| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | HMSTalybont |
| Ordered | 23 August 1940 |
| Builder | J. Samuel White,Cowes |
| Laid down | 28 November 1941 |
| Launched | 3 February 1943 |
| Commissioned | 19 May 1943 |
| Identification | Pennant number: L18 |
| Fate | Sold for scrap 1961 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Type III Hunt-classescort destroyer |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | |
| Beam | 31 ft 6 in (9.60 m) |
| Draught | 7 ft 9 in (2.36 m) |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 27 kn (50 km/h; 31 mph) |
| Range | 3,700 nmi (6,900 km; 4,300 mi) at 14 kn (26 km/h; 16 mph) |
| Complement | 168 |
| Armament |
|
HMSTalybont was a Type IIIHunt-class escort destroyer which served in theRoyal Navy. She was launched in February 1943 and completed in May that year, serving for the rest of theSecond World War. She took part in theNormandy Landings in June 1944, supporting the landings atOmaha Beach and thePointe du Hoc. Post war she served in the Mediterranean before being reduced to reserve at the end of 1947. She was sold for scrap in 1961, with disposal completed by 1962.
HMSTalybont was ordered for theRoyal Navy from the shipbuilderJ. Samuel White on 23 August 1940, one of 15Type III Hunt-class destroyers ordered as part of the 1940 War Emergency Programme on that date.[1] The Hunt class was meant to fill the Royal Navy's need for a large number of small destroyer-type vessels capable of both convoy escort and operations with the fleet. The Type III Hunts differed from the previous Type II ships in replacing a twin 4-inch gun mount by two torpedo tubes to improve their ability to operate as destroyers.[2][3]
Talybont was laid down at White'sCowes,Isle of Wight shipyard on 28 November 1941.[1] German air raids on the shipyard slowed construction of the ship,[4] withTalybont not being launched until 3 February 1943 and commissioning on 19 May that year.[1][5]
Talybont was 264 feet 3 inches (80.54 m) longbetween perpendiculars and 280 feet (85.34 m)overall. The ship'sbeam was 31 feet 6 inches (9.60 m) anddraught 7 feet 9 inches (2.36 m). Displacement was 1,050long tons (1,067 t)standard and 1,490 long tons (1,514 t) under full load. TwoAdmiralty boilers raising steam at 300 pounds per square inch (2,100 kPa) and 620 °F (327 °C) fedParsons single-reduction gearedsteam turbines that drove two propeller shafts, generating 19,000 shaft horsepower (14,000 kW) at 380 rpm. This gave a speed of 27 knots (50 km/h; 31 mph).[6] 345 long tons (351 t) of oil fuel were carried, giving a range of 3,700 nautical miles (6,900 km; 4,300 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph).[7]
Main gun armament was four4 inch (102 mm) QF Mk XVI dual purpose (anti-ship and anti-aircraft) guns in two twin mounts, with a quadruple2-pounder "pom-pom" and threeOerlikon 20 mm cannon providing close-in anti-aircraft fire.[8][6] The ship's anti-aircraft armament may have been supplemented by two Bofors 40 mm guns.[a] Two 21-inch (533 mm)torpedo tubes were fitted in a single twin mount, while twodepth charge chutes, four depth charge throwers and 70 depth charges comprised the ship's anti-submarine armament.Type 291 andType 285 radars was fitted, as was Type 128sonar.[8][11]
Talybont commissioned with thepennant number L18,[12] and after work-up was allocated to the 15th Destroyer Flotilla based atDevonport, joining the Flotilla on 12 July 1943.[4] On 22 October 1943,Talybont, together with sister shipsLimbourne,Stevenstone andWensleydale, the destroyersGrenville andRocket and the light cruiserCharybdis set out fromPlymouth to intercept the German blockade runnerMünsterland. Early on 23 October the British force encountered a force of German torpedo boats of the 4th Torpedo Boat Flotilla (T22,T23,T25,T26 andT27). In theresulting confrontation,T23 andT27 torpedoed and sankCharybdis, whileT22 torpedoedLimbourne, blowing off much of the front of the ship. Attempts byTalybont to takeLimbourne under tow failed, and the badly damaged escort destroyer wasscuttled by torpedoes fromTalybont and shellfire fromRocket.[13][14][15]Talybont collided with a merchant ship on 2 December 1943 and was under repair for a month.[4]
On 5 February 1944,Talybont,Brissenden,Tanatside andWensleydale engaged theT29 and the minesweepersM156 andM206 off the coast ofBrittany.M156 was badly damaged and was then sunk the next day by BritishHawker Typhoon fighter-bombers ofNo. 266 Squadron RAF atAber Wrac'h.[16][17][18] TheAllied invasion of Normandy in June 1944 sawTalybont assigned to the support forces for the American landings atOmaha Beach.[16][19] On the morning of 6 June she and the American destroyerSatterlee provided artillery support for an assault by USRangers atPointe du Hoc which had the aim of knocking out a German coastal artillery position.Talybont andSatterlee operated at close range (within 1 mile (1.6 km), withTalybont at one stage using her pom-poms against German machine gun positions) to support the landings.Talybont operated in support of the Rangers at Pont du Hoc from 05:30 hr to 07:10 hr.[20][21] On 17 JuneTalybont was on patrol offCherbourg when she was damaged by a near miss from German shore batteries (claimed to be from a 170 mm shell) rupturing a steam pipe and knocking out a boiler room. She was under repair for six days.[16][22] On 25 June she was released to convoy escort duties in theEnglish Channel.[5] On the night of 23/24 August 1944,Talybont, together with the FrigateThornborough andMotor torpedo boatsMTB 692,MTB 694 andMTB 695 intercepted a force of German light craft evacuating fromLe Havre. The German motor minesweeper (orR-boat)R229 and patrol boatV716 were damaged.[16][23]
Talybont transferred to the 16th Destroyer Flotilla based atHarwich for operations in theNorth Sea in October 1944.[5] On 9 November 1944 she was in collision with a merchant ship and was holed on the port side aft. She was under repair for two months before returning to patrol and escort duties. The end of the war in Europe in May 1945 resulted inTalybont being allocated for service in the Far East. She was refitted atMalta from July 1945 to prepare her for service in the Pacific, and was still under refit whenVJ-Day signalled the end of the war.[5][16]
On completion of the refit,Talybont joined theMediterranean Fleet,[b] and patrolled off the coast ofPalestine to stop ships carryingillegal Jewish migrants. On 26 June 1946,Talybont, together with the destroyerVenus intercepted the steamerJosiah Wedgewood, formerly the Canadian corvetteBeauharnois, carrying 1250 Jewish refugees.[24][26] On 19 January 1947Talybont collided with a wreck inHaifa harbour, and was under repair at Malta until May that year.[16]
She was reduced to reserve atPortsmouth by the end of 1947, and remained in reserve at various ports around the British Isles for the rest of her career. She was used as a harbour training ship atRosyth between 1958 and 1960. On 14 February 1961 she arrived atCharlestown for breaking up, with scrapping complete by 3 May 1962, with a scrap value of £19,950.[16]
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