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HMS Warwick (D25)
Encyclopedia
HMS Warwick (D-25) was a Admiralty 'W' class
V and W class destroyer
The V and W class was an amalgam of six similar classes of destroyer built for the Royal Navy under the War Emergency Programme of the First World War and generally treated as one 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...
built in 1917.
She saw service in both the First and Second World Wars, before being torpedoed and sunk in January 1944.
Construction
HMS Warwick was built during the First World War as part of the Royal NavyRoyal 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...
’s War Emergency Programme.
She was part of the Admiralty W Class of 21 ships, representing the last word in destroyer design at the time.
Warwick was built by Hawthorn Leslie & Company, Hebburn
Hebburn
Hebburn is a small town situated on the south bank of the River Tyne in North East England, sandwiched between the towns of Jarrow and Bill Quay...
, being laid down 10 March 1917. She launched on 28 December 1917, and completed 18 March 1918.
First World War
Warwick commissioned in March 1918 and saw action in the last months of World War IWorld 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 took part in the raid on Zeebrugge
Zeebrugge Raid
The Zeebrugge Raid, which took place on 23 April 1918, was an attempt by the British Royal Navy to neutralize the key Belgian port of Bruges-Zeebrugge...
in April, the attempt by the RN to blockade Germany's 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...
force stationed in Flanders. She also participated in the second raid on Ostend
Second Ostend Raid
The Second Ostend Raid was the latter of two failed attempts made during the spring of 1918 by the United Kingdom's Royal Navy to block the channels accessing the Belgian port of Ostend as a part of their conflict with the German Empire during World War I...
in May.
Warwick was present at 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...
in November 1918 when the Grand Fleet received the surrender of the German High Seas Fleet
High Seas Fleet
The High Seas Fleet was the battle fleet of the German Empire and saw action during World War I. The formation was created in February 1907, when the Home Fleet was renamed as the High Seas Fleet. Admiral Alfred von Tirpitz was the architect of the fleet; he envisioned a force powerful enough to...
at the end of the war.
Inter-war years
Following the end of World War I Warwick was stationed in the Mediterranean, serving there during the 20’s, before joining the RN Reserve in the 30’s. With the onset of war in 1939 Warwick was re-activated, re-commissioning in August, and joining the fleet at PlymouthPlymouth
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...
in September.
Second World War
During World War II Warwick served as a convoy escort, being too out-dated for modern destroyer work.In February 1940 she was deployed to the Western Approaches Escort Force for Atlantic convoy defence.
In this role she 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 November 1940, with the formation of distinct escort groups, she joined 7 EG.
In December she was mined and spent the next four months in dock for repairs.
In March 1941 she rejoined Western Approaches Command
Western Approaches Command
Commander-in-Chief, Western Approaches was the commander of a major operational command of the Royal Navy during World War II. The admiral commanding, and his forces, sometimes informally known as 'Western Approaches Command,' were responsible for the safety of British shipping in the Western...
and saw out the year in the Atlantic.
In January 1942, following the US entry into the war and the opening of the U-boat offensive off the US east coast (Operation Drumbeat), Warwick she transferred there, on loan to the USN
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 June 1942 she was transferred to the West Indies serving with USN and RCN ships of the Caribbean Escort Force on anti-submarine patrol and convoy escort duty.
In December Warwick returned to Britain for conversion as a long range escort. This entailed, among other modifications, removal of one of her boilers to allow extra fuel capacity, thus sacrificing speed for endurance and range. She remained in dock at Dundee
Dundee
Dundee is the fourth-largest city in Scotland and the 39th most populous settlement in the United Kingdom. It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firth of Tay, which feeds into the North Sea...
for the first half of 1943 while this was carried out.
In July she was on anti-submarine duties 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...
, supporting Operation Musketry, the RAF Coastal Command's Bay offensive
In November she took part in Operation Alacrity, the establishment and supply of Allied air bases in the Azores
Azores
The Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...
which served to close the Mid-Atlantic air gap.
In January 1944, having returned to Britain, Warwick was assigned to lead an escort group operating in the SouthWest Approaches, guarding against attacks by German E-boats.
It was while engaged in this she was torpedoed and sunk on 20 January 1944.
Fate
On 20 January 1944, while patrolling off Trevose HeadTrevose Head
Trevose Head is a headland on the Atlantic coast of north Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated approximately west of Padstow. The South West Coast Path runs around the whole promontory and is within the Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and the Trevose Head Heritage Coast...
, and under command of Cdr. Denys Rayner
Denys Rayner
Denys Arthur Rayner DSC & Bar, VRD, RNVR fought throughout the Battle of the Atlantic. After intensive war service at sea, Rayner became a writer, a farmer, and a successful designer and builder of small sailing craft - his first being the Westcoaster; his most successful being the glass fibre...
, Warwick was torpedoed by U-413. She sank in minutes, with the loss of over half her crew.