1
9 3 9
September
Deployed
with 16th Destroyer Flotilla at Portsmouth
for escort of convoys taking
the BEF to
France.
7th
Escorted troop convoy to Cherbourg
with HM Destroyer WREN.
12th
Escorted Convoy
MB2 to Cherbourg
with HMS
WREN.
15th
Escorted Convoy
DB2 with HMS WREN.
October
Transferred
to mercantile convoy escort duty in SW
Approaches and Channel
November
Convoy
defence and anti-submarine patrol in
SW Approaches in continuation.
to
December
1
9 4 0
January
Deployment
in Western Approaches continued.
to
April
May
Transferred
to assist in evacuation of British
troops and allied nationals from
ports in Holland,
Belgium
and France.
12th
Embarked party of Royal Marines for
passage to Hook of Holland with HM Destroyer
VERITY.
15th
Evacuated refugees from Amsterdam
for passage to Dover.
21st
Deployed for
evacuation from Boulogne
with HM
Destroyer KEITH and WILD SWAN.
Returned to
Folkestone
26th
Deployed to assist in evacuation of
troops from Dunkirk (Operation DYNAMO)
(For
details see ENGAGE THE ENEMY MORE
CLOSELY by Corelli Barnett
and Naval
Staff History (HMSO, 2002
)and BEF Ships by J de Winser).
31st
Deployed for evacuation of troops
from Dunkirk
and made two trips.
Landed 670 at Dover
from La Panne
and Bray on first trip.
Landed 408 at Dover from Pier at
Dunkirk on second trip with HM
Destroyers
WHITEHALL
Land WINCHELSEA.
(Note:
During
May Pennant Number for Visual
Signalling purposes was changed to I75
to
conform
with revision of these identities
introduced for all
RN warships.)
June
2nd
Landed 630 troops at Dover from
beaches
3rd
Landed 957 troops at Dover from
beaches
4th
Landed 463 troops at Dover after last
trip to Dunkirk beaches.
(Note: In
all this ship carried 3,128 personnel
to Dover during DYNAMO)
7th
On release
from DYNAMO deployed for escort of
North
Sea convoys
based at Harwich.
11th
During escort of Convoy FN19 off Great
Yarmouth with H M Destroyer WIVERN
under
attack by
six aircraft.
Damage
avoided by skilful manoeuvring.
July
Carried
out anti-invasion patrol in North Sea when not required for convoy dfence..
to
August
September
Patrolled
off Boulogne
with HM Destroyer WILD SWAN.
October
Transferred
to Western Approaches Command for
convoy defence in Atlantic.
November
13th
Escorted HM
Aircraft Carrier ARGUS to Gibraltar
for Malta aircraft
delivery.
(Operation
WHITE).
December
Transferred
to 1st Escort Group based at Londonderry for Atlantic Convoy defence.
During
escort of Convoy HX96 sustained
damaged by mine explosion and taken in
hand
for repair
1
9 4 1
January
Under
repair
to
Rejoined Group at Londonderry on
completion.
February
March
Convoy
defence in Western Approaches in
continuation.
April
Damaged
in collision with HM Submarine H31 and
under repair for 2 weeks.
May
On
completion resumed Atlantic convoy
defence with Group.
to
June
July
Part
of escort of Convoy OB343.
Detached
of Iceland
and returned to Londonderry for
machinery repairs.
August
Under
repair
September
Rejoined
Group on completion and resumed convoy
escort duty.
Group
renamed B1 (1st British) and comprised
HM Destroyers SHIKARI,
ROCKINGHAM,
SABRE,
KEPPEL,
LINCOLN and four FLOWER
Class
Corvette
(For
details of Atlantic convoy defence see
THE BATTLE CF THE ATLANTIC by Donald
MacIntyre,
ENGAGE THE ENEMY MORE CLOSELY by C
Barnett and U-BOAT WAR
IN
THE ATLANTIC
(HMSO)).
October
Deployed
as escort for Convoy ONS21 with ships
of Group.
November
Damaged
in collision with HM Destroyer KEPPEL
during escort of Convoy OS35.
Withdrawn from
service for repair and conversion
into Long Range
Escort.
December
Under repair and conversion at
Greenock in
commercial shipyard.
1
9 4 2
January
Under
repair and conversion
to
Radar Type 271 for surface warning
fitted.
March
(Note:
For details of development and use of
radar in RN see
RADAR AT SEA by D
Howse.)
(See
SEEK AND STRIKE by W Hackmann,
U-BOAT WAR IN THE ATLANTIC
(HMSO)
and HITLER'S U-BOAT WAR by C Blair
for details of weapons and tactics
used in the
Battle
of the Atlantic and Russian convoy
defence.)
April
20th
On completion deployed with Home Fleet
for escort of Russian Convoy.
28th
Joined escort for Russian Convoy PQ15
with Home Fleet destroyers
May
5th
Detached from PQ15.
21st
Joined Ocean Escort for returning
Convoy QP12.
27th
Detached from QP12.
