 HMSCheshire in war service | |
| History | |
|---|---|
| United Kingdom | |
| Name | Cheshire |
| Namesake | Cheshire |
| Owner | Bibby Line |
| Operator | 1939: Admiralty |
| Port of registry | 1927: Liverpool |
| Route | Great Britain –Rangoon |
| Builder | Fairfield S&E,Govan |
| Yard number | 620 |
| Launched | 20 April 1927 |
| Completed | July 1927 |
| Identification |
|
| Fate | scrapped inNewport, 1957 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type |
|
| Tonnage | 10,560 GRT, 6,624 NRT |
| Length | 483.6 ft (147.4 m) |
| Beam | 60.3 ft (18.4 m) |
| Draught | 29 ft1+1⁄4 in (8.87 m) |
| Depth | 31.8 ft (9.7 m) |
| Decks | 3 |
| Installed power | 2,196NHP |
| Propulsion | |
| Speed | 15+1⁄2 knots (28.7 km/h) |
| Sensors and processing systems |
|
| Armament |
|
| Notes | sister ships:Shropshire,Staffordshire,Worcestershire,Derbyshire |
HMSCheshire was apassenger ship that was built in Scotland in 1927 and scrapped in Wales in 1957. She belonged toBibby Line, which ran passenger and cargo services between Rangoon inBurma (nowYangon inMyanmar) and various ports inGreat Britain, via theSuez Canal andGibraltar.[1] TheAdmiralty requisitioned her in 1939 and had her converted into anarmed merchant cruiser (AMC). She was converted into atroopship in 1943, and returned to civilian service in 1948.
She was the second of five Bibby Line ships to be named after the English county ofCheshire. The first was asteamship that was built in 1891 and sold in 1911.[2] The third was a motor ship that was built in 1959 and sold in 1968.[3] The fourth was built in 1971 and sold in 1983. The fifth was built in 1989.[4]
The secondCheshire was the second of fivesister ships that theFairfield Shipbuilding and Engineering Company ofGovan inGlasgow built for Bibby Line. The first wasShropshire, which was built in 1926. They were followed byStaffordshire in 1929,Worcestershire in 1931, andDerbyshire in 1935.[5][6][7][8]
Fairfield builtCheshire as yard number 620, launched her on 20 April 1927, and completed her that July.[9] Her registered length was 483.6 ft (147.4 m), herbeam was 60.3 ft (18.4 m), her depth was 31.8 ft (9.7 m) and herdraught was29 ft1+1⁄4 in (8.87 m). Hertonnages were 10,560 GRT and 6,624 NRT.[10] She was completed with four masts,[9] like all Bibby ships of her era.
Cheshire had twinscrews, each driven by an eight-cylindertwo-stroke diesel engine. The combined power of her twin engines was rated at 2,196NHP,[10] and gave her a speed of15+1⁄2 knots (28.7 km/h).[11]
As built, her navigation equipment includedsubmarine signalling and wirelessdirection finding.[10]
Bibby LineregisteredCheshire atLiverpool. Her United Kingdomofficial number was 149601 and hercode letters were 149625.[10][12] By 1930 hercall sign was GLXV.[13] In 1934 this superseded her code letters.[14]
On 29 August 1939 the Admiralty requisitionedCheshire for conversion into an AMC. Her primary armament was six 6-inch (150 mm) guns, and her secondary armament was two 3-inch (76 mm) guns. She wascommissioned on 30 October, with thepennant number F18. Her first commander wasCaptain Montague Bernard.[11] Her mainmast and mizzen-mast were removed, as was the top of her jigger-mast. Only her foremast survived the conversion intact.[9]
Cheshire was assigned to theSouth Atlantic Station from November 1939 until April 1940, the North Atlantic Escort Force in May 1940, the Northern and Western Patrol from June 1940 until April 1941, and theFreetown Escort Force from May to November 1941. She returned to the South Atlantic Station from December 1941 to April 1943, and was assigned to theNore Command from May to June 1943.[11]
From January to March 1940Cheshire took part in the escort of threeSL convoys fromFreetown inSierra Leone to Britain. In June 1941 she took part in the escort ofConvoy HX 131 fromHalifax, Nova Scotia to Britain, and Convoy OB 335 from Liverpool out into the North Atlantic. In July 1941 she took part in the escort of Convoy BHX 137 from Bermuda to join Convoy HX 137 in mid-Atlantic to continue to Britain. In August 1942Cheshire took part in the escort of Convoy SL 118 from Freetown to Britain.[15]
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On 8 October 1940Cheshire and her sister shipSalopian were on patrol when enemy aircraft attacked Convoy WS 3 (Fast), which was assembling in home waters to take seventroopships from Britain toSuez. Enemy aircraft attacked the troopshipsCapetown Castle andOronsay.Cheshire andSalopian came to assist.Salopian resumed her patrol, butCheshire stayed with thedestroyersHMS Active andHMCSOttawa to assistOronsay, which had been damaged.[11]
At 21:28 hours 14 October 1940U-137 attackedCheshire northwest ofIreland at position55°13′N13°02′W / 55.217°N 13.033°W /55.217; -13.033, hitting her with one torpedo. The destroyerHMCS Skeena andcorvetteHMS Periwinkle took off 220 members of her crew.Cheshire was towed toBelfast Lough, where she was beached. She was later towed to Liverpool for repairs, which took six months.[16] She returned to active service in 1941, commanded by Captain James Begg.[11]
On 7 August 1942Cheshire joined the escort of SL118, a convoy of 37 merchant ships that had left Freetown on 4 August and was bound for Liverpool.[17] At 18:52 hours on 18 AugustU-214 attacked the convoy at position41°30′N19°49′W / 41.500°N 19.817°W /41.500; -19.817, firing four single torpedoes. Two hit and sankNetherland Line'sBalingkar, one damaged theBritish India Steam Navigation Company'sHatarana, and one damagedCheshire.[16]
On 9 June 1943 the Admiralty returnedCheshire to Bibby Line, for conversion into a troopship for theMinistry of War Transport (MoWT).
In the small hours of 24 December 1944Cheshire and the Belgian troopshipLéopoldville, escorted by four destroyers, leftSouthampton to cross theEnglish Channel toCherbourg. They carried the 262nd and 264th regiments, which were part of theUnited States Army's66th Infantry Division. That afternoon, just5+1⁄2 nautical miles (10 km) off Cherbourg,U-486 sankLéopoldville with two torpedoes, killing 763 US soldiers and 56 crew.[18]
Between 28 and 31 December 1944Cheshire took the US Army's289th Engineer Combat Battalion from Southampton toLe Havre. Other US Army units thatCheshire carried during the war included the 263rd Regiment, which was part of the 66th Infantry Division, and the 329th Regiment, which was part of the83rd Infantry Division.[citation needed]
The MoWT later usedCheshire as arepatriation ship.[11]
On 5 October 1948 the MoWT returnedCheshire to Bibby Line,[11] which resumed its passenger service between Britain and Rangoon.[19]
By 1946Cheshire's navigation equipment includedradar.[20] By 1955 it also included agyrocompass.[21]
Toward the end of her career she attended at least one of the UK'snuclear bomb tests on Christmas Island. On 11 July 1957 she arrived inNewport, Wales, where John Cashmore Ltd scrapped her.[9]
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link){{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in October 1940 | |
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