defence in Channel and North
Sea.
(For details of
naval activities in North Sea during
this period see
BATTLE OF THE EAST COAST by J P Foynes
February
Deployed for convoy defence in
SW Approaches.
8th
Escorted inward Convoy HG17 for
final stage of passage in
SW
Approaches to
Liverpool
from Gibraltar.
11th
Detached from HG17 on arrival and
took passage to Plymouth.
March
Passage to Gibraltar to join escort
for inward
Convoy HG21.
4th
Sailed from Gibraltar as escort for
HG21 with HM Destroyers
ACTIVE, VELOX
and VIDETTE during passage to
Liverpool
10th
Detached from HG21 and joined HM
Destroyer WINCHELSEA and
two
French Navy destroyers in escort of
Outward Convoy OG21
during
passage in SW Approaches to
Gibraltar.
12th
Detached from OG21 and returned to
Plymouth.
April
Resumed service in North Sea for
defence of east coast and
Channel
traffic.
May
Transferred to Dover
Command and joined 19th Destroyer
Flotilla
for
Channel convoy defence.
13th
Escorted ss
PERSEUS carrying
bullion from Ymuiden.
22nd
Took part in evacuation of troops
from Calais.
Carried out
bombardment of enemy troops and
embarked contingent
of Welsh
Guards for passage to Dover.
23rd
Embarked Royal Marines demolition
party
for passage to Boulogne.
(Operation XD
(G)).
30th
Deployed for evacuation of allied
troops
from Dunkirk.
(Operation
DYNAMO)
(Note:
Four trips made to beaches and under
air attacks.
Commanding
Officer missing after one attack and
First Lieutenant
assumed command..
31st
Sustained damage in collision with
yacht AMUREE and later in
air
attack.
(For details of Dunkirk operations
see Naval Staff
History (HMSO)
and NINE
DAYS OF DUNKIRK by AD Divine.
June
Awaiting
repair at Dover.
Pennant Number
for visual signalling purposes
changed to I33
July
Under repair
August
On completion transferred to
Home Fleet and took passage to
Scapa
Flow for Fleet
duties.
September
11th
Part of escort for ships of 1st
Minelaying Squadron during
minelay
in NW
Approaches (To be confirmed).
October
Nominated for escort of
military convoy
7th
Joined Convoy WS3B in Clyde with HM
Destroyers ACHATES,
ARROW and SABRE
as Local Escort during passage in NW
Approaches
(Note:
HM Cruiser KENYA was deployed as
Ocean Escort
during
passage
to Freetown.)
12th
Detached from WS3B and returned to
Clyde with Local Escort.
November
Convoy
escort deployment in continuation.
to
Nominated
for conversion to Long Range Escort.
December
(For details see BRITISH
DESTROYERS by E March and V&W
DESTROYERS by A
Preston.)
1 9
4 1
January
Under
conversion and refit by HM
Dockyard, Portsmouth.
to
(Note: This ship was first of the
Class to be converted into the new
role
April
which ensured that this
type of destroyer could be used
as an
Ocean Escort.
Nominated for
service at Freetown
with 18th
Destroyer Flotilla.
May
On completion of post
refit trials took passage to
Freetown.
June
Deployed at Freetown for Local
Escort and passage of
Atlantic
convoys
to and from Gibraltar.
July
Deployed at Gibraltar
23rd
Despatched with HM Destroyers
VIDETTE and WISHART to
reinforce
escort of damaged cruiser HMS
MANCHESTER by
HM Destroyer AVONVALE
during return passage to Gibraltar
(Operation
SUBSTANCE – See MALTA CONVOYS by R
Woodman for
details.)
August
Gibraltar deployment in
continuation.
September
Atlantic convoy defence in
continuation
17th
Joined inward Convoy HG73 with two
sloops and eight corvettes
as escort during passage
from
Gibraltar to Liverpool.
