HMS Ivanhoe was an I-class destroyer built for the Royal Navy in the mid-1930s. During the Spanish Civil War of 1936–1939, the ship enforced the arms blockade imposed by Britain and France on both sides as part of the Mediterranean Fleet. Before the start of World War II, the ship was modified so that she could be used to lay mines by removing some of her armament. Ivanhoe was transferred to Western Approaches Command shortly after the war began and helped to sink one German submarine in October 1939. She was converted to a minelayer while undergoing a refit in November–December and laid minefields in German coastal waters as well as anti-submarine minefields off the British coast until she was reconverted back to her destroyer configuration in February 1940. Ivanhoe reverted to her minelaying role during the Norwegian Campaign in April 1940 and then laid a number of minefields off the Dutch coast during the Battle of the Netherlands in May. The ship participated in the Dunkirk evacuation until she was badly damaged by German aircraft on 1 June. On her first minelaying mission after her repairs were completed, she struck a German mine and had to be scuttled on 1 September 1940 during the Texel Disaster.
HMS Express was an E-class minelaying destroyer built for the Royal Navy in the early 1930s. Although assigned to the Home Fleet upon completion, the ship was attached to the Mediterranean Fleet in 1935–36 during the Abyssinia Crisis. During the Spanish Civil War of 1936–39, she spent considerable time in Spanish waters, enforcing the arms blockade imposed by Britain and France on both sides of the conflict.
Operation Wilfred was a British naval operation during the Second World War that involved the mining of the channel between Norway and its offshore islands to prevent the transport of Swedish iron ore through neutral Norwegian waters to be used to sustain the German war effort. The Allies assumed that Wilfred would provoke a German response in Norway and prepared a separate operation known as Plan R 4 to occupy Narvik and other important locations.
The Halcyon class was a class of 21 oil-fired minesweepers built for the British Royal Navy between 1933 and 1939. They were given traditional small ship names used historically by the Royal Navy and served during World War II.
HMS Abdiel was an Abdiel-class minelayer that served with the Royal Navy during World War II. She served with the Mediterranean Fleet (1941), Eastern Fleet (1942), Home Fleet (1942–43), and the Mediterranean Fleet (1943). Abdiel was sunk by German mines in Italy's Taranto harbour in 1943. Although designed as a fast minelayer her speed and capacity made her suitable for employment as a fast transport.
HMS Adventure, pennant number M23, was a minelaying cruiser of the Royal Navy built in the 1920s that saw service during the Second World War. Her commander between 1928 and 1929 was the future First Sea Lord John H. D. Cunningham.
The Northern Barrage was the name given to minefields laid by the British during World War II to restrict German access to the Atlantic Ocean. The barrage stretched from the Orkney to the Faroe Islands and on toward Iceland. Mines were also laid in the Denmark Strait, north of Iceland.
HMS Esk was an E-class destroyer built for the Royal Navy in the early 1930s. She was designed to be easily converted into a fast minelayer by removing some guns and her torpedo tubes. Although assigned to the Home Fleet upon completion, the ship was attached to the Mediterranean Fleet in 1935–36, during the Abyssinia Crisis. During the Spanish Civil War of 1936–1939, she spent considerable time in Spanish waters, enforcing the arms blockade imposed by Britain and France on both sides of the conflict. Esk was converted to a minelayer when World War II began in September 1939, and spent most of her time laying mines. During the Norwegian Campaign of April–June 1940, the ship laid mines in Norwegian territorial waters before the Germans invaded, but was recalled to home waters to resume her minelaying duties in early May. During one such sortie, Esk was sunk during the Texel Disaster on the night of 31 August 1940, when she ran into a newly laid German minefield.
SS Port Quebec was under construction for the Port Line when she was requisitioned by the Ministry of War Transport for completion as the auxiliary minelayer HMS Port Quebec. She joined the Royal Navy 1st Minelaying Squadron based at Kyle of Lochalsh laying mines for the World War II Northern Barrage. After minelaying was completed in October 1943, she was retained for conversion to a repair ship and renamed HMS Deer Sound (F99) in 1944. She was then returned to the Port Line in 1947.
HMS Niger was a Halcyon-class minesweeper of the Royal Navy. She was launched in 1936 and was sunk during the Second World War. On 5 July 1942, the vessel sailed into a minefield while escorting Convoy QP 13 and struck one of the mines, later sinking with only eight survivors.
HMS Welshman was an Abdiel-class minelayer of the Royal Navy, launched in September 1941. During World War II she served with the Home Fleet carrying out minelaying operations, before being transferred to the Mediterranean Fleet in mid-1942 for the Malta Convoys. She also saw service during Operation Torch. The ship was torpedoed and sunk off Tobruk by the German submarine U-617 on 1 February 1943, with the loss of 157 lives.
