L-Class
destroyer ordered from Cammell Laird, Birkenhead on 31st March 1938 under the 1937 Programme laid down as Job No 1038 on 20th December 1938. She was launched on 29th January 1941 and was the 22nd RN ship to bear this name introduced in 1689 for the Prize
LIVELY. The name was last used for a destroyer built in
1901 and sold in 1920. During 1940 the main armament was changed in this
ship and three others of the Class to improve anti-aircraft capability. They were then identified
as AA Destroyers. Build was completed on 20th July 1941 for a Tender cost was £458,132 which excluded
items such as weapons and communications equipment supplied by the Admiralty.
In February 1942 she was adopted by the civil community of Guildford, Surrey
after a successful WARSHIP WEEK National Savings
campaign.
B a t t l e H o n o u r s
LA GUAYRA 1743 - USHANT
1778 - ST VINCENT 1797 - BALTIC 1885 - ATLANTIC 1941 - MEDITERRANEAN 1941 - MALTA CONVOYS 1941-42 - SIRTE 1942 - LIBYA 1942
H e r a l d i c D a t a
Badge: On a field barry wavy of four White and Blue On a Field Blue,
an Ankh ( An ansate cross, the Egyptian symbol
of life.)
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 1
July Contractors trials and
commissioned for service.
21st Build completion and commenced
Acceptance trials.
30th Passage to Scapa Flow on completion of trials and
storing.
(Note: This ship was fitted with Outfit FH3 for determining the direction of
radio signals.
See
SEEK AND STRIKE by W Hackmann.)
August Nominated for service in
Western Approaches Command at Greenock for Atlantic convoy defence.
1st Commenced work-up with ships of Home
Fleet.
22nd Sailed from Scapa Flow with HM Destroyer LIGHTNING and joined HM Cruiser CURACOA
to
assist Free French submarine RUBIS which had been damaged off Norway.
Submarine located by HMS
LIGHTNING and found to be on passage to Dundee
having
repaired
machinery defect.
Covered return
passage of RUBIS and returned to Scapa Flow.
28th
Completed work-up at Scapa
Flow and took passage to Greenock to join Special Escort Group.
(Note: During work-up this ship took part in trials of a modified Type 271
radar which was
later put in production as Type 273
and replaced the earlier centimetric Type 271 to
provide
surface cover. See RADAR AT SEA by D Howse for details of development
and use
of radar by the RN.)
31st Deployed with HM Cruiser CAIRO, HM
Destroyers COSSACK, HIGHLANDER, LEGION,
WINCHELSEA, Polish
destroyers ORP GARLAND, PIORUN and Dutch Destroyer ISAAC
SWEERS for escort of military convoy WS11
during passage in NW Approaches from
Clyde.
September
4th Detached from WS11 and took passage to
Gibraltar with HMS LEGION.
7th Resumed duties with 4th Destroyer
Flotilla based at Gibraltar
(Note: Flotilla
also included HM Destroyers COSSACK, LANCE. LEGION, MAORI, SIKH
and
ZULU.)
8th Deployed with HM Destroyers FORESTER,
LANCE and LEGION as screen for HM Aircraft
Carrier ARK ROYAL
and HM Cruiser HERMIONE during Malta aircraft delivery
(Operation STATUS
I).
9th Returned to Malta with same ships after
launch of HURRICANE aircraft.
10th Deployed with HMS ZULU, HMS LANCE and
HMS LEGION as screen for HM Battleship
NELSON and HMS ARK
ROYAL as Force A to provide cover during Malta aircraft delivery
(Operation STATUS
II).
14th Returned to Gibraltar with Ships of
Force A after launch of aircraft from HMS FURIOUS and
carrying out
series of exercises in preparation for planned Malta relief operation.
24th Deployed with HM Destroyers DUNCAN,
LANCE, LEGION, LEGION, FURY, Dutch
destroyer ISAAC
SWEERS, Polish destroyers ORP GARLAND and PIORUN as screen for Force
A comprising HM
Battleships NELSON, RODNEY, PRINCE OF WALES and HMS ARK ROYAL
to provide cover
for passage to Sicilian Narrows of Convoy GM2 destined for Malta under
escort of Force X
(Operation HALBERD).
