The S-class destroyers were improved versions of the preceding Modified R class. They displaced1,075 long tons (1,092t).[2] The ships had an overall length of 276 feet (84.1m), a beam of 26feet 8inches (8.1m) and a draught of 9 feet (2.7m). They were powered by two Brown-Curtis geared steam turbines, each driving one propeller shaft, using steam provided by three Yarrow boilers. The turbines developed a total of 27,000 shaft horsepower (20,000kW) and gave a maximum speed of 36 knots (67km/h; 41mph). The ships carried a maximum of 301 long tons (306t) of fuel oil that gave them a range of 2,750 nautical miles (5,090km; 3,160mi) at 15 knots (28km/h; 17mph). The ships' complement was 90 officers and ratings.[3]
The ship took part in the Battle of Hong Kong in December 1941, commanded by Lieutenant-Commander Arthur Luard Pears.[5][6] She was the only destroyer defending the colony, after the departure of HMSScout and HMSThanet for Singapore on 8 December.[7] On 10 December, she took part in a raid on Japanese crafts attempting to land on Lamma Island.[1] On 13 December, she participated in the evacuation of personnel from Kowloon and Green Island to Aberdeen, Hong Kong Island.[8] On 16 December, she attacked Japanese boats that were preparing for the invasion of Hong Kong Island, but ran aground at Uk Kok. She was refloated later that day and returned to Aberdeen dockyard. Further into the afternoon, she became the target of Japanese high-level bombing. A near miss caused several casualties. With the dockyard badly damaged, the damage Thracian suffered from running aground was considered too bad to fix.[9][10] On the next day, she was deliberately run aground at Ngan Chau.[10][11] The crew of Thracian continued to defend the colony as infantry,[12][6] and would suffer heavy losses in the battle and subsequent captivity.[1] On 24 December, Japanese troops began salvaging the ship,[1] and she was later captured by the Imperial Japanese Army.[13]
Imperial Japanese Navy service (1942 – 1945)
IJN Patrol Boat No. 101 in 1942IJN Special Training Ship No. 1 in 1945
On 1 October 1942, she was registered to the naval ship list in the Imperial Japanese Navy, and classified as a special service ship (patrol boat). She was renamed Patrol Boat No. 101.[14] On 25 November, repairs were completed by the Navy 2nd Construction Department, and she was assigned to the Yokosuka Naval District. Afterwards, she spent her time on convoy escort operations in the Yokosuka Area. On 15 August 1943, she was assigned to the torpedo warfare school at Yokosuka. On 15 March 1944, she was classified as the miscellaneous ship (training ship), and renamed Special Training Ship No. 1.[15] She was used for a test bed for new weapons.
By August 1945, she was found in Yokosuka after an unsuccessful scuttling. In December, she was recovered by HMSUndine, only to be broken up in Hong Kong in 1946.[1]
Kwong, Chi Man; Tsoi, Yiu Lun (2013). 孤獨前哨: 太平洋戰爭中的香港戰役[Exposed Outpost: the Battle of Hong Kong in the Pacific War] (in Chinese). Hong Kong: Cosmos Books Ltd. ISBN9789888254347.
Lenton, H. T. (1998). British & Empire Warships of the Second World War. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN1-55750-048-7.
March, Edgar J. (1966). British Destroyers: A History of Development, 1892–1953; Drawn by Admiralty Permission From Official Records & Returns, Ships' Covers & Building Plans. London: Seeley Service. OCLC164893555.
Secretary of the Navy of Japan (1942). 昭和１７年１月～１２月 達. Japan Center for Asian Historical Records (in Japanese). Retrieved 28 January 2021.
Secretary of the Navy of Japan (1944). 昭和１９年１月．昭和１９年５月 海軍公報（部内限）. Japan Center for Asian Historical Records (in Japanese). Retrieved 28 January 2021.
Further reading
Rekishi Gunzō, History of Pacific War Vol.45, Truth histories of the Imperial Japanese Naval Vessels, Gakken (Japanese publisher), May 2004, ISBN4-05-603412-5.
Ships of the World, special issue Vol.45, Escort Vessels of the Imperial Japanese Navy, "Kaijinsha"., (Japan), 1996.
The Maru Special, Japanese Naval Vessels No.49, "Japanese submarine chasers and patrol boats", "Ushio Shobō". (Japan), 1981.
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