.gif)
HMS Veteran (D72)
Encyclopedia
HMS Veteran was a V class 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...
of 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...
. She was the third ship to carry the name Veteran. She was launched in 1919 and therefore missed the First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. She served as a convoy escort in the Second World War
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...
before being sunk by the German U-boat
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
U-404 while rescuing survivors from the SS New York, a recently torpedoed United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
ship. There were no survivors. In May 1940, her pennant number
Pennant number
In the modern Royal Navy, and other navies of Europe and the Commonwealth, ships are identified by pennant numbers...
was changed from D72 to I72
Interwar period
.jpg)
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
had already been won. Her career therefore started in times of peace, and she served in the 3rd Destroyer Flotilla in the Atlantic
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...
until 1930 when transferred to the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
. From 1926, she was deployed under China Station
China Station
The China Station was a historical formation of the British Royal Navy. It was formally the units and establishments responsible to the Commander-in-Chief, China....
.
Second World War
When the warWorld 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...
started, HMS Veteran was in dockyard hands and did not start her wartime career until November 1939. When she was eventually put into service, she was commanded by Lieut. Cdr J E Broome
Jack Broome
Captain John Egerton "Jack" Broome DSC, RN, was a Royal Navy officer who served in both World Wars. He commanded the escort group of the ill-fated Arctic Convoy PQ-17 in 1942...
, a veteran of First World War.
Her initial rôle was anti-submarine duty and convoy escort in home waters and the Southwest Approaches
Southwest Approaches
The Southwest Approaches is the name given to the offshore waters to the southwest of Great Britain. The area includes the Celtic Sea, the Bristol Channel and sea areas off southwest Ireland...
. During this time, she collided with a British submarine and the SS Horn Shell, the latter of which required her to put in for repairs.
In April 1940, she escorted troopships Chrobry and Batory from Scapa Flow
Scapa Flow
right|thumb|Scapa Flow viewed from its eastern endScapa Flow is a body of water in the Orkney Islands, Scotland, United Kingdom, sheltered by the islands of Mainland, Graemsay, Burray, South Ronaldsay and Hoy. It is about...
to Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, joining convoy NP1 en route. She was then deployed to support 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...
. As part of this rôle, she escorted the aircraft carriers HMS Glorious
HMS Glorious (77)
HMS Glorious was the second of the cruisers built for the British Royal Navy during the First World War. Designed to support the Baltic Project championed by the First Sea Lord, Lord Fisher, they were very lightly armoured and armed with only a few heavy guns. Glorious was completed in late 1916...
and HMS Furious
HMS Furious (47)
HMS Furious was a modified cruiser built for the Royal Navy during the First World War. Designed to support the Baltic Project championed by the First Sea Lord of the Admiralty, Lord John Fisher, they were very lightly armoured and armed with only a few heavy guns. Furious was modified while...
.
After the Norwegian evacuation. She was assigned to invasion patrol with HMS Malcolm
HMS Malcolm (D19)
HMS Malcolm was one of eight Admiralty-type destroyer leaders built for the Royal Navy during World War I. She was the first of only two Royal Navy ships to carry the name Malcolm, although HMS Valkyrie was originally planned to bear the name...
and HMS Wild Swan
HMS Wild Swan (D62)
HMS Wild Swan was member of the V and W class of destroyers, of the "Admiralty modified W" type. Wild Swan, like most of the rest of class was launched too late for World War I....
, during the operation she sank several invasion barges, but was herself slightly damaged by a mine and required some repair work.
Her next assignment was convoy defence in the Atlantic. In this role Veteran was engaged in all the duties performed by escort ships; protecting convoys, searching for and attacking U-boats which attacked ships in convoy, and rescuing survivors.
In March 1941, she was escorting convoy OB 293 when it came under attack by German U-boat
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
s. She participated in the anti-submarine operations which sunk U-70 and may have sunk the illustrious U-47. However, her rôle was minor and she is credited for neither of these victories. Later that month, on 20 March, she participated in the search for the German warships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau. In September 1941, she dropped 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 on German U-boat U-207 which had attacked convoy SC 42. U-207 was sunk, and Veteran shared credit of her sinking with HMS Leamington
USS Twiggs (DD-127)
The first USS Twiggs was a Wickes-class destroyer in the United States Navy during World War I. She was named for Major Levi Twiggs. She was later transferred to the Royal Navy, as HMS Leamington and to the Soviet Navy as Zhguchiy, before returning to Britain to star in the film The Gift Horse,...
.
In 1942, she was transferred to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
to instruct the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
in anti-submarine warfare
Anti-submarine warfare
Anti-submarine warfare is a branch of naval warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, or other submarines to find, track and deter, damage or destroy enemy submarines....
. During this period, she assisted HMS Le Tiger in an attack on U-215 off Boston. Although the attack sunk the U-boat, credit was awarded to Le Tiger.