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{{Short description|E-class destroyer for the Royal Navy in the 1930s}}
{|{{Infobox Ship Begin}}
{{other ships|HMS Exmouth}}
{{Infobox Ship Image
{{Good article}}
|Ship image= ]
{{Use British English|date=April 2011}}
|Ship caption=Profile of an E class destroyer
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2020}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=HMS (H02) Exmouth in leaving the port of Bilbao in 1936.jpg
|Ship caption=HMS ''Exmouth'' leaving the port of Bilbao, Basque Country, 1936.
}} }}
{{Infobox Ship Career {{Infobox ship career
|Hide header= |Hide header=
|Ship country= |Ship country=United Kingdom
|Ship flag=] |Ship flag={{shipboxflag|United Kingdom|naval}}
|Ship class= ] ]
|Ship name= HMS ''Exmouth'' |Ship name= HMS ''Exmouth''
|Ship ordered=1 November1932<br />1931 Naval Programme |Ship ordered=1 November 1932
|Ship awarded= |Ship awarded=
|Ship builder=]<br>Engines by ], ] |Ship builder=]
|Ship original cost= |Ship original cost=
|Ship yard number= |Ship yard number=
|Ship way number= |Ship way number=
|Ship laid down= 15 March1933 |Ship laid down=15 March 1933
|Ship launched= 15 February1934 |Ship launched=30 January 1934
|Ship sponsor= |Ship sponsor=
|Ship christened= |Ship christened=
|Ship completed= |Ship completed=
|Ship acquired= |Ship commissioned=9 November 1934
|Ship motto=*''Deo Adjuvante''
|Ship commissioned= 11 November 1934
*("By God’s help")
|Ship recommissioned=
|Ship decommissioned=
|Ship in service=
|Ship out of service=
|Ship renamed=
|Ship reclassified=
|Ship refit=
|Ship struck=
|Ship reinstated=
|Ship homeport=
|Ship identification=
|Ship motto= ''Deo Adjuvante''<br />("By God’s help")
|Ship nickname= |Ship nickname=
|Ship honours=] |Ship honours=]
|Ship fate=Sunk by {{ship|German submarine|U-22|1936|6}}, 21 January 1940
|Ship captured=
|Ship fate=Sunk on 21 January 1940 by ]
|Ship status=
|Ship notes= |Ship notes=
|Ship badge=On a Field Red, a lion passant Gold |Ship badge=On a Field Red, a lion passant Gold
}} }}
{{Infobox Ship Characteristics {{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header= |Hide header=
|Header caption= |Header caption=
|Ship class=] ]
|Ship displacement={{convert|1495|LT|t|1|abbr=on}} standard<br>{{convert|2050|LT|t|1|abbr=on}} deep
|Ship length={{convert|343|ft|m|abbr=on}} o/a |Ship displacement=*{{convert|1495|LT|t}} (])
|Ship beam={{convert|33.75|ft|m|abbr=on}} *{{convert|2050|LT|t}} (])
|Ship length={{convert|343|ft|m|1|abbr=on}} ]
|Ship height=
|Ship draught= {{convert|12|ft|6|in|m|abbr=on}} |Ship beam={{convert|33|ft|9|in|m|1|abbr=on}}
|Ship draught={{convert|12|ft|6|in|m|1|abbr=on}}
|Ship depth=
|Ship power= |Ship power=*{{convert|38000|shp|kW|lk=in|abbr=on}}
|Ship propulsion=3 Admiralty 3-drum ]s<br />300 psi, 620 °F<br>2 shaft Parsons geared ]s<br>36,000 shp *3 × ]s
|Ship propulsion=2 × shafts, 2 × geared ]s
|Ship speed= {{convert|36|kn|km/h|1|abbr=on}}<br>{{convert|32|kn|km/h|1|abbr=on}} deep
|Ship speed={{convert|36|kn|lk=in}}
|Ship range= {{convert|6500|nmi|km|abbr=on}} at {{convert|15|kn|km/h|1|abbr=on}}<br>{{convert|1500|nmi|km|abbr=on}} at {{convert|36|kn|km/h|1|abbr=on}}
|Ship range={{convert|6500|nmi|lk=in|abbr=on}} at {{convert|15|kn}}
|Ship endurance=
|Ship boats=
|Ship complement=175 |Ship complement=175
|Ship sensors= |Ship sensors=]
|Ship EW=
|Ship armament= |Ship armament=
*5 × single ]
<table>
*2 × quadruple ]
* 5 x ] (119&nbsp;mm) guns, single mounts ] Mk.XVII
*2 × quadruple ] ]s
* 8 x ] (12.7&nbsp;mm) guns, quad mounts Mk.I
*20 × ]s, 1 rail and 2 throwers
* 8 (4x2) tubes for 21&nbsp;in (533&nbsp;mm) ]es
* 1 rack for 20 x ]s
</table>
|Ship armour=
|Ship aircraft=
|Ship aircraft facilities=
|Ship notes=
}} }}
|} |}
{{otherships|HMS Exmouth}}


