![]() HMS Acacia | |
Class overview | |
---|---|
Name | Acacia class |
Operators | |
Built | 1915 |
In commission | 1915–1959 |
Completed | 24 |
Lost | 3 |
General characteristics | |
Type | Minesweeper |
Displacement | 1,200 tons |
Length | |
Beam | 33 ft (10.1 m) |
Draught | 12 ft (3.7 m) |
Propulsion |
|
Speed | Designed for 1,400 hp (1,040 kW) or 1,800 hp (1,340 kW) to make 17 knots (31 km/h), but actually required about 2,200 ihp (1,640 kW) for this speed |
Range | 2,000 nmi (3,700 km) at 15 kn (28 km/h) with max. 250 tons of coal |
Complement | 77 men |
Armament | Designed to mount 2 × 12-pounder (76 mm) guns and 2 × 3-pounder (47 mm) AA guns, but with wide variations |
The Acacia class was a class of twenty-four sloops that were ordered in January 1915 under the Emergency War Programme for the Royal Navy in World War I as part of the larger Flowerclass which were also referred to as the "Cabbage class", or "Herbaceous Borders". They were ordered in two batches, twelve ships on 1 January and another twelve on 12 January, and all were launched within about four or five months, and delivered between May and September 1915. They were used almost entirely for minesweeping until 1917, when they were transferred to escort duty.
They were single-screw fleet sweeping vessels (sloops) with triple hulls at the bows to give extra protection against loss when working.
HMS Mallow was an Acacia-class sloop built for the Royal Navy, and later operated by the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) as HMAS Mallow.
The C class was a group of twenty-eight light cruisers of the Royal Navy, and were built in a sequence of seven groups known as the Caroline class, the Calliope class, the Cambrian class, the Centaur class, the Caledon class, the Ceres class and the Carlisle class. They were built for the rough conditions of the North Sea, and proved to be rugged and capable vessels, despite being somewhat small and cramped.
The Hunt-class minesweeper was a class of minesweeping sloop built between 1916 and 1919 for the Royal Navy. They were built in two discrete groups, the earlier Belvoir group designed by the Ailsa Shipbuilding Company and the subsequent Aberdare group designed by the Admiralty. They were classed as Fleet Minesweeping Sloops, that is ships intended to clear open water. The Belvoir group were named after British fox hunts. Those of the Aberdare group were originally named after coastal towns, watering places and fishing ports, some of which happened to be hunts by coincidence. However, all were soon renamed after inland locations to prevent confusion caused by the misunderstanding of signals and orders.
The twenty-eight Anchusa-class sloops were built under the Emergency War Programme for the Royal Navy in World War I as the final part of the larger "Flower class", which were also referred to as the "Cabbage class", or "Herbaceous Borders".
The Insect-class gunboats were a class of small, but well-armed Royal Navy ships designed for use in shallow rivers or inshore. They were intended for use on the Danube against Austria-Hungary. The first four ships—Gnat, Mantis, Moth and Tarantula—were first employed during the World War I Mesopotamian Campaign on the Euphrates and Tigris rivers.
Lobnitz & Company was a Scottish shipbuilding company located at Renfrew on the River Clyde, west of the Renfrew Ferry crossing and east of the confluence with the River Cart. The Lobnitz family lived at Chapeltoun House in East Ayrshire. The company built dredgers, floating docks, fishing boats, tugs and workboats.
HMS Veronica was an Acacia-class sloop of the Royal Navy. She served during World War I. Post-war, she saw New Zealand service.
The Flower class comprised five sub-classes of sloops built under the Emergency War Programme for the Royal Navy during World War I, all of which were named after various flowers. They were popularly known as the "herbaceous borders", in humorous reference to a well-known adage about the Royal Navy, as well as to a type of garden border popular in the United Kingdom.
The Arabis class was the third, and largest, of the five sub-classes of minesweeping sloops completed under the Emergency War Programme for the Royal Navy in World War I. They were part of the larger "Flower class" shipbuilding project, which were also referred to as the "Cabbage class", or "Herbaceous Borders". The ships were also used outside their minesweeping duties as patrol vessels, tugs, and personnel and cargo transports.
The Aubrietia-class sloops were a class of twelve sloops built under the Emergency War Programme for the Royal Navy in World War I as part of the larger Flower class. They were also referred to as the "cabbage class", or "herbaceous borders". The Flowers were the first ships designed as minesweepers.
The 24 class was a class of minesweeping sloops. They were derived from the preceding Flower-class sloop, but designed to appear double-ended. Twenty-four ships to this design were ordered between December 1916 and April 1917 under the Emergency War Programme for the Royal Navy in World War I, although two of them were cancelled before launch. All were named after famous racehorses, but they were not named Racehorse class as the Admiralty realised that this could easily be confused in communications with the Racecourse class of paddle minesweepers, and they officially became the 24 class.
HMS Snowdrop was an Azalea-class sloop of the Royal Navy. She served during the First World War. Snowdrop survived the war and was sold for scrap in 1923.
HMS Laburnum was a Royal Navy Acacia-class sloop built by Charles Connell and Company, Scotstoun. She was scuttled during the fall of Singapore in 1942.
HMS Foxglove was an Acacia-class minesweeping sloop of the Royal Navy. She saw service in World War I and World War II.
SS Mantola was a passenger steamer of the British-India Steam Navigation Company. Launched in 1916 by Barclay Curle & Company, Glasgow, she sailed for less than a year before being sunk by a German U-boat while carrying a large quantity of silver bullion.
Nine ships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Lily or HMS Lilly:
SS Ardena was a minesweeper and escort vessel built as an Azalea-class sloop minesweeper for the British Royal Navy with the name HMS Peony in 1915.
HMS Coreopsis was an Anchusa-class sloop and Q-ship of the Royal Navy, built at the yards of Barclay Curle on Clydeside and launched on 15 September 1917. Employed as a decoy ship with concealed armament, she served with the Grand Fleet or in the Mediterranean operating from Gibraltar under the false names Beardsley and Bigott. After the end of the First World War, she was laid up before being sold for breaking on 6 September 1922, but did not arrive at Thos W Ward's yard in Preston, Lancashire until 5 May 1924.
HMS Myrtle was an Azalea-class sloop that was part of a Royal Navy squadron that was sent to assist the Baltic States and their fight for independence. While clearing naval mines on 16 July 1919 both Myrtle and HMS Gentian hit mines and sank killing nine sailors in the two blasts.
HMS Cornflower was an Arabis-class sloop of the Royal Navy and from 1933 the Hong Kong Naval Volunteer Force (HKNVR).
Media related to Acacia class sloop at Wikimedia Commons