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HMS Crescent (1932)
Encyclopedia
HMS Crescent was a C-class
destroyer
which was built for the Royal Navy
in the early 1930s. The ship was initially assigned to the Home Fleet, although she was temporarily deployed in the Red Sea
and Indian Ocean
during the Abyssinia Crisis
of 1935–36. Crescent was sold to the Royal Canadian Navy
in late 1936 and renamed HMCS Fraser. She was stationed on the west coast of Canada until the beginning of World War II
when she was transferred to the Atlantic coast for convoy escort duties. The ship was transferred to the United Kingdom (UK) in May 1940 and helped to evacuate refugees from France upon her arrival in early June. Fraser was sunk on 25 June 1940 in a collision with the anti-aircraft cruiser while returning from one such mission.
load and 1865 long tons (1,894.9 t) at deep load. The ship had an overall length of 329 feet (100.3 m), a beam
of 33 feet (10.1 m) and a draught
of 12 in 6 in (3.81 m). She was powered by Parsons
geared steam turbine
s, driving two shafts, which developed a total of 36000 shp and gave a maximum speed of 36 knots (19.6 m/s). Steam for the turbines was provided by three Admiralty 3-drum water-tube boiler
s. Crescent carried a maximum of 473 long tons (480.6 t) of fuel oil
that gave her a range of 5500 nautical miles (10,186 km) at 15 knots (8.2 m/s). The ship's complement was 145 officers and men.
The ship mounted four 45-calibre
4.7-inch Mk IX guns
in single mounts, designated 'A', 'B', 'X', and 'Y' from front to rear. For anti-aircraft
(AA) defence, Crescent had a single QF 3-inch 20 cwt
"cwt" is the abbreviation for hundredweight
, 30 cwt referring to the weight of the gun. AA gun between her funnel
s, and two 40 millimetres (1.6 in) QF 2-pounder Mk II
AA guns mounted on the aft end of her forecastle
deck. The 3 inches (7.6 cm) AA gun was removed in 1936 and the 2-pounders were relocated to between the funnels. She was fitted with two above-water quadruple torpedo tube
mounts for 21-inch torpedoes
. Three depth-charge chutes were fitted, each with a capacity of two depth charge
s. After World War II began this was increased to 33 depth charges, delivered by one or two rails and two throwers.
Crescent was ordered on 30 January 1930 as part of the 1929 Naval Programme and laid down on 1 December 1930 at Vickers-Armstrongs, Barrow-in-Furness
. She was launched on 29 September 1931 and completed on 15 April 1932.
at Chatham
on 21 July and was under repair until 27 August. Crescent was refitted at Chatham between 30 March and 6 May 1933, before deploying to the West Indies between January and March 1934. She was given another refit at Chatham from 27 July to 3 September 1934. Crescent was detached from the Home Fleet during the Abyssinian Crisis, and deployed in the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea from September 1935 to April 1936. When the ship returned, she was refitted at Sheerness between 23 April to 13 June and placed briefly in reserve.
on 3 May 1937. She remained there until she was ordered to the East Coast on 31 August 1939.
When World War II began on 3 September, Fraser was transiting the Panama Canal
and arrived at Halifax
on 15 September. She and her sisters were employed as local escorts to ocean convoys sailing from Halifax. In November the Royal Navy's North America and West Indies Station took operational control of the Canadian destroyers. The ship escorted the convoy bringing most of the 1st Canadian Infantry Division
to Britain part way across the North Atlantic in mid-December. In March 1940 she was ordered to join the Jamaica Force for Caribbean patrols before being re-assigned to Western Approaches Command two months later. On 26 May she left Bermuda
for Britain and arrived at Plymouth
on 3 June where she was pressed into service evacuating Allied
troops from various French ports on the Atlantic coast. Sometime in 1940, the ship's aft set of torpedo tubes was removed and replaced by a 4 inches (10 cm) AA gun.
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), when Fraser was rammed by Calcutta in the Gironde estuary
. Struck forward of the bridge by the cruiser's bow, Fraser was cut in half and sank immediately. All but 45 of the ship's crew were rescued by Restigouche and other nearby ships. Many of the survivors from Fraser transferred that later summer to , and were lost when that vessel sank on 22 October 1940 as a result of a collision with the freighter MV Port Fairy
.
C and D class destroyer
The C and D class was a group of 14 destroyers built for the Royal Navy in the early 1930s. As in previous years, it was originally intended to order a complete flotilla comprising eight destroyers—plus a flotilla leader as the ninth unit—in each year. However, only four ships—plus a leader—were...
destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
which was 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...
in the early 1930s. The ship was initially assigned to the Home Fleet, although she was temporarily deployed in the Red Sea
Red Sea
The Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez...
and Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
during the Abyssinia Crisis
Abyssinia Crisis
The Abyssinia Crisis was a diplomatic crisis during the interwar period originating in the "Walwal incident." This incident resulted from the ongoing conflict between the Kingdom of Italy and the Empire of Ethiopia...
of 1935–36. Crescent was sold to the Royal Canadian Navy
Royal Canadian Navy
The history of the Royal Canadian Navy goes back to 1910, when the naval force was created as the Naval Service of Canada and renamed a year later by King George V. The Royal Canadian Navy is one of the three environmental commands of the Canadian Forces...
in late 1936 and renamed HMCS Fraser. She was stationed on the west coast of Canada until the beginning of 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...
when she was transferred to the Atlantic coast for convoy escort duties. The ship was transferred to the United Kingdom (UK) in May 1940 and helped to evacuate refugees from France upon her arrival in early June. Fraser was sunk on 25 June 1940 in a collision with the anti-aircraft cruiser while returning from one such mission.
