_IWM_A_5483.jpg) HMSBegonia (K66), underway at sea, September 1941 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | HMSBegonia |
| Namesake | Begonia |
| Builder | Cook, Welton & Gemmell,Beverley |
| Laid down | 25 July 1939 |
| Launched | 24 April 1940 |
| Commissioned | 3 March 1941 |
| Decommissioned | 10 March 1942 |
| Identification | Pennant number: K66 |
| Fate | Transferred to United States Navy |
 United States | |
| Name | USSImpulse |
| Commissioned | 10 March 1942 |
| Decommissioned | 22 August 1945 |
| Identification | Hull number: PG-68 |
| Fate | Returned to Royal Navy |
| United Kingdom | |
| Name | HMSBegonia |
| Namesake | Begonia |
| Commissioned | 22 August 1945 |
| Fate | Sold into civilian service, 22 July 1946, wrecked 1970 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Flower-classcorvette |
| Displacement | 925long tons (940 t; 1,036 short tons) |
| Length | 205 ft (62.48 m)o/a |
| Beam | 33 ft (10.06 m) |
| Draught | 11.5 ft (3.51 m) |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 16knots (29.6 km/h) |
| Range | 3,500 nautical miles (6,482 km) at 12 knots (22.2 km/h) |
| Complement | 85 |
| Sensors & processing systems |
|
| Armament |
|
HMSBegonia was aFlower-classcorvette that served in theRoyal Navy duringWorld War II. In 1942 she was lent to theUnited States Navy andcommissioned asUSSImpulse. Returned to the Royal Navy in 1945,Begonia was stricken and sold into merchant service. She was wrecked off the coast of Spain in 1970.
The ship was built atCook, Welton & Gemmell, ofBeverley, England, as part of the 1939 Programme for theRoyal Navy. One of the earliest Flower-class corvettes, she was ordered on 25 July 1939,laid down 13 March 1940 andlaunched on 18 September 1940. She wascommissioned into the Royal Navy on 3 March 1941.[1] She then served as aconvoy escort.
After working up,Begonia was assigned to theWestern Approaches Escort Force for service as a convoy escort. In this roleBegonia was engaged in all the duties performed by escort ships; protecting convoys, searching for and attackingU-boats which attacked ships in convoy, and rescuing survivors.
During this period she fought in several convoy battles. In July 1941Begonia was part of the force escorting OG 69, which saw seven ships sunk and one U-boat damaged off the coast of Portugal. In September 1941Begonia was with HG 73, which lost nine ships and an escort in a ten-day running battle.During her twelve months service in theBattle of the AtlanticBegonia escorted 15 Atlantic and 8Gibraltar convoys, assisting in the safe passage of over 800 ships, though some were subsequently lost.[2] One of a group of corvettes transferred to the U.S. Navy under reverseLend-Lease, she was commissioned as USSImpulse in March 1942.
She was commissioned as USSImpulse at London on 16 March 1942.[3]Impulse departed from Lisahally,County Londonderry, Northern Ireland, on 15 April 1942 as a convoy escort. Upon arrival atNew York on 4 May, the ship steamed toNorfolk, Virginia, and began regular operations as a coastal escort ship from Norfolk toKey West.Impulse returned to New York on 25 August 1942 for duty protecting the important supply line between that port andGuantánamo Bay, Cuba. For the next three years she made repeated escort voyages to and from Cuba, effectively helping to counter the German U-boat menace.[3]
Impulse arrived atBoston on 6 July 1945 for return to the Royal Navy. She departed on 1 August and arrivedHarwich, England, on 15 August.Decommissioned on 22 August 1945, the corvette was returned to the Royal Navy.[3]
The vessel was sold into civilian service on 22 July 1946, becoming the mercantileBegonlock. Resold in 1949 and renamedFundiciones Molinao, the ship was renamedAstiluzu in 1951 andRio Mero in 1956.[4] She was wrecked off Punta de los Entinas, Spain, on 21 January 1970.[5]
This article incorporates text from thepublic domainDictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be foundhere.