HMS Apollo was an Abdiel-class minelayer of the Royal Navy, the eighth RN ship to carry the name. She served with the Home Fleet during World War II, taking part in the Normandy Landings before being transferred to the British Pacific Fleet. Put into reserve in 1946, she was recommissioned in 1951, serving until 1961, and was sold for scrapping in 1962.
Zmaj was built in Germany as a seaplane tender for the Royal Yugoslav Navy between 1928 and 1930. She does not appear to have been much used in that role and was converted to a minelayer in 1937. Shortly before the Axis invasion of Yugoslavia in April 1941, she laid minefields along the Dalmatian coast, perhaps inadvertently leading to the sinking of two Yugoslav passenger ships. Slightly damaged by Italian dive bombers and then captured by the Italians during the invasion, she was soon handed over to the Germans. While in their service the ship was renamed Drache, had her anti-aircraft (AA) armament improved, and was used as a seaplane tender and later as a troop transport. In the latter role she participated in over a dozen convoys between the Greek port of Piraeus and the Greek island of Crete between December 1941 and March 1942.
MV Agamemnon was a cargo liner launched in 1929 for the Blue Funnel Line between United Kingdom ports and the Far East. She was requisitioned by the Royal Navy for conversion to the auxiliary minelayer HMS Agamemnon. She joined the 1st Minelaying Squadron based at Kyle of Lochalsh laying mines for the World War II Northern Barrage. When minelaying was completed in October 1943, she was retained for conversion to an amenities ship as part of a mobile naval base for British Pacific Fleet warships. She underwent further conversion at Vancouver in 1944 including installation of a movie theater and canteen to be staffed by mercantile crews of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary service. Conversion was incomplete when hostilities with Japan ended, and she was returned to Blue Funnel Line in 1946.
MV Menestheus was a Blue Funnel Liner launched in 1929. She was requisitioned by the Royal Navy for conversion to the auxiliary minelayer HMS Menestheus. She joined the 1st Minelaying Squadron based at Kyle of Lochalsh laying mines for the World War II Northern Barrage. When minelaying was completed in October 1943, she was retained for conversion to an amenities ship as part of a mobile naval base for British Pacific Fleet warships. She underwent further conversion at Vancouver in 1944 including installation of a movie theater and canteen staffed by mercantile crews of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary service. Conversion included a brewery to make beer for shipboard consumption. The ship had been painted grey for service in the North Atlantic, but was repainted white for service in the western Pacific. Conversion was incomplete when hostilities with Japan ended, and she was returned to Blue Funnel Line in 1946.
MV Southern Prince was a cargo liner launched in 1929 for the Prince Line between New York City and Argentina. She was requisitioned by the Royal Navy for conversion to the auxiliary minelayer HMS Southern Prince. She joined the 1st Minelaying Squadron based at Kyle of Lochalsh laying mines for the World War II Northern Barrage. She was the largest of five ships requisitioned for this minelaying operation. She was torpedoed by German submarine U-652 shortly after midnight on 26 August 1941 while returning from laying minefield SN-70A; but was escorted to Belfast for repair. After minelaying was completed in October 1943, she became the flagship of Rear Admiral Rivett-Carnac for Operation Neptune; and anchored off Juno Beach on 8 June 1944. She was used as an accommodation ship from October 1944 until returned to the Prince Line in 1946.
HMS Abdiel was a Marksman-class flotilla leader of the Royal Navy, built by Cammell Laird during the First World War. She was converted to a minelayer during construction, commissioning during 1916, and served at the Battle of Jutland. Following the end of the war, Abdiel served in the Baltic during the Russian Civil War. She was sold for scrap in 1936.
HMS Tarpon was a Royal Navy R-class destroyer constructed and operational in the First World War. She is named after the large fish Tarpon; one species of which is native to the Atlantic, and the other to the Indo-Pacific Oceans. Tarpon was built by the shipbuilders John Brown & Company at their Clydebank shipyard and was launched in March 1917 and entered service in April that year.
HMS Telemachus was a R-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy that took part in the First World War. She was built in 1916–1917 by the Scottish shipbuilder John Brown at their Clydebank shipyard. Telemachus was modified to serve as a minelayer, laying minefields in the German Bight and English Channel to restrict the operation of German submarines. The ship survived the war and was sold for scrap in 1927.
HMS Princess Margaret was a minelayer operated by the British Royal Navy during and after the First World War. She was built by the Scottish shipbuilder William Denny for the Canadian Pacific Railway as a liner to serve on the Pacific West Coast, and as such was powered by geared steam turbines, giving a speed of 23 knots.
United Kingdom