Design and construction
Crescent displaced 1375 long tons (1,397.1 t) at standardDisplacement (ship)
A ship's displacement is its weight at any given time, generally expressed in metric tons or long tons. The term is often used to mean the ship's weight when it is loaded to its maximum capacity. A number of synonymous terms exist for this maximum weight, such as loaded displacement, full load...
load and 1865 long tons (1,894.9 t) at deep load. The ship had an overall length of 329 feet (100.3 m), a beam
Beam (nautical)
The beam of a ship is its width at the widest point. Generally speaking, the wider the beam of a ship , the more initial stability it has, at expense of reserve stability in the event of a capsize, where more energy is required to right the vessel from its inverted position...
of 33 feet (10.1 m) and a draught
Draft (hull)
The draft of a ship's hull is the vertical distance between the waterline and the bottom of the hull , with the thickness of the hull included; in the case of not being included the draft outline would be obtained...
of 12 in 6 in (3.81 m). She was powered by Parsons
Parsons Marine Steam Turbine Company
Parsons Marine Steam Turbine Company was a British engineering company based in Wallsend, North England, on the River Tyne.-History:The company was founded by Charles Algernon Parsons in 1897 with £500,000 of capital, and specialised in building the steam turbine engines that he had invented for...
geared steam turbine
Steam turbine
A steam turbine is a mechanical device that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam, and converts it into rotary motion. Its modern manifestation was invented by Sir Charles Parsons in 1884....
s, driving two shafts, which developed a total of 36000 shp and gave a maximum speed of 36 knots (19.6 m/s). Steam for the turbines was provided by three Admiralty 3-drum water-tube boiler
Water-tube boiler
A water tube boiler is a type of boiler in which water circulates in tubes heated externally by the fire. Fuel is burned inside the furnace, creating hot gas which heats water in the steam-generating tubes...
s. Crescent carried a maximum of 473 long tons (480.6 t) of fuel oil
Fuel oil
Fuel oil is a fraction obtained from petroleum distillation, either as a distillate or a residue. Broadly speaking, fuel oil is any liquid petroleum product that is burned in a furnace or boiler for the generation of heat or used in an engine for the generation of power, except oils having a flash...
that gave her a range of 5500 nautical miles (10,186 km) at 15 knots (8.2 m/s). The ship's complement was 145 officers and men.
The ship mounted four 45-calibre
Caliber (artillery)
In artillery, caliber or calibredifference in British English and American English spelling is the internal diameter of a gun barrel, or by extension a relative measure of the length....
4.7-inch Mk IX guns
4.7 inch QF Mark XII
The 4.7 inch QF Mark IX and Mark XII were 120-mm 45-calibre naval guns which armed the majority of Royal Navy and Commonwealth destroyers in World War II, and were exported to many countries after World War II as the destroyers they were mounted on were sold off.-Description and history:These guns...
in single mounts, designated 'A', 'B', 'X', and 'Y' from front to rear. For anti-aircraft
Anti-aircraft warfare
NATO defines air defence as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action." They include ground and air based weapon systems, associated sensor systems, command and control arrangements and passive measures. It may be to protect naval, ground and air forces...
(AA) defence, Crescent had a single QF 3-inch 20 cwt
QF 3 inch 20 cwt
The QF 3 inch 20 cwt anti-aircraft gun became the standard anti-aircraft gun used in the home defence of the United Kingdom against German airships and bombers and on the Western Front in World War I. It was also common on British warships in World War I and submarines in World War II...
"cwt" is the abbreviation for hundredweight
Hundredweight
The hundredweight or centum weight is a unit of mass defined in terms of the pound . The definition used in Britain differs from that used in North America. The two are distinguished by the terms long hundredweight and short hundredweight:* The long hundredweight is defined as 112 lb, which...
, 30 cwt referring to the weight of the gun. AA gun between her funnel
Funnel (ship)
A funnel is the smokestack or chimney on a ship used to expel boiler steam and smoke or engine exhaust. They can also be known in as stacks.-Purpose:...
s, and two 40 millimetres (1.6 in) QF 2-pounder Mk II
QF 2 pounder naval gun
The 2-pounder gun, officially designated the QF 2-pounder and universally known as the pom-pom, was a 1.575 inch British autocannon, used famously as an anti-aircraft gun by the Royal Navy. The name came from the sound that the original models make when firing...