'''HMS ''Exmouth''''' was an ] ] ] built for the ] in the early 1930s. Although assigned to the ] upon completion, the ship was attached to the ] in 1935–36 during the ]. During the ] of 1936–1939 she spent considerable time in Spanish waters, enforcing the arms blockade imposed by Britain and France on both sides of the conflict. ''Exmouth'' was assigned to ] escort and anti-submarine patrol duties in the ] when World War II began in September 1939. She was sunk by a German submarine in January 1940 while escorting a merchant ship north of Scotland.
'''HMS ''Exmouth''''' was an ] ] ] of the ]. She served during the ].


==Description==
==Construction and commissioning==
''Exmouth'' displaced {{convert|1495|LT|t}} at ] load and {{convert|2050|LT|t}} at ]. The ship had an ] of {{convert|343|ft|m|1}}, a ] of {{convert|33|ft|9|in|m|1}} and a ] of {{convert|12|ft|6|in|m|1}}. She was powered by two ] geared ]s, each driving one ], using steam provided by three ]s. The turbines developed a total of {{convert|38000|shp|lk=in}} and gave a maximum speed of {{convert|36|kn|lk=in}}. ''Exmouth'' carried a maximum of {{convert|470|LT|t}} of ] that gave her a range of {{convert|6350|nmi|lk=in}} at {{convert|15|kn}}. The ship's complement was 175 officers and ].<ref name=w78>Whitley, pp. 104–05</ref>
''Exmouth'' was ordered on 1 November1932 under the 1931 Naval Programme, and was laid down at ] on 15 March1933. She was launched on 15 February1934, named the following day, and commissioned for service on 11 November 1934.


The ship mounted five 45-calibre ] in single mounts. For ] defence, ''Exmouth'' had two quadruple Mark I mounts for the ] ]. She was fitted with two above-water quadruple ] mounts for ] torpedoes.<ref name=w78/> One ] rail and two throwers were fitted; 20 depth charges were originally carried, but this increased to 35 shortly after the war began.<ref>English, p. 141</ref>
==Pre-war career==
On commissioning ''Exmouth'' was assigned as leader of the 5th Destroyer Flotilla, with the ]. She joined the flotilla at ] in December, and spent the period between January and July 1935 carrying out exercises. The increased tensions between ] and ], eventually leading to the outbreak of the ], caused the ] to nominate the flotilla for service in the Mediterranean. They joined the ] in August and spent September on exercises. ''Exmouth'' put in to ] on 4 October to begin a refit, which lasted until December. After her return to service in January 1936 ''Exmouth'' continued to carry out exercises with the flotilla, until returning to Britain in March.


