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1
9 3 9
September
3rd
Detached from 2nd Cruiser Squadron Home
Fleet with HM
Cruiser GLASGOW and
deployed as
Humber Force for patrol off Norway in
search for German blockade
runners.
4th
One of the attendant destroyers HMS JERSEY
intercepted the
German freighter
22nd
Planned offensive sweep in Skagerrak by
2nd Cruiser Squadron cancelled during
passage.
25th
Escorted damaged submarine HMS SPEARFISH
from Horns Reef to
Rosyth with the
HM Cruisers
SHEFFIELD, GLASGOW and AURORA screened by
6 Fleet destroyers.
RAF air cover
was also provided.
26th
Under air attack for first time.
October
8th
Deployed with HM Battlecruisers HOOD and
REPULSE, HM
Cruisers AURORA,
GLASGOW
and SHEFFIELD screened by four Fleet
destroyers in
search for German
battleship
GNEISENAU, cruiser KOLN and destroyer
escort reported in North Sea, south
of Norway
16th
Damaged during air raid on warships in
Forth Estuary.
One bomb
penetrated three decks.
Deployed on
patrol SE of Norway.
November
10th
Joined Striking Force with HM Cruisers
BELFAST, GLASGOW and AURORA for
North
Sea patrol.
21st
During departure from Rosyth with HMS
BELFAST had to return
to return to harbour
when HMS BELFAST
detonated a magnetic mine.
23rd
Carried out search between Iceland and
Faeroes with HM Cruisers EDINBURGH
and
AURORA
for SCHARNHORST and GNEISENAU after the
sinking of HM Armed
Merchant Cruiser
RAWALPINDI.
December
24th
Under repair in Tyne
shipyard until 23rd January 1940.
Radar Type 279
fitted for air warning.
1
9 4 0
January
23rd
Rejoined Home Fleet on completion.
February
Deployed with ships of 10tn
Cruiser Squadron on convoy defence in North Sea.
to
and patrol duty in
NW Approaches to intercept commerce
raiders.
March
April
7th
Deployed to cover convoy ON25 to Norway
with HMS MANCHESTER and the
destroyers
ECLIPSE, GRENADE, JANUS and JAVELIN.
Joined HM
Auxiliary Minelayer TEVIOT BANK, HM
Destroyers ILEX, INGLEFIELD,
ISIS and IMOGEN
which had been on passage to lay minefield
of Bud and later ordered
to join Home
Fleet when Operation R4 was cancelled
Transferred to Home Fleet.
9th
Joined Home Fleet ships.
Detached with HM
Cruisers MANCHESTER, GLASGOW and SHEFFIELD
with screen
of seven
destroyers to attack shipping at Bergen.
Operation
cancelled by Admiralty during passage and
returned to rejoin Home Fleet units.
Under air
attacks and sustained slight damage.
Returned to Scapa Flow to refuel.
12th
Embarked half a battalion of Scots Guards
with General
Mackesy, the Military
Commander for
operations in Norway
and sailed from Scapa
Flow.
Orders for
destination changed to Vestfjord not
received until after landings
had been made at
Salangen. Attacked by U38 during patrol
off Narvik but this
failed due to
torpedo defect. On arrival at Harstad
Military decided to land
troops at
Sjovegan 35 miles NE of Narvik.
HM Destroyers
ELECTRA and ESCAPADE provided screen
during passage
14th
Arrived at Vaagsfjord and disembarked
General Mackesey.
Landed troops at
Sag Fjord.
15th
Deployed with Narvik Force to support
shore military
operations and for defence against
air attacks on
ships.
(For details see
THE DOOMED EXPEDITION by Jack Adams).
19th
Returned to Scapa
Flow.
(For details of
the policy changes and setbacks during the
disastrous allied
operations in Norway see ENGAGE THE ENEMY
MORE CLOSELY by C.
Barnett,
by Donald
MacIntyre, CARRIER GLORIOUS by J Winton,
THE DOOMED
EXPEDITION by
Jack Adams and the Naval Staff History.
