HMS Amethyst (1903)

Last updated

HMS Amethyst (1903) IWM Q 038114.jpg
History
Naval Ensign of the United Kingdom.svg United Kingdom
Name: HMS Amethyst
Builder: Elswick Naval Works, Armstrong Whitworth & Co [1]
Yard number: 735
Laid down: January 1903
Launched: 5 November 1903
Completed: 17 March 1905
Fate: Sold for scrap in 1920
General characteristics
Class and type: Topaze-class protected cruiser
Displacement: 3,000 tons
Length: 360 ft (109.7 m)
Beam: 40 ft (12.2 m)
Draught: 14 ft 6 in (4.42 m)
Installed power: 12,000 hp (8,900 kW)
Propulsion:
  • Parsons turbines
  • 3 shafts
Speed: 22.5 knots (41.7 km/h)
Complement: 296
Armament:
Armour: 1-inch gun shields, ½-inch to 2-inch deck armour

HMS Amethyst was a third-class protected cruiser of the Topaze class of the Royal Navy. She was launched in 1903, served during World War I at the Dardanelles and Gallipoli, in the Mediterranean and the South Atlantic. She was sold for scrap in 1920.

Contents

Construction

She was laid down in January 1903 at Armstrong, Elswick, was launched on 5 November 1903 and was completed in March 1905. [2]

Until Amethyst was built, the largest warships fitted with steam turbines were destroyers. Their use in Amethyst reduced overall range at 10 knots by 1,500 nautical miles (2,780 km), but increased it by 1,000 nautical miles (1,900 km) at 20 knots, compared with her sister ships. [2]

World War I

Battle of Heligoland Bight

Once World War I broke out in 1914, HMS Amethyst was assigned to the Harwich force of the Royal Navy. She participated in the Battle of Heligoland Bight under the command of Commodore Reginald Tyrwhitt. Later that year she was transferred to the 1st Light Cruiser Squadron of the Royal Navy.

Dardanelles Campaign

Minesweeping operations

Amethyst took part in the covering operation for the minesweeping effort in the Dardanelles and during the action on 1 March and 4 March 1915 she exchanged fire with Turkish forts. On the evening of 4 March she took on board injured personnel of the landing party and discharged them the next day into Soudan and SS Braemar Castle. During the hours of darkness between 6 and 11 March she took part in operations in the Dardanelles against mines, and was frequently in action against field artillery, forts and searchlights. On 14 March at 04:10 she was hit by field artillery and lost 22 men killed. A further 38 men were wounded, of whom 4 later died. [3] Amethyst retired to Tenedos for repairs. The Captain, Commander G. J. Todd, and Lieutenant James C. J. Soutter, Senior Lieutenant, were commended in the Naval Dispatch dated 17 March 1914 from Vice Admiral Carden. [4]

Gallipoli Landings

On 24 April 1915 Amethyst and her sister-ship Sapphire embarked soldiers and landed them by trawler at Y beach on the northwest shore of the Gallipoli Peninsula in the early morning of 25 April. She supported the British troops ashore with gunfire until 27 April by bombarding enemy positions. By mid-morning on 27 April, with the situation on the beach described as "desperate", surviving troops were beginning to come back on board - Amethyst took on board over 250 officers and men, many of them wounded.

Over the following days, Amethyst continued to provide support to the operations on W, Y and Z beaches. On 3 May she lay off Z beach and reported heavy gunfire on shore and large calibre enemy shells landing in the proximity of the British ships. On the night of 5 May, troops were taken from Z beach for redeployment to X and Y beaches.

Amethyst's last part in the landings occurred on 18 May when she proceeded up the Gulf of Adramyt in the early hours, accompanied by destroyers, arriving at Asia Bay just after 05:00. She sent an armed party away in boats to investigate the possibility of removing enemy lighters, but they returned 20 minutes later reporting that a sandbar prevented them from being moved. Two enemy oil tanks were demolished by gunfire, and at 06:45 an enemy field gun battery opened fire. Amethyst replied, silencing the guns, but was hit with the loss of 1 rating killed and 4 wounded. [5]

Mediterranean

After conducting patrols from Brindisi during June and July 1915, Amethyst went into dry dock for a refit from 28 July until 17 August. She returned to Brindisi on 15 September and was present there on 27 September when the Italian battleship Benedetto Brin exploded at the buoys in the outer harbour. Amethyst's boats assisted in rescuing the survivors. [6]

For much of the autumn of 1915, Amethyst stayed in port and acted a temporary depot ship for British submarines passing through on patrol. On 19 November, Amethyst headed towards Malta and thence to Gibraltar, arriving on 27 November. On 1 December she set out for Portsmouth, and then on 11 December for Barrow-in-Furness where she moored up in Devonshire Dock. She remained there until 14 March 1916 when she headed south to Plymouth, then Bilbao and arriving in Gibraltar on 23 March. [7]