==Service==
After spending time with the Home Fleet, the flotilla sailed to the ] coast in August, following the outbreak of the ]. The flotilla remained on this station, protecting British shipping and enforcing an arms embargo. ''Exmouth'' again returned to Britain for a refit at Portsmouth, which lasted until January 1937. She returned to the flotilla off the Spanish coast, where they remained until April. They were then reassigned to the Home Fleet, and on 20 May they were amongst the ships assembled for the Coronation ] by ]. The ships then returned to operating with the Home Fleet and carrying out a visits programme, until they were reassigned to the western Mediterranean in October.
''Exmouth'' was ordered on 1 November 1932 under the 1931 Naval Programme, and was laid down at ] on 15 March 1933. She was launched on 30 January 1934, named the following day, and commissioned for service on 9 November 1934. On commissioning, ''Exmouth'' was assigned as leader of the ] of the ]. The increased tensions between ] and ] – eventually leading to the outbreak of the ] – caused the ] to attach the flotilla to the ] from August 1935 to March 1936, although ''Exmouth'' was refitted in ] from 4 October 1935 to 5 January 1936. The ship patrolled Spanish waters during the ] enforcing the edicts of the ] in between annual refits at Portsmouth between 17 November 1936 and 19 January 1937 and 21 November 1938 and 16 January 1939. She returned to Britain in March and ''Exmouth'' was assigned to training duties and local flotilla work based at Portsmouth on 28 April. She carried out these duties until 2 August, when she was placed into full commission as the leader of the ].<ref name=e4>English, p. 64</ref>


''Exmouth'' and her flotilla were initially assigned to the Home Fleet upon the outbreak of World War II in September 1939.<ref name=e4/> The ship and two of her flotilla mates, {{HMS|Eclipse|H08|2}} and {{HMS|Echo|H23|2}}, escorted the ] {{HMS|Hood|51|2}} as she searched for German ]s south of Iceland in late November.<ref>Rohwer, p. 9</ref> In December, she was transferred to the ] to carry out patrols and escort convoys, but was transferred to ] in January 1940 to carry out the same duties in the ].<ref name=e4/> She was escorting the merchant ''Cyprian Prince'' on 21 January 1940 when she was spotted by the {{ship|German submarine|U-22|1936|6}}, under the command of Karl-Heinrich Jenisch, and ]ed at 05:35. She sank with the loss of all hands. After sinking ''Exmouth'', the submarine also fired on ''Cyprian Prince'' whose master deemed it too dangerous to pick up survivors. Eighteen bodies were later found washed ashore by a schoolboy playing truant near ]. They were buried with ]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://navynews.co.uk/archive/news/item/8635|title=Navy News – HMS Exmouth plaque unveiled|access-date=23 August 2013|archive-date=29 January 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160129190343/https://navynews.co.uk/archive/news/item/8635|url-status=dead}}</ref> in the cemetery at Wick.<ref>{{cite book|last=Baird|first=R. N.|title=Shipwrecks of the North of Scotland|publisher=Birlinn|location=Edinburgh, Scotland|year=2003|isbn=1-84158-233-6|url=http://www.ubootwaffe.net/research/reports.cgi?a=8|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120325125720/http://www.ubootwaffe.net/research/reports.cgi?a=8|archive-date=25 March 2012}}</ref>
The flotilla was active in the Mediterranean until February 1938, when they rejoined the Home Fleet. With the ] in September the flotilla prepared for war service. On 21 November ''Exmouth'' again underwent a refit at Portsmouth. In January 1939 the flotilla returned to the Mediterranean, returning in March. On 28 April ''Exmouth'' had her complement reduced and she was assigned to training duties and local flotilla work based at Portsmouth. She carried out these duties until July, when she was ordered to take up her war station as leader of the 12th Destroyer Flotilla. Her full complement was re-established by 2 August and she prepared for combat.

==Wartime career and sinking==
She spent the period between August and November 1939 deploying with the flotilla. In December she was transferred to the ] to carry out patrols and escort convoys through the North Western Approaches, and the ]. She was escorting the merchant ''Cyprian Prince'' on 21 January 1940 when she was spotted by ], under the command of Karl-Heinrich Jenisch and torpedoed at 5:35 a.m. She sank with the loss of all 189 hands. 18 bodies were later recovered and buried in a cemetery at ].


