Type III HUNT Class Escort Destroyer ordered from Alexander Stephen at Govan under the 1940 War Emergency Programme on 4th July 1940. She was laid down as Job No J1490 on 8th April 1941 and was launched on 12th May 1942. This ship was the first to carry the name, that of a foxhunt no longer in being. Build was completed on 24th October 1942. Following a successful WARSHIP WEEK National Savings campaign in February 1942 she was adopted by the civil community of Dagenham in the county of Essex.

 

For information on her loss and commemoration, see also:

 Loss and Commemoration of HMS Charybdis, by the Charybdis Association

Account of Their Losses from Captured German Archives

 

B a t t l e   H o n o u r s

 

NORTH SEA 1943 - ENGLISH CHANNEL 1942-43

 

H e r a l d i c   D a t a

Badge:  On a Field  Blue in base water barry wavy White and Blue,

a hunting horn erect in front of two lillies slipped and leaved in saltire all Gold.

 

M o t t o

Fanam extendere factls: ‘Judge us by our deeds’

(Note: This is the Vergilian equivalent of the motto of Dagenham)

 

 

 

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

 

October                  Contractors trials and commissioned for service.

                24th        Build completion and commenced Acceptance Trials.

 

November              On completion of trials and storing took passage to Scapa Flow.

                                Worked-up for operational service with ships of Home Fleet at Scapa Flow

                                During work-up detached to escort HM Battleship DUKE OF YORK to Gibraltar.

                                Returned as part of escort for HMS DUKE OF YORK and HM Aircraft

                                Carrier VICTORIOUS from the Mediterranean after they had supported Allied landings in

                                North Africa (Operation TORCH.

 

December              Joined 15th Destroyer Flotilla at Plymouth for convoy defence and patrol duties in English

                                Channel and SW Approaches.

                                (For details of operations in Home Waters see HOLD THE NARROW SEA by Peter Smith,

                                ENGAGE THE ENEMY MORE CLOSELY by Corelli Barnett and THE BATTLE OF THE

                                NARROW SEAS by Peter Scott).

 

1 9 4 3

 

January                  Deployed for escort of convoys between UK and Gibraltar in Western Approaches.

to                            Sustained damage to propeller.

February

 

March                    Under refit at Portsmouth to fit new propeller.

                                On completion deployed as escort to Free French battleship COURBET to Clyde.

 

April                       Deployed with Flotilla in continuation of convoy defence in Channel and SW Approaches.

to                            (Note: Deployed as required for interception operations against coastal convoys off French

August                  coast (Operation TUNNEL Series - See HOLD THE NARROW SEA).)

 

September             Deployed on Anti-submarine patrol duties in Bay of Biscay.

                                (Note:  Extensive combined air/sea operations were being carried out against U-Boats in

                                transit across the Bay of Biscay to and from Atlantic attacks on convoys.)

 

October                  Detached for TUNNEL operations based at Plymouth.

                3rd          In action with German torpedo boats in Channel.

                                Sustained slight damage.

                22nd       Deployed with HM Cruiser CHARYBDIS, HM Destroyers GRENVILLE, ROCKET,

                                WENSLEYDALE, TALYBONT and STEVENSTONE as Force X to Intercept blockade

                                runner MUNSTERLAND on passage from the Far East into a French port.

                23rd        Operation failed.

                                Under torpedo attack by German torpedo boats near Guernsey and hit by torpedo fired by T22.

                                Sustained major damage forward and totally disabled.

                                An attempt to tow was unsuccessful and ship was sunk by torpedoes from HMS TALYBONT

                                and surface gunfire from HMS ROCKET.

                                42 of her ship's company were killed with 100 survivors.

                                (Note: HMS CHARYBDIS was sunk in this action.

                                This disastrous ill planned operation and the reasons for its misguided execution are fully

                                described in HOLD THE NARROW SEA and TWO HONOURABLE YEARS a privately

                                published book by Craig Leith.

                                See also Chronology for HMS CHARYBDIS.)

 

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Addendum

 

CONVOY ESCORT MOVEMENTS of HMS LIMBOURNE

by Don Kindell

 

These convoy lists have not been cross-checked with the text above

(Note on Convoys)

 

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THE WRECKS OF HMS LIMBOURNE and HMS CHARYBDIS

by Gordon Smith

 

The ship's remains were discovered in the 1990's and in 2001 a British team took photographs of HMS Charybdis which can be found on Leigh Bishop's Deep Image site. This was obviously a highly professional and responsible team which worked closely with the Charybdis/Limbourne Association. However, as HMS Charybdis is my own father's grave, and aware of how some wrecks have been treated, I was concerned in case other divers were not quite so caring. I wrote to Leigh, and his reply reassured me. I also received an email from Neil Wood of the Association:

"Leigh Bishop has told me about your message to him regarding the wreck of HMS Charybdis. As a matter of interest, and as you have probably realised from his site and photos, Leigh was one of a group of British Divers who in conjunction with our Association and some other friends, dived on the wrecks of both "Charybdis" and "Limbourne".

There is no question about all of the Divers concerned treating the sites as War Graves. However, although they lie in French waters and the French Govt. also treat them as War Graves, other divers can still dive on them. As you say, the depth is a deterrent, but now-a-days, even that it not quite such a problem.

Our Association has tried to obtain official permission to recover the ships bell from HMS Limbourne, which Leigh found located on the sea bed during the dive. Unfortunately that has not been given. We wanted to recover it as a memorial to all those lost on "Limbourne", none of whose bodies were ever recovered."