Design
The Cricket-class was intended as a smaller and cheaper supplement to the large, fast, but expensive Tribal-class destroyer, particularly in coastal waters such as the English Channel. [1] [2] Twelve ships were ordered under the 1905–1906 shipbuilding programme, with 12 more ordered in November 1906 under the 1906–1907 programme. The 1906–1907 orders were distributed with four ships being built by J. Samuel White, two by Denny, two by Thornycroft, two by Hawthorn Leslie and one each by Palmers and Yarrow. [1] [3]
TB 23 was 177 feet 3 inches (54.03 m) long with a beam of 18 feet 0 inches (5.49 m) and a draught of 5 feet 3 inches (1.60 m). Displacement was 253 long tons (257 t). [4] The ships had turtleback [lower-alpha 1] forecastles and two funnels. Two oil-fuelled Yarrow water-tube boilers fed steam to three-stage Parsons steam turbines, driving three propeller shafts. [3] [2] The machinery was rated at 4,000 shaft horsepower (3,000 kW), giving a speed of 26 knots (30 mph; 48 km/h). [4]
Armament consisted of two 12-pounder (76-mm) 12 cwt guns, [lower-alpha 2] and three 18-inch (450 mm) torpedo tubes (in three single mounts). [3] [1] The ship had a crew of 35. [3]
Service
TB 23 was laid down at Yarrow's Cubitt Town, London shipyard on 10 February 1907, was launched on 5 December 1907 and completed on 19 February 1908. [7]
TB 23 was commissioned as a tender to Blake at Sheerness Dockyard in March 1908. Later that month she was struck by the gunboat Pembroke while tied up at a buoy, damaging the torpedo-boat's stem. [8]
In March 1913, TB 23 was based at Chatham, in commission, but with a nucleus crew, [9] and remained at Chatham in July 1914. [10] In November 1914, TB 23 was listed as part of the Local Defence Flotilla for The Nore, [11] which had the duty of defending the Thames Estuary. [12] She remained part of The Nore Local Defence Flotilla in December 1918. [13]
By January 1919, TB 23, although still at the Nore, had left the Local Defence Flotilla, [14] [15] and by May, was listed as in Reserve at the Nore. [16] By January 1920, TB 23 was, together with most of the remaining torpedo boats, listed as being for sale. [17] She was sold to the shipbreaker Wards for scrapping at their Grays, Essex, yard on 9 May 1921, one of twelve Cricket-class ex-coastal destroyers sold to Wards on that day. [18]
HMS Conflict was the lead ship of the Conflict-class destroyers built by J. Samuel White, at East Cowes, Isle of Wight for the Royal Navy. She was launched on 13 December 1894, and entered service in 1899. After an initial spell in the Mediterranean Fleet, Conflict returned to British waters, where she served the rest of her career. Conflict was part of the Portsmouth Local Defence Flotilla during the First World War, which she survived. Conflict was sold for scrap on 20 May 1920.
HMS Stag was a two funnel, 30 knot destroyer ordered by the Royal Navy under the 1896 – 1897 Naval Estimates. She was the sixth ship to carry this name. She was launched in 1899 and was first assigned to the Mediterranean. She served in the North Sea and Irish Sea during World War I, and was sold for breaking in 1921.
HMS Starfish was an R-class destroyer which served with the Royal Navy. She was launched on 27 September 1916 and sold to be broken up on 21 April 1928. She was built by Hawthorn Leslie of Hebburn Tyne.
HMS Rother was a Palmer type River-class destroyer ordered by the Royal Navy under the 1902–1903 Naval Estimates. Named after the River Rother, east of Sheffield, South Yorkshire in England, she was the first ship to carry this name in the Royal Navy.
HMS TB 12 was a Cricket-class coastal destroyer or torpedo-boat of the British Royal Navy. TB 12 was built by the shipbuilder Yarrow from 1905 to 1907. She was used for local patrol duties in the First World War and was sunk by a German mine in the North Sea on 10 June 1915.
HMS TB 11 was a Cricket-class coastal destroyer or torpedo-boat of the British Royal Navy. TB 11 was built by the shipbuilder Yarrow from 1905 to 1907. She was used for local patrol duties in the First World War and was sunk by a German mine in the North Sea on 7 March 1916.
HMS TB 9 was a Cricket-class coastal destroyer or torpedo-boat of the British Royal Navy. TB 9 was built by the shipbuilder Thornycroft from 1905 to 1907. She was used for local patrol duties in the First World War and was sunk following a collision in the North Sea on 26 July 1916.
