 HMSMonnow, March 1944 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United Kingdom | |
| Name | Monnow |
| Namesake | River Monnow |
| Ordered | 26 December 1942 |
| Builder | Charles Hill & Sons,Bristol |
| Laid down | 28 September 1943 |
| Launched | 4 December 1943 |
| Commissioned | 11 May 1944 |
| Decommissioned | 3 August 1944 |
| Identification | Pennant number: K 441 |
| Fate |
|
| Canada | |
| Name | Monnow |
| Commissioned | 3 August 1944 |
| Decommissioned | 11 June 1945 |
| Identification | pennant number: K 441 |
| Honours and awards | Atlantic 1944–45, Arctic, 1944–45, North Sea 1945[1] |
| Fate | Returned to Royal Navy 1945 |
 Denmark | |
| Name | Holger Danske |
| Namesake | Ogier the Dane |
| Commissioned | 20 October 1945 |
| Decommissioned | 1 August 1959 |
| Identification | pennant number: F 338 |
| Fate | Scrapped 1960 atOdense |
| Badge | .svg){kind=icon} |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | River-classfrigate |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | |
| Beam | 36.5 ft (11.13 m) |
| Draught | 9 ft (2.74 m); 13 ft (3.96 m) (deep load) |
| Propulsion | 2 × Admiralty 3-drum boilers, 2 shafts,reciprocating vertical triple expansion, 5,500 ihp (4,100 kW) |
| Speed |
|
| Range | 7,500 nautical miles (13,890 km) at 15 knots (27.8 km/h) |
| Endurance | 646 long tons (656 t; 724 short tons) oil fuel |
| Complement | 157 |
| Armament |
|
HMSMonnow was aRiver-classfrigate of theRoyal Navy. The frigate served as aconvoy escort in theBattle of the Atlantic during theSecond World War. Named for theRiver Monnow in the United Kingdom, the vessel was transferred to theRoyal Canadian Navy in 1944, keeping the same name, and finished the war with them. Returned to the Royal Navy following the war, it was sold to theRoyal Danish Navy and renamedHolger Danske. It served until 1960 when it was scrapped. The ship is significant as it is one of the few ships employed by the Royal Canadian Navy never to visit Canada.[2]
Monnow was ordered on 26 December 1942 as part of the River-class building programme. Thekeel waslaid down on 28 September 1943 byCharles Hill & Sons atBristol. The vessel waslaunched on 4 December 1943.[3] The ship wascommissioned into the Royal Navy on 11 May 1944 with thepennant number K 441.[note 1][3] After commissioning,Monnow worked up atTobermory and served only a few months in the Royal Navy before being transferred officially to theRoyal Canadian Navy on 3 August 1944.[note 2][3][4]
Returned to the Royal Navy on 11 June 1945,[4]Monnow was never reactivated in the Royal Navy and was instead sold to theRoyal Danish Navy in October 1945.[2][5]
After the official transfer,Monnow was assigned to theconvoy escort group EG 9 based inLondonderry. The frigate spent the majority of its wartime career in British waters with the exception of one convoy round trip toGibraltar in October 1944. In November 1944, the ship escorted convoyJW 62 toKola Inlet in Russia and returned to the United Kingdom escortingRA 62.[2]
From 14 March to 20 April 1945,Monnow deployed with the 9th Escort Group in theEnglish Channel.[6] While escorting convoyJW 67 in May 1945,Monnow was detached to escort surrenderedU-boats departingTrondheim and making forLoch Eriboll.[2] At the end of the month, the frigate sailed forSheerness whereMonnow waspaid off and returned to the Royal Navy[2] on 11 June 1945.[3][4]
The Royal Danish Navy acquiredMonnow in October 1945. The frigate was renamedHolger Danske and commissioned 20 October 1945.[5] During its service with the Danish, the ship's main armament was upgraded in 1948 from 4-inch single mounts to 5-inch single mounts.[5] The frigate was mainly used for training purposes.[5][7] The ship was decommissioned 1 August 1959[5] andbroken up atOdense, Denmark[2] in 1960.[3][4]