==Aftermath== ==Aftermath==
The wreck of HMS ''Exmouth'' was discovered in the ] in July 2001 by an independent expedition, with their findings being verified by ]. The wreck is one of those listed as a 'protected place' under the ]. A relatives association for the crew of HMS ''Exmouth'' was formed in 2001, which holds services in memory of those lost. The wreck of ''Exmouth'' was discovered in the ] in July 2001 by an independent expedition, with their findings being verified by ]. The wreck is one of those listed as a 'protected place' under the ].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.scotlandsplaces.gov.uk/search_item/index.php?service=RCAHMS&id=202314 |title=HMS Exmouth: North Sea |website=scotlandsplaces.gov.uk |access-date=28 March 2011}}</ref>

==Notes==
{{Reflist|30em}}


==References== ==References==
* {{cite book|last=English|first=John|title=Amazon to Ivanhoe: British Standard Destroyers of the 1930s|year=1993|publisher=World Ship Society|location=Kendal, England|isbn=0-905617-64-9}}
{{reflist}}
* {{cite book|last=Rohwer|first=Jürgen|title=Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two|publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, Maryland|year=2005|edition=Third Revised|isbn=1-59114-119-2}}
*{{Colledge}}
* {{cite book|last=Whitley|first=M. J.|title=Destroyers of World War Two: An International Encyclopedia|publisher=Naval Institute Press|year=1988|isbn=0-87021-326-1|location=Annapolis, Maryland}}


==External links== ==External links==
*
* http://www.btinternet.com/~byrnell/hms_exmouth/hms-exmouth.htm?speed=high HMS Exmouth relatives association.
*
* http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/1458634.stm BBC news links relating to the discovery of the wreck
* http://www.uboat.net/allies/merchants/189.html MS Miranda at uboat.net *
*
* http://www.uboat.net/allies/merchants/194.html MS Tekla at uboat.net
* http://www.fv-trident.org.uk/ Information about FV Trident
* http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2008/uksi_20080950_en_1 Designation under Protection of Military Remains Act 1986


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{{E and F class destroyer}} {{E and F class destroyer}}
{{January 1940 shipwrecks}}
{{Interwar standard destroyer}}

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Latest revision as of 15:09, 16 October 2024

E-class destroyer for the Royal Navy in the 1930s For other ships with the same name, see HMS Exmouth.

HMS Exmouth leaving the port of Bilbao, Basque Country, 1936.
History
United Kingdom
NameHMS Exmouth
Ordered1 November 1932
BuilderPortsmouth Dockyard
Laid down15 March 1933
Launched30 January 1934
Commissioned9 November 1934
Motto
  • Deo Adjuvante
  • ("By God’s help")
Honours and
awards		Atlantic 1939
FateSunk by German submarine U-22, 21 January 1940
BadgeOn a Field Red, a lion passant Gold
General characteristics
Class and typeE-class destroyer flotilla leader
Displacement
Length343 ft (104.5 m) o/a
Beam33 ft 9 in (10.3 m)
Draught12 ft 6 in (3.8 m)
Installed power
Propulsion2 × shafts, 2 × geared steam turbines
Speed36 knots (67 km/h; 41 mph)
Range6,500 nmi (12,000 km; 7,500 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Complement175
Sensors and
processing systems		ASDIC
Armament

HMS Exmouth was an E-class destroyer flotilla leader built for the Royal Navy in the early 1930s. Although assigned to the Home Fleet upon completion, the ship was attached to the Mediterranean Fleet in 1935–36 during the Abyssinia Crisis. During the Spanish Civil War of 1936–1939 she spent considerable time in Spanish waters, enforcing the arms blockade imposed by Britain and France on both sides of the conflict. Exmouth was assigned to convoy escort and anti-submarine patrol duties in the Western Approaches when World War II began in September 1939. She was sunk by a German submarine in January 1940 while escorting a merchant ship north of Scotland.

