History | |
---|---|
Italy | |
Name | Bettino Ricasoli |
Namesake | Bettino Ricasoli |
Builder | Societa Pattison, Naples |
Laid down | 11 January 1923 |
Launched | 29 January 1926 |
Commissioned | 11 December 1926 |
Fate | Sold to Sweden, 1940 |
Sweden | |
Name | Puke |
Namesake | Johan af Puke |
Acquired | 1940 |
Commissioned | 27 March 1940 |
Decommissioned | 13 June 1947 |
Fate | Scrapped, 1949 |
General characteristics (as built) | |
Class and type | Psilander-class destroyer |
Displacement | |
Length | 84.9 m (278 ft 7 in) |
Beam | 8.6 m (28 ft 3 in) |
Draught | 2.7 m (8 ft 10 in) |
Installed power |
|
Propulsion | 2 shafts; 2 geared steam turbines |
Speed | 33 knots (61 km/h; 38 mph) |
Range | 3,600 nmi (6,700 km; 4,100 mi) at 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph) |
Complement | 152–153 |
Armament |
|
HSwMS Puke (19) was a Psilander-class destroyer of the Swedish Navy from 1940 to 1947. The ship was purchased from Italy by Sweden in 1940, along with her sister ship HSwMS Psilander. Before that, she served in the Regia Marina (Royal Italian Navy) as Bettino Ricasoli, one of four members of the Italian Sella class. Puke was scrapped in 1949.
The Sella-class destroyers were enlarged and improved versions of the preceding Palestro and Curtatone classes. [1] They had an overall length of 84.9 meters (279 ft), a beam of 8.6 meters (28 ft 3 in) and a mean draft of 2.7 meters (8 ft 10 in). They displaced 970 metric tons (950 long tons ) at standard load, and 1,480 metric tons (1,460 long tons) at deep load. Their complement was 8–9 officers and 144 enlisted men. [2]
The Sellas were powered by two Parsons geared steam turbines, each driving one propeller shaft using steam supplied by three Thornycroft boilers. The turbines were rated at 36,000 shaft horsepower (27,000 kW ) for a speed of 33 knots (61 km/h; 38 mph) in service, [3] although the ships reached speeds in excess of 37 knots (69 km/h; 43 mph) during their sea trials while lightly loaded. [4] The ships carried enough fuel oil to give them a range of 1,800 nautical miles (3,300 km; 2,100 mi) at a speed of 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph). [5]
Their main battery consisted of three 120-millimeter (4.7 in) guns in one twin-gun turret aft of the superstructure and one single-gun turret forward of it. [2] Anti-aircraft (AA) defense for the Sella-class ships was provided by a pair of 40-millimeter (1.6 in) AA guns in single mounts amidships and a pair of 13.2-millimeter (0.52 in) machine guns. They were equipped with four 533-millimeter (21 in) torpedo tubes in two twin mounts amidships. [3] The Sellas could also carry 32 mines. [2]
Bettino Ricasoli, named after the Italian Prime Minister Bettino Ricasoli, was laid down by Pattinson at their Naples shipyard on 11 January 1923, launched on 29 January 1926 and commissioned on 11 December. The forward single-gun turret was replaced by a twin-gun turret in 1929. [5]
In December 1939, a Swedish commission to Italy departed to investigate the possibility for Sweden to buy warships. [6] This led to the acquisition of the Psilander and Romulus-classes. On 14 April 1940, all four destroyers left La Spezia and on 10 July the ships arrived in Gothenburg where the ship was renamed for Admiral Johan af Puke. [7]
After arriving in Sweden, Puke was put into service in the Gothenburg Squadron. [8] Over time, the ship was found to be too weakly built and rolled heavily in heavy seas, which meant that reinforcements had to be made and bilge keels had to be mounted on the hull. In addition, the low freeboard of the stern caused it to be flooded in bad weather. [9] In the years 1941–1942 the ships armament were modified. The air defense was changed to two 40 mm anti-aircraft automatic guns m/36 and two dual 8 mm anti-aircraft machine guns m/36. The 45 cm torpedoes was changed to 53 cm torpedoes and depth charge throwers and rack-deployed depth charges were installed. [10] After a very short service, the ships were placed in reserve between 1943 and 1944.
