_IWM_Q_020990_A.jpg) HMSBadger duringFirst World War | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | HMSBadger |
| Builder | William Denny & Brothers,Dumbarton[1][2] |
| Yard number | 933[2] |
| Launched | 11 July 1911[3] |
| Fate | Sold 9 May 1921[3] |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Acheron-classdestroyer |
| Displacement | 990 tons |
| Length | 75 m (246 ft) |
| Beam | 7.8 m (26 ft) |
| Draught | 2.7 m (8.9 ft) |
| Installed power | 13,500 shp (10,100 kW) |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 27 kn (50 km/h) |
| Complement | 70 |
| Armament |
|
HMSBadger was anAcheron-class destroyer of theRoyal Navy that served during theFirst World War and was sold for breaking in 1921. She was the eighth Royal Navy ship to be namedBadger, after themammal of the same name.
She was built under the 1910-11 shipbuilding programme byWilliam Denny & Brothers ofDumbarton[1] and was launched on 11 July 1911. She and her sister-shipBeaver were completed with geared steam turbines for evaluation purposes and were known as "Parsons Specials".[4]
| Pennant number[3] | From | To |
|---|---|---|
| H15 | 6 December 1914 | 1 September 1915 |
| H52 | 1 September 1915 | 1 January 1918 |
| H09 | 1 January 1918 | Early 1919 |
| H91 | Early 1919 | 9 May 1921 |
Badger served with theFirst Destroyer Flotilla from 1911 and, with her flotilla, joined theBritish Grand Fleet in 1914 on the outbreak of the First World War.
She was present on 28 August 1914 at theBattle of Heligoland Bight, detached from the First Destroyer Flotilla along withJackal,Beaver andSandfly.[5] She shared in the prize money for the engagement.[6]
On 24 October 1914 she became the firstAllied ship to successfully attack aGerman NavyU-boat when she rammedU-19 off theDutch coast.[7]U-19 was severely damaged but managed to return to port, was repaired and survived the war.
The1st Destroyer Flotilla served atJutland; it wasBadger's distressing duty to rescue the crew ofHMS Invincible, which had blown up after a German salvo penetrated the magazines. Of the crew of 1,021, only two officers and four crew were rescued.Badger's commanding officer at the time of the battle wasCommander C A Fremantle.[8]
On 17 April 1917 at 1930 hrs,SS Lanfranc was torpedoed four miles northeast ofLe Havre byUB-40 while bound forSouthampton. At the time she had 387 patients, of which 167 were Germanprisoners of war, and of these patients, 326 were cot-bound. Approximately 570 survivors were picked up byBadger andHMS Jackal, aided byHMS P47 and the French patrol boatRoitelet, and taken toPortsmouth.[9]
Lieutenant Commander Geoffrey Corlett received the Italian Naval Decoration for service offDurazzo in Albania while serving as the captain of HMSBadger.[10]
At 0700 hrs on 4 February 1918,Badger joined convoy HX-20 along with seven other Royal Navy destroyers fromLough Swilly,Northern Ireland. At 1845 the next day, while transiting theNorth Channel,SSTuscania of 14,348 GRT was torpedoed byUB-77. The ship was packed withUnited States soldiers, and 210 people died in the sinking.[11]
In common with most of her class, she was laid up after theFirst World War and in May 1921 she was sold forbreaking.
Media related toHMS Badger (ship, 1911) at Wikimedia Commons Royal Navy |
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 Royal Australian NavyRiver class | |||||||