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HMS Hero (H99)
Encyclopedia
HMS Hero (H99) was an H-class
destroyer
built for the Royal Navy
in the mid-1930s. During the Spanish Civil War
of 1936–1939 the ship enforced the arms blockade imposed by Britain and France on both sides as part of the Mediterranean Fleet
. During the first few months of World War II
, Hero searched for German commerce raiders in the Atlantic Ocean
and participated in the Second Battle of Narvik during the Norwegian Campaign
of April–June 1940 before she was transferred to the Mediterranean Fleet in May where she escorted a number of convoys to Malta
. The ship took part in the Battle of Cape Spada
in July 1940, Operation Abstention
in February 1941, and the evacuations of Greece and Crete
in April–May 1941.
The ship covered an amphibious landing during the Syria–Lebanon Campaign of June 1941 and began escorting supply convoys in June to Tobruk
, Libya
shortly afterwards. She was damaged by German dive bomber
s while rescuing survivors from the minelayer
in October 1941 and resumed escorting convoys to Malta. Hero participated in the Second Battle of Sirte
in March 1942 and in Operation Vigorous
in June. She sank two German submarines whilst stationed in the Mediterranean in 1942, and was transferred back home late in the year to begin converting to an escort destroyer
. The ship was transferred to the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) in 1943 and renamed HMCS Chaudière. She became part of the Mid-Ocean Escort Force
in early 1944 until her transfer back to British coastal waters in May to protect the build-up for Operation Overlord
. Together with other ships, she sank three more German submarines during the year. Chaudière was refitting when the war ended in May 1945 and was in poor shape. The ship was paid off
in August and later sold for scrap
. The process of breaking her up, however, was not completed until 1950.
load and 1883 long tons (1,913.2 t) at deep load. The ship had an overall length of 323 feet (98.5 m), a beam
of 33 feet (10.1 m) and a draught
of 12 in 5 in (3.78 m). She was powered by Parsons
geared steam turbine
s, driving two shafts, which developed a total of 34000 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. Hero carried a maximum of 470 long tons (477.5 t) of fuel oil
that gave her a range of 5530 nautical miles (10,241.6 km) at 15 knots (8.2 m/s). The ship's complement was 137 officers and men in peacetime, but this increased to 146 in wartime. In Canadian service, the crew numbered 10 officers and 171 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, Hero had two quadruple Mark I mounts for the 0.5 inch Vickers Mk III
machine gun
. She was fitted with two above-water quadruple torpedo tube
mounts for 21-inch
torpedoes. One depth charge
rail and two throwers were fitted; 20 depth charges were originally carried, but this increased to 35 shortly after the war began. By mid-1940, this had increased to 44 depth charges.
Ordered on 13 December 1934 from Parsons Marine Steam Turbine Company
, Hero was subcontracted to Vickers-Armstrongs and laid down by their High Walker Yard at Newcastle-on-Tyne, England, on 28 February 1935. She was launched on 10 March 1936 and completed on 21 October 1936. Excluding government-furnished equipment like the armament, the ship cost £249,858.
AA gun after the evacuation of Dunkirk in 1940, but it is not clear if she underwent this refurbishment as she was deployed in the Mediterranean until 1943. Other changes made before her conversion to an escort destroyer in 1943 probably included exchanging her two quadruple .50-calibre Vickers machine guns mounted between her funnels for two Oerlikon 20 mm AA guns, the addition of two Oerlikon guns to her searchlight
platform and another pair on the wings of the ship's bridge. The ship's director-control tower and rangefinder
above the bridge were most likely removed in exchange for a Type 271 target indication radar during the conversion, as was the replacement of 'B' gun by a Hedgehog
anti-submarine spigot mortar, and the addition of a Type 286 short-range surface search radar. Two QF 6-pounder
Hotchkiss gun
s were fitted on the wings of her bridge to deal with U-boats at short ranges. The ship also received a HF/DF radio direction finder
mounted on a pole mainmast. 'Y' gun was also removed to allow her depth charge stowage to be increased. Late in the war, her Type 286 was replaced by a Type 291 radar.
