HMS Skate was an R-class destroyer of the Royal Navy that was laid down and completed during the First World War. She was built at John Brown Shipyard at Clydebank in Scotland and launched on 11 January 1917.
HMS Derwent was a Hawthorn Leslie-type River-class destroyer ordered by the Royal Navy under the 1901 – 1902 Naval Estimates. Named after the River Derwent in central England, she was the second ship to carry this name.
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 Itchen was a Laird-type River-class destroyer ordered by the Royal Navy under the 1901–1902 Naval Estimates. Named after the River Itchen in southern England near Southampton, she was the first ship to carry this name in the Royal Navy.
HMS Radiant was an R-class destroyer which fought in the First World War as part of the Royal Navy before being transferred to the Royal Thai Navy, in which she served until well after the Second World War.
HMS Torrent was a Royal Navy R-class destroyer constructed and then operational in the First World War. She was sunk, with most of her crew in 1917. On 23 December 1917 Surprise, HMS Torrent, and Tornado sank after entering an Imperial German minefield.
HMS Taurus was an R-class destroyer which served with the Royal Navy during World War I. Ordered from Thornycroft in 1915 and launched in 1917, the vessel operated as part of the Harwich Force until the end of hostilities. Shortly after entering service, Taurus formed part of the destroyer shield for the Royal Navy's bombardment of Ostend that successfully sank the German destroyer S20. After the War, the destroyer was reduced to the Reserve Fleet and sold to be broken up in 1930.
HMS Teazer was an R-class destroyer which served with the Royal Navy during World War I. The destroyer was launched in April 1917 and, on trial, proved to be one of the fastest afloat, exceeding 40 knots. Attached to the Harwich Force, the ship supported the monitors Erebus, Terror and Marshal Soult in the bombardment of Zeebrugge in May 1918 and one of the final sorties of the war in the October following. The destroyer also took part in operations off the coast of Heligoland with a flying boat on a lighter, although the aircraft failed to take off. After the war, Teazer was kept in reserve until being sold to be broken up in 1931 following the signing of the London Naval Treaty that limited total destroyer tonnage.
HMS Recruit was an R-class destroyer built for the Royal Navy during the First World War. She was sunk by a German U-boat four months after she was commissioned in April 1917.
HMS Retriever was a Thornycroft-built R-class destroyer which served with the Royal Navy during the First World War. Launched in 1917, the vessel formed part of the Harwich Force and took part in operations off the coast of Ostend in support of the bombardment of the town in June that year. During August the following year, the vessel attempted to deploy a seaplane from a towed lighter, but a lack of wind meant the operation was unsuccessful. The vessel was also jointly credited with the destruction of the submarine SM UB-54 that year, although this has been disputed. After the war, the ship was placed in reserve and was sold to be broken up in 1927.
HMS Satyr was an R-class destroyer which served with the Royal Navy during the First World War. Launched on 27 December 1916, Satyr joined the Harwich Force under the command of Commander Hubert de Burgh. In 1917, the destroyer formed part of a force protecting the monitors Erebus and Terror in their bombardment of Ostend. As part of this action, Satyr, along with sister ships Taurus, Sharpshooter and Torrent, sank the German destroyer S20. After the war, the ship served with the Torpedo School at the Devonport. In 1923, the Navy decided to retire many of the older destroyers in preparation for the introduction of newer and larger vessels and Satyr was sold to be broken up on 16 December 1926.
HMS Sharpshooter was an R-class destroyer which served with the Royal Navy during World War I. Launched on 27 February 1917, the ship joined the Harwich Force, undertaking convoy escort duties. The vessel also took part in the Navy’s bombardment of Ostend later that year. On 1 June 1918, the destroyer rescued Captain A. C. Sharwood, one of the first pilots of the Royal Australian Navy, who ditched his Sopwith 2F.1 Camel nearby. After the war, Sharpshooter joined the Navy gunnery training establishment at Plymouth, but did not stay long and was reduced to Reduced Complement on 5 March 1919. The Royal Navy was rationalising its destroyer force and Sharpshooter, deemed superfluous, was sold to be broken up on 29 April 1927.