South America

In 1916 Commander Edward Unwin took command. He had earned a Victoria Cross in the Gallipoli campaign. Amethyst was assigned to South America, and left Gibraltar on 8 May 1916. [8]

On 23 November 1916, Commander, the Earl of Glasgow took over command whilst the ship was stationed at Viçosa Reef, off the coast of Brazil. [9]

In December 1916 Amethyst, supported by two armed merchant cruisers, HMS Macedonia and HMS Orama, and two colliers, SS Minieh and SS Daleham, was ordered to search for the German commerce raider SMS Möwe. On 9 January Möwe sank the collier Minieh, and when she failed to rendezvous with the rest of the squadron, a search was begun. The squadron returned to the Port of Bahia without success. A further attempt to find Möwe was made on 24 January when Amethyst was joined by HMS Glasgow, but this was also unsuccessful. Patrols to search for German surface raiders were also conducted in April and May 1917.

After a long stay in Rio de Janeiro, Amethyst sailed on 5 April 1918, patrolling down the coast inspecting vessels and arriving in Montevideo on 10 March. [10] On 31 May 1918 Amethyst left Bahia, Brazil to return to Devonport. On the way home, she met HMS Britannia off the coast of Sierra Leone and 295 cases of gold bullion (worth an estimated £1 million) were loaded on board. [11] She arrived in Devonport on 25 June. On 1 July 1918 Amethyst left Devonport for Barrow-in-Furness, where she went into dry dock for the remainder of the war.

Post World War I

Amethyst was recommissioned on 20 November 1918 [12] and on the way to Gibraltar she stopped at Lisbon for the funeral of the late President of Portugal, Sidónio Pais on 21 December. [13]

Fate

She paid off for the last time on 10 February 1919 at Malta and was sold for scrap on 1 October 1920. [14] In the November, under tow on her way to the breaker's at Milford Haven, the tow parted in a gale and heavy seas and the New Quay lifeboat took off seven of Amethyst's eight crew; the captain was taken off two days later in the continuing storm by Aberystwyth lifeboat. [15]

Related Research Articles

HMS <i>Cornwall</i> (1902)

HMS Cornwall was one of 10 Monmouth-class armoured cruisers built for the Royal Navy in the first decade of the 20th century. She was assigned to the 2nd Cruiser Squadron of the Channel Fleet on completion in 1903. The ship was refitted in 1907 in preparation for service as a training ship for cadets with the 4th Cruiser Squadron on the North America and West Indies Station beginning in 1908.

HMS <i>Inflexible</i> (1907)

HMS Inflexible was an Invincible-class battlecruiser of the British Royal Navy. She was built before World War I and had an active career during the war. She tried to hunt down the German battlecruiser SMS Goeben and the light cruiser SMS Breslau in the Mediterranean Sea when war broke out and she and her sister ship Invincible sank the German armoured cruisers SMS Scharnhorst and SMS Gneisenau during the Battle of the Falkland Islands. Inflexible bombarded Turkish forts in the Dardanelles in 1915, but was damaged by return fire and struck a mine while maneuvering. She had to be beached to prevent her from sinking, but she was patched up and sent to Malta, and then Gibraltar for more permanent repairs. Transferred to the Grand Fleet afterwards, she damaged the German battlecruiser Lützow during the Battle of Jutland and watched Invincible explode. She was deemed obsolete after the war and was sold for scrap in 1921.

HMS <i>Indomitable</i> (1907) 1907 Invincible-class battlecruiser of the Royal Navy

HMS Indomitable was one of three Invincible-class battlecruisers built for the Royal Navy before World War I and had an active career during the war. She tried to hunt down the German ships Goeben and Breslau in the Mediterranean when war broke out and bombarded Turkish fortifications protecting the Dardanelles even before the British declared war on Turkey. She helped to sink the German armoured cruiser Blücher during the Battle of Dogger Bank in 1915 and towed the damaged British battlecruiser HMS Lion to safety after the battle. She damaged the German battlecruisers Seydlitz and Derfflinger during the Battle of Jutland in mid-1916 and watched her sister ship HMS Invincible explode. Deemed obsolete after the war, she was sold for scrap in 1921.

HMS <i>Goliath</i> (1898) Canopus-class pre-dreadnought battleship

HMS Goliath was a pre-dreadnought battleship of the British Royal Navy and a member of the Canopus class. Intended for service in Asia, Goliath and her sister ships were smaller and faster than the preceding Majestic-class battleships, but retained the same battery of four 12-inch (305 mm) guns. She also carried thinner armour, but incorporated new Krupp steel, which was more effective than the Harvey armour used in the Majestics. Goliath was laid down in January 1897, launched in March 1898, and commissioned into the fleet in March 1900.

