Tree-class trawler

HMT Acacia
Class overview
Operators	Royal Navy   Portuguese Navy
Built	1939–1945
Completed	20
Lost	6
General characteristics [1]
Type	Naval trawler
Displacement	545 tons
Length	164 ft (50 m)
Beam	27 ft 8 in (8.43 m)
Draught	11 feet i inch (mean)
Propulsion	One triple expansion reciprocating engine, 1 shaft, 850 ihp
Speed	12 knots
Complement	40
Armament	1 × QF 12-pounder (76-mm) anti-aircraft gun 3 × 20mm Oerlikon AA guns 30 × Depth charges

Tree-class trawlers were a class of anti-submarine naval trawlers which served in the Royal Navy during the Second World War. They were nearly identical to the Isles-class trawlers, of which they are usually considered a subclass.

Six Tree-class trawlers were lost during the war: Almond, Ash, Chestnut, Hickory, Juniper and Pine. One, Mangrove, was transferred to Portugal in 1943.

By the end of 1946, only Olive and Walnut remained in service with the Royal Navy. ^[2] Both were sold in 1948.

Ships in class

• Built by Ardrossan Dockyard Company, Ardrossan, UK
  • Acacia – Launched 1940, sold 1946
  • Almond – Launched 1940, war loss 1941
• Built by Cochrane & Sons, Ltd., Selby, UK
  • Ash – Launched 1939, war loss 1941
  • Bay – Launched 1939, sold 1946
• Built by Cook, Welton & Gemmell, Beverley, UK
  • Birch – Launched 1939, sold 1946
  • Blackthorn – launched 1939, sold 1946
• Built by Ferguson Brothers, Ltd., Port Glasgow, UK
  • Juniper – Launched 15 December 1939, commissioned 9 March 1940; sunk in the Norwegian Sea, 8 June 1940. ^[3]
  • Mangrove – Launched 4 April 1942, transferred to Portugal 1943 as Faial (P2)
• Built by Goole Shipbuilding & Repair Company, Goole, UK
  • Chestnut – Launched 1940, war loss 1940
  • Deodar – Launched 1940, sold 1946
• Built by Hall, Russell & Company, Aberdeen, UK
  • Olive – Launched 26 February 1940, sold 1948
  • Pine – Launched 1940, war loss 1944
• Built by A. & J. Inglis, Ltd., Glasgow, UK (part of Harland & Wolff)
  • Elm – Launched 1939, sold 1946
  • Fir – Launched 1940, sold 1946
• Built by Henry Robb, Ltd., Leith, UK
  • Hazel – Launched 1939, sold 1946
  • Hickory – Launched 1940, war loss 1940
• Built by Smith's Dock Company, Ltd., South Bank-on-Tees, UK
  • Rowan – Launched 1939, sold 1946
  • Walnut – Launched 1939, sold 1948 as Baltic refugee ship
  • Whitethorn – Launched 1939, sold 1946
  • Wistaria – Launched 1939, sold 1946

References

1. Robert Gardiner (ed. dir.), Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships, p. 66. London: Conway Maritime Press, 1980.
2. Antony Preston (ed.), Jane's Fighting Ships of World War II, p. 78. New York: Military Press, 1989. This is largely a reprint of Jane's Fighting Ships 1946-47 with materials from some earlier editions.
3. Richard Humble, Hitler's High Seas Fleet, p. 57. New York: Ballantine Books, 1971.

See also

• Isles-class trawler
• Dance-class trawler
• Portuguese-class naval trawler
• Shakespearian-class trawler
• Trawlers of the Royal Navy