HMS TB 13 was a Cricket-class coastal destroyer or torpedo-boat of the British Royal Navy. TB 13 was built by the shipbuilder J S White from 1907 to 1908. She was used for local patrol duties in the First World War and was sunk following a collision on 26 January 1916.
HMS Tilbury was a S-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy that served during the First World War.
The TB 114 class was a class of four 160-foot torpedo boats built for the British Royal Navy in 1903–1905 by the shipbuilder J. Samuel White. All four ships served in local defence flotillas during the First World War, with one of the ships being sunk in 1918. The remaining three ships were withdrawn from use after the end of the war, with the last of the class sold for scrap in 1921.
HMS Sarpedon was an R-class destroyer which served with the Royal Navy. The R class were a development of the preceding M-class, but differed in having geared turbines and other design changes. Launched in June 1916, the vessel escorted convoys that sailed between Scotland and Scandinavia in the First World War. After the war, the ship was allocated to local defence at Nore. However, in 1923, the Navy decided to retire many of the older vessels and Sarpedon was retired and was sold to be broken up on 23 June 1926.
HMS Ranger was a "twenty-seven knotter" torpedo boat destroyer of the British Royal Navy. Built by the Tyneside shipbuilder Hawthorn Leslie, Opossum was one of three destroyers built by Hawthorns that were ordered in 1894. She was launched in 1895 and completed in 1896. She remained in service during the First World War, where she was used for local patrol duties. She was sold for scrap in 1920.
HMS Foxhound was a Beagle-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy. The Beagles were coal-fuelled ships, designed for a speed of 27 kn, armed with a 4-inch (102 mm gun and two torpedo tubes. Foxhound was built by John Brown & Company at their Clydebank yard, between 1909 and 1910, being launched on 11 December 1909 and completing in August 1910.
HMS Grasshopper was a Beagle-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy. The Beagles were coal-fuelled ships, designed for a speed of 27 kn, armed with a 4-inch (102 mm gun and two torpedo tubes. Grasshopper was built by Fairfield Shipbuilding & Engineering Company at their Govan yard, between 1909 and 1910, being launched on 23 November 1909 and completing in July 1910.
HMS Mounsey was a Yarrow M-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy. Built by the Scottish shipbuilder Yarrow in 1914–1915, Mounsey served in the Grand Fleet during the First World War, and took part in the Battle of Jutland. The following year she saw combat against German submarines, and in 1918 she helped rescue crew and passengers aboard the damaged troopship Otranto. She was sold for scrap in 1921.
HMS Lawford was a Laforey-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy. The Laforey class was the class of destroyers ordered under the Royal Navy's 1912–1913 construction programme, which were armed with three 4-inch (102 mm) guns and four torpedo tubes and were capable of 29 knots. The ship, which was originally to be named Ivanhoe but was renamed before launch, was built by the Scottish shipbuilder Fairfields between 1912 and 1914.
HMS Pigeon was an 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 destroyer, capable of higher speed. Launched on 3 March 1916 by Hawthorn Leslie on the River Tyne, the vessel served as part of the Grand Fleet. Pigeon was mainly involved in escorting convoys. After an unsuccessful sortie in October 1917 against German cruisers, the destroyer moved to anti-submarine warfare. In this arena, Pigeon had some success in 1918, rescuing the survivors from the sinking troopship Tuscania in February and assisting in the destruction of the German U-boat UB-124 in July. After the Armistice, the destroyer was redeployed to serve as part of the Nore Local Defence flotilla until being decommissioned and sold to be broken up on 9 May 1921.
HMS Tactician was an S-class destroyer, which served with the Royal Navy. Launched on 7 August 1918, the vessel entered service at the closing of the First World War. The ship joined the Fourteenth Destroyer Flotilla of the Grand Fleet but was placed in Reserve at Nore in 1919. Tactician deteriorated over the following years and was sold to be broken up on 5 February 1931 following the signing of the London Naval Treaty that limited the amount of destroyer tonnage that the Navy could retain.
HMS Tara was an S-class destroyer, which served with the Royal Navy. Launched on 7 August 1918, the vessel entered service at the closing of the First World War. The ship joined the Fourteenth Destroyer Flotilla of the Grand Fleet but was placed in Reserve at Nore in 1919. Tara deteriorated over the following years and was sold to be broken up on 17 December 1931 after the signing of the London Naval Treaty that limited the amount of destroyer tonnage the Navy could retain.
HMS TB 4 was a Cricket-class coastal destroyer or torpedo-boat of the British Royal Navy. TB 4 was built by the shipbuilder J S White from 1905 to 1907. She served in the Dover Patrol in the First World War and survived the war. She ran aground on the way to be scrapped on 11 January 1921 and was broken up in situ.
United Kingdom