27th Under air attacks during which HMS
RODNEY was hit by an aircraft torpedo but remained in
covering force at a
reduced speed.
Remained west of
Narrows when Force X detached with mercantiles and remained in area to
provide cover
during passage of Convoy MG2 and returning Force X ships to Gibraltar.
28th Under threat of air attacks but
these were deterred by effective use of aircraft away from Force A
29th Met returning warships and under
threat of submarine attack.
(Note: HMS NELSON was
detached and returned to Gibraltar with HMS PRINCE OF WALES,
HM
Cruisers KENYA and HMS SHEFFIELD (Force X), HM Destroyers LAFOREY,
LIGHTNING, ORIBI, FORESIGHT, FORESTER (Force
X) and HMS FURY (Force A).
30th Under attack by Italian submarine
ADUA and carried out anti-submarine hunt with HMS LEGION.
ADUA was sunk in
position 37.10N 00.56E by these depth
charge attacks.
October
1st Returned to Gibraltar with remaining
ships of Force A and Force X.
Resumed convoy
defence duties with Flotilla.
12th Nominated for service in Malta with HM
Cruisers AURORA, PENELOPE and HM Destroyer
LANCE to form Force
K for attacks on shipping taking supplies and troops to North Africa.
19th Took passage from Gibraltar with HMS
LANCE to join HMS AURORA and HMS PENELOPE.
(Note: HM
Battleship RODNEY, HM Aircraft Carrier ARK ROYAL and HM Cruiser HERMIONE
belonging to Force H based at Gibraltar also joined to provide cover
for Malta aircraft
delivery by HMS ARK ROYAL (Operation CALLBOY.)
21st Commenced service in Force K at Malta
November
8th Sailed from Malta with HMS LANCE ,
HMS AURORA and HMS PENELOPE for
interception of
supply convoy on passage in central Mediterranean.
(Note: The
movement of this convoy had been disclosed by decryption of Italian signals.)
9th Engaged convoy which consisted of
seven ships escorted by Italian destroyers FULMINE,
EURO, MAESTRAL,
LIBECCIO, ORIANO and GREGALE covered by cruisers TRENTO
and TRIESTE with a
screen of four destroyers which failed to provide defence.
All the mercantiles
and FULMINE were sunk..
(See THE NAVAL WAR
IN THE MEDITERRANEAN by J Greene and A Massignini
for full details.)
(Note: The movement of
this convoy had been disclosed by decryption of Italian signals.)
23rd Sailed from Malta with Force K
following aircraft sighting of small convoy on passage from
Taranto to
Benghazi.
24th Sighted German supply ships MARITZA
and PROCIDAS with escort of two Italian torpedo
boats. Took part in
destruction of both mercantiles which were set on fire sank. in surface
gun action. For details see
above references.
Withdrawn from
service for docking on return to Malta.
On completion
resumed service with Force K and deployed for interception of enemy convoys
in Central
Mediterranean.
30th Sailed on patrol with Force K
December
1st Following aircraft sighting report
intercepted the unescorted Italian troop transport ADRIATIO
which was sunk by HMS
AURORA and HMS PENELOPE.
Rescued some of the
survivors. See MALTA CONVOYS.
Carried out further
interception of Italian tanker IRIDO MANTOVANI which had been
damaged in air
attacks and was under tow by the Italian destroyer ALVISE DA MOSTA.
Italian destroyer
sunk by surface gunfire from HMS PENELOPE whilst making torpedo attack
under cover of smoke screen. Tanker was then
sunk by torpedo following further gun attacks.
Rescued some of the
survivors.
2nd Returned to Malta.
5th Deployed with HM Cruisers AJAX, NEPTUNE,
HM Destroyers KIMBERLEY and KINGSTON
for escort of HM
Supply Ship BRECONSHIRE during passage from Malta to a position south
of Crete where
escort would be transferred to Mediterranean Fleet ships for onward passage
to Alexandria
6th Detached from HMS BRECONSHIRE and took
return passage to Malta with HMS AJAX and
HMS NEPTUNE
(Note: HMS
KIMBERLEY and HMS KINGSTON remained as escort.)