. Hyperion received a refit in June–July 1939 in the UK and rejoined the Mediterranean Fleet upon its completion. The ship remained in the Mediterranean until 5 October when she was transferred to Freetown
, Sierra Leone
to search for German commerce raiders. Hero returned to the UK in January 1940 and received a refit at Portsmouth
from 15 February to 16 March. In the meantime, the 2nd Destroyer Flotilla had been assigned to Home Fleet and the ship rejoined them when her refit was finished.
On 5 April Hero escorted the battlecruiser
as she covered the minelayer
s preparing to implement Operation Wilfred
, an operation to lay mines in the Vestfjord
to prevent the transport of Swedish iron ore from Narvik
to Germany. The ship and her sister
pretended to lay a minefield off Bud, Norway
on 8 April and reported its location to the Norwegians. Hero and the destroyer streamed their TSDS minesweeping gear in advance of the battleship and her escort as they steamed up the Vestfjord
to engage the remaining German destroyers at Narvik
on 13 April. The ship, and three other British destroyers pursued the remaining German ships into the Rombaksfjorden (the easternmost branch of the Ofotfjord
), east of Narvik, where the lack of ammunition had forced the German ships to retreat. Most of the German destroyers had scuttled
and beached
themselves at the head of the fjord
, but the scuttling charges on had failed to detonate properly and she was boarded by a small party from Hero. They found nothing of any significance as she'd been abandoned by her crew and the destroyer put a torpedo into her to prevent any salvage
.
Hero was transferred to the Mediterranean Fleet on 17 May as part of the reconstituted 2nd Destroyer Flotilla. During the Battle of Cape Spada on 19 July, the ship escorted Australian light cruiser and rescued some of the 525 survivors from the together with the other escorting destroyers. Hero, together with her sister, , and the destroyers and , were ordered to Gibraltar on 22 August where they were to join Force H
. Hostile struck a mine en-route on the early morning of 23 August off Cap Bon
that broke her back. The explosion killed five men and wounded three others. Mohawk took off the survivors while Hero fired two torpedoes to scuttle her. The ship participated in Operation Hats in September, before refitting in Malta
during November. She sortied into the North Atlantic when Convoy WS-5A reported that it had been attacked by the on 25 December to round up the scattered ships.
On 1 January 1941, Hero was one of the ships that intercepted a Vichy French convoy off Mellila
and seized all four merchant ships of the convoy. The ship participated in Operation Excess
in early January 1941 and was transferred back to the Mediterranean Fleet. On 27 February, she evacuated a few surviving commandos from the island of Kastelorizo
who had attacked the island in Operation Abstention
. In mid-April she escorted the fast transport and three battleships from Alexandria to Malta before going on to escort the battleships as they bombarded Tripoli
on 20 April. After refueling in Alexandria on 23 April, Hero sailed for Greece to begin evacuating British and Australian troops from the beaches. During the evacuation of Crete
, Hero and the destroyer evacuated the King of Greece
and his entourage on the night of 22/23 May.
Hero escorted the LSI(L)
as she conducted an amphibious landing in early June 1941 on the Lebanese coast during the opening stages of the Operation Exporter. She spent most of the rest of the year escorting convoys to Tobruk. Together with her sister and the destroyer , the ship escorted on 25 October whilst en route to Tobruk. They were attacked by Junkers Ju 87
Stuka dive bombers of I./StG 1 that hit Latona and set her afire. Hero and Encounter came alongside and rescued the crew and passengers before Latonas magazine
exploded, but Hero was damaged by three near misses whilst alongside. The ship returned to Alexandria for repairs and escorted a convoy to Malta in January 1942. She participated in the 2nd Battle of Sirte on 22 March whilst escorting a convoy to Malta. Together with the s and on 29 May, she sank the north-east of Tobruk
and rescued 42 survivors.
