HMCS Buctouche was a Flower-class corvette that served in the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) during the Second World War. She served primarily in the Battle of the Atlantic escorting merchant ship convoys. Constructed by Davie Shipbuilding at Lauzon, Quebec, the vessel was laid down 14 August 1940 and was launched on 20 November that year. The corvette was named for Bouctouche, New Brunswick and was commissioned on 5 June 1941. Buctouche successfully damaged a U-boat during an engagement off the Avalon Peninsula. In 1944, the vessel went aground at Hamilton Inlet, Labrador. Following the war, the ship was decommissioned on 23 October 1945 and was sold for scrap in 1949.
The Flower-class corvette was a British class of 294 corvettes used during World War II by the Allied navies particularly as anti-submarine convoy escorts in the Battle of the Atlantic. Royal Navy ships of this class were named after flowers.
The Castle-class corvette was an ocean going convoy escort developed by the United Kingdom during the Second World War. It was the follow-on to the Flower-class corvette, and designed to be built in shipyards that were producing the Flowers. The Castle-class was a general improvement over the smaller Flowers which were designed for coastal rather than open ocean use.
HMS Kenilworth Castle was a Castle-class corvette of the Royal Navy.
HMS Launceston Castle (K397) was a Castle-class corvette of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy, named after Launceston Castle in Cornwall. The ship was constructed during the Second World War and saw service primarily as a convoy escort.
HMS Portchester Castle was a Castle-class corvette built in 1943 and scrapped in 1958. She was the only ship of the Royal Navy to be named after Portchester Castle in Hampshire, and was used for the 1952 film The Cruel Sea, in which she played Saltash Castle. Also seen in ‘The man who never was’ when the body was delivered to the submarine.
HMS Abelia was a Flower-class corvette that served in the Royal Navy and was built by Harland and Wolff in 1941.
HMS Tremadoc Bay was a Bay-class anti-aircraft frigate of the British Royal Navy, named for Tremadoc Bay in north Wales.
HMS Urania was a U-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy that saw service during World War II. After the war she was converted into a Type 15 fast anti-submarine frigate and was scrapped in 1971.
HMS Pretoria Castle (F61) was a Union-Castle ocean liner that in the Second World War was converted into a Royal Navy armed merchant cruiser, and then converted again into an escort carrier. After the war she was converted back into a passenger liner and renamed Warwick Castle.
HMS Bryony was a Flower-class corvette that served in the Royal Navy and Royal Norwegian Navy.
HMS Rising Castle was a Castle-class corvette built for the Royal Navy in World War II. She was named for Castle Rising in Norfolk, England. Before she was commissioned she was transferred to the Royal Canadian Navy and renamed Arnprior and given a new pennant number. After the war she was sold to Uruguay and renamed Montevideo.
HMS Arabis was a Flower-class corvette of the Royal Navy. The ship was commissioned into the Royal Navy as HMS Arabis. She was transferred to the United States Navy in 1942, serving as USS Saucy. Returned to the United Kingdom in 1945, she was recommissioned into the Royal Navy as HMS Snapdragon.
HMCS Brantford was a Flower-class corvette that served in the Royal Canadian Navy during the Second World War. The corvette was named for Brantford, Ontario. She served primarily as a convoy escort in the Battle of the Atlantic until 1944 when the vessel became a training ship attached to HMCS Cornwallis. Following the war, the corvette was converted into a whaling ship and renamed Olympic Arrow in 1950. In 1956, the ship was sold and renamed Otori Maru No.14 and again in 1961 as Kyo Maru No.21. In 1972, the vessel was converted to a tugboat and renamed Daito Maru No.71. The ship was broken up for scrap in 1976.
Empire Cymric was a 4,820 GRT Ferry that was built in 1944 by Harland & Wolff Ltd, Belfast as LST (3) HMS LST 3010 for the Royal Navy. She was transferred to the Koninklijke Marine in 1945, serving as HNLMS LST 3010. In 1947, she was transferred back to the Royal Navy and renamed HMS Attacker. The ship was requisitioned by the Ministry of Transport in 1954 and renamed Empire Cymric. Requisitioned briefly during the Suez Crisis in 1956 as HMS Empire Cymric, she served until 1962, and was scrapped in 1963.
HMCS Agassiz was a Flower-class corvette of the Royal Canadian Navy. Named after the community of Agassiz, British Columbia, the ship was constructed by Burrard Dry Dock Co. Ltd. in North Vancouver, British Columbia and was launched on 15 August 1940. The corvette was commissioned on 23 January 1941 in Vancouver, British Columbia. The Flower class were initially designed for coastal service during the Second World War, but due to the demands of the Battle of the Atlantic, Agassiz was used primarily as an ocean escort for convoys crossing the Atlantic Ocean in engagements with German submarines. Following the war, the corvette was sold for scrap.
HMCS Arrowhead was a Flower-class corvette that was originally commissioned by the Royal Navy but served primarily with the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) during the Second World War. She fought in the Battle of the Atlantic and the Battle of the St. Lawrence as a convoy escort. The vessel was named for sagittaria, which is an aquatic water plant that is sometimes known as arrowhead. Following the war, the ship was sold for mercantile use as a whaling ship and renamed Southern Larkspur. The vessel was broken up for scrap in 1959.
HMCS Arvida was a Flower-class corvette that served with the Royal Canadian Navy during the Second World War. She served primarily in the Battle of the Atlantic from 1941 to 1945 as a convoy escort. She was named for Arvida, Quebec. The vessel took part in three significant convoy battles ONS 92 in May 1942, ON 127 in September 1942 and SC 107 in November 1942, the last of which saw the removal of Canadian escorts from convoy duty for retraining. Following the war, the vessel was converted into a cargo ship and renamed La Ceiba and then Rio Samo. The ship was last registered in 1954 and was sold for scrap in 1987 in Spain.
HMS Hibiscus was a Flower-class corvette, built for the Royal Navy during the Second World War, and was in service in the Battle of the Atlantic. In 1942 she was transferred to the United States Navy as part of the Reverse Lend-Lease arrangement and renamed USS Spry, one of the Temptress-class gunboats. With the end of hostilities she was returned to the Royal Navy and sold into mercantile service.
HMS Erica was a Flower-class corvette that served in the Royal Navy and was built by Harland and Wolff in 1941. She was named after Erica. Commissioned in 1940 and sunk by a mine on 9 February 1943.
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
