HMS Jackal (1911)

Last updated

HMS Jackal (1911).jpg
HMS Jackal in pre-war black paint, with funnel bands
History
Naval Ensign of the United Kingdom.svgUnited Kingdom
NameJackal
Builder R. W. Hawthorn Leslie & Company, Hebburn [1]
Launched9 September 1911 [2]
FateSold, 28 September 1920 [2]
General characteristics
Class and type Acheron-class destroyer
Displacement990 long tons (1,010 t)
Length246 ft (75 m)
Beam26 ft (7.9 m)
Draught8.9 ft (2.7 m)
Installed power13,500 shp (10,100 kW)
Propulsion
Speed27 knots (50 km/h; 31 mph)
Complement70
Armament

HMS Jackal was an Acheron-class destroyer of the Royal Navy that served during the World War I and was sold for breaking in 1920. She was the seventh Royal Navy ship to be named Jackal, after the predatory mammal of the same name.

Contents

Construction

She was built under the 1910-11 shipbuilding programme by R. W. Hawthorn Leslie & Company of Hebburn, Tyneside [1] to an Admiralty design and was launched on 9 September 1911. [3]

Career

Pre-War

Jackal served with the First Destroyer Flotilla from 1911 and, with her flotilla, joined the British Grand Fleet in 1914 on the outbreak of the First World War. [3]

The Battle of Heligoland Bight

She was present on 28 August 1914 at the Battle of Heligoland Bight, detached from the First Destroyer Flotilla along with Badger, Beaver and Sandfly. [4] She shared in the prize money for the engagement. [5]

The Battle of Dogger Bank

On 24 January 1915, the First Destroyer Flotilla — including Jackal — were present at the Battle of Dogger Bank, led by the light cruiser Aurora. [6] Her crew shared in the prize money for the German armoured cruiser Blücher. [5]

Grounding of Argyll

The light cruiser Argyll went aground on Bell Rock near Dundee on 28 October after failing to sight the light due to a failure of communications between the ship and the lighthouse. Jackal and Hornet were diverted from their patrol to assist and rescued the crew of approximately 650; there were no fatalities. [7]

SS Lanfranc

At 19:30 on 17 April 1917, the hospital ship HMHS Lanfranc was torpedoed 4 mi (6.4 km) northeast of Le Havre by UB-40 while bound for Southampton. At the time, she had 387 patients, of which 167 were German prisoners of war, and of these patients, 326 were cot-bound. Approximately 570 survivors were picked up by Badger and Jackal, aided by the P-class patrol boat P.47 and the French patrol boat Roitelet, and taken to Portsmouth. [8]

Mediterranean Service

In 1917, the Third Battle Squadron was sent to the Mediterranean, where they took part in the 1918 Naval campaign in the Adriatic, including enforcing the Otranto Barrage.

On the night of 22–23 April 1918, the Tátra-class destroyers Triglav, Uzsok, Dukla, Lika and Csepel under Fregattenkapitän Karl Herkner [9] carried out a raid to interrupt Allied shipping between Italy and Albania south of Valona (now Vlorë, Albania). Jackal, Hornet, Alarm, Comet, the Australian destroyer HMAS Torrens and the French destroyer Cimeterre were formed into three groups, with 10 mi (16 km) between each group. Jackal and Hornet encountered the Austro-Hungarian ships and turned towards, making the challenge signal. At a range of 1.5 nmi (1.7 mi; 2.8 km) the Austro-Hungarian destroyers opened fire, concentrating their fire on Hornet. Both British ships turned away, making smoke, with the intention of drawing the enemy south, but Hornet took a hit in the forward shell room and magazine, starting fires in both compartments and causing an explosion. [9] The bridge and tiller flat both received further hits, and the rudder jammed hard over to starboard, leaving the ship circling hard under fire. Jackal was turned to the east by her captainLieutenant-Commander A M Roberts — but after approximately 15 minutes of firing, Herkner in Triglav broke off the engagement, reasoning that the alarm had certainly been raised. Jackal continued the pursuit, but the faster Austro-Hungarians pulled ahead, and she lost sight of them by 00:20. Alarm, Torrens and Cimeterre had caught up with Jackal by 00:45, but by 01:35 the pursuit was called off. [9]