During Operation Vigorous in June, Hero formed part of the escort for the covering force of the Mediterranean Fleet for the Malta-bound convoy. At time the ship still had not been fitted for radar
. After Panzer Army Africa
occupied Mersa Matruh in late June, the Admiralty ordered the submarine tender
s and the Greek transferred to Haifa
, but Medway was torpedoed and sunk en route despite the strong escort. Hero and the destroyer rescued 1105 survivors between them. On 17 August, the ship rescued some 1100 survivors of the torpedoed troopship
. In conjunction with four other destroyers and a Wellesley
light bomber of the Royal Air Force
, Hero sank 60 nautical miles (111.1 km) north-east of Port Said
on 30 October. The ship was ordered back to the United Kingdom, via the Cape of Good Hope
, to be converted to an escort destroyer late in the year.
as a gift on 15 November 1943 and renamed HMCS Chaudière. After working up, the ship was assigned to the Escort Group
C2 in February 1944, based in Derry
. On 6 March 1944, whilst defending Convoy HX 228 west of Ireland, the escorts forced to the surface where she surrendered after a 32-hour hunt. The submarine could not be towed to port and was torpedo
ed by the British destroyer . The ship was reassigned to the 11th Escort Group in May 1944 in preparation for Operation Overlord
. The group was tasked to protect Allied shipping in the English Channel
and the Bay of Biscay
and, together with the destroyers and , the ship sank in the Bay of Biscay
near La Rochelle
on 18 August. Two days later, the same ships sank in the Bay of Biscay west of Brest
. In November, Chaudière was sent to Sydney, Nova Scotia
for a refit.
The refit did not begin until late January 1945 and was still in progress when the war ended in May. She was found to be in the worst shape of any Canadian destroyer when inspected and was declared surplus to requirements on 13 June. She was paid off on 17 August 1945 and later sold for scrap to the Dominion Steel Company. Her demolition, however, was not completed until 1950.
G and H class destroyer
The G- and H-class destroyers were a class of twenty-four destroyers of the Royal Navy launched in 1935–1939. They served in World War II and sixteen were lost, with a seventeenth being written off as a constructive total loss...
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...
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 mid-1930s. During the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
of 1936–1939 the ship enforced the arms blockade imposed by Britain and France on both sides as part of the Mediterranean Fleet
Mediterranean Fleet
Several countries have or have had a Mediterranean Fleet in their navy. See:* Mediterranean Fleet * French Mediterranean Fleet* Mediterranean Squadron * United States Sixth Fleet...
. During the first few months 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...
, Hero searched for German commerce raiders in the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
and participated in the Second Battle of Narvik during the Norwegian Campaign
Norwegian Campaign
The Norwegian Campaign was a military campaign that was fought in Norway during the Second World War between the Allies and Germany, after the latter's invasion of the country. In April 1940, the United Kingdom and France came to Norway's aid with an expeditionary force...
of April–June 1940 before she was transferred to the Mediterranean Fleet in May where she escorted a number of convoys to Malta
Malta Convoys
The Malta Convoys were a series of Allied supply convoys that sustained the besieged island of Malta during the Mediterranean Theatre of the Second World War...
. The ship took part in the Battle of Cape Spada
Battle of Cape Spada
The Battle of Cape Spada was a naval battle during the Battle of the Mediterranean in Second World War. It took place on 19 July 1940 in the Mediterranean Sea off Cape Spada, the north-western extremity of Crete.-Prelude:...
in July 1940, Operation Abstention
Operation Abstention
Operation Abstention was the code name given to the British invasion of the Italian island of Kastelorizo, off Turkey, during the Second World War, on late February 1941...
in February 1941, and the evacuations of Greece and Crete
Battle of Crete
The Battle of Crete was a battle during World War II on the Greek island of Crete. It began on the morning of 20 May 1941, when Nazi Germany launched an airborne invasion of Crete under the code-name Unternehmen Merkur...
in April–May 1941.
The ship covered an amphibious landing during the Syria–Lebanon Campaign of June 1941 and began escorting supply convoys in June to Tobruk
Tobruk
Tobruk or Tubruq is a city, seaport, and peninsula on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near the border with Egypt. It is the capital of the Butnan District and has a population of 120,000 ....
, Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
shortly afterwards. She was damaged by German dive bomber
Dive bomber
A dive bomber is a bomber aircraft that dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy for the bomb it drops. Diving towards the target reduces the distance the bomb has to fall, which is the primary factor in determining the accuracy of the drop...
s while rescuing survivors from the minelayer
Minelayer
Minelaying is the act of deploying explosive mines. Historically this has been carried out by ships, submarines and aircraft. Additionally, since World War I the term minelayer refers specifically to a naval ship used for deploying naval mines...
in October 1941 and resumed escorting convoys to Malta. Hero participated in the Second Battle of Sirte
Second Battle of Sirte
The Second Battle of Sirte was a naval engagement in which the escorting warships of a British convoy to Malta frustrated a much more powerful Regia Marina squadron. The British convoy was composed of four merchant ships escorted by four light cruisers, one anti-aircraft cruiser, and 17 destroyers...
in March 1942 and in Operation Vigorous
Operation Vigorous
Operation Vigorous was a World War II Allied operation to deliver a supply convoy that sailed from Haifa and Port Said on 12 June 1942 to Malta. The convoy encountered heavy Axis air and sea opposition and returned to Alexandria on 16 June....
in June. She sank two German submarines whilst stationed in the Mediterranean in 1942, and was transferred back home late in the year to begin converting to an escort destroyer
Escort destroyer
A Escort Destroyer is a US Navy post World War II classification for destroyers modified for and assigned to a fleet escort role. These destroyers retained their original hull numbers...
. The ship was transferred to the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) in 1943 and renamed HMCS Chaudière. She became part of the Mid-Ocean Escort Force
Mid-Ocean Escort Force
Mid-Ocean Escort Force referred to the organization of anti-submarine escorts for World War II trade convoys between Canada and the British Isles...
in early 1944 until her transfer back to British coastal waters in May to protect the build-up for Operation Overlord
Operation Overlord
Operation Overlord was the code name for the Battle of Normandy, the operation that launched the invasion of German-occupied western Europe during World War II by Allied forces. The operation commenced on 6 June 1944 with the Normandy landings...
. Together with other ships, she sank three more German submarines during the year. Chaudière was refitting when the war ended in May 1945 and was in poor shape. The ship was paid off
Ship decommissioning
To decommission a ship is to terminate her career in service in the armed forces of her nation. A somber occasion, it has little of the elaborate ceremony of ship commissioning, but carries significant tradition....
in August and later sold for scrap
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...
. The process of breaking her up, however, was not completed until 1950.
Description and construction
Hero displaced 1350 long tons (1,371.7 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 1883 long tons (1,913.2 t) at deep load. The ship had an overall length of 323 feet (98.5 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 5 in (3.78 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 34000 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. Hero carried a maximum of 470 long tons (477.5 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 5530 nautical miles (10,241.6 km) at 15 knots (8.2 m/s). The ship's complement was 137 officers and men in peacetime, but this increased to 146 in wartime. In Canadian service, the crew numbered 10 officers and 171 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, Hero had two quadruple Mark I mounts for the 0.5 inch Vickers Mk III
Vickers .50 machine gun
The Vickers .50 machine gun, also known as the 'Vickers .50' was basically the same as the Vickers machine gun but scaled up to use a larger calibre round.-Mark II, IV and V:...
machine gun
Machine gun
A machine gun is a fully automatic mounted or portable firearm, usually designed to fire rounds in quick succession from an ammunition belt or large-capacity magazine, typically at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute....
. 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
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...
torpedoes. One 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...
rail and two throwers were fitted; 20 depth charges were originally carried, but this increased to 35 shortly after the war began. By mid-1940, this had increased to 44 depth charges.
Ordered on 13 December 1934 from Parsons Marine Steam Turbine Company
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...
, Hero was subcontracted to Vickers-Armstrongs and laid down by their High Walker Yard at Newcastle-on-Tyne, England, on 28 February 1935. She was launched on 10 March 1936 and completed on 21 October 1936. Excluding government-furnished equipment like the armament, the ship cost £249,858.
Wartime modifications
Most ships of Heros class had the rear torpedo tubes replaced by a 12-pounderQF 12 pounder 12 cwt naval gun
The QF 12 pounder 12 cwt gun was a common calibre naval gun introduced in 1894 and used until the middle of the 20th century. It was produced by Armstrong Whitworth, Elswick and used on Royal Navy warships, and exported to allied countries...