(For
full details of all Russian Convoy
operations see CONVOYS TO RUSSIA by R
A
Ruegg,,
CONVOY! by
P Kemp, THE RUSSIAN CONVOYS by D. MacIintyre
and
ARCTIC CONVOYS
by R Woodman.)
June
Resumed
Atlantic convoy defence duty.
July
Detached
to escort HM Aircraft Carrier FURIOUS
for Malta
aircraft delivery.
August
11th
Escorted HMS FURIOUS in Western
Mediterranean for aircraft delivery.
(Operation
BELLOWS - See ENGAGE THE ENEMY MORE
CLOSELY, MALTA
CONVOYS by R
Woodman, Naval Staff History (HMSO,
2002) for
details.)
.
Returned to Scapa
Flow on
completion.
Nominated for
escort duty with Russian Convoy PQ18
escort.
September
Boiler
defect prevented joining convoy..
10th
Deployed with HM Destroyers AMAZON,
BULLDOG, ECHO and ECLIPSE to establish
base for
refuelling of destroyers escorting
Convoys PQ18 and
returning QP14
October
Detached
from Home Fleet service for escort, of
military convoys to Gibraltar
for
planned
allied landings in North
Africa.
(Operation
TORCH. See ENGAGE THE ENEMY MORE
CLOSELY and Naval Staff History).
November
Escorted
HM Cruiser VINDICTIVE and HM Depot
Ship HECLA with HM Destroyer MARNE
during
Atlantic passage to Gibraltar.
12th
Detected U515 with Type 271 Radar
Outfit
about 180 miles west of Gibraltar.
Carried
out hunt for submarine which fired
full salvo of bow torpedoes at the two
larger
warships.
HMS
VINDICTIVE avoided two after seeing
their wakes
.
Two
of the
other
torpedoes hit HMS HECLA but these
did not sink her.
Hunt
for U515 with HMS MARNE continued..
In
further torpedo attack by U515 both
HMS MARNE and HMS HECLA were hit.
(Note:
HMS HECLA sank soon afterwards with
the loss of 279
lives.
Stem
structure of HMS MARNE was blown off
but the ship remained afloat.)
Carried
out rescue of survivors from HMS HECLA
and took HMS MARNE in tow.
During
tow of HMS MARNE obtained radar
contact with submarine and carried out
a series
of
depth
charge attacks which drove off U515.
Relieved as escort, of HMS MARNE
by HM Corvette JONQUIL and took
passage with 568
survivors
to Casablanca.
(For
details see HITLER'S U-BOAT WAR Volume
2 by C Blair.)
December
Deployed
for escort of KMF convoys to Gibraltar.
1
9 4 3
January
Gibraltar
Atlantic convoy defence in continuation
.
February
Deployed
for convoy defence in western Mediterranean.
March
Escorted
military convoys in Western Mediterranean.
Nominated for
convoy escort during planned allied
landings in Sicily.
(Operation HUSKY).
April
Passage to Clyde to join
military convoy WS29.
16th
Joined WS29 with HM Destroyer
LAUDERDALE, HM Sloops WELLINGTON,
WESTON,
HM
Cutters
GORLESTON, TOTLAND, HM Frigates EXE
and NESS
as Local Escort during
passage in
NW Approaches.
(Note:
HM Cruiser NEWCASTLE provided Ocean Escort with HM
Destroyer RAPID.)
20th
Detached from WS29 with Local Escort,
and returned to Clyde.
May
Convoy defence of
UK-Gibraltar convoys in
continuation.
to
June
Deployed in western Mediterranean for
military convoy escort-.
July
9th
Sailed from Alexandria with HM
Destroyers WISHART and
WITHERINGTON as part
of escort
for follow-up military Convoy MWF37
during passage
to Sicily.
13th
Detached from MWF37 on arrival at
Syracuse and deployed off coast for
anti
-submarine
and anti
E-boat patrol as well as naval gunfire
support for
shore operations.
Joined
Support Force East for landings in Sicily
(Operation HUSKY)
(For
details see ENGAGE THE ENEMY MORE
CLOSELY and Naval Staff History.)
August
On release from HUSKY resumed
convoy defence duties in Mediterranean.
to
Nominated for refit in UK.
September
October
Passage
to UK
for refit in commercial.
November
Under refit at Falmouth.
to
December
(Note: Age of this ship and it
significant operational service was a
factor to be considered
when
deciding that further refit was
required.)
1
9 4 4
January
Future service under
consideration.
to
July
Withdrawn from operational duties and
converted
for service as a target ship for
training of
aircrew in
shipping attacks.
Paid off.
August
Re-commissioned
for duty as aircraft target ship and
tender.
September
Deployed
as Target Ship.
to
December
1
9 4 5
January
Air
Target. Ship duty in
continuation.
to
April
May
Detached
for support of allied re-occupation
operations.
14th
Escorted minesweepers with HM
Destroyer
VALOROUS during clearance operations
prior
to entry of
allied ships into Kristiansund
South.