Description

Exmouth displaced 1,495 long tons (1,519 t) at standard load and 2,050 long tons (2,080 t) at deep load. The ship had an overall length of 343 feet (104.5 m), a beam of 33 feet 9 inches (10.3 m) and a draught of 12 feet 6 inches (3.8 m). She was powered by two Parsons geared steam turbines, each driving one propeller shaft, using steam provided by three Admiralty three-drum boilers. The turbines developed a total of 38,000 shaft horsepower (28,000 kW) and gave a maximum speed of 36 knots (67 km/h; 41 mph). Exmouth carried a maximum of 470 long tons (480 t) of fuel oil that gave her a range of 6,350 nautical miles (11,760 km; 7,310 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph). The ship's complement was 175 officers and ratings.

The ship mounted five 45-calibre 4.7-inch (120 mm) Mark IX guns in single mounts. For anti-aircraft defence, Exmouth had two quadruple Mark I mounts for the 0.5 inch Vickers Mark III machine gun. She was fitted with two above-water quadruple torpedo tube mounts for 21-inch (533 mm) 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.

Service

Exmouth was ordered on 1 November 1932 under the 1931 Naval Programme, and was laid down at Portsmouth Dockyard on 15 March 1933. She was launched on 30 January 1934, named the following day, and commissioned for service on 9 November 1934. On commissioning, Exmouth was assigned as leader of the 5th Destroyer Flotilla of the Home Fleet. The increased tensions between Italy and Abyssinia – eventually leading to the outbreak of the Second Italo-Abyssinian War – caused the Admiralty to attach the flotilla to the Mediterranean Fleet from August 1935 to March 1936, although Exmouth was refitted in Alexandria from 4 October 1935 to 5 January 1936. The ship patrolled Spanish waters during the Spanish Civil War enforcing the edicts of the Non-Intervention Committee in between annual refits at Portsmouth between 17 November 1936 and 19 January 1937 and 21 November 1938 and 16 January 1939. She returned to Britain in March and Exmouth was assigned to training duties and local flotilla work based at Portsmouth on 28 April. She carried out these duties until 2 August, when she was placed into full commission as the leader of the 12th Destroyer Flotilla.

Exmouth and her flotilla were initially assigned to the Home Fleet upon the outbreak of World War II in September 1939. The ship and two of her flotilla mates, Eclipse and Echo, escorted the battlecruiser Hood as she searched for German commerce raiders south of Iceland in late November. In December, she was transferred to the Western Approaches Command to carry out patrols and escort convoys, but was transferred to Rosyth in January 1940 to carry out the same duties in the North Sea. She was escorting the merchant Cyprian Prince on 21 January 1940 when she was spotted by the German submarine U-22, under the command of Karl-Heinrich Jenisch, and torpedoed at 05:35. She sank with the loss of all hands. After sinking Exmouth, the submarine also fired on Cyprian Prince whose master deemed it too dangerous to pick up survivors. Eighteen bodies were later found washed ashore by a schoolboy playing truant near Wick. They were buried with military honours in the cemetery at Wick.

Aftermath

The wreck of Exmouth was discovered in the Moray Firth in July 2001 by an independent expedition, with their findings being verified by Historic Scotland. The wreck is one of those listed as a 'protected place' under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986.

Notes

  1. ^ Whitley, pp. 104–05
  2. English, p. 141
  3. ^ English, p. 64
  4. Rohwer, p. 9
  5. "Navy News – HMS Exmouth plaque unveiled". Archived from the original on 29 January 2016. Retrieved 23 August 2013.
  6. Baird, R. N. (2003). Shipwrecks of the North of Scotland. Edinburgh, Scotland: Birlinn. ISBN 1-84158-233-6. Archived from the original on 25 March 2012.
  7. "HMS Exmouth: North Sea". scotlandsplaces.gov.uk. Retrieved 28 March 2011.

References

  • English, John (1993). Amazon to Ivanhoe: British Standard Destroyers of the 1930s. Kendal, England: World Ship Society. ISBN 0-905617-64-9.
  • Rohwer, Jürgen (2005). Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two (Third Revised ed.). Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-59114-119-2.
  • Whitley, M. J. (1988). Destroyers of World War Two: An International Encyclopedia. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-326-1.

External links

58°18′N 2°25′W / 58.300°N 2.417°W / 58.300; -2.417

E- and F-class destroyers
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Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in January 1940
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