20th
Carried out attack on Italian
submarine
LUIGI TORELLI with HM Destroyer
WILD SWAN.
(Note:
This was assessed as having damaged
the submarine.)
21st
Sank Italian submarine ALESSANDRO
MALASPINA
24th
Under air attacks which were
driven off.
26th
Under sustained attacks by U124,
U200, U201 and U203 during
which nine mercantiles
were
to
sunk. See BRITISH LOSSES AT SEA
1939-45 (HMSO), HITLER’S U-BOAT
WAR
27th
by C Blair and THE REAL
CRUEL SEA by R
Woodman.)
October
1st
Detached from HG73 with escort on
arrival at Liverpool.
Passage to
Freetown
to resume
Local Escort duties.
November
21st
Joined military convoy WS12Z with HM
Destroyer VELOX as
Local Escort
during passage into Freetown
from UK.
25th
Detached from WS12Z on arrival at
Freetown.
December
25th
Joined military convoy WS14 with HM
Destroyer BRILLIANT
as Local
Escort from Freetown during initial
stage of passage
off
West
Africa for Capetown.
26th
HMS BRILLIANT detached.
27th
Detached from WS14 and made
independent
return passage.
1 9
4 2
January
21st
Joined military convoy WS15 with HM
Destroyer VANSITTART on
departure
from Freetown as Local Escort.
25th
Detached from WS15 and took passage
to return to Freetown
with HMS
VANSITTART.
February
Atlantic convoy defence based at
Freetown in continuation.
to
July
August
Escorted HM Battleship QUEEN
ELIZABETH with HM Destroyers
PATHFINDER and
QUENTIN during Atlantic passage from
Freetown
to
Norfolk, Va, USA for repair to
damage after
attack by frogmen at
Alexandria.
Detached from
HMS QUEEN ELIZABETH at Norfolk and
took
passage
with the other two destroyers to
Port of Spain, Trinidad for convoy
defence.
September
Deployed in West Indies for convoy
defence with HM
Destroyers
PATHFINDER and
QUENTIN.
3rd
Carried out depth charge attacks
with HMS PATHFINDER and
HMS
QUENTIN after
submarine torpedo attack.
When submarine U162
surfaced
five hours later obtained radar
contact and made
ramming
attack
after radar contact followed by
further depth charge
attack
which
sank U162. Sustained damage to Port
shaft requiring
docking
Took part in
rescue of German crew, all of whom
survived.
(For details see
U-BOATS DESTROYED by P Kemp and
HITLER’S
U-BOAT WAR by C
Blair.)
(Note:
Surface warning Radar Type 271 was
fitted in this
ship and
installation
is unlikely to have been carried out
on
conversion
in early
1941.)
10th
Deployed for Local Escort of four
ships
on Atlantic passage to Barbados.
14th
Opened fire on object believed to be
a surfaced submarine.
When raft
lowered improvised sail ceased fire
and rescued survivors from US
mercantile
which had
been sunk by U66 on 30th August and
been adrift on
a raft ever since.
(Note ;
Survivors were later transferred to
Dutch mercantile
in the convoy.
See THE REAL CRUEL SEA by R
Woodman.)
October
Nominated for service with 2nd
Escort Group on completion of
repair.
November
Deployed for Atlantic convoy
defence with Group.
to
(Note: During this period the Group
escorted Convoys HX213, ONS218,
December
and
HX219 all without loss.
1 9
4 3
January
Atlantic
convoy defence in continuation
with Group.
(Note:
Group escorted Convoy ON159 without
loss.)
February
Deployed with Group as part of
escort for Convoy SC118 with HM
Destroyers VANESSA,
WITCH, BEVERLEY,
HM Corvettes CAMPANULA, MIGNONETTE,
ABELIA, Free French
LOBELIA and US
Coastguard Cutter GEORGE M BIBB.
(Note:
The Commanding Officer was
Lieutenant R B Stannard,
RNR
who was
awarded the Victoria Cross when in
command of
HM Trawler ARAB
during the Norwegian campaign in
1940.)
