HMS Springbok

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HMS Thisbe (1917) IWM SP 1491.jpg
Sistership HMS Thisbe
History
Naval Ensign of the United Kingdom.svgUnited Kingdom
NameHMS Springbok
Namesake Springbok
OrderedDecember 1915
Builder Harland and Wolff, Belfast
Laid down27 January 1916
Launched9 March 1917
Commissioned30 April 1917
Out of service16 December 1926
FateSold to be broken up
General characteristics
Class and type R-class destroyer
Displacement1,036 long tons (1,053 t) normal
Length265 ft (80.8 m) long overall
Beam26 ft 9 in (8.15 m)
Draught9 ft (2.7 m) mean
Propulsion
Speed36 knots (41.4 mph; 66.7 km/h)
Range3,450  nmi (6,390 km) at 15 kn (28 km/h)
Complement90
Armament

HMS Springbok was an R-class destroyer which served with the Royal Navy during World War I. The R class were an improvement on the preceding M-class, including using geared steam turbines. Launched on 9 March 1917, the vessel operated as part of the Harwich Force on escort duties. In 1917, the destroyer, along with sister ship Thruster, captured the German merchant ships Brietzig and Pellworm. After the conflict, the destroyer initially was posted to the navy's torpedo school but was soon afterwards reduced to reserve. After less than ten years in service, Springbok was sold on 16 December 1926 and broken up.

Contents

Design and development

Springbok was one of eight R-class destroyers ordered by the British Admiralty on 21 December 1915 as part of the Seventh War Construction Programme. The design was generally similar to the preceding M-class destroyers, but differed in having geared steam turbines, the central gun mounted on a bandstand and minor changes to improve seakeeping. [1]

The destroyer was 265 feet (80.77 m) long overall, with a beam of 26 feet 9 inches (8.15 m) and a draught of 9 feet (2.74 m). [1] Displacement was 1,036 long tons (1,053 t). [2] Power was provided by three Yarrow boilers feeding two Brown-Curtis geared steam turbines rated at 27,000 shaft horsepower (20,000 kW). Each turbine drove a single shaft to give a design speed of 36 knots (67 km/h; 41 mph). [1] Three funnels were fitted. A total fuel load of 296 long tons (301 t) of oil was carried, giving a design range of 3,450 nautical miles (6,390 km; 3,970 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph). [3]

Armament consisted of three 4 in (102 mm) Mk IV QF guns on the ship's centreline, with one on the forecastle, one aft on a raised platform and one between the funnels, and a single 2-pounder (40 mm) pom-pom anti-aircraft gun. [1] Torpedo armament was four 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes in two twin rotating mounts aft, initially complemented by two 18-inch (457 mm) tubes mounted either side of the superstructure. [4] [5] Soon into service, the two smaller calibre torpedoes were removed as they proved ineffectual. [6] The ship had a complement of 82 officers and ratings. [7]

Construction and career

Springbok was laid down by Harland and Wolff at Belfast with yard number 497. [2] Construction was very swift, with the keel laid down on 27 January 1916, launching on 9 March 1917 and fitting out completed on 30 April. [8] The ship was named after the springbok, the African antelope Antidorcas marsupialis. [9]

On commissioning, Springbok joined the 10th Destroyer Flotilla as part of the Harwich Force under the flotilla leader Nimrod. [10] On 4 June, Springbok formed part of the support for the bombardment of Ostend on 5 June 1917. [11] The destroyer, together with Swift, Teazer, Thruster and Torrid, escorted Legion, Meteor, Tarpon and Telemachus as they laid mines off Ostend on the night of 14/15 July 1917. [12] This minefield may have caused the loss of the German submarine UC-1, which departed from Zeebrugge on 18 July and failed to return from a mission to lay mines off Calais. [13] Meanwhile, on 15 July, Springbok had captured, along with Thruster, the Hamburg-registered merchant ships S.S. Brietzig and Pellworm, furnishing the captured ships with prize crews. [14]

After the war, the destroyer was allocated to the torpedo school at Nore. [15] However, this posting did not last long and the vessel was reduced to reserve on 22 May 1919. [16] In 1923, the Royal Navy decided to scrap many of the older destroyers in preparation for the introduction of newer and larger vessels. [17] After less than ten years in service, the destroyer was sold on 16 December 1926 at Granton, Edinburgh and broken up. [18]

Pennant numbers

Pennant Number Date
F65January 1917 [19]
F63January 1918 [19]
G49January 1919 [20]
H40January 1922 [21]

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HMS Sylph was an R-class destroyer that served in the Royal Navy during the First World War. The R class were an improvement on the previous M class with geared steam turbines to improve efficiency. Launched by Harland & Wolff at Govan on 10 February 1917, Sylph joined the Harwich Force and escorted merchant ships and convoys in the North Sea. The ship encountered both German submarines and torpedo boats but did not record any hits on the enemy. However, during one action in foggy weather, the destroyer struck and sank sister ship Setter. After the Armistice that ended the war, the destroyer was initially placed in the reserve before being transferred to the Torpedo School in 1919. On 16 December 1926, Sylph was sold to be broken up.