AA gun after the evacuation of Dunkirk in 1940, but it is not clear if she underwent this refurbishment as she was deployed in the Mediterranean until 1943. Other changes made before her conversion to an escort destroyer in 1943 probably included exchanging her two quadruple .50-calibre Vickers machine guns mounted between her funnels for two Oerlikon 20 mm AA guns, the addition of two Oerlikon guns to her searchlight
Searchlight
A searchlight is an apparatus that combines a bright light source with some form of curved reflector or other optics to project a powerful beam of light of approximately parallel rays in a particular direction, usually constructed so that it can be swiveled about.-Military use:The Royal Navy used...
platform and another pair on the wings of the ship's bridge. The ship's director-control tower and rangefinder
Rangefinder
A rangefinder is a device that measures distance from the observer to a target, for the purposes of surveying, determining focus in photography, or accurately aiming a weapon. Some devices use active methods to measure ; others measure distance using trigonometry...
above the bridge were most likely removed in exchange for a Type 271 target indication radar during the conversion, as was the replacement of 'B' gun by a Hedgehog
Hedgehog (weapon)
The Hedgehog was an anti-submarine weapon developed by the Royal Navy during World War II, that was deployed on convoy escort warships such as destroyers to supplement the depth charge. The weapon worked by firing a number of small spigot mortar bombs from spiked fittings...
anti-submarine spigot mortar, and the addition of a Type 286 short-range surface search radar. Two QF 6-pounder
QF 6 pounder Hotchkiss
The QF 6 pounder Hotchkiss was a light 57 mm naval gun and coast defence gun of the late 19th century used by many countries, and was adapted for use in the early British tanks in World War I.- Canada History :...
Hotchkiss gun
Hotchkiss gun
The Hotchkiss gun can refer to different products of the Hotchkiss arms company starting in the late 19th century. It usually refers to the 1.65-inch light mountain gun; there was also a 3-inch Hotchkiss gun...
s were fitted on the wings of her bridge to deal with U-boats at short ranges. The ship also received a HF/DF radio direction finder
Radio direction finder
A radio direction finder is a device for finding the direction to a radio source. Due to low frequency propagation characteristic to travel very long distances and "over the horizon", it makes a particularly good navigation system for ships, small boats, and aircraft that might be some distance...
mounted on a pole mainmast. 'Y' gun was also removed to allow her depth charge stowage to be increased. Late in the war, her Type 286 was replaced by a Type 291 radar.
Career
Hero was assigned to the 2nd Destroyer Flotilla of the Mediterranean Fleet upon commissioning. She patrolled Spanish waters during the Spanish Civil War enforcing the policies of the Non-Intervention CommitteeNon-Intervention Committee
During the Spanish Civil War, several countries followed a principle of non-intervention, which would result in the signing of the Non-Intervention Agreement in August 1936 and the setting up of the Non-Intervention Committee, which first met in September...
. Hyperion received a refit in June–July 1939 in the UK and rejoined the Mediterranean Fleet upon its completion. The ship remained in the Mediterranean until 5 October when she was transferred to Freetown
Freetown
Freetown is the capital and largest city of Sierra Leone, a country in West Africa. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean located in the Western Area of the country, and had a city proper population of 772,873 at the 2004 census. The city is the economic, financial, and cultural center of...
, Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
to search for German commerce raiders. Hero returned to the UK in January 1940 and received a refit at Portsmouth
HMNB Portsmouth
Her Majesty's Naval Base Portsmouth is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the British Royal Navy...
from 15 February to 16 March. In the meantime, the 2nd Destroyer Flotilla had been assigned to Home Fleet and the ship rejoined them when her refit was finished.
Battlecruiser
Battlecruisers were large capital ships built in the first half of the 20th century. They were developed in the first decade of the century as the successor to the armoured cruiser, but their evolution was more closely linked to that of the dreadnought battleship...
as she covered the minelayer
Minelayer
Minelaying is the act of deploying explosive mines. Historically this has been carried out by ships, submarines and aircraft. Additionally, since World War I the term minelayer refers specifically to a naval ship used for deploying naval mines...
s preparing to implement Operation Wilfred
Operation Wilfred
Operation Wilfred was a British naval operation during World War II that involved the mining of the channel between Norway and her offshore islands in order to prevent the transport of swedish iron ore through neutral Norwegian waters to be used to sustain the German war effort...