29th
Detached from Narvik Force to assist in
evacuation of allied
troops from Andalsnes
and Molde.
30th
Deployed at Andalsnes to support
evacuation of allied troops
with HM Destroyers
SOMALI, MASHONA,
SIKH, WALKER and WESTCOTT.
May
1st
Provided AA defence during evacuation from
Andalsnes and
Molde. Part of the
Naval Base Party
and 300 troops were embarked from HM
Destroyers SIKH and
and WANDERER
which had picked them up at Alfarnes six
miles to the north of
Andalsnes.
2nd
Returned to Scapa
Flow.
25th
Under sustained air attacks lasting two
days off Harstad
27th
Provided naval gunfire support for assault
by Polish troops
on the Arkanes
Peninsula as
part of allied military operation to
capture Narvik.
28th
Under air attack.
29th
Damaged in air attacks and repair carried
out by ships staff.
June
7th
Flagship of Flag Officer, Narvik (Admiral
of the Fleet The
Earl of Cork and
Orrery) during
evacuation from Narvik. Embarked General
Auchinleck and the
French General
Bathouart and joined escort for troop
convoy (Group II).
(Note: Ships
taking party in evacuation included HM
Destroyers HAVELOCK, FAME,
FIREDRAKE,
BEAGLE and DELIGHT.
9th
Reported sighting of wreckage during
return passage with
Group II convoy.
(Note: This was
later identified as being from HM Aircraft
Carrier GLORIOUS which
had been sunk by
German SCHARNHORST and GNEISENAU on 8th.)
10th
Detached from convoy and returned to Scapa
Flow with HMS COVENTRY.
July
6th
Escorted the damaged submarine HMS SHARK
with HMS COVENTRY
and under air
attack during
passage.
16th
Deployed with HM Cruisers GLASGOW,
SHROPSHIRE and SUFFOLK to intercept
German warships
reported in North
Sea. After HMS
GLASGOW collided with HM
Destroyer IMOGEN
in fog, returned to Scapa
Flow with these
ships.
31st
Transferred with HM Cruisers BIRMINGHAM
and MANCHESTER to Thames Estuary
for
anti-invasion patrols.
September
Deployed for anti-invasion patrol
duties in North
Sea.
to
August
October
Nominated for service in Mediterranean and
to escort ships during passage to Malta
(Operation
COLLAR)
16th
Returned to Scapa
Flow.
November
15th
Deployed with HM Cruiser MANCHESTER as
escort for ss NEW ZEALAND STAR
during Atlantic
passage from Scapa
Flow.
Joined by ss FRANCONIA, ss CLAN FORBES and
ss CLAN FRASER.
HMS MANCHESTER
detached with ss FRANCONIA and took
passage to Gibraltar.
Remained with
the remaining mercantiles.
(Note: HM
Destroyers JAGUAR and KELVIN were also
deployed.)
21st
Detached when HM Cruiser SHEFFIELD joined
as escort for mercantiles during
passage
into Mediterranean.
Took passage to Gibraltar.
(Note: One
source records that troops were embarked)
24th
Embarked RAF personnel for passage to
Malta.
25th
Joined Force F with HMS MANCHESTER, HM
Destroyer HOTSPUR, HM
Corvettes
PEONY, GLOXINIA,
SALVIA and HYACINTH for passage to eastern
Mediterranean
to reinforce
Mediterranean Fleet based at Alexandria.
Rejoined ss NEW ZEALAND STAR, ss CLAN
FRASER and ss CLAN FORBES as
screened by HM
Destroyers DUNCAN and VIDETTE. Cover was
provided by HM
Battlecruiser
RENOWN, HM Aircraft carrier ARK ROYAL, HM
Cruisers SHEFFIELD
and DESPATCH
screened by eight destroyers of Force H.
Rejoined ss NEW ZEALAND STAR, ss CLAN
FRASER and ss CLAN FORBES as
(Operation
COLLAR which included the passage of three
mercantiles).
27th
Joined by Force D comprising HM Battleship
RAMILLIES, HM
Cruisers BERWICK,
COVENTRY
and NEWCASTLE, HM Destroyers DEFENDER,
DIAMOND,
GALLANT
GREYHOUND and
HEREWARD.
