HMAS Gawler (J188/B241/A115), named for the town of Gawler, South Australia

Gawler, South Australia

Gawler is the first country town in the state of South Australia, and is named after the second Governor of the colony of South Australia, George Gawler. It is located north of the centre of the state capital, Adelaide, and is close to the major wine producing district of the Barossa Valley...

, was one of 60 Bathurst class corvettes

Bathurst class corvette

The Bathurst class corvettes were a class of general purpose vessels produced in Australia during World War II. Originally classified as minesweepers, but widely referred to as corvettes, the Bathurst class vessels fulfilled a broad anti-submarine, anti-mine, and convoy escort role.Sixty Bathurst...

 constructed during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

 and one of 20 built for the Admiralty

Admiralty

The Admiralty was formerly the authority in the Kingdom of England, and later in the United Kingdom, responsible for the command of the Royal Navy...

 but manned by personnel of and commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy

Royal Australian Navy

The Royal Australian Navy is the naval branch of the Australian Defence Force. Following the Federation of Australia in 1901, the ships and resources of the separate colonial navies were integrated into a national force: the Commonwealth Naval Forces...

 (RAN).

Construction

Gawler was laid down by the Broken Hill Pty Co Ltd Shipyard at Whyalla, South Australia

Whyalla, South Australia

-Demographics:According to the 2006 Census the population of the Whyalla census area was 21,122 people, making it the second largest urban area in the state outside of Adelaide...

 on 24 January 1941. She was launched on 4 October 1941 by the wife of Sir Walter Duncan

Walter Duncan

Walter Leslie Duncan was an Australian politician. Born in Armidale, New South Wales, he was educated at state schools before becoming a clerk, and was President of the Labor Council of New South Wales in 1911. A member of the Labor Party, he joined the Nationalists in the wake of the 1916 split...

, then Governor of Victoria, and commissioned into the RAN on 14 August 1942.

The ship was originally to be named HMAS Gambier, for the city of Mount Gambier, South Australia

Mount Gambier, South Australia

Mount Gambier is the largest regional city in South Australia located approximately 450 kilometres south of the capital Adelaide and just 17 kilometres from the Victorian border....

.

RAN service

Upon entering service in September 1942, Gawler was briefly based at Fremantle, Western Australia as an anti-submarine patrol vessel before being assigned to the British Eastern Fleet

British Eastern Fleet

The British Eastern Fleet was a fleet of the Royal Navy which existed from 1941 to 1971...

 and ordered to sail to Colombo. The corvette served in the Indian Ocean as a convoy escort between January and April 1943.

Following this, Gawler and three sister ships were formed up as the 21st Minesweeping Flotilla and sent to the Mediterranean to serve as minesweepers and convoy escorts. In July, Gawler was involved in the Allied invasion of Sicily, and in August the corvette sailed into the Atlantic to meet a Mediterranean-bound convoy. Gawler rejoined the Eastern Fleet in October 1943, and resumed escort duties until January 1945, with the exception of a refit in Durban

Durban

Durban is the largest city in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal and the third largest city in South Africa. It forms part of the eThekwini metropolitan municipality. Durban is famous for being the busiest port in South Africa. It is also seen as one of the major centres of tourism...

 during January and February 1944.

After leaving the Eastern Fleet, Gawler underwent a four-month refit in Adelaide, before joining the British Pacific Fleet

British Pacific Fleet

The British Pacific Fleet was a British Commonwealth naval force which saw action against Japan during World War II. The fleet was composed of British Commonwealth naval vessels. The BPF formally came into being on 22 November 1944...

 at Manus Island in April 1945. She remained with the Pacific Fleet until after the end of World War II; operating in Hong Kong waters during September with mine-warfare and anti-piracy duties, before sailing to the Molucca Islands and spending the rest of 1945 providing surveillance of former Japanese positions in the area.

Gawler returned to Australian waters in February 1946, and was decommissioned in Sydney on 5 April 1946. The corvette received three battle honour

Battle honour

A battle honour is an award of a right by a government or sovereign to a military unit to emblazon the name of a battle or operation on its flags , uniforms or other accessories where ornamentation is possible....

s for her wartime service: "Pacific 1942", "Indian Ocean 942-45", and "Sicily 1943".

Turkish Navy service

Prior to decommissioning, Gawler was marked for transfer to the Turkish Navy

Turkish Navy

The Turkish Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the Turkish Armed Forces.- Ottoman fleet after Mudros :Following the demise of the Ottoman Empire in the aftermath of World War I, on November 3, 1918, the fleet commander of the Ottoman Navy, Liva Amiral Arif Pasha, ordered all flags to be...

. Upon decommissioning, Gawler was immediately recommissioned into the Royal Navy as HMS Gawler. On 21 May 1946, Gawler, with sister ships Launceston

HMAS Launceston (J179)

HMAS Launceston , named for the city of Launceston, Tasmania, was one of 60 Bathurst class corvettes constructed during World War II and one of 20 built for the Admiralty but manned by personnel of and commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy .-Construction:Launceston was laid down by Evans...

 and Pirie, sailed for Colombo, where they were decommissioned from the Royal Navy and commissioned into the Turkish Navy. Gawler was renamed TCG Ayvalik.

The corevette was withdrawn from service in 1963. The name was passed on to sister corvette TCG Antalya (the former Geraldton

HMAS Geraldton (J178)

HMAS Geraldton , named for the city of Geraldton, Western Australia, was one of 60 Bathurst class corvettes constructed during World War II and one of 20 built for the Admiralty but manned by personnel of and commissioned into the Royal Australian Navy .-Construction:Geraldton was laid down by...

).