HMAS Stalwart (H14) was an Admiralty S class destroyer

S class destroyer (1916)

The S class were a class of 67 destroyers built from 1917 for the Royal Navy. The design was based on the Admiralty modified R class and all ships had names beginning with S or T....

 of 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). Built for the Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

 during World War I, the ship was not completed until 1919, and spent less than eight months in British service before being transferred to the RAN at the start of 1920. The destroyer's career was uneventful, with almost all of it spent operating along the east coast of Australia. Stalwart was decommissioned at the end of 1925, was sold for ship breaking

Ship breaking

Ship breaking or ship demolition is a type of ship disposal involving the breaking up of ships for scrap recycling. Most ships have a lifespan of a few decades before there is so much wear that refitting and repair becomes uneconomical. Ship breaking allows materials from the ship, especially...

 in 1937, then was scuttled in 1939.

Design and construction

Stalwart was built to the Admiralty design of the S class destroyer

S class destroyer (1916)

The S class were a class of 67 destroyers built from 1917 for the Royal Navy. The design was based on the Admiralty modified R class and all ships had names beginning with S or T....

, which was designed and built as part of the British emergency war programme. The destroyer had a displacement of 1,075 tons, a length of 276 foot overall and 265 feet (80.8 m) between perpendiculars, and a beam of 26 foot. The propulsion machiney consisted of three Yarrow boilers feeding Brown-Curtis turbines, which supplied 27000 shp to the ship's two propeller shafts. Although designed with a maximum speed of 36 knots (19.6 m/s), Stalwart was only able to achieve 32.7 knots (17.8 m/s) on power trails. The destroyer's economical speed of 13 knots (7.1 m/s) gave her a range of 2608 nautical miles (4,830 km). The ship's company was made up of 6 officers and 93 sailors.

The destroyer's primary armament consisted of three QF 4-inch Mark IV guns

QF 4 inch naval gun Mk IV, XII, XXII

The QF 4-inch gun Mk IV was introduced in 1911 as a faster-loading light gun successor to the BL 4 inch Mk VIII gun, and was the main gun on most Royal Navy and British Empire destroyers in World War I.-Mk IV gun:...

. These were supplemented by a 2-pounder pom-pom, five .303 inch machine guns

.303 British

.303 British, or 7.7x56mmR, is a .311 inch calibre rifle and machine gun cartridge first developed in Britain as a blackpowder round put into service in December 1888 for the Lee-Metford rifle, later adapted to use smokeless powders...

 (a mix of Lewis

Lewis Gun

The Lewis Gun is a World War I–era light machine gun of American design that was perfected and widely used by the British Empire. It was first used in combat in World War I, and continued in service with a number of armed forces through to the end of the Korean War...

 and Maxim gun

Maxim gun

The Maxim gun was the first self-powered machine gun, invented by the American-born British inventor Sir Hiram Maxim in 1884. It has been called "the weapon most associated with [British] imperial conquest".-Functionality:...

s), two twin 21-inch torpedo tube sets, two depth charge

Depth charge

A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare weapon intended to destroy or cripple a target submarine by the shock of exploding near it. Most use explosives and a fuze set to go off at a preselected depth in the ocean. Depth charges can be dropped by either surface ships, patrol aircraft, or from...

 throwers, and two depth charge chutes.

Stalwart was laid down by Swan Hunter & Wigham Richardson Limited at their Wallsend-on-Tyne

Wallsend

Wallsend is an area in North Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England. Wallsend derives its name as the location of the end of Hadrian's Wall. It has a population of 42,842.-Romans:...

 shipyard in April 1918. The destroyer was launched on 23 October 1918, and completed on 5 April 1919. The ship was briefly commissioned into the Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

 in April 1919, but was quickly marked for transfer to the RAN, along with four sister ship

Sister ship

A sister ship is a ship of the same class as, or of virtually identical design to, another ship. Such vessels share a near-identical hull and superstructure layout, similar displacement, and roughly comparable features and equipment...

s. Stalwart was commissioned into the RAN on 27 January 1920. There were plans to rename the destroyer HMAS Darwin, but these were cancelled in mid 1920. The ship's badge depicted an acorn

Acorn

The acorn, or oak nut, is the nut of the oaks and their close relatives . It usually contains a single seed , enclosed in a tough, leathery shell, and borne in a cup-shaped cupule. Acorns vary from 1–6 cm long and 0.8–4 cm broad...

, and Stalwart carried the motto "Cor Roboris Bona Fors"; Latin for "The Heart of Strength is Good Fortune".

Operational history

Although the other four S class ships sailed on 20 February, Stuart remained in England for another six days, and sailed with the destroyer leader . Stalwart spent most of her career operaing within the Australia Station

Australia Station

The Australia Station was the British—and later Australian—naval command responsible for the waters around the Australian continent.-History:In the early years following the establishment of the colony of New South Wales, ships based in Australian waters came under the control of the East Indies...

, primarily along the east coast of the continent.

Decommissioning and fate

Stalwart was paid off to reserve on 1 December 1925. The ship was sold to Penguins Limited for ship breaking

Ship breaking

Ship breaking or ship demolition is a type of ship disposal involving the breaking up of ships for scrap recycling. Most ships have a lifespan of a few decades before there is so much wear that refitting and repair becomes uneconomical. Ship breaking allows materials from the ship, especially...

 on 4 June 1937. The ship was stripped of useful materials, and the remaining hulk

Hulk (ship)

A hulk is a ship that is afloat, but incapable of going to sea. Although sometimes used to describe a ship that has been launched but not completed, the term most often refers to an old ship that has had its rigging or internal equipment removed, retaining only its flotational qualities...

 was sunk at 33°59.906′S 151°36.067′E on 22 June 1939. The ship had been loaded with a cargo of condemned onions before sinking: currents removed many onions from the wreck and caused them to wash up on beaches around Bondi

Bondi, New South Wales

Bondi is an eastern suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Bondi is located seven kilometres east of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Waverley Council. The postcode is 2026.-Location:...

. The ship's mast was removed before the ship's sinking, and is preserved inside the Royal Australian Navy Heritage Centre

Royal Australian Navy Heritage Centre

The Royal Australian Navy Heritage Centre is the maritime museum of the Royal Australian Navy. The centre opened on 4 October 2005 and is located within the Public Access Area on the northern end of Garden Island Naval base....

.