HMS Simoom was an R-class destroyer which served with the Royal Navy during World War I. Launched on 30 October 1916, the vessel operated as part of the Harwich Force until torpedoed by the German destroyer S50 on 23 January 1917. The ship's magazine exploded and 47 people died. The name was reused by the first S-class destroyer, Simoom, launched on 26 January 1918.
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.
HMS Rowena was an R-class destroyer which served with the Royal Navy during World War I. Launched on 1 July 1916, the ship operated as part of the Grand Fleet as part of a destroyer flotilla hunting for German vessels that were attacking convoys in the North Sea. Although there were many reported sightings, no submarines were sunk. After the conflict, the vessel was transferred to the Navy’s establishment at Portland to help in the development of anti-submarine warfare, which ultimately helped in the Battle of the Atlantic. Rowena did not, however, see the fruit of this labour. After twenty years of service, the destroyer was retired and sold to be broken up on 27 January 1937.
HMS Redoubt was an R-class destroyer which served with the Royal Navy during World War I. The R class was an improvement of the preceding M-class, primarily through having geared steam turbines which offered greater efficiency and range. Launched on 28 October 1916, the ship joined the Harwich Force, operating as part of a destroyer flotilla undertaking convoy escort and anti-submarine operations in the North Sea. During 1918, Redoubt took part in an experiment to launch fighter aircraft from a lighter towed beyond a destroyer. The first flight took place on 1 August and the first successful operation ten days later when the Sopwith Camel flew by Lieutenant S.D. Culley took off and destroyed the German airship LZ 100. After the war, the vessel was transferred to the Home Fleet but was sold on 13 July 1926 to be broken up, part of a large scale disposal of older destroyers by the Navy.
HMS Moorsom was an Admiralty M-class destroyer which served in the Royal Navy during the First World War. The M class was an improvement on the preceding L class, capable of higher speed. Moorsom, the first ship to enter navy service to be named after Admiral Sir Robert Moorsom, was launched in December 1914, initially serving as part of the Grand Fleet before being transferred to the Harwich Force the following year. Briefly rejoining the Grand Fleet, the destroyer saw service in the Battle of Jutland in 1916 supporting the British battlecruisers and received hits from a battleship of the German High Seas Fleet. Moorsom also undertook other duties, including escorting the troop ship Mauretania in June 1915 and the minelayer Princess Margaret in August 1915 and November 1916. Placed within the Dover Patrol, the destroyer formed part of the cover for monitors including Erebus and Terror on attacks on Ostend and Zeebrugge in May and June 1917, and April and May 1918. After the Armistice, the destroyer was placed in reserve and subsequently sold to be broken up in November 1921.
HMS Morris 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 preceding L class, capable of higher speed. The ship, the only vessel to be named Morris to serve with the Royal Navy, was launched on 19 November 1914. Joining the Grand Fleet as part of a new flotilla, the destroyer was soon in action, serving as part of a destroyer screen during the Battle of Dogger Bank in January 1915 and an escort to the minelayer Princess Margaret during a skirmish with German torpedo boats eight months later. At the Battle of Jutland in 1916, the destroyer was a crucial part of the flotilla that drove the German torpedo boats away from the British battlecruisers. Morris received no hits during these confrontations. The destroyer assisted in the rescue of survivors from the R-class destroyer Simoom and the recovery of the damaged flotilla leader Botha in 1917. The ship also undertook general duties including escorting merchant ships, minelayers, monitors, and the seaplane carrier Vindex. After the armistice that ended the war, the destroyer was considered superfluous to requirements, Initially placed in reserve, Morris was decommissioned and, on 8 November 1921, sold to be broken up.
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.
HMS Sturgeon was an R-class destroyer of the British Royal Navy. Sturgeon was built built by Alexander Stephen and Sons in Glasgow, Scotland, and was launched on 11 January 1917 and completed in February that year. The ship took its name after Sturgeon, a freshwater fish.
United Kingdom
