Havock underway shortly before the start of WW2
History
United Kingdom
Name	Havock
Builder	William Denny & Brothers,Dumbarton
Laid down	15 May 1935
Launched	July 1936
Completed	16 January 1937
Identification	Pennant number: H43
Fate	Ran aground and wrecked, 6 April 1942
General characteristics as built
Class and type	H-classdestroyer
Displacement	1,350long tons (1,370 t) (standard) 1,883 long tons (1,913 t) (deep load)
Length	323 ft (98.5 m)
Beam	33 ft (10.1 m)
Draught	12 ft 5 in (3.8 m)
Installed power	34,000 shp (25,000 kW) 3Admiralty 3-drum boilers
Propulsion	2 shafts, 2 gearedsteam turbines
Speed	36knots (67 km/h; 41 mph)
Range	5,530 nmi (10,240 km; 6,360 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Complement	137 (peacetime), 146 (wartime)
Sensors and processing systems	ASDIC
Armament	4 × single4.7 in (120 mm) guns 2 × quadruple0.5 in (12.7 mm)AA machineguns 2 × quadruple21 in (533 mm)torpedo tubes 20 ×depth charges, 1 rail and 2 throwers

HMSHavock was anH-classdestroyer built for the BritishRoyal Navy in the mid-1930s. During theSpanish Civil War of 1936–1939, the ship enforced the arms blockade imposed by Britain and France on both sides as part of theMediterranean Fleet. During the first few months of theSecond World War,Havock searched for Germancommerce raiders in theAtlantic Ocean and participated in theFirst Battle of Narvik during theNorwegian Campaign of April–June 1940 before she was transferred back to the Mediterranean Fleet in May where she escorted a number ofconvoys to Malta. The ship took part in theBattle of Cape Spada in July 1940, theBattle of Cape Matapan in March 1941 and the evacuation ofGreece in April 1941. She was damaged during the Battle of Crete the following month, but participated in theSyria–Lebanon Campaign in June.

Havock began escorting supply convoys in June toTobruk,Libya until the ship was damaged in October. She was repaired in time to escort a convoy to Malta during theFirst Battle of Sirte in December and was badly damaged by the Italian battleshipLittorio whilst protecting another convoy during theSecond Battle of Sirte in March 1942. Repairs were attempted inMalta, but the ship was further damaged in an air raid in early April. The Admiralty decided that further attempts to repair her at Malta were pointless and ordered her toGibraltar for permanent repairs. On 6 April, while on passage to Gibraltar,Havock ran aground nearCape Bon,Tunisia, and her crew was interned by theVichy French atLaghouat in theSahara.

Havock displaced 1,350long tons (1,370 t) atstandard load and 1,883 long tons (1,913 t) atdeep load. The ship had anoverall length of 323 feet (98.5 m), abeam of 33 feet (10.1 m) and adraught of 12 feet 5 inches (3.8 m). She was powered byParsons gearedsteam turbines, driving two shafts, which developed a total of 34,000shaft horsepower (25,000 kW) and gave a maximum speed of 36knots (67 km/h; 41 mph). Steam for the turbines was provided by threeAdmiralty 3-drum boilers.Havock carried a maximum of 470 long tons (480 t) offuel oil that gave her a range of 5,530nautical miles (10,240 km; 6,360 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph). The ship's complement was 137 officers andratings in peacetime,^[1] but this increased to 146 in wartime.^[2]

The ship mounted four 45-calibre4.7-inch Mk IX guns in single mounts, designated 'A', 'B', 'X', and 'Y' from front to rear. Foranti-aircraft (AA) defence,Havock had two quadruple Mark I mounts for theVickers 0.5 in (12.7 mm)AA machineguns. She was fitted with two above-water quadrupletorpedo tube mounts for21-inch torpedoes.^[1] Onedepth charge rail and two throwers were fitted; 20 depth charges were originally carried, but this increased to 35 shortly after the war began.^[3] By mid-1940, this had increased to 44 depth charges.^[4]

Most ships ofHavock's class had the rear torpedo tubes replaced by a12-pounderAA gun after theevacuation of Dunkirk in 1940, but it is not clear if she received this modification. Other changes may have included exchanging her two quadruple 0.50-calibre Vickers machine gun mounts between her funnels for two20-millimeter (0.8 in) Oerlikon AA guns, the addition of two Oerlikon guns to hersearchlight platform and another pair on the wings of thebridge.^[5]