, an operation to lay mines in the Vestfjord
Vestfjord
Vestfjord is a Norwegian fjord, which would be described as a firth or an open bight of sea between the Lofoten archipelago and mainland Norway, northwest of Bodø...
to prevent the transport of Swedish iron ore from Narvik
Narvik
is the third largest city and municipality in Nordland county, Norway by population. Narvik is located on the shores of the Narvik Fjord . The municipality is part of the Ofoten traditional region of North Norway, inside the arctic circle...
to Germany. The ship and her sister
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...
pretended to lay a minefield off Bud, Norway
Bud, Norway
Bud is a fishing village and former municipality in the present-day municipality of Fræna in Møre og Romsdal county in western Norway. The village is located on the Romsdal peninsula along the Atlanterhavsveien, west of the village of Hustad, north of the village of Tornes, and east of the...
on 8 April and reported its location to the Norwegians. Hero and the destroyer streamed their TSDS minesweeping gear in advance of the battleship and her escort as they steamed up the Vestfjord
Vestfjord
Vestfjord is a Norwegian fjord, which would be described as a firth or an open bight of sea between the Lofoten archipelago and mainland Norway, northwest of Bodø...
to engage the remaining German destroyers at Narvik
Narvik
is the third largest city and municipality in Nordland county, Norway by population. Narvik is located on the shores of the Narvik Fjord . The municipality is part of the Ofoten traditional region of North Norway, inside the arctic circle...
on 13 April. The ship, and three other British destroyers pursued the remaining German ships into the Rombaksfjorden (the easternmost branch of the Ofotfjord
Ofotfjord
Ofotfjord or Narvik Fjord, an inlet of the Norwegian sea north of the Arctic circle, is Norway's 12th longest fjord, long, and the 18th deepest, with a maximum depth of . Along the shores of this fjord is the major town of Narvik...
), east of Narvik, where the lack of ammunition had forced the German ships to retreat. Most of the German destroyers had scuttled
Scuttling
Scuttling is the act of deliberately sinking a ship by allowing water to flow into the hull.This can be achieved in several ways—valves or hatches can be opened to the sea, or holes may be ripped into the hull with brute force or with explosives...
and beached
Beach (nautical)
Beaching is when a vessel is laid ashore, or grounded deliberately in shallow water. This is more usual with small flat-bottomed boats. Larger ships may be beached deliberately, for instance in an emergency a damaged ship might be beached to prevent it from sinking in deep water...
themselves at the head of the fjord
Fjord
Geologically, a fjord is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created in a valley carved by glacial activity.-Formation:A fjord is formed when a glacier cuts a U-shaped valley by abrasion of the surrounding bedrock. Glacial melting is accompanied by rebound of Earth's crust as the ice...
, but the scuttling charges on had failed to detonate properly and she was boarded by a small party from Hero. They found nothing of any significance as she'd been abandoned by her crew and the destroyer put a torpedo into her to prevent any salvage
Marine salvage
Marine salvage is the process of rescuing a ship, its cargo, or other property from peril. Salvage encompasses rescue towing, refloating a sunken or grounded vessel, or patching or repairing a ship...
.
Hero was transferred to the Mediterranean Fleet on 17 May as part of the reconstituted 2nd Destroyer Flotilla. During the Battle of Cape Spada on 19 July, the ship escorted Australian light cruiser and rescued some of the 525 survivors from the together with the other escorting destroyers. Hero, together with her sister, , and the destroyers and , were ordered to Gibraltar on 22 August where they were to join Force H
Force H
Force H was a British naval formation during the Second World War. It was formed in 1940 to replace French naval power in the western Mediterranean that had been removed by the French armistice with Nazi Germany....
. Hostile struck a mine en-route on the early morning of 23 August off Cap Bon
Cap Bon
Cap Bon , also Watan el-kibli, is a peninsula in far northeastern Tunisia. It is located at around . It is surrounded by the Gulf of Tunis in the north. Towns located on the peninsula include Nabeul, Kelibia and Menzel Temime. The ruins of the Punic town Kerkouane are located here....
that broke her back. The explosion killed five men and wounded three others. Mohawk took off the survivors while Hero fired two torpedoes to scuttle her. The ship participated in Operation Hats in September, before refitting in Malta
Malta
Malta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
during November. She sortied into the North Atlantic when Convoy WS-5A reported that it had been attacked by the on 25 December to round up the scattered ships.