Puke was decommissioned on 13 June 1947, after which she was used for shooting and exploding tests before she finally was scrapped in Karlskrona in 1949.
HSwMS Wachtmeisterwas the second and last of the Wrangel-class destroyers built for the Royal Swedish Navy during World War I. Completed in 1918, the ship was rammed by another Swedish destroyer four years later. At the beginning of World War II in 1939 she was assigned to the Gothenburg Squadron. Wachtmeister was decommissioned in 1947 and was subsequently sold for scrap in 1950.
HSwMS Ehrensköld (11), was the lead ship of her class of destroyer in the Swedish Navy during World War II. Together with the sister ship HSwMS Nordenskjöld (12), she constituted the Ehrensköld class, which, with its size and speed, was a major step in the Swedish destroyer fleet. Initially, Ehrensköld had pennant number 11, which was later changed to 1. In 1951-1952, the ship was converted to frigate, and then received the pennant number 71. She was decommissioned in 1963 and was sold for scrapping in 1973.
HSwMS Magne (30) was a Mode-class destroyer of the Swedish Navy during World War II. She was built at Götaverken and was launched on 25 April 1942 as the second ship of the Mode class. The ship was rebuilt in the mid-1950s and reclassified to frigate in 1953 when she received pennant number 74. Magne was scrapped in Ystad in 1973. The name comes from Magni, the son of Thor in Nordic mythology.
HSwMS Remus (28) was a Romulus-class destroyer of the Royal Swedish Navy during World War II. She had been built as Astore, a Spica-class torpedo boat for Italy's Regia Marina, in the mid-1930s and sold to Sweden in 1940. She was stricken in 1958 and scrapped in 1961.
HSwMS Sundsvall (J12) was a Swedish destroyer, later rebuilt as a frigate, in the four-ship Visby class. The ship was named after the Swedish coastal city of Sundsvall. Sundsvall was laid down in 1942 during the Second World War, and was commissioned on 17 September 1943. She survived the war, and was modified and redesigned as a frigate in 1965. She was kept in service by the Swedish Navy until 1982, and was then used for testing of the Navy's RBS-15 anti-ship missile. The ship was later sold to Spain for scrapping.
The Göteborg class was a Swedish World War II destroyer class. Built from 1936–1941 the class was designed as escort and neutral guard destroyers. In total six ships were constructed, HSwMS Göteborg, HSwMS Stockholm, HSwMS Malmö, HSwMS Karlskrona, HSwMS Gävle and HSwMS Norrköping. After World War II the destroyers, later rebuilt as frigates, continued to serve in the Swedish navy. The last ship was decommissioned in 1968.
The Öland class was a Swedish destroyer class. From 1943 to 1947, two destroyers were constructed, HSwMS Öland and HSwMS Uppland. Originally four ships were planned for the class, but after the end of World War II, two were canceled. When commissioned the ships were the largest destroyers that had ever served in the Swedish navy. The ships served in the navy until 1979 when the last ship was decommissioned.
The Romulus class was a class of two destroyers operated by the Royal Swedish Navy during the Second World War. The class consisted of HSwMS Romulus and HSwMS Remus. They were built in Italy as the Spica-class torpedo boats Spica and Astore in the mid-1930s and sold to Sweden in 1940. The two ships were adapted for northern conditions and remained in service during World War II and into the first decades of the Cold War. They were modernized and re-designated as anti-submarine frigates in 1953. Both ships were discarded in 1958.
The Mode class or Mjölner class was a class of four coastal destroyers commissioned by the Royal Swedish Navy during World War II. The design was based on the preceding Psilander class purchased from Italy but with Swedish equipment and armament. The destroyers served as coastal escorts. The class was moderately upgraded and reclassified as frigates during the early part of the Cold War. After nearly thirty years of service, the last vessel was retired in 1970.