Ordered on 13 December 1934 fromWilliam Denny & Brothers,Havock waslaid down at their shipyard atDumbarton,Scotland on 15 May 1935. She waslaunched on 7 July 1936 and completed on 16 January 1937. Excluding government-furnished equipment like the armament, the ship cost £248,470.^[6]

Havock was assigned to the2nd Destroyer Flotilla of the Mediterranean Fleet upon commissioning. She patrolled Spanish waters during the Spanish Civil War enforcing the policies of theNon-Intervention Committee. On the night of 31 August/1 September 1937, she was unsuccessfully attacked by theItalian submarine Iride with torpedoes, between theGulf of Valencia and theBalearic Islands. The ship was refitted in Gibraltar between 19 October and 13 November and required repairs between 16 April and 6 May 1938 after hitting the stone side of aquay.Havock was given a brief refit atSheerness Dockyard between 15 and 26 August 1939 before returning to Gibraltar.^[7]

The ship sailed toFreetown,Sierra Leone on 30 August and arrived on 4 September to search for German commerce raiders. She was transferred back to the UK in November for a more thorough refit at Sheerness between 18 December and 23 March 1940. In the meantime, the 2nd Destroyer Flotilla had been assigned to the Home Fleet andHavock rejoined them when her refit was finished.^[7] On 6 AprilHavock and the rest of the 2nd Destroyer Flotilla escorted the four destroyerminelayers of the20th Destroyer Flotilla as they sailed to implementOperation Wilfred, an operation to laymines in theVestfjord to prevent the transport of Swedishiron ore fromNarvik to Germany. The mines were laid on the early morning of 8 April, before the Germans began their invasion, and the destroyers joined thebattlecruiserRenown and her escorts.^[8]

During the First Battle of Narvik on 10 April 1940,Havock and four other H-class ships of the 2nd Destroyer Flotilla attacked theGerman destroyers that had transportedGerman troops to occupy Narvik in northernNorway the previous day. Theflotilla leaderHardy led four of herhalf-sisters downOfotfjord in a surprise dawn attack on Narvik harbour during a blinding snowstorm.Hotspur andHostile were initially left at the entrance, butHavock was third into the harbour and fired five of her torpedoes into the mass of shipping. One torpedo hit theGerman destroyer Z22 Anton Schmitt in the stern. In addition, the ship hitZ18 Hans Lüdemann twice with 4.7-inch (120 mm) shells. As the British ships were withdrawing, they encountered five German destroyers at close range. Two of the German shipscrossed the T of the British ships and quickly setHardy on fire and forced her to run aground.Havock was next in line and fired torpedoes at the German destroyers, but they all missed. She was hit in return, but not significantly damaged. In the confusion and limited visibility,Havock pulled out of the line to find out what happened toHardy and to protect the rear of the British formation from the other three German destroyers in pursuit, but then had to then to turn again to allow her rear guns to fire when her forward guns failed.Havock andHostile turned back to protect their badly damaged sister,Hotspur, and all three continued to withdraw down the Ofotfjord. En route, they encountered the German supply shipRauenfels, loaded with artillery and ammunition, whose crew ran her aground and abandoned ship afterHostile fired at the ship. A boarding party fromHavock found the ship on fire and she blew up after the ship fired two shells into her.^[9] The ship remained in Norwegian waters until May, when she escorted thelight cruiserBirmingham on an unsuccessful sweep of theNorth Sea looking for German ships, early in the month.^[10]

Havock was assigned to theNore Command shortly afterwards and bombarded German troops occupyingWaalhaven Airfield on 10 May together with her sisterHyperion. She rescued survivors from the sunken ferryPrinses Juliana off the Dutch coast and returned them to the Hook of Holland where she recovered a number of British demolition parties. On 16 May, the ship was ordered to reinforce the Mediterranean Fleet at Malta and was assigned to the 2nd Destroyer Flotilla. During the Battle of Cape Spada on 19 July, the ship escorted the Australian light cruiserHMAS Sydney and rescued some of the 525 survivors from theItalian cruiser Bartolomeo Colleoni together with the other escorting destroyers. Her boiler room was flooded after an attack by Italian aircraft after this battle and she was repaired atSuez from 29 July to 15 September.Havock and her sisterHasty surprised theItalian submarine Berillo on the surface on 2 October off the coast of Egypt and forced her to scuttle herself.^[11] The destroyers rescued 47 survivors between them.^[11]