HMS <i>Bacchante</i> (1901)

HMS Bacchante was a Cressy-class armoured cruiser built for the Royal Navy around 1900. Upon completion she was assigned to the Mediterranean Fleet as flagship of the fleet's cruiser squadron. She was reduced to reserve upon her return home in 1905 before returning to the Mediterranean in 1906. Six years later she returned home and was again placed in reserve. Recommissioned at the start of World War I, Bacchante became flagship of the 7th Cruiser Squadron. She was present at the Battle of Heligoland Bight a few weeks after the war began, but saw no combat.

Naval operations in the Dardanelles campaign

The naval operations in the Dardanelles campaign took place against the Ottoman Empire during the First World War. Ships of the Royal Navy, French Marine nationale, Imperial Russian Navy and the Royal Australian Navy, attempted to force the Dardanelles Straits, a narrow, 41 mi (66 km)-long waterway connecting the Mediterranean Sea with the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea further north.

Edward Unwin

Commodore Edward Unwin, was a Royal Navy officer and an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.

Roger Keyes, 1st Baron Keyes

Admiral of the Fleet Roger John Brownlow Keyes, 1st Baron Keyes, was a Royal Navy officer. As a junior officer he served in a corvette operating from Zanzibar on slavery suppression missions. Early in the Boxer Rebellion, he led a mission to capture a flotilla of four Chinese destroyers moored to a wharf on the Peiho River. He was one of the first men to climb over the Peking walls, to break through to the besieged diplomatic legations and to free them.

HMS <i>Castor</i> (1915)

HMS Castor was one of the Cambrian subclass of the C class of light cruisers. She saw service during the First World War and the Russian Civil War.

HMS <i>Ark Royal</i> (1914)

HMS Ark Royal was the first ship designed and built as a seaplane carrier. She was purchased by the Royal Navy in 1914 shortly after her keel had been laid and the ship was only in frames; this allowed the ship's design to be modified almost totally to accommodate seaplanes. In the First World War, Ark Royal participated in the Gallipoli Campaign in early 1915, with her aircraft conducting aerial reconnaissance and observation missions. Her aircraft later supported British troops on the Macedonian Front in 1916, before she returned to the Dardanelles to act as a depot ship for all the seaplanes operating in the area. In January 1918, several of her aircraft unsuccessfully attacked the German battlecruiser SMS Goeben when she sortied from the Dardanelles to attack Allied ships in the area. The ship left the area later in the year to support seaplanes conducting anti-submarine patrols over the southern Aegean Sea.

HMS <i>Agamemnon</i> (1906) Lord Nelson-class pre-dreadnought battleship

HMS Agamemnon was one of two Lord Nelson-class pre-dreadnought battleships launched in 1906 and completed in 1908. She was the Royal Navy's second-to-last pre-dreadnought battleship to be built, followed by her sister ship, Lord Nelson. She was assigned to the Channel Fleet when the First World War began in 1914. The ship was transferred to the Mediterranean Sea with Lord Nelson in early 1915 to participate in the Dardanelles Campaign. She made a number of bombardments against Turkish fortifications and in support of British troops. Agamemnon remained in the Mediterranean after the conclusion of that campaign to prevent the German battlecruiser SMS Goeben and light cruiser Breslau from breaking out into the Mediterranean. Agamemnon shot down the German Zeppelin LZ-55 (LZ-85) during a bombing mission over Salonica in 1916. On 30 October 1918, the Ottoman Empire signed the Armistice of Mudros on board the ship while she was anchored at Lemnos in the northern Aegean Sea. She was converted to a radio-controlled target ship following her return to the United Kingdom in March 1919 and began service in 1921. Agamemnon was replaced by Centurion at the end of 1926 and sold for scrap in January 1927, the last pre-dreadnought in service with the Royal Navy.

HMS <i>Grafton</i> (1892)

HMS Grafton was a first class cruiser of the Edgar class, launched in 1892. She served in colonial service and in the First World War. Grafton survived the war and was broken up in the 1920s.

HMS <i>King Alfred</i> (1901)

HMS King Alfred was one of four Drake-class armoured cruisers built for the Royal Navy around 1900. She served as flagship of the China Station from 1906 until relieved in 1910. Upon her return home that year, she was placed in reserve before being recommissioned in mid-1914. She was assigned to the 6th Cruiser Squadron of the Grand Fleet at the beginning of World War I. She was transferred to the 9th Cruiser Squadron in 1915 and assigned to convoy protection duties by the end of the year. King Alfred participated in the unsuccessful searches for the German commerce raider SMS Möwe in 1916–17 before beginning to escort convoys later that year. The ship was torpedoed by a German submarine in 1918, but returned to service. She was sold for scrap in 1920.