HSwMS Mode was a coastal destroyer of the Royal Swedish Navy, built by Götaverken and launched on 11 April 1942 as the lead of the four ship Mode class. Developed from an Italian design, the ship was capable of a wide range of roles, with depth charges to defeat submarines, torpedo tubes to attack ships and anti-aircraft guns for aerial defence, as well as mine laying capability. After serving during World War II, the ship was updated with greater anti-submarine capability and reclassified a frigate in 1953. Decommissioned on 1 July 1970, Mode subsequently operated in a training role until being scrapped in 1978.
HSwMS Mjölner was a coastal destroyer of the Royal Swedish Navy, built by Eriksbergs Mekaniska Verkstad and launched on 9 April 1942 as the last of the four ship Mode class. After serving during World War II, the ship was updated and reclassified a frigate in 1953. Decommissioned in 1966, Mjölner was sold for scrap in 1969.
The Ragnar class was a class of three destroyers built for the Royal Swedish Navy before World War I. The class consisted of HSwMS Ragnar, HSwMS Sigurd, and HSwMS Vidar. The lead ship, Ragnar, was launched May 30, 1908. The design was based on the earlier destroyer Wale. The Ragnar class led a relatively quiet service life performing routine missions such as escorts and exercises between their commissioning before World War I and their decommissioning shortly after World War II.
HSwMS Psilander (18) was a Psilander-class destroyer of the Swedish Navy from 1940 to 1947. The ship was purchased from Italy by Sweden in 1940, along with her sister ship HSwMS Puke. Before that, she served in the Regia Marina as Giovanni Nicotera, one of four members of the Italian Sella class. Psilander was scrapped in 1949.
HSwMS Nordenskjöld (12) was a destroyer in the Swedish Navy. Together with the sister ship HSwMS Ehrensköld, she constituted the Ehrensköld class, which, with its size and speed, was a major step in the Swedish destroyer fleet. The ship was launched on 19 June 1926. During the World War II, she participated in the neutrality watch and escorted merchant ships along the Swedish east coast. Especially the ore traffic from Luleå to Germany had to be protected. In the context of the neutrality watch, she therefore participated in the pursuit of Soviet submarines who broke out of the Gulf of Finland in search of merchant ships. Initially, Nordenskjöld had pennant number 12, which was later switched to 2. In 1951–1952, the ship was converted to frigate and then received the pennant number 72. She was decommissioned in 1963 and was sold for scrap the following year.
HSwMS Romulus (27) was a destroyer of the Royal Swedish Navy, the name ship of her class. She was in service during World War II, and later, in the first decades of the Cold War.
HSwMS Visby(J11) was the lead ship of the Visby-class destroyer.
HSwMS Hälsingborg(J13) was the third ship of the Visby-class destroyer.
HSwMS Kalmar(J14) was the fourth ship of the Visby-class destroyer.
HSwMS Stockholm was a destroyer of the Royal Swedish Navy that served during the Second World War and in the Cold War. The second member of the Göteborg or city class, an improvement on the previous Ehrensköld class, Stockholm was launched on 24 March 1936. The ship proved to be of very high performance, exceeding 41 knots in trials, the fastest ship in the navy. After serving during the Second World War on neutrality patrols, the destroyer took part in two tours with other Swedish warships. The first, which involved sailing to the Netherlands, Norway and the United Kingdom, was led by the cruiser Fylgia in 1948. Four years later, the destroyer accompanied the cruiser Gotland to Belgium. In 1961, the destroyer was redesignated a frigate. Three years later, on 1 January 1964, Stockholm was decommissioned and subsequently sold to be broken up.
HSwMS Karlskrona was a destroyer of the Royal Swedish Navy that served during the Second World War and in the Cold War. The fourth member of the Göteborg or city class, which was designed as an improvement on the previous Ehrensköld class, Karlskrona was launched on 16 June 1939. The destroyer served in the Coastal Fleet during the war, protecting Swedish neutrality and escorting convoys. After the war, the ship was upgraded between 1950 and 1951 with enhanced fire control and an armament improved with the introduction of the Bofors 40 mm anti-aircraft gun. Ten years later, in 1961, Karlskrona was designated a fast anti-submarine frigate and the torpedo tubes were replaced by Squid mortars. The vessel was decommissioned on 1 July 1974 and broken up in 1979.