Hornet was seriously damaged, and Jackal had lost her mainmast, but the appearance of Allied reinforcements had driven the Austrians back to Cattaro (now Kotor in Montenegro). [10] [11] The British lost seven killed (including two in Jackal) and 25 wounded, while the Austro-Hungarians suffered no hits. Despite the one-sided casualty figures, two pre-war Royal Navy destroyers had succeeded in driving off five of the latest enemy destroyers. [9]

Jackal was present at the entry of the Allied Fleet through the Dardanelles on 12 November. [12] The Fleet sighted the minarets of Constantinople at 07:00 on 13 November and anchored an hour later. The destroyers maintained an anti-submarine patrol to the west of the anchored fleet. [12]

Disposal

HMS Jackal at Malta HMS Jackal (1911) at Malta.jpg
HMS Jackal at Malta

Along with most ships of her class, she was laid up after the war, and on 28 September 1920 she was sold to J Smith for breaking. [2]

Pennant numbers

Pennant Number [2] FromTo
H556 December 19141 January 1918
H441 January 1918Early 1919
H95Early 191928 September 1920

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Naval warfare in the Mediterranean during World War I</span>

Naval warfare in the Mediterranean during World War I took place between the naval forces of the Entente and the Central Powers in the Mediterranean Sea between 1914 and 1918.

HMS <i>Badger</i> (1911) Destroyer of the Royal Navy

HMS Badger was an Acheron-class destroyer of the Royal Navy that served during the First World War and was sold for breaking in 1921. She was the eighth Royal Navy ship to be named Badger, after the mammal of the same name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Durazzo (1915)</span> Naval battle of WWI

The First Battle of Durazzo was a naval battle of World War I. It was fought off Durazzo, Albania at the end of December 1915 and involved the navies of Austria-Hungary, the United Kingdom, the Kingdom of Italy, and France.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adriatic Campaign of World War I</span>

The Adriatic Campaign of World War I was a naval campaign fought between the Central Powers and the Mediterranean squadrons of Great Britain, France, the Kingdom of Italy, Australia, and the United States.

HMS <i>Lizard</i> (1911) Destroyer of the Royal Navy

HMS Lizard was an Acheron-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy. She is named for the Lizard peninsula in the county of Cornwall in England. and was the twelfth ship of the Royal Navy to bear the name.

SMS <i>Novara</i> (1913) Scout cruiser of the Austro-Hungarian Navy

SMS Novara was a Novara-class scout cruiser of the Austro-Hungarian Navy which served during World War I. Built by the Danubius shipyard between December 1912 and January 1915, Novara was the third and final member of her class to enter service, some six months after the start of the war. She was armed with a battery of nine 10-centimeter (3.9 in) guns and had a top speed of 27 knots.

HMS <i>Phoenix</i> (1911) Destroyer of the Royal Navy

HMS Phoenix was an Acheron-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy. She is named for the mythical bird, and was the fifteenth ship of the Royal Navy to bear the name. She was the only British warship ever to be sunk by the Austro-Hungarian Navy.

HMS <i>Beaver</i> (1911) Destroyer of the Royal Navy

HMS Beaver was an Acheron-class destroyer of the Royal Navy that served during the First World War and was sold for breaking in 1921. She was the ninth Royal Navy ship to be named Beaver, after the mammal of the same name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of the Strait of Otranto (1917)</span> Battle in World War I

The Battle of the Strait of Otranto of 1917 was the result of an Austro-Hungarian raid during the Adriatic Campaign of World War I on the Otranto Barrage, an Allied naval blockade of the Strait of Otranto. The battle took place on 15 May 1917, and was the largest surface action in the Adriatic Sea during World War I. The Otranto Barrage was a fixed barrier, composed of lightly armed naval drifters with anti-submarine nets coupled with minefields and supported by Allied naval patrols.