On 1 January 1941, Hero was one of the ships that intercepted a Vichy French convoy off Mellila
Mellilä
Mellilä is a former municipality of Finland. It was merged to the town of Loimaa on 1 January 2009.It is located in the province of Western Finland and is part of the Finland Proper region. The municipality had a population of 1,254 and covered an area of 110.62 km² of which 0.10 km² is...
and seized all four merchant ships of the convoy. The ship participated in Operation Excess
Operation Excess
Operation Excess was a series of supply convoys to Malta, Alexandria and Greece in January 1941.On 6 January, convoy Excess left Gibraltar for Malta and Greece, covered by the Gibraltar based Force H. Simultaneously, the Mediterranean Fleet from Alexandria covered more supply ships from...
in early January 1941 and was transferred back to the Mediterranean Fleet. On 27 February, she evacuated a few surviving commandos from the island of Kastelorizo
Kastelorizo
Kastelorizo, , is a Greek island and municipality located in the southeastern Mediterranean. It lies roughly off the south coast of Turkey, about 570 km southeast of Athens and east of Rhodes, almost halfway between Rhodes and Antalya and to Cyprus...
who had attacked the island in Operation Abstention
Operation Abstention
Operation Abstention was the code name given to the British invasion of the Italian island of Kastelorizo, off Turkey, during the Second World War, on late February 1941...
. In mid-April she escorted the fast transport and three battleships from Alexandria to Malta before going on to escort the battleships as they bombarded Tripoli
Tripoli
Tripoli is the capital and largest city in Libya. It is also known as Western Tripoli , to distinguish it from Tripoli, Lebanon. It is affectionately called The Mermaid of the Mediterranean , describing its turquoise waters and its whitewashed buildings. Tripoli is a Greek name that means "Three...
on 20 April. After refueling in Alexandria on 23 April, Hero sailed for Greece to begin evacuating British and Australian troops from the beaches. During the evacuation of Crete
Battle of Crete
The Battle of Crete was a battle during World War II on the Greek island of Crete. It began on the morning of 20 May 1941, when Nazi Germany launched an airborne invasion of Crete under the code-name Unternehmen Merkur...
, Hero and the destroyer evacuated the King of Greece
George II of Greece
George II reigned as King of Greece from 1922 to 1924 and from 1935 to 1947.-Early life, first period of kingship and exile:George was born at the royal villa at Tatoi, near Athens, the eldest son of King Constantine I of Greece and his wife, Princess Sophia of Prussia...
and his entourage on the night of 22/23 May.
Hero escorted the LSI(L)
Landing Ship, Infantry
Landing Ship, Infantry was a British term for a type of ship used to transport infantry in amphibious warfare during the Second World War...
as she conducted an amphibious landing in early June 1941 on the Lebanese coast during the opening stages of the Operation Exporter. She spent most of the rest of the year escorting convoys to Tobruk. Together with her sister and the destroyer , the ship escorted on 25 October whilst en route to Tobruk. They were attacked by Junkers Ju 87
Junkers Ju 87
The Junkers Ju 87 or Stuka was a two-man German ground-attack aircraft...
Stuka dive bombers of I./StG 1 that hit Latona and set her afire. Hero and Encounter came alongside and rescued the crew and passengers before Latonas magazine
Magazine (artillery)
Magazine is the name for an item or place within which ammunition is stored. It is taken from the Arabic word "makahazin" meaning "warehouse".-Ammunition storage areas:...
exploded, but Hero was damaged by three near misses whilst alongside. The ship returned to Alexandria for repairs and escorted a convoy to Malta in January 1942. She participated in the 2nd Battle of Sirte on 22 March whilst escorting a convoy to Malta. Together with the s and on 29 May, she sank the north-east of Tobruk
Tobruk
Tobruk or Tubruq is a city, seaport, and peninsula on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near the border with Egypt. It is the capital of the Butnan District and has a population of 120,000 ....
and rescued 42 survivors.
During Operation Vigorous in June, Hero formed part of the escort for the covering force of the Mediterranean Fleet for the Malta-bound convoy. At time the ship still had not been fitted for radar
Radar
Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...