16th Sailed from Malta with HM Cruisers AURORA,
PENELOPE, HM Destroyers LANCE, LEGION,
MAORI, SIKH and
Dutch destroyer ISAAC SWEERS to meet HMS BRECONSHIRE which
was returning from
Alexandria with much needed cargo of fuel oil required to replenish stock in
Malta (Operation MF1)
(Note: HMS BRECONSHIRE
was under escort of ships from Alexandria. See MALTA CONVOYS
17th Under threat of attack by Italian battle
squadron which was providing cover for passage of convoy
to North Africa.
(Italian Operation M42)
(Note: Italian
warships included battleship LITTORIO and two heavy cruisers with destroyer
screens.)
Met HMS BRECONSHIRE and escort which
remained in company and was to be joined by
by HMS NEPTUNE, HMS
KANDAHAR and HMS JAGUAR which had been despatched
from Malta.
Took part in
tactical deployments with HM Cruisers NAIAD and EURYALUS with screen
of destroyers during
which HMS BRECONSHIRE was detached with two destroyers.
Prepared to carry
out torpedo attack on major ships in Italian force and came under fire.
Enemy ships retired
because of possible night attacks by radar fitted ships.
(1st Battle of Sirte
– See above references.)
Joined HMS
BRECONSHIRE, HM Destroyers DECOY and HAVOCK with HMS AURORA
HMS PENELOPE and HMS
LANCE for passage into Malta.
18th Arrived in Malta with HMS BRECONSHIRE and
escort.
Sailed later that
day with HM Cruisers AURORA, PENELOPE, NEPTUNE, HM Destroyers
HAVOCK, KANDAHAR and
LANCE to intercept Italian convoy M42 as it approached Tripoli.
19th Avoided disaster when ships of Force K ran
into Italian minefield off Tripoli.
(Note: HMS NEPTUNE
was sunk when she detonated a mine and HMS KANDAHAR was
lost
during rescue operations when she also hit a mine. HMS PENELOPE and HMS
AURORA were seriously
damaged.
20th Returned to Malta with remnants of Force
K.
1 9 4 2
January
6th Deployed with HMS LANCE, HMS JAGUAR and
HMS HAVOCK as Force C to escort
HMS BRECONSHIRE from Malta.
8th After meeting Force B which was escorting
HM Supply Ship GLENGYLE for passage into
Malta from
Alexandria returned to Malta with Force C as escort for final stage of journey.
(Operation MF2)
17th Sailed from Malta with HMS PENELOPE, HMS
JAGUAR, HMS LANCE, HMS SIKH and
HMS ZULU to meet
Convoy MW8 from Alexandria escorted by ships of Force B.
(Operation MF3)
18th Escort of MW8 ships exchanged and took
return passage to Malta.
19th Arrived in Malta with MW8 ships.
(Note: One of the
four ships in MW8 had been detached and only three got to Malta.)
This was
the last convoy to arrive in Malta from Egypt until the siege had been lifted.
25th Deployed with HMS PENELOPE, HMS LANCE, HMS
LEGION, HMS MAORI and HMS
ZULU as Force K and
sailed from Malta escorting Convoy ME9 for initial part of passage to
Alexandria.
(Operation MF4).
(Note: ME9
comprised HMS GLENGYLE and ss ROWALLAN CASTLE
26th Met ships of Force B from Alexandria
escorting HM Supply Ship BRECONSHIRE and took
return passage to
Malta as escort.
27th Arrived in Malta with HMS BRECONSHIRE and
ships of Force K
(Note: This was the
last ship to arrive in Malta from Egypt and successfully discharge all
its
cargo until November 1942).
February
13th Sailed from Malta with HMS PENELOPE, HM
Destroyers DECOY,
SIKH, FORTUNE,
LEGION and ZULU as escort for Convoy ME10 for passage to meet Force
B from Alexandria
which was escorting Convoy MW9 (Operation MF5)
14th After exchange of convoys HMS DECOY and
HMS FORTUNE transferred to Force B.
HMS LANCE joined
Force K.
Deployed with Force K as escort for
MW9 for passage into Malta.
(Note: ss ROWALLAN
CASTLE was the only ship remaining from the three which sailed
from
Egypt. This convoy had been under sustained attack by aircraft.
For
details see above references.)
Under air attacks
during which ROWALLAN CASTLE was hit and disabled.