Havock was engaged on escort duties for the next six months, including escorting the carrierIllustrious during theBattle of Taranto on the night of 11/12 November,^[12] aside from a refit in Malta from 22 December to 20 February 1941.^[13] During the Battle of Cape Matapan, she torpedoed and sank theItalian destroyer Vittorio Alfieri on 28 March.^[14] The shipevacuated Commonwealth troops from Greece at the end of April and was one of three destroyers escorting the light cruiserAjax when they bombardedBenghazi on the night of 7/8 May.^[15]Havock was damaged by dive bombers on 23 May, killing 15 and wounding 10 men,^[16] after a patrol offHeraklion,Crete. She was under repair at Alexandria until 16 June.^[13] The ship bombarded Vichy French positions inLebanon in early July^[17] and then began escorting ships to Tobruk until October when her propeller shafts and propellers were damaged.Havock was under repair from 21 October to 4 December at Alexandria.^[13]

In mid-December, the ship escorted the supply shipBreconshire to Malta during the brief engagement known as First Battle of Sirte and then joinedForce K in an attempt to intercept an Italian convoy toTripoli, Libya. On the night of 18/19 December, the reinforced Force K ran over an Italian minefield that sank one cruiser and damaged two others.Havock escorted the badly damaged light cruiserAurora back to Malta.^[18]Havock was one of four destroyers that escortedBreconshire back to Alexandria in early January 1942.^[13] Whilst escorting another convoy to Malta, the ship was diverted to escort the damaged freighterThermoplylae from Benghazi back to Alexandria but the latter was attacked and sunk en route by Axis aircraft on 19 January.Havock rescued some 350 survivors beforeThermoplylae sank.^[19]

The ship was transferred to the 22nd Destroyer Flotilla in February and continued to escort convoys to Malta.^[13] On 22 March 1942, several splinters from a 15-inch (38 cm) near miss from the Italian battleshipLittorio perforated one of her boilers during the Second Battle of Sirte, killing eight men.Havock was forced to make for Malta for repairs.^[20] Whilst in dock, the ship was a target for Axis aircraft and sustained some damage on 3 April and was ordered to Gibraltar before her repairs were complete.Havock ran aground offKelibia, Tunisia, in theStrait of Sicily on 6 April and was wrecked, with one crewman killed in the incident. Her crew and passengers were interned by theVichy French at Laghouat in the Sahara but were released in November as a result ofOperation Torch.^[21][13] Her wreck was later torpedoed by the Italian submarineAradam.^[22]

• English, John (1993).Amazon to Ivanhoe: British Standard Destroyers of the 1930s. Kendal, UK: World Ship Society.ISBN 0-905617-64-9.
• Friedman, Norman (2009).British Destroyers From Earliest Days to the Second World War. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press.ISBN 978-1-59114-081-8.
• Haarr, Geirr H. (2009).The German Invasion of Norway, April 1940. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press.ISBN 978-1-59114-310-9.
• Lenton, H. T. (1998).British & Empire Warships of the Second World War. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press.ISBN 1-55750-048-7.
• O'Hara, Vincent P. (2009).Struggle for the Middle Sea: The Great Navies at War in the Mediterranean Theater, 1940–1945. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press.ISBN 978-1-59114-648-3.
• Rohwer, Jürgen (2005).Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two (Third Revised ed.). Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press.ISBN 1-59114-119-2.
• Shores, Christopher; Cull, Brian & Malizia, Nicola (1987).Air War for Yugoslavia, Greece, and Crete. London: Grub Street.ISBN 0-948817-07-0.
• The Royal Navy and the Mediterranean: November 1940 – December 1941. Whitehall Histories, Naval Staff Histories. Vol. II (Whitehall History in association with Frank Cass ed.). London: United Kingdom, Admiralty Historical Section. 2002.ISBN 0-7146-5205-9.
• Whitley, M. J. (1988).Destroyers of World War Two: An International Encyclopedia. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press.ISBN 0-87021-326-1.

• Roskill, S. W. (1956).The Period of Balance.History of the Second World War United Kingdom Military Series: The War at Sea 1939–1945. Vol. II. London:HMSO. pp. 58, 339.OCLC 174453986. Retrieved6 September 2017.
• Goodey, David (2017).Destroyer at War: The Fighting Life and Loss of HMS Havock from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean 1939–42. S. Yorkshire: Frontline Books.ISBN 978-1526709028. Retrieved19 October 2024.

• IWM Interview with survivor Harry Jenkins

36°52′18″N11°8′24″E / 36.87167°N 11.14000°E /36.87167; 11.14000

• G and H-class destroyers of the Royal Navy
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• 1936 ships
• World War II destroyers of the United Kingdom
• World War II shipwrecks in the Mediterranean Sea
• Maritime incidents in April 1942

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