HMS Ursula (1917)

HMS Ursula was a modified Admiralty R-class destroyer which served with the Royal Navy. The vessel was launched in 1917 at Greenock in Scotland and served with the Grand Fleet during World War I.

For other ships with the same name, see HMS Ursula.
Sister ship HMS Undine
History
United Kingdom
Name: HMS Ursula
Ordered: March 1916
Builder: Scotts Shipbuilding and Engineering Company, Greenock
Yard number: 480
Laid down: 22 September 1916
Launched: 21 April 1917
Commissioned: 26 September 1917
Decommissioned: 19 November 1929
Fate: Sold to be Broken up
General characteristics
Class and type: Modified Admiralty R-class destroyer
Displacement: 1,076 long tons (1,093 t)
Length: 276 ft (84.1 m)
Beam: 27 ft (8.2 m)
Draught: 11 ft (3.4 m)
Propulsion:
  • 3 Yarrow boilers
  • 2 geared Brown-Curtis steam turbines, 27,000 shp (20,000 kW)
Speed: 36 knots (41.4 mph; 66.7 km/h)
Range: 3,450 nmi (6,390 km) at 15 kn (28 km/h)
Complement: 82
Armament:
  • 3 × QF 4-inch (102 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

Ursula was 276 feet (84.12 m) long overall, with a beam of 27 feet (8.2 m) and a draught of 11 feet (3.35 m).[1] Displacement was 1,076 long tons (1,093 t).[2] Power was provided by three Yarrow boilers feeding two Brown-Curtis 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).[1] Two funnels were fitted, two boilers exhausting through the forward funnel. 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 4-inch (102 mm) Mk IV QF guns on the ship's centreline, with one on the forecastle, one aft on a raised platform and one between the 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.[1] Fire control included a single Dumaresq and a Vickers range clock.[4] The ship had a complement of 82 officers and men.[2]

Service

Ursula was one of ten R-class destroyers ordered by the British Admiralty in March 1916 as part of the Eighth War Construction Programme. The ship was built by Scotts at Greenock and was launched in June 1917.[3] On commissioning, Ursula joined the Thirteenth Destroyer Flotilla of the Grand Fleet.[5]

At the end of World War I, Ursula was still part of the Thirteenth Destroyer Flotilla under the cruiser Champion.[6] The vessel was transferred to the 5th Destroyer Flotilla under the flag of King George V when the Home Fleet was formed,[7] but was reduced to reserve complement on 23 August 1920.[8] The destroyer was sold to Cashmore of Newport, Wales, on 19 November 1929 and broken up.[9]

Pennant numbers
Pennant Number Date
F881917[10]
F841918
F011918
F95

References
  1. Gardiner, Robert; Gray, Randal, eds. (1985). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. London: Conway Maritime Press. p. 81. ISBN 0-85177-245-5.
  2. Parkes, Oscar; Prendegast, Maurice (1918). Jane’s Fighting Ships. London: Sampson Low, Marston & Co. Ltd. p. 107.
  3. Friedman, Norman (2009). British Destroyers: From Earliest Days to the First World War. Barnsley: Seaforth Publishing. p. 310. ISBN 978-1-84832-049-9.
  4. "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.
  5. "Destroyer Flotillas of the Grand Fleet". Supplement to The Monthly Navy List: 12. October 1917. Retrieved 13 July 2018.
  6. "Destroyer Flotillas of the Grand Fleet". Supplement to The Monthly Navy List: 12. January 1919. Retrieved 13 July 2018.
  7. "II. Home Fleet". Supplement to The Monthly Navy List: 12. July 1919. Retrieved 13 July 2018.
  8. "Ursula". Supplement to The Monthly Navy List: 276. July 1927.
  9. Colledge, J.J.; Warlow, Ben (1987). Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of All Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. p. 423. ISBN 978-1-93514-907-1.
  10. Dittmar, F.J.; Colledge, J.J. (1972). British Warships 1914–1919. Shepperton: Ian Allan. p. 70. ISBN 0-7110-0380-7.

Bibliography
  • Colledge, J. J.; Warlow, Ben (2006) [1969]. Ships of the Royal Navy: The Complete Record of all Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy (Rev. ed.). London: Chatham Publishing. ISBN 978-1-86176-281-8.
  • Friedman, Norman (2009). British Destroyers: From Earliest Days to the Second World War. Barnsley, UK: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84832-049-9.
  • Gardiner, Robert & Gray, Randal, eds. (1985). Conway's All The World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-245-5.
  • March, Edgar J. (1966). British Destroyers: A History of Development, 1892–1953; Drawn by Admiralty Permission From Official Records & Returns, Ships' Covers & Building Plans. London: Seeley Service. OCLC 164893555.
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