ALGERINE-Class
Fleet Minesweeper fitted with Turbine
propulsion machinery ordered on 30th
April 1942 from Harland and Wolff,
Belfast. Laid down on 27th November 1943
at the same time as sister ships HARE
and LIBERTY this ship was
launched on 20th July 1944. The
third RN warship ship to carry this name
first
used by a mercantile
which accompanied the fleet during the
Battle against the Spanish Armada in
1588. The name was last
used
by a Drifter requisitioned in 1940 for
use as a
minesweeper and sunk by a mine in
Belfast Lough in June 1941. Build of
this minesweeper was completed on 9th
December 1944. She had not been adopted
by any civil
community
in UK following a successful WARSHIP
WEEK campaign during
1941-42 for National Savings as her
build had not been started.
B
a t t l e H o n o u r s
ARMADA
1588
H
e r a l d i c D a t a
Badge:
On
a Field Blue, an escarbuncle Gold,
gemmed Red.
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
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and
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1
9 4 4
December
Contractors trials and commissioned for
service with 10th Minesweeping Flotilla.
(Note: The ships in
this Flotilla were HM Miner sweepers
COURIER, FELICITY,
GOLDEN
FLEECE, and SERENE which had been built
in Canada.
9th
Build completion and commenced
Acceptance Trials.
On completion of
Acceptance Trials and took passage to
commence work-up for
operational service at
Tobermory
1
9 4 5
January
Work-up at Tobermory.
Passage to Granton for
minesweeping training and work-up.
Carried out
minesweeping training in Firth of Forth
area with HMS Minesweepers HARE
and WAVE.
February
On completion took passage to join
Flotilla.
At Scapa Flow with
Flotilla which then also included HMS
HARE
and HMS WAVE.
.
Senior Officer’s ship
was HMS COURIER.
Nominated with ships
of Flotilla and HM Danlayer SHILLAY for
special Home Fleet
operation to clear
passage through British minefield to
give shorter route for departure of
warships from Scapa
Flow
21st
Took passage from Scapa Flow with
Flotilla as Force 3 for minesweeping
(Operation SHRED)
(Note: This operation
included lay of WINNER marker buoys to
mark the ends of the
swept
channel and navigation was assisted by
German Beacon at Stavanger.
23rd
Returned to Scapa Flow on completion.
(Note: Clear passage
was then available for HM Escort
Aircraft Carriers PUNCHER and
PREMIER,
HM Cruiser DIDO and screen of
Home Fleet destroyers ,HMS
MYNGS, HMS
SCORPION and HMS CAVALIER to carry out
aircraft minelay
off
Norwegian coast (Operation GROUNDSHEET)
Passage from Scapa
Flow to Granton
March
Deployed at Granton and
joined in Flotilla by HM Minesweeper
LIBERTY.
22nd
Passage to Harwich with ships of
Flotilla for minesweeping operations in
Nore
Command.
April
Deployed with Flotilla for
minesweeping in southern North Sea to
ensure safe passage
of convoys in Nore
Command including military convoys to
Antwerp as well as in the
Thames
estuary for traffic in
North Sea.
(Note: During this
period extensive minelaying was being
carried out by enemy aircraft,
surface
craft. Attacks on convoys were also
being carried out by midget
submarines
and E Boat Boats. See HOLD THE NARROW
SEA by P Smith,
BATTLE
OF THE EAST COAST by JP Foynes and
ENGAGE THE ENEMY
MORE
CLOSELY by C
Barnett.
May
Based at Cuxhaven in
continuation of North Sea mine
clearance.
Taken in hand for
refit at Antwerp prior to foreign
service.
June
Under refit at Antwerp.
to
August
P
o s t W a r N o
t e s
HMS
JEWEL
rejoined the Flotilla on completion and
completed preparations for
foreign service in the Far
East. She took passage with the Flotilla
in October 1945 for duty based
initially at Singapore with the 10th
Flotilla. First deployed for mine
clearance in areas near Singapore
including
ports in Indonesia she was later based
at Hong Kong for similar duties. The
ship returned to UK and arrived at
Portsmouth to Pay-off and reduce to
Reserve
status in September 1946. The following
year she was nominated for use as the
Drill
Ship for the RNVR Division at Dundee and
was towed there in January 1948. The
ship was brought forward from Reserve
during 1955 and refitted at Devonport
before recommissioning on 28th December
that
year for service in the Dartmouth
Training Squadron. She was deployed for
training of Cadets from the Royal Naval
College at Dartmouth until 1961 when
she again Paid-off and was placed in
Reserve. In 1966 this ship was put on
the
Disposal List and sold to BISCO for
breaking-up in December 1955. Towed to
Inverkeithing
she arrived at the beaker’s yard for
demolition on 7 April 1967.
For more about Algerine-class
Minesweepers, see
http://www.minesweepers.org.uk/index.htm