HMS <i>Essex</i> (1901)

HMS Essex was one of 10 Monmouth-class armoured cruisers built for the Royal Navy in the first decade of the 20th century. Upon completion in 1904 she was assigned to the 2nd Cruiser Squadron of the Channel Fleet. The ship was placed in reserve in March 1906 and recommissioned in 1909 for service with the 4th Cruiser Squadron on the North America and West Indies Station. In 1912, Essex returned home and was assigned to the Training Squadron of the Home Fleet. After a refit the following year, she rejoined the 4th Cruiser Squadron in early 1914.

HMS <i>Prince George</i> (1895)

HMS Prince George was a Majestic-class pre-dreadnought battleship launched in 1895. She was named after the future George V of the United Kingdom and was the fourth and final ship to bear that name. Commissioned in 1896, she initially served with the Channel Fleet until 1904. She was involved in a collision with her sister ship, Hannibal, and the resulting damage meant that much of the latter part of 1903 was spent being repaired. After a refit in 1904, she was assigned to the Atlantic Fleet and then from 1907, she was part of the Home Fleet. In 1912, she was assigned to the 7th Battle Squadron.

HMS <i>Dartmouth</i> (1911) Weymouth-class light cruiser

HMS Dartmouth was a Town-class light cruiser built for the Royal Navy in the 1910s. She was one of the Weymouth sub-class of the Town class. The ship survived the First World War and was sold for scrap in 1930.

HMS <i>Vengeance</i> (1899) Canopus-class battleship

HMS Vengeance was a pre-dreadnought battleship of the British Royal Navy and a member of the Canopus class. Intended for service in Asia, Vengeance and her sister ships were smaller and faster than the preceding Majestic-class battleships, but retained the same battery of four 12-inch (305 mm) guns. She also carried thinner armour, but incorporated new Krupp steel, which was more effective than the Harvey armour used in the Majestics. Vengeance was laid down in August 1898, launched in July 1899, and commissioned into the fleet in April 1902.

HMS <i>Exmouth</i> (1901)

HMS Exmouth was a Duncan-class pre-dreadnought battleship of the Royal Navy. Built to counter a group of fast Russian battleships, Exmouth and her sister ships were capable of steaming at 19 knots, making them the fastest battleships in the world. The Duncan-class battleships were armed with a main battery of four 12-inch (305 mm) guns and they were broadly similar to the London-class battleships, though of a slightly reduced displacement and thinner armour layout. As such, they reflected a development of the lighter second-class ships of the Canopus-class battleship. Exmouth was laid down by Laird Brothers at Birkenhead in August 1899, launched in August 1901, and completed in May 1903.

HMS <i>Talbot</i> (1895)

HMS Talbot was an Eclipse-class protected cruiser built for the Royal Navy in the mid-1890s.

HMS <i>Forester</i> (1911) Acheron-class destroyer of the Royal Navy

HMS Forester was an Acheron-class destroyer of the Royal Navy that served during World War I and was sold for breaking in 1921. She was the ninth Royal Navy ship to be named after the traditional craft of forester.

References

  1. ↑ "HMS Amethyst (1903)". www.tynebuiltships.co.uk. Retrieved 5 April 2017.
  2. 1 2 Milford, Darren. "World War I Naval Combat" . Retrieved 30 November 2010.
  3. ↑ "Log of HMS Amethyst". Old Weather. 14 March 1915. Retrieved 15 March 2011.
  4. ↑ "DARDANELLES & GALLIPOLI CAMPAIGNS - 1915-1916 Part 2 - London Gazette Despatches". Naval-History.Net. 17 March 1914. Retrieved 18 December 2011.
  5. ↑ "Log of HMS Amethyst". Old Weather. 18 May 1915. Retrieved 29 March 2011.
  6. ↑ "Log of HMS Amethyst". Old Weather. 27 September 1915. Retrieved 29 March 2011.
  7. ↑ "Log of HMS Amethyst". Old Weather. 23 March 1916. Retrieved 29 March 2011.
  8. ↑ "Log of HMS Amethyst". Old Weather. 8 May 1916. Retrieved 29 March 2011.
  9. ↑ "Log of HMS Amethyst". Old Weather. 23 November 1916. Retrieved 29 March 2011.
  10. ↑ "Log of HMS Amethyst". Old Weather. 10 March 1918. Retrieved 29 March 2011.
  11. ↑ "Log of HMS Amethyst". Old Weather. 9 June 1918. Retrieved 29 March 2011.
  12. ↑ "Log of HMS Amethyst". Old Weather. 20 November 1918. Retrieved 15 March 2011.
  13. ↑ "Log of HMS Amethyst". Old Weather. 21 December 1918. Retrieved 15 March 2011.
  14. ↑ "HMS Amethyst". BattleshipsCruisers website. Retrieved 15 March 2011.
  15. ↑ Bryan, Roger (2014). The New Quay Lifeboats. Llanina Books. p. 22. ISBN   0956719953.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.