AA guns mounted on the aft end of her forecastle
Forecastle
Forecastle refers to the upper deck of a sailing ship forward of the foremast, or the forward part of a ship with the sailors' living quarters...
deck. The 3 inches (7.6 cm) AA gun was removed in 1936 and the 2-pounders were relocated to between the funnels. She was fitted with two above-water quadruple torpedo tube
Torpedo tube
A torpedo tube is a device for launching torpedoes. There are two main types of torpedo tube: underwater tubes fitted to submarines and some surface ships, and deck-mounted units installed aboard surface vessels...
mounts for 21-inch torpedoes
British 21 inch torpedo
There have been several British 21-inch diameter torpedoes used by the Royal Navy since their first development just before the First World War.They were the largest size of torpedo in common use in the RN...
. Three depth-charge chutes were fitted, each with a capacity of 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...
s. After World War II began this was increased to 33 depth charges, delivered by one or two rails and two throwers.
Crescent was ordered on 30 January 1930 as part of the 1929 Naval Programme and laid down on 1 December 1930 at Vickers-Armstrongs, Barrow-in-Furness
Barrow-in-Furness
Barrow-in-Furness is an industrial town and seaport which forms about half the territory of the wider Borough of Barrow-in-Furness in the county of Cumbria, England. It lies north of Liverpool, northwest of Manchester and southwest from the county town of Carlisle...
. She was launched on 29 September 1931 and completed on 15 April 1932.
Operational history
After the ship commissioned on 21 April 1932, she was assigned to the 2nd Destroyer Flotilla of the of the Home Fleet. Crescent collided with her sisterSister 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...
at Chatham
Chatham Dockyard
Chatham Dockyard, located on the River Medway and of which two-thirds is in Gillingham and one third in Chatham, Kent, England, came into existence at the time when, following the Reformation, relations with the Catholic countries of Europe had worsened, leading to a requirement for additional...
on 21 July and was under repair until 27 August. Crescent was refitted at Chatham between 30 March and 6 May 1933, before deploying to the West Indies between January and March 1934. She was given another refit at Chatham from 27 July to 3 September 1934. Crescent was detached from the Home Fleet during the Abyssinian Crisis, and deployed in the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea from September 1935 to April 1936. When the ship returned, she was refitted at Sheerness between 23 April to 13 June and placed briefly in reserve.
Transfer to the Royal Canadian Navy
Together with her sister , Crescent was sold to Canada on 20 October 1936 for a total price of £400,000. She was refitted again to meet Canadian standards, including the installation of ASDIC (sonar), and taken over by them on 1 February 1937. The ship was renamed as HMCS Fraser and commissioned into the RCN at Chatham on 17 February. Fraser was assigned to the Canadian Pacific Coast and arrived at EsquimaltCFB Esquimalt
Canadian Forces Base Esquimalt is Canada's Pacific Coast naval base and home port to Maritime Forces Pacific and Joint Task Force Pacific Headquarters....
on 3 May 1937. She remained there until she was ordered to the East Coast on 31 August 1939.
When World War II began on 3 September, Fraser was transiting the Panama Canal
Panama Canal
The Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...
and arrived at Halifax
CFB Halifax
Canadian Forces Base Halifax is Canada's east coast navy base and home port to the Atlantic fleet, known as Maritime Forces Atlantic....
on 15 September. She and her sisters were employed as local escorts to ocean convoys sailing from Halifax. In November the Royal Navy's North America and West Indies Station took operational control of the Canadian destroyers. The ship escorted the convoy bringing most of the 1st Canadian Infantry Division
1st Canadian Infantry Division
The 1st Canadian Infantry Division was a formation mobilized on 1 September 1939 for service in the Second World War. The division was also reactivated twice during the Cold War....
to Britain part way across the North Atlantic in mid-December. In March 1940 she was ordered to join the Jamaica Force for Caribbean patrols before being re-assigned to Western Approaches Command two months later. On 26 May she left Bermuda
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
for Britain and arrived at Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
on 3 June where she was pressed into service evacuating Allied
Allies of World War II
The Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...
troops from various French ports on the Atlantic coast. Sometime in 1940, the ship's aft set of torpedo tubes was removed and replaced by a 4 inches (10 cm) AA gun.
Loss
On 25 June 1940, Fraser, her sister , and the cruiser Calcutta were returning from St. Jean de Luz after rescuing refugees trapped by the German Army (Operation ArielOperation Ariel
Operation Ariel was the name given to the World War II evacuation of Allied forces from ports in western France, from 15–25 June 1940, due to the military collapse in the Battle of France against Nazi Germany...
), when Fraser was rammed by Calcutta in the Gironde estuary
Gironde estuary
The Gironde is a navigable estuary , in southwest France and is formed from the meeting of the rivers Dordogne and Garonne just below the centre of Bordeaux...
. Struck forward of the bridge by the cruiser's bow, Fraser was cut in half and sank immediately. All but 45 of the ship's crew were rescued by Restigouche and other nearby ships. Many of the survivors from Fraser transferred that later summer to , and were lost when that vessel sank on 22 October 1940 as a result of a collision with the freighter MV Port Fairy
MV Port Fairy
MV Port Fairy was a UK merchant vessel built in 1928 for the Commonwealth & Dominion Line Ltd shipping company and sold in 1965 to Embajada Compania Naviera SA of Piraeus...
.