4th
Convoy under attack by PFEIL and
HAUDEGEN U-Boat
Groups.
Attacked and
sank U187 after this submarine had
been detected
by radio
transmissions intercepted by escorts
and located.
Carried out
depth charge attacks on U262.
(For details see
HITLER’S U-BOAT WAR and for details
on
tactics
and weapons used in defence and
attacks SEEK AND STRIKE
by W Hackmann.)
6th
During further sustained attacks by
HAUDEGEN Group carried
out
attacks
on U267 which was damaged.
(Note:
See above references, ENGAGE THE
ENEMY MORE CLOSELY
by C Barnett,
CONVOY by M Middlebrook,
THE BATTLE OF THE ATLANTIC by D
Macintyre
and THE
REAL CRUEL SEA by R Woodman.))
7th
Carried out further anti-submarine
operations against
further sustained attacks during
which
U6089 was sunk by HMS ABELIA.
8th
Took disabled FS LOBELIA in tow
10th
Detached and took passage with four
ships destined for Iceland and with
LOBELIA under tow.
(Note: For
details of defence of this convoy
which arrived at
Liverpool on 12th having lost
nine
ships during passage, see THE REAL
CRUEL SEA by R Woodman.
March
Despatched from Iceland to join
escort for Convoy HX229
known to
be at
risk of attacks by RAUBGRAF, STURMER
and DRANGER
U-Boat Groups
and requiring reinforcement of
escort.
19th
Joined escort for HX229 by 4th
Escort Group with US destroyer
BABBITT.
(Note:
21 ships were sunk in attacks on
these two convoys.
The attacks on convoys
during
this month were especially heavy and
lead to serious
consideration of abandonment
of the
convoy system but fortunately this
was maintained. See
references.)
April
Transferred to 6th Escort
Group and deployed as escort for
Convoy
ON176 with HM
Destroyers HIGHLANDER and
BEVERLEY.
10th
Under attack by ADLER U-Boat
Group
during which HMS BEVERLEY
was sunk.
12th
Series of attacks ceased. Two ships
were sunk
See HITLER’S
U-BOAT WAR Volume 2.
May
Atlantic convoy defence with
Group including Convoy ONS6 without
loss.
June
Deployed with Group for
defence of UK-Gibraltar route
convoys.
to
(Note: Extensive traffic of military
convoys took place during this
December
period associated with the
military operations in the
Mediterranean.)
1 9
4 4
January
Atlantic
convoy defence in continuation.
to
Nominated
for support of planned allied
landings in Europe
April
(Operation
NEPTUNE).
May
Transferred to Plymouth
Command and allocated to 141st
Escort
Group with HM Canadian
Corvette KITCHENER based at
Milford
Haven.
Took part in
preliminary exercises.
28th
Escorted HM Motor Launch 10 for last
minelay off Brittany before
landings
(Operation HOSTILE 28)
June
Deployed with Build-Up
Force B for escort of military
convoys
to
Western Task Force area from
embarkation ports.
7th
Escorted Convoy EMB3.
8th
Detached on arrival off beachhead.
(For details of
naval activities prior to and during
landings see
OPERATION NEPTUNE by K Edwards and
LANDINGS IN
NORMANDY, June 1944 (HMSO)
)
July
On release from NEPTUNE deployed for
coastal convoy
defence in
in
Channel and SW Approaches.
August
Channel
deployment in continuation.
to
(Note: German U-boats fitted with
SCHNORKEL were being
December
increasingly deployed for attacks
on shipping.)
1 9
4 5
January
Channel area convoy defence in
continuation..
to
(Note: Atlantic convoys were
re-routed through English Channel
April
after threat of air
attacks from French bases had been
removed.)
May
Remained in commission
after VE Day but nominated for
reduction
to
to
Reserve status. Paid-off and
de-stored.
August