HMS <i>Hornet</i> (1911) Destroyer of the Royal Navy

HMS Hornet was an Acheron-class destroyer of the Royal Navy that served during the First World War and was sold for breaking in 1921. She was the seventh Royal Navy ship to be named Hornet, after the insect.

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

HMS Hind 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 seventeenth Royal Navy ship to be named after the female deer.

SMS <i>Saida</i> Scout cruiser of the Austro-Hungarian Navy

SMS Saida was a Novara-class scout cruiser built for the Austro-Hungarian Navy in the early 1910s. The ship was armed with a main battery of nine 10 cm (3.9 in) guns, and six twin 53.3 cm (21.0 in) torpedo tubes were added in 1917. She was built by the Cantiere Navale Triestino shipyard from 1911 to 1914, entering service days after the outbreak of World War I. She spent the war as a flotilla leader, conducting raids and patrols in the narrow waters of the Adriatic Sea.

French destroyer <i>Renaudin</i> Destroyer of the French Navy

Renaudin was one of six Bisson-class destroyers built for the French Navy during the early 1910s. Completed in 1913, the ship was assigned to the 1st Naval Army in the Mediterranean Sea. During the First World War, she escorted the battle fleet during the Battle of Antivari in August 1914 and escorted multiple convoys to Montenegro for the rest of the year. Renaudin helped to sink a crippled Austro-Hungarian destroyer during the 1st Battle of Durazzo in late 1915 and protected the evacuation of the Royal Serbian Army from Durazzo, Albania, in February 1916. The ship was sunk by an Austro-Hungarian submarine the following month with the loss of 50 crewmen.

French destroyer <i>Bisson</i> Destroyer of the French Navy

Bisson was the name ship of her class of destroyers built for the French Navy during the 1910s, entering service in 1913. She served in the Mediterranean Sea during the First World War, sinking the Austro-Hungarian submarine U-3 on 6 July 1915 and took part in the Battle of Durazzo in December 1915 and the Battle of the Strait of Otranto in May 1917. She was stricken in 1933 and scrapped in 1939.

<i>Novara</i>-class cruiser Scout cruiser class of the Austro-Hungarian Navy

The Novara class was a class of three scout cruisers built for the Austro-Hungarian Navy. Named for the Battle of Novara, the class comprised SMS Saida, SMS Helgoland, and SMS Novara. Construction started on the ships shortly before World War I; Saida and Helgoland were both laid down in 1911, Novara followed in 1912. Two of the three warships were built in the Ganz-Danubius shipyard in Fiume; Saida was built in the Cantiere Navale Triestino shipyard in Monfalcone. The Novara-class ships hold the distinction for being the last cruisers constructed by the Austro-Hungarian Navy.

SMS <i>Csepel</i> Austro-Hungarian Tatra-class destroyer

SMS Csepel was one of six Tátra-class destroyers built for the kaiserliche und königliche Kriegsmarine shortly before the First World War. Completed in 1913, she helped to sink an Italian destroyer during the action off Vieste in May 1915 after Italy declared war on Austria-Hungary. Two months later the ship participated in an unsuccessful attempt to recapture a small island in the central Adriatic Sea from the Italians. In November and early December Csepel was one of the ships conducting raids off the Albanian coast to interdict the supply lines between Italy and Albania. She was hit one time during the First Battle of Durazzo in late December. Her stern was blown off by a French submarine in early 1916 and her repairs were not completed until early 1917.

SMS <i>Balaton</i> Austro-Hungarian Tatra-class destroyer

SMS Balaton was one of six Tátra-class destroyers built for the kaiserliche und königliche Kriegsmarine shortly before the First World War. Completed in 1913, she did not participate in the attacks on the Italian mainland after Italy declared war on Austria-Hungary in May 1915. Two months later the ship bombarded a small island in the Central Adriatic Sea during an unsuccessful attempt to recapture it from the Italians. In November and early December Balaton was one of the ships conducting raids off the Albanian coast to interdict the supply lines between Italy and Albania. She played a minor role in the 1st Battle of Durazzo in late December. Balaton participated in several unsuccessful raids on the Otranto Barrage in 1917, although she sank an ammunition ship during the Battle of the Strait of Otranto. She was transferred to Italy in 1920 in accordance with the peace treaties ending the war and renamed Zenson. The Regia Marina used her for spare parts; she was discarded in 1923 and subsequently scrapped.