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HMS Stork was an R-class destroyer that served in the Royal Navy during the First World War. The R-class were an improvement on the previous M-class with geared steam turbines to improve efficiency. Launched by Hawthorn Leslie at Hebburn in 1917, Stork joined the Harwich Force. The destroyer saw service escorting convoys in the English Channel and encountered both German submarines and torpedo boats, but did not record any hits on the enemy. The vessel also supported attacks on German forces on the coast of Western Europe by Coastal Motor Boats, flying boats and monitors, including the Zeebrugge Raid of 1918.

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HMS Opportune was an Admiralty M-class destroyer which served in the Royal Navy during the First World War. The M class were an improvement on the previous L-class, capable of higher speed. The vessel was launched on 20 November 1915 and joined the Grand Fleet. Opportune spent much of the war involved in anti-submarine warfare. The ship took part in large patrols to seek out submarines which involved entire flotillas and also acted as an escort for convoys. After the Armistice that marked the end of the First World War, the destroyer was transferred to Portsmouth and placed in reserve. After a brief spell as a remote controlled target to test how warships responded to attacks by aircraft, Opportune was decommissioned and, on 7 December 1923, sold to be broken up.

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HMS Onslaught was a Admiralty M-class destroyer which served with the Royal Navy during the First World War. The M class were an improvement on the previous L-class, capable of higher speed. The vessel, launched in 1915, joined the Twelfth Destroyer Flotilla under the flotilla leader Faulknor. The ship saw action during the Battle of Jutland in May 1916, jointly sinking the German torpedo boat SMS V48 and launching the torpedo that sank the pre-dreadnought battleship Pommern, the only German battleship to be lost in the battle. Subsequently, the destroyer acted as an escort to other naval ships during the Action of 19 August 1916 and took part in anti-submarine operations. At the end of the war, Onslaught was withdrawn from service and, in 1921, sold to be broken up.

References

Citations

  1. 1 2 3 4 Gardiner & Gray 1985, p. 81.
  2. 1 2 McCluskie 2013, p. 470.
  3. ↑ Friedman 2009, p. 310.
  4. ↑ Gardiner & Gray 1985, p. 84.
  5. ↑ Friedman 2009, p. 26.
  6. ↑ March 1966, p. 221.
  7. ↑ Parkes & Prendegast 1919, p. 107.
  8. ↑ Parkes & Prendegast 1919, p. 108.
  9. ↑ Manning & Walker 1959, p. 407.
  10. ↑ "Supplement to the Navy List Showing Organisation of the Fleet, Flag Officers' Commands &c.: II — Harwich Force". The Navy List: 13. July 1917. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
  11. ↑ Newbolt 1931, p. 45.
  12. ↑ Naval Staff Monograph No. 35 1939, p. 178.
  13. ↑ Naval Staff Monograph No. 35 1939, p. 207.
  14. ↑ & Naval Staff Monograph No. 35 1939, p. 179.
  15. ↑ "Supplement to the Navy List Showing Organisation of the Fleet, Flag Officers' Commands &c.: III — Local Defence and Training Establishments". The Navy List: 704. October 1919. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
  16. ↑ "Springbok". The Navy List: 867. July 1920. Retrieved 23 March 2020.
  17. ↑ Friedman 2009, p. 180.
  18. ↑ Colledge & Warlow 2010, p. 522.
  19. 1 2 Dittmar & Colledge 1972, p. 70.
  20. ↑ Bush & Warlow 2021, p. 64.
  21. ↑ Bush & Warlow 2021, p. 73.

Bibliography

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  • Colledge, J. J. & Warlow, Ben (2010). Ships of the Royal Navy: A Complete Record of All Fighting Ships of the Royal Navy From the 15th Century to the Present. London: Chatham. ISBN   978-1-93514-907-1.
  • Dittmar, F.J. & Colledge, J.J. (1972). British Warships 1914–1919. Shepperton: Ian Allan. ISBN   978-0-71100-380-4.
  • Friedman, Norman (2009). British Destroyers: From Earliest Days to the First World War. Barnsley: Seaforth Publishing. ISBN   978-1-84832-049-9.
  • Gardiner, Robert & Gray, Randal, eds. (1985). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1906–1921. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN   978-0-85177-245-5.
  • Manning, Thomas Davys & Walker, Charles Frederick (1959). British Warship Names. London: Putnam.
  • March, Edgar J. (1966). British Destroyers: A History of Development 1892–1953. London: Seeley Service & Co.
  • McCluskie, Tom (2013). The Rise and Fall of Harland and Wolff. Stroud: The History Press. ISBN   978-0-75248-861-5.
  • Newbolt, Henry (1931). "History of the Great War: Naval Operations Vol. V, April 1917 to November 1918 (Part 1 of 4)". London: Longmans, Green and Co. Retrieved 24 March 2020.
  • Monograph No. 35: Home Waters Part IX: 1st May 1917 to 31st July 1917 (PDF). Naval Staff Monographs (Historical). Vol. XIX. Naval Staff, Training and Staff Duties Division. 1939.
  • Parkes, Oscar; Prendegast, Maurice (1919). Jane's Fighting Ships. London: Sampson Low, Marston & Co. Ltd.
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