Mercantiles
detached with escort before taking part in
brief but long range engagement
with Italian
warships including three battleships and
several heavy cruisers screened by
destroyers
Following air
attacks from HM Aircraft Carrier ARK ROYAL
and an exchange of fire
the enemy ships
broke of the action.
(Battle of Cape Spartivento – see Naval
Staff History (HMSO, 2002),
THE BATTLE FOR
THE MEDITERRANEAN by D. MacIntyre and
ENGAGE THE ENEMY
MORE
CLOSELY by
Corelli Barnett).
(Note: Admiral
Somerville’s decision to discontinue
pursuit was the subject of an
Admiralty Board
of enquiry supported this as it was clear
his orders to
ensure safe
arrival of this convoy were correct.)
Rejoined
mercantiles and made passage through
Sicilian Narrows with Mediterranean
Fleet units.
(Battle of Cape Spartivento).
28th
Landed personnel in Malta. and completion
joined escort for Convoy
ME4 during passage
to Alexandria.
(Note: ss NEW ZEALAND STAR joined the
three empty mercantiles in
ME4).
30th
Arrived at Alexandria and joined 7th
Cruiser Squadron.
December
Nominated for detached service on
East Indies Station for convoy defence.
2nd
Sailed from Alexandria and took passage to
Durban.
3rd
Passage in Red
Sea.
10th
Passage in Indian
Ocean
Diverted during
passage to provide support to military
operations in Italian Somaliland.
Bombarded shipping
at Kismayu and on completion took passage
to Durban.
16th
Joined HM Cruisers DEVONSHIRE
and SHROPSHIRE at Durban for Ocean
Escort of WS4B
during passage to Suez.
28th
Detached from WS4B on arrival at Suez.
(Note: HMS
DEVONSHIRE detached on 18th and HMS
SHROPSHIRE on
26th HM Cruiser CARLISLE, HM Destroyers
KANDAHAR and
KIMBERLEY
joined WS4B to supplement escort in Red
Sea.)
1
9 4 1
January
Nominated
for escort and cover of Malta convoys
(Operation MC4)
5th
Sailed for Suda Bay, Crete with HM Cruiser
GLOUCESTER, HM Destroyer ILEX and
JANUS as Force
B.
6th
Embarked troops at Suda Bay for passage to
Malta.
Escorted convoy
for part of passage to Piraeus
7th
Detached from convoy to proceed to Malta.
8th
Landed troops.
9th
Joined HM Cruiser BONAVENTURE, HM
Destroyers HASTY, HASTY,
HEREWARD
and HERO with
Force D ships. This cruiser and 4
destroyers were on passage in the
Sicilian Narrows
to reinforce the Fleet in the eastern Mediterranean.
(Note: Part of a
joint operation (EXCESS) with Force H at
Gibraltar also
covering convoys
taking urgent supplies to Malta and
Greece.
See ENGAGE THE
ENEMY MORE CLOSELY, Naval Staff History
and the above
reference.)
10th
Part of escort for damaged destroyer HMS
GALLANT which had
been mined during
passage of
EXCESS Convoy and was under tow by HM
Destroyer MOHAWK.
(Note: HMS
GLOUCESTER, HMS BONAVENTURE and HM
Destroyers GRIFFIN and
DIAMOND were
also in this operation)
11th
Rejoined Fleet after HMS GALLANT reached
Malta.
Joined escort for
EXCESS convoy to Alexandria with HMS
GLOUCESTER and HM
Destroyers ILEX
and JAGUAR. Under attack by dive bombers
SE of Malta and hit by
two delayed
action bombs which caused very extensive
damage. In the face of
continual air
attacks repair work was impossible and the
ship was abandoned
after the
survivors had been rescued by the
destroyer HMS DIAMOND.
Sunk by
torpedoes from HM Cruisers GLOUCESTER and
ORION.
(Casualty
List - note
on
casualties)
(For details see
BATTLE FOR THE MEDITERRANEAN and the Naval
Staff History).