SMS <i>Tátra</i> Austro-Hungarian lead ship of Tatra-class

SMS Tátra was the lead ship of her class of six destroyers built for the kaiserliche und königliche Kriegsmarine shortly before the First World War. Completed in 1913, she helped to sink an Italian destroyer during the action off Vieste in May 1915 after Italy declared war on Austria-Hungary. Two months later the ship participated in an unsuccessful attempt to recapture a small island in the Central Adriatic Sea from the Italians. In November and early December Tátra was one of the ships conducting raids off the Albanian coast to interdict the supply lines between Italy and Albania. During the early stages of the 1st Battle of Durazzo in late December, the ship was tasked to tow her one of her sister ships that had been crippled by a mine. She was forced to abandon her sister when the Austro-Hungarians were spotted by a strong force of Allied ships and had to evade their pursuit. Tátra participated in several unsuccessful raids on the Otranto Barrage in 1917. She was transferred to Italy in 1920 in accordance with the peace treaties ending the war and renamed Fasana. The Regia Marina used her for spare parts; she was discarded in 1923 and subsequently scrapped.

HMS <i>Alarm</i> (1910) Destroyer of the Royal Navy

HMS Alarm was a Acorn-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy. She was built by John Brown and Company at their Clydebank shipyard, being built between 1910 and 1911, completing in March 1911. Alarm had oil-fuelled steam turbine machinery that was designed to give a speed of 27 knots. Armament consisted of two 4-inch guns, two 12-pounder guns and two 21-inch torpedo tubes.

SMS Triglav was one of four Ersatz Triglav-class destroyers built for the kaiserliche und königliche Kriegsmarine during the First World War. Completed in 1917, she participated in several unsuccessful raids on the Otranto Barrage later that year. She was transferred to Italy in 1920 in accordance with the peace treaties ending the war and renamed Grado. The Regia Marina kept her in service until 1937 and the ship was subsequently scrapped.

References

  1. 1 2 Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906-1921. London: Conway's Maritime Press. 1985. p. 75. ISBN   0-85177-245-5.
  2. 1 2 3 4 ""Arrowsmith" List: Royal Navy WWI Destroyer Pendant Numbers" . Retrieved 30 June 2008.
  3. 1 2 "Battleships-Cruisers.co.uk website - Acheron Class" . Retrieved 30 June 2008.
  4. "Battle of Heligoland Bight - Order of Battle (World War 1 Naval Combat website)" . Retrieved 8 March 2009.
  5. 1 2 "An Index of Prize Bounties as announced in the London Gazette 1915 - 1925". Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 28 September 2008.
  6. "Battle of Dogger Bank - Order of Battle (World War 1 Naval Combat website)" . Retrieved 8 March 2009.
  7. "Bell Rock Lighthouses - the loss of HMS Argyll, 1915" . Retrieved 9 April 2009.
  8. "Blue Star Line website - Lanfranc 2" . Retrieved 30 June 2008.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Halpern, Paul G (2004). The Battle of the Otranto Straits: Controlling the Gateway to the Adriatic in World War I. Indiana University Press. ISBN   978-0-253-34379-6.
  10. "French Naval Operations, Engagements and Ship Losses in the Adriatic in World War 1" . Retrieved 9 March 2009.
  11. "John Beech's Austro-Hungarian Navy Website". Archived from the original on 28 April 2006. Retrieved 9 March 2009.
  12. 1 2 S E Brooks. "The Entry of the Allied Fleet through the Dardanelles". Oxford University. Retrieved 11 November 2009.
  13. "I-class destroyers (extract from Jane's Fighting Ships of 1919)". Archived from the original on 3 June 2011. Retrieved 9 April 2009.