Sank ss ROWALLAN
CASTLE by torpedo when towing attempt was abandoned because of
threat of surface
attack and constant air attacks.
15th Transferred to Force B with HMS SIKH and
HMS ZULU and joined for passage to Alexandria.
HMS ZULU, HMS SIKH
and HMS LANCE detached from Force K and took passage to
Alexandria
(Note: Operation
to pass MW9 therefore a failure as no relief supplies were landed in Malta.)
March
9th Deployed with HM Destroyers HASTY, HERO,
KELVIN, KIPLING, JERVIS, SIKH and ZULU
as destroyer screen of HM Cruisers DIDO, EURYALUS and NAIAD for Force B
during search for
Italian cruiser damaged by torpedo. Under air attacks without damage.
11th Took part in rescue of ships company of
HMS NAIAD with HM Destroyer JERVIS and KIPLING
. after Flagship had
been hit by a torpedo off Mersa Matru
and later sank.
(Note: Admiral Vian was among the 533
rescued.)
20th Deployed with HM Cruiser CARLISLE, HM
Destroyers SIKH, ZULU, HERO,
HAVOCK and HASTY as Close Escort for Convoy MW10 to Malta covered by
cruisers and destroyers of the Mediterranean Fleet (Operation MG1)
(Note: Convoy MW10 comprised HMS BRECONSHIRE, ss CLAN CAMPBELL, ss
PAMPAS and ss
TALABOT
21st Covering cruiser Force and screen joined
MW10 in view of possible threat of attack by a major
force of Italian warships. Under air attacks which were repelled.
22nd Under air attacks. Detached with HMS SIKH,
HMS HERO AND HMS HAVOCK in accordance with
planned tactical moves in the event of a surface attack by heavy
warships.
Took part in surface gun
action against Italian warships which included the battleship LITTORIO,
three cruisers and destroyer screen (2nd Battle of Sirte – For details
see MEDITERRANEAN
MAELSTROM by GC Connell, Naval Staff History and above references.)
Carried out torpedo attack with HM Destroyers SIKH, HERO and HAVOCK and
hit by splinters
from a 15in shell which burst alongside. Continued operation with some
flooding.
Italian warships withdrew at nightfall because of perceived threat of
night action against the
British radar
equipped ships.
Rejoined Mediterranean Fleet ships not deployed for escort of convoy.
23rd Under air attacks and sustained further
damage which prevented continued passage with returning
ships. Detached and took passage to Tobruk to effect repair from splinter
damage.
April Passage from Tobruk to
Alexandria.
Resumed Flotilla
duties on completion of repairs.
May Deployment at Alexandria
for Tobruk support, interception patrol and screening duties in
continuation.
10th Deployed with HM Destroyers JERVIS, JACKAL
and KIPLING to intercept convoy on
passage to Benghazi
between Crete and North African coast.
(Note:
Specifically warned to return if sighted by aircraft. Only limited air cover
was available.)
11th Under heavy and sustained dive bombing
attacks and sank very quickly in position 100 miles
NE of Tobruk
(33.24N 25.38E) with heavy loss of life. 77 of the ship’s company were reported
reported killed or
missing
Loss of this AA
destroyer proved crucial to defence of these ships without air cover from
shore.
(Note: Casualty
List was published on 17th June.
In
later air attacks that day HMS KIPLING was hit and sunk with HMS JACKAL
disabled .Tow by HMS JERVIS at low speed prevented air cover before
daylight
and the
ship had to be torpedoed and sunk by HMS JERVIS on 12th May.
HMS
JERVIS rescued over 600 survivors from these three ships, some of whom died
before
reaching Alexandria.
Addendum
CONVOY ESCORT MOVEMENTS of HMS
LIVELY
by Don Kindell
These convoy lists have not been cross-checked
with the text above
|
|
|
|
|
Date convoy sailed
|
Joined convoy as escort
|
Convoy No.
|
Left convoy
|
Date convoy arrived
|
|
|
|
|
|
24/09/41
|
24/09/41
|
HALBERD
|
27/09/41
|
27/09/41
|
27/09/41
|
09/10/41
|
OG 075
|
12/10/41
|
13/10/41
|
25/02/42
|
25/02/42
|
AT 031/M
|
27/02/42
|
27/02/42
|
|
|
|
|
|
(Note on Convoys)