HMS Sarpedon (1916)

HMS Sarpedon was an R-class destroyer which served with the Royal Navy. Launched in June 1916, the vessel escorted convoys that sailed between Scotland and Scandinavia in World War I. She was sold to be scrapped on 23 June 1926.

For other ships with the same name, see HMS Sarpedon.
Sister ship HMS Thisbe at sea in 1917
History
United Kingdom
Name: HMS Sarpedon
Namesake: Sarpedon
Builder: Hawthorn Leslie and Company, Hebburn
Laid down: 27 September 1915
Launched: 1 June 1916
Commissioned: 2 September 1916
Fate: Sold to be scrapped 23 July 1926
General characteristics
Class and type: R-class destroyer
Displacement: 975 long tons (991 t) standard 1,035 long tons (1,052 t) full
Length: 265 ft (80.8 m)
Beam: 26 ft 7 in (8.1 m)
Draught: 9 ft 8 in (2.95 m)
Propulsion:
  • 3 Yarrow boilers
  • 2 geared Parsons steam turbines, 27,000 shp (20,000 kW)
Speed: 36 knots (41.4 mph; 66.7 km/h)
Range: 3,440 nmi (6,370 km) at 15 kn (28 km/h)
Complement: 82
Armament:
  • 3 × QF 4-inch (101.6 mm) Mark IV guns, mounting P Mk. IX
  • 1 × single 2-pounder (40-mm) "pom-pom" Mk. II anti-aircraft gun
  • 4 × 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes (2×2)

Design
Main article: R-class destroyer

Sarpedon was one of eighteen R-class destroyers ordered by the British Admiralty in March 1916 as part of the Sixth War Construction Programme. The ship was 265 feet (80.77 m) long overall, with a beam of 26 feet 9 inches (8.15 m) and a draught of 9 feet 8 inches (2.95 m).[1] Displacement was 975 long tons (991 t) normal and 1,035 long tons (1,052 t) deep load. Power was provided by three Yarrow boilers feeding two Parsons geared steam turbines rated at 27,000 shaft horsepower (20,000 kW) and driving two shafts, to give a design speed of 36 knots (67 km/h; 41 mph).[2] Three funnels were fitted. 296 long tons (301 t) of oil were carried, giving a design range of 3,450 nautical miles (6,390 km; 3,970 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph).[3]

Armament consisted of three QF 4in Mk IV guns on the ship's centreline, with one on the forecastle, one aft on a raised platform and one between the second and third funnels. A single 2-pounder (40 mm) pom-pom anti-aircraft gun was carried, while torpedo armament consisted of two twin mounts for 21 in (533 mm) torpedoes.[4] Fire control included a single Dumaresq and a Vickers range clock.[5] The ship had a complement of 82 officers and ratings.[2]

Construction and career
Sarpedon under construction alongside Pigeon and Plover

Sarpedon was laid down by Hawthorn Leslie and Company in Hebburn on 27 September 1915, launched on 1 June 1916 and completed on 2 September.[3] On commissioning, the ship joined the 11th Destroyer Flotilla of the Grand Fleet.[6]

The destroyer was assigned to escort convoys between Britain and Scandinavia.[7] On 19 July 1917, Sarpedon and the destroyer Arab were escorting an east-bound convoy on the route from Lerwick to Norway when they came under attack by the German submarine U-67. The Danish steamer Harrildsborg was sunk and the submarine escaped unseen and unscathed.[8] Later that year, on 21 October, the destroyer was escorting a west-bound convoy from Bergen, when Tirade fatally crippled fellow escort Marmion in an accidental collision.[9] At the end of the war, the ship was allocated to the local defence flotilla at Nore.[10]

Sarpedon was decommissioned and sold to Alloa Shipbreaking Company to be scrapped on 23 July 1926.[11] Initially taken to Rosyth to be demolished on 6 November, the hulk was transferred to Charlestown to be broken up on 7 December.[1]

Pennant numbers
Pennant Number Date
G19January 1917[12]
G21April 1918[12]
G14September 1918[12]

References

Citations
  1. Robinson & Waller 2018.
  2. Parkes & Prendegast 1919, p. 107.
  3. Friedman 2009, p. 310.
  4. Gardiner & Gray 1985, p. 81.
  5. "Fire Control in H.M. Ships". The Technical History and Index: Alteration in Armaments of H.M. Ships during the War. 3 (23): 31. 1919.
  6. The Navy List July 1917, p. 12.
  7. Newbolt 1928, p. 152.
  8. Newbolt 1928, p. 265.
  9. Hepper 2006, p. 108.
  10. The Navy List January 1920, p. 704.
  11. Colledge & Warlow 2006, p. 359.
  12. Dittmar & Colledge 1972, p. 70.

Bibliography
  • Colledge, J.J.; Warlow, Ben (2006). Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of All Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy. London: Chatham Press. ISBN 978-1-8617-6281-8.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • "Destroyer Flotillas of the Grand Fleet". The Navy List. July 1917. Retrieved 5 July 2019.
  • Dittmar, F.J.; Colledge, J.J. (1972). British Warships 1914–1919. Shepperton: Ian Allan. p. 70. ISBN 978-0-7110-0380-4.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Friedman, Norman (2009). British Destroyers: From Earliest Days to the First World War. Barnsley: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-049-9.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Gardiner, Robert; Gray, Randal, eds. (1985). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 978-0-8517-7245-5.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Hepper, David J. (2006). British Warship Losses in the Ironclad Era, 1860-1919. London: Chatham. ISBN 978-1-8617-6273-3.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • "Local Defence and Training Establishments, Patrol Flotillas, Etc". The Navy List. January 1920. Retrieved 5 July 2019.
  • Newbolt, Henry (1928). Naval Operations: Volume V. London: Longmans, Green and Co.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Parkes, Oscar; Prendegast, Maurice (1919). Jane’s Fighting Ships. London: Sampson Low, Marston & Co. Ltd.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Robinson, George; Waller, David (2018). "Sarpedon". Tyne-built Ships. Archived from the original on 29 September 2018. Retrieved 5 July 2019.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)


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