. After Panzer Army Africa
Panzer Army Africa
As the number of German armed forces committed to the North Africa Campaign of World War II grew from the initial commitment of a small corps the Germans developed a more elaborate command structure and placed the now larger Afrika Korps, with Italian units under this new German command structure,...
occupied Mersa Matruh in late June, the Admiralty ordered the submarine tender
Submarine tender
A submarine tender is a type of ship that supplies and supports submarines.Submarines are small compared to most oceangoing vessels, and generally do not have the ability to carry large amounts of food, fuel, torpedoes, and other supplies, nor to carry a full array of maintenance equipment and...
s and the Greek transferred to Haifa
Haifa
Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...
, but Medway was torpedoed and sunk en route despite the strong escort. Hero and the destroyer rescued 1105 survivors between them. On 17 August, the ship rescued some 1100 survivors of the torpedoed troopship
Troopship
A troopship is a ship used to carry soldiers, either in peacetime or wartime...
. In conjunction with four other destroyers and a Wellesley
Vickers Wellesley
The Vickers Wellesley was a British 1930s light bomber built by Vickers-Armstrongs at Brooklands near Weybridge, Surrey, for the Royal Air Force...
light bomber of the Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
, Hero sank 60 nautical miles (111.1 km) north-east of Port Said
Port Said
Port Said is a city that lies in north east Egypt extending about 30 km along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, north of the Suez Canal, with an approximate population of 603,787...
on 30 October. The ship was ordered back to the United Kingdom, via the Cape of Good Hope
Cape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa.There is a misconception that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa, because it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. In fact, the...
, to be converted to an escort destroyer late in the year.
Transfer to the Royal Canadian Navy
Her conversion at Portsmouth lasted from April to November 1943 and Hero was transferred to the Royal Canadian NavyRoyal 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...
as a gift on 15 November 1943 and renamed HMCS Chaudière. After working up, the ship was assigned to the Escort Group
Escort Group (naval)
Escort Groups for convoy protection were a British development in the war at sea during World War II. They were a tactical innovation by the Royal Navy in anti-submarine warfare, to combat the threat of the German Navy's "wolfpack" tactics....
C2 in February 1944, based in Derry
Derry
Derry or Londonderry is the second-biggest city in Northern Ireland and the fourth-biggest city on the island of Ireland. The name Derry is an anglicisation of the Irish name Doire or Doire Cholmcille meaning "oak-wood of Colmcille"...
. On 6 March 1944, whilst defending Convoy HX 228 west of Ireland, the escorts forced to the surface where she surrendered after a 32-hour hunt. The submarine could not be towed to port and was torpedo
Torpedo
The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...
ed by the British destroyer . The ship was reassigned to the 11th Escort Group in May 1944 in preparation for Operation Overlord
Operation Overlord
Operation Overlord was the code name for the Battle of Normandy, the operation that launched the invasion of German-occupied western Europe during World War II by Allied forces. The operation commenced on 6 June 1944 with the Normandy landings...
. The group was tasked to protect Allied shipping in the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
and the Bay of Biscay
Bay of Biscay
The Bay of Biscay is a gulf of the northeast Atlantic Ocean located south of the Celtic Sea. It lies along the western coast of France from Brest south to the Spanish border, and the northern coast of Spain west to Cape Ortegal, and is named in English after the province of Biscay, in the Spanish...
and, together with the destroyers and , the ship sank in the Bay of Biscay
Bay of Biscay
The Bay of Biscay is a gulf of the northeast Atlantic Ocean located south of the Celtic Sea. It lies along the western coast of France from Brest south to the Spanish border, and the northern coast of Spain west to Cape Ortegal, and is named in English after the province of Biscay, in the Spanish...
near La Rochelle
La Rochelle
La Rochelle is a city in western France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department.The city is connected to the Île de Ré by a bridge completed on 19 May 1988...
on 18 August. Two days later, the same ships sank in the Bay of Biscay west of Brest
Brest, France
Brest is a city in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the Breton peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon...
. In November, Chaudière was sent to Sydney, Nova Scotia
Sydney, Nova Scotia
Sydney is a Canadian urban community in the province of Nova Scotia. It is situated on the east coast of Cape Breton Island and is administratively part of the Cape Breton Regional Municipality....
for a refit.
The refit did not begin until late January 1945 and was still in progress when the war ended in May. She was found to be in the worst shape of any Canadian destroyer when inspected and was declared surplus to requirements on 13 June. She was paid off on 17 August 1945 and later sold for scrap to the Dominion Steel Company. Her demolition, however, was not completed until 1950.