HMS Hilary (1931)

Last updated

The Royal Navy during the Second World War A17348.jpg
HMS Hilary
History
Civil Ensign of the United Kingdom.svg United Kingdom
Name: SS Hilary
Owner: Booth Steamship Company
Builder: Cammell Laird
Yard number: 975
Launched: 17 April 1931
In service: August 1931
Fate: Requisitioned by Royal Navy 1940
Naval Ensign of the United Kingdom.svg
Name: HMS Hilary (F22)
Acquired: 16 October 1940
Commissioned: 21 January 1941
Out of service: 15 April 1942
Fate: Converted back to merchant ship, used as convoy commodore ship.
Civil Ensign of the United Kingdom.svg
Name: SS Hilary
Owner: Ministry of War Transport
Operator: Booth Steamship Company
Acquired: 15 April 1942
Out of service: 1943
Fate: Recommissioned into Royal Navy as headquarters ship
Naval Ensign of the United Kingdom.svg
Name: HMS Hilary
Acquired: 1943
Fate: Returned to Booth Steamship Company in 1945
History
Civil Ensign of the United Kingdom.svg
Name: SS Hilary
Owner: Booth Steamship Company
In service: March 1946
Fate: Arrived Inverkeithing for breaking up, 15 September 1959
General characteristics
Displacement: 7,403 tons gross, 4,350 tons net
Length: 424 ft 3 in
Beam: 56 ft 3 in
Draught: 34 ft 3 in
Propulsion: Triple expansion steam engine and low pressure turbine with direct gearing and hydraulic coupling, single screw
Speed: 14 knots [1]
Armament: two 6 inch guns, one 12 pounder anti-aircraft gun, four .303 machine guns fitted in late 1940. [2]

HMS Hilary, was a former passenger liner launched in 1931, as SS Hilary, which was requisitioned by the Royal Navy during the Second World War and used as an ocean boarding vessel in the North Atlantic. It was later converted back to a merchantman but subsequently recommissioned back into the Royal Navy as an infantry landing and headquarters ship. At the end of the war in 1945 it was returned to civilian service, and scrapped at Thos W Ward Inverkeithing in 1959.

Royal Navy Maritime warfare branch of the United Kingdoms military

The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by the English kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against the Kingdom of France. The modern Royal Navy traces its origins to the early 16th century; the oldest of the UK's armed services, it is known as the Senior Service.

World War II 1939–1945, between Axis and Allies

World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. The vast majority of the world's countries—including all the great powers—eventually formed two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis. A state of total war emerged, directly involving more than 100 million people from more than 30 countries. The major participants threw their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities behind the war effort, blurring the distinction between civilian and military resources. World War II was the deadliest conflict in human history, marked by 70 to 85 million fatalities, most of whom were civilians in the Soviet Union and China. It included massacres, the genocide of the Holocaust, strategic bombing, premeditated death from starvation and disease, and the only use of nuclear weapons in war.

Ocean boarding vessels (OBVs) were merchant ships taken over by the Royal Navy for the purpose of enforcing wartime blockades by intercepting and boarding foreign vessels.

Contents

History

The ship was constructed to carry 80 first class and 250 second class passengers between the United Kingdom and South America, but was requisitioned in 1940 and refitted in South Shields as an Ocean Boarding Vessel.

South Shields coastal town at the mouth of the River Tyne, England

South Shields is a coastal town in the North East of England at the mouth of the River Tyne, about 3.7 miles (6.0 km) downstream from Newcastle upon Tyne. Historically part of County Durham, it became part of Tyne and Wear in 1974. According to the 2011 census, the town had a population of 76,498, the third largest in Tyneside after Newcastle and Gateshead. It is part of the metropolitan borough of South Tyneside which includes the towns of Jarrow and Hebburn. South Shields is represented in Parliament by Labour MP Emma Lewell-Buck. The demonym of a person from South Shields is either a Geordie or a Sand dancer.

Commissioned as HMS Hilary, F22, [2] the ship stopped the Italian tanker, Recco on 3 May 1941 but the crew of the tanker scuttled it before it could be captured. On 10 May Hilary successfully captured the Italian tanker Gianna M.

The ship was returned to civilian service, and acted as a convoy commodore vessel in the North Atlantic. In October 1942 it was torpedoed amidships but the torpedo failed to explode. The following year it was recommissioned as a combined infantry landing ship and headquarters vessel (a Landing Ship Infantry (Headquarters), HMS Hilary, following work at Birkenhead to equip it with six landing craft and accommodation for 313 crew and 378 soldiers. [2]

Convoy commodore

Convoy commodore also known as commodore, convoys was the title of a civilian put in charge of the good order of the merchant ships in the British convoys used during World War II. Usually the convoy commodore was a retired naval officer or a senior merchant captain drawn from the Royal Naval Reserve. He was aboard one of the merchant ships.

Birkenhead town in Merseyside, England

Birkenhead is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England. Historically until 1974 in Cheshire, it is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the west bank of the River Mersey, opposite the city of Liverpool. At the 2011 census, it had a population of 88,818.

Landing craft small and medium seagoing vessel used to convey a landing force

Landing craft are small and medium seagoing watercraft, such as boats and barges, used to convey a landing force from the sea to the shore during an amphibious assault. The term excludes landing ships, which are larger. Production of landing craft peaked during World War II, with a significant number of different designs produced in large quantities by the United Kingdom and United States.

During the July 1943 invasion of Sicily (Operation Husky), the ship conveyed the 1st Canadian Division and Royal Marine Commandos, and acted as the headquarters ship of Rear Admiral Sir Philip Vian. In October it was Commodore Geoffrey Oliver's headquarters at Operation Avalanche, the invasion of the Italian mainland at Salerno. The ship returned to Portsmouth in December, [1] and was used again in June for Operation Neptune, the invasion of Normandy. Oliver once again used it as his headquarters, this time as commander of Naval Force J, and the ship also led Assault Convoy J11, troops landing from it on 6 June 1944 on Juno beach. Hilary was slightly damaged by a bomb on 13 June and on 23 June became the flagship of the Eastern Task Force because Admiral Vian's original flagship, HMS Scylla, had been put out of action by a mine. [2]

1st Canadian Division division of the Canadian Armed Forces

The 1st Canadian Division is an operational command and control formation of the Canadian Joint Operations Command, based at CFB Kingston.

Philip Vian Royal Navy admiral of the fleet

Admiral of the Fleet Sir Philip Louis Vian & Two Bars was a Royal Navy officer who served in both World Wars.

Admiral Sir Geoffrey Nigel Oliver was a Royal Navy officer during the Second World War.

The ship was later returned to its original owners, Booth Steamship Company and returned to civilian service, following refitting to allow 93 first class and 138 third class passengers to be carried between the United Kingdom and South America. [2] It was chartered to Elder Dempster and Company for use on the for their Liverpool - Lagos route but returned to Booth's South America route the following year. [1] The ship was scrapped in 1959.

Alfred Booth and Company British shipping line

Alfred Booth and Company was a British trading and shipping company that was founded in 1866 and traded for more than a century. It was founded in Liverpool, England, by two brothers, Alfred and Charles Booth. It grew into a significant merchant shipping company with its head office in Liverpool and interests in the USA and South America. The group was broken up in 1964 and the last Booth company from the group was sold in 1986.

Lagos Metropolis in Nigeria

Lagos is a city in the Nigerian state of the same name. The city, with its adjoining conurbation, is the most populous in Nigeria and on the African continent. It is one of the fastest growing cities in the world and one of the most populous urban areas. Lagos is a major financial centre in Africa; the megacity has the fourth-highest GDP in Africa and houses one of the largest and busiest seaports on the continent.

Related Research Articles

HMS <i>Jamaica</i> (44) cruiser

HMS Jamaica, a Crown Colony-class cruiser of the Royal Navy, was named after the island of Jamaica, which was a Crown Colony when she was built in the late 1930s. The light cruiser spent almost her entire wartime career on Arctic convoy duties, except for a deployment south for the landings in North Africa in November 1942. She participated in the Battle of the Barents Sea in 1942 and the Battle of North Cape in 1943. Jamaica escorted several aircraft carriers in 1944 as they flew off airstrikes that attacked the German battleship Tirpitz in northern Norway. Late in the year she had an extensive refit to prepare her for service with the British Pacific Fleet, but the war ended before she reached the Pacific.

RFA <i>Abbeydale</i> (A109)

RFA Abbeydale (A109) was a fleet tanker of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary and was originally one of six ships ordered by the British Tanker Co which were purchased on the stocks by the Admiralty. She was built by Swan Hunter and Wigham Richardson Ltd and launched on 28 December 1936. Abbeydale served until being decommissioned on 18 September 1959 and laid up at HMNB Devonport. She was then sold for scrapping, arriving at the Thos W Ward breakers' yards at Barrow-in-Furness on 4 September 1960.

HMS <i>Euryalus</i> (42) ship

HMS Euryalus was a Dido-class cruiser of the Royal Navy. She was laid down at Chatham Dockyard on 21 October 1937, launched on 6 June 1939, and commissioned 30 June 1941. Euryalus was the last cruiser built at the dockyard.

ORP <i>Piorun</i> (G65) destroyer

ORP Piorun was an N-class destroyer operated by the Polish Navy in World War II. The word piorun is Polish for "Thunderbolt". Ordered by the Royal Navy in 1939, the ship was laid down as HMS Nerissa before being acquired by Poland, before completion, in October 1940.

HMS <i>Argonaut</i> (61)

HMS Argonaut was a Dido-class cruiser of the British Royal Navy which saw active service during the Second World War. Constructed at the Cammell Laird shipyard, Birkenhead, Argonaut was laid down in 1939, launched in September 1941, and formally commissioned into service on 8 August 1942.

Landing ship, infantry

A Landing ship, infantry (LSI) or infantry landing ship was one of a number of types of British Commonwealth vessels used to transport landing craft and troops engaged in amphibious warfare during the Second World War. LSIs were operated by the Royal Navy, British Merchant Navy, Royal Canadian Navy, Royal Indian Navy, and Royal Australian Navy. They transported British Commonwealth and other Allied troops in sea assaults and invasions throughout the war.

HMS <i>Loch Fyne</i> (K429)

HMS Loch Fyne was a Loch-class frigate of the British Royal Navy, built by the Burntisland Shipbuilding Company Ltd, Burntisland, Fife, Scotland, and named after Loch Fyne in Scotland. The ship was launched in 1944, and served at the end of World War II. Recommissioned in 1951, she served in the Persian Gulf and was scrapped in 1970.

HMS <i>Nigeria</i> (60) Crown Colony-class cruiser, launched 1939

HMS Nigeria was a Crown Colony-class light cruiser of the Royal Navy completed early in World War II and served throughout that conflict. She was named for the British colony of Nigeria.

HMS <i>Hawkins</i> (D86)

HMS Hawkins was a Hawkins-class heavy cruiser of the Royal Navy. She was built at Chatham Dockyard and launched on 1 October 1917. With the conversion of her sister, Cavendish, to become the aircraft carrier HMS Vindictive (1918), Hawkins became the name ship of her class.

<i>Banff</i>-class sloop group of ten ships of the Royal Navy

The Banff-class sloop was a group of ten warships of the Royal Navy. Built as United States Coast Guard Lake-class cutters, in 1941 these ships were loaned to the Royal Navy as antisubmarine warfare escort ships. The transfers took place at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, where the British battleship Malaya was under repair after being torpedoed by U-106. The sloops were manned for transport to England by personnel from the damaged battleship. The sloops were initially used to escort SL convoys between England and Sierra Leone, and one was sunk while so employed. The nine surviving sloops were assigned to Operation Torch where two were destroyed attacking Oran in Operation Reservist. The remaining seven escorted Mediterranean convoys in support of the North African invasion and saw varied employment in the Atlantic until assigned to the Kilindini Escort Force in late 1943 and early 1944. They stayed in the Indian Ocean for the remainder of the war escorting trade convoys in the Arabian Sea, and five served in the Bay of Bengal supporting Operation Dracula and Operation Zipper in the last months of conflict with Japan. Six were returned to the United States after the conclusion of hostilities; and one, disabled by mechanical failure, was scrapped overseas.

Cameron-class steamship

The Cameron-class steamers was a class of British cargo steamships. They were designed for Clan Line and were also used by Scottish Shire Line and the Royal Navy.

HMS <i>Glengyle</i>

HMS Glengyle was a 9,919 GRT cargo ship that served in the Second World War as an infantry landing ship (large) of the Royal Navy. She carried Commonwealth and other Allied troops in amphibious operations. Glengyle was able to make good speed on long ocean voyages to operational areas and then, by means of the many landing craft carried aboard, land assault infantry, vehicles, and stores on contested shores.

HMS Hilary may refer to one of the following Royal Navy ships, both of which were Booth Steamship Company passenger liners requisitioned by the Royal Navy:

HMS <i>Tetcott</i> (L99)

HMS Tetcott was a Type II British Hunt-class destroyer built for the Royal Navy during World War II. She was the only Royal Navy ship to be named after the Tetcott fox hunt.

RMS <i>Cameronia</i> (1920) ship

Cameronia was a British ocean liner which was built in 1920 by William Beardmore & Co Ltd, Port Glasgow for the Anchor Line. She was requisitioned for use as a troopship in the Second World War, surviving a torpedo attack. In 1953 she was requisitioned by the Ministry of Troop Transport (MoTT) and renamed Empire Clyde. She was scrapped in 1957.

HMS Royal Scotsman was an LSI of the British Royal Navy that served during World War II. A former passenger ferry, she saw action in the Mediterranean during the invasions of North Africa, Sicily and Italy.

During the Second World War, the Royal Navy commissioned several headquarters ships, which were responsible for communication between aircraft, ships and shore during amphibious operations. The first such recognised ship was HMS Bulolo.

HMS <i>Bulolo</i>

HMS Bulolo was a 6,267 ton passenger and cargo ship of the Burns, Philp Shipping Company operating in the South Pacific. In 1939 she was converted into an Armed Merchant Cruiser, then a Landing Ship Headquarters (LSH) in 1942. She directed the landings in North Africa, Sicily, Anzio and Normandy during World War II.

HMS <i>Albrighton</i> (L12)

HMS Albrighton was a Type III Hunt-class destroyer built for the British Royal Navy. She entered service in February 1942, first carrying out an attack on German ships in the English Channel then taking part in the Dieppe Raid, rescuing survivors from the sinking destroyer HMS Broke. Albrighton was next assigned to search for and destroy the German auxiliary cruiser Komet, then escorted a convoy to Gibraltar in prevision of the Allied landings in North Africa. Between December 1942 and April 1943, she participated in the sinking of three more Axis ships with the First Destroyer Flotilla. During the Normandy Landings in June 1943, Albrighton served as a headquarters ship, then sank two German trawlers in the weeks after the invasion. After being converted to a destroyer in early 1945, she was damaged in a collision with a Landing Ship, then was assigned to the British Eastern Fleet. However, the war ended before she was deployed and Albrighton went into reserve.

RMS <i>Otranto</i> (1925)

RMS Otranto was an ocean liner that was built for the Orient Steam Navigation Company in 1925. The "RMS" prefix stands for Royal Mail Ship, as she carried overseas mail under a contract between Orient Line and Royal Mail. Otranto was in service until 1957, when she was sold for scrap.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Ships Description - H". The Ships List. Archived from the original on 15 September 2008. Retrieved 13 September 2008.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Booth Line's R.M.S. "Hilary" 3". Blue Star Line on the web. Retrieved 